Chapter 120
“Quit crawling up already!”
Malcolm, clad in the armor of the Dark Knight, charged forward, trailing black smoke. His gauntleted fist swung menacingly.
Vwoooong!
Simon smoothly twisted his shoulder to dodge and slid to the side, swinging his left fist.
Crack!
Malcolm’s head jerked violently backward. But he withstood the impact and extended his opposite arm. Simon responded by thrusting his right fist.
Crack!
Smack!
Their punches crossed, landing squarely on each other's faces.
The Dark Knight helmet and skull helmet both creaked, twisting as the two heads snapped to the side.
“Waaaaaaaah!”
The audience’s excitement exploded at the sudden melee combat.
Simon stepped back, wiping the corner of his mouth. Malcolm looked fine, but Simon’s barrier gauge had slightly decreased.
Malcolm noticed this too and sneered.
‘I can’t win with pure hand-to-hand combat.’
Simon’s current Bone Armor was in its initial stage. It increased the defense of the covered areas and, by utilizing the undead’s Core, could enhance strength like an exosuit.
At Blue Harbor, this feature had been used to arm the residents and drive out the pirates. But for Simon, who operated his own Core, the strength enhancement wasn’t particularly significant.
Wearing a regular skeleton instead of an undead only made movement stiff. Simply reinforcing himself with internal Darkness was more effective.
So Simon had prepared a slightly different approach to using Bone Armor.
“Graaaaah!”
Simon ducked under Malcolm’s swinging fist and stepped in close.
He slipped an arm under Malcolm’s armpit and locked it, moving around to his back. Then, grabbing the other arm and locking that too, Simon tilted his body slightly, toppling Malcolm’s balance.
“W-what? You bastard! Let go of me!”
No matter how strong the armor, if you get caught in a joint lock or submission hold, there’s no escape.
Simon immediately cast black magic.
‘Bone Armor!’
Segments of Simon’s Bone Armor detached and clung to Malcolm’s Dark Knight armor like ticks.
“You bastard! What the hell is this?!”
Simon grinned.
“I figured your suit alone wouldn’t beat me, so I thought I’d lend you mine too.”
“You son of a—!”
Malcolm’s body tensed. As Simon focused on the Bone Armor, Malcolm managed to pull free his right arm. Simon quickly retreated to avoid the elbow strike.
“I’ll kill you!”
Malcolm lunged at Simon with a punch. Simon bent so far back his head nearly touched the ground to dodge it.
‘Flexible!’
Gasps erupted from the crowd.
As he dodged, Simon grabbed Malcolm’s right arm and kicked hard with his right leg, forcing Malcolm to one knee with the impact.
Snap!
Smack!
At the same time, Bone Armor clinging to Simon’s arms started transferring onto Malcolm’s.
‘What the hell is this guy doing?!’
Enraged, Malcolm wildly swung his fists.
From Simon’s perspective, Malcolm’s Magical Combat was purely about brute force.
Simon stayed close, continuously attaching Bone Armor to Malcolm’s body.
“Simon! What are you doing?”
From the stands, Maelyn was shouting anxiously.
“He’s a special admission student too! If you don’t fight seriously, who knows what’ll happen!”
Beside her, Kamibarez turned her worried face.
“Dick! Did Simon say anything to you?”
“He didn’t say much, but I think I know what he’s planning.”
“Huh?”
“There’s something Simon’s especially good at in Summonology.”
Dick smiled and held up two fingers.
“Restoration and Control.”
Simon, panting, backed away.
By now, many bone fragments of the Bone Armor were visibly clinging to various parts of Malcolm’s Dark Knight armor. Especially on the limbs where their arms and legs had clashed most.
“You think you can win with a trick like this?”
Malcolm grabbed a bone attached to his waist. With a crunching sound, he tore it off and threw it to the ground.
As he reached for the next bone—
Tap!
Simon kicked off the ground and rushed in. Malcolm, startled by the sudden shift to offense, drew back his fist.
‘Stop!’
Simon issued an Absolute Order.
The skeleton bones attached to Malcolm’s arm exerted a strong pull, halting his arm mid-motion.
“W-what? My arm…!”
Smaaack!
Simon’s straight punch landed cleanly on Malcolm’s face.
Staggering backward, Malcolm tried to swing his other arm.
‘Stop!’
Once again, the skeleton interfered.
Simon twisted his waist and delivered a heavy side kick to Malcolm’s head. The helmet momentarily morphed into the shape of Darkness, then reverted to a helmet.
“Guh!”
Armor or barrier, a strong enough blow still caused damage.
Malcolm reeled, feeling like his brain had been rattled. This time, his barrier gauge took a visible hit.
“This crap! I’ll just rip it all off…!”
Of course, Simon wouldn’t let him.
As Malcolm raised his head, Simon landed three consecutive punches, dodged the counter, and landed a precise spinning kick.
Thud!
Malcolm hit the ground from the impact. Simon rushed in, grabbed his helmet, and smashed it with his knee.
Smack! Crack! Crack!
Malcolm’s helmet kept flickering between Darkness and its normal form.
His barrier gauge dropped below half in an instant.
“Graaaaaaaah!”
Malcolm roared and charged, grabbing Simon’s waist and tackling him to the ground. He mounted Simon and raised his fist with a twisted grin.
‘Back.’
Simon gave another Absolute Order.
All the Bone Armor attached to Malcolm pulled his torso backward.
Malcolm couldn’t land his punch. Instead, Simon pummeled his face repeatedly, breaking the mount.
Spin.
Simon rolled and sprang up, spinning into a heavy kick to Malcolm’s abdomen. Malcolm’s body flew several meters.
“Gak! Kuh! Graaaagh!”
Writhing in pain and frustration, Malcolm gritted his teeth and opened his subspace.
‘I don’t care about the consequences anymore!’
What came out was another round of liquid bombs—this time, five bottles.
With a roar, Malcolm charged, igniting the potions with Darkness as he embraced them.
‘At this range, even if I die, he can’t dodge!’
He was wearing the Dark Knight armor. Simon was unarmored.
If the explosion happened now, both would take damage, but he’d be the one who survived thanks to his armor.
‘Attaching your Bone Armor to me was your mistake, Simon!’
However—
Simon stood in place, smirking.
“You really can’t go beyond my expectations.”
There was no easier opponent than one lost in rage.
Simon raised his index finger.
Clangclangclangclang!
Clang!
Clangclangclang!
Blades shot up from the floor through the subspace, launching Malcolm from ground to ceiling.
“Gah!”
Though Simon had been right in front of him, his vision flipped as his body soared tens of meters into the air. The explosive potions in his arms began emitting a blinding light.
“Siiiiiimooooooon!”
Malcolm’s screaming face was consumed by the blast.
KABOOOOOM!
Gray smoke and thunderous roars followed.
The spectators ducked and covered their heads. The explosion blew a hole in the stadium roof, revealing the sky as wind howled through.
Moments later, from the smoke cloud, Malcolm—his Dark Knight armor completely destroyed—was falling.
Simon raised his right arm.
Clangclangclangclang!
Four blades shot out and pinned the falling Malcolm into the wall.
Only after that final move did Simon let out a sigh of relief.
[Malcolm Randolph: 0%]
[Simon Follentia: 79%]
The judge raised his arm.
“Winner! Class A’s Simon Follentia!”
“WAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!”
Cheers erupted from all directions, like explosions.
“Overwhelming. This year’s special admission Number 1 is the real deal!”
“Is Keyzen some kind of never-drying spring? Every year it spits out monsters like that, it’s crazy.”
“He’s seventeen? Damn, that’s depressing.”
The adults laughed as they spat excited commentary, retracing the match’s highlights, while scouts frantically scribbled with their quills or activated their communication crystals to report back to headquarters.
“You need to change the recruitment priority immediately.”
“What the hell are you doing over there? You said he didn’t even do pre-enrollment studies! He’s using Bone Armor, you maniacs!”
A top-tier prospect—no, a new star—had appeared.
“Ha, that bastard Malcolm... tsk...!”
“Number 1 just served him a big one.”
“Betting’s all about luck, haahahaha!”
The second-years accepted the betting results with a bittersweet grin.
“If I get paid, drinks on me, Simon!”
“Simon! You were awesome!”
The members of Team 7 waved and shouted excitedly in Simon’s direction. Simon smiled and waved back.
“Preparing for the next match.”
The attendants began clearing the arena floor, and Simon returned to the waiting room. He received a quick checkup from the waiting medical team and returned the barrier equipment.
Then, barely a few steps down the hallway—
“Ah.”
Simon came face-to-face with someone in a Keyzen uniform. He bowed his head.
“Hello, senior.”
It was Andre, president of the Noble Club and third prince of the Dresden Kingdom. His face was red to the ears and trembling with fury.
“...Do you even realize what you’ve just done?”
“Yes, I just finished my duel evaluation.”
Bang!
Andre smashed his fist into the wall. The pristine wall cracked with a sound like shattering glass.
“You dared to beat down the Dark Knight, the symbol of the Dresden royal family, in such a lowly fashion?”
“……”
“It doesn’t matter if you’re stronger than Malcolm or not! Once Malcolm put on the Dark Knight armor, you should’ve read the room! Didn’t you see? I—the Dresden royal family—was behind Malcolm! You should’ve lost, or at least forfeited! But you went ahead and won?! You crazy bastard! Was it that hard to swallow your pride just once?! Don’t you understand how to survive? Are you even a damn noble?!”
Andre’s voice echoed through the corridor, his eyes bloodshot with rage.
“You have insulted the royal family!”
“...Um, right. My apologies.”
Simon scratched his head and shrugged.
“That just doesn’t make any sense to me.”
“What?”
“That might be the most illogical thing I’ve ever heard.”
Simon calmly placed a hand on his school uniform and spoke softly.
“This is Keyzen. You should act like you’re in Keyzen.”
Andre wore a dazed expression. What the hell was this kid saying? Was he really talking to me?
“Giving Malcolm the Dark Knight armor was your choice, senior. But defeating him was my duty, as a Keyzen student giving his all in a match. To bring up ‘insulting the royal family’ on top of that? Isn’t that going too far?”
“You lowly...!!”
Andre raised his hand, and Simon remained still.
Grab!
“Stop.”
A hand shot out from behind and grabbed Andre’s wrist. It was small and slender, but Andre’s pupils shook as if immense pressure had struck him.
“How much more disgraceful are you going to be, brother?”
It was Princess Molly of the Dresden Kingdom.
Andre recoiled in shock, then forced a smile.
“M-Molly! When did you arrive at Keyzen? Hahaha! You should’ve told your brother—!”
“I had a feeling.”
She placed her hands on her hips and glared at Andre.
“You stole the Dark Knight’s armor, the royal knight’s symbol, and gave it to the son of a criminal syndicate? And then strutted around like it was your own power? Looks to me like you’re the one insulting the royal family.”
Simon blinked in surprise. The third prince couldn’t say a word against his youngest sister.
“Do you even know what punishment the Dark Knight received for losing the armor because of you? And now this disgusting display in front of nobles from other nations... I’ll be reporting all of this to Father!”
Andre panicked and clung to Molly’s sleeve.
“Molly! Don’t you remember who I am? I’m Andre! Your brother Andre!! You know what will happen if you report this to Father! Please...!”
“Then maybe you shouldn’t have behaved like this.”
She signaled to someone behind her. A figure quietly approached.
“Ah...!”
Andre’s face twitched like he was having a seizure.
“Well done, brother.”
The person who stepped forward was none other than the student in the maid outfit Andre had treated like a servant.
“How dare you do this to a Keyzen student? I heard you even threatened her, using the fact that her father works in the royal gardens?”
“N-No, that’s not—!”
“I’ll personally apologize to Lady Neftis and tell her the full truth.”
Her eyes turned cold.
“You know how much she cares about her students, don’t you? I would never let our kingdom turn into that of the Talhern Empire.”
“Yes, yes! Exactly!”
Andre cried out, flustered.
“So why stir things up now?! There’s nothing good to come of Lady Neftis or father finding out about this, right?! It’s not too late, we can still sweep it under the rug—!”
Slap!
Andre’s head snapped to the side.
Even Simon, who had been quietly observing, and the girl in the maid uniform were stunned.
“Still yapping nonsense.”
She lowered her hand, her face contorted in disgust.
“It’s way too late to cover this up. The stink of the shit you’ve caused is spreading through all of Keyzen.”
“……”
“There’s no helping it. I’ll just have to clean up after you myself. I’ve prepared a carriage. Get out of my sight. Now.”
Andre, who was supposedly a great second-year at Keyzen, couldn’t say a word to Molly, who had no Core and was just an ordinary woman.
Watching his hunched, defeated figure retreat, Simon felt a cool satisfaction in his chest.
“You must be First Year Simon Follentia of Keyzen, correct?”
This time, Princess Molly’s gaze turned to Simon.
Superb.