Chapter 369
“Ahaha! It’s not like that.”
Finally realizing what was going on, Simon explained the whole story to everyone.
He said that the reason he went to Rochest with senior Benya was to obtain materials for making a lich, and the reason he didn’t return to the dorm last night was because he was too absorbed in making the lich.
It was the truth, and such a typically Simon reason that Maelyn and Kamibarez accepted it easily.
Come to think of it, logically, Simon was definitely not the type to elope with a senior girl.
“Hopeless, I tell you.”
The tense atmosphere in the classroom melted away in an instant.
With a pretty smile, Maelyn brushed aside her messy hair.
“That’s so Simon.”
Kamibarez also chuckled. As the atmosphere suddenly shifted into a sparkly pink flower field, Dick frowned.
“But then why did I get hit?”
A small bump had formed on his head.
“Shut up.”
“Please be quiet.”
Maelyn growled, her face flushed red, and Kamibarez spoke in a pouty tone.
Dick shrugged shamelessly.
“Come on~ I did you all a favor and gave you a direct answer to what you were curious about! You should thank me!”
“Oh, shut up already! What was that—‘Did you have fun with senior Benya?’ That’s just disgusting!”
“Hey now! How can you call the sacred miracle of a new life being born disgusting? The miracle of two entering and three coming out...!”
“I said stop it!!”
Maelyn, her ears now burning red, smacked Dick’s back mercilessly. Simon and Kamibarez exchanged small smiles.
“Simon! So did you finish the lich last night?”
“Yeah.”
Simon gave a somewhat awkward smile.
“I did finish it, but the situation got a bit complicated.”
Rather than explain it all, it’d be faster to just show them.
He opened a subspace and summoned Herseba. As the staff flew up into the air, Maelyn hurriedly grabbed the hem of her skirt, grinding her teeth.
“You perverted staff, Areldellu…!”
“It’s not Areldellu anymore.”
Simon flashed a proud grin and opened his palm.
“Let me introduce you. This is my new summoned lich, Herseba.”
[…What the heck? Who are these little brats?]
Hearing Herseba’s voice, the group reacted with shock.
“Th-the staff is talking?”
“It’s a woman’s voice!”
[Why so surprised? Never seen a talking staff before?]
Herseba flipped gracefully through the air as she spoke. Maelyn looked to Simon.
“But you said you made a lich? Where’s the lich? Why is there just a staff?”
“This staff is the lich.”
“????”
Simon calmly explained what had happened.
The lich was completed successfully, but during the syncing process with the staff, the lich’s consciousness got transferred into the staff. The physical body of the lich was now like a vegetative state, unable to move on its own, but the life vessel was functioning normally.
And as long as the body and staff were close in proximity, there was no issue using black magic with the staff alone.
“That’s amazing!”
Having heard the whole explanation, Dick slammed the desk in excitement.
“Black magic is full of unpredictable variables, but I’ve never heard of something like this! Then couldn’t you just create a personal subspace like the Overlord and safely store the lich’s body there?”
“I’ve already spoken with a subspace artisan about that.”
At some point, Herseba had settled on Kamibarez’s lap. As Kamibarez gently petted the staff with her soft hands, Herseba let out a sound of satisfaction.
[Yeah, right there. Just under the grip. A little more massage there, girl.]
“Ahaha! It’s like having a cat.”
Maelyn rested her chin on her hand, lost in thought.
“Being able to create a mummy without using the caster’s darkness... That’s definitely a summoner-style power.”
“But now, who’s gonna stop Simon?”
Dick giggled.
“Even just with the Overlord mode and Royal Guard, he was strong enough. And now he’s added another weapon!”
“Okay, okay! That’s enough chatter! Stop talking and open your books.”
Maelyn clapped her hands and spoke firmly.
“We gathered to study for exams. Don’t forget the purpose.”
“Yes, Maelyn!”
[Hey! What the heck? Why’d you stop petting me! Keep going!]
* * *
With the final exams and promotion tests approaching, days at Keyzen were passing faster than ever.
First came the final match of the “After School BMAT”.
Simon could have completed the ultimate combo if he collected only green cards, but the fact that the theme was Spiritology made him hesitate.
So he came up with a counterplan: a partnership with his classmate, Cindy Vivace. She also needed yellow cards for her Summonology theme, so their interests aligned, and the two entered the final BMAT match together.
Cindy shone in the Spiritology theme, while Simon excelled in the Summonology theme.
The results:
1st Place – Simon Follentia (25 points)
1st Place – Shatel Maer (25 points)
3rd Place – Merida Hugh Ikel (16 points)
3rd Place – Gleck Crow (16 points)
5th Place – Hector Moore (15 points)
With all seven colored cards from red to violet, plus a golden card, Simon had completed the ultimate combo.
The ultimate combo gave him 24 points, and he earned 1 bonus point for being the best contributor in the siege defense team, for a total of 25 points. Naturally, he took 1st place.
The other joint 1st place winner, the half-giant Shatel, also earned 24 points from the ultimate combo and gained 1 additional point by successfully killing a target player once, completing his 25 points.
It was a performance worthy of their reputations.
Most of the other high-ranking students were those who excelled across all subjects.
With that, the massive hurdle of the 4th After School BMAT was cleared.
Now, three things remained for the students:
The second-year promotion exam, final exams, and the subject performance assessments, the gateway to two major upcoming events that had been plaguing students’ minds.
Students were pulling all-nighters in fatigue, but Simon’s case was relatively better.
For the final Summonology assessment: <Creation of a Magical Undead and Thesis>
For the final Haematology assessment: <Demonstration of Black Magic Related to the Heart>
He could cover both with just his “Lich”.
He also had reliable options for the rest of his subjects.
In Magical Combat, the assessment was <Duel with the Assistant>, and Simon was steadily developing his own original techniques, like Shockwave.
In Toxicology, he showed distinct talent during the ‘immune system’ lectures, which was reassuring.
As for Darkness Dynamics, his overall level was decent, and thanks to preparing for the Pentamonium academic conference, his theoretical knowledge had strengthened, so he could expect decent final exam results.
Now, Simon decided to focus on Katarology for the time being.
In the final Katarology performance assessment: <Synergy Curse Using Three or More Curses>
To get a good score, he needed to master the “Four Great Curses of Bahil” and obtain the curse Compellonia.
So far, Simon had mastered two of the four curses.
Indolence, the Curse of Numbness. A curse that postpones pain and later transfers it all at once to a selected target.
Hostile, the Curse of Antagonism. A curse that causes two targets to become hostile to each other.
For now, it was hard to find a common thread between these two. It seemed he’d only be able to get a clue toward Compellonia once he had learned all four.
‘Next is the Curse of Delusion, Delusion.'
Unlike the other two curses, which he had managed to learn on his own, this one was significantly more difficult.
He was now debating whether he needed to seek out Bahil.
“Simon~”
As Simon turned his head, a soft scent of shampoo wafted through the air.
Kamibarez, who had been squatting, poked her head up over the desk and gave him a shy smile.
“Let’s go to the next class!”
“Ah.”
He’d been so absorbed in studying that time had flown by. As Simon packed his things, he asked,
“What’s the afternoon class again?”
Kamibarez answered with a beaming smile.
“Professor Walter’s Haematology!”
“…Ah-ha.”
From Pentamonium onward, everything had been smooth sailing. He had even crafted a lich capable of using mummification and supernatural powers.
Everything was going well for Simon lately, but if there was one thing that remained stagnant and unsettling.
It was the investigation into Walter.
Simon had been conducting multiple investigations with the help of Dick and Kajan, but they hadn’t yielded the results he was hoping for.
First, the analysis of the haematopoiesis injection he’d requested from Dick came back with results from Pentamonium scholars stating: “No trace of any harmful elements found”, and “Though the effect may decrease over time, there are no safety concerns.”
Simon had been suspicious of the haematopoiesis injections Walter had recently been giving to students, but ironically, his own investigation had only served to verify the injections’ safety.
And then there was what Simon had considered the most decisive piece of evidence: the handwriting analysis.
He had found Walter’s signature in Walter’s lab, and Bishop Judah of the Blood Heaven Cult’s signature from the Holy Federation train incident.
If it could be proven that both signatures were by the same person, Simon could have contacted Neftis and had Walter arrested immediately.
But…
[We certify that these two signatures are from completely different individuals.]
That was the guarantee given by the most credible handwriting analyst in Langerstine. Once again, the only result they obtained was that Walter and Judah were two different people.
Finally, there was the matter Simon had requested from Kajan: the investigation into Count Caron, who had ties with Judah. That inquiry ended inconclusively when Count Caron went missing due to a shipwreck.
Kajan and the Thieves’ Guild considered the possibility that the accident had been orchestrated, but since the day of the incident saw high waves and a violent storm, it was hard to argue for foul play.
‘Ugh.’
No evidence.
The haematopoiesis injection was safe.
And worst of all, there was now proof that Walter, Professor of Haematology, and Judah, Bishop of the Blood Heaven Cult, were not the same person.
At this point, even Simon began to feel uncertain. He started to wonder if everything he suspected about Professor Walter had just been his imagination.
After all, he didn’t have any decisive evidence. Most of it stemmed from a vague “gut feeling”.
Even so, Simon still couldn’t shake the belief that “Walter is suspicious”, and so he continued to refuse the injections.
—If that’s how you feel, there’s no helping it. I won’t force you.
Even when Simon refused the injection, Walter simply smiled and respected Simon’s decision. Sometimes, he even showed subtle kindnesses for Simon’s sake.
With no evidence to be found, Simon decided to focus more on his studies and training for now.
At this rate, all he was doing was doubting someone for no reason.
“Due to Professor Walter’s health condition, today’s class is canceled.”
When they entered the classroom for Haematology, the head assistant announced the news.
Cheers erupted like fireworks from the male students in the room, but a few female students glanced around disapprovingly.
“Being too immature is also a problem. A big one.”
Maelyn muttered as she lightly tapped the top of Dick’s head with her textbook. Dick cried out and clutched the back of his head.
“You liked it too! So why’d you hit me!”
“Show some respect, you dummy!”
Kamibarez pressed her hands together with a worried expression.
“Professor Walter’s been coughing a lot lately. I’ve been a bit concerned.”
“He’ll recover soon.”
Maelyn replied. As Simon nodded and started packing up,
“Ah! Hey, did you guys hear?”
Dick suddenly popped up and hooked his arm around Simon’s neck.
“Tomorrow is the Shamime Festival!”
“Of course.”
Simon nodded.
“Is there anyone who doesn’t know?”
Maelyn scolded.
Shamime was the largest festival and public holiday celebrated by the Dark Alliance, a day to honor the souls of the dead.
“We even got our dress codes last week!”
Kamibarez said excitedly.
“Yeah, the dress is a bit annoying though. It’s exam period, who has time for that? I’ll just wear whatever.”
Maelyn said this, but in truth, she had been thrilled for weeks about the expensive dress she’d ordered three weeks in advance for the Shamime Festival.
“But you know…”
Dick grinned.
“There’s a rumor that they’re going to announce a duel evaluation during the Shamime event.”
“Oh, the duel eval? I guess it’s about time.”
Maelyn replied, unimpressed.
“I’ll just breeze through one win and move on. It’s a decent event to test your skills before the promotion exams.”
‘Finally!’
On the other hand, the corners of Simon’s mouth were climbing skyward.
Herseba’s debut match! If it’s a high-squad duel evaluation, it’s more than enough of a stage.
“No, no. This time, it might not be a regular duel eval! Word is, it might even be a designated duel! Like, challenge-by-name style.”
“Say that again.”
The four of them flinched and turned their heads.
Somehow, a large shadow had appeared like a hill behind them, eyes blazing.
“You’re not lying, are you?”
Hector was glaring at Simon with burning eyes.
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