Chapter 406
‘Did I eat too much last night?’
Richard, who had just come back from the bathroom, was rubbing his stomach as he walked.
Last night, Anna had gone on a rare cooking spree in the kitchen. Calming his bloated stomach, Richard headed toward the grand hall where Simon was waiting.
Shreeeek!
A streak of darkness suddenly flashed through the air.
Richard quickly turned his head to dodge it, but instead of targeting him, the dark flash tore through a projection of illusion magic that had been cast in front of him and disappeared.
“I’ve been wondering about this for a while now.”
Grab.
Someone appeared behind Richard and placed a hand on his shoulder.
“I thought I’d seen you somewhere before.”
Richard rolled only his eyes to look back. A massive figure with an extremely trained body, burns covering his upper torso, and a presence that radiated an ominous darkness.
This was clearly no ordinary necromancer.
“...What is the meaning of this unprovoked act?”
“That’s what I should be asking you.”
The man’s eyes glinted sharply.
“I’m curious why someone would use 'Perception Obscuration Magic' to sneak into Keyzen’s promotion ceremony.”
Perception Obscuration Magic didn’t change one’s face. Rather, it prevented others from recognizing it, a form of black magic often used when one didn’t want to be recognized by people who knew them.
“We’ve met before, haven’t we?”
The veins in the man’s neck bulged redder and redder.
Snap!
The man tore off Richard’s mustache and held it in front of his eyes.
“This is fake too.”
Richard subtly began gathering Darkness into his fist. If things got out of hand, he was ready to move.
“Let’s not take this too far.”
“Too far? Is sneaking onto Roke Island while hiding your identity not taking it too far? Given the recent external security issues at Keyzen, I don’t think I’m being excessive. Now, it’s time to remove those glasses.”
The man’s hand reached forward.
Just as Richard swatted the arm away and aimed a punch at the man’s side—
Waaaaaaah!
A loud cheer erupted from the direction of the grand hall. As students appeared, both men simultaneously froze in place.
“A duel! It’s a duel!”
“Hector Moore and Simon Follentia are going head-to-head!”
“Seriously? Where’s it happening?”
The hand that had been trying to remove Richard’s glasses dropped. The man’s face flushed red as veins popped visibly.
“HECTOOOOOOORRRR!!”
A thunderous roar.
Richard furrowed his brow slightly and protected his ears with an auditory magic spell. Cracks were spreading across the surrounding pillars and walls.
“How much more disgrace will you bring to our family and your father’s name!?”
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The man sprinted toward the students at frightening speed.
Richard let out a small sigh of relief and reattached the fake mustache that had fallen to the floor.
‘The Moore family, huh.’
One of the most dangerous families, his identity as a Commander of the Traitor Legion absolutely could not be revealed to them.
And more importantly, he had heard Simon’s name.
‘What are you up to again, Simon.’
* * *
At the same time, Simon arrived at the meeting place with his teammates.
A spacious coastline.
A refreshing sea breeze blew in, and the crashing waves added a serene atmosphere.
Standing with his back turned to the ocean was a large-built man.
“I’ve been waiting, Simon Follentia.”
Hector Moore.
He turned around to look directly at Simon.
Around him, Hector’s faction members were busy moving around.
“Huff! Huff! The barrier’s up clean, Hector.”
“No matter what noise we make here, it won’t reach the grand hall.”
“Good work.”
Simon also placed the bouquet he had received from Richard onto a rock and began rotating his arms to loosen up his stiff joints.
“Simon, are you really going to fight?”
Kamibarez approached with a worried face.
“Yeah. A promise is a promise.”
“You’re impossible! A duel right after being discharged from the infirmary?!”
Maelyn shook her head furiously. Behind her were Dick’s brothers—Dan, Bill, and Al—all with excited expressions, eyes gleaming.
“We’re finally going to witness Keyzen’s legendary duel evaluations!”
“And it’s a match between Rank 1 and Rank 3!”
“I told you we had to come to Roke Island, didn’t I?”
Outsiders had ended up tagging along to a student-only duel at Keyzen.
Even worse, Dick’s brothers seemed like the type who couldn’t keep their mouths shut. Maelyn felt a sharp headache coming on.
‘Neither Simon nor Hector are the type to listen even if I tried to stop them.’
In the end, she walked up to the Hayword brothers.
“Dick’s brothers, you all know this, right? First rule is security. Second rule is also security. Please, don’t say a single word of this to the adults.”
Then she even bowed slightly, saying, “I’m asking you, please.”
It was rare for a noble, especially one with high pride, to bow to commoners. Realizing how serious the situation was, the Hayword brothers simultaneously mimed zipping their lips. All three even synchronized their gestures perfectly.
“Maelyn, even if you warn them, it’s no use.”
Dick chuckled, arms crossed. Maelyn shot him a sharp glare.
“Why are you acting so nonchalant? This is an external event. Want to get penalized and have your promotion to second year canceled?”
“No, that’s not it.”
Dick pointed with his finger.
Two adults had already arrived.
“Kuhahahahaha! A duel! A duel! No way I’d miss entertainment like this!!”
Kamibarez’s father Vampire Lord, Dietrich, exclaimed.
“The youth and romance of these children is enviable. Compared to them, my school days were dull and colorless.”
Next to him was Maelyn’s father, and leading moderate of the Ivory Tower, Daniella.
“Dad!”
“Dad!!”
Kamibarez and Maelyn both shouted in panic.
Dietrich gave a thumbs-up and bared his fangs, while Daniella gently waved his hand. The two fathers were already getting along splendidly.
“Told you it was no use.”
Dick leaned back and rested his head on his hands.
“We thought we were sneaking here without the adults knowing, but there’s no avoiding the eyes of those monsters.”
“...Haaaaa.”
Maelyn rubbed her forehead.
“Well, at least they seem to think of it as some fun little event...”
“HECTOOOOORRRR!!!”
A deafening shout rang out as a man tore through the barrier and entered. The student from the faction who had worked hard on the barrier fell back in shock.
“What do you think you’re doing?! How much more disgrace must you bring upon our family name?!”
The man was none other than Hector’s father and head of the Moore family, Darkos Moore.
“Father.”
Smack!
Darkos ran up and slapped Hector across the face without warning.
People gasped in shock, but Hector calmly stood back up as if he was used to it.
“I don’t want to hear it, boy! Your mother is preparing your return ceremony at the manor, but that’s all canceled! You’re going straight into survival training!”
Just then, Hector quietly said something to his father.
“......”
Darkos Moore crossed his arms.
“If that’s the case, fine.”
He then turned and strode away.
“H-Hector?”
Faction students who had been watching nervously quickly gathered around him. One of the girls pulled out a tissue and wiped the blood from his nose.
“What did you say to him?”
“I told him that, as a man of the Moore family, I was about to fight a battle that would shape my life.”
Hector’s gaze shifted. He saw Simon standing there with a somewhat bewildered expression.
“It’s a secret from Simon Follentia.”
“Okaaay~”
Faction students giggled.
“Simon.”
At that moment, Richard appeared at Simon’s side. Simon quickly lowered his voice.
“F-Father?”
“A duel right before break... Still as reckless as ever.”
“...Haha, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.”
“It’s fine.”
Richard gently patted Simon’s shoulder.
“Now I understand why Lady Neftis insisted me to come to Roke Island.”
“...What do you mean?”
“I’m looking forward to a good duel.”
With that, Richard walked away and joined the group of fathers.
Before long, Darkos Moore was conversing with Dietrich.
Then he noticed Richard and gave him a wary glare.
“Vampire Lord. So who exactly is that suspicious man?”
To Darkos’s question, Dietrich shrugged.
“He says he’s Simon Follentia’s uncle.”
“The top student of Keyzen’s...”
Darkos Moore clearly didn’t believe it. Richard saw no reason to speak either, so he merely folded his arms and stood beside Daniella, Maelyn’s father.
"Well, well, then let’s begin our final duel evaluation of our first year!"
Dick stepped forward, holding the amplification crystal.
"I’m Dick Hayword, your referee for today’s match! I won’t brag, but I’m probably the only one here who has memorized the duel evaluation rules word for word! I promise to proceed exactly according to the official duel evaluation protocol! And beside me is co-referee Miss Meao from Hector’s faction. Would you like to say a word?"
Meao, wearing a face that clearly showed she didn’t know why she was here, replied calmly.
"Die."
"Yes, she says die. Alright, let’s begin!"
Simon and Hector changed into their duel-evaluation barrier suits.
It was something Hector had acquired using his personal connections.
Soon, the two stood facing each other. Dick crossed his arms and spoke.
"Players, shake hands."
Hector scowled deeply and glared at Dick.
Dick responded with a stern look, "Ahem!"
"What are you glaring at? You asked for an official duel evaluation, didn’t you? If you’re just going to do it your way, you can back out right now."
"...Tch."
Grudgingly, Hector grabbed Simon’s hand, gave it a quick shake, and let go. Simon smiled faintly.
"What the hell are you smiling about."
Hector muttered, trying to suppress his boiling rage.
"Nothing."
Simon casually replied, turning his back and walking away. Hector also turned away, muttering “You’re dead” under his breath.
With distance set, the two boys prepared for battle. Dick waved his arms.
"Now, all magic circles, including eternal circles, must be disabled. You know this, right? Whoever prepares first is disqualified!"
"Yeah yeah, just start already!"
"Alright, alright! Then, we begin the duel evaluation between Class A’s Simon Follentia and Class A’s Hector Moore!"
Dick raised his arm. Co-referee Meao followed, lifting her arm as well.
"Begin!"
"Die."
As their arms dropped, the signal to start rang out.
The boys’ eyes lit up with terrifying focus, as if flipping a switch.
Dick’s brothers, who had been watching, caught their breath at the sudden shift in atmosphere.
Simon immediately summoned a Chaos Magic Circle around his waist, while Hector prepared a Dragonform Circle behind his back. Building the base circles took less than a minute.
Bzzzt!
Simon was the first to charge in. Leaping off the darkness, he flew in with a vicious flying kick.
Thump!
Dark shards scattered like flower petals around the impact point.
Hector successfully blocked with his shoulder and grabbed Simon’s ankle. He was about to slam him into the ground—
<Simon’s Original – Wind Snap>
Simon flicked his finger in a snapping motion, unleashing a shockwave to Hector’s forehead.
Momentarily stunned, Hector’s grip loosened, and Simon landed on the ground.
"Tch!"
Then came close combat. Neither boy gave an inch, launching relentless flurries of blows.
Fists and legs flew wildly, black sparks bursting everywhere.
It was a master-class display of magical martial combat.
"Whoaah!!"
The Hayword brothers flushed with excitement.
"This is what a necromancer duel looks like!"
"This is insane!"
Their limbs clashed and tangled again and again.
After deflecting Simon’s punch with an elbow, Hector shouted,
"What are you doing, Simon Follentia!"
"?"
Hector’s elbow extended into a fierce straight punch. Simon tilted his head and dodged it easily.
"Why are you fighting with just martial combat! Show me that ‘Golden Lich’ you used against that giant bastard!"
"Didn’t you hear?"
As he spun from the dodge, Simon landed a roundhouse kick on Hector’s arm with a crack!
"Herseba was wrecked during the battle with the Blood Heaven Cult."
That was the official story.
Of course, Herseba wasn’t actually broken. She had been converted into a legion-type undead and was now forbidden from use at Keyzen. Still, since people might ask why he no longer used Herseba, Simon had told both Neftis and Keyzen HQ that she was broken.
"Damn it!!"
Smaaaaash!
Hector’s wild punch pushed Simon back, even as he held his guard up. Veins bulged along Hector’s neck.
"I said I wanted to fight you at full strength!!"
Their first battle.
During the BMAT with the ocean theme, Simon was completely exhausted from the latter part of the test. And the match ended without a conclusion due to Shatel’s interference.
Their second battle.
In the siege-themed BMAT, Simon fought Special Admission No. 5, Jule, before going up against Hector. That too turned into a team brawl due to other students’ interference.
And now, the third battle.
Simon had only been discharged from the infirmary a day ago, and his strongest weapon, Herseba, was out of commission.
"I don’t want to make excuses to myself!"
Flames lit up in Hector’s pupils.
"I don’t want to beat you and have people say ‘what if’!"
What if Simon had been at full stamina.
What if he hadn’t fought Jule first.
What if he still had Herseba.
"Why!!"
Hector’s aura exploded with power.
He wrapped both arms in darkness and swung like a beast, forcing Simon onto the defensive.
"Why is it always like this?! Are you leaving yourself an escape route in case you lose?!"
Crack!
Just then, Simon slipped into Hector’s guard and landed an uppercut to his chin.
"Your arrogance is too much."
"!"
Hector staggered back. Simon glared at him with a calm, sharp gaze.
"My stamina’s full. I’ve brought a replacement weapon for Herseba. Your comments insult all my preparations."
"..."
"And more than anything, why do you assume your victory?"
Darkness began to overflow from Simon’s body.
"Don’t you think the real fear is losing to someone not at full power?"
Freeze.
Hector shut his mouth. Then—pfft!—he burst out laughing.
"You’re right! Simon Follentia!"
Darkness now flooded over Hector’s entire body as well.
"This is the end of our first year! I’ll pour everything I have into defeating you!!"
Superb.
When are we getting more free chapters?
Thanks for the new chapters