Chapter 619
The stadium stands.
There, a man in a spotless white suit—Bahil—was watching the match. Nearby, the 3rd years of Katarology were with him.
“It’s going exactly as planned, professor! Merida is up against the Student Council President!”
“And she’s in ‘Lost in a Dream’ state too!”
“I see.”
Bahil stroked his chin and nodded leisurely.
“Good. You’ve done well.”
“Thank you!”
The 3rd years of Katarology high-fived behind him while Bahil wore a meaningful smile.
‘It pains me, but this defeat will be a good chance for you to reflect, Simon Follentia.’
* * *
Clatter! Clatter! Clatter!
A train raced down the tracks. Simon was aboard it, while above, Merida lay on top of a blanket in the sky.
<Phantasus Original – Lost in a Dream>
Simon’s expression tensed.
‘It’s begun!’
Merida’s Lost in a Dream was vastly different from that of her older brother, Phantasus.
Instead of falling into deep sleep and becoming defenseless, she turned into a terrifying curse-cannon, unleashing hundreds of curses endlessly, backed by immense Darkness control and curse calculation speed.
Before long, the sky darkened like a post-apocalyptic world, and countless curses curved down like arcs, pouring toward the train Simon was riding.
“Tch!”
Simon threw himself aside as curses bombarded the train mercilessly.
BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!
They fell so thick, it was as though he’d been dropped into the middle of a jungle under torrential rain.
‘Even one stack would be fatal!’
Dodging desperately, Simon flung his arm back.
‘At least!’
Bones he had attached to the train earlier floated up, assembling into the form of a Bone Spear, which fired off.
But Merida’s altitude was far higher than expected. The spear barely got anywhere before being blasted apart by curses.
BVVVVRRM!
All manner of curses slammed into the train and tracks. Realizing too late that his movements had slowed, Simon glanced down.
‘!’
Sections of the train darkened where curses struck. Just stepping on them twisted his vision and sickened him.
‘Spatial-domination curses!’
These location-binding curses were high-level techniques normally taught only in late 2nd year or 3rd year.
Simon recalled Bahil casting one on the classroom itself during midterms, to catch cheaters.
‘There’s nowhere to run!’
The entire train was saturated in curses.
Simon’s movements slowed further, while Merida, lying on her blanket, unleashed bombardments without pause.
“Urgh!”
He’d already been struck several times. Heat surged through his body, his forehead burning, his breathing ragged.
And over it all came an immense drowsiness that took hold of his body. The curses, each with differing effects, all converged into a single result—fatigue—driving him toward sleep.
‘As expected of Merida.’
This was the skill of the Katarology representative.
As Merida drove the Student Council President back, the audience’s cheers grew louder. Many had bet on Katarology’s victory, so most were rooting for her.
“Nice! Finish him off!”
“Isn’t she Phantasus Hugh Ikel’s sister?”
“Ah, that explains it!”
Even the host shouted in excitement.
–Ah! Simon Follentia, the Student Council President, is completely on the defensive! At this rate, he’d be better off abandoning the train! Why won’t he?
When Merida entered Lost in a Dream, even the strongest opponents had no choice but to retreat.
But this wasn’t a duel evaluation. In real necromancer battles, fighting at the opponent’s strongest moment was foolish.
On top of that, just being on the train meant Simon was constantly cursed. Simply conceding one train to Katarology and moving on to another would have been the smarter choice. But Simon didn’t.
“Kya-hahaha! That guy hasn’t changed one bit!”
Serving as commentator, Professor Belya of Toxicology leaned back, hands behind her head, cackling.
The host quickly picked up her words.
“Why isn’t he running away?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
She grinned, flashing sharp shark-like teeth.
“Professor, your insight is admirable!”
“How did you know the Student Council President wouldn’t leave the train?”
3rd year students eagerly asked Bahil.
And then.
Bahil and Belya answered almost at the same time.
“Because he hates losing.”
“Because he hates losing.”
Belya bared her jagged teeth in a smirk.
“Watch. He’s about to counterattack.”
FWOOSH!
Simon, battered and bloodied by curses, finally revealed the magic circle prepared in his right hand.
From the flat 2D circle, three-dimensional stems burst forth, intertwining into new shapes and formulas.
As though constructing a tower of magic in 3D, Simon endured the rain of curses and aimed his own curse skyward at Merida.
<Simon Original – Sleeping Deimos>
The cry of a whale shook the stadium.
Azure streams of water surged upward, piercing through Merida’s curse bombardment and striking her, blanket and all.
“Whoa!!”
The audience leapt up, roaring at Simon’s exhilarating counterattack after such a one-sided beating.
Thud.
Simon dropped to one knee against the train body, swaying. One eye was shut tight as if blinded, but his lips curled into a grin.
‘It’s a ranged sleep strong enough to put even a fully-grown Deimos to rest. But—’
Ordinary students would have collapsed instantly. But for Merida, sleeping meant something different.
Especially now, when she was already asleep in Lost in a Dream.
Float!
Her body rose higher from the blanket, trembling unsteadily in midair.
“Nng—”
A pained sound slipped through her clenched teeth.
“AaaaaaAAAAAAAH!!”
BOOOM! BOOOOOM!
Hundreds—no, thousands—of curses erupted wildly from her body. They struck not just Simon’s train, but the entire stadium.
“W-What the hell!”
“Stop! Merida! You’re attacking us too!”
Even her own Katarology teammates weren’t spared. Everything moving within her range became a target.
[Merida Hugh Ikel : 17 Kill / 0 Point]
Merida’s complete rampage.
No one could stop her. Only her “kill count” on the mana screen kept rising.
Students all over the stadium scrambled desperately to dodge, abandoning trains entirely. Seizing the chance, Simon quickly commandeered the train.
“What kind of trash match is this?!”
The crowd was dumbfounded.
–He planned this all along! Simon Follentia, the Student Council President!
The host leapt up.
–He’s forced Merida into a rampage, turning Lost in a Dream’s bombardment over the entire stadium! Thanks to that, not just Katarology but almost every student has been caught! Incredible!
Only after unleashing nearly a thousand curses did Merida finally crash to the ground.
“…Ah.”
She suddenly sat up.
Her drowsy eyes were round and wide, her skin glossy, her hair shining. She looked utterly refreshed, brimming with energy.
“No way.”
Clutching her face, she muttered in shock.
“I’m not sleepy. I’m wide awake! This isn’t normal. This isn’t me. This is…”
“Hello, Merida.”
Simon approached with a gentle smile. She flinched, turning her head.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Simon…!”
Strength returned to her eyes.
“To make me feel refreshed! I’ll never forgive you!”
She raised both arms high, preparing a curse.
But under conditions so unlike usual, there was no way it would succeed. While preparing even a single curse, several calculation errors burst out, and in the end—Bang!—the curse exploded midway due to a reverse formula mistake.
“……”
Her own failed curse backfired, and her body stiffened, turning to stone.
Simon smiled leisurely, raising two fingers.
“Anytime you want, a challenge is always welcome.”
From behind, a Bone Spear flew in, reducing her barrier gauge to zero.
[Simon Follentia : 1 Kill / 3 Points]
* * *
In this train battle, the rule was: once your barrier gauge hit zero, you were eliminated—but could return to the battlefield after ten minutes.
However, the refreshed Merida, even after returning, never managed to recover her strength. The most threatening and powerful presence in the match had been neutralized.
And so—
–The match is over!
1st Place – Summonology: 7 Points.
2nd Place – Spiritology: 5 Points.
3rd Place – Darkness Dynamics: 4 Points.
–The winner of the 2nd-year Train Battle event is… Summonology!
The crowd burst into cheers as though they had been waiting for it.
Toto, Eshu, and the other students who had joined the train battle rushed to Simon, shouting and cheering.
Simon too, unable to hide his joy, hugged them and exchanged high-fives.
“……”
Defeat.
The 3rd years of Katarology, watching from the stands, trembled in fear as they stole glances at Bahil.
Bahil only fiddled with the brim of his hat, hiding his expression.
‘It’s over. We’re finished now.’
‘Damn it, seriously.’
And then.
Bahil rose to his feet.
The 3rd years flinched upright in unison.
“W-we’re sorry, professor!”
“Please, just give us one more chance! Next time, we’ll definitely—!”
“……”
Bahil’s eyes shifted toward them.
Bracing for curses at any moment, the students clenched their eyes shut.
“It’s unfortunate, but sometimes, there are matches that just don’t go your way.”
“???”
The 3rd years opened their eyes. Bahil had turned his back.
“Let’s go.”
He walked off with echoing footsteps. The students exchanged stunned looks.
‘P-Professor Bahil…’
‘Did he just smile?’
Truly—
They could never understand him.
* * *
Even after the Train Battle was over, Summonology students remained intoxicated with victory.
“Amazing! Amazing! I never thought Katarology would collapse this easily!”
Eshu grinned as she spoke.
This event had been considered Katarology’s most favorable.
Even if an opponent’s barrier gauge hit zero and they were eliminated, they could rejoin after only ten minutes—making elimination relatively low-risk.
But Katarology could curse opponents into paralysis, leaving them helpless not for ten minutes, but the entire match.
They had, in fact, cursed several students, leaving them suspended or tied up, forcing other departments to waste time rescuing teammates instead of focusing on train capture.
But Merida’s indiscriminate rampage had turned the tide completely, and after her Lost in a Dream, she could no longer perform properly.
Thus, Katarology, once the frontrunner, was pushed down to the lower ranks.
“Ah! Here.”
Toto flipped through a notebook, checking the schedule.
“Five minutes left. If we want to catch our department’s next match, we should hurry!”
“What’s the next event?”
Simon asked.
Toto beamed.
“Remember? The one you suggested to Fitz—the ‘two-people team’ event!”
At those words, Simon was already sprinting ahead.
“Come on! Hurry up, guys!”
If nothing else, this was a match he absolutely could not miss.
* * *
Serute Stadium.
Students from all seven departments stood ready, their legs bound together. Yet, every participant there shifted nervously, sneaking glances toward one particular pair.
“……”
“……”
From the center of the arena, an immense killing intent radiated outward.
Like their personalities themselves, two girls stood bound by one leg—one with jet-black hair, the other with platinum-white.
–Now then! Contestants, prepare yourselves for the match!
Superb.
When are we getting more free chapters?
Thanks for the new chapters