Chapter 712
Clack!
Kiiiiiiing–!
Jessica lifted the enormous heavy weapon she had taken out from subspace, strapping it to both arms. The massive engine roared like thunder, and soon something was fired from the ejection port.
Simon twisted his head, dodging it.
His eyes flicked back, the bullet slammed into the barrier wall at the far end, shattering and spreading a green liquid.
Naturally, it contained poison.
“Here I gooo!”
Jessica let out a hoarse shout as she began firing. The magic circles spread around her controlled the weight and recoil of the heavy weapon, and the ejection port spat flames as it vomited bullets.
Simon instantly kicked off the ground and leapt.
“Kyaahahahahaha!”
Though Jessica laughed like a madwoman as she sprayed bullets, her mind remained calm.
‘One shot! Just one shot is all I need!’
The poison in the bullets was not lethal, but even a graze could paralyze the target’s movements and disrupt their nerves.
She knew well how strong Simon Follentia’s Magical Combat was. On the other hand, her own skills required a little preparation time. Therefore.
‘Bind Simon Follentia’s legs! That’s the most important part of the entire plan!’
The external scouts in the stands widened their eyes, and the match commentator stood up with his mouth agape.
—This duel evaluation is unfolding in a completely unexpected way! Student Jessica is on the offensive! Student Council President Simon is only evading!
Tudududududududu!
The two heavy weapons spewed flames, pouring out bullets. Yet Simon’s movements in evading were exquisite. He kicked the ground, running in a zigzag pattern, slipping past the trajectories of the bullets.
“Ooooh!”
“Whoa, crazy. Can a human really dodge like that?”
He hadn’t even tried to defend. Jessica’s plan was that when Simon, cornered while dodging, finally raised his Darkness Shield, she would pour in firepower to crush it. However.
Step, rhythm, irregularity.
And techniques that scattered her aim.
Jessica was strong in toxic magic, but she was not skilled in aiming or shooting. As a beginner, she could barely read the direction Simon was moving.
‘No! No!’
Her expression twisted more and more.
‘If this keeps up and I run out of bullets…!’
Clack!
Tick–!
Tick–!
The sound of empty magazines spinning echoed. Her face stiffened in dismay, and Simon stopped in his tracks.
‘In the end, I didn’t land a single shot.’
The offensive she had prepared for this duel in Magical Combat was finished, and now it was Simon’s turn.
Simon lowered his stance.
Kiiiiiiing–!
But instead of charging, Simon stretched his right arm backward, stacking magic circles.
—President Simon! Instead of rushing into Magical Combat, he’s preparing a magic circle for a powerful strike!
Seeing that, Jessica’s face twisted hideously.
What? Why isn’t he rushing in? He can’t not know this is when I’m at my weakest, right?’
Based on what she’d analyzed, throughout the entire second-semester duel evaluations, Simon had always used an early offensive to suppress his opponents. That was why matches ended quickly, with little spectacle.
Yet against Jessica, Simon was taking his time, preparing black magic.
‘Why!’
A vein bulged on her forehead.
‘Why is it only with me that he acts so leisurely? Even back then!’
As the eccentric stunt Simon pulled during last year’s midterm exam came to mind, heat rushed to her neck.
‘Fine, fine! So you’re underestimating me that much? Do as you please, then!’
She too spread her arms wide, unfolding her magic circles.
Without a single exchange of attacks, the boy and girl stacked their circles in competition.
—Ahhh! From the tense early phase, the match has shifted into a spell duel structure! Second-year evaluations tend to end quickly, don’t they? But now we’re seeing a late-game setup! This is my favorite kind of match flow!
During this time, not a single minor attack or feint was exchanged.
In silence, the magic circles stacked higher, and the first to move was Jessica.
“Ahaha!”
Her subspace expanded in countless directions. Students in the stands widened their eyes.
“How many subspaces is she using?”
From the subspaces around her poured mechanical devices, steel beams, conveyor belts.
Squirm, squirm–!
And from the magic circle on the ground rose slimes, a summoning beast beloved by majors in Toxicology.
The slimes split up in all directions, carrying and assembling the mechanical devices.
Click–!
Clang!
The sounds of locking and fitting echoed noisily.
Towers rose in places, conveyor belts lined up in rows, assembly lines were formed. Some devices floated midair in Darkness, others were moved directly by the slimes.
“Let me show you.”
Jessica crossed her arms, smiling.
“My true ability!”
<Jessica’s Original – Chemical Factory>
Clatter! Clatter! Clatter! Clatter!
Artifacts, intricately connected, roared to life, running the factory. Slimes became the workers operating within.
Jessica pulled out large boxes one after another from subspace.
Inside the boxes were chemical reagents. All of them were loaded onto the conveyor belts, and the slimes and mechanical arms moved them to their designated places.
“You know something, Simon Follentia?”
Jessica spoke.
“The strongest toxins in the world can’t be preserved in a natural state, or they lose effectiveness within minutes. You can’t just conveniently prepare them and shoot them.”
Smoke belched from chimneys, and mechanical arms stirred liquid.
“That means, the most effective poison is one mixed on the spot. I heard from Professor Belya that your resistance system is outstanding. She even uses you as an example every time in class.”
She placed both hands elegantly onto the output device of her magic circle.
“I’ll create the ultimate poison right here and now, one that will pierce even your vaunted resistance.”
Tadadadak–
Her fingers moved like striking piano keys. Jessica controlled every process of the factory through her magic circles. The slimes and artifacts moved powered by her Darkness, and her circles drafted the processes and combination formulas.
With natural raw materials, infused with recipes and her Darkness, the toxins were ready to be reborn as ‘magic’.
It was like something out of a fairy tale witch’s workshop.
‘Amazing.’
Simon smiled. Just imagining what kind of tremendous product would come out of that factory made his heart race.
It’s like a physically operating magic circle.
Theoretically, a magic circle that arranges runes and formulas to produce high-level black magic, and Jessica’s chemical factory that extracts potent compound toxins, were based on the same principle.
However.
It’s too big to be a magic circle. It looks far too vulnerable to attack.
Simon’s plan had been to endure, doing nothing but defending until the Chaos Dullahan magic circle was complete, but with this in play, things changed.
Simon pulled several skeleton bones from his coat and flung them.
Their target, the joints and connections holding the factory together.
“Useless.”
At Jessica’s command, slimes instantly surged up, forming walls. The flying bones sank into the slimes’ bodies with a plop! and stopped.
“They’re slimes infused with the venom of Kabara.”
So she has at least some defense prepared.
Simon had to interfere with Jessica only enough not to interrupt his preparation of chaos magic.
This time, Simon opened subspace.
‘Go!’
The moment two zombies leapt out, they charged toward the factory. A wall of slime could easily be blown away with Corpse Explosion, but.
“Intruder detected, initiating firing sequence.”
Rumble!
Clack!
Slimes pulled out machine-gun artifacts and mounted them on the factory’s mechanical arms.
The chemical factory’s work paused briefly, instead intermediate-stage poisons were assembled into the form of ‘bullets’ and loaded.
“Fire.”
Boom!
Bang!
The firing artifacts launched toxic bullets, dissolving the zombies without a trace.
Kiiiiing–!
Now the gun barrels turned toward Simon. Instead, her factory began the counterattack, and Simon had to withdraw the magic circle he was preparing, hurling his body aside.
Puuung!
Pang!
Where Simon had just been, a horrific pit of poison formed, far worse than before.
‘Dangerous. To have mixed that level of toxin already, in just an intermediate stage?’
Simon thought.
Should he abandon the chaos magic circle he was building, and go all-out to destroy that factory?
‘No.’
That was surely what Jessica wanted.
Even if the factory collapses, with the poison already completed, she could still fight.
‘In theory, once my Chaos Dullahan is complete, it’s invincible. Don’t get shaken by Jessica’s pace.’
Still, pressure was necessary. Even if completion was delayed a little, stronger pressure was required.
Simon pressed power into his left foot.
‘Open Gate!’
The blade of Overlord sprang from the ground, wrapping around the four additional zombies Simon had summoned, and hurled them like catapults.
“Airborne intruders detected. Activating wind equipment.”
Clank!
Among the artifacts, a propeller device rose. Then the mechanical arms scattered poison, which spread in all directions on the wind.
Shhhrrrrrrrk–!
Two of the flying zombies were swept up in the toxic wind, rotting and disintegrating instantly, unable even to trigger Corpse Explosion. The other two were shot down by the precise fire of the machine-gun artifacts.
“Mages!”
Simon opened a massive subspace, unleashing Skeleton Mages’ Dark Blaze. She snorted.
“Extracting serotonin compound.”
Click!
The mechanical arms pulled out toxic substances mid-production and flung them. The incoming flames struck them, and were extinguished as if smothered. Residual embers sputtered and fell to the floor.
The Dark Blaze that hadn’t been neutralized was dodged as Jessica shifted the entire factory aside using Darkness.
“The types of poison I’m handling in this factory are no less than sixty. Whatever attack you throw, I can counter it.”
Jessica laughed.
“Welcome, Simon Follentia, to the Great Chemical Age.”
Bubbling! Bubbling!
The cauldrons of each factory began to boil furiously.
“The real beginning is now. I’ll show you my ultimate technique, crafted through this Chemical Factory!”
* * *
At that moment.
“Ugh, we’re late!”
Three people were running across the first-year campus. Special Student No.1, Sasha, flailed her arms as she shouted.
“Hurry, you idiot king! Simon oppa’s match must’ve already started!”
“It’s Mercenary King, not Idiot King! Hhhhrrrgh!”
And the man sprinting through campus while being smacked on the head by Sasha was Special Admission No.2, the Mercenary King Arthur.
He was carrying two girls on his shoulders, dashing like a wild stallion. As he ran, the scenery blurred away, dust clouds kicking up behind him.
On the opposite shoulder, Princess Molly had her eyes tightly shut.
“...I’m sorry, Father. For disgracing the dignity of the Dresden royal family…”
“If you’re gonna act all high and mighty, then get off.”
“I’m only coming along because who knows what kind of trouble you two will cause again!”
The other first-years, seeing the trio sprinting across campus, reacted as if it were nothing new.
“Those three idiots are at it again.”
“Whatever. Probably off to cause some havoc.”
A former candidate for Saint of the Neutral Zone, the Mercenary King, and a princess.
A trio the world had never seen before.
Just then, Sasha’s eyes widened.
“There! Second-year campus, Indoor Arena No.3!”
Cheers could already be heard. Arthur grinned.
“Hold on tight, both of you!”
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
He bounded up the stairs in leaps, bursting into the arena in an instant. Amid roaring cheers, Simon and Jessica came into view.
“We’re late. But surely the Senior Student Council President senior is…!”
“Ah.”
At that moment, Sasha’s pupils shook in disbelief as she stared at the mana screen of the arena.
[Simon Follentia : 8%]
[Jessica Kananor : 100%]
“Simon oppa… is losing?”
The first-year trio hurried to grab the railing, craning their necks. Before them, Jessica’s Poison Hydra, formed of horrific green venom, roared.
<Jessica’s Original – Poison Hydra>
“Give up.”
Jessica spoke.
Thick toxic mist blanketed the arena, while the floor boiled into a venomous swamp.
And from within it, the massive poison beast loomed over Simon.
It was the strongest poisonous summon she could complete through her Chemical Factory.
“Haa, haa.”
At the edge of the arena, Simon sat slumped, gasping. Strange markings spread across his skin, blood tears streaming from his eyes.
“Now that my ultimate technique is complete, no matter what you do, you have no chance. This is the end…”
Just then.
—Fiiiight ooooonnnn!
Sasha’s voice boomed across the arena. All heads turned.
“Who’s that first-year?”
“So rude.”
As the crowd murmured, Simon gave a faint, foolish smile, pushing himself to stand.
“My juniors are here. I can’t show them any more of a pathetic sight.”
“Don’t you think you’ve already been pushed too far to keep acting tough?”
The Chemical Factory was still running.
The poisons it was producing continued to enlarge and empower Jessica’s masterpiece, the Poison Hydra.
Its mere existence polluted earth and air. Physical attacks could not affect it. Even if struck down with Darkness-element magic, the factory’s power would endlessly regenerate it.
Jessica’s hidden card was overwhelming. Even she had never so cleanly summoned the Poison Hydra in a duel evaluation before, and in this situation, she thought it impossible to lose.
“Then, I’ll go.”
Simon opened subspace.
Thud!
At last, from within, a massive headless body descended, crouched with sword in hand. The crowd erupted in frenzied cheers.
“It’s here!”
“The President’s Dullahan!”
Waaaaaaaah!
Simon then pulled Manus’ skull from another subspace, placing it atop the Dullahan’s shoulders. He affixed the prepared magic circle onto its body.
Violet light exploded, and the Chaos-powered Dullahan slowly began to rise.
“They say that thing has cut down ten thousand monsters?”
“Surely just a rumor.”
The third-years clicked their tongues.
Jessica, still composed, smiled.
“Finally brought it out. But don’t you think it’s too late? In one more minute, your stamina will…”
“Jessica.”
Even as the poison wracked him, Simon staggered, speaking.
“You said earlier, didn’t you? That the Chemical Age has come.”
“So what?”
“Then I’ll declare this.”
Simon raised his hand.
Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump!
The Chaos Dullahan’s Darkness Engine roared to life, violet grains of energy rising from its body. Simon lowered his hand.
“Back to the Stone Age.”
Kwooooooooom–!
Something surged out from the Chaos Dullahan’s body.
At that moment, Jessica spun around in shock.
Bang!
Crackle crackle crackle!
Kukukung!
The Chemical Factory, once boasting impregnable defenses, suddenly collapsed as if it were a lie. The slimes went limp, all artifacts and conveyor belts shut down, Darkness vanished.
Fsssss!
The toxic mist filling the arena broke into particles and settled to the ground, while the churning venom swamps dried and cracked.
Even—
“Ah!”
—Groooarrrrk!
Her proud Poison Hydra shrank.
Soon, smaller than Jessica herself, it dwindled into a puddle, then disappeared entirely.
All that remained were brittle fragments of dried poison.
“Wh-what, what is this!”
She stumbled back, trembling in shock.
“What did you do, Simon Follentia!”
Srring!
Simon grinned as he mimed drawing his sword. The Chaos Dullahan, in sync, drew his blade with flourish, standing in the same stance.
“I hope you get used to this era of battle, Jessica.”
The skull of the Swordmaster smiled, its murderous eyes gleaming.
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