Chapter 810
"Fuuuuuumm—"
Neftis sat on a chair as tall as herself, her short legs dangling and swaying, while she combed through the documents with a perpetually stiff expression.
"Uuuuummmm—"
She narrowed her eyes as if dissatisfied, puffed out her cheeks, stuck out her lips in a pout, shifted her posture again and again, fidgeting restlessly.
Jane, standing behind her, twitched her brow.
"Hhhhmphhh—"
"Stop fussing about and just say what you need to say."
"Fine, fine."
Neftis stuck out her tongue at Jane, then looked at the professors seated around the table. She waved the documents in her hand.
"Are these all real? Hm, hm? What’s wrong with our 329th class?"
"……"
The professors and staff in the conference room held their tongues.
Neftis flipped a page with a flutter.
"Stealing materials from another’s performance evaluation, cursing experimental tools, and during this mission evaluation even deliberately interfering with one another’s tasks. Why are there so many cases of serious misconduct? And if you look at the statements, they all say the same thing."
Thwack—
She slapped the documents down.
"I tried to eliminate others so I could survive."
"……"
As silence fell, someone resting his chin on his hand spoke up.
"Well, is that really a problem? Keyzen has always prized competition, hasn’t it?"
"Professor Belya!"
Hongpeng tried to restrain her, but Belya’s words continued.
"The world is survival of the fittest, the weak are weeded out. The ones who got beaten are the ones at fault."
"There’s no need to phrase it in such a tone, but I agree with the point."
Stacy Sezan, professor of Spiritology for the second-years, spoke.
"Keyzen’s status as the continent’s top educational facility, and the reason it has produced the most outstanding necromancers, lies in ‘extreme competition’. It is through fierce rivalry that we temper and refine students into the finest masterpieces by the time they graduate. That is our role."
Listening quietly, Neftis now turned her gaze toward Aron, professor of Summonology.
Aron tried to avert his eyes, but Neftis stared at him with a mischievous grin until he had no choice but to run his fingers through his messy hair and speak.
"Competition has its benefits and its drawbacks. But I do believe the recent behavior of some second-years has gone too far."
Among the students, a mindset had spread that as long as one wasn’t caught, trickery and deceit were acceptable.
Exams like midterms and finals, where a Keyzen professor acted as supervisor, or large-scale tests run by headquarters staff, were difficult to manipulate. But during mission evaluations, when the students were entirely outside the school’s grounds, their reins often slipped. Some even sought out rivals just to suppress them.
"I agree as well."
Hongpeng added with a gentle smile.
"I believe there are students who confuse competitiveness with selfishness."
Hearing the professors, Neftis set the documents down with a bright smile.
"Alright! I’ll keep your words in mind. Now! What was it we gathered to talk about again?"
"…I told you. It’s to decide on the site of the upcoming second-year group examination."
Jane answered, signaling with her eyes to a professor. A tall, elderly man caught the signal and strode forward.
Preston Patton.
He was the professor in charge of Haematology for the second-years.
"From here on, allow this old man to explain, Lady Neftis. Please look at this screen, thank you."
He gestured, activating the mana screen.
When three islands appeared, Neftis’ eyes lit up brightly.
"Out of eight candidate sites, we have narrowed it down to three after discussion among the professors and headquarters staff. Of these, I recommend this one."
One island’s map enlarged, accompanied by details of its terrain, climate, and local monsters.
"Kidane Island is home to a massive ogre colony."
He extended his hand toward the screen.
"Every plant and animal on the island is lethally dangerous to humans. Though utterly uninhabitable, I believe our students must learn to face large high-risk monsters! From the moment they arrive, they’ll feel like dwarves fleeing for their lives. And—"
The map expanded to show the surrounding islands.
"The ultimate destination will be a more distant island. A ‘Lord Ogre’ resides there. The student who brings it down will earn the highest grade. As for traveling from island to island, let’s leave that to their discretion. With so many sea monsters, crossing on a raft will be nearly impossible. We can expect creative methods like turning ogres into undead to cross over."
He turned back.
"What do you… think?"
Snoooore—
Neftis was nodding off, then suddenly grinned, "Ah!"
"Don’t like it!"
"Eh?"
Beside him, Stacy Sezan covered her mouth and chuckled.
"A battlefield filled with giant monsters. I understand wanting an environment favorable to your own department, but life rarely bends to such desires."
"A-hem!"
"Lady Neftis!"
Stacy Sezan, a spirited and outspoken professor beloved by the students, stood boldly.
"I recommend Serene Island. Hunting giant monsters and enduring harsh environments alone cannot measure the students’ abilities. On Serene Island—"
Neftis glanced at the papers Jane handed her, then tossed them aside.
"Don’t like it!"
"……"
Stacy pressed her lips into a line, while Preston let slip a faint smile.
Neftis proceeded to flip through all the remaining documents Jane gave her, tossing each one behind her head.
"This one’s no good! I don’t like that one either!"
Like a child throwing a tantrum in a toy shop, Neftis dismissed every candidate, leaving the second-year professors speechless.
At last, she paused on the final document, then beamed.
"I like this one!"
She lifted the paper high with both hands. Seeing her choice, the professors sighed in unison.
Preston spoke as their representative.
"A-hem, Lady Neftis. Putting aside the danger, we are concerned whether that location can properly evaluate the students’ abilities."
Neftis turned her head.
"Jane!"
"Yes."
"What’s Endolas Vaudeville’s schedule?"
Endolas Vaudeville, known as the Necromancer of the Cards, was one of the ‘Ten Great Mysteries of the Continent’—and Neftis’ companion.
He possessed an ability to create so-called ‘instance dungeons’, and with that power he had been deeply involved in Keyzen’s BMAT and numerous other in-school examinations.
Jane pulled out her notebook, skimmed through a schedule chart, then spoke.
"He’s currently constructing the set for the first-year’s large-scale exam, but if we ask him to come over immediately after it’s done, he should be able to make it on time."
"See? Problem solved."
Neftis beamed, but the professors, though silent, still wore worried expressions.
She turned her head toward one professor.
"What do you think, Bahil?"
It was Bahil Amagar, professor of Katarology, who had until now remained silent in the conference room, scribbling with his quill.
Among the second-year faculty, he was second in influence only to vice-chancellor Jane.
‘Professor Bahil! Isn’t this battleground disadvantageous to Katarology!’
‘Tell her to pick somewhere else!’
Preston and Stacy mouthed their protests at him, but Bahil, eyes still fixed on his notebook, replied in a detached tone.
"I don’t see a problem."
The two professors sighed deeply.
Neftis clapped her hands together with a bright smile.
"Then it’s decided! Once Endolas Vaudeville joins, draft the exam plan and report back to me! Oh, and one more thing!"
"?"
"On the day of the exam, I’m going to announce a super-super-super important rule!"
Jane tilted her head.
"And what would that be."
"I’m not telling you either! You’d just oppose it anyway."
Here she goes again. Jane rubbed at his throbbing forehead.
Stacy hurriedly spoke.
"S-still, shouldn’t the students be given at least some notice to prepare?"
"You’re right. Hm—then I’ll just say this much."
Neftis thought for a moment, then said,
"Survival, or victory!"
* * *
The mission evaluation season was still underway.
The students staying on Roke Island were the first to hear the news.
The exam site would be the Lehlon Archipelago.
The theme, ‘Survival or Victory’.
Though there had been much speculation about the group exam, now the students understood it would resemble the survival exam on an island they had taken in their first year.
Those already on Roke Island, or those returning after finishing their mission evaluations, immediately began preparing for the group exam.
"You’ve heard, right?"
In Rochest, two students sat talking.
One was ranked fifth overall, from the Summonology department, Aseraz Mikel.
"That the exam’s theme is ‘survival or victory’?"
"No."
And the other.
"I mean the story proposed by the new student council."
Ranked sixth overall, representative of Toxicology.
Nicknamed the ‘Queen Bee’, Meridiana.
Her hair, a mix of yellow and red like fallen autumn leaves, draped down as she stirred the straw in her drink.
Aseraz remained silent, but in her uniform pocket was the letter sent by the student council.
"Had you achieved the goal you entered Summonology for, to take down Simon Follentia, things would have turned out differently."
"……"
Aseraz bit her lip tightly.
"Did you call me here just to rebuke me?"
"Not to rebuke, but to clean things up."
She tapped her straw against the cup, shaking off the last drops of her drink.
"As our senior council members said, the situation is simple. The concept of the second-year group exam is survival. I don’t know what the added ‘victory’ part means, but surviving extreme conditions will be the foundation. If Simon is finished in this exam, Summonology can be steered more toward your will. And as a bonus—"
Her lips curved upward.
"The Student Council President’s seat will be vacant."
"……"
Meridiana drained her drink in one motion, then rose from her seat.
"Let’s go."
"Where?"
She gave a meaningful smile.
"To form the Anti–Simon Follentia Alliance."
* * *
Their first destination was the dormitory of the Katarology department.
Since it was still mission evaluation season, there were few students in the dorms. Meridiana called over a friend from her first-year class, spoke a few words, and soon, guided by her, entered inside.
"This is the room."
Meridiana and Aseraz stopped walking.
Meridiana glanced at the nameplate on the door, puzzled.
"Does she live alone?"
"Ah, yeah. She used to have a roommate, but that girl said she absolutely couldn’t stay with her anymore…"
Click.
Opening the door, she whispered quietly.
"Be careful. Especially if she’s sleeping, then all the more."
Meridiana and Aseraz stepped into the room. Aseraz gasped.
Vwooooooom!
The bed, curtains, desk, and table—all of it was floating as if in zero gravity.
"Just as the rumors say."
Meridiana smirked.
"So it’s true she awakened her brother’s power."
"H-her brother…?"
And there, lying in pajamas on the bed suspended in midair, was a small-framed girl.
From beneath the covers, her eyes snapped open.
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