Chapter 816
As Jane and Aron expected, in the early stage of the exam, the students showed extreme caution.
They kept watching the volcano on the central island, worrying that someone might attack, or that the monsters might be too strong, nervously searching for hiding spots or deserted places.
During that process, whether intentionally or unintentionally, some students hunted monsters and obtained area points, and their thoughts began to change.
—Points can be gathered this easily?
—This is too good.
The students, one by one, began to take real action.
They realized that the environment of this archipelago was not as threatening as it seemed, and that fighting other Keyzen students held little meaning, so they threw themselves into earning points actively.
—Hahahaha! This should be enough.
One student built emergency shelters with points sprouting up everywhere, attaching a bunch of security devices.
—No one left on a ship before us, right?
—If we just find an uninhabited island and stay there for 48 hours, it’s over!
Students sailed out to the edge of the archipelago.
—Mmm, nice.
Another student lounged in a chair, enjoying desserts while taking in the beautiful ocean and volcano view.
Of course, only top-rankers could afford to relax like this, but the majority of students were actively moving.
And as always in group exams, there was one person who stood out.
“Alright! Everyone, here’s the key strategy! Once you get points, what should you do?”
Dick tapped his output device with his fingertip as he continued speaking.
“Buy bricks!”
Clever and eloquent, Dick gathered the confused students around him, forming a group.
To survive, you had to stick together. Group activity was the way to live.
With that justification, Dick formed a group, and after realizing that earning points was easier than expected, he had each member purchase bricks with their points.
His goal was to occupy the highest hill on the island, then pile up the purchased bricks to build a “fortress”.
“One brick only costs 5P! If we build a fortress and hold out for 48 hours, it’s done! Practically a free pass!”
The techniques and design were all in Dick’s head.
At first, the students were skeptical, but the idea of having their own “fortress” slowly drew them in. As the fortress began to take shape convincingly, their trust in Dick grew stronger.
—He even made drainage channels so the lava would flow away from the fortress!
—Damn, this guy’s a genius.
Students saw Dick’s fortress rising on the high ground and declared one after another that they would join. The size of the group grew large enough not to be ignored.
“Mmhuhu, we’ve already practically passed the exam… hmm?”
Rumbleeeeee!
The students in Dick’s group raised their heads.
A mass of earth shot up into the sky.
“That technique is……”
Seeing the sight, Dick smirked slightly.
“Second place overall, Shatel Maer.”
<Domain Reversal>
The earth turned black like ink wash, then soared into the sky. Soon, the soil itself moved, shaping into a huge mansion resembling a skull’s mouth.
A large figure, assumed to be Shatel, was seen entering inside.
It stabilized in midair.
The students couldn’t help but admire.
“……So that’s another way to get by easy.”
“But can he maintain ‘Domain Reversal’ for 48 hours straight?”
“If it’s Shatel, he can.”
“Really jealous, damn.”
Everyone stared up at Shatel’s skull-shaped floating island. Then Dick was the first to snap back and shout.
“Alright, alright! That’s something only Shatel can do. Don’t dream about trees you can’t climb! We’ll move forward our own way!”
“Right!”
* * *
On the main screen where the commentators sat, all these scenes were being broadcast.
From Dick’s group building their fortress, to Serne lounging with utter leisure.
The commentator spoke excitedly.
“As expected of Keyzen students, their adaptability is remarkable! It’s still early, but already many interesting developments are emerging! How do you see this unfolding, Professor Aron?”
“Shatel Maer’s Skull Castle is floating in the sky.”
Aron rubbed his dark-circled eyes with his palm before continuing.
“From the starting point, it would be visible from every angle.”
“Oooh. That’s true!”
“The fact that Keyzen’s number two focuses entirely on ‘survival’ will leave a deep impression on the others. All students will move to secure their own safe zones, and point conflicts will intensify.”
Aron, who seemed cold and taciturn, answered each question slowly despite looking bothered.
Commentator Conrad thought he was getting to know him a little better, then turned to Jane.
“Of course, by staying in the sky like that, the magma can certainly be avoided! But won’t he become the target of other students, Professor Jane?”
“I don’t think so.”
Jane shook her head.
“Because it’s Shatel.”
Since his first year, Shatel Maer was grouped with Loraine and Serne as the strong ones, and no one wanted to fight him.
Moreover, he wasn’t particularly after points, so leaving him alone up there was in the interest even of the Top 10 students who might challenge him.
This was a strategy only possible because it was Shatel.
“Until now, not a single student has been eliminated. Other than volcanic eruptions, there seem to be no big variables.”
Jane closed her eyes.
“Once all students adapt to the exam, and begin to think they can manage, that’s when dangerous situations will occur.”
“I see!”
The commentator raised the corners of his mouth.
“Let’s keep watching! Just now, we’re seeing some ominous movements!”
* * *
Dick’s group fortress.
Undead busily moved bricks to the fortress. One student, using undead to stack bricks neatly, sighed heavily.
“Phew, the higher the fortress gets, the harder it is to pile bricks.”
As time passed, construction slowed. Unlike at the very beginning, competition increased, and earning points became harder.
But it was too late to stop, and with the volcano possibly erupting at any time, there was no chance to rest.
‘Just one more set, then.’
Purchasing supplies with points was simple. You only had to select the item on the output device, and soon a magic circle appeared in front of you, spitting out the supply.
The student laid out the purchased bricks and was about to head back out to hunt monsters when—
“Gasp! Huff! Is there anyone free? Someone help me!”
A student with a lip piercing came running frantically, shouting. A male student leapt down from the fortress when he saw him.
“Carbins? What’s going on? Everyone else went hunting for points.”
Panting, the pierced student called Carbins pointed ahead.
“I… gasp! I think I found a boss-level monster! It’s too much for me alone!”
At the words “boss-level monster”, the student’s eyes lit up.
“Points will be plenty, right?”
“Probably!”
“Lead the way.”
The two of them quickly dashed across the forest, Carbins, who was guiding, casually added,
“Hey, you’re not gonna spend all the points building that fortress, right?”
“Of course not.”
“Let’s split the points fifty-fifty, and only turn half of that into bricks.”
At Carbins’s suggestion, the student opened his palm.
“Now that’s reasonable.”
The two shared a light high-five and arrived at the site.
—Kkeeek! Kiiiii!
Sure enough, from behind a large rock came the sound of a monster struggling. Carbins pointed behind the boulder.
“It’s there. I weakened it with a curse, but I couldn’t land the finishing blow.”
“Leave it to me.”
The student approached, both hands igniting with Darkness Flame.
“Alright, get ready to…… huh?”
His eyes widened.
The monster was nowhere to be found, only its cry echoing from a magic circle.
<Bind> <Kravate> <Trigger Chain>
Suddenly, curses burst forth from all sides, locking the boy’s body in place.
“W-what! Ghhk!”
He collapsed to the ground. When he turned his head, Carbins was walking over with a sly grin.
“C-Carbins! What the hell is this, you bastard!”
“Too good of an opportunity to waste on just survival.”
He drew a cursed dagger from his belt.
“When will I ever again get such an easy chance to eliminate a rival above me?”
“What the hell are you saying? Did an arrow hit you in the forehead or something……!”
Carbins crouched down, raising the dagger. The boy thrashed and cursed in panic.
Puk!
The blade sank into flesh, and the student’s body trembled violently.
Strength drained from him like water.
The real, piercing pain made his mind go blank, and he could see his Life Gauge plummeting at alarming speed.
“W-wait, wait a second!”
The curses that had poured from his mouth moments ago turned into quivering pleas.
“I’m sorry! Huh? I’ll apologize, just stop for a moment! If I die here, I’m expelled! You know that!”
“I know. And no need to apologize. I’m not doing this out of some grudge.”
“Then why!”
Carbins smiled and drove the dagger down one last time.
“Because this is Keyzen.”
[Zama Meander has been eliminated.]
* * *
The first dropout occurred in the second-year group exam.
And the cause of it all, Carbins, returned to the fortress with a calm face.
“……”
“……”
When he arrived, the group of students had stopped monster hunting and gathered, staring at him tensely.
In the middle stood Dick, arms crossed, waiting.
“Everyone saw the message, right?”
Carbins immediately started a desperate act.
“Zama’s dead……”
“Carbins.”
Dick sighed as he spoke.
“You killed him, didn’t you?”
“W-what?”
“Someone saw you going into the forest with Zama.”
Carbins shot back quickly,
“T-that’s because, honestly, I didn’t want to be suspected, so I pretended I didn’t know, but Zama was fighting a monster……”
“Carbins.”
Dick scratched his head irritably, replying coldly.
“Don’t you think that’s pathetic?”
“……”
At last, Carbins let out a deep sigh.
“So what? You gonna kick me out? You said we need every person’s strength.”
“Even so, I can’t live alongside someone who stabs allies in the back.”
If he did it once, he could do it twice. Everyone nodded in agreement with Dick’s words.
“You know if you fail this exam, it’s expulsion. So why eliminate a fellow classmate?”
“Stop pretending, damn it.”
Revealing his true face, Carbins curled his lips into a sinister grin.
“Through all the semesters you’ve made it here, not one of you eliminated a rival? This is Keyzen! I just did what we always do, so why make a fuss now?”
Carbins’s body grew faint, beginning to vanish.
“This fortress game won’t last. On this stage, there is no unity.”
* * *
With Zama’s elimination, the atmosphere among the students changed drastically.
The first dropout. In other words, the appearance of the first expulsion.
Having already gauged the monsters’ level on the island, the students naturally assumed he hadn’t fallen to them.
—Someone backstabbed him.
—Not even a few hours passed and this happens.
After the first Player Kill surfaced, students began dropping one after another.
[Bwuine Rodreck has been eliminated.]
[Ivan Barshani has been eliminated.]
[Auror Serum has been eliminated.]
Only the names of the eliminated appeared on the output devices, not how or by whom they were killed.
Once that fact was confirmed, fighting among the students intensified.
—You can take out rivals with less studying, less effort!
—Of course I’ll use this!
Soon, even mid-rank students gathered to attempt hunting the once untouchable Top 100.
And in the midst of this chaos.
Two students who had anticipated such a development from the beginning were moving busily.
Bzzzzz—
Bzzzz—
Bees, utterly out of place in this island environment, buzzed restlessly.
Meridiana’s wasps, carrying deadly venom.
Aseraz followed one of them.
“Aseraz, over here!”
Meridiana waved her hand. Behind her stretched the sea, and a boat was ready for the two to take.
“Perfect timing to join.”
Aseraz stretched with a weary look. Meridiana laughed.
“You look tired?”
“Others kept coming at me.”
“Oh, so even they attacked a Top 10 like you? Seems the mood is fully ripe.”
Meridiana spoke with a satisfied smile.
“Very good. It’s the perfect timing to take down Simon Follentia.”
“Have you located Simon?”
“Of course. Looks like he went straight for the central island.”
Then one of the wasps flew up to Meridiana’s face. The hand-sized insect buzzed loudly, making Aseraz flinch and take a step back instinctively.
“Whoa.”
“What’s wrong?”
Meridiana smirked.
“From the position, it seems Jule will be the first to run into Simon. He spotted him.”
Tension flashed across Aseraz’s expression.
“……Jule, the cursed sword user? Don’t tell me he plans to fight alone?”
“I don’t know. Obsessed with his cursed sword, he does whatever he pleases.”
Meridiana pulled more wasps from her sleeve.
“Let’s hurry. Before Simon gains allies, we need to take him out quick…… ah, wait.”
Another wasp buzzed before her face. Receiving its report, her expression hardened.
“What is it?”
Meridiana brushed back her hair.
“Hector is coming this way.”
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