I got into school for nothing - Chapter 61
I got into school for nothing (61)
Lesson 13. Because I have to see you kneel - 6
Light and Aire's headlong charge, which had seemed poised to quickly join the rest of the party, soon met its limits.
─KWOOAAARRGH!
“Hmph!”
─Shhk
At first, the monsters had been overwhelmed by the aura Aire exuded, trying to ignore them, but at some point, they began to appear one by one and rush at them.
Aire was astonished and enraged, as if such a thing were impossible.
“Obstinate, senseless, and even blind creatures...!”
Monsters, determined to perish, blocked their advance.
With even the monsters they had already passed now chasing after them, their progress naturally slowed.
“Watch out there, it’s changing again!”
“I know.”
Was the dungeon producing monsters in real-time, or something? The sheer numbers were extraordinary.
Even the walls forming the maze transformed into golems and attacked them.
It was as if everything comprising the dungeon was hostile towards them.
Aire relentlessly conjured ice, blocking and shattering the foes, but Light, too, had to move his body busily to protect her.
─KWOOOAAAH!
“HRRRRGH!”
─CRASH!
He spun his spear, imbued with ample mana, pushing back the swarming enemies all at once, then in an instant, targeted and struck down, pulverizing them.
Monsters perished under Light's movements, which flowed like water.
Furthermore, the more he swung it, the stronger the mana entwined around his spear became, warding off any enemies from approaching easily!
‘Hoo, if I hadn’t had this martial art...’
Perhaps it could be called fortunate.
In the midst of the chaotic battle, Light felt his spear technique rapidly improving.
Not only was the spearhead exceptionally long, but the military spear technique he had learned from Dokgo Yeon was suitable for facing multiple opponents, making it a perfect fit for the current situation.
‘Martial arts... I thought their limits were clear, but perhaps that wasn’t the case. Does Dokgo Yeon’s Murim truly have such martial arts readily available? If so, it’s completely different from the other Murim I know...’
She had taught him this spear technique as if it were nothing special, yet it was a martial art so excellent that it shattered some of Light's preconceptions about martial prowess.
The thought suddenly occurred to him that perhaps she was making enormous sacrifices for her teammates.
When he had only seen her teaching and interfering with Ban Yuwon, he'd wondered if she harbored some ulterior motive, but upon careful reflection, she meddled with him and Rucell just as much as she did with Ban Yuwon.
‘That’s not just because we’re climbing the Tower together. Sparring is really tough, but... she’s a good person.’
And not just her.
Rucell, and... even Ban Yuwon.
Though they had only met three weeks ago, they were surprisingly trustworthy, genuinely caring, and excellent party members.
It would be difficult to find partners superior to them in this academy.
Even this unknown dungeon, if they were together, could be overcome without difficulty... Damn it.
“Why are so many monsters suddenly swarming towards us?!”
Light shrieked sharply, continuously swinging his spear.
The spearhead, imbued with white mana, rapidly rotated, splitting the crown of a gigantic wolf in half as it burst through a broken wall, attempting to pounce on them.
But monsters continued to surge over the creature's corpse, ceaselessly.
“They’re trying to stop our movement.”
Even Aire, whose emotions had been hard to read when he first met her, now spoke with a voice full of irritation.
With dozens of monsters, each easily over 2.5 meters tall, clumped together and charging, the accumulating corpses were so obstructive that it was difficult to move even a single step forward.
If Ban Yuwon had been here, he would have instantly cleared away the corpses with that strange ability of his!
Light gnashed his teeth and spoke.
“Why, exactly? We’re just trying to rejoin the others.”
“That’s why, I think.”
Aire, having collected her thoughts, spoke in a much calmer voice.
“Because it would be problematic if we joined the others.”
“Wait, does that mean...?”
“The others might be in danger right now.”
In Aire's mind, the image of Ban Yuwon, who had unleashed a vast amount of mana before entering the dungeon, was replaying.
He must have been greatly exhausted, having cast such a large-scale spell right before entering the dungeon.
Moreover, hadn’t he even engaged in a mental power duel with her?
‘A mistake. ...A pathetic mistake, born of blinded jealousy.’
If she had known such a dangerous situation would arise, she wouldn't have provoked him in the first place.
There were plenty of other ways to gauge his skill.
If anything were to happen to him because of her own greed, there would be no way to atone for that sin.
Aire bit her lip, suppressing her indignation.
“We have to save him.”
“Uh, what? Yes, we have to save him. Of course we have to. ...What exactly happened between you and Ban?”
“I can’t say. It’s just between us two.”
“My goodness, Ban...”
Just how many women have you taken captive?!
It was the moment Ban Yuwon firmly established himself as the ultimate Casanova in Light's mind.
Whether Light misunderstood or not, Aire had already made up her mind.
“...You, do you keep your promises well?”
“It depends on the other party... but if it’s a promise to protect my comrades, then absolutely.”
“Good. Then.”
What you saw today, don't speak of it anywhere.
Having declared that, Aire closed and then opened her eyes.
A black, vertical scratch appeared across her silver pupils.
“...Huh?”
That wasn't all.
From both of her temples, magnificent violet horns sprouted forth.
And finally, seeing a small silver scale, like a tear-mole, emerge beneath her right eye.
Light was able to identify her true nature without difficulty.
“Draconian?!”
“It’s a secret.”
“My... goodness...”
Regardless of dimension, dragons were extraordinary beings.
Even more so, a being with dragon blood mixed in, a Draconian, was a supreme race, surpassed only by dragons and gods themselves!
An awakened Draconian! No wonder the monsters were frozen in fear.
Amid his astonishment, Light thought.
Ban had already succeeded in charming a Draconian!
I, too, must be careful!
“Protect me while I chant.”
“Huh? Uhh...”
“I’ll leave it to you.”
Light, who had been lost in his misguided thoughts, momentarily flustered and replied.
Aire, ignoring him, stretched both hands wide into the air and began to chant a spell.
A Magic Orb floated between her hands, and like Aire's eyes, a vertical scratch appeared across it, ‘opening its eye’.
“............”
Whereas before he could somewhat understand her words, now the language she uttered didn't seem to reach Light's ears at all.
If it was Dragonic (Dragon Language), said to be spoken only by those with dragon blood, then that was only natural.
─KWOOOAAAAHH!
─Kiiik, KIIIIHEEEET!
Though they couldn't hear the Dragonic, perhaps its ominous nature was conveyed, for the monsters attacked with desperate frenzy.
Light gritted his teeth, fending them off, and shouted.
“I don’t know what it is, but hurry up! These bastards are multiplying!”
“............”
As the Dragonic chant continued, the monsters' frenzy grew more intense.
Only Light, who had to fend them off alone, was having a dreadful time.
The harder the battle became, the stronger the signal from the Holy Sword grew.
If he drew the Holy Sword, he could easily clear away a horde of monsters like this.
He had promised Ban Yuwon not to draw the Holy Sword unless his life was in danger, but....
‘I don't know what kind of situation Ban is in right now. What if I foolishly keep my promise even in this situation, and something happens to him? ...Still, if I just hold out until Aire finishes her chant, perhaps I won’t need to draw the Holy Sword after all? Am I just making excuses about Ban because I subconsciously want to wield the Holy Sword? No, but even while I'm agonizing over this, Ban might be in danger...’
When he held the Holy Sword, he never had to entertain such complex dilemmas.
Since he decided not to rely on the Holy Sword, every single day has been nothing but foolish anguish.
He found himself pathetic, so how much worse must others see him?
“...!”
As he frantically moved his body, fending off the massive monsters while his mind was filled with complex thoughts.
Aire, finally completing her magic, let out an incomprehensible shriek, concluding her chant.
The moment the orb, floating in mid-air, suddenly opened its eye.
─GROOOOAAAAAR...
A colossal dragon, crafted from ice, was summoned.
“Uh, that’s...”
“Destroy them!”
─GUOOOOHHHHOHHHH!
Aire, fiercely issuing commands, as if revealing her Draconian identity had brought about a change in her personality.
The Ice Dragon, forged from mana and Authority, roared mightily, sweeping across all directions!
─CRACK-CRACK-CRACK-CRACK!
─KYAAHAAAK!
─KWOOOAAAHHH!
Not only the mountain of monster corpses that had been blocking their advance, but also dozens of monsters that had ceaselessly charged, despite being slashed by Light's spearhead and flung back by its shaft, were all simultaneously frozen solid and shattered.
Light was speechless before its overwhelming majesty.
“What kind of magic is this? I’ve never seen anything like it, not even in the royal palace...”
Even the Archmages affiliated with the kingdom needed the aid of magic circles installed in the palace to cast grand magic capable of opposing armies.
─KWOOOAAAAHHH!
Having completed a single, powerful dragon's twist, the Ice Dragon, without losing any power, was slowly circling around them, as if to protect the party.
Aire's complexion had become a little pale.
“My mana is continually being... consumed. Let’s rejoin quickly.”
“...Alright. Follow me!”
However, their wish was not granted.
This was because, not long after they resumed their advance, the dungeon's boss monster revealed itself.
With a deafening KWOOOM!, it appeared naturally from seemingly nowhere, blocking their path.
─To think a human capable of wielding dragon's power has entered. You truly make things troublesome.
It spoke to them in a rather familiar-sounding tone.
“A lion...?”
It was characteristic of the monsters in this labyrinth that each boasted a colossal physique, enough to completely fill a passageway.
But that creature, in the form of a lion covered in rock, was exceptional even among them, a monster among monsters, easily exceeding 4 meters in height and 10 meters in body length.
─You need not be so curious about my identity, human. What is important is that I am the guardian of this labyrinth, a creature blessed by the 'Wandering Night's Lantern'.
“A monster empowered by a Constellation, then.”
Light's expression stiffened.
He realized instantly upon a single glance at the creature.
That with the spear he now held, he wouldn't be able to inflict even a single scratch upon it.
It wasn't due to the spear's lack of power.
It was due to his own insufficient mastery, the insufficient mastery of the or he could draw forth with his spear.
─You, who bear three souls, and you, pitiful human who wields the power of a dragon. I have no intention of harming you.
Fortunately, the creature didn't seem inclined to attack them immediately.
It merely stretched out its two arms, blocking the passageway.
─Until my master achieves what he desires, let us simply converse for a while.
“What he desires? Surely not my comrade’s life?”
─Something similar. But isn't it truly fortunate that he has no intention of taking your life?
Gnashing─ Light's teeth ground together.
Fortunate? Fortunate, it said? There was no humiliation quite like this.
What came to mind were the words of the Constellation he had encountered when he first entered the Tower.
The words of the Observer of All Things, who had treated him as worthless trash, intending to use him as fertilizer for a contract with Ban Yuwon and Dokgo Yeon!
‘Does this mean I’m not even worth being wary of? Do I look like a small-minded coward who would be satisfied if only I survived, even if my comrades died?’
Enraging.
He bore the burden of a fate where he alone must survive, no matter who else perished, and the inability to completely deny the creature's attitude—that was enraging.
But more than that, he was furious.
This situation, where everyone, from this creature to that, treated him like a mere pebble on the roadside!
“I’ll kill it.”
He thought it was his own voice, but it wasn't.
The voice, calm and collected yet harboring a simmering rage within, belonged to Aire beside him.
“But my mana is insufficient. I’ll hit it with the strongest blow I can muster, so you finish it off. With the power you’re hiding, you can do it, right?”
“............”
─Do you truly wish to fight? Of course, I know you are strong. But I also know you have expended much of your vitality... You will be greatly hurt. How foolish.
Light bit his lip tightly.
As Aire had said, no matter how powerful the Ice Dragon's strike, he wouldn't be able to finish it with a spear.
But with the Holy Sword? He could end it himself, without any need for Aire to even step in, let alone finish it off.
He could bring that arrogant lion cub to its knees, and tear out its heart!
...However.
“If we kill that, the dungeon will break, right?”
“Yes. Since it holds a magic core within its body... without needing to go save him, he’ll be safe too.”
That was why Aire was not anxious.
If it was a dungeon generated in mid-air, not underground in a mountain or forest like other dungeons.
The moment the magic core shattered, the dungeon would vanish and they would be flung outside, allowing everyone to return safely.
“Alright.”
Light, as if trying to shake off lingering regrets, let out a deep sigh—then tossed her something from within his embrace.
Aire's eyes widened as she looked at the round, fragrant object that settled in her small palm.
“What is this?”
“A candy. It’ll replenish your mana instantly. There will be permanent growth too. Ban made it, so thank him later.”
“Mana, how? Why this?”
“I decided to seal my power for a while, due to various circumstances. So you take it. Hurry.”
─What...?! What in the world is that? The power dwelling within it!
The lion, sensing the formidable power within the candy, rose in astonishment, but Light, spear in hand, resolutely confronted it.
“Ha! Eat it quickly!”
“Understood.”
Aire, with an expression that conveyed her inability to understand why he hadn't eaten such a precious item himself but offered it to her instead, bit into it.
As mana surged within her instantly—and even more, as she felt the permanent changes occurring in her body, astounding her—she nonetheless commanded without delay.
“Bite it to death!”
─KWOOOHHHHOHHHHOHHH!
The Ice Dragon, receiving the overflowing mana, roared.
The boss monster, said to have received the grace of the Wandering Night's Lantern, could not endure even 30 seconds before it, perishing.
Its magic core shattered, and the dungeon vanished.
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