All the first-year students from the Department of Knights, all those from the Department of Magic, and even the professors and assistants assigned to supervise them.
More than two hundred people gathered in one place.
“During this upcoming week, you must survive in this forest…”
“Monsters…”
Aint attentively observed the people while listening to the professors’ final instructions.
— That one looks useful.
— That one’s no good. Weak and untalented.
— Oh, who’s that?
In truth, his gaze followed the commentary of Gardner Alfenparsen.
Even though they all attended the same academy, it wasn’t common for such a large number of people to gather like this, and Gardner wanted to evaluate the current state of the Empire.
— Among them, two really stand out.
— The one approaching, and the one they call “the Saint.” Those from the Order of the Dragon God have always been insane.
“Aint.”
As soon as Gardner finished speaking, Valoshi approached.
“Are you really going to be okay on your own?”
“It’s forbidden for us to fight each other anyway. I want to try doing it alone.”
“Still, be careful. Just because conflicts aren’t allowed doesn’t mean there won’t be traps. There are plenty of sneaky types around.”
“Thanks for the advice.”
After Valoshi left, this time it was an elf who approached him.
“Aint, did you change your mind?”
“No.”
“That’s a shame. But if you change your mind along the way, be sure to let me know.”
Without waiting for an answer, Aria placed a small orb in his hand before walking away.
— A communication orb.
— Just break it.
“Mmm.”
Aint hesitated for a moment, but eventually tucked the orb into his clothes.
— What are you doing?
“You never know. There’s always a chance something might happen.”
— Weak. A true heir of Armian should be ready to cut off even such possibilities.
Gardner clicked his tongue but didn’t add anything more.
— Let’s go over the plan one more time.
— The lake we’re headed to is Lake Farden, to the west. To avoid suspicion, we’ll pretend it’s a coincidence. At first, we need to wander around a bit to divert attention from others.
“Eh?”
Just then, Aint saw someone familiar among the crowd.
— Are you listening to me?
“That’s senior Fernan over there.”
— So it was true he’s rich. What the hell is he doing here?
“From what I understand, upperclassmen can participate as assistants in first-year training. Maybe that’s it.”
— And do you think someone from a wealthy bloodline would do that without a reason?
“I don’t think he’d do it without a reason. Maybe he’s after extra credits or additional ranking points.”
After all, that was the common goal of students who served as assistants.
— Not for money?
— Then it sounds even more suspicious to me.
Although the explanation seemed reasonable, Gardner’s suspicion only grew stronger.
“In thirty minutes, the training begins. Assistants, take your positions.”
“To your positions!”
At that moment, the assistants began to disperse in all directions.
The survival training was about to begin.
***
The professors and assistants managed the students by dividing the forest into zones.
Each was assigned a specific area and made responsible for the safety of the students who entered it.
“Fernan.”
“Yes, professor.”
Just as he was heading to his zone, Fernan was stopped by Grad.
“Why didn’t you come see me? If you had told me, you could’ve gotten the assistant position much more easily.”
Seeing that mix of regret and greed in his eyes, Fernan simply shrugged.
“I’ll be sure to ask next time, Professor.”
But if he found another path in the future, he had no intention of relying on Grad. He was a professor willing to do anything for money, which inevitably meant everything came with a price.
Fernan’s philosophy was clear: spend what’s necessary, but save everything else.
“I don’t know what you’re here for, but… as long as it doesn’t interfere with the exam… No, actually, you know how to handle things. You’ve never caused trouble. I’ll trust you.”
“Thank you.”
“Go on, then.”
Once he arrived at his zone, Fernan looked around. There was no lake nearby, and from various directions, he could feel the presence of monsters starting to gather.
From that moment on, the students would have to survive there for a week on their own.
He unfolded the map. The professors’ and assistants’ version of the map displayed the real-time locations of all students.
Those who hadn’t moved yet were still gathered at the starting point, but after about thirty minutes, they began to disperse.
Fernan focused his attention on the point marked with the number 38. Perhaps because of the presence of other observers, it showed some wandering, encounters with other students, and then separating again.
“Come on, Aint. Show me which lake you’re heading for.”
But Aint wasn’t heading toward any particular one decisively. That was when someone called him from beneath a tree.
“Brother, I’m here.”
It was Jace Vynes, the redhead.
“Good.”
“Shall we start right away?”
“Yes.”
Jace opened a subspace and pulled something out. It was a humanoid mannequin.
“Give me some blood and mana, please.”
Fernan bit his finger and dropped a bit of blood on the doll. Then he injected mana, and it began to glow faintly.
“Perfect.”
Jace placed a hand on the mannequin’s chest and activated the spell.
Various magic circles enveloped its body, and soon, the clay doll began to take form.
It had Fernan’s face.
“Did you bring the clothes?”
“Yes. Identical to what I’m wearing today.”
Once dressed, the mannequin opened its eyes. At a glance, both its appearance and the energy it emitted were indistinguishable from Fernan’s.
“They won’t notice?”
“Don’t worry. For at least five hours, there won’t be a problem.”
“And what makes you so sure?”
“Would you believe me if I said I learned this spell to sneak away without His Holiness the Pope noticing?”
Fernan, frowning slightly, asked again.
“You’re saying you managed to fool the Pope?”
“No. I never fooled him.”
Fernan pressed his lips together.
“But usually, it would take him a few hours to notice. Until then, even His Holiness would have some doubts.”
“That’s enough.”
The Pope of the Dragon God Cult was officially recognized as the greatest magician in the world. If even he had hesitated, it showed how effective the duplication spell was.
And within the academy, there was no one above the Pope, so the chances of being discovered were extremely low.
“But don’t forget. The time limit is five hours.”
“That’s more than enough. Do you remember everything an assistant is supposed to do?”
“Of course.”
Fernan handed over all the necessary items for the assistant role. He had prepared a duplicate of each one in advance.
“See you later, then.”
“Yes, I’ll stay here until you return.”
“If something happens…”
“Don’t worry, I’ll handle it before any other assistant even notices.”
He pulled his cloak tightly around him and checked the map again.
“…Right on time.”
The point marked as number 38 had already moved quite far from the others. Though still zigzagging, it was clearly heading toward a lake.
Fernan’s gaze turned cold.
He pulled a magic orb from the subspace and injected mana. It was a communication orb that vibrated when its pair was activated.
It was time for his second card in play to start moving.
***
The wind blew through the thick forest undergrowth.
Fallen leaves drifted down between two figures who stood face to face.
One of them, Verian Kalburdern, caressed the signal orb that vibrated faintly on his chest and swallowed hard.
‘Why the hell am I doing this…?’
It was because of Fernan. There was no way to ignore the threats he had made not long ago, so even after two defeats, he stood once again before his opponent.
‘I never imagined I’d be back here so soon.’
The first time, he thought he would win without a doubt… and lost. The second time, he swore not to be overconfident… and still lost.
With those two defeats, Verian had no choice but to admit there was a clear difference in level between him and Aint.
That’s why the sword he now held in front of Aint didn’t carry the same confidence it once had.
Even so, he had to fight.
“Your task in this exercise is simple. When I give the signal, you launch at Aint and don’t let go.”
“The longer you hold out, the better for you. If you last an hour, I won’t tell the judges your secrets. If you reach two hours, I’ll give you a reward.”
“You don’t have a valid excuse? Say you can’t accept defeat, that you’re doing it for a knight’s honor, and that’s why you’re challenging him again. There’s no better reason for a knight than that.”
It was an open threat, and of course, he had no other choice.
‘This is so unfair…!’
He wanted revenge. He couldn’t accept losing to Aint. But even so, he swore he hadn’t sold his soul to the devil. So why was he in this situation?
It was frustrating, but there was nothing to be done. As long as that cursed recording device existed, he had no choice but to obey Fernan.
“What’s this, Verian?”
His opponent, Aint Armian, looked at him.
“You’re going to try again? You already know it won’t work, right?”
Those words should have come from his own mouth. Verian gritted his teeth in rage and humiliation.
“…I can’t accept defeat.”
To be honest, he was starting to feel some fear toward Aint, who grew stronger with each encounter.
“Wasn’t two times enough?”
“Doesn’t matter if it’s two or a hundred.”
No need to go to a hundred. Two was plenty. But he pushed his fear aside as best he could.
“Losing to you has dragged my honor through the mud. I’m fighting again to protect it, to reclaim it.”
“And if you lose again?”
“…Knights speak with their swords.”
Because what scared him wasn’t Aint, but Fernan. Losing to Aint just meant losing. He had already done it twice, so one more wouldn’t change much.
But if he earned Fernan’s hatred, his life was over. No one knew what insane method that ruthless merchant would use to drag him into hell.
“Prepare yourself, Aint! This time will be different. You won’t move forward without defeating me first.”
Wooooong—
Verian’s sword began to vibrate. A gray aura rose from it.
— The spirit of one who doesn’t give up despite defeat!
— At first, I didn’t think much of him, but now I see he’s a true knight.
— Challenging again without fear of defeat for the sake of honor and will is worthy of admiration! You’re a knight too, so face him with all your strength!
Moved by his determination, Gardner Alfenparsen urged Aint. But Aint shook his head.
“…All of that is fine, Verian.”
He sighed instinctively.
“You haven’t forgotten that conflicts between students are prohibited during this exercise, right?”
“…”
Of course, he knew. Even though he drew his sword, Verian had no real intention of fighting.
“Saying that fighting is forbidden during this survival training? That’s your view, Verian. If you truly want to survive, you’ll do whatever it takes to buy time. In this world, nothing is impossible. And if it is, it becomes possible.”
“…”
It was all a façade to disguise his true purpose—buying time—under the name of “honor.”
“V-Very well, it doesn’t matter! I do it for honor…!”
— And does that absurd rule matter, Aint? A knight is fighting for his honor! Are you going to trample on the courage of someone who mustered the will to fight?
Aint let out another sigh.
‘I don’t have time for this…’
It felt like he had a bothersome leech stuck to him.
***
Rrrrrrumble—
In the underground depths, Fernan ran beneath the earth. His magic pierced the ground, creating tunnels he closed behind him.
It consumed a lot of mana and wasn’t exactly fast, but it was the best way to avoid being spotted by students, professors, or assistants stationed throughout the forest.
‘Keep stalling him, Verian.’
He checked the map constantly. He watched the points marked 2 and 38 getting closer. They hadn’t moved from the same spot for five minutes.
Everything was going according to plan.
‘Luckily, I’m not far from the lake.’
It wasn’t the nearest lake, which was unfortunate, but at least it wasn’t the farthest either.
He kept running for a while longer, and still, the two points remained fixed, facing each other.
‘He’s doing better than I expected.’
Fernan mentally raised Verian’s value a little.
And just then…
──！
Water began seeping in through a newly opened gap. He had reached the lake.
He tore the scroll with the stored breathing spell and dove into the water. It was the same lake he had already explored before, without success.
‘Let’s see if I find it this time.’
He opened his subspace.
────！
A massive arm and leg suddenly emerged.
It was a laborer he had prepared specifically for this occasion.
