"Retreat imdiately. Go back to the Academy and keep the cadets safe! I repeat, keep the cadets safe!"
Professor Lambart shouted loudly into the communication device as he looked at the window in front of him, his expression filled with worry. Even though he wasn't present to see the situation, he knew all about the monster that was slowly elevating into the projection.
Terror-ranked creature-Mother of All Spiders.
That wasn't sothing the cadets could handle.
He also couldn't afford for sothing to go wrong under his watch. That would spell major unnecessary trouble.
They were already busy as things were, if sothing were to happen to them then...
'I can't let that happen!'
Professor Lambart's lips parted once more as he once again tried to communicate with the team but just as the words were about to leave his lips, he realized sothing.
"Did you hear ? I said retreat imdiately! Retreat back and hold the mother back so that the first years can esc-Uh?"
He had been cut off.
Moving the communication device down so that he could get a better look at it, the Professor brought it next to his mouth again and tried to speak.
"Hey, are you listening?"
But...
"Can you hear at all? I said, can you hear ?"
It was useless.
"Hello? Hello!?"
He had been completely cut off.
"Can you hear ? Hello!? Heeeloo-"
"Stop."
A hand reached out for the Professor, stopping him. When the Professor turned around, a grim-looking Professor Heart t his sight.
Shaking his head, Professor Heart said, "I'm afraid the communication has been cut off, and it's likely voluntary."
"Wha..."
"It looks like Julien has his own plans."
"This bastard...!"
Bang!
Fragnts of tal scattered through the air as the Professor hurled the communication device against the nearest wall. Breathing heavily, his face pale, he turned to glare fiercely at Professor Heart.
"I knew it was a bad idea from the start! from the mont that arrogant bastard took over the situation, everything went wrong!"
He was practically shouting at this point.
His voice was so loud that even those outside of the tent could hear it, but the Professor's rage had reached a point where he couldn't care any less. Shifting his attention towards the Projection that displayed Julien's face, his face twisted.
"Damn it!"
He raised his fist and thought about hitting the table but stopped himself at the last mont. "Hoo."
Taking a deep breath, he cald himself down. He couldn't let his nerves take over. Not when the situation was so delicate.
Every little second mattered.
Seeing the Professor calm down, Joshua Heart sighed in relief and started to speak, "There's no need to be too hasty about this. While this situation is indeed back, there are two second years present. Both of them are the best of the best within the Empire. If you think about it properly, the first years shouldn't be in any trouble. Getting them to safety should be easy for them. In fact, if the two of them worked together, defeating the 'mother' shouldn't be impossible.
"I know that. Do you think I'm not aware of their skills? I know they can defeat the 'Mother' if they wanted to.""
Professor Lambart pinched the middle of his brows, his eyes narrowing.
"I also know the two of them can get the first years to safety, but..."
The Professor pointed at the projection.
"Do you really think the two of them think the sa?!"
It was Professor Heart's turn to look shocked. Upon looking at the projection, he realized that neither All nor Julien were interfering. The two of them just stood by the side while watching the first years have a full-blown ltdown.
"This..."
He could understand Julien's lack of reaction, but All's...? Wait, could it be that he doesn't care because these are the people of his Empire?
Anxiety started to rise up from the Professor's stomach as he bit his lips.
He was just about to turn around and report on the situation when he suddenly noticed a change on the screen. He wasn't the only one.
"Uh?"
Professor Lambart also noticed the change and moved closer to the projection.
"Wait, are they...!?"
"Ah!"
Realization soon struck the two Professors who looked at each other in shock. Their faces pale considerably, but before they could do anything else, the communications were restored and a certain voice entered their ears.
-Use your scent of bloom, the aggro skill you used a few tis before to get the monster's attention. Use it now so that Sophia and Jessica can move forward without any interference.
It felt oddly calm, a soothing calmness that made those who listened to it feel just as calm, but if one paid close attention to it, hidden within the calmness of the voice was a certain coldness that made one shiver.
The two Professors looked at each other once more.
'Who is this?'
'...Julien?'
No, it wasn't. Looking closer, the two Professors realized that the one speaking was none other than Linus who appeared like a completely different person.
Amidst the desperate situation, he looked like a spitting image of his own brother.
-Have Sophia cast a simple frost spell on the ground. Leave a small trail that connects to the center.
-No. More. It's too thin. Have her build a small ramp at the center. About half a ter tall.
-Don't stop. Continue.
The commands were precise and clear.
There was no vagueness in them, but the complete disregard Linus had for his teammates felt
chilling to those watching.
It was as if he was...
Manipulating a bunch of dolls.
Booom-!
An explosion followed suit and Jacob and the others reached the designated location.
Following right behind them was the enormous mother. Both Professors looked at the scene with bated breath, sweat forming on their foreheads as they turned to look at Julien and All who overlooked the scene from a distance.
But even in such a situation, the two didn't move at all. The two professors hoped they'd do sothing, but the more they hoped, the more disappointed they were left.
All seed more ready to react, but he was promptly held back by Julien who had his gaze
fixed on Linus the entire ti.
The next sequence of events all happened so fast that neither Professor could properly
process it.
All they could do was stare at the projection with shocked looks.
"That..."
"How could this be?"
By the ti it was all over, an enormous body lood before the five cadets, four of whom
were slumped limply on the ground.
Linus was the only one standing.
Staring at the creature that could've taken their life at any mont, he looked completely
indifferent.
And it was then that the leaderboards underwent a change.
[Congratulations. You have earned 84 Points]
They shot directly for first place.
||
A tense silence filled the tent as neither Professor could utter a single word. The shock of the
entire situation had yet to settle within their minds.
When they did, they both stepped back from the projection while holding their breaths.
Shattering the silence, Professor Lambart looked directly at Linus and then Julien.
"This..."
His gaze flickered between the two as he struggled to articulate himself.
"...H-how is this possible?"
***
"They... actually did it."
With a look of bewildernt, All alternated his gaze between the first-year cadets and the
corpse of the mother behind them.
He had witnessed the entire scene up close, and even though he knew exactly what had
happened, he still struggled to co to terms with the situation.
While the monster was just a little bit beneath the Terror rank, we were talking about five first
years!
To be able to defeat a near Terror-ranked monster during their first year... What sort of
situation was this?
No words could be used to describe All's current shock.
This was simply too much for him.
...But if there was one individual that stood out to him, then it was none other than Julien's
little brother.
Linus Evenus.
All's opinion of Linus wasn't great at the start. He had seen him ss up so many tis at
the start, thinking he was holding the team back and that the only reason he was the captain
was because of Julien's favoritism.
But he was wrong.
He had been proven wrong.
Linus...
From the mont the 'Mother' ca, he changed. It was almost as if he had beco a
completely different person.
It was almost as if he beca...
All held his breath and looked in Julien's direction. He stood next to him, staring at the
'Mother' with a neutral look. He didn't look particularly excited by the outco of the
situation. If anything, it almost seed like he expected such an outco.
This...
Did he have so much faith in his own brother?
All secretly swallowed his own saliva and looked in Linus's direction. The more he looked
at Linus the more he started to resemble Julien.
The thought made All frown.
He suddenly recalled all the weird situations that occurred over the past few months he had
been at the Academy and his face tightened.
'If he really is like Julien then...'
A look of pity flashed across All's face as he looked at the first years.
'...I'm starting to feel sorry for them.'
They were in for a year of suffering.
***
'I... did it? I actually did it?'
Still in a daze, Linus lowered his gaze to his hands. He clenched and unclenched them
repeatedly as if testing whether this was all just a dream. But the tension in his forearms with
each squeeze told him this was undeniably real.
He had actually managed to defeat the 'Mother.'
'...Unbelievable.'
Linus felt drunk on the situation.
He could still recall the clear and calm sensation he had felt in the last few monts and he
wanted to relish it.
Never before had he felt his head be so clear.
He wanted to experience that sensation again, but when Linus tried, he realized that he
couldn't.
Wait, why couldn't he?
Was he tired, or was it a fluke?
"You'll only experience such clarity when you experience fear again."
A cold voice suddenly echoed from behind, sending a chill down Linus's spine. His head
snapped back, and standing before him was none other than Julien.
With a look of indifference, his hazel eyes pressed down on Linus.
It made the current Linus feel suffocated.
"Wha... What do you an?" "That clarity you felt in your mind, you'll only experience it again when you experience fear
once more."
"What do you...?"
Julien pressed his finger against his temple.
"Emotions are your weakness. You let them control you. Learn to feel them deeply enough to
beco immune to their influence."
Linus blinked his eyes.
Though he didn't quite understand the aning behind Julien's words, he was starting to
realize sothing else.
Julien...
Was he trying to help him?
....Was he the reason behind his clarity? Did he know about his weakness and purposely
tortured him in order to make him more immune to it?
No, but...
'This is Julien we're talking about. A monster. This is fake. I mustn't fall for-'
"Not bad."
"...!"
Linus's head flicked up, but by the ti he did, Julien was gone. When did he...? No, that doesn't matter. He had heard Julien's words. He...
"You must be quite happy with what you've done."
A hoarse, weary voice snapped Linus out of his thoughts. He turned around to see Jacob
leaning heavily against a nearby tree, clutching his arm tightly. Was it broken?
Linus was about to respond to him when Jacob spoke.
"Seeing how you're smiling, I guess you are. I don't bla you. I guess I would be too if I were
in your position..."
"Eh?"
Blinking his eyes, Linus replayed Jacob's words in his mind and hastily touched his mouth.
Smiling? ?
Why?
No?
Feeling his lips, his face froze.
He...
Really had been smiling.
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