Great Teacher in a Defense Game

#54 Circus – 4

A dragon with three heads.

The Ender Dragon raised its head and roared.

-Kuo-ooo!!

“…”

Lacrimas quietly assumed her stance.

Right leg drawn back, she lowered her waist, preparing to charge.

Her eyes relentlessly tracked the dragon’s movements.

A familiar déjà vu slowly reared its head.

-Uo-ooo!!

‘This ferocity…it’s not fake. It’s definitely real.’

Lacrimas recalled the memory of several months prior.

The grueling training near Magnusra.

Back then, Enoch had used every ability at his disposal to push Lacrimas to her absolute limit.

‘Of course, that wasn’t everything he could do. But it’s enough to use as reference.’

Why is my teacher’s summon here?

The reason remained unknown.

But now was not the time for contemplation.

Lacrimas gripped her sword.

-Pat!

And then, she kicked off the ground.

Her hair whipped violently.

The world blurred, a dizzying shift.

Before she knew it, Lacrimas was practically nose to snout with the Ender Dragon.

-Kuuoooh!!

‘Flash Strike!’

-Thwish!

Lacrimas swung her blade.

The edge carved a perfect crescent in the air.

Her target: the dragon’s central head.

Experience had taught her well.

*This* one was the leader.

*This* one was the most vexing.

-Kiiiing!

“!”

Alas, to little effect.

The strike landed true.

But it failed.

The dragon’s defenses were…more formidable than Lacrimas remembered.

‘What?!’

-Uwoooh!!

In that instant, the Ender Dragon surged.

All three heads opened their maws in unison.

-Shyu-shyuk!

“Kgh!”

Jaws of steel lunged.

Lacrimas twisted in mid-air, a desperate maneuver.

As she plummeted, the dragon’s heads grazed past her, one after the other.

-Kuuoooh!!

One, two.

And three.

“Dodged i-“

In that instant, the tail, obscured by the wings, moved belatedly.

– *Swoosh*

“Wha-!”

– *KWAANG!!!*

The tail lashed out like a whip.

Lakrina couldn’t even scream.

– *Thump! Kr-thump! Thump!*

The force of the tail was beyond imagining.

Lakrina was violently thrown, flying far away.

She tumbled across the floor in succession, then, belatedly, *thwacked* against the wall.

– *Crack, kra-ack!*

“Gh, gh-guh…”

– *Wooo!!!*

“…Dammit!”

Lakrina regained her senses a beat too late.

Just once. She’d been hit just once, and it was this bad.

Lakrina instinctively knew there would be no next chance.

*‘The physical strength, the raw power too. It’s all different from last time.’*

– *Wooo!!*

*‘There’s no difference in appearance though. Could it be… were they holding back then?’*

A pointless musing flickered in her mind.

Lakrina shook her head with effort, rising to her feet.

There’s no time for distractions now.

Already, the Ender Dragon was targeting her once more.

Lakrina hastily tracked the dragon’s form with her eyes.

And then, she was horrified.

The dragon’s three heads.

Each one was gathering energy.

– *Pzzzzzzzzzz!!!*

“Th-that!”

Lacrimas shuddered, a tremor running through her.

An assault, dredged from the depths of her memory.

Eternal Evolution Burst, if her teacher was right.

The hesitance in his voice as he explained it, so unlike him, had burned the memory into her mind.

-Don’t you go blabbing about this to anyone.

-Why not?

-Just… there are reasons, my dear.

‘Whatever it is, getting hit by *that* means death.’

Lacrimas fled, a frantic surge of adrenaline.

She kicked off the ground, leaping blindly to the side.

To be struck directly by that was to invite oblivion.

She’d become Lacrimas-grillé, no doubt.

The sheer force of it, she’d witnessed it firsthand.

The watchtowers that marked the Empire’s border.

The mages of the Magic Tower, collaborating to forge the Empire’s ultimate defense.

Enoch had explained that this attack boasted power far exceeding that.

A single shot could casually obliterate an entire hill.

And Lacrimas had been right there beside Enoch, bearing witness to the spectacle.

-Pshhhzzzzt!!!

‘No. Too fast!’

A growing light bathed the surroundings.

The energy coalescing in its maw erupted in luminescence, illuminating the world around it.

-Kwoooar!!

The End Dragon unleashed a thunderous roar.

Its jaws, strained past their limits, gaped open in what sounded like a tearing shriek.

And then.

Their heads, aligned in a perfect row.

Pointing directly at Lacrimas, a precise, unwavering line.

“!!!”

-FZZZZZT!!!

‘This is bad—!’

-KHA-ZIK!!!

A fleeting moment.

The sound vanished.

A mere instant, less than a second.

A brief, eerie stillness descended.

And then.

-KWA-aaaNG!!!

The gathered energy erupted in a violent surge.

The deafening roar crashed in belatedly.

Faster than any sound.

All of it, hurtling in a straight line toward Lacrina.

“!!!”

Lacrina moved her sword with desperate speed.

Using the blade as a shield, she triggered her magic.

Almost instantly, frost bloomed upon the steel.

An incomplete magic, yet to be properly named.

But there was no time for such concerns.

She had to summon every last iota of power she possessed.

Only then would she have even a sliver of a chance to withstand it.

The pity was.

Even that was merely wishful thinking on Lacrina’s part.

-SHWEEEEEEEEEE!!!

‘This… this doesn’t look good-‘

-KWA-aaaNG!!!!

@

The barrage’s aftereffects lingered.

First, everything was consumed by light.

Then, with a deafening crash, a violent tremor ripped through the world.

Finally, a dust-wind swept in with the pressure of the blast.

Three waves crashed over, one after the other, and only then did silence reclaim the space.

The surroundings were, before one knew it, tranquil once more.

A lone, black clown stood there.

He brushed the dust from his clothes, with sharp, dismissive flicks.

“…Remarkable.”

-Hsssss…

“Did you grow in that briefest of moments?”

The clown clapped his hands, short and sharp, towards the fore.

He did not try to conceal his astonishment.

He could scarcely do otherwise.

The place where the dragon had unleashed its barrage, just moments before.

There, the presence of life still stubbornly remained.

-Shivershivershivers…

“…Hah, hahh, hahh…”

The protagonist, the one receiving the applause, found herself in considerably less favorable circumstances.

Lacrimna. Her entire body was a canvas of wounds.

Her clothes were scorched black, and burns bloomed across her skin.

Even her hair had stiffened into brittle spikes.

The price paid for taking a concentrated blast of energy head-on.

‘Th, is…’

Her hand, clutching the sword, trembled violently.

She leaned against the blade, barely managing to stay upright.

She could not endure for long, collapsing as if broken.

-Thump!

‘…Damn it, my body won’t, move pro-‘

-Clapclapclap

Again, applause echoed.

Praise sent from the black-robed clown.

Before one knew it, the Ender Dragon stirred once more.

Three heads looked down at Lacrina from above, each in its own way.

-Grrr…

“…Kuh!”

Lacrina grit her teeth.

She tried to move her body, somehow.

But it was no use.

Her body was already nearly destroyed.

If she forced it to move any more than this, she risked permanent disability.

With no other choice, she only moved her eyes.

Barely managing to roll her gaze, she captured the dragon’s heads and the jester’s form in her sight.

-Thud thud.

“That spell from a moment ago was quite impressive.”

“…What…”

“You stopped the energy with your sword for a fleeting moment, then immediately ducked to avoid a direct hit. Was that intentional? Or did you move on instinct? Either way, it wasn’t bad at all. Scroll-grade or higher, but below dominion-grade. For now, I’d estimate it to be around that level.”

The jester spoke matter-of-factly.

His voice grew steadily closer.

Before she knew it, he was right in front of Lacrina.

-Thud.

“But, it’s still not enough.”

“…What?”

“I said, it’s still not enough.”

The jester quietly lowered himself.

He knelt on one knee, meeting the eyes of the fallen Lacrina.

“Your level is only second-rate at best. Magicians of that caliber are a dime a dozen.”

“…What?”

“Don’t you understand what I mean? With skill like that, you can’t help your teacher.”

The jester pronounced, as if delivering a sentence.

Lacrina bit her lip.

“…What’s your purpose?”

“Purpose?”

“Just what is it you’re trying to say? …No, what *are* you, in the first place?”

Lacrimosa asked, straining, eyes narrowed against an unseen pressure.

What is the intent behind this charade?

No, what is your true nature?

How can you wield the Teacher’s magic?

And how do you know my past?

Her questions were clipped, unadorned.

Yet, the weight within them was anything but light.

The Harlequin, on the receiving end, answered without a moment’s hesitation.

Sadly, it wasn’t the answer Lacrimosa craved.

“Regretfully, you possess no right to question me at present.”

“…”

“I would rather ask you something else, first.”

“Something else?”

“Lacrimosa. What are your sentiments towards Enoch?”

“…?”

“The Teacher you trust and follow so devotedly. What is your estimation of him?”

The question arrived, abrupt and unbidden.

Lacrimosa blinked.

Unsure if she truly grasped the question’s essence.

“Why, pray tell, would you ask such a thing…?”

“Enough. I am the sole inquisitor here. You need only provide answers.”

The Harlequin’s voice cleaved the air with its resolve.

Followed by the snap of his fingers.

-Taak!

The sound of the finger-snap echoed around them.

At this signal, the shadow upon the earth slowly began to rise.

Lacrimosa’s eyes widened, fixated on the emerging form.

For the shadow’s identity was none other than Enoch.

Or, more precisely, a false Enoch.

“…”

“Here, your teacher awaits.”

“…It’s all a sham, anyway.”

Lacrimana quietly retorted.

She had witnessed the charade just moments before.

She wouldn’t be fooled by such things now.

The Clown didn’t deny the fact either.

He merely gave a slight nod.

“Indeed. It is a sham. But, for now, it might as well be genuine.”

“…What? What does that mean?”

“Curious, are you? Simple. If your answer displeases me, he will kill you. A fake teacher for a fake hero, no? Wouldn’t you agree?”

The Clown said with nonchalance.

Lacrimana’s mind went blank for a moment.

It took her a beat to grasp the meaning of his words.

“!”

Belatedly, Lacrimana’s eyes widened.

Already, the fake Enoch was aiming a sword at her.

The very same sword she had wielded just a moment ago.

“Background, name, and origin. Pretense is worthless. This man you call teacher knows nothing about you.”

“…”

“Nor will you reveal anything, I presume. No idea what a grave issue this might become later. Knowing nothing about him.”

The Clown suddenly sighed.

It was quite a weighty sigh.

He then spoke as if confessing something.

“As you are now, you won’t reach even the Borderline rank, let alone Essence.”

“…”

“Would such a person be truly necessary for the journey ahead? This is a test to determine that. Please, answer with care.”