The Academy’s Ankle Reaper

“Is this level okay??”

“Yes, the veil is working well.”

The bishop spoke silently while watching the overly fidgety Carmel.

Saintess Carmel was fully covered in a nun’s habit with a veil obscuring her face.

Since the sparring had become the centerpiece of the final exam, not only Master Hulan but also Carmel had been invited, so she checked her attire one last time before entering the Circular Arena.

In front of so many people, it would be a big problem if something went wrong while behaving like usual, so several precautions were taken.

First was the special formal attire she brought to the Academy.

The formal attire for the Saintess, worn in the Church Country, had a feature that somewhat suppressed her God-given talents.

But just wearing that would be akin to flaunting being a Saintess, so over it, she wore a nun’s habit, hiding her proud pink hair as well.

Finally, she added the veil.

The veil covering her face was a new creation of the bishop, designed to further restrain her powers.

Equipped with triple layers of protection and the bishop as her guard, she should now be fine entering the bustling Circular Arena.

The bishop, while surveying the arena, frowned at the sight of students swarming around.

“Even though safety is prioritized, it doesn’t look good seeing students fighting in gladiator matches.”

Regardless of the safety-oriented exam, it seems he didn’t want to witness young students brandishing deadly weapons.

Considering it wasn’t a one-on-one duel like before but rather set up for visual appeal, it left an unsettled feeling.

“Then can’t we just express our deep concerns to the principal?”

“We agreed not to deeply interfere with the Academy’s policies anymore.”

“I know, I was just saying.”

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The arena is enchanted with magic that ejects anyone who takes a certain level of damage, so everyone brought real weapons instead of mock swords, trusting that the magic would prevent serious accidents.

Today’s goal is simple.

Go moderately hard and then exit moderately.

No need to be first, and there’s no reason to block other kids.

After all, being first in the Academy doesn’t grant you anything spectacular.

At most, you’d just get a recommendation to the Royal Knight Order.

I wonder if our Commander would use a parachute for being first in swordsmanship at the Academy.

“….Atlas, I’ll do my best.”

Wearing comfortable clothes and donning the usual two-handed sword.

“If you try too hard, it’ll feel bad for the other students.”

“…But I was taught to give my all in everything.”

“That’s true.”

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“Atlas, you made it quickly?”

“I’m feeling pretty nervous.”

Amy came with River.

River, unusually, looked pale and seemed nervous.

“Are you okay?”

“I think a test should be fine… but my stomach feels off…”

“Let’s finish this quickly and rest.”

“Yeah…”

It looks like it’s going to get rough, and given his condition, I’m worried.

After a deep breath, he seemed to feel a little better.

“I brought this again today.”

With a big smile, Amy showed off her sword.

It was the mithril alloy sword I gifted her during the last Hunting Festival.

“I’m glad you’re using it well. Fits comfortably, right?”

“I couldn’t use it properly because of the demons during the Hunting Festival, but I’ve been using it well since.”

“I told you, you really like it.”

“Let’s all do well today. Since it’s the last test of the semester, I hope for good results.”

With a smile, I subtly scanned the surroundings.

Though the sparring promised to be the highlight of the final skills test, only a few from the Newspaper Club showed up, and there weren’t many people aside from the students taking the test.

Since the tests aren’t finished yet, other year students or students still taking tests in different subjects would still be in the Main Building.

Those with nothing to do have probably come to spectate, likely faculty or students who have submitted reports.

I felt eyes glancing over here.

No one wants to spar with me or Lucia, I figure.

Still, it seems students have learned quite a bit this semester; there were whispers, but no one outright insulted us.

That’s the result of consistently beating up those who ran around in the hallways.

“There’s the match schedule.”

While gathering, the scoreboard displayed the list of students to take the test first.

It’s announced that it will be conducted in four rounds, meaning essentially a batch of first-class students would participate in one test.

There are more students in reality, but since there are also totally non-combat students not taking this course, four rounds seem to suffice.

“The first round features… um, Albion is in there?”

Among the names of various students, Zeek Albion stood out the most.

“This looks like Albion will be the last one standing.”

“Unless something unexpected happens, he probably will.”

As a 5th-circle elemental magician, he had a significant advantage in this kind of combat.

With tactical defensive equipment… well, tanks from the same class positioned in front of him, if he prepared just one good spell, without any escape options in a narrow place like the Circular Arena, he could become the ruler of the battlefield.

Although the arena isn’t particularly large, it’s not overwhelmingly spacious either, considering a magician of his level could fill it entirely with a spell.

Not many from the same class are assigned randomly, but supposing they act as a team from the start, would be quite a threat.

“He’s not just someone who learns magic solely; he also gained combat skills based on standing on the battlefield, so he’d have some reliable points even in a one-on-one situation.”

“Staying here doesn’t help us, let’s sit up in the seats.”

With so many people crammed in the Waiting Room, it would be too uncomfortable, so we decided to head to the spectator seats until our turn came.

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When I had just entered the VIP Room assigned with Lucia, I stepped out briefly due to a restroom issue.

Just as I stepped out, someone rushed out and hugged me tightly.

A fluffy sensation hit my face.

I had no clue what was going on since it happened right as I came out.

“Atlas! What a coincidence meeting you here!”

Although her face was barely visible, I could recognize her voice and actions.

It was Saintess Carmel.

Running into her here, was she waiting at the door?

“You’re bundled up quite a bit since we last met, aren’t you hot?”

“If I were to remove this here, something catastrophic would happen. Can you handle that?”

“Good point, you did well.”

She hadn’t acted like this while roaming around isolated, but today, she bundled up immensely for being in a crowded place.

Her face was hidden completely by the nun’s attire and the veil.

“Hmm, speaking of which…”

Recognizing my gaze, the Saintess peered down and slightly lifted her veil.

Through the thin fabric, her milky skin peeked through.

“What do you think? A bit mysterious, right?”

“With that going on, you look like an armadillo beastman.”

“That’s harsh!”

“Well, today you have your guard, right?”

“Yes, the bishop is protecting me.”

“So you’re not under protection right now? I’ll escort you to your spot.”

I felt something bad might occur if I let her go alone.

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“Hasn’t started yet?”

“It will begin soon.”

As expected, little time passed before the start when Zeek Albion was seen in a corner leaning against the wall, surrounded by students from the same class forming a protective barrier around him.

If Albion successfully cast his magic in that state, it seemed likely he’d eliminate everyone except for his guards, while they’d resolve matters among themselves.

Being pushed into a corner and only needing to focus on what’s ahead would be a significant advantage.

–Then, the first test… start!!

“Huh?”

As soon as it began, every attack was launched toward Albion en masse.

——————————

The magic Zeek Albion learned was meant for warfare and combat.

He didn’t sit at a desk scribbling formulas and conducting experiments to grasp the truth of the world, but instead, acquired it as a means of violence to defeat enemies and protect his assets.

He was a cruel killing weapon, issuing stable spells like a machine, having been verified multiple times—that was Zeek Albion.

Therefore, he had never complained about the test format of this course despite it having been changed twice.

If he worked hard as he usually did, there should be no problem, as he stated when it was announced the test would be a physical fitness check.

Even wizards need stamina to cast magic steadily.

A healthy body fosters a healthy mind.

Then when the style changed to one-on-one duels, that was all right too.

He had trained extensively in one-on-one duels since he was young.

While others typically had superior physical abilities and might move faster than a magician’s reflexes, he could definitely hold his own against wizards specifically trained for combat from the start.

Lastly, when it shifted to a Battle Royale, it became even better.

For magicians, one against many was actually preferable to a one-on-one struggle.

Since he could take them all out with a single attack.

Plus, the test site is the Circular Arena?

Unlike the Special Arena, there are limits to the size of the arena.

That would allow him to fill it completely with his magic.

However, things didn’t go according to plan.

“Everyone, charge!!!”

As soon as the test commenced, someone shouted, and all the students dashed toward him in unison.

“Block!!”

“Do you really think you can survive after this?!!”

“Weren’t you all on the same side before the start?!!”

He had anticipated some glares.

Albion thought he would’ve probably acted the same way had he been on the opposing side.

But the number of students was beyond what he expected.

It seemed like they had all planned to attack him from the start as if the test hadn’t begun yet.

No, it didn’t seem that every student was against him, but many students went along with the atmosphere.

“Albion!! You won’t last long!!”

“I know that!!”

If his prepared magic manifested, he could wipe them all out, but it seemed stuck.

-Zzzzt!! Zzzt!!

‘Damn!! Someone’s dispelling it!!’

Continuous static noise interrupted his magic.

But it wasn’t a strong dispel.

If he could just buy a few more seconds, he’d be able to manifest his magic.

“Albion!!”

“It’s ready!!”

In his hands, a swirling sphere of blizzard energy began to form.

“It’s done!! Now…!”

“It’s already too late, young lord.”

A pitch-black dagger flew toward him.

He had no thoughts of dodging or blocking.

After all, the magic on the arena would block any damage, leaving him unscathed, and if his magic activated, it would wipe all away.

He chose to manifest his magic instead.

-Snap!

Yet the magic never manifested.

The sphere of magic dissipated into nothingness.

The black dagger was lodged into the snow crystal he was conjuring.

From the start, they hadn’t intended on piercing Albion; they aimed for the magic he was crafting.

‘Fangs of Nullity..?! How do these guys get their hands on such an expensive dispel artifact..!!’

The subpar dispel was merely for stalling.

The person with the artifact pushed in close to create an opening for them.

“This… damn it!! Everyone get down!!”

The disheveled magic components exploded suddenly.

The Fangs of Nullity didn’t completely erase his almost manifesting magic but destroyed it enough to prevent its activation, resulting in a violent burst of cold emanating from the broken openings.

“Ugh?!”

“Ahhhh?!”

Caught in the explosive cold, all the students that had gathered stumbled and fell.

“Hah… hah… Ice Arrow!”

Zeek Albion also fell, but anticipating the cold explosion, he quickly regained his footing and rushed to cast magic toward the students that had pushed toward him.

Even if the counterplan he’d prepared was shattered, he didn’t stop or give in.

Some fell hit by Albion’s ice arrows and were eliminated.

Although it felt like a significant mishap, the explosion happened, and he reckoned it turned out okay.

“Cough?!”

A sharp sensation struck the back of his head.

Albion felt the magic safeguarding his body from the arena activate.

The strongest contender for survival in this round, Albion, was eliminated less than three minutes after the test had begun.

About half of the students still remained in the arena.

“Well… now that we’ve taken down a common foe, shall we battle among ourselves?”

“Hehe, sounds good.”

————

I was left agape observing Albion’s swift elimination.

“This situation’s getting rather interesting, huh?”

The underdog rebellion was always thrilling.