Chapter 59: Practical Training (2)

Erendal’s subjugation zone was divided into completely different environments depending on the section.

From the entrance to the mountain range lay a stretch of dense forest. Then there were hills leading into a desert, windswept grasslands that carried a chill, and other varied terrains unfolding like different stages.

The exact reason why so many environments were gathered in one region had never been clarified, but most researchers claimed it was a change caused by the strange magic permeating Erendal, warping space itself.

The difference in the flow of time from the outside world was also said to originate from this phenomenon.

As long as one didn’t enter the deepest zone, the monsters that appeared were fixed in type, which was why the place had long been used as a natural training ground.

“You’ve all worked hard to get here.”

When the cadets arrived at their destination and stepped down from the carriage, Instructor Andreas greeted them with a smile.

“Let’s see, the leader of this party is…”

“That’s me, Instructor.”

“…Hmm, Cadet Darius’s party, is it?”

As Darius stepped out of the carriage and gave a polite bow, Instructor Andreas gave a wry smile.

“You must have it rough as well. Your leader is quite the spirited senior.”

“Can you really say that as an instructor?”

“Just a word of advice—take good care of your juniors. There aren’t many people who can keep up with that toughness of yours.”

Hearing this, Maximilian and the other cadets turned to look at Darius.

What kind of record did he have for even Instructor Andreas, a veteran battle mage with real combat experience, to say that?

Darius only grinned and pulled Carl, who stood beside him, a little closer.

“Don’t worry. My little brother is here too, so I won’t be too hard on them.”

“That’s right, Cadet Carl is your younger brother.”

With a short nod, Instructor Andreas checked the headcount, then gestured toward the inside.

“Good luck. Wait at the tent with the red flag further inside. I’ll summon the party leaders separately later.”

“Thank you.”

Coming to Erendal didn’t mean they would be thrown straight into the subjugation battle.

Since it was a joint operation and an event the Empire considered important, there were various procedures to go through before it would begin.

They entered the tent that served as temporary quarters to catch their breath.

Even though they had traveled comfortably via teleportation and carriage, the cadets bore the title of Bayern.

No one could afford to let their guard down, lest they tarnish the Academy’s prestige.

“In my experience, we’ll be moving into the inner operational area within one to two hours. As I’ve said before, once we pass the boundary, things will be very different from what you’re used to, so stay alert.”

“Understood.”

“Yes!”

“Has there ever been a case where the time was shorter?”

Carl raised his hand slightly as he asked, and Darius paused to think.

“I’ve only been here three or four times myself, but I’ve never seen that happen. Others say the same.”

“Hmm.”

“Why, are you scared?”

“Of course not. I’m not you, Brother.”

Carl shrugged in response to the constant teasing.

Next to him, Maximilian made an impressed “Oh” expression.

From their perspective, Darius was a monstrously strong figure, and Carl was probably the only one who could so casually throw such remarks at him.

“You’ve grown a lot.”

Darius also laughed good-naturedly.

…He used to be quiet and reserved, but it seemed Bayern had changed him quite a bit.

Not that it was a bad thing—Darius actually preferred this version of him.

“There were some differences depending on the period, but usually the time inside was about twice as long. We can expect it to be around a week this time.”

“Hmm.”

Carl nodded, gazing outside.

It was essentially the same as saying this entire area was encircled by a massive formation.

‘Formations that twist the flow of time and distort space aren’t unheard of.’

Not long ago, the trial at the temple in the ancient ruins had been something similar.

Carl had fought for hours there, only to find that mere seconds had passed in reality when he returned.

The scale here might be incomparable, but the principle seemed to be along the same lines.

“Hey, Darius.”

At that moment, someone poked their head in from inside the tent.

It was someone Carl had never seen before, likely one of the senior cadets.

Darius nodded, stood along with two other seniors, and addressed the cadets.

“Looks like we’re being called. Wait here until I get back.”

“Understood.”

Darius left the tent with Luna and Ivan.

With only the first-year cadets remaining, the tent once again filled with cheerful chatter.

Carl peeked out through the gap in the tent flap, gauging the strength of the people walking around outside.

It wasn’t often one could get this close to the Imperial Army’s encampment.

‘Truly worthy of the Empire.’

It was like watching the Emperor’s army of the Central Plains.

Even the greenest-looking recruits seemed capable of handling mana to some extent.

Which meant there were at least hundreds of thousands more like them.

Among the knights he spotted from time to time, many Black Label members without assigned numbers looked like opponents one could not easily guarantee victory against.

“Carl, what about you?”

“…Me?”

Caught off guard by the sudden change of topic, Carl turned his head.

He had been listening to the conversation inside while observing outside—adaptability was a key virtue for an assassin, after all.

“I do have quite a bit of real combat experience. Given my family’s position, I’ve been involved in numerous skirmishes, big and small, ever since I learned the sword.”

“Carl’s family was near the border, wasn’t it? Must’ve been rough.”

“So that’s why Senior Darius is so strong.”

“Carl’s hardly weak either. He’s more theory-oriented, but his practical skills are in the upper ranks too, right?”

“That’s true.”

At Amy’s comment, Yuria nodded in agreement.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been able to help her in the swamp during the entrance exam, where alligators were swarming.

In truth, she still squirmed in embarrassment whenever she remembered that incident.

“Still, it’s a relief you’ve all got real combat experience. No one’s going to be running around like a headless chicken.”

“Maxim, don’t get too cocky or you’ll get burned again. Remember the entrance exam?”

“That time was…!”

Maximilian tried to argue back against Gale’s remark but ended up pouting in silence.

“If it hadn’t been for the terrorism.”

“Yeah, that couldn’t be helped. Who would’ve thought someone would actually release monsters into the labyrinth?”

“They still haven’t caught the culprit, right?”

“Even with the Empire stepping in, there’s still no news… so it must be true that an underworld organization was involved.”

“The underworld group that was involved has already been wiped out by the Empire, I heard. They sent in a few Sword Masters and erased them overnight.”

“Wow, Sword Masters, even…”

“The Bayern entrance exam is an Imperial tradition, so that’s understandable.”

Carl also nodded.

The Emperor’s wrath was an absolute thing.

He had even personally attended the entrance ceremony to raise Bayern’s morale.

“The culprit is one thing, but I’m curious about that person too.”

“Who?”

“You know. That masked stranger. The one who wiped out the Drake and the other monsters in a single sweep.”

“Ah…”

As Maximilian mimed swinging a sword, everyone let out a low sigh and nodded.

By coincidence, all those present here were also survivors from the plaza where the monsters had swarmed.

“Weren’t you and Lady Laysis right in front of him, Yuria?”

“I… It all happened so quickly that I didn’t get a good look. One slash, and they were all dead, then he vanished.”

“…I actually met him once before that.”

At Yuria’s words, Amy nodded.

“You said he helped you after we passed through the swamp.”

“Yes. He moved without making a sound. And there was something else…”

Yuria furrowed her brow deeply, as if trying to recall the scene.

“The mask… it had a golden crescent moon engraved on it.”

“A golden crescent moon on the mask, huh.”

“Some kind of secret society or organization?”

“I honestly thought it was Nerian’s or Laysis’s secret guard. For a ducal family or royalty, that wouldn’t be strange.”

“…I don’t have anything like that.”

Laysis gave a bitter smile.

She was a daughter cast out by her family—there was no way she would have a secret guard.

Turning her gaze from Laysis, Yuria nodded.

“So I quietly asked Nerian about it later, and he said it wasn’t him either. That guy may be rude, but lying isn’t his style.”

“So it has nothing to do with the cadets.”

“Most likely.”

“Hmmm.”

Everyone fell silent, lost in thought.

Who exactly was that black-masked stranger who had appeared out of nowhere in the labyrinth?

“…Anyway, he was incredibly strong.”

“Yes, very strong. I’d never seen aura like that before. I thought the sky was falling.”

“To wipe out the Drake and dozens of other beasts in a single strike—would that make him a Sword Master?”

“Seems likely. At the very least, he must have been close to that level. Otherwise, you couldn’t pull off something like that.”

“…”

Watching the cadets talk, Carl quietly laughed to himself.

They were busy making guesses without realizing the very person they spoke of was sitting right next to them—it was almost endearing.

‘Gale’s information network is impressive.’

He’d also learned something new.

That the Imperial Palace had sent knights to erase the organization involved in the terrorism was news that had only spread quietly in the underworld.

People had kept it hushed for fear of drawing the Palace’s attention—Carl hadn’t expected Gale to know.

At the very least, it meant he had better information sources than the average cadet.

“…Have you all been waiting patiently?”

Just then, the tent flap was pulled aside, and Darius stepped in.

“We’re departing in twenty minutes, so get ready without delays. And…”

At Darius’s signal, Luna and Ivan stepped forward and began handing something to the cadets.

“Bracelets?”

“This subjugation battle is going to be conducted in a rather interesting way. First, everyone put on the bracelet and let your mana flow into it.”

Carl followed his brother’s instructions, putting on the bracelet and channeling mana into it.

A transparent window, like an Archive, appeared above the bracelet, displaying something.

Name: Cadet Carlos

Subjugation Score: 0 points

Subjugation List

「-」

“Oh.”

“That’s cool.”

Before long, others had checked their devices and voices of awe rose all around.

“All contributions you make in this subjugation will be recorded through the bracelet. Scores will vary based on that. The evaluation standard is comparative, so you’d better give it your all.”

“Will it count toward the seniors’ scores too?”

“I’m in my graduating year, so it doesn’t matter for me. For people like Luna and Ivan, their score will be affected by the juniors under their command. In other words, the better you do, the higher the seniors’ scores will be.”

“Do your best, juniors!”

“Let’s go for those bonus points.”

The mention of bonus points put eager expressions on both seniors’ faces.

“And if you press the button on the inside of the bracelet, you can use short-range communication.”

Darius tapped his bracelet and moved his lips.

– Like this. Since voices might leak out, it seems the device converts speech into message magic for communication. Keep in mind it won’t work beyond a certain range.

Click.

Turning the bracelet’s communication off again, Darius flicked his fingers lightly and addressed the cadets.

“Get ready, everyone. It’s about time we head out.”

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