Episode 34

Several days had passed since the first test ended. Announcements of the successful candidates for the knight and mage tracks had been made, and those who passed were gathered together.

“Now then, I will explain the outline of the second test.”

A member of the Knight Order serving as proctor laid out the explanation step by step. Compared to previous years there were no major changes, but if there was one difference, it was that the test would be conducted jointly.

“We have already assigned squads in advance. Each team will form a small unit and carry out monster subjugation. In short, field exercises—that will be the second test.”

There were slight variations, but the basic pattern was four candidates per unit—two knights and two mages—plus two proctors.

Field exercises conducted by a six-person squad. For examinees who were not even recruits yet, it could be called a quite hard test.

“We’re not telling you to defeat every monster yourselves. You will act under orders from your superiors. Your results in that regard will be the object of evaluation.”

Holding a test that assumed real combat was a kind of rite of passage before joining. How far could one act when facing monsters? Could one resist fear and rouse oneself?

Even if you had ability, it meant nothing if you could not use it. If you would act as a knight or a mage, sooner or later your life would be in danger. The chance to face fear and know yourself could only be gained in real combat.

“Now I will announce the squad assignments. Group up accordingly and use the time until the test begins well.”

Following the announced assignments, clumps of people formed. Luke would take the test as part of First Squad.

“Looks like we’re in the same group.”

“Right. So it’s the standard four, it seems.”

The two mage candidates both carried staves. One was a bespectacled man who looked high-strung. His slightly upturned eyes gave a somewhat prickly impression. The other was a woman with neatly kept, beautiful hair. Perhaps as a sign of confidence, she had a composed, placid air.

“Hey now, looks like we’ve got a golden boy over here, huh?”

The knight-track man spoke while looking at Luke. He was tall but comparatively slender—he brought to mind a spindly dead tree.

“What do you mean?”

“Son of a Knight Order regimental commander, they say. And he’s fifteen. The bar’s sure gotten low.”

Like he was picking a fight, the spindly “tree” began explaining Luke. He raised his voice so it would echo, as if on purpose so those around would hear.

“Hm. Then that means his ability is beyond question. I’ll be expecting a lot.”

“Huh? Didn’t you hear me? He’s a pampered brat who got in on connections.”

The woman brushed up her hair and faced the spindly man with a down-looking gaze.

“Idiot. What kind of person he is doesn’t matter. So long as he has ability.”

“I agree. The key to passing the second test is whether we can function as a squad. …And even if nepotism existed, how is that a problem?”

The driftwood blinked in shock at the unexpected remark. Luke, for his part, felt a little sorry for him.

“Cheer up. Uh… Garry-san?”

“Don’t guess my name! I’m Skinny! Remember it!”

That naturally led to introductions, and they each spoke in turn.

“I’m Nahal. Mage track.”

“Calm. Also mage track.”

“I’m Luke.”

It could not be helped that there was distance among them. They were meeting for the first time, after all.

“This ‘nice to meet you’ feeling is nostalgic. It reminds me of back then.”

“For a retired man like me, it’s so long ago I can hardly recall.”

The two proctors joined them. One was an elderly knight. The mage was a man with brown hair slicked back. He belonged to the Mage Corps and was someone Zeke knew—Yorn Grin.

“Well now, that’s a big name.”

“Indeed. Perhaps a sign of high expectations.”

“Maybe so. The fact your attitude doesn’t change even in front of me might mean you’re big names yourselves.”

Yorn smiled while slipping in a little venom. Perhaps trading the same lines every year was a habit of those in high positions.

“Ugh—old man, you’re our supervisor!?”

“Young fellas… I’m Opa. I’ll be in your care.”

“I’m Luke. Pleased to work with you.”

In the first test, Skinny had been toyed with by Opa. He had gone at him with all his might, only to have his sword smoothly parried, making for a fresh, bitter memory.

“That makes everyone for First Squad. From here, the flow is as explained.”

“Indeed. Head south from the capital and a vast plain spreads out. That will serve as both the testing and exercise ground. Hard on an old body…”

They would proceed to the site on foot; the purpose was field exercises including combat with monsters. Though squads would split up to take the test, they would operate on the same plain.

“Hm. Two are average, one’s iffy, and one is top-class… The Knight Order always snags the good ones, huh.”

The second test—full of tangled motives—was about to begin.

Each squad advanced toward the exercise area. The distance was considerable, and even just traveling was taxing. No one had dropped out yet, but in a typical year a few would run out of strength before arrival and fail.

“You’re lagging, Skinny.”

“I’m the brains type…”

If they encountered monsters en route, battle could be ordered at the proctors’ discretion. Everything after leaving the capital could be called part of the test.

“You’re young, so push a little. One-two, one-two.”

“…Quit mocking me.”

Nahal and Calm said nothing in particular. The two of them seemed to be careful not to waste stamina unnecessarily. Luke, on the other hand, constantly performed scouting—sensing the surroundings so he could act at once.

“How much farther is it?”

“You silly boy. Think you’ll be fine talking like that?”

“Every year there’s a certain number like this… fools, that is.”

Though it sounded like idle chatter, the two proctors carefully observed each individual—those who were using all their strength just to walk, those who thought of marching as mere movement, and those facing the test as lone riders rather than as a squad.

From the standpoint of coordination and teamwork, not everyone was a plus.

“—! I sense monsters ahead. Two of them.”

Skinny and the other two hurriedly readied their weapons. However they patched it over with words or attitude, fear could not be dispelled. Only by repeating real combat would it become solid confidence.

“…Quick ones. The species is Tiny Wolf, yes?”

“Yes. Now, what shall we do?”

Yorn turned his gaze to the examinees.

“Alright then, you lot… try something.”

“Hah!? What the hell’s that supposed to mean! Aren’t you going to give us orders?”

“…Agreed. That’s not what we were told.”

For the first time in a while, Nahal spoke up. He looked calm, but his eyes were darting. Calm was reacting much the same.

“If you don’t get orders—if things aren’t as you were told… do you die?”

The monsters had approached to within visual range. Quadrupedal, dog-shaped beasts—small-bodied but fast, with sharp fangs and claws.

“…I’ll go. Everyone, please stay back.”

“H-Hey, don’t do anything crazy!”

Ignoring Skinny’s attempt to stop him, Luke stepped forward. The Tiny Wolves, perhaps setting him as their target, charged straight for him.

“Relaxion.”

Luke’s figure multiplied, and the Tiny Wolves, confused, halted their legs. That was their undoing.

Unable to react to Luke’s sharp slashes, both Tiny Wolves were decapitated. Their vaunted speed had never come into play.

“Mm… that was clean swordwork.”

“Maybe that was a bit too easy.”

Skinny and the other two still had not shaken off their tension. The difference in experience showed.

“Thank you. …Nahal-san or Calm-san—can either of you use fire magic?”

“Fire magic? The fight should be over already… no?”

“If we don’t properly deal with monster corpses, other monsters will gather.”

Luke explained the importance of processing monster remains—knowledge he had gained through adventuring.

“I understand, but… spending mana before the test is…”

“This is likely part of the test as well. …We were given instructions, after all.”

The three examinees started, remembering. “Act under orders.” They recalled it had been in the pre-test briefing.

“So you noticed. Well, it’s no big deal.”

By Yorn’s magic, the monster remains were compressed and scattered to pieces.

“Is that… multi-attribute magic…?”

“Alright, let’s go. Time is finite.”

The color of the three’s eyes changed. It was the moment they recognized the gap between them.

A vast plain south of the royal capital—the place called the Igza Plains. The squad had arrived there. Looking far off, they could see other squads as well.

“Now then, this is where the real thing starts.”

“The number of monsters increases greatly. Perfect for exercises, eh.”

They had also fought monsters along the way. Unlike their first engagement, all four coordinated and dealt with threats surely. Yorn’s words and actions seemed to have triggered a change in Skinny and the others’ mindset.

“…Alright! Let’s get fired up!”

“You may be fired up, but you’re already in tatters…”

Skinny’s stamina ranked dead last even before combat ability. He looked about to snap at any moment.

“Right. You’d better move to rear support. Luke, what do you think? …Luke?”

“…Doesn’t this feel a little strange?”

Luke stared into the distance across the plain. For someone who had been calm and unflustered thus far, it was unusual—tension bled through.

“The Igza Plains are supposed to be famous for many monsters… but it’s far too quiet.”

“Indeed. We run this test every year, but… this is…”

Up to the plains, they had confirmed monsters. Yet now, if it wasn’t within sight, he didn’t even feel a presence.

“…Hm? Something’s going up into the sky.”

“That’s not just ‘something’… Isn’t that a signal by magic the Mage Corps uses…?”

“Good eye. That’s a sign to inform of an emergency.”

The signal came from the west relative to First Squad—corresponding to another squad’s testing ground.

“Is this any time to stand around? We’ve gotta help—”

“It seems we don’t have that luxury.”

Luke’s scouting picked up a response. A massive presence of monsters was moving toward First Squad. Contact was only a matter of time.

“You’ve gotta be kidding… Monsters that many, all at once?”

“Panicking won’t help. I did say the real thing starts here, didn’t I?”

“Damn it! You knew, didn’t you!?”

Everyone leveled their weapons.

Luke and Opa took the front line. Yorn and Skinny formed the middle, and Nahal and Calm held the rear—an ad-hoc formation, textbook in its layout.

“For now we’ll cut down monsters while heading for the center. Getting split up on a wide plain is a disadvantage.”

“Hard on an old body, but there’s no helping it… Skinny! Snap to!”

A horde of monsters pressed from the front. They were mostly species that did not inhabit the Igza Plains.

“We’ll strike first! Pierce—Divine Arrow!”

The battle began with Luke’s spell as the opening shot. It was the start of a long fight with no end in sight.

“Cough… I’m out of mana.”

“Me too. Maybe we should just be glad we’re alive…”

First Squad had fought while moving to the center of the Igza Plains. They managed to link up with other squads, but Skinny and the others were in a battered state.

“Looks like we were neatly played.”

“Indeed. I did think there were more qualifiers than usual this year.”

Each squad had fought while moving toward the center. Monsters gathered as if to chase those squads. Then knights and mages appeared from behind the monsters. For reinforcements, the timing was too good.

“Huh? Weren’t they coming to help us?”

“Even so, there are far too many. To suddenly send that many as reinforcements is…”

They had confirmed that all squads were gathered in the center. But everyone’s safety was uncertain. Looking only at squads, their numbers had clearly decreased compared to departure.

“Don’t you get it? We were conveniently used as decoys.”

“So they could hit efficiently from behind once we clustered in the center.”

The surrounding examinees wore looks of shock. Skinny, who had been sprawled from exhaustion, sprang up as if bouncing.

“Hah!? How the hell did it end up like that!? Don’t tell me you knew!?”

“Opa-san and I joined as help from the second test onward—we weren’t told the true nature of the entrance test. I am important, nominally, but still…”

Yorn said it was likely the scheme of those managing the entrance test. Depending on the case, it might even have come from higher up.

“I hate to shatter the dreams of the young, but this is how organizations are. Such an emergency is on the verge of striking the Kingdom of Diabalet.”

An assault by monsters not found in the Igza Plains. It forcibly called to mind the monster incident in the royal capital the other day.

“They anticipated the enemy would make a move and gathered troops, huh. Bold of them…”

“But the assault has abated, hasn’t it? Whatever we may think, the crisis should be over, no?”

“Right. Doing this much before we’ve even joined is too much.”

Many were exhausted to the core, but their lives were saved. Quite a few wore relieved expressions that they could finally return to the capital.

“Hey, Luke? Why are you just standing there… Don’t tell me—”

“Yes. I’m reasonably confident in my scouting, but… that nasty presence unique to monsters hasn’t faded.”

“Give me a break!” Skinny shouted. He was, unexpectedly, not broken yet.

“Luke… can your mana still hold out?”

“Yes, I still have some to spare.”

“Sorry, but I’m counting you as combat strength. Fighting while protecting these kids is a real handful.”

Monsters bore down on the units arrayed in the rear. Seen from afar, it looked like a black tidal wave.

Reinforcement units, squads, and examinees—it turned into a free-for-all that swallowed everything.

“Commander Hares, these numbers are far beyond the initial assumptions.”

“I know! Move your body before your mouth.”

Behind this entrance test were portions of the upper echelons and the intelligence service. Officially, it was a joint knight–mage entrance test. Given the recent emergencies, it was justified as strengthening inter-organizational coordination.

“Do you know how much damage we’ve taken!? What are those bastards upstairs thinking?”

Hares had been astonished when told the operation’s reality. He understood the logic, but it was obvious there would be casualties. Even so, he followed orders out of a spirit of sacrificing the small to protect the great.

“At this rate we’ll be sacrificing everything…”

Knights were blown away by the march of giant golems. Mages could not cast due to griffins diving from the sky. Monsters that broke through the reinforcement units charged toward the squads, which included greenhorns who knew nothing of battle.

If they could not send help, even retreat would be impossible.

“Commander! At this rate—”

“I’ll curse you… you damn bosses…!”

Monsters surged against Hares’s unit. Before individual ability even mattered, there were simply too many. Just before they were about to be swallowed by the onrushing wave, a change occurred.

“‘Nabla Cyclone!’”

A violent wind spell blew the wave away. The monsters, unable to resist, were erased by the tempest.

“Linked casting…!? Which unit is that?”

“No—their armor bears a crest. That is… impossible!? The crest of Lagias!?”

A crest famous in its own way. In name recognition alone it rivaled ducal houses—the most hated nobles in the realm. For some reason, the Lagias private soldiers had appeared on the Igza Plains.

“We are the Lagias Private Guard! By our lord’s command we render aid. All hands—charge!”

With a roar of ohhhhh!, nearly fifty soldiers rushed the monsters at once. Some wreathed their blades in mana and carved the enemy apart; others used high-pressure water magic to shoot down monsters in swathes; still others performed wide-area annihilation with linked spells—methods varied.

“You know what this means! Do not shame our lord!”

Each individual’s combat power and morale were abnormally high. They pushed up the front that had been forced back—the tide of battle shifted all at once.

“Absurd… Why does Lagias possess that much force? And what’s their purpose being here at all?”

Flying monsters like griffins were shot down across the board, and the golems’ cores were pierced by spears. Some monsters, cowed by the momentum, even fled.

“A force not inferior to the Knight Order or Mage Corps, the symbols of the nation… Is Lagias… planning to wage war against the country?”

Hares felt the Lagias Private Guard were far more terrifying than the monsters before his eyes. Mishandled, it could truly become war. They displayed that much menace.

“Check the wounded and treat them at once! Do not allow a single death. We have orders that no one is to die!”

Some dashed about the battlefield casting healing magic, while most of the soldiers wielded sword and magic as a matter of course. Perhaps the word “specialization” did not exist in Lagias.

“No… If I think about it, I’m finished. For now, fine—just focus on getting through this.”

A joint fight between the national army and Lagias—something impossible in the original—was unfolding.

As the battlefield began to grow noisier, a lone boy stood still. He wore luxurious clothes befitting a noble—ill-suited to the front. At his waist was an unadorned, simple sword. And before his eyes stretched a vast horde of monsters. Including draconic breeds, A-rank difficulty targets pressed upon him.

“Sorry, but the road ahead is closed. …I won’t let you interfere with him.”

Not a single monster nodded at his words.

“If you don’t want to die, turn back… Not that it matters—I’ll erase you all.”

Before absolute power, not a single monster could resist. All that remained were corpses, swallowed by cold and stilled forever.