Chapter 226

Just in case you don’t know, Academy Students are definitely not weak.

The Academy itself is very much like a military academy, and naturally, each student possesses considerable strength.

Moreover, nobles often train from a young age, making them stronger than most knights.

Knights in this era are akin to tanks on Earth. Especially if they can ride a horse, they’re basically a tank in the truest sense.

So it means that even if I were to beat them all up randomly, it’s not because they’re weak. It’s just that I’m ridiculously strong.

You could call it arrogance. But if there’s skill to back it up, it’s not arrogance; it’s confidence.

I tossed arrogance aside a long time ago after nearly getting beaten to a pulp by Porori a few times. Naturally, I had no choice but to let it go.

It’s not just Porori, either. Even little snakes or insects can have potent venom, and there have been times when my life hung in the balance.

So let’s not let our guard down. Even lions don’t hunt half-heartedly.

This may be a brawl, but it operates under a similar concept.

“Ughhh!”

It was when I knocked the guy in the center out with a punch. A battle cry shattered the heavy silence around us.

From the battle cry, it felt more like a desperate struggle to overcome fear. And that acted as a catalyst, affecting those around me.

One person’s shout led to several other students rushing in. Naturally, I found myself surrounded.

They were definitely from different teams. And yet they united just to take me down.

Snap!

“What the—!”

So what’s the plan here? A bunch of sheep coming together is still just a flock of sheep.

I punched the very first guy who shouted and sent him spinning with a hit to the face.

I could feel a little power behind my punch, so I wondered if his jaw might have turned. Not that I felt bad; I wouldn’t have to see his face again anyway.

‘Shouldn’t have yelled discrimination.’

I had no intention of going easy. As soon as I heard a discriminatory comment, it was game over.

If I had attacked Kara just for the sake of restraining her, I might have let it slide with some rationale. But that wasn’t the case.

‘… Actually, it is rational.’

Whack!

I threw a low kick at the leg of the student in front of me who was dancing with a sword. The body fell helplessly under the whip-like kick.

Even while thinking of other things, my attack was at a leisurely level. The attacks were just way too slow.

After only training with Rod, I guess it backfired on me. My expectations had gotten too high.

‘Of course, Kara would attract attention.’

One big student charged at me, arms spread wide as if to tackle me. He looked like he was a fighter.

But I casually sidestepped. I then kicked his sturdy behind and sent him flying.

“Ughhh!!”

He flew away like I kicked a soccer ball. I thought it would be heavy, so I kicked him hard, but I must have added some extra power.

After that, it was just rinse and repeat. No matter how they surrounded me front and back, I dispatched them one by one.

Meanwhile, the students didn’t even manage to land a decent hit on me. Of course, I wasn’t completely unscathed.

No matter how sharp my instincts are, in a blocked situation, it’s like being hit by a blind arrow.

Ping!

“Wh-what?! The arrows aren’t working!”

“What the heck?! Why’s he so tough?!”

But thanks to the Steel King trait, their efforts were basically useless. Because of that trait, most attacks didn’t affect me.

‘But this guy’s infused with magic.’

Even though it was a non-lethal arrow, an ordinary person would have felt pain like being smashed with a hammer.

I frowned and glared at the guy who shot the arrow. When he met my gaze, he looked even more terrified.

He tried to retrieve the arrow and shoot again, but it was already too late. I picked up a pebble lying on the ground.

Thwack!

“Ugh!”

I used a snap of my wrist to hit him right in the forehead. The archer collapsed, rolling his eyes back.

My throwing skills are likely stronger than his pathetic archery. It’s one of the things I’ve trained tirelessly in the forest.

Honestly, I could take down all the students here using just throwing. But that wouldn’t be fun, would it?

Additionally, I wanted to test some things, so I’m taking on each one methodically.

“Everyone, get out of the way!”

“Everyone, stay clear of that guy!”

I guess they felt at a loss in close combat. One girl shouted, and a guy followed right after her.

All at once, I felt magic building up behind me. It was a familiar feeling.

Just as I turned around, a language I had never heard before entered my ears.

“Waves of flame! Engulf that man!”

It was a completely new language, but I understood it instantly. It seemed like they were about to use fire magic.

The distance was likely to avoid the impact, as it seemed like a potent spell. Getting hit by that would be a hassle.

No, it would be embarrassing. I’m sturdy, but my clothes certainly aren’t.

‘She’s going all out.’

Wham!!

Just as I thought that, a wave of flames swept over me.

It was more like a continuous stream of flame than a wave. Most fire magic operates like that.

But considering its speed and the aesthetic beauty of it, it seemed to be a rather skilled practitioner.

‘I’ll need a shield.’

Luckily, there were shields scattered nearby. I subtly moved my legs.

As I moved, the flames followed me. It looked like maintaining the magic kept it going.

It’s akin to a breath attack. People who mainly use fire-type magic tend to favor those breath attacks.

Anyway, I had to respond. I dodged the breath attack and propelled myself forward with a sudden leap.

The speed was much faster than before, causing the breath to momentarily lose track of me. I seized the opportunity.

Catch!

“What?”

Did you really think you’d be safe from a distance? As soon as the breath fired, I grabbed the arm of the student who was trying to stay away.

And just as the mage noticed me, the breath switched direction toward me, and this is where it started.

“Oh, it’s coming! Everyone, get out of the way!”

“Let go of me! I said let go!!”

As the breath approached, the students fled in a panic. Everyone except the one I was holding.

Feeling the hot breath drawing near, I spoke to him.

“Not a chance.”

“This crazy lunatic…! Huh?”

I then forcibly placed him in front of me where the breath was headed.

Commonly referred to as a human shield. The mage desperately tried to stop the breath as I set up my human shield, but it was useless.

Wham!!

The fire that had already been launched engulfed him. Naturally, I was untouched, not even a speck of dust on me.

Only the student I used as a shield ended up engulfed in flames. But just to be careful, I didn’t lean close enough for them to hit my face.

Whoosh! Crackle!

But seriously, why is he on fire? Did he maybe oil himself or something?

“Ugh! Ugh! Ugh!”

The student rolled on the ground with strange screams. Trying to put out the flames on his body.

I gazed at the student rolling around and forcibly stood him up.

“Stop it.”

“Ughhh!!”

I roundly wrapped the squirming student, like a burrito.

When he started thrashing too much, I gave him a hit to the back of the neck just to knock him out. Gotta do it nicely to make him fly properly.

Finally, I threw him quite gracefully. Where did I throw him, you ask?

Where else—right at the mage who just blasted me with fire.

Thwack!

“Ugh!”

“Water! Quick! Someone get water for the mage!”

What a mess. The mage fainted upon colliding with the student engulfed in flames.

Others scrambled in a rush to extinguish the flames. I dealt with the annoying stuff.

“That villain…!”

“The rumors were true! He’s really a madman…”

Was it the human shield or the throw that freaked them out? Either way, they were starting to see me as a threat.

For me, this was just appropriate counteraction, but to them, it probably looked ruthless.

In fact, objectively speaking, it was ruthless. Using a human shield to block a breath attack is definitely a problem.

‘They won’t make a fuss about this? It’s worked just fine in the Soul World.’

Using human shields in a brawl seems to be a common occurrence. If they take issue with this, it’s their problem, not mine.

Of course, from Rod’s perspective, he’d probably be shaking with anger. But since they messed up first, I plan to hold my head high.

Woosh!

After some spirited fun, it seemed to finally be time for the next participant to enter the fray.

Maybe because I was slacking, I only took down half. Honestly, I wouldn’t mind if more showed up at this point.

‘My team… they feel like strangers.’

Our team consisted of students I didn’t recognize. Even if some looked familiar, we had no connections.

So I figured I might as well keep doing what I was doing when I suddenly heard cheers near my ear.

“Oh, they’ve arrived! The Priest is here!”

“We can defeat that crazy monster now!!”

“What?”

Suddenly, students began cheering. Of course, only a few students were raising their arms in excitement.

This meant that the other teams were looking puzzled, trying to grasp the situation, and I was just as confused.

‘Could it be?’

With a feeling of disbelief, I turned to the entrance. From afar, there was a color that stood out distinctly.

It was none other than Erica, a high-ranking priestess, like me, who came out alone. Her pink hair truly caught the eye.

“Priest! Please grant us the power to vanquish that monster!”

“We beg you! We are no match for him!”

As soon as things calmed down a bit, the students rushed toward Erica, kneeling and pleading.

I could only stand there, dumbfounded, as I struggled to understand the situation. In the meantime, Erica turned to meet my gaze.

“… …”

“… …”

A subtle exchange of glances followed. I had no idea what she was thinking.

After staring at me for a while, Erica smiled brightly. Then she addressed the kneeling students.

“It seems you’ve been through a lot. How strong is Sivar, exactly?”

“He’s inhumanly strong! He’s a beast, a beast!”

“And just as cruel as can be…! Please, bestow a blessing upon us so we can enact judgment!”

While all of that might be true, it felt a bit unfair to me.

I scratched my head awkwardly, unable to think of anything to say. More than anything, I was curious to see how Erica would respond. She must have something up her sleeve.

‘But didn’t she say she would only support us and not intervene directly?’

Before I could solve that question, it happened.

“Ah!”

Bang!

Just like that, Erica made a sound like she was concentrating, and a small explosion occurred.

With it came a thick cloud of smoke rising up. The moment I saw that, I thought, “No way.”

Although small in scale, it unfolded just like when Rize appeared. I hoped it wouldn’t be the case, but…

“I understand.”

“… …”

“I shall lend my strength, albeit in a minor way.”

Sure enough, my ominous feeling was validated as a muscular giant emerged from the smoke.

He might be shorter and less muscular than Rize, but he still had a better physique than your average fighter.

And even his face had undergone what you might call a JoJo or Baki transformation.

‘What the…’

Both Rize and Erica, why do all the pretty faces turn into this?!

At this rate, I could seriously start questioning Chaos’ taste. It totally matches the concept of disorder.

‘Is the world really coming to an end?’

Historically, Erica wasn’t like this. She was an ordinary pretty priestess harboring a distorted belief.

But ever since meeting Rize, her beliefs had changed. And in direct proportion, her body seemed to have warped as well.

As I was so overwhelmed I didn’t know what to do, Erica took action.

“O God of Chaos, to these poor lambs…”

She looked at the students kneeling in front.

“Bestow your blessing upon them!”

Smack!

With a hand the size of a pot lid, she delivered a resounding slap to one of the students’ cheeks.

… Wait a minute. What did I just see?

“Whoa!! I feel stronger!!”

“… What?”

I was at a loss for words, utterly perplexed.

Is that really a blessing? Or some kind of violence disguised as a blessing?

Smack! Clap!

Even in a situation where I couldn’t make sense of anything, Erica’s antics continued.

She was diligently slapping the cheeks of the students kneeling before her. And the students seemed very pleased with it.

Did one person going insane lead to the collective madness of a group? Realizing that, I stood straighter.

“Here I come!!”

The very first student who got slapped charged at me. He was surprisingly fast, catching me off guard.

He raised a battle hammer high and aimed to strike me down. I crossed my arms diagonally and casually defended against it.

Just in case, I reinforced myself with magic, so I didn’t expect to get hurt.

Crash!

But I felt a surprisingly big impact hitting me.

No matter how much it was a hammer, I could feel a lingering ache. And it wasn’t just that.

Creak—

The sturdy ground I stood on began to shift backward slightly.

“… …?”

Wait a minute.

Did I just get pushed back?

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