Chapter 31

(3)

5.

【First Trial: Knowledge】

Ulan stared straight ahead.

At first, he thought each person would choose their own trial, but judging from the situation, it seemed to be randomly assigned.

‘No choice.’

The dice had already been cast.

Now, Ulan had only one task.

To use all the knowledge he possessed to overcome this obstacle.

“Bring it on.”

He would overcome this trial splendidly.

Even if it meant fainting from the overwhelming amount of information.

Ulan steeled himself.

Not long after.

Countless characters began to appear in the air.

Worm-like characters.

Familiar characters. They were the Ancient Desert Kingdom Script that Silfi had been deciphering.

But the problem was…

“What does it say?”

He couldn’t understand the content.

Since he couldn’t comprehend the characters themselves, his brain didn’t overload.

As he tilted his head in confusion.

Thud! Clatter!

Suddenly, characters began to appear on the ground.

Four options soon appeared.

As if to choose from among them.

“At least there’s that.”

After a brief moment of relief.

Ulan looked at the options again.

His eyes turned cautious.

After a moment, he chose the first option.

Because it had the most characters.

Immediately after making his choice.

The ground suddenly turned bright red.

Sssss!

A diagonal line was drawn. This much, even Ulan could read.

It meant the number 1.

“Is that the correct answer?”

If he had been wrong, the number 0 would have appeared. But since a line was drawn, it meant he had earned 1 point. Ulan muttered softly.

“Lucky.”

As he did, a new question appeared.

Again, the same set of options.

Ulan continued to make his choices.

Each time, the ground turned red, and diagonal lines were drawn.

After a not-so-short time.

Finally, when all the questions were answered.

Whoosh!

This time, not just the ground, but the entire space was bathed in red light. Ulan let out a soft exclamation.

“I didn’t expect a perfect score.”

Too lucky.

Had he received some divine blessing?

As he pondered this.

Boom! Boom boom boom!

Drums sounded from all directions.

Like the drums of a battlefield. Were they congratulating him for the perfect score? As he thought this.

“Grrr! Kreek!”

“Kyaaaa!”

Monsters poured in from all sides.

Immortals, and even grotesque monsters he had never seen before. Ulan’s eyes widened as he understood.

“I see. This is the final trial.”

Of course, they wouldn’t just let him go after solving problems.

Ulan’s lips curled slightly.

“I’m confident with this kind of problem.”

In fact, he already knew the answer.

Annihilation. Ulan grinned.

Facing the monsters charging from all sides.

A bright red axe tore through the air.

6.

Meanwhile.

Ivella also stared at the characters floating before her.

The script of the Cultists. And the same script Silfi had pointed out before they arrived here.

【Second Trial: Struggle】

Clearly, this was the trial Ulan should have faced.

But the fact that it was given to her meant their plan had gone awry.

‘I don’t mind, but…’

I wish Silfi and Ulan could face the trials of knowledge and talent respectively. Even if Ulan is second, Silfi has almost no combat ability.

It was a genuine concern.

At that moment.

Thud!

Suddenly, heavy footsteps echoed.

Ivella immediately gripped her sword. She had sensed someone approaching.

‘No matter who it is.’

Overcome the trial and reunite with Ulan.

Having decided her course of action, Ivella steeled herself with a blank expression. But the moment the opponent appeared in the distance, her expression cracked.

“…Himel?”

The figure that appeared was a young man with brown hair.

Her half-brother, Himel Deorg.

Himel’s sudden appearance. Ivella was stunned. And in that moment of confusion, a sharp blade flew towards her.

Whoosh! Clang!

After barely deflecting the sword.

After a few more exchanges, she finally realized.

‘No doubt.’

This was definitely Himel’s sword.

The swordsmanship of the Deorg Count’s family.

‘Why is Himel here?’

He had left when Class 2 departed.

As confusion and questions repeated, she suddenly realized something. There was no sound of breathing from Himel before her.

And his eyes were different too.

Not the usual disdain and disgust, but a dull, emotionless gaze. Like looking at a lifeless doll.

Realizing this, she finally understood.

This wasn’t the real Himel.

‘Then what is it?’

An illusion? Or a monster?

New doubts arose, but they were quickly resolved. Thanks to Ulan’s words.

‘If you can’t tell if it’s a person or a monster, just smash its head first.’

Then the problem would be solved.

Ulan had definitely said that. So Ivella decided to act on it.

Clang! Clang!

The swords clashed repeatedly.

Despite the considerable impact, the rusty sword held firm. But Ivella couldn’t.

“Ugh!”

Gradually, she was being pushed back.

At first, it seemed evenly matched, but as time passed, the gap in skill became apparent.

The reason was simple.

‘I’m weaker than Himel.’

Ivella couldn’t match him.

Unlike Himel, who had been honing his swordsmanship with immense support since birth, she had only held a sword for three years.

The time invested in learning was different.

Clang! Thud!

As the swords clashed, Himel’s fist suddenly struck Ivella’s abdomen.

“Ugh!”

The pain was unbearable.

A heavy ache spread through her lower abdomen, but there was no time to assess it. Barely rolling away to avoid further attacks, Ivella gritted her teeth.

“Cough, cough!”

She coughed and tried to steady her breathing.

Then, the creature looked at her. Its gaze felt twisted. Suddenly, Himel spoke.

「You have no talent for swordsmanship.」

A cold, emotionless voice. The same words she had heard when she first picked up a sword.

「Even if you have Deorg blood, half of your body flows with dirty, lowly blood. For you to hold a sword is an insult to the family.」

These words were also from her memory.

It seemed the Himel before her was created from Ivella’s memories.

Dragging up the memories she least wanted to recall, it continued to speak.

「If you really want to help the family, seduce a noble’s child and spread your legs. Like your mother did. Then even your useless body might be of some use.」

Ivella clenched her teeth.

Then shook her head vigorously.

“…No.”

Despite the intense emotions, her voice came out weak. The words about her lack of talent and her dirty blood echoed in her mind.

If I truly had talent in swordsmanship, wouldn’t I be able to easily defeat this fake Himel?

As such gloomy thoughts swirled.

Suddenly, a loud noise erupted.

Boom!

A massive vibration shook the ground.

Even the fake Himel turned its gaze. Ivella, too, snapped out of her gloomy thoughts and widened her eyes.

“This is…”

It’s Ulan.

No evidence, but it felt like him. Somehow, he was the first to come to mind.

Boom! Boom! Crash!

As if announcing his presence, the vibrations continued. The relentless shocks jolted Ivella’s gloomy memories.

Then, a memory surfaced.

Ulan’s encouragement from some time ago.

「You can do it.」

Eyes filled with strong belief.

A single sentence of conviction.

「You will definitely reach the level of a Master.」

Encouragement completely opposite to Himel’s words.

The moment she recalled this, something inside her shattered.

The memories she didn’t want to recall. The nightmares of her childhood were shattered by Ulan’s words. Soon after, Ivella bit her lip hard.

‘…I can’t lose here.’

Ulan believed in Ivella.

He believed in her talent as a swordsman.

To repay that belief, she had to defeat this fake Himel. Biting her lip until it bled, her composure returned.

At that moment.

Something reflected in her eyes.

【Second Trial: Struggle】

This is the trial of struggle.

Then, what is struggle?

Struggle is not about showcasing swordsmanship or dueling for honor. It’s simpler and clearer.

‘Struggle is fighting to win.’

No matter the means, victory is all that matters.

Realizing this.

Ivella’s eyes flashed.

‘Then…’

Having made her decision.

She took a half-breath. Then boldly charged at the fake Himel.

Swish! Slash!

A sharp sword strike came, but she didn’t dodge.

As long as it wasn’t a vital point, it didn’t matter.

Ivella willingly took the hit for victory, finally reaching right in front of her opponent.

And swung her sword.

「Futile.」

The fake Himel tilted his sword.

A perfect defensive stance to block Ivella’s strike. If it were the old Ivella, she would have retreated or tried to dodge.

But now, understanding the meaning of struggle.

Her choice was different.

「…!」

The fake Himel’s eyes widened.

Just before their swords clashed, Ivella suddenly let go of her sword without hesitation.

As a look of panic crossed his face for the first time, Ivella’s pale hand roughly grabbed Himel’s collar.

“Finally got you.”

With a triumphant smile.

She headbutted Himel.

Crack!

Her head rang, but it didn’t matter.

Ivella grabbed Himel’s staggering arm and slammed him to the ground.

Soon, Ivella was on top of him. She pressed down on his arm with her knee and smiled.

“Finally, my wish came true.”

I’ve always wanted to punch that annoying face. Her clenched fist struck Himel’s face.

Thud! Crack! Crash!

Once, twice, three times.

The repeated punches filled with killing intent only stopped when the figure beneath her was no longer Himel.

“Sand?”

The body had turned into sand.

And at that moment, the surroundings changed.

The place where the three of them had been together. And not far away, a familiar face appeared.

“Ulan…”

As she muttered his name in a daze.

He turned to look at her. Then, with a faint smile, he spoke.

“Seems like you won.”

“…Why do you think that?”

“Because you’re smiling.”

Ivella was startled.

She must have smiled without realizing it, thinking about defeating Himel. So she fixed her expression and approached Ulan.

“But where’s Silfi…”

“She’s here.”

Ulan pointed beside the campfire.

There, Silfi lay curled up, unconscious.

“She’s been like this since I found her.”

Fortunately, she wasn’t hurt. Her pulse and breathing were stable, so Ivella nodded.

After sitting by the campfire.

Her turquoise eyes looked at Ulan.

“Thank you, Ulan.”

“What’s this all of a sudden?”

“It’s thanks to you that I could win.”

Recalling Ulan’s words.

Ivella regained her confidence. And she faced her painful past head-on, claiming victory.

So she wanted to say thank you.

Ulan, however, shook his head.

“No, that was all your talent.”

In her past life, she had proven her talent in swordsmanship by reaching the level of a Master.

Ulan had witnessed it firsthand.

So he was certain.

That Ivella’s talent was real.

“With your talent, you could easily overcome the trial of talent.”

“Huh? The trial of talent?”

Meanwhile, Ivella blinked.

As if asking what he meant.

“I passed the trial of struggle.”

“Struggle?”

“Yeah, and I thought you’d face the trial of talent…”

“Mine was the trial of knowledge.”

The reply left her speechless.

Ulan, as if to reassure her, added.

“No need to worry. I got a perfect score.”

“Really? As expected of the top scorer.”

At least he passed.

But the relief was short-lived.

“But if I faced the trial of struggle, and Ulan faced the trial of knowledge…”

She trailed off, looking at Silfi.

Meaning, Silfi had faced the trial of talent.

Realizing this.

Ivella’s expression turned uneasy. While she acknowledged Silfi’s ability to decipher ancient scripts, other aspects were less reassuring.

But the worry didn’t last long.

Crash! Rumble!

The front wall of the room collapsed with a loud noise. And soon, a new passage appeared before them.

The path to the final trial.

Seeing this, Ulan and Ivella exchanged smiles.

It meant Silfi had also overcome her trial.

7.

The door to the final trial.

Despite the clear path ahead, Ulan and Ivella had no intention of leaving the campfire.

The reason was simple.

Silfi hadn’t woken up yet.

And they were exhausted from the long battle. So they planned to rest and regroup.

“Here.”

Ulan took out food and water from his backpack and handed them to Ivella. Surprised, Ivella looked at him.

“I didn’t expect you to bring food and water. Ulan, you’re surprisingly well-prepared.”

“I didn’t bring these.”

“Huh? Then who…”

“Noa.”

“Noa?”

“The small one who’s been traveling with us. We were in the same group for a while.”

With that explanation.

Ivella remembered who Noa was.

A girl with black hair and deep blue eyes, who always seemed mysterious.

“So her name is Noa.”

She was also the girl who shared a bed with Ivella in the infirmary.

“You seemed pretty close with her. Did you know each other before enrolling?”

“We were fellow disciples under the same master.”

I see. Fellow disciples.

Ivella nodded.

Somehow, she felt calmer.

But there was still something she wanted to ask. So she cautiously broached the subject.

“Then, what about the princess of the duchy we met earlier?”

Delia Arpen.

Even Ivella, who was indifferent to others, knew of her fame.

For such a famous person to greet Ulan first meant they were close.

So she was curious.

Just that.

“I met Delia during the special exam.”

“Huh? That’s it?”

“That’s it.”

Ulan nodded.

What? It’s the same as me.

Ivella felt relieved.

Then she tilted her head. She didn’t understand why she felt relieved.

But her pondering was short-lived.

“Ugh, ugh…”

A low groan was heard.

It was Silfi. Groaning and tossing, she soon opened her eyes.

As Silfi regained consciousness, Ulan handed her water and food, asking about the trial of talent. He was curious about what had happened.

But the answer was unexpected.

“You don’t remember what happened?”

“…No, nothing comes to mind.”

She didn’t seem to be lying.

Her flickering, uneasy eyes were proof. If her memories were completely gone, it was natural to feel scared.

“W-well, at least it’s resolved!”

Silfi forced a smile.

Well, that was true.

Rather than investigating how she overcame the trial, there was something more important.

The final trial.

Looking at the passage leading to it, Ulan stood up.

“Let’s go.”

After all the rest and regrouping.

The group moved forward again.

To see what lay at the end of the trial and find the way out.

Chapter 11. But That Really Happened

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