Chapter 379

I occasionally thought about it.

What if Kara had the Ragnarok or the Usuk Blade when we faced off a year ago?

The Usuk Blade, capable of inflicting injuries on my body even without magic power.

During the freshman duel, Kara dealt quite a bit of damage to me.

So if she had either of those weapons, the damage would have been even worse, but I couldn’t guarantee a victory.

No, it’d be more that I’d just hold out longer; winning would be difficult. The reason is simple.

Just because something can pierce my solid body doesn’t mean I’m weak. In fact, I’m quite used to getting hurt.

Moreover, while Reina is strong enough to be compared to Kara, she’s not considerably stronger.

In this world, physicality matters, but skills are crucial. Reina lacks when it comes to technical skill compared to Kara.

-Thwack!

Ragnarok’s sharp blade embedded itself in my shoulder, precisely in the trapezius region.

Seeing that about half the blade was lodged in, I could tell it had been struck down with considerable force.

But on the flip side, that also meant I couldn’t use Ragnarok again. I gripped its hilt tightly.

“Whoa?”

When I grabbed the hilt, Reina’s eyes widened in surprise, no doubt taken aback by my unflinching stance.

Now, the only thing left was to strike back. Holding onto the hilt, I threw a punch directly at Reina’s face.

-Thud!

My fist connected solidly with Reina’s cheek, sending her flying backward. Ragnarok dislodged itself from my shoulder with the motion.

The wound on my shoulder, where the blade had been lodged, healed back to normal in no time. I could spin my arms around without a care.

“Cough! Cough!”

Reina, knocked down by the punch, stood back up, coughing harshly. Her face was already a beautiful mess.

Her once lovely face now looked like a steamed bun, swollen and covered in numerous scratches and bruises.

It’s a different situation from when I got hit on the wrist. I was taking quite the beating. Well, that’s to be expected.

‘After all, I prefer to push through with physical abilities.’

In a way, our styles are somewhat similar. And the weakness of that style is clear.

Against a skilled opponent, you get trampled like a dog or trampled by someone with even better physical strength.

In that regard, you could say Reina has good balance. Honestly, I’m more of a berserker style.

Even if I take hits, I’m still up and regenerating without a hitch. Does that even make sense?

So it’s no wonder everyone has similar reactions when they face me.

“Who the hell is that guy? Is he even human? Is he a beast or something?”

‘…Did I hit her too much?’

I scratched my head while looking at Reina. As I mentioned before, her body was covered in injuries.

Even though I counterattacked every time she hit me, the damage piled up faster than I expected.

On the other hand, me? Sure, I took a few hits, but as you can see, I’m perfectly fine. My stamina is still strong without a breath spent.

“Reina.”

“What?”

With her cheeks puffed up, she was slurring her words. Still, the ferocity in her gaze remained.

Reina, being quite fierce, probably won’t give up easily. But just look at her now.

Anyone would feel sympathy looking at that face. She might be better off fainting at this point.

“Your teeth aren’t loose, right?”

“They’re loose so I had to fix them.”

“Is that even a thing?”

That’s intriguing. I never heard of descriptions about losing teeth in the Soul World.

Even Rod and Rize, who’ve fought for ages, boast perfect teeth. No implants in this world, after all.

“It is. What about you, senior?”

“They grow back.”

“…You’re really a demon, huh?”

Instead of answering, I shrugged. No need to reveal secrets.

Anyway, it seems it’s about time to wrap things up. She’s hurt like that; we should give her some rest.

No matter how strong Reina is, she’s still not fully grown. She’s young, with ample room for growth.

As I took a step forward, Reina gripped Ragnarok tightly. The fighting spirit ignited in her blue eyes.

-Swish

She pulled out a sword that had been stuck in the ground as I passed by. It was the Usuk Blade, which had been in the same spot until now.

Reina watched me intently as I picked up the blade, her eyes filled with tension. She must know this is the final act.

After I take her down, I’ll get the red treasure and then plan to gather the rest. Time is running short.

‘The blue treasure belongs to Namgoong Seokdae… where’s the green treasure? And I should have the orange treasure too.’

They must have taken the green and orange treasures from Kara. But Reina only has the red treasure.

Anyway, I can find the location with the blue treasure, so it’s not a big deal. Red treasure first.

-Clash!

The Usuk Blade and Ragnarok collided, making a refreshing sound.

They looked perfectly fine, neither one breaking despite being of the same material.

If Ragnarok, being an axe, pushed with ‘power,’ it might yield. But in terms of physical capability, I hold the upper hand.

Moreover, I swung the blade one-handed while Reina had it gripped with two. The difference in specs was clear.

-Thwack!

“Ow!”

I struck the back of Reina’s hand hard with my empty right hand. Instantly, I let go of the Usuk Blade.

My left hand was now free, which I used to grab Ragnarok’s handle.

-Whoosh!

Ragnarok slipped away effortlessly from Reina’s grasp. She reached out for it as soon as she could.

But the fight was already over. I tossed Ragnarok aside and clenched my right fist.

As I tightened my fist, the rock shards scattered around us slowly began to gather up.

Not just gathering randomly, but converging on Reina, transforming into a kind of prison.

“Urrrgh…!”

In an instant, the rocky prison was complete. If I were to clench my fist now, the pressure would increase.

If Reina were fine, it might be a different story, but right now, she was drained of strength and stamina, so escape was impossible.

Now, it’s just the finishing touch. Pulling off the bracelet just before I took it off with my free hand, I asked Reina.

“Reina.”

“…Yes.”

Reina replied weakly. It seemed she realized she would be eliminated.

Although she put up a decent fight thanks to Ragnarok, that’s as far as it went. She was far from being able to take me down.

Well, if she teamed up with others, she might have been able to take the bracelet off. That’s why I knocked her out of the arena.

“What’s your wish?”

“Wish?”

“Yeah. Your wish.”

“If I say it, will you let me go?”

As the swelling on her face gradually subsided, Reina’s speech became clearer.

I stared at her with a flat expression before speaking up.

“No.”

“Then why?”

“I considered whether to grant your wish.”

“Really?!”

That caught me off guard. Reina’s shocked reaction surprised me just as much.

When I looked at her with a somewhat startled expression, her eyes sparkled with excitement.

Given that I mentioned I might grant a wish, it was no wonder she would react that way.

“…Did you think I would?”

“Ah, now that you mention it, no.”

“Right. Exactly.”

Aside from that, I had no intention to grant her wish. I needed to hear Reina’s opinion first.

The content of the wish was to promote her from a first-year to a second-year. That’s a great favor for me too.

After all, my position as an assistant was to protect Reina. If she advances to second year, that concern disappears.

‘If she continues to stand out, she’ll get left behind every time we change countries.’

Of course, if I granted her wish outright, people would become suspicious. So I said it carefully.

“But it will be good for you too. I’m going to promote you to second year.”

“Huh? Me to second year?”

“Yeah. You’re strong. So…”

“Okay!”

Wait, hold on a second.

“Thank you very much!”

Why is she acting like this?

I was quite taken aback by Reina, who seemed ready to sacrifice her life.

It went beyond mere surprise; I was perplexed. I couldn’t help but wonder what was prompting such a reaction.

…No. I did have a faint idea. Though I’m an assistant, I’m not privy to everything a first-year goes through.

‘Could it be… is she being bullied out of sight?’

It’s not entirely impossible. After all, didn’t she drop out of the Soul World for not enduring implicit ostracism?

Moreover, with the amount of attention she’s getting now, it’s likely that if things are bad, they’re really bad.

So her reaction makes sense. I narrowed my eyes.

‘Victims of school violence usually don’t speak up.’

It’s always been that way. Whether it’s school bullying or workplace harassment, victims rarely share their struggles.

Why? Because they fear shocking those they love. Most have a tender heart inside.

Though Reina doesn’t fit the profile of a weak-hearted person, if there’s political pressure, the story changes.

Even if she’s a princess from Frozen, if there’s someone higher up, the internal struggle would be intense.

“…For now, I’ll think about it slowly. And no fighting with the other students. Avoid team kills.”

“Are you saying I should keep fighting with you?”

“Something like that. But before that…”

-Snap!

I ripped off Reina’s bracelet. A shield began to slowly encompass Reina.

Saying anything now wouldn’t hold much meaning. What matters most to her is to rest.

“Take a break. I’ll see you later.”

“I’ll be waiting!”

“Okay.”

Before long, Reina was completely encased in the shield. The treasure she wore on her finger naturally fell off.

If a wielder gets eliminated, the treasure automatically drops. Rings, for instance, expand in size.

I picked up the red treasure and placed it in my pocket. There were many rings, and they jingled.

‘I originally planned to end this quickly…’

I glanced around. The sight of eliminated students being encircled by shields caught my attention.

Now that I realized Reina’s ostracism was more severe than I anticipated, I thought I might need to step in.

-Crack!

I loosened my hands and began to walk.

I should change my location for now.

******

In the Eastern Empire, there’s a term “Mountain Lord.” It refers to the ruler and owner of the mountains.

Mountains are home to countless animals, where territorial wars break out several times a day.

Typically, one of the apex predators like a tiger becomes the Mountain Lord, but sometimes other animals can take that title.

And right now, there was a Mountain Lord present in the trial. The difference? This one isn’t an animal; it’s a human.

-Crash! Boom!

“Ugh, Aaaah!”

“Why, why is that happening?! What did we do wrong?!”

“Help me!”

The human had power that far surpassed even simple creatures.

Currently, that human is wreaking havoc in the trial, ruling with oppression that isn’t even warranted, and students are falling like autumn leaves.

Even when they teamed up, they got knocked down, but separated, they were just prey. It was tyranny worthy of a Mountain Lord.

“I, Namgoong Seokdae! Is there no way?!”

“How do we defeat such a monster? We might as well just give up or run away.”

“There’s gotta be a way!”

“A method…”

Having been thoroughly trampled by that Mountain Lord, civilian (?) Namgoong Seokdae pondered those words.

Honestly, there wasn’t necessarily a method to win against that tyrant. Didn’t even Reina get wrecked?

The fortunate part is, there’s one of him and many of us. Plus, although it takes time, resurrection exists.

“There’s not absolutely no way. But it’s going to be a bit difficult.”

“What, what method?”

“Do you know what a revolving warfare strategy is?”

Revolving warfare.

A tactic where troops continuously rotate like wheels.

It’s suitable when facing both large and small numbers, but it also comes with heavy losses for the larger side.

“The only thing that comes to mind is that method. Fortunately, almost everyone is gathered here.”

“Then let’s use that strategy! We just need to tear off the bracelet!”

“Hmm…”

Namgoong Seokdae turned away. At the end of his gaze unfolded a truly stunning sight.

-Bang!

A dense explosion of crimson erupted from a distance. It was obvious who caused that.

With a half-defeated expression, Namgoong Seokdae nodded and spoke up.

“That’s the only answer. We’ll need to arrange personnel carefully since we’ll be attacking at night.”

“Leave the arrangements to me!”

“We’ll coordinate so we can face him on the final day.”

After Namgoong Seokdae finished speaking, the personnel began to organize. He turned his gaze back toward the Mountain Lord.

That was no human. It was a beast dressed in human skin.

‘If we can tire him out somehow, there might be hope.’

But Namgoong Seokdae overlooked something.

While the revolving warfare is an excellent tactic for wearing down smaller forces, the problem was that the smaller force was incredibly strong. Moreover, they didn’t fall short in ‘stamina’ either.

‘There’s no way he’d stay fresh for three days and nights, would he?’

This guy had fought hard every day while living in the Chaos Forest.

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