Chapter 93

Wrap yourself in bombs and charge in. If you do that on Earth in the 21st century, you’d get called a real nutcase, no doubt about it.

First of all, it’s fundamentally unethical. If you strap a bomb vest onto a hostage, you might be forced to kill that hostage without a second thought.

Moreover, if you wear something over it, you could easily be caught off guard and rendered helpless.

Thus, the bomb vest is heavily associated with malice and cruelty.

You’re risking your only life to pull such a stunt; how could that be seen positively?

“What, can’t we just blow it up?! If we attract attention from another team…”

“No way! If we blow it, that hostage might die! Just escape!”

As I chased them like a madman, Luna’s team fled in a hurried confusion.

One of them suggested detonating my bomb vest, but another team member refused. That’s the dilemma of a bomb vest.

If they just blow it up, they might get seriously hurt or even lose their lives, but leaving it as is puts themselves in danger too.

‘It’s okay if it blows.’

Of course, I wouldn’t mind if it blew up. I could just take the bomb vest off, and I wouldn’t be seriously harmed.

Even if I got hurt, I could just use my regeneration to recover. While others would have to risk their lives, I didn’t.

I’d just burn a bit of my clothing. Thanks to my excellent regeneration ability, I can engage in this mad act and find it amusing.

‘Chaos must be pleased too, so it’s all good.’

The moment I strapped on the bomb vest and chased Luna’s team, my faith level increased. The fact it didn’t drop but rose means Chaos is satisfied.

Professors might have had something to say, but I didn’t care. I’ve done this because I don’t have the right to attack anyway.

Besides, I could be seen as someone who doesn’t really understand ethics right now. They probably thought I just came up with a clever idea.

It felt satisfying to mess with professors who imposed such absurd restrictions, and chasing down the fleeing team was entertaining.

Primitive chases have always been fun. I drove their team into a suitable location.

“What if we run into another team?”

“Just run!”

Luna’s team seemed worried about running into another team as well. At this point, they must have attracted all the attention.

I had fun cornering them, gained some speed, and ran ahead.

As I picked up speed, the gap between us gradually closed, and their expressions grew tense.

“Oh, no…!”

Swoosh!

I passed right by someone who was about to say something. I soon faced Luna, who was running in front.

Luna looked quite flustered to see me right next to her. I waved at her and zipped past completely.

“…What?”

“Where are you going?”

Luna’s team came to a slow halt as I passed by, looking completely confused.

And understandably so, since just a moment ago, they were charged up to blow me up. They must have felt more incredulous than baffled.

But this was just a brief breather. Right in front of us was the house I’d spotted earlier.

And who was inside? A very familiar face.

“Hey you, you crazy bastard! Who taught you that?!”

“Ka, Kara?!”

It was Kara. As she and her team burst out of the house, Luna’s eyes widened in surprise.

As you can guess, this was the house I had noted previously—it was Kara’s place. I was worried she might have left, but she was still there.

Kara was taken aback when I confidently walked into the house, then shocked a second time when she spotted the bomb vest strapped to me, causing her to dash outside.

“Get that off right now! I’m serious!”

“No way.”

“Do you even know how insane that is?! Ugh! Seriously!”

Kara, who had some real field experience, kept yelling at me to take it off, but I just ignored her.

From her expression, it seemed she was more angry than flustered, but I felt like I was going to get a solid scolding later.

Still, what mattered right now was that I focus on the chase. I followed Kara and Luna’s team closely.

“W-won’t you just forcibly take it off?”

“What if you accidentally press the wrong button? Even if it’s Sivar, he’ll get hurt badly!”

Implied alliances may be possible in testing, but temporary alliances are a no-go. Right now, we’re just running from a massive threat.

When you’re fighting and suddenly run into a gigantic beast, fleeing is the best course. You can’t fight together, so escaping is the priority.

“How about we run separately for now? That might be better!”

“Sounds good!”

Not a chance. As soon as I saw signs of them wanting to split, I surged forward again.

Blocking their path made them completely abandon the idea of splitting.

“Bomb!”

Boom!

I even threw bombs in between. I had foreseen this and stashed some in my pockets.

Doing this sort of herding, I noticed my team had grown in size before long. Obviously, they were too busy to escape.

“Hey! If we keep this up, we might as well just shoot some magic! That’d work, right?”

Antonio, who had quite literally joined the party, yelled that from afar. He must have been drawn to me like a moth to a flame.

“Then Sivar will…!”

“Is bowing to such a loser really better? We might as well eliminate him!”

That was definitely true. The team trapped by me was at least more than three teams.

Over ten people were being toyed with while I wore a bomb vest.

Maybe that’s why? More and more people were falling for Antonio’s unique persuasion.

“That’s right! If this keeps up, we’ll mess up the exam!”

“Just shoot already! This isn’t going to work!”

“They were the ones who messed up first! Damn wilderness folks!”

They seemed to be extremely pissed off. I think it’s about time to end the herding.

With so many people here, if they escape, they’ll fight each other. Even if they scatter, it’s no big deal.

Their plans have been in disarray for quite some time now, and our team is likely heading toward our desired spot by now.

Just as I was about to stop my legs and head for somewhere else…

“No, no way! Even so…!”

“Take this! Eat this!”

A brief commotion erupted as something flew toward me. Judging by its round shape, it looked like a bomb.

I dodged it easily with a light movement of my foot. A bomb landed on the ground.

No. Looking closely, it wasn’t a bomb. Just your average common rock.

‘What the heck?’

Just when I thought it was casually tossed, a sound drifted in from my line of sight.

Turning to look, I saw another round object rolling on the ground.

This time it was a real bomb. It seemed they supplied a fake to throw me off.

And at that brief moment, as if prepped, the moment I spotted the bomb, reactions kicked in.

Boom!

A bomb exploded right next to me.

Kaboom!

With a chain reaction, the bomb vest strapped to me detonated in a massive explosion.

******

As the colossal explosion occurred, a powerful gust surged out in every direction.

The students had no choice but to shut their eyes due to the dust cloud stirred up by the winds. Once it settled, they could finally open them.

“…Sivar?”

The first to open her eyes was Kara. While gazing at the swirling dust, she muttered softly.

No matter how low the lethality of the bomb might be, a bomb is still a bomb. And Sivar was completely covered in those bombs.

Even for Sivar, it meant considerable danger. She stared at the dust cloud, her expression turning uneasy.

“You little…! What the hell have you done?! Are you trying to kill someone?!”

Kara yelled as she grabbed Antonio’s collar, the one who just threw the bomb. Tall and with a fierce expression for a girl, she exuded a daunting aura.

But Antonio didn’t care at all. Instead, he yanked Kara’s hand off his collar irritably and countered her.

“So we just run away like this? We won’t pass the exam! Do you know what we’re doing right now?”

“Are you seriously proposing to trade a test for our lives?”

“If you’re wearing a bomb vest, you’re risking your life! Besides, the barrier will activate so you won’t die!”

“You little…!”

While Kara and Antonio bickered, Luna focused her gaze through the dust.

Even with special eyesight, seeing through the dust was difficult, but it began to slowly settle.

‘Hope you’re not too badly hurt…’

Luna knew Sivar’s regeneration was extraordinary. Even if they were on the verge of death, with regeneration, he could recover entirely.

So even with that level of explosion, he had a strong chance of recovering. The real problem was what would happen next.

What kind of reaction would Sivar show? Would he be angry, or as usual, indifferent?

As she silently waited with that in mind, the dust finally cleared, revealing Sivar’s form.

“…Huh?”

“Is that…?”

However, something was weird. Sivar was nowhere to be found, leaving only a round barrier behind.

To be exact, it was a barrier. One that activates when you’re disqualified or in a similar situation.

“Barrier? Why is that…?”

“Uh, uh? It’s the barrier! He must have been disqualified!”

“Really? Are you serious?”

While Luna muttered in confusion, another student shouted. That shout caught the attention of Kara and Antonio, who were tangled in their dispute.

Indeed, there lay the barrier. It was apparent that Sivar had been disqualified from the explosion a moment ago.

“Looks like the bastard finally got knocked out! Good for us!”

“Haha! Yeah! He had to be eliminated! We’re free now!”

“So he was really disqualified…?”

The students rejoiced at the news of Sivar’s disqualification, embracing each other joyfully. He had been a public enemy, so their happiness was amplified.

In contrast, Kara couldn’t fully rejoice. It felt like they had kicked him out with some sneaky trick, leaving her with a bad aftertaste.

Moreover, realizing that Sivar had become a public enemy in their class left a bitter feeling. She understood that feeling better than anyone.

‘Should I buy him candy later and say I’m sorry?’

As Kara scratched her head, feeling somewhat flustered, Luna cautiously approached the barrier.

It was impossible for someone to get disqualified from just this level of explosion. They had fought tooth and nail against Hector, and this explosion shouldn’t have been enough!

Something didn’t add up. So she needed to get a closer look to confirm.

*Knock knock knock-*

“Sivar? Are you there?”

Luna lightly tapped the barrier shaped like an egg and asked. If he truly was disqualified, he wouldn’t be able to respond.

If the barrier activates, it usually triggers the sleep magic as well. Luna focused her ears.

“…Looks like he really is disqualified.”

There was no response. Luna felt more bewildered than happy.

Wasn’t it too anticlimactic? No matter how restrictive the attack rights are, she thought Sivar would survive until the end.

But reality is what it is. Luna stepped back from the egg, still feeling that strange ambiguity.

Boom!

But then, a noise came from the barrier. It sounded like someone was hammering, not tapping, hard with a mallet.

Luna, startled by the sound, quickly jumped back. She wasn’t the only one to hear it.

“What’s that? What’s that noise?”

“Is it coming from the barrier?”

“Oh no. No way….”

Bang!

Just as they found it hard to believe, another sound echoed from the barrier. This time, the barrier shook violently.

As I mentioned earlier, if the barrier is activated, then sleep magic is supposed to happen automatically. So normally, he should be asleep by now.

Bang! Bang! Boom!

With loud sounds, the barrier continued to rattle. The students held their breath, watching intently.

It was like watching a monster breaking free from an egg; they couldn’t bring themselves to act.

Boom! Crack!

Finally, the barrier began to fracture. The barrier, which could withstand significant impacts, began breaking from the shocks within.

The question of how that’s even possible was evident on several students’ faces.

Krazz!

At last, an arm broke through the barrier. It looked perfectly fine, despite having been bombed.

The arm flailed in the air for a while before resting against the barrier’s surface and began exerting pressure.

*Grrr! Grrr!*

Slowly, terrifyingly, a figure began to reveal itself. An arm, then a head, neck, and chest.

The students took a step back, overwhelmed by the frightening scene.

“Phew.”

Soon, Sivar was fully revealed from the barrier. He shook his head vigorously.

Luna, astonished by Sivar’s revival, unconsciously shifted her gaze downwards.

As previously mentioned, Sivar’s clothing had completely been blown away. His pants and underwear were no better off.

“…Sweet potato?”

Luna spotted a sweet potato stuck right between Sivar’s legs. Naturally, it had another meaning.

Realizing that it had another connotation, her face turned bright red, as if blood were pouring down.

“If-If only…! That hideous…!”

“Wow… That’s something else.”

“Hm! Hmhmm!”

Other students were no different. Some expressed admiration, while others showed embarrassment.

Kara’s reaction was equally amusing. She attempted to look away but was sneaking glances nonetheless.

Thanks to his skin tone, it was difficult to notice, but her face was burning brighter than ever.

Just as many students were dazedly watching Sivar’s nude show.

Beeep!

[Attention. We will be temporarily suspending the exam.]

It seemed the professors, unable to sit by and watch, immediately halted the test.

[Student Sivar, please put on some clothes immediately.]

They seemed to care about human rights after all.

---