Alert!: this chapter has been translated by Mangademon / demonicscans.org, this is a premium translation, not mtl
Gulliver was confident he would pass the test.
After all, he had survived without being eliminated so far.
On top of that, he was part of a reliable party.
The reason for his survival was simple.
The first group of examinees he encountered decided to cooperate and take down monsters together.
From that moment, he joined the party and stuck with them.
The party was exceptionally skilled.
They even handled a troll with ease.
During a previous battle, Gulliver’s Fireball had dealt the finishing blow to the troll.
'I really am talented.'
He praised himself.
But his luck ended there.
"Aaaaaaaahhh!"
Gulliver screamed.
The student who acted as the party leader shattered a crystal to escape the Hero's World as a giant monster bit his arm.
Screeeeeech!
A deafening roar came from the enormous monster.
It was a monster unlike any he had seen before.
A giant spider-like creature.
All but its front legs were grotesquely twisted.
Its body, which spun webs, was horribly crushed, and its head was partially torn off.
It was practically a half-corpse, yet it still clung to life.
Screeeech! Screeech!
"F-Fireball!"
Gulliver hastily cast a spell.
Whoosh! Boom!
The Fireball hit the spider's face directly.
"Hahaha! How does my Fireball taste?"
Gulliver clenched his fist in triumph.
But as the smoke cleared and the spider emerged unscathed, Gulliver's face turned pale.
Screeeeeeeech!
"Aaaaahhh!"
As the enraged spider charged, Gulliver screamed and ran.
Knight students grabbed their weapons to block the spider.
Thud! Crunch!
"Argh!"
But the spider's strength sent them flying.
It was a monster they had no hope of defeating.
"How are we supposed to beat this thing?!"
One student screamed in despair.
With trembling hands, Gulliver pulled a blue crystal from his pocket.
'I have to escape! But if someone defeats that thing, I might pass the test!'
Though he had no intention of fighting the spider, he hoped someone else would take it down for him.
At that moment—
"Wind Fang."
Thunk!
Screeeeeech!
A fang of wind fell from above, piercing the spider's back and splattering purple-black blood.
Ssss-!
The wound healed instantly.
"...It's a monster."
Avad Lewallin, floating in the air with Fly magic, grimaced.
Whoosh!
Flames descended and coalesced into a single point.
With fiery Aura gathered in her rapier, Celia Zerdinger’s eyes gleamed as she thrust her weapon.
Crack!
Screeeeech!
The spider screeched as its head was pierced and swung its front legs wildly.
Celia quickly retreated out of its attack range and landed on the ground.
"Tch! It's healing even from that?"
Rushing to the scene upon hearing the screams, Celia and Avad immediately attacked the spider.
But even after being hit with magic and Aura directly, the spider healed effortlessly.
"A type of monster I’ve never seen before."
"It might be a beast from Tartarus."
At Avad's muttered guess, Celia gripped her Flame Storm tightly.
"And it seems to be the task of this test."
"Hmm? So that’s the key to conquering this world?"
A sly smile curved Avad’s lips.
Holding his staff, he began chanting in runic language.
The wind's magic swirled around him.
Seeing this, Celia raised her Aura.
'He's trying to take the lead.'
If defeating the giant spider was the test’s task, she needed to take it down before Avad to claim the top score.
Until now, they had cooperated, but from here on, they were competitors.
Whoosh!
Celia’s crimson eyes glinted sharply.
At the same time, fiery Aura gathered at the tip of her Flame Storm.
Gripping her sword with her left hand, Celia pulled back and prepared to strike.
Thud!
Her feet dug into the ground.
'Prominence!'
Celia unleashed her most powerful attack.
A thrust with Aura concentrated into a single point!
Thud!
The blazing blade shot forward.
Screeeeech?
The flame pierced the spider's half-torn head, passed through its body, and emerged from its rear.
"Good! Even with its incredible healing, this should be enough—"
Thud! Thud!
Screeeeeeeeech!
"No way!"
The giant spider rose, letting out an ear-piercing scream.
"An excellent attack, but..."
Avad, still floating in the air, smirked.
"The destructive power of knights and mages is worlds apart."
Avad spread his hands, completing his spell.
"La Pal."
A secret wind spell of the Lewallin family.
A raging gale enveloped the spider.
"Aaaaahhh?"
"Is this really a spell from someone our age?"
The examinees caught in the storm screamed in shock.
'It’s over.'
Avad wore a meaningful expression.
But—
"What?"
As the storm subsided, the giant spider reappeared.
Its body, shredded to rags by the storm, rapidly healed.
Even with his spell, which boasted the highest destructive power among the examinees, Avad couldn’t defeat the spider.
Celia’s face showed frustration.
'How are we supposed to defeat something like this?'
***
"Truly remarkable, as expected from the pride of the Zerdinger and Lewallin families! Such powerful attacks at their age!"
The assistant exclaimed in admiration.
'They’ve chosen competition over cooperation.'
Watching the two, Albi Jeron smirked slightly.
The determination to become the best wasn’t a bad mindset.
Both Celia and Avad had the skills to back it up.
'But can they really defeat that monster on their own?'
The infinitely regenerating monster required a decisive strike to be defeated.
Among the examinees, only Celia and Avad could mount an effective attack against it.
But even their current abilities were not enough.
'If you’re truly worthy of being called heroes, overcome this trial.'
***
'As expected.'
Leo's eyes glinted as he followed behind Celia and Avad.
'It’s the Spider Princess, Talatunia.'
He had guessed it when he saw the troll corpses earlier.
Their condition matched the feeding habits of this monster perfectly.
A cursed monster that ruled the Forest of Demonic Beasts as the daughter of the monster queen Silatuna.
In her prime, she could have destroyed an entire nation by herself—a horrifying calamity.
However, she was no longer in her prime.
Her body was crushed, barely maintaining its original form.
Her once-majestic head, radiating overwhelming magical power, was now half torn off.
Compared to her peak, she had been reduced to a pathetic monster.
'So, the power in Albi’s left eye came from the Fairy King.'
Fairies.
Ancient high spirits who had coexisted with elves for millennia.
These palm-sized beings with transparent wings were entities brimming with immense magical power.
Fairy contracts were exclusive to elves, making them extremely rare in the human realm.
Five thousand years ago, Talatunia devoured the Fairy King’s right hand.
Luna, unable to forgive Talatunia for destroying her homeland and consuming the Vowmaker’s right hand, killed the Spider Princess single-handedly.
But now, thousands of years later—
Talatunia was alive.
The reason was simple.
'It’s in her stomach.'
The Ring of Life, a symbol of the Fairy King, granting infinite vitality, had been devoured along with his hand by Talatunia.
Leo gripped his sword tightly.
He took a throwing stance and hurled it.
Whoosh! Thud!
Screeeeeech!
Talatunia screeched as Leo’s sword embedded itself in her head.
Standing beside Celia, Leo spoke.
"Looks like you’re struggling."
"Step back, Leo. You can’t handle her without Aura."
A gale of wind blades descended from the sky, engulfing Talatunia.
Writhing in pain, Talatunia glared upward and let out a shriek before leaping.
Her immense jumping ability brought her to Avad in an instant.
"Wind Break!"
Chelsea, who had followed closely, activated her pre-cast spell.
Crash!
The raging wind blades struck Talatunia.
Foiled by Chelsea’s interference, Talatunia failed to attack Avad and plummeted to the ground.
Thud!
The earth shook as Talatunia landed.
"Brother, are you okay?"
"Thanks, Chelsea."
Avad smiled at his sister and descended to the ground, realizing it was too dangerous to remain airborne.
Other examinees who had followed surrounded Talatunia.
"How do we defeat that monster?"
As Avad murmured gravely, Leo asked,
"It keeps healing, doesn’t it?"
"Yes. Even my most powerful magic didn’t work."
"Same with my attacks."
Celia sighed.
"I see. Then it’s simple."
"What?"
"If we can’t defeat it individually, we combine our strengths. Isn’t it obvious?"
"Leo, I’m in competition with this butter."
"Why do you keep calling my brother butter?!"
Chelsea snapped.
"For once, I agree with Celia. Whoever defeats that monster first will take the top spot."
Leo looked at Celia and Avad with an exasperated expression.
"What if you fail to defeat it?"
"What?"
"If that monster has infinite regeneration? What if your Aura and magic run out first?"
Leo spoke calmly as he watched Talatunia, whose hostility was intensifying.
"If the test is about conquering the Hero's World, failing to defeat her means we all fail."
"That’s ridiculous! If my brother and Celia Zerdinger can’t defeat it, no one our age can. That would mean the test is flawed!"
Chelsea pouted and argued.
But neither Celia nor Avad could refute Leo’s words.
Indeed, failing because they couldn’t defeat that monster would be unfair.
But the world was inherently unfair.
"Even if we work together, it will take time to create an attack strong enough to kill her in one blow."
Despite being bombarded by attacks from thirty examinees, Talatunia remained unscathed.
The examinees, on the other hand, were being pushed back.
It was clear they wouldn’t last much longer.
Seeing this, Celia spoke in a grave tone.
"Who’s going to hold her off during that time?"
Avad glanced at his sister, Chelsea.
'Even Chelsea can’t manage it.'
One wrong move could cost her life.
The Hero's World was a virtual space.
But death here meant real death in the outside world.
As Celia and Avad wore serious expressions, Leo smirked.
"I’ll hold her off."
"What?"
"I can hold her for about five minutes."
"That’s suicide! You can’t even use Aura!"
"Which is why five minutes is my limit."
Leo turned his body.
"So during those five minutes, gather all your power."
"What if the attack fails?"
Avad asked coldly.
Leo chuckled at his question.
"Then we all fail together. But I don’t think that’ll happen."
"Why not?"
"Fire and wind have always been friends. Because they complement each other."
Leo spoke confidently and walked toward Talatunia.
Watching him, Celia said,
"Prepare, Avad."
"Hah... I didn’t think we’d end up working together like this."
Avad chuckled lightly and began gathering his magic.
***
Step, step—
"Ugh."
"Are you okay?"
"Barely! But how are you going to...?"
"I’ll hold her off for five minutes."
"What?"
The fallen knight student looked up at Leo in surprise.
"Let me borrow this for a moment."
Leo picked up the polearm the knight was using.
It felt heavier than a sword.
Step, step!
Screeeeeech!
Talatunia, now a mass of primal hostility, let out a low screech directed at Leo.
"This brings back memories."
Leo smirked coldly.
"It’s been a while since I’ve smashed that ugly face of yours, bug."
End Of Chapter
