The Academy’s Ankle Reaper – Chapter 171

The most powerful Zeek Albion got eliminated right from the start.

As soon as the most dangerous player disappeared, the remaining students scattered and started fighting among themselves.

I thought Albion had the largest faction since he dominated all the classes he was a part of, but it turned out most other students had banded together.

The matchups weren’t predetermined; they were randomly generated right there, and within that short amount of time, they had formed alliances.

There were a few students who didn’t join in, but they figured sticking together gave them a better chance.

“What the heck is happening!!”

“Is this even possible…?”

The students in the spectator seats were buzzing.

It could just be that they’re shocked Albion got knocked out, but to me, it looked different.

They seemed genuinely surprised that they could actually take down the Five Pillars.

Up until now, even if they could defeat them, they never did.

Prigia, who had an extreme aversion to anyone daring to tarnish the name of the Five Pillars, would crush anyone who openly resisted, so did that make them think the Five Pillars were less intimidating because I was still fine roaming the Academy?

Or did someone promise to back them up?

“Who suggested this? They wouldn’t have done this on their own.”

Regardless of the side, things just got a lot more interesting.

It was a rebellion from regular students.

In a one-on-one with fewer variables turned into a battle royale with many people, those who seemed like background players banded together to compete for the spotlight.

I had always loved stories of underdog rebellions, and my heart raced.

Had they planned this from the beginning? Or did they decide on the spot once it was revealed?

I didn’t know the details, but it was tremendously enjoyable.

“I didn’t sense anything strange; what’s going on?”

“Even if something was happening, wouldn’t we have noticed?”

“There’s nothing we can’t do. Even if we’re in the same space, if we’re from different communities, it’s just like we’re not communicating at all. Do you know the names of everyone in our class… all of them?”

“I know all of them.”

“I know too…”

Damn, was I the only one left out?

As I foolishly brought it up, the two looked at me with pity.

“The professors look pretty shocked too, huh?”

“Look at the journalists; they’re snapping tons of photos.”

“Tomorrow’s newspaper will be worth reading.”

Unexpectedly juicy news had the Newspaper Club’s reporters going wild recording the scene.

Normally, such an article would get shredded by Prigia, but thanks to me, they were holding back these days, so maybe it’s bearable.

Eventually, some time passed… and the first battle royale concluded.

The winner was a student from Class 5 whose face I didn’t even recognize.

They weren’t someone who stood out or had committed some outrageous act.

They weren’t the one who eliminated Albion… or interrupted his magic.

They were just an ordinary-looking student at the Academy.

They were genuinely happy to be the last person standing.

“Hey, hey, the next matchups are out!!”

And soon enough, the next matchups were announced.

Notable names in the next bracket were Lucia Russell, Edgar Lemnos… and my name.

“So it’s not a one-on-one, but we got lumped together, huh?”

Lucia’s long-awaited duel with me had finally come together.

—————————-

As soon as I spotted Zeek Albion, looking like a defeated shell of himself, returning to the VIP lounge, Prigia marched right up, eyes wide open, finger pointed.

“Are you out of your mind? Everyone saw you lose there!! To just other students??”

“Ugh… I’m ashamed.”

“I could get past Edgar losing to Atlas… he’s a guest who received Russell’s badge and easily takes the number one spot on this year’s Worst Newcomer list from the Club! The other students were too scared of Atlas to look down on us!! But… in an environment favorable to a magician, huh??? What are you going to tell your father??”

“Ughhh…”

When Lemnos lost to Atlas at the beginning of the semester, Zeek was the one who reacted most fiercely to Prigia’s words, but now he couldn’t say anything.

She was completely right.

No matter how ambushed he was or how outnumbered, he should have won.

He was the strongest magician among them and had ten bodyguards.

If he had known it would turn out this way, he would’ve opted for other strategies instead of setting up a big spell from the start.

It would have been better to cast a bunch of simple defensive spells or use lower-preparation-time magic multiple times.

The problem was that he had initially set out to dramatically take them down with one powerful spell.

At the moment he was ambushed while casting that, everything went off the rails.

“Hey, Prigia, don’t be like that. You fought well till the end without giving up.”

“No, Prigia is right… There’s nothing wrong with what she said. I’m on the list of the Five Pillars… and even if I was ambushed, to fall so quickly… that’s just too humiliating…”

“No, it was just incredibly unlucky for you. If we had had at least one of our team there, we could have defended, but not having even a single one there…”

Perda spoke earnestly for once.

He seemed to see himself in Albion’s form.

“But it was strange. Those guys had the Void Fang.”

“Wait, what?”

“What’s the Void Fang?”

Perda seemed to know what Albion was talking about, but Lemnos looked clueless.

“It’s an artifact designed for assassins, specifically against powerful magicians; supposedly it’s made from a special mineral crafted in Tartarus… but I don’t really know the details. One thing is certain: if magic touches it, its structure becomes unstable and collapses.”

“That’s… something you can only get on the black market; they had at least five of those artifacts.”

Since it had to touch the magic directly to be effective, it wasn’t a highly favored artifact.

Once they got that close, it would be more effective to stab the caster to death than to dispel the magic with a dagger.

“Do you remember who they were?”

“Hmmm… I didn’t see properly, so I can’t say for sure.”

“Well, thanks to you taking the hit first, I think I have a good idea of how to respond.”

Perda seemed to laugh as he grasped how to navigate this situation.

“Is there a need to respond?”

However, Lemnos raised a question at Perda’s comment.

“Just smash all of them to bits.”

He spoke with a powerful voice that suggested he was confident he could take down dozens, no problem.

“You might be strong enough to do that… but I’m not, you know.”

Compared to the two swords, top-tier forces of the Five Pillars… Lemnos’s flashy confidence made Perda, who was objectively weaker than Albion in battle skill, wear a bittersweet smile.

“By the way, didn’t Russell and that Nemea go in together? Yeah, I suppose now’s not the time to worry about others.”

——————————————

“So it turned out like this.”

“Atlas… I’m serious about this.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Lucia looked remarkably pleased that we really ended up in the same test.

The waiting room felt intense.

Since it was our turn next, I could feel the students’ gazes were razor-sharp.

“What a warm welcome. Is it time to stop hiding then?”

In those piercing gazes, there was also someone I recognized quite well.

“Hey, you guys are on that side too?”

“We’re neutral, but I think it’d be easier to take you down first, right?”

“Heh, it’s been a while since we agreed on something!”

It was Cindy Lue, the elven exchange student, and Hal Baud, the dwarven exchange student.

It seemed they joined the side with more numbers.

They must have figured out long ago that taking me on one-on-one wouldn’t be in their favor.

“I don’t care if you guys do that, but do you seriously think that grouping up like this will let you take me down?”

When I bared my teeth at the guys glancing at me, they all looked greatly tense.

The arena has a peculiar kind of magic.

It sparks the blood and gives birth to a fighting spirit that wasn’t there before.

The open, circular ground, surrounded by spectators.

The cheers drive a person to insanity.

Just looking at the atmosphere in this waiting room tells me everything.

As soon as I step up, I’m going to be targeted for a concentrated attack.

As Andy Robinson said, I’m undeniably a madman.

Being targeted by so many people feels incredibly exhilarating.

I used artifacts like Dispel and the Void Fang to aid Albion.

I’m eager to see what they prepared to go against me.

The tension between me and the students grew increasingly taut.

With just a little spark, this place could ignite into a fight at any moment.

“Hey, Atlas, how’s your health doing? You’re not gonna pass out again like last time, right?”

The one who broke the tight tension was none other than Edgar Lemnos, who came in late.

“I’m fine.”

“I’m feeling great. Don’t go saying your health is bad just because you lost.”

In the past, Lemnos would frown when he saw me, but now he was even making jokes.

But it seemed his personality hadn’t changed.

He still wore that grumpy face like when we first met.

Maybe after everything that’s happened, he started seeing me as someone on par or even greater than them, making it more comfortable.

“… Lemnos, don’t interfere. I… was going to go first.”

Lucia stepped in front of Edgar, watching them.

“I want to duel this jerk again too… so if it’s like that, why don’t we have a duel on the line with Atlas… to see if you can take me on?”

The air inside the waiting room grew heated.

Lemnos, who could manifest his aura into offensive magic, was showcasing his power all around.

Lucia had yet to even receive approval for dueling in her family.

Previously, that stopped her from ignoring Lemnos’s teasing and it would likely do so again.

“… Sure, let’s do it.”

“Is it okay?”

“It’s fine since it’s a test.”

The boldness with which she accepted surprised me, but it seems it’s okay since it’s not an official duel.

“Back then… you wanted to duel me, right? Well, now that… the stage is set, let’s see. I just couldn’t stand seeing you act like you’re better than me while being weaker.”

“Haha..! This is an unexpected bonus!”

Hey guys, we haven’t even started the test yet.