Episode 116. Final Evaluation (6)

‘Yeah, I’m not the type to go down so easily.’

I chuckled softly as I looked down at my body, completely immobilized by the spider webs.

Even though our party is filled with candidates whose skills are far beyond what you’d expect, our opponent is none other than Elisha Baldwin.

‘If we had just been pushed back and lost, I would’ve been disappointed.’

I watched Professor Elisha walking leisurely toward us, still trapped in the webs.

Her purple eyes, with long black pupils cutting through them, resembled the eyes of a reptile—a characteristic that appears when she uses the ‘Insight’s Blessing.’

‘Since Professor Elisha has even brought out her Blessing…’

It was time for me to reveal a bit of the hidden power I’ve been keeping.

*Inhale.*

I took a slow breath, drawing up the power of the ‘Primordial Flame’ sleeping deep within my heart.

“Bloom.”

*Whoosh!*

The ashen flames erupted, burning away the spider webs that had bound me.

“Hoh.”

Professor Elisha looked at me with shining eyes, clearly intrigued.

I charged toward her with a powerful kick.

*Boom!*

“As expected, Candidate Dale, you always manage to surprise me.”

Professor Elisha smiled faintly and flicked her fingers.

*Swoosh!*

Dozens of silver threads shot out from her fingertips, intertwining and forming sharp drills aimed at me.

‘Ash Fire Sword, 2nd Form.’

*Flame Blade.*

The blade made of ash fire sliced through the drills. I threw myself through the scattered threads, closing the distance to Professor Elisha.

“Nice!”

Professor Elisha crossed her arms and leaped back, creating distance.

*Crack!*

The silver threads dug deep into the ground, then erupted like a geyser.

It was as if a buried bomb had exploded, sending a tidal wave of dirt crashing toward me.

*Inhale.*

I took a short breath, pulling my right foot back.

Focusing my magic power into a single point, I swung my leg fiercely.

*Berald Martial Arts: Thunder Kick.*

*BOOM!*

The tidal wave of dirt exploded with a deafening roar.

The thick dust cloud obscured my vision.

‘Where’s Professor Elisha?’

I turned my head and saw a dark figure through the dust.

I reflexively swung my sword toward it.

*Slash!*

“Huh?”

The dark figure spread out, wrapping around my body in an instant.

‘She used the threads to create a human-like figure.’

As I frowned at the spider webs binding me, Professor Elisha appeared from the opposite side.

“It’s over.”

She shot silver threads toward me, still trapped in the webs.

But then…

“AAAAAH!”

“…!”

“I… I have a role too!”

Albert, who had been trembling in the corner the entire fight, threw himself in front of the incoming threads.

Professor Elisha, who had considered Albert completely out of the fight, widened her eyes in surprise at his sudden appearance.

“Tch!”

If this were a real enemy, she would’ve let him be swept away by the threads, but he was still a candidate—and one far weaker than the others here.

*Gasp!*

Professor Elisha hastily withdrew the magic power from the threads.

The threads, which had been flying like bullets, lost their strength and fluttered to the ground.

“Nice one, Albert!”

I burned away the threads binding me with ash fire and charged at Professor Elisha.

*Hah!*

Just as I reached out toward her, still reeling from the recoil of forcibly withdrawing her magic…

*Beep! Beep beep beep!*

The loud sound of an alarm echoed.

“…Looks like time’s up.”

Professor Elisha sighed and shook her head.

“I never thought I’d be humiliated like this at the very end.”

She glanced at Albert and stifled a laugh.

“Good job.”

With a flick of her fingers, the webs binding Yuren, Camila, and Iris fell away.

“Well then…”

“You’ve passed the test.”

Professor Elisha handed me the diamond emblem I had been wearing on my chest.

“W-wow! Dale! The diamond emblem! The diamond emblem!”

Albert jumped up and down, shouting excitedly.

“Ugh…”

“Something feels off…”

“Well, at least first place is guaranteed now.”

Camila, Iris, and Yuren, finally freed from the webs, smiled tiredly.

“You all did great. Honestly, I couldn’t believe you were just a party of candidates.”

Professor Elisha looked at us with a satisfied smile.

“Candidate Yuren.”

“Yes?”

“You truly live up to being the descendant of the ‘Sun’s Sword.’ However…”

She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes.

“It seems you’re not fully utilizing your magic power yet.”

“Uh…”

“Your magic power is immense—enough to surpass even mine. If you learn to use it better, you’ll achieve great things.”

“Yes, thank you for the advice.”

Yuren bowed his head to Professor Elisha.

“Next, Candidate Camila.”

“Yes, Professor.”

“Your sword is too straightforward. It wouldn’t hurt to learn a bit more finesse.”

“…I’ll keep that in mind.”

Camila bowed respectfully as Professor Elisha turned to Iris.

“Your sense of timing with blessings and protective magic was excellent.”

“Thank you.”

“However, support roles are often the first targets in a party. You should learn to be more cautious.”

“I’ll remember that.”

Iris clasped her hands and bowed.

“And Candidate Albert.”

“Y-yes!”

“That was a bold move at the end. I have to admit, you got me.”

Professor Elisha smiled wryly, recalling how Albert had surprised her.

“T-thank you!”

“But if this were a real battle, you’d be dead. Remember that.”

“Eek!”

Albert turned pale and trembled.

“And finally…”

Professor Elisha’s gaze turned to me.

“Candidate Dale. Can we talk privately for a moment?”

“Ah, yes. Of course.”

“Follow me.”

She led me behind the collapsed rock wall, away from the others.

“Are you going to give me some private feedback?”

“Hmm. Feedback, huh…”

Professor Elisha shook her head with a bitter smile.

“I don’t think I’m in a position to give you feedback.”

“Huh?”

“Candidate Dale. Did you use your full strength in this test?”

“Well…”

I hesitated, and Professor Elisha nodded.

“Exactly. You’re still hiding something.”

As she said, I hadn’t revealed everything in this test.

I hadn’t used the power of the Demon Sword, nor had I used ‘Ignition.’

“It’s not that I deliberately hid it. I just didn’t have the chance to use it.”

The test was to survive for five minutes against Professor Elisha. There was no need to go all out and reveal everything.

‘And if I had gone all out…’

I gave an awkward smile as I looked at Professor Elisha, and her eyes narrowed.

“Was that really the only reason?”

“……”

“Hmm.”

Professor Elisha leaned closer and continued.

“Were you worried that if you went all out, I might get hurt?”

“……”

*Gulp.*

Damn that Insight’s Blessing.

“Hahaha!”

Professor Elisha burst out laughing, clutching her stomach.

It wasn’t because my audacious thoughts amused her.

She, with her Insight’s Blessing, knew better than anyone that if I went all out, she wouldn’t stand a chance.

“Just what… are you?”

She grabbed my shoulders and spoke.

“I’ve seen many talented candidates over the years. Candidates stronger than professors? Rare, but not unheard of.”

But…

“There’s never been a candidate as absurdly strong as you, Dale. Not in 500 years of history.”

There’s a limit to how much you can chalk up to being an outlier.

A 5-year-old solving high-level math is called a genius, but solving one of the world’s seven unsolved math problems? That’s a monster.

Dale wasn’t a genius—he was a monster.

One that defied all understanding and common sense.

“Well…”

I took Professor Elisha’s hands off my shoulders and continued.

“Just because something has never happened in history doesn’t mean it can’t happen in the future, right?”

“…You.”

“Someday, if the opportunity arises…”

I slowly removed her hands from my shoulders.

“I’ll tell you the reason.”

“……”

Professor Elisha stared at me with trembling eyes, her lips tightly sealed.

“Sigh.”

She let out a deep sigh and shook her head.

“I thought I was dealing with a sprout, but it turns out you’re already a fully grown tree.”

And not just any tree—one so large its shadow loomed over her.

“But don’t forget.”

Professor Elisha smirked and pressed her index finger lightly against my lips.

“Whether you’re a sprout or a fully grown tree, I’ve still marked you.”

“…I’ll remember that.”

I stifled a laugh as I watched her shrug with a sly expression.

“Anyway, the test is over, so let’s head back.”

“Yes.”

“By the way, Candidate Dale, are you okay with the test ending like this?”

“Huh? Why?”

“If you take first place here, you’ll move out of the last seat… Won’t that cause trouble for you?”

“Trouble? For who?”

“Hmm? Weren’t you deliberately keeping your grades low?”

“……”

No.

It’s not like I wanted to stay in last place.

“Hmm. I thought you were deliberately holding onto the last seat…”

“Sigh. It’s not like that.”

“Well, if you say so. Anyway, congrats on escaping the last seat.”

Professor Elisha chuckled and walked back to where the others were waiting.

“Ah, by the way, there’s one thing I’m curious about.”

“Hmm? What is it?”

“Those riddles written at the entrance… Were they your idea, Professor Elisha?”

“Haha. Weren’t they fun?”

“What’s fun about that?”

I let out a hollow laugh and shook my head.

“Sigh. Between that and the guardian golems you smashed to give us hints… Your sense of humor is something else.”

“…Huh?”

Professor Elisha tilted her head, confused by my words.

“Guardian golems? What are you talking about?”

“Huh? The dozens of guardian golems smashed at the entrance to the secret area… That wasn’t you?”

“Guardian golems cost a fortune. Why would I do something so insane?”

Professor Elisha frowned and shook her head.

“…It wasn’t you?”

Then…

Who destroyed dozens of golems without leaving a trace?

As I narrowed my eyes in thought…

*Rumble!*

The underground room shook as if an earthquake had struck.

A sticky red liquid began to cover the surrounding space.

“Is this… a barrier?”

“D-Dale! Are you okay?!”

The other party members ran toward us from a distance.

“Professor Elisha… This isn’t some surprise event you prepared, is it?”

“…No.”

Professor Elisha shook her head with a grave expression.

She drew silver threads from her fingertips and began to survey the area.

Then…

*Step, step.*

The sound of footsteps echoed softly.

I turned my head and saw a boy standing at the entrance.

“Hi! You must be Dale!”

The boy waved at me with an innocent smile.