Chapter 135

Life Vessel…

It’s a weakness of the lich, but it’s ambiguous to actually call it a weakness.

Would it be more accurate to call it a vital point?

After all, for a lich, it’s as essential as the heart or brain is for a human; it’s a crucial part they cannot do without to stay alive.

Naturally, if this life vessel were to be kept safe, it could be used for various purposes. Particularly because, to use magic powerful enough to easily break through barriers created by mages of the same caliber, it becomes all the more necessary.

This is where the lich’s resistance to magic stems from.

And this is also the reason why this raid appears as the first and the easiest raid in the game.

If we succeed in shattering the life vessel, it would, in turn, allow us to kill Maleficent, who has continuously tormented us, making our priority in the raid to find the life vessel at all costs.

From Maleficent’s perspective, she must have invested her life in this Academy assault, and of course, to break through the barrier spread throughout the Academy, she has no choice but to utilize the life vessel.

As a mage of the same caliber, facing a massive barrier created by such a mage over a long time, it wouldn’t be easy to unravel, even for a lich who has lived for an unfathomable amount of time.

The high-level demon, who was the last resort to break the barrier, was caught by Argen and had to divulge all sorts of information before dying… so for Maleficent, there was no further way to retreat aside from this.

Of course, to say she would be attacking recklessly is not quite right… no matter how powerful Argen is, he can’t pinpoint the exact location of the life vessel.

The opponent is also a mage who has reached the level of a grand mage, so it wouldn’t be easy for her to reveal her weakness.

While it surely exists somewhere in the Academy, wandering around this vast campus searching for it would be impractical.

If the Academy were to be completely destroyed, it would turn the situation upside down, leading to an inability to proceed, naturally placing the task of finding the life vessel in the hands of the players.

In the game, it’s up to Argen to find the traces of magic and inform the player, who then follows those traces to locate the life vessel.

Naturally, the longer it takes, the greater the damage, so finding it quickly is essential, but can a newbie really find it so easily?

Of course, the first run typically involves severe damage, causing chaos throughout the Academy.

When I say chaos, the game’s atmosphere becomes significantly heavier than it was at the beginning, and for newbies who entered with expectations of a light-hearted school atmosphere, it’s certainly seen as the first barrier.

I had a tough time during that phase too.

I didn’t come in loving the school setting, so the changing atmosphere felt realistic, and I appreciated that, but the game was tougher than I expected.

Of course, once I figured out it randomly appeared in certain areas, I reached a point where I could tell where it would show up just by the trace’s location, sometimes finishing the raid almost immediately as soon as it started.

Anyway, to sum it up, if this raid can find the life vessel as quickly as possible, clearing it in an instant isn’t completely impossible.

To do this, I would need to know where it would show up… although in the game, the traces and appearance are set locations, making them not too hard to find; in reality, it might be different.

Though I don’t expect it to be too different.

In the game, it didn’t matter much, as it was just data fragments, but… now it’s not just data; everyone is alive, so I can’t let it be like that.

I don’t really like that kind of atmosphere either.

I’m only halfway to defeating the Demon King.

Even if it’s a joyful school atmosphere now, wouldn’t that be good?

Of course…

‘If I want to catch Maleficent, it means I have to go out there again. It’s not all that joyful a school atmosphere…’

I walked on with a bitter smile.

How long had I been walking down the road?

“This isn’t… it, is it?”

Despite appearances, I am a saint.

If I get this close, no matter how much Maleficent tries to hide, there’s no way she can conceal herself from me, a saint.

My ability is to eliminate anything that has magic. How much more power do you need?

But since I can’t see even a trace of Maleficent, let alone the life vessel here, it seems this place doesn’t have it.

Well, if the game is flowing just like it does, it should appear randomly in one of three places, so I shouldn’t worry too much.

Even if I find it, I can’t destroy it immediately.

I think that at the point when barriers weaken, I can intervene, so it’s inevitable that the Academy will not be able to prevent the raid.

I had made preparations in advance…

‘All I have to do is find it.’

I just need to find it.

One issue remains…

‘The Academy… is too vast…’

The Academy is so vast that it’s not easy to search all of it in a single day.

Anyway, since I won’t need it for the written test, if I can figure it out before the practical test starts, it doesn’t really matter, so I thought I could afford to take my time a bit.

With that in mind, I sighed and headed towards the dormitory.

Still, since they must be trying to hide it, they put it in the outskirts, so I still have to walk quite a bit to turn back.

It’s already getting dark in the sky just from traveling this far…

I can’t let them find out that I’m looking for something, so it’s not a good idea to walk around too much while searching.

Hoping that the next location is the right one, I moved on.

—

“Where is Aria going?”

Suddenly struck by Stella’s question, Evan and Uriel turned to look at her.

Stella’s question was valid.

Ever since yesterday, Aria’s state had been quite strange.

Unlike themselves, who didn’t have to worry about a special written exam, Aria had been spending her time focusing elsewhere.

Of course, if it were beneficial or if she were engaged in her hobbies or things that didn’t concern them, there wouldn’t be any reason for them to be interested, but it was a bit different.

She kept sneaking out to wander around various places in the Academy.

They couldn’t comprehend how Aria, who easily tires out from just a little walking, could be visiting so many places daily that she looked completely drained.

Especially for Stella, who lived with her, this raised the most questions.

“Should we follow her?”

“… Don’t. If we follow her and get caught, what should we say… Aria might get mad.”

“Well, that’s true.”

Stella scratched her head at Evan’s firm words.

While Evan’s point was sound, there was a lingering feeling that if they left it as it was, it might lead to chaos, which posed a problem.

“By the way, have you heard the news?”

Trying to shake off the awkward atmosphere, Stella suddenly mentioned something to the two.

Evan and Uriel tilted their heads, puzzled.

“News?”

“They say they opened the practical exam room to inform about the exam before the test. I wanted to go with Aria…”

Stella spoke regretfully, but in that moment, Evan sensed something strange.

There was no way Aria wouldn’t know about that.

At this particular time, especially now that the exam room had just opened, her disappearing was bizarre.

Of course, Aria had been absent since yesterday, but that made it feel even stranger.

It felt just like before when she was trying to take everything on herself.

Cold sweat trickled down Evan’s back.

It’s not certain.

It’s not something he could be sure of.

They couldn’t be sure why she was wandering around so much, could they?

But…

‘I have to find her…!’

His instincts were telling him with certainty.

Without a chance to say anything to the two, Evan dashed off in the direction where Aria had disappeared.

“E-Evan?!”

Stella and Uriel panicked and ran after Evan.

As he ran, cold sweat continued to trickle down Evan’s back.

Please, let nothing happen. He hoped it was just a normal reason for her being absent.