The remaining Shantaks were all wiped out by the Nyctophants, and the subsequent Shantaks that arrived only retreated upon witnessing the scene.
And to me, who was leisurely appreciating that scene, appeared one Shantak.
That one was particularly larger than the other Shantaks, and it was a creature I had seen before.
It skillfully avoided the Nyctophants’ charges but eventually had its wings torn off by a joint attack from four Nyctophants and began to fall helplessly.
And from the back of that falling Shantak, a person also tumbled down.
A single Nyctophant noticed this and flew towards us, carrying the man.
Upon seeing his face, Ilina frowned.
“…Louis Goldsun?”
The Nyctophant gently placed Louis in front of us before turning back toward the massacre site.
Louis, who had been spewing curses, became deathly pale upon seeing our faces.
“What are you doing here, Louis?” Luke asked.
Furrowing his face, Louis pointed an accusing finger at me.
“It’s all because of you. You dirty Troll!”
…Here we go again.
“I heard you dueled Arthur. Is this revenge? As far as I know, you can’t summon this many creatures. What did you do?”
Louis only sneered at Luke’s question while staring solely at me.
“My patron will visit you. Troll.”
“What?”
…
A crunching sound echoed, and simultaneously, blood trickled down the corner of Louis’s mouth.
“Damn!”
As Luke rushed to pry open Louis’s mouth, he remained stiff and shortly collapsed with his eyes closed.
“…He bit his tongue off.”
“To commit suicide in this situation? What could be his intent?”
Confused by Louis’s sudden action, I heard Lily’s voice.
-You exited Dreamland, didn’t you? He probably informed you…
-Briefly, if someone harms my body in Dreamland…
-You don’t have to worry about that. Time flows differently in Dreamland and reality. If you leave now, it will appear to be almost simultaneous in reality.
Phew… What a shock.
Perhaps because of the infamous brutality of the Nyctophants, no more Shantaks came.
With the loss of their target, the Nyctophants casually returned in the direction they originally came from.
…So, you have monsters like these as subordinates? Nodens must be incredibly strong.
At that moment, I overheard a conversation between Luke and Ilina.
“Will these kind of attacks continue?”
“I don’t know. If they do, we will all be wiped out.”
Right now.
“Hmm… So, I wanted to say…”
I naturally interjected in their conversation, pulling out a key and showing it to them.
“What kind of key is this?”
“A key to escape from here.”
“What?! Is that true, Arthur?”
“Yeah, it’s certain.”
Ilina, after staring fixedly at the key, crossed her arms.
“Hmpf… It might indeed be good if we can escape. However, our test assignment is to survive for four days. What if we face disadvantages in the exam?”
That test is already ruined, isn’t it?
But sometimes, a lie is easier than the truth.
Chancellor certainly wouldn’t want this situation. Once we are out, they’ll handle it accordingly.
Then it’s time to repeat the lie I told Luke.
” Ilina, do you really think the true objective of this exam is mere survival?”
“Huh?”
“The Chancellor said more active students would earn higher scores. Remember?”
“Yeah. He definitely said that.”
“So, how can we find proactive students among ordinary survivors?”
“Um… That’s true. The criteria aren’t clear.”
“The criterion I thought of is this: escaping or not.”
With my words, Ilina’s pupils slightly widened.
“…There’s some sense in that. Doing so would make it easier to rank.”
Alright!
Though I was speaking to Ilina, the ears of other students were nearby.
The students who heard my words nodded in agreement.
“That’s right. Having escape as the criteria makes it clear.”
“Isn’t the visible method of escape something Chancellor prepared for us?”
As the positive reactions spread,
“Wait! How do we trust that key?”
‘Ah, it’s that jerk again, isn’t it?’
It was the noble who earlier claimed that I had driven the Shantaks.
“There’s also a possibility that you set a trap to disqualify us all!”
…Ah… Ahhh! I feel like I’ve bitten a whole mouthful of sweet potato. It’s suffocating…
The noble spoke nonsense proudly.
“An unknown tool—”
However.
“Shut up.”
Tzeek
Ilina interrupted with a cold gaze.
“Is your head just for show? Do you not know how to think?”
Ilina’s verbal attack turned the noble’s face red and pale alternately.
“Huh?!”
“You idiot. Had Arthur intended to do such a thing, he wouldn’t have informed us about those monstrous birds. If he hadn’t warned us, we would have suffered great damage.”
“Huh, but…”
“Right! Arthur has no such intention!”
The retort of the noble, who was about to counter, was cut off by a student who had been helped by me in the previous battle.
“Just before I was about to fall victim to that monster, Arthur covered me with a protective shield. Does such an Arthur seem like someone who’d disqualify us? Ridiculous!”
The atmosphere among the students turned in favor of this girl’s words.
“That’s true. If Arthur hadn’t been here, we…”
“Yeah. The idea to cause an explosion before wasn’t Arthur’s?”
“Isn’t it all thanks to Arthur that we’re all still alive?”
As the students’ cold gazes turned towards the noble, he shut his mouth and slunk off to the corner.
Wow… This feels like gulping down a carbonated drink.
‘Belly full puff~’
I lifted the key while pressing the gemstone embedded on the handle.
As I turned the key, white noise occurred, and a white hole was formed in the air.
“This is the exit. It’s said to disappear quickly, so we must go now.”
Just as the students were about to take a step,
“Wait! What about the order of exit—”
“A, shut up.”
“You really can’t read the situation, huh.”
“Pathetic guy.”
Once again, the nuisance noble was quickly dealt with by the students.
“Let’s go, Arthur.”
Luke extended his hand, but I shook my head.
“I’ll wait to see everyone go in before I enter.”
“Hm, understood. See you in reality.”
“Right.”
Ilina and Luke went in first, followed by the students.
The students went in one after another, and finally, only I was left.
“Human…”
I turned around to see the ghouls gathered there.
“Leaving… are you…?”
“Y…es… human…?”
“Yeah. I’m leaving now.”
An elderly ghoul stepped forward.
“So… our deal…”
“Is over. Thank you for watching over me all this while.”
“…And we… thank you for… the grug meat…”
“I’ll take care of it if I come back later.”
“Kuuh… kuuk… kuuk…”
At first, I thought the ghouls were crying, but upon seeing their expressions, I realized it was laughter.
“From now on… we… humans… won’t eat… for about a day… if you give us… grug meat within a day… that’s the deal.”
“If that happens, I’ll be grateful.”
I waved to the ghouls before turning toward the door.
“Phew… Finally leaving.”
Though only two days had passed, it felt as if nine had.
-You’ve worked hard, Arthur.
-And Lily too.
-Let’s leave quickly. I’m also tired.
-Understood!
Holding Lily tightly in my embrace, I stepped through the hole while leaving the now tiresome Dreamland behind.
The same as before, or perhaps even more violently, the surroundings began to spin.
Though the dizziness felt like I was about to vomit, my heart had never felt this light.
And a short while later.
Upon opening my eyes, a gray ceiling came into view.
The touch of the hard floor and the warm sensation in my arms made me aware that Lily was still in my embrace.
She rubbed her eyes and sat up.
“Good morning, Lily.”
“Phh… Good morning, Arthur. Did I dream?”
“That’s right. I also dreamed we had a passionate kiss.”
“Want to try it in reality?”
Unfortunately, there were other eyes watching.
“Asher!”
Disappointingly, Leeti was waving nearby.
I waved back to her, and then a sudden question came to mind.
‘Wait, where’s Louis?’
Looking around at the emerging students, there was no trace of Louis.
‘Could he have escaped?’
When exactly?
Just as I tilted my head in confusion,
“Everyone, welcome back.”
The Chancellor greeted us.
“I’m grateful that all of you have returned without injuries.”
“No injuries?! We’ve lost friends!”
It was the student who lost a friend to the ghouls. However—
“I’m here.”
“Eh?! What? How…?”
“I don’t know either. Why am I here?”
Exclamations of surprise came from all around.
The dream self may be dead, but the body remains intact.
Still, there was a sigh of relief.
‘Pity’
Though they hadn’t lost their lives, they won’t be able to dream anymore.
The Chancellor spread his arms out wide.
“As some of you may have guessed, this exam actually took place entirely within a dream!”
Most of them, more precisely everyone except me, opened their mouths wide.
“That’s impossible! You’re saying it was a dream?”
“How could it be so realistic?”
“Is there magic that could enable shared dreams?”
The Chancellor casually took in the students’ reactions and calmed them down.
“The test was carried out successfully, and all of you have understood the hidden objectives.”
At this, the students started murmuring.
“Hidden objectives…?”
“Escape! Escape was the answer!”
“Arthur was right!”
Under the burdensome gazes of the students, I inadvertently bowed my head.
‘It seems Chancellor intends to cover up the fact that the test almost failed. Well, that’s unavoidable, but…’
If the truth were revealed here, panic would surely arise.
There was no need to unnecessarily instill fear in the students.
“The scores and rankings will be announced tomorrow. For now, everyone must be exhausted. Go back to your dormitories and rest.”
The students left the training field with light steps, looking forward to the long-awaited rest.
As I, too, was about to leave towards the dormitory,
-Orested for today. We’ll talk more tomorrow?
The Chancellor’s voice spoke in my head.
Turning back, the Chancellor had already vanished.
‘…Truly a mysterious person, isn’t he?’
Setting aside the unease for now, I lightly jogged towards the dormitory.
I was looking forward to the first moment of peace I’ve had in a long time.
“Lulu-lu~”
“Meow-meow~”
“Ha-ha! What’s that Lily?”
Not only were my steps light today…
Something even lighter than my steps was my heart.
My worries had been resolved after the events in Dreamland.
I’ve made a decision.
The heavy burden I carried was gone, and my heart felt like it might take flight.
“Lily, I’ll tell you the answer when we get to the dormitory.”
After not understanding my words for a moment,
“Meow?!”
Lily looked up at me with disbelief.
“Of course. I’ve made a decision now.”
It was time to tell Lily properly.
As I continued jogging faster and faster, I could feel my heart racing in anticipation of the near future.
‘Aa, I truly—’
Puuk!
At that moment.
My vision wobbled.
At the same time, the thudding of my heart suddenly dropped.
Then I felt something cold at my chest.
‘…Huh?’
Looking down, I saw something shine as it protruded out from my chest.
Before my brain could register what it was—covered in red liquid—
Pwuaak!
It disappeared from my view.
Simultaneously, red liquid spattered everywhere, and my vision wobbled again.
The height of my vision lowered as the ground grew closer.
My vision was red.
Completely red.
I could hear screams from somewhere.
“Ah…”
“…Stop!”
My body flipped, and someone’s face filled my vision.
A beautiful face, someone I loved…
“…L…Liiii…”
The words came out stammered and suppressed, as if blocked by something.
“An…don’t…A…s…stay…alert…”
Lily was crying.
For the first time, I was seeing Lily cry, and I was momentarily startled.
Ah, what should I do?
Even in this state, I still found her beautiful.
She was definitely more radiant when she was smiling.
I reached out to Lily’s cheek to wipe away her tears.
As I touched her cheek, Lily’s face turned red.
Lily’s crying got even louder.
Oh no… that wasn’t my intention.
With Lily gripping my hand, she screamed something, but the sound now reached my ears muffled.
Gradually, my vision began to darken.
Ah, I’m sleepy.
I shouldn’t fall asleep now…
Lily, you shouldn’t cry like this…
I need to always make her smile…
Me…
I should confess to Lily…
Ah, I can’t hold on any longer.
Just for a moment.
A brief nap will do.
I’ll delay my confession for just a short while.
……
…..
….
I’m sorry, Lily…
