༺ Double ༻
“Why did you do that?”
“Do what?”
Iliya suddenly threw out that question while I was warming up before entering the final stage.
Seeing someone like her say that with a dumbfounded expression really showed the absurdity of the situation.
“I know that you’re good, Teach, but can we really challenge the previous record…?”
“Yes.”
“…”
Iliya blankly opened her mouth, left dumbfounded after hearing such a wild reply that was said as a matter of fact.
“…You really have high confidence. Is there any reason for that?”
Of course there was.
The monsters in this artificial dungeon had patterns. As someone who knew them like the back of his hand, targeting their vitals was as easy as counting one, two and three.
It wasn’t that difficult to get the timing right.
And, above all.
[It’s Conrad. Are you ready?]
“Since yeterday.”
[Good. In this last section, you are able to choose the difficulty. Naturally, the higher the difficulty, the more points you’ll get—]
This is where my confidence stems from.
“Please make it the highest difficulty.”
[…]
After a moment of silence, the person speaking on the other side suddenly changed.
[Listen up, freshman. I know that you’re confident, but isn’t this too much?! Even if the bet is lost there is no penalty to you, so why go this far…?! The highest difficulty is no different from a real battle, so it’s not unusual even if you die!]
Based on the voice, that should be Percy.
She might sound angry, but it was apparent from her concern that she was a true teacher who really cared about her students.
“Yes, I am aware.”
In that level of difficulty, the monsters would literally be coming after us with the intent to kill.
“If it’s not like that, it’s meaningless.”
[…Yes?]
“Because anything easier than that isn’t worth the effort.”
[…]
I smiled at the thought of her stun-locked expression.
And it is easier for me that way.
●
“Why did you agree to that?”
“Why not? Didn’t we also choose this level of difficulty when we were freshmen?”
“Not at the Colosseum. They could really die there.”
Percy said with a bitter expression.
The Colosseum, the last section of the artificial dungeon, was all about defeating as many monsters as possible against an infinite number of spawning enemies.
In other words, recklessly raising the difficulty would summon more and more monsters, which could become really dangerous without any countermeasures.
“I don’t think he would have said that if he’s not confident. Let’s just wait and see.”
“I have also observed what’s been going on so far. Is it really okay to rate this student so highly?”
Percy folded her arms and said disgruntledly.
“He has no aptitude, and his combat skills—”
“—are a mess. That’s right. But you got fooled too.”
“What?”
Conrad smirked at Percy’s dismayed response.
“Let’s just watch for now. If it really does get dangerous, we can just go in and save them.”
In the meantime, the screen showed the two freshmen having already entered the Colosseum.
Percy sighed inwardly as she watched the artificial monsters pour in from all directions and surround the two in a circle.
As the highest difficulty, the scenario was naturally different from others. A weak-willed student would easily get intimidated by the sheer amount of murderous monsters.
‘I just hope you don’t overdo it…’
Percy thought as she sipped her tea that had just been served. She had a habit of drinking tea whenever she was worried about something.
She and Conrad killed 50 monsters within the time limit, which was a transcendental record for freshmen.
She was feeling uneasy and unsure about the safety of this whole record-breaking attempt.
However.
That anxiety was immediately thrown away when Dowd Campbell clashed with the first monster.
-!
-!!!
She gaped when she saw the monster getting shattered by Dowd Campbell’s sword.
“Wha-what?!”
Seeing her jump out of her seat and shout, Conrad couldn’t help but chuckle.
If the monster had been simply cut in one blow, there was really nothing to be so surprised about. Any skilled combatant can do that.
But to completely shatter a creature with a sword swing?
This could only be achieved by getting the perfect direct hit to a vital point with the perfect timing, but how the hell was that even possible?
“See? Everyone will be fooled at first glance.”
Percy would’ve normally reacted to such a sentence, but right now, she couldn’t care less.
The scene that was unfolding right in front of her eyes was shocking.
“No, no, no—! How does that make sense?! How could a human who clearly had nothing suddenly—!”
“Have you ever considered that it wasn’t that there was nothing, but rather it was made to look that way?”
“…”
Percy slumped back to her seat from all the shock.
Her gaze then rested on those two blazing through the record on the screen.
It was an unrivaled feat that no one could match, not even in the last few years.
The sentence that that student said before the battle started continuously echoed in Percy’s mind.
– Because anything easier than that isn’t worth the effort.
Was he really serious about it? He wasn’t bluffing?
He was making the challenge seem like child’s play.
“…I now understand your interest, Conrad. I guess the only lacking thing here was my vision.”
“I don’t blame you. If I hadn’t seen it beforehand, I probably would have been fooled too.”
In fact, even the faculty didn’t pay attention to a single thing about him until they saw the spar with the Hero Candidate.
“But still, setting a new record is a completely different story. The Colosseum produces stronger monsters the further you–”
Percy suddenly stopped her sentence midway.
It’s probably because she saw that the monsters that appeared in the second wave were also shattered by Dowd’s sword just like the ones before.
‘…Uh?’
There was a big question mark on top of her head.
The situation that followed shattered the common sense she knew.
Even the third wave suffered the same fate.
Swing, swing, swing.
At the same pace, regardless of how strong the opponent was, it always ended with the same result.
‘…’
Were such monsters existences that could be beaten so easily?
Even when she and Conrad broke the all-time record, they didn’t do it with this much ease.
This was just like cutting down weeds.
It was not a battle, but a simple, repetitive task.
It looked so absurdly easy that even the Hero Candidate’s well-fought battle was overshadowed next to it.
It was supposed to get harder the longer this went on and the stronger the waves were, so why was the situation the same as before?
Was there a bug in the system?
‘…No, there’s wasn’t.’
It wasn’t like that.
It wasn’t that trivial.
The more she watched the video on the screen, the more that feeling became more and more concrete.
‘He’s getting stronger.’
As his enemies got faster and stronger, Dowd Campbell also became faster and stronger.
‘How could this be…?!’
As she was immersed in her thoughts, the death counter of the monsters recorded on the screen was accumulating at a tremendous speed.
More than ten monsters were hunted within a minute after starting.
By the time half of the time limit passed, Conrad and Percy’s record had already been broken.
Still, Dowd Campbell’s pace did not slow down.
On the contrary, he was actually getting faster and faster.
As if he became stronger the stronger the opponent.
And just like that, the time limit was up.
It was so silent that you could even hear someone’s hearbeat.
[ Congratulations! Incredible Feat! ]
[ You broke the All-Time Record! ]
[ Team Dowd Campbell & Iliya Krisanax hunted a total of 100 monsters! ]
The teacup that Percy was holding, fell and shattered on the floor.
But no one even spared a glance.
Everyone was looking at the record with bewildered expressions.
“Bravo.”
Inside the intensely quiet room, only the applause of Conrad, who had a fierce smile on his face, could be heard.
●
“Well, that’s fine.”
It was, in many ways.
Attributes were mostly built up from real combat experience, so this event significantly increased my proficiency in the Tristan Style Swordsmanship.
“Fine?”
Next to me, Iliya was patting her forehead.
Why are you suddenly getting angry?
“No, this…”
She stared at the papers in her hand in disbelief.
On the other side, Conrad was wearing a proud expression while Percy looked dazed as she handed it over.
It contained a message stating that we could select and rent one item from Elfante’s Arcane Vault.
“Doesn’t one need the Imperial Family’s permission to open the Arcane Vault…?”
“That’s why it’s written as for ‘rent’. Otherwise, if it’s ‘awarded’, there will be a problem.”
I calmly replied, but this was a very big deal.
Just the act of opening the Arcane Vault was a rare event in itself, only happening twice in the entire game.
Also, both of those openings were only possible after resolving major events in the story. This was absolutely not something you could do as a freshman.
Above all, Percy, the Magic School’s Dean, had given permission to request anything…
‘This is really good.’
This was a very good start, even for a veteran like me.
“…”
As I was thinking that, Iliya looked at me with a strange expression.
“Teach, I’ve noticed that you’re always calm regardless of anything.”
“Uh?”
“It’s like you always knew everything and like everything was planned. It feels like you already knew what to expect. Hmm…”
She said while thoughtfully stroking her chin.
What?
“Umu, yes. I should prepare at least one surprise.”
“…What?”
“I have been thinking about it before, but it became clearer during the mock battle. If I don’t do something now, I’m going to lose it sooner or later.”
“…”
What was she saying?
I looked at Iliya in confusion, but she just grinned and held her fist out in return.
“…What’s this?”
“Oh, a fist bump. Don’t men do this with their friends?”
“…”
This was new.
She seemed to have a good affinity with people like in the original game, but there was something different somewhere that I couldn’t quite put my finger on.
Our fists bumped and Iliya hurried away with a bright smile.
“Then, see you tomorrow, Teach! I’ll be sending you a letter back to your dorm!”
“…”
Hearing her say those words made me worried.
In the first place, she was saying that we were going to meet tomorrow.
< Gift-related Character Notification >
▼ Eleanor
[ Trust Level 5 ]
[ Close to favorability status change! ]
[ She is an important character. A special event will trigger after a successful status change! ]
[ D-1 until related event occurs ]
▼ Iliya
[ Curiosity level 5 ]
[ Rewards Currently Unavailable! ]
[ Close to favorability status change! ]
[ She is an important character. A special event will trigger after a successful status change! ]
[ D-1 until related event occurs ]
Tomorrow was the day when the main quest and character events overlapped.
‘Thinking of the original game, nothing much happens at this time…’
The only thing I remember happening was a slight monster commotion.
However, I can’t help but be nervous knowing that two major character events would intertwine.
“What are you thinking about?”
I suddenly heard a voice while I was preoccupied with my thoughts.
When I turned my head, I saw Eleanor, who was exuding a gloomy aura all over her body.
“…”
“…”
What?
What’s wrong with her?
She still had her expressionless face, but judging by the wrinkles between her eyebrows and twitching eye corners, she really seemed angry.
“Looks like you two had a good time together. Do you like that freshman named Iliya?”
“…”
What’s happening right now, exactly?
Desperation did not activate, so it seemed that she had no intention of hurting me. But even so, I feel like something big will happen if I don’t appease her here.
I have to say something…!
“Um, Student Council President?”
“What?”
“I missed you.”
“…”
The moment Eleanor shut her mouth, nonexistent words from an imaginary dictionary flashed through my mind.
A fool – Synonymous with Dowd Campbell.
There was no way someone high-profile like the Student Council President would fall for this.
“…Did you?”
However, her voice actually became much softer than before.
And her expression also felt more relaxed, perhaps because of her lightening mood.
‘…Uh?’
That worked?
This?
A bad throw-away, hail mary nonsense?
While I was stumped at this unexpected development, Eleanor crossed her arms and said sharply.
“You mean you wanted to see me even while being with that freshman?”
“…”
No, I didn’t mean that, actually.
“Ah, don’t get me wrong. Not in the sense of a male-female relationship… Hmm. I meant it like between friends. We’re not in that type of relationship yet.”
“…”
I was speechless for the most part.
“…Umm, yes.”
“Then that’s it. Just remember your priorities.”
“…”
What priorities?
What did she mean?
“Well, since I’m already here, I’ll pass this on in advance. It’s originally meant to be delivered tomorrow.”
Having said that, Eleanor handed me a letter.
What was this now?
“…Make sure to open it somewhere private. Alright, then…”
After saying that, Eleanor left just like a passing wind.
She seemed embarrassed when handing this over.
“…”
But what was it, though?
Both Iliya and Eleanor are suddenly giving me letters.
I gotta go and see what’s the deal.
●
“I shouldn’t have opened them.”
I squeaked like a dying old man.
On the desk were Iliya’s and Eleanor’s opened letters.
They had the same content.
An invitation to be their partner at the freshmen welcome party.
“…”
In fact, being a partner was not a big deal in itself.
It was just going around and having fun together during the event. So to speak, a date.
It was the fresh spring bloom of youth.
But I know the implications of this event since this happened in the game. The favorability of the rejected party drastically drops, and later, there would be a severe penalty when proceeding with the related scenario. It was to the point that it was no different than digging your own grave.
That’s why I usually choose the character that I could bypass or at least handle.
“…”
But the people involved in this was the main character and the final boss!
Regardless of who I chose, hell was the only thing that would be waiting for me. If I turn either of them into enemies, my life would be no different than a candle in a storm.
Events cannot be avoided, either. As mentioned before, this is part of the main quest. Not participating in the event would most likely lead straight to death.
How about rejecting both? Then the penalty would be doubled! It’s still death.
I’m stuck in quite the predicament, having enemies on all sides.
This was a life-or-death situation.
No, this was just unfair. Especially so when this wasn’t even considered a real date.
In the first place, there was no goddamn way these two would ask me out for a date. The last time I checked, their favorability status was only at Curiosity and Trust. It’s not anything like affection.
It would be more appropriate to say that they were interested in me.
‘I can’t just die like this.’
I gritted my teeth and squeezed every bit of power from my braincells.
Think, Dowd Campbell. Think!
There had to be a way to save my life without antagonizing either of them…!
“…Ahah.”
At this time, a plan came to mind.
A plan that would inevitably lead to death if it failed, but could overcome the situation if it succeeded.
“…”
It was kind of trashy, though.
But this was the only way out. My life is at stake here, so I don’t have a choice…!
I closed my eyes and began to flesh the plan out, extracting key information in the event.
“It’s worth the shot…”
It doesn’t seem impossible, does it?
“…”
Come to think of it, no matter who I choose, I’m practically dead.
Therefore…
“…Why not meet them both?”
All I have to do is to not get caught, right?
