Chapter 75 of the Weapon Replicator at the Academy

Chapter 22: Final Exam (4)

"Vinkes..."

Maria, who had been watching the screen, put her hand to her head.

The peaceful and gentle negotiation process between Frontier and Vinkes was, unfortunately, all displayed on the screen.

For a teacher to reveal another teacher's position. This was an error that should never have occurred in this exam.

'Well, if Frontier weren't my son, I might have blurted it out in that situation too.'

Maria knew Frontier's character and the limitations of the technique called 'Fireworks' in Constel. It was a technique he had accomplished with the help of her bloodline magic, 'Sensory Sharing.'

'But if this improves Ampere's image of Frontier, then...'

Maria understood Frontier's intention. To make Ampere see him again with all his might in this exam.

Maria glanced at Ampere beside her.

However, Ampere was expressionless. Rather, he seemed even more displeased.

Perhaps he found Frontier so pitiful. Or perhaps there was another reason.

A heavy voice came from his deeply furrowed lips.

"You're wasting your efforts, Frontier."

"...Ampere. Still saying that?"

"My decision remains unchanged."

"If you were going to say that, you shouldn't have given Frontier the assignment in the first place. You said your decision wouldn't change?"

Maria looked straight at Ampere. He received her gaze with a haughty demeanor.

"Of course, I will keep my promise. If he ranks in the top 10 overall, there will be no expulsion."

"Then that's settled. Frontier will do it."

Maria concluded firmly. Ampere watched her silently and then spoke.

"Strange. Didn't you agree with Frontier's expulsion? You seem like a completely different person now."

"At that time, Frontier was pitiful. I thought expulsion might actually help my son."

"...Is that so."

Ampere said nothing more after that.

With a slightly sorrowful gaze, he looked at the screen.

...Expulsion might actually help Frontier.

Mulling over Maria's words, Ampere harbored a voice that no one could hear.

—I think so too, Maria.

* * *

Aster adjusted his stance as he looked at Azie.

Azie had a hostage, so Elodie's power was halved.

"Well, what will you do, Aster?"

Azie held a dagger in her hand. The tip of the dagger was pressed against Theo's neck, the hostage. Her spear, her main weapon, was nowhere to be seen.

Was this a handicap of her own, or was it a bluff?

"Sorry, Aster. I got caught."

Theo said with a look of embarrassment. Aster smiled.

"You should have handled it better."

"Exactly. As a third-year, I was just planning to observe from the back."

Aster and Theo conversed calmly, despite the crisis. While this was a simulation exam, it still seemed a bit unusual.

"Now, I can't just observe."

At that moment, Theo moved.

Azie's eyes twitched. In a short moment, Theo bent his legs and lowered his entire body. It was a reckless move for someone with a dagger at his throat.

The blade cut Theo's neck,

but a sound that was far from a cutting sound, a crackling noise, was heard.

'Stonefication?'

Azie instantly checked Theo's neck. The gray, transformed neck was not ordinary. It had turned to stone.

Stonefication is usually a curse cast on the opponent. Using its hardness to strengthen one's own defense was an unconventional idea.

Free from Azie's grip, Theo aimed at her foot and swung his left leg. Dust rose, and Azie dodged the kick.

Azie, holding the dagger, was at a disadvantage against Theo, who was unarmed. To overcome this, Theo pressed deeper.

Several exchanges of blows followed. Even though Azie had no intent to kill, Theo's unarmed combat skills were top-notch.

The fact that Theo was engaging in a proper fight with Azie, whom Aster couldn't even touch, gave an idea of his level.

To restrain him, Azie swung the dagger horizontally, and Theo dodged, creating distance. This was what Theo wanted.

'He didn't intend to fight seriously. He just wanted to avoid being a hostage.'

If Theo had only wanted to escape without being a hostage, his movements would have been readable.

However, Theo attacked Azie, increasing her options. This required both skill and courage.

As a result, Azie lost her hostage. Moreover, the gap created during the exchange with Theo.

Azie's eyes moved. To her right, the direction where Aster had been facing.

Sure enough, Aster was there.

Right in front of Azie.

In the gym, Aster had fallen to Azie countless times. Despite his outstanding abilities and talent, his inexperience was still a factor. This experience couldn't be resolved in just a few days leading up to the final exam.

However, there was one difference from before.

Aster was already in a state where his divine power was activated.

Aster declared.

"I'm coming!"

Azie accepted.

"You're unnecessarily kind."

Clang! A loud noise rang out as Aster's sword and Azie's dagger clashed.

'The blade is damaged.'

Azie had intended to deflect it. The reason it didn't work as planned was that the blade was already damaged. It had been rendered ineffective by scratching Theo's neck.

Evans family martial technique

Basic sword form

Horizontal slash

Aster hadn't yet reached a high level in swordsmanship. He lacked a unique sword form like Elin's, and he couldn't use aura, which was why he couldn't break rocks.

However, the power of his divine-empowered strike was different.

Azie saw it. The air trembled as the blade flew towards her. The trajectory, distorted by wind pressure and heat.

Indeed. With this level of power, it's understandable why mastering aura is delayed.

Azie dodged, and Aster swung his sword repeatedly. While Aster's speed was superior, Azie minimized the gap with minimal movements.

And then.

"Ugh!"

Aster suddenly tilted his head back as something sprang up from below. When he stepped back, Azie was holding it.

It was a spear. Azie had hidden it in the ground.

In other words, Azie had lured Aster to the spear while dodging.

"...I fell for it again."

"No. I didn't plan to use it. Consider it a compliment to yourself."

Azie's arrogant words.

But they were hard to argue with. Aster had desperately hoped Azie wouldn't use the spear.

The moment Azie held the spear, the air around her became heavy. The dust and gravel around her trembled. Even without using aura, her aura was already affecting the surroundings.

Aster, on guard, scanned the area.

Theo seemed to have retreated to a safe position, and Elodie was keeping Jane in check. Or perhaps it was the other way around. In any case, the situation had reached a standoff.

However, it was actually a disadvantageous situation. The best scenario would have been to subdue Azie before she could act. At least while she was unarmed.

'Well, what now?'

That didn't mean Aster had lost his fighting spirit. He wanted to see Azie's true strength. While she wouldn't use 100% of her power just because she had the spear, it would be better than last time.

Aster signaled Theo with a hand behind his back, asking him to support Elodie.

If they could quickly subdue Jane and join Aster, they might be able to handle Azie.

...The question was whether he could hold out until then.

"──Oh, I underestimated you."

Suddenly, Azie felt a chill and rolled to the side.

Whoosh, flames suddenly erupted where she had been standing. If she had stayed, she would have been engulfed in the flames.

She wouldn't have suffered serious injuries, but Azie wouldn't miss such an opening. Fortunately, she hadn't let her guard down.

"I 'entrusted' you to Azie-sensei. All three of you, I can handle alone."

It was Jane who spoke. Her left index finger was glowing.

So, she cast that magic with just her index finger?

"Whoa!"

At that moment, Elodie sent ice shards flying at Jane. Jane neutralized them all with identical ice.

She countered the first magic with the same spell. A performance that demonstrated the skill gap.

Elodie bit her lip at the sight. Still, she was smiling. It was either a show of confidence or a lack of a better strategy.

"Senior, can you approach Jane-sensei?"

Elodie asked Theo, but he shook his head.

"It's difficult. From what I know, Jane-sensei is very thorough with the basics. For a mage, being thorough with the basics means setting dozens of traps around them."

Elodie is particularly skilled at mana sensing. Indeed, her senses confirmed that Jane's surroundings were a dangerous zone.

What to do. Elodie felt cold sweat trickling down. She lacked the confidence to quickly subdue Jane.

Elodie fiddled with the metal bracelet on her wrist. It was an artifact made from refined Bipang steel, purchased at an auction.

Using it would limit the power to a certain level, but now wasn't the time to use such magic.

Jane was an exceptionally skilled mage in terms of control, and she knew Elodie well. She had understood Elodie's intentions from the start.

What to do, what to do.

Similar thoughts crossed Elodie and Aster's minds.

If things continued like this, they would surely end up losing soon. Unless something new appeared...?

Aster and Elodie's