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The main reason was the critical weakness inherent in the dark energy that Fiend magic relied on.

『Anti-Magic Potion』

This potion could restore any phenomena caused by dark energy to their original state. And the primary ingredient for this potion was this:

『Holy Herb』

An herb containing components that suppress dark energy.

Hetherson, an expert in Fiend magic, had said:

If you encounter anyone with either of these two things, retreat immediately.

There were only about ten sentries. The rest of the personnel were either in the fortress or resting in the open space beyond it.

Melin looked at her teammates holding torches.

“After taking out the sentries, set fire to the fortresses. The enemies will panic and rush out one by one.”

The enemy wouldn’t expect an all-out assault, especially since they were also huddled together.

“When they’re confused, quickly target their necks and then escape. Understood?”

Her team members nodded. The young roaming band members approached silently, then suddenly increased their speed.

Thump thump thump!

A simultaneous assault.

The yawning sentries opened their eyes in shock.

“What’s going on?”

“An attack!”

Melin didn’t intend to take their heads. Her real targets were members of the Adelle Hall or the companions of the ponytailed man.

‘To fulfill my wish, I must be ruthless.’

As the units approached the sentries with their weapons, Melin felt a chill from their conversation.

“It’s happening tonight, just like that guy said…”

“Let’s pull back for now.”

Melin slowed her pace. The sentries didn’t raise an alarm or even scream; they simply turned and ran away silently.

That could only mean…

“An ambush!!”

Another squad leader shouted as the fortress doors orderly opened wide. The enemies emerged swiftly and in perfect formation, even from between the fortresses due to limited space.

As they drew their swords, the advancing children stopped abruptly. Melin, with a trembling voice, ordered her unit.

“Retreat!”

Just then, the windows on the second floor of the fortress swung open, revealing figures with staffs. Among them, Melin noticed a familiar face next to a short man—the blonde man.

‘That man…!’

The swordmaster. He was undoubtedly the one who had sliced her sleeve with his sword energy during reconnaissance.

Melin turned and fled without looking back.

Whoosh!

The stinging smell of burning and the intense heat surrounded her. Sweat formed on her forehead.

She was blocked by walls of fire.

‘Magicians did this!’

With no way out, her comrades started to panic. The enemy soldiers raised their swords and approached slowly. The significant difference in height only intensified the fear.

“What do we do?”

“What do you think? We have to fight to the death.”

“Hey, commander? Give us some orders.”

Despite her squad members calling her, Melin couldn’t take her eyes off the window. The man jumped down from the railing, landing lightly as a feather before setting his feet on the ground.

Thud.

He stood at the front and scanned the young roaming band. Just his gaze made them feel oppressed. Melin was certain.

‘That swordmaster is definitely their leader.’

Their eyes met, and Melin flinched, her ears perking up as he opened his mouth to speak.

“Squad leaders, throw down your weapons and step forward.”

The term ‘squad leaders’ from his lips caused a stir among the young roaming band. Melin was also taken aback. This meant he knew the structure of their organization.

‘The instructor said they wouldn’t know, so how…?’

Melin quickly dismissed the thought. Perhaps they learned it from their instructors. What mattered was that the blonde man was a swordmaster and that she had to comply with his demand. If he slashed with his invisible sword energy, her head would be lopped off.

Thud.

Leading the way, Melin stepped forward, and the other squad leaders followed, puzzled. In a low voice, she informed them.

“That’s him. The swordmaster I mentioned…”

The squad leaders flinched and dropped their weapons as they approached him. Melin, despite her seemingly compliant attitude, had other thoughts.

‘An ambush is possible. I have this power.’

If she could strike down that man, the instructors would be satisfied. Her wish could be granted. Moreover, if she could eliminate their strongest enemy, it would boost her comrades’ morale.

Thud.

Melin showed her empty hands, indicating she was unarmed. The man shifted his gaze from the approaching squad leaders to Melin.

In that moment, Melin’s eyes flashed.

Crackle—

Electric sparks erupted from her body. She activated the electric magic she had absorbed, empowering her entire body. Her current speed rivaled lightning, thanks to her mystical power.

Zoom.

Melin swiftly drew a hidden dagger from her chest and aimed it at the man’s neck while he was off guard.

Ping.

All her aura was concentrated in that strike. However, she felt only a dull pain in her wrist.

Crack!

The sound of breaking echoed, and Melin’s eyes widened in shock.

“What?”

The broken pieces of her dagger scattered. While she was bewildered, the man reached out and grabbed her by the collar, lifting her off the ground.

Whoosh—

Throughout the process, Melin couldn’t even think of resisting. What use was speed when she was already caught? Melin’s body was thrown to the ground.

Thud.

The man applied a knee to her neck, preventing her from struggling further.

Despite this, Melin mustered all her strength and flailed.

“Ugh…”

“Stop wasting your energy. The same goes for the rest of you.”

His words completely drained the squad leaders’ will to fight.

“Melin…”

“It’s over.”

Their reaction was understandable. As a squad leader, Melin wasn’t particularly capable. She held the position because she was the strongest. Now, seeing her utterly defeated, the children’s faces contorted with fear. The man’s next words were even more surprising.

“I’ll spare you. Tell the others behind you to drop their weapons and surrender.”

What a foolish statement. The instructor would be watching from afar. If he deemed her captured, he would likely trigger the bombs. Melin tried to rise, even if it meant breaking her neck.

“…You don’t know anything.”

But the man’s reply made Melin doubt her ears.

“You don’t need to worry about the explosions.”

“What?”

“Begin!!”

Seconds after his shout, white smoke enveloped the area. Coughing, Melin heard something from the man that made her ears prick up.

“This smoke contains the scent of herbs that suppress dark energy. You’re safe from explosions for now.”

***

I fanned away the smoke trying to penetrate my lungs. The smoke came from the ‘holy herb’ filling my backpack. This was something easily obtained from Nille’s alchemy workshop, albeit at a considerable cost.

“Why do you need so much of this expensive stuff?”

Anti-magic potions are costly because their ingredients are not cheap.

“Just in case. We can return what we don’t use, right?”

“Sure, we can stock up on them. It’s not difficult.”

Despite the high cost, it was a drop in the bucket for me after the recent windfall from gambling.

Additionally, with the promise of a refund, I had nothing to lose.

Coughing, Melin spoke.

“Cough. You expect me to believe that?”

Bellam Kingdom opposed the Empire. The instructors had likely indoctrinated her thoroughly. A little persuasion might be necessary.

“Really? Then why are you still here? Your instructor would have activated the self-destruct curse by now. You were quickly subdued and are still in close proximity to me. This should have been the perfect opportunity.”

Melin’s hostile gaze faltered. Maybe the smoke really did work, and she was half-convinced.

It was time for a bit more pressure.

“Anyway, we’ve done our moral duty. If you refuse, you’ll be throwing away your rights as a prisoner.”

Melin, seemingly resigned, said,

“Fine, just get your knee off me…”

After that, the situation quickly stabilized. Melin led the other squad leaders to surrender. The children who followed them also dropped their weapons and raised their hands.

“Follow me.”

“Hey, we’re out of ropes here.”

“Why aren’t you holding out your wrist? Want a beating?”

One by one, the children were bound. I wondered if I was dreaming. I never imagined they would all comply. If even a few from the other dormitories had stayed behind, the roaming band’s forces might have been divided, causing us significant trouble. According to Limberton, Belman played a significant role, and things seemed to have fallen into place miraculously.

In any case, I pulled on the rope.

“Ah!”

Melin stumbled but managed to keep her footing. What should I do with her now?

I succeeded in saving her, but hadn’t decided on the specifics yet.

◆Blessing of the Dark Dragon Alton

≡ There is no magic that you cannot taste.

Grants special abilities based on the magic element consumed.

Fire magic makes you a fire person, water makes you immune to physical attacks.

The strongest element was electricity. Limited to one strike per charge, but unmatched in speed.

It would be a waste to retire her. But her story involved growing stronger through the roaming band. If I let her go, she’d be killed under the pretext of failing the exam.

I organized my thoughts and spoke.

“Do you have any thoughts of becoming an Imperial citizen? If you accept, I’ll request my family to look after you.”

Leaving her at the family estate wasn’t a bad option. With Aol and Coulot there, perhaps they could help guide her talents, which would benefit her story.

But Melin refused.

“You think I’d fall for that?”

Of course, she wouldn’t trust an enemy. Even if she did, she’d be concerned about her mother. Given the chance, she’d likely try to escape back home.

Returning home would reveal a harsh truth, but it was necessary.

“I won’t force you to stay.”

Even if I relayed her mother’s passing from the estate, she probably wouldn’t believe me.

Directly witnessing it with her own eyes would be more convincing.

“For now, your safety will be under Tenest’s care. If you want to leave, say so. We’ll provide a carriage from the family. When you arrive, decide whether to stay with us or not.”

Melin mulled over my words.

“…What do you hope to gain from me?”

“Let’s just say I value your talent.”

I led Melin to the designated prisoner holding area behind the fortress. At its center, a large pile of holy herbs burned brightly, emitting smoke.

From the roof, Limberton called out to me.

“Hersel, they’re starting to move. Looks like they’re trying to find a spot to see this area.”

His awakened blessing’s detection ability was now comparable to a radar, an excellent skill for a long-range archer.

“They’re probably checking why the explosion spell isn’t working. We need to hurry.”

The holy herb smoke was just a temporary measure to buy us time. The dark magic curse wasn’t lifted.

The only ways to break the self-destruct curse were purification magic, which we couldn’t use yet, or killing the caster.

We planned to deal with the instructors. The motivation had already been planted.

“I know everyone’s hungry. The food given to us is just a handful, and you’ve all lost money gambling because of my grades. None of us can remember the last time we had a full meal, right?”

They gulped and their eyes gleamed.

“As I said, the enemies have food. Let’s take it and eat like humans for the remaining time.”

Dealing with hungry beasts is easy. Just throw them food.

“Prepare yourselves, and begin, Belman.”

The children distanced themselves from me. The knights raised their shields and exuded aura. The magicians cast defensive spells, and Belman set up a barrier around me. Having previously cleared the smoke with telekinesis, I absorbed the dark energy rising from the ground.

I was preparing a self-destruct spell. First, I needed to deceive the instructors.

***

From this vantage point, the area beyond the fortress wasn’t visible.

Thump thump thump.

The instructor moved quickly, feeling uneasy. There were many concerns.

It was puzzling why the students didn’t kill the captives but tied them up instead. Since the children were grouped together, it was a perfect opportunity, and he had activated the curse, yet there was no response.

It was a situation he couldn’t understand without seeing it firsthand.

As he moved closer to the students’ camp, a pungent smell hit his nose.

Sniff sniff.

It was a familiar scent. Any dark magic user would know this nemesis.

‘Is this… holy herb?’

His eyes widened in shock. He had never seen anyone bring such an amount to an exam.

“Which lunatic…!”

As he cursed, a loud explosion rocked the forest.

Boom!

White light and black smoke spread in all directions.

He didn’t know the details, but the self-destruct curse seemed to have finally activated.

“Looks like they ran out of holy herbs!”

The instructor smiled wickedly, hearing the successive explosions.

“The children are unfortunate, but rules are rules. If they wanted to survive, they should have passed like me.”

Several figures emerged from the black smoke. This was within his expectations.

Each year, there were always capable individuals who survived the explosions.

He grabbed his staff. Those who survived would be troublesome opponents for the roaming band later.

Better to eliminate them early.

‘The rest are either dead or severely injured. I just need to deal with these ones.’

He looked around. Oddly, the professors were nowhere to be seen.

Usually, they’d intervene when he took action.

That was concerning, but as long as he acted quickly, it should be fine.

‘They’re just kids. I’ll kill them in no time.’

The instructor entered the Schlaphe camp. Two other instructors joined him shortly after.

“Ha, seems we all had the same idea.”

“Perfect timing with no interruptions.”

“But where’s Amul?”

“He went to kill the swordmaster in the highlands.”

“Always full of pride.”

“Well, he does have the skill for it.”

Instructor Berme, who had a scar on his lips, drew his sword.

“Still, that guy is beneath me. Foolish as always, focused on appearances.”

“Can’t argue with that, Berme.”

As they conversed, they arrived at their prey. Berme licked his scar as he eyed the leading man.

Years of experience told him that the blonde man was the leader.

“I’ll take those blue eyes.”

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