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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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After registering our six-member party, I gathered everyone that night.
Clank-clank!
“I armed myself as instructed, but isn’t this a bit much…?”
Lotto, clad in steel armor and helmet, a medium-sized shield in hand, looked around nervously.
Despite being a Magic student, his focus on defense made him look like a knight.
The clanking of his armor in the night seemed to bother him.
I asked the slightly weary Lotto,
“I told you to sleep after we parted ways. Didn’t you?”
“I was too nervous to…”
Pino, the green-haired girl, stepped forward.
Her appearance was also somewhat unusual for a pure mage.
A small short bow hung on her back, and she wore light armor, giving her the air of a huntress.
“More importantly, will the project really start at this hour?”
“Professor Istal said ‘tomorrow.’”
“That usually means tomorrow’s class time.”
Yes, usually.
But when had this Academy ever been usual?
I shrugged silently and pointed to the clock in the middle of the park where we had gathered.
Everyone followed my gaze.
The second hand ticked steadily, then reached the top of the hour.
[Hello everyone! Are you ready? It’s project time!]
Professor Istal’s voice echoed through the speakers, just like that morning.
Pino muttered in disbelief,
“Wow, she’s serious.”
[It seems some of you still haven’t formed teams, despite my prior warning. How unfortunate. Your teams will be assigned randomly, so please trust in your luck. You might end up with competent party members. Of course, they’re also the ones who couldn’t form a team until now, so be sure to comfort each other.]
“As always, that professor has poison needles hidden in her tongue.”
Most of the members nodded in agreement with Lavaul’s comment.
[Now, let the project begin. The first stage is Shadow Hunt!]
As soon as she finished speaking, Regret suddenly looked up.
She stared at the night sky, adorned with the brightly shining moon and stars, and muttered,
“—They’re coming.”
Splat.
Something fell from the sky.
Not just one or two, but many, like raindrops.
Splat-splat-splat-splat-splat-splat-splat-splat—
“Eek?!”
A fragment of one of the “things” splattered on Lotto’s leg, and he jumped back in surprise.
The black, viscous liquid slid off his armor and onto the ground, then began to merge with other blobs, forming a larger mass.
Limbs and a torso vaguely resembling a human form.
But there were no distinct features, no face.
Like a flat shadow pulled into three dimensions.
[Hunt as many Shadows roaming the Academy as you can and collect their cores! The top 15 out of 31 teams will pass! The time limit is until all the Shadows are hunted or until sunrise!]
As soon as Istal finished speaking, the Shadow Servants scattered throughout the area.
“Explanations later! Let’s collect as many as we can before the others figure things out!”
I shouted and simultaneously fired five Low-Rank Magic Arrows at a Shadow lurking near a shop entrance.
Each time a mana arrow hit, black, viscous liquid splattered like blood, then evaporated before reaching the ground.
Having lost most of its form, the Shadow, now the size of a child, lurched towards me, but my next volley of arrows hit it first.
This time, the entire body evaporated, leaving behind a small, black bead.
I picked it up, put it in my bag, and looked at the others.
“Whoa! Woah! Wooah!”
“Wait! Where are their weak points?! Arrows don’t even faze them!”
“You fiends! Where do you think you’re going?!”
Lotto, instead of hunting, was hiding behind his shield, frantically blocking the Shadow Servants’ attacks.
Pino was terrified of the monsters that kept approaching even after being pierced by arrows.
Lavaul was trying to hold them back with his body, but there were too many.
It was pure chaos, but I had anticipated this to some extent.
They wouldn’t have been so confused if I had warned them, but explaining how I knew would have been troublesome.
Besides, this experience would be beneficial for them in the long run.
However, there was one unexpected element: Fiore’s behavior.
“Lotto-nim! Shadow Servants have high durability, but their attacks are no stronger than an unarmed human! Trust your armor and move! Pino-nim! Slashing and piercing attacks are ineffective! Use Magic Arrows to disrupt their form, not physical arrows!”
She calmly issued instructions while surrounded by monsters and sent healing light to Lavaul, who was taking the brunt of the attacks.
I was impressed.
She was remarkably composed and her instructions were precise.
I had planned to take charge, but it seemed I could leave it to her.
‘Tactics class seems to have been effective. Or is this just her nature?’
Come to think of it, I couldn’t recall ever seeing Fiore genuinely panicked or surprised.
Looking around, I saw more and more Shadow Servants gathering in the park.
Our team was the only one active because the other students weren’t ready yet.
At this rate, we would be overwhelmed instead of hunting them, but I wasn’t worried.
‘I’ve already activated the cheat code.’
And as if to prove my confidence, the ‘Nameless War Ghost’ made her move.
Regret held a long, silver-headed hammer with a wooden handle in both hands.
Wielding the magic tool with the simple name “Impact Amplifying Hammer,” she swung it continuously, shifting her weight from side to side.
It almost looked like she was struggling with its weight, but the effect was devastating.
BOOM!
It was like throwing a water balloon at a speeding car.
Each swing of her hammer caused the Shadow Servants to explode, often taking out multiple Servants at once.
Shadow cores scattered like sand in her wake, and I quickly collected them.
I shouted to the others,
“Don’t worry about damage! Just lure them towards us!”
Regret was hunting them so quickly that we were running out of targets in the immediate area.
She would have to run further to find more.
Of course, I wouldn’t allow such inefficiency.
I fired barrages of Low-Rank Magic Arrows, prioritizing range and quantity over power, speed, and accuracy.
Most missed or dealt negligible damage, but the Shadow Servants, sensing the attacks, started rushing towards me, and consequently, towards Regret.
Pino also started luring Shadows from afar with her arrows, and Lavaul…threw Lotto.
Huh?
“Lavaul-nim! Throw him! Lotto-nim’s armor will protect him, and I’ll heal any minor injuries, so don’t hold back!”
“Sorry!”
“Waaaaaaaait!”
Lotto, landing in the middle of the Shadow Servants, scrambled to his feet and started running desperately, pursued by a horde of Shadows.
Normally, being thrown in heavy armor would be debilitating, but Fiore’s healing and protective magic kept him surprisingly agile.
Speechless for a moment, I then exclaimed in admiration,
“Such a brilliant tactic…!”
She was truly an exemplary commander and younger sister.
“Whoa?! What are these things?!”
“Monsters?! Why are there monsters in the middle of the Academy?!”
“Wait! That one’s mine!”
Finally, the other students, having finished their preparations, rushed out to hunt the Shadow Servants.
But by then, our team had already claimed over a third of them.
The advantage of being first was truly sweet.
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