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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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“Ha, haha! HAHAHAHA!”
Late at night, Istal von Levenstein roared with laughter in the command center set up for the exercise.
Clutching her stomach, with tears in her eyes, she stomped her feet.
Around her stood the Academy’s Combat instructors, mostly with exhausted faces.
It had been four sleepless nights for them, preparing for this insane project and anticipating potential disasters.
The students complained about the school’s cruelty, but the staff weren’t exactly having a picnic either.
The Academy’s success was a national priority, a massive undertaking with significant resources invested.
And even ignoring the financial aspect, it was the Emperor’s pet project, his final undertaking.
The three main instructors, including Istal, were already known as mad geniuses in their previous positions.
They wouldn’t bat an eye at any student casualties and would simply declare, “The weak ones couldn’t handle it. There’s nothing wrong with our teaching methods.”
But the staff under them desperately wanted to stop this madness.
‘Is that woman even tired? I heard she hasn’t slept in seven days.’
‘There are rumors she’s part-demon. Could it be true?’
‘The high-ranking imperial officials who planned to send their children here were horrified after hearing about the entrance exam. What will they say about this?’
‘Shouldn’t we do something? She can’t just keep laughing…’
As if voicing their unspoken concerns, Schultz, Istal’s former adjutant, now a government official, spoke up.
“Professor Istal, are you sure this is alright?”
“Alright? What do you mean?”
Istal tilted her head, feigning ignorance.
Her innocent demeanor, contrasting with her seductive appearance, was usually enough to charm any man, but Schultz remained unfazed.
“Lyla’s actions. She wiped out an entire team before the signal even sounded. Won’t this disrupt the exercise?”
“That’s ridiculous,” Istal scoffed.
“She didn’t break any rules, and the other team still has a chance. Sure, they can’t get Crow’s team’s mark anymore, but if that’s a problem, then we should have penalized Chrom for what he did in the first stage.”
“I see. Then let me be more direct.”
Unperturbed by Istal’s nonchalance, Schultz continued,
“—Is there even a point in continuing? Is there any real competition?”
Istal smiled.
“Are you saying Lyla will crush everyone? And what if she does? Is that a problem?”
“Not if she simply outperforms them. But she might crush their spirits.”
“Then that’s even better! They’ll experience despair without risking their lives. It’s a valuable lesson for their future.”
“…They might not recover. Her power is beyond the level of a student.”
“Then they were never meant to be more than that. Besides—”
—You never know until you try.
Istal’s murmur, though quiet, reached everyone in the command center.
Her smile was full of anticipation.
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[Alright, let’s start the race! But first, an announcement: Crow Vein’s team was wiped out last night in an attack. So, the remaining teams are Alphonse Betouare’s team, Chrom Midas’s team, and Lyla Everblaze Barhardt’s team. Please keep that in mind!]
The next morning, that alarming announcement, replacing my usual wake-up call, made me blurt out,
“Wow, there’s actually a crazy person who actually did that.”
Fiore flinched.
“…Oppa, that makes me sound crazy too.”
Regret shrugged.
“Hey, you only thought about it, you didn’t do it. But Crow getting taken out is surprising. He’s the one I would have pegged to pull something like that.”
“Yeah, Akasha was stronger than most Combat students, even though she’s Support. It’s surprising she was eliminated too.”
I thought,
‘It’s not normal to take down a team with those two. Whether it was the princess or Alphonse, their overall strength might be greater than ours.’
Professor Istal continued,
[Now, look up at the forest! You’ll see three pillars of light: white, blue, and red. Those are the checkpoints and the finish line, in that order. Reach the final destination, the red pillar, after clearing the checkpoints. Ready?]
Regret leaped into the trees to confirm the locations, then took the lead.
Lavaul and I each carried a contraption resembling a cross between a backpack and a chair.
Fiore and Pino sat on them.
Normally, running separately would be faster, but considering our varying physical abilities, this was the best option.
I saw Lotto struggling with his male pride versus physical comfort, but now wasn’t the time to worry about that.
[—And…START!]
We kicked off the ground and ran.
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The sound of snapping branches faded behind them.
Chrom’s team moved with incredible speed, like a blur through the forest.
Two factors contributed to their pace.
Regret, in the lead, expertly navigated the terrain, choosing the optimal path while slashing away obstacles with her sword.
Using a combat blade like that would normally damage the edge, but the Ancient Guardian’s Longsword, with its exceptional durability and sharpness, effortlessly cleared the way.
Fiore, perched on Chrom’s makeshift chair-backpack, cast healing spells on anyone who started to lag behind.
Relieved of their burning lungs and aching muscles, they kept pace.
“Right!”
Regret yelled.
Pino fired an arrow from her short bow.
Despite her precarious position, the shot was incredibly accurate, hitting the young knight in plate armor who had just emerged from the bushes.
But it only scratched his shield.
Undeterred, Pino fired another arrow.
The knight, initially surprised by Regret’s detection and Pino’s first shot, smirked when he saw the arrow’s weak power.
‘My armor can handle this,’ he thought.
Then, a voice shouted from behind him,
“Don’t let your guard down, Nikolaus! Brace yourself!”
Nikolaus, a knight from the Betouare family of Sphero, obeyed his lord’s command.
He stopped pursuing and hid behind his shield.
Boom!
The arrow hit his shield, and a wave of heat washed over him.
It was a special arrow, tipped with a Fire Shard instead of a steel head.
Before Nikolaus could react, Chrom fired a volley of bolts from his crossbow.
Alphonse Betouare, stepping in front of Nikolaus, deflected them all.
Chrom frowned.
“Are you crazy? What if that exploded?”
“I can tell the difference between an Attribute Stone’s sheen and a normal arrowhead.”
Alphonse replied calmly.
“You can distinguish that on a flying arrow?”
Regret, who had stopped beside Chrom, answered his incredulous question,
“You can if you look.”
“…Right, top Combat students are like that.”
The two teams, twelve students in total, faced each other.
Alphonse Betouare spoke,
“Chrom Midas, was that your doing last night?”
“Would you believe me if I said no?”
“I don’t trust your words, but I trust your abilities. I doubt you’d be this unscathed after a fight with Crow Vein.”
“Wow, that’s a low blow.”
Chrom spoke,
“It wasn’t me, and it wasn’t you. That leaves the princess, who’s probably way ahead of us. How about we make a deal and catch up to her together?”
“Give me two of your teammates’ marks. I’ll let you go if I get two.”
“Wow, no shame. Are you sure you’re not from a merchant family?”
“Enough with the insults. When you and I clash, there are only two outcomes: a fierce battle, or one of us completely submitting.”
“Is that so? Then it’s decided.”
“Indeed.”
Swords were drawn, arrows nocked.
Some trembled with tension, others smirked with anticipation.
The two leaders spoke in unison,
“—You submit.”
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