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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“Halt! The Imperial University is currently under lockdown—”
I tapped my chest as I approached the temporary main gate.
“Ah! P-Please, enter!”
The guard’s face paled as he saw the gleaming Order of the Black Eagle, and he quickly stepped aside. I hurried inside, trying to assess the situation.
I had been sending magical transmissions, demanding to know what was happening, but the university had remained silent. The main gate was intact, so the professors couldn’t have been killed. Something was interfering with communications.
The urgent summons for Sergei, cut off mid-transmission, confirmed my suspicions.
‘Another attack?’
If the main gate was intact, then they must have entered through the back gate or scaled the walls. But Ludwig’s hastily erected barrier was still standing.
Had the fanatics already infiltrated the university and launched their attack from within?
‘Damn it. I don’t know.’
It was too quiet. And no one was responding to my transmissions. I had to ask the guards.
“What happened?”
“That… we don’t know yet.”
The guard’s answer was baffling.
It was an emergency serious enough to warrant an urgent summons for Sergei, yet they didn’t know what was happening?
“What do you mean? What about the transmission from the Investigation Department?”
“We’re not privy to the internal affairs of the Investigation Department. We felt unusual tremors coming from the mountains behind the university and reported it. Then the professors were urgently summoned and headed towards the mountains. They said it was to investigate the cause, but…”
Damn it.
Unusual tremors from the mountains? If I was right, then it was indeed an emergency.
Had Ludwig taken the professors to the mountains to investigate?
“Ugh?!”
“Are you alright?!”
A sudden wave of nausea washed over me, and I stumbled. My head throbbed, but I forced myself to stay conscious.
A powerful surge of mana was pressing down on me. The guard seemed unaffected, so it must have been due to Schlus’s heightened mana sensitivity.
This had never happened before. It meant that an incredibly powerful surge of mana was emanating from somewhere.
“An evacuation order…?”
As the nausea subsided, I recognized the nature of the mana surge. It was a magical transmission.
A powerful spell, using the university’s facilities, broadcasting a message across the continent.
-Untier’s release confirmed at Imperial University. All students and staff, evacuate immediately.
‘Untier…!’
The ancient monster, Untier.
One of the most powerful monsters, even the Majins hadn’t been able to defeat it, only seal it away.
I had thought its seal wouldn’t be broken for another month. The original story’s timeline had been drastically altered.
“You said the professors went to the mountains?”
“Yes…”
All the professors, except Sergei, were about to die.
Damn it.
I wanted to make sure Emilia was safe. But I didn’t have time.
“Help the students evacuate!”
“H-Hey! Where are you—”
I activated ‘Selection and Concentration’ on agility and ran towards the mountains. There was no time to waste.
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“Please! Train me!”
“What…?”
Trie frowned as she arrived at the chairman’s residence.
Ainz, who had been waiting for her at the front door, suddenly bowed and begged her for training.
“No.”
“I’ll pay you handsomely!”
“Do I look like I need money?”
“Then I’ll give you fame and glory!”
“Don’t be absurd.”
As Trie tried to walk past him, Ainz blocked her path. Annoyed, Trie felt the urge to punch him in the gut.
“Please! I’m begging you! I’ll become nothing but a glorified mage, good for nothing but burst damage!”
“You’re already strong enough…”
“No. I’ve reached my limit. Schlus can use magic as well as I can, and he’s also an incredible swordsman! I need to be that strong to stand by his side!”
“Impossible.”
“Come on—”
“I’m not saying this to be difficult. It’s truly impossible.”
“Huh?!”
Trie stepped forward and poked Ainz on the forehead. She hadn’t used much force, but Ainz stumbled backward and fell on his butt.
“Schlus already had a good physique and excellent dynamic vision. That’s why he was able to improve so quickly. You lack both.”
“So… you’re telling me to give up?”
“Yes. Give up. You’re better off focusing on improving your magic.”
That sounded familiar. Trie recalled Schlus saying something similar to her. He had told her to give up on magic because she had no talent. But he had eventually changed his mind and started teaching her.
Perhaps she was making the same mistake.
Was she crushing a future knight’s dream?
“Try to stand up. Without using your hands.”
“Without using my hands? Ugh…”
No. He was hopeless. He lacked the basic muscle strength to even pull himself up.
Even if she trained him, it would take years for him to reach Schlus’s level.
She could teach someone who was already physically fit, but she couldn’t teach someone how to build muscle.
“I can’t train you. Either build some muscle and come back, or give up.”
“Ugh…!”
Ainz, crushed by the reality of his limitations, placed his hands on the ground.
He had hoped that Trie, who had trained Schlus into a dual-wielding warrior capable of taking on two thousand soldiers, might be able to help him.
He had been wrong.
“Excuse me…”
“Hmm?”
“Are you two looking for Mr. Hainkel?”
Emilia appeared at the garden gate.
She was about to ask what they were doing at the front door when—
Rumble…
The ground trembled. All three turned their attention to the mountains behind the university.
The setting sun cast long shadows, giving the low mountain range an ominous aura.
“An evacuation order?!”
“Untier…? What is that?”
A powerful magical transmission reached them. It wasn’t encrypted. Anyone could read it.
Their faces paled.
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“This is a disaster…”
The ground trembled, and the wind whipped around Ludwig, his coat billowing behind him. Sweat dripped down his forehead.
Of all times, it had to happen when Professor Sergei was away. Or rather, it had happened because Sergei was away.
He heard the distant crash of falling trees and closed his eyes.
“I don’t expect any of you to run.”
“…”
The professors behind him stepped forward, echoing his sentiment. His words, however, hadn’t been directed at them.
They had been directed at Professor Relic, who had been trying to sneak away.
Seemingly regaining his composure, Relic hurried back to join the others.
“You might be scared, knowing that even the Majins couldn’t defeat this monster.”
“…”
Professor Relic flinched.
Ludwig glanced at him and clicked his tongue, continuing his speech.
“But the Majins of that time were different from the Majins of today. Back then, there were over ten thousand Majins, each with power comparable to a human today. They were nothing like the superhuman Majins of today. And magic has advanced significantly in the past thousand years. You are professors of the continent’s most prestigious academy. There’s no need to be afraid.”
It was a lie.
Being a professor didn’t make them the strongest. But his words seemed to bolster their confidence.
They had come here thinking they were simply buying time for the students to evacuate.
Now, they were starting to believe they could actually defeat the ancient monster.
“Rooooar!!!”
A roar echoed from the mountains, making them freeze. It was louder than they had imagined.
The tremors caused by its movements alone had been unsettling…
“Is the sealing spell ready?”
“Over 50% complete!”
They didn’t have much time. They hadn’t prepared a sealing spell in advance. The Majin who had assured them that the seal would hold for ten thousand years… where was she now?
Majins were unreliable, Ludwig thought, recalling Alexia.
“When Untier appears, I will restrain it with a barrier. Use that time to complete the sealing spell—”
KABOOM!
A shockwave hit them, forcing them to use gravity magic to stay on their feet. Dust and debris filled the air, obscuring their vision.
Ludwig waved his hand, creating a gust of wind that cleared the air.
“Ah…”
Their faces paled as they looked up.
A giant, black hand was gripping the mountain peak. They slowly raised their heads further, and saw the massive jaw connected to the hand. It was a surreal sight.
No one had imagined a monster of this size.
Untier crushed the mountain peak in its claws and continued its descent. The peak crumbled, leaving a jagged scar on the mountainside. It finally emerged from the mountains, its full form revealed.
Two massive legs with sharp claws. A long tail trailing behind its massive body. It looked like a lizard without hind legs. Except its grotesque face, covered in dozens of eyes, was far more horrifying than any lizard.
“Is the sealing spell ready?!”
“65% complete!”
“Ugh.”
He couldn’t wait any longer.
Ludwig extended his arms, creating a massive barrier. He poured all his mana into it.
Rumble…!
“Rooooar!”
Untier’s head slammed against the barrier, and it stopped. It was a powerful barrier, comparable to Alexia’s. It should hold for at least a minute…
Crack…!
“What?!”
His confidence shattered along with the barrier. Untier’s claws tore through the barrier as if it were made of paper. It had been destroyed by brute force, not magical interference.
“Ha…”
Ludwig collapsed, drained of mana. Or perhaps it was despair. Untier continued its advance towards the university, now less than a kilometer away. Its massive size made it seem much closer. Ten more steps, and its massive claws would crush them all.
“Sealing spell! 71%!”
“Abandon the sealing spell! Commence attack!”
The head professor gave the order. The sealing spell was no longer an option. They had to focus all their power on offensive magic. Flashes of light erupted from all directions, blinding Ludwig. Fire spells, lightning spells, each professor unleashing their most powerful magic. The air crackled with energy.
“Cough! Cough… Ugh…”
Ludwig coughed, waving his hand. But his incomplete wind spell couldn’t clear the smoke.
“Is it dead?”
The tremors had stopped. Had they defeated it? With that much firepower, it should have been at least incapacitated. If it was still standing, even the Empire’s artillery wouldn’t be enough.
A gust of wind cleared the smoke, revealing the horrifying truth.
“Oh, shit…”
Five hundred meters away, the massive, black figure was still standing, its body stretched out, its dozens of eyes snapping open, fixing their gaze on the professors. It was unharmed. Not a scratch.
And now, with the distance closed, its mana was starting to affect them. Some of them were already collapsing.
The combined firepower of the professors had been one of the strongest magical attacks in history. With one exception.
And that exception had been a single person.
The lightning spell in the Whist Forest.
Ludwig’s jaw dropped as he recalled the spell’s caster.
*Whirr…!*
The sound of internal circuits activating was clearly audible even from this distance. Schlus Hainkel’s body began to glow, emitting white smoke. His internal circuits were overloading. But Ludwig couldn’t bring himself to stop him.
“What the…”
A blinding pillar of light erupted from Schlus Hainkel’s outstretched hand, reaching towards the sky.
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