Sword Saint's Reincarnation-Chapter 43Book 2 : Assignment (4)

Rylan stepped inside the arena proper and looked around. At the far end, opposite to his position, were large steel cages. He looked at the monsters inside them.

I guess this much is enough.

The monsters inside the cages were bound by restraints made of mana, unable to move even as they snarled and growled. To begin with, they weren’t strong enough to break out of something like a steel cage. There were hobgoblins, kobold warriors, and a few other low-level monsters. The strongest enemy seemed to be a gnoll, but one of its arms was missing. Rylan nodded to himself.

Those are right in the sweet spot between ‘too dangerous to use for an assignment’ and ‘too weak to teach the students about real battles.’

It was only natural that the Academy would want to keep its students safe, but the whole purpose of Battle Fundamentals was to get them used to fighting against real enemies. All students were at least at the Second Circle, which should allow them to easily defeat enemies like those. However, to those who hadn’t fought even once, they were the source of just the right amount of danger.

Rylan looked at Aelfric. The boy was walking toward the middle of the stone square in the middle of the arena, looking a bit nervous. But that was all. Rylan could see the determination in his brother’s gaze.

It’s the same as when I killed those bandits on the way to Caer Rhelon.

Back then, he had managed to glimpse Aelfric’s potential in the depths of his eyes. Aelfric was a genius when it came to mana manipulation, but this singular trait was even more important than talent in a world like this.

Rylan followed Alice to the edge of the stone square, staying just outside of it.

“I’ve never failed to act in time,” Alice suddenly said next to him, making him glance at her. “These monsters aren’t strong enough for that. But since you’re here, no reason not to ask for your help.”

Rylan watched her serious expression. The way the sun shone upon her crimson hair and brown skin made her appear even more beautiful than usual. But that wasn’t the source of his appreciation. He was simply surprised.

“I think it’s a good decision, but it’s not one I expected,” he replied after a second. “You’re a professor and I’m just a student, after all.”

Alice scoffed and looked at him with a smile, violet eyes curved in crescent moons.

“You’re faster than me, and I don’t want any of my students to get hurt unnecessarily. Why wouldn’t I do this?”

Rylan smiled back at her.

“Then I guess I should do a good job.”

She chuckled and looked at Aelfric, who was standing in the middle of the arena while looking at them awkwardly.

“That is not to say that there will be no injuries. But I’m sure you understand what I mean without me saying it.”

Rylan nodded.

“Of course.”

She smiled again and took two steps forward, looking at Aelfric, who flinched.

“Aelfric Flameheart!” she shouted, her voice amplified by some type of magic. “Your opponent will be a hobgoblin!”

Alice pointed at the very first steel cage. The red-skinned hobgoblin within was staring at her while tilting its head, face frozen in a snarl. It then looked at Aelfric. Slowly, as Alice gave Aelfric the final instructions, which consisted of nothing but a reminder of what they had already discussed in the classroom, the hobgoblin’s expression changed. It bared its fangs in a twisted smile, looking like a murderer who had found their next victim. Rylan narrowed his eyes at the creature.

Once Alice finished and Aelfric nodded at her, she waved at the white-robed students near the cages. The duo next to the hobgoblin’s cage waved their staves, making the magical restraints around it disappear, and unlocked the door to the cage. A moment later, the hobgoblin shot forward and sprang out of it with a growl.

It looked at the nearest white-robed students, but instead of backing down, they merely pointed their staves at it. The creature flinched before looking at the stands, where the other students were. It blinked and finally looked at Rylan and Alice. This time, it veritably shivered before taking a few steps back, almost back into the cage.

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“Aelfric, begin!” Alice shouted without looking away from the monster.

Rylan glanced at his brother. The boy flinched before pointing his wand at the enemy and beginning his chant. The hobgoblin immediately snapped toward him as its pupils dilated. The same expression as before appeared on its face, but mixed with a savage edge. Rylan watched this calmly.

It thinks Aelfric is the easier prey.

Hobgoblins could feel a variety of emotions and even possessed a rudimentary type of intelligence, more than even other, stronger creatures, but that was all. At their core, they were monsters. In this situation, surrounded by enemies more powerful than itself, the hobgoblin only had the choice to try and escape. In this situation, it was faced with a direct threat in the shape of an incoming spell. It was only natural for its instincts to scream at it to fight back. Rylan placed his hand on Silver Twilight’s hilt as the hobgoblin dashed toward Aelfric.

Aelfric took a step back but didn’t stop chanting. Since he’d started before the enemy had even decided to fight, he finished casting the spell before the hobgoblin even took three steps.

“Firebolt!” Aelfric said loudly.

Mana ignited into a sphere of flames and shot at the hobgoblin’s chest. Rylan nodded to himself. If Aelfric had aimed for the head, it would have been easier for the hobgoblin to dodge to the side. Due to its nature, Firebolt was a spell that didn’t need to deal critical damage to cripple a creature’s ability to fight. The pain alone would be enough.

The monster hurriedly jumped to the side to narrowly avoid the spell, but Aelfric only waved his wand. The Firebolt curved in mid-air. The hobgoblin turned its head to look, but it was too late. The flaming sphere landed straight on the back of its right thigh, making it stumble with a screech. Aelfric started chanting again after throwing an anxious look at the monster’s injured leg. Once the hobgoblin raised its head again, the emotions in its bloodshot eyes had changed. Rylan furrowed his brow.

This is where it really begins.

The hobgoblin’s pain from the excruciating burn had mixed with its bestial instincts to create a mindset that focused on ‘killing the enemy in front of it to survive’ alone. Finally, it would be a real battle. Rylan resisted the urge to frown.

The red-skinned monster let out a loud, guttural scream. Its muscles swelled by just a bit as it lowered its center of gravity, putting its weight on the injured leg as if it were unable to feel any more pain. The next second, it started running toward Aelfric, claws glinting under the sunlight.

“Ray of Frost!” Aelfric shouted as he stepped back.

The blue beam pierced through the air, but this time, the hobgoblin managed to avoid the attack completely by lunging to the side like a beast. It screamed again and kept running. Aelfric fired two more Rays, but they were both avoided. Rylan slowly shook his head.

Your greatest strength is your mana manipulation, but you keep using the same spell that clearly isn’t working.

Ray of Frost was a spell that was considerably more difficult to manipulate than Firebolt or other First Circle spells such as Magic Missile. The best plan would be to use spells that could use Aelfric’s manipulation to its fullest, just like how the Firebolt had caught the hobgoblin off guard. However, Aelfric seemed to be focused solely on Ray of Frost’s ability to reduce the movement of his enemy. This became obvious based on the fact that he kept trying to hit the monster’s legs. He was shaken up.

It took only a few seconds for the hobgoblin to reach Aelfric. Rylan readied himself to shoot forward, keeping his eyes wide open and focused on the battle. The monster raised its right hand with a snarl. It descended. As it was about to hit Aelfric’s chest and tear through his flesh, a thin layer of mana appeared over it. The sharp claws dragged on the surface of the Magic Shield, but the hobgoblin only raised its left hand. Aelfric started running to create some distance, but the monster followed him closely, repeatedly clawing at the Shield with wild ferocity. Rylan narrowed his eyes.

Now, what will you do?

This would only end once Aelfric killed his enemy. To do so, the current situation couldn’t be maintained. He felt as if time had slowed down as he saw Aelfric unblinkingly watch the incoming attack. Over and over, the claw swipes landed on the Shield, but Aelfric didn’t stop running around. As the battle started to drag on, it happened. The hobgoblin’s right arm tensed up and clawed at the Shield, but the very moment the swipe was reaching the end of its movement, the Shield disappeared. Aelfric flicked his wrist.

“Magic Missile.”

The arrow of mana took shape right in the gap between Aelfric and the hobgoblin, aimed straight at the monster’s neck. The creature reacted almost immediately. It twisted its body while lunging forward at the same time. The Missile pierced through the air and tore through the monster’s left side, rupturing its stomach and part of its intestines, but it only kept going. The claws landed on Aelfric’s chest and greedily dug into his flesh as they tore downward, scraping against his ribs. Aelfric screamed and took a step back, only to grit his teeth and point the wand at the hobgoblin again.

“Magic Missile!” he growled out.

Another arrow of mana coalesced in front of him. The hobgoblin, which was busy smiling to itself at the sight of blood, took too long to look down. The Missile ascended and pierced straight through the creature’s throat, puncturing the windpipe and severing the nearby blood vessels. It went through the spinal cord and came out on the other side of the hobgoblin’s neck, but Aelfric didn’t stop moving. He hurriedly kicked the monster on the side as it started falling, making it crash to the ground. Without stopping, he moved away from it while pointing his wand at it.

Rylan relaxed, smiling to himself. The hobgoblin’s death throes were enough evidence that the battle was over. Aelfric seemed to realize this as he straightened his body and ran his free hand over the cuts on his torso with a pained expression. The boy blinked and looked at Rylan.

Aelfric smiled.

Rylan couldn’t resist the urge to grin at him and nod. His younger brother had surpassed his expectations.

They only needed to keep trying, just like this.

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