The Magic Academy's Physicist-Chapter 24: The Entrance Ceremony (2)

Baaaam─!!

When the pillar holding up the amphitheater was smashed, the ceiling started to collapse on one side.

“Huh...?”

By the time Lotte let out a stunned cry, it was already too late.

Vermel was the first to react. He tossed away the oath, grabbed Lotte’s wrist and climbed down the stage.

“Follow me!”

“What is it? What is happening!”

“There’s no time to explain. We have to move now!”

Lotte didn’t immediately register what had occurred.

She barely distinguished a single sentence through the chaos littering her mind. Some nameless teacher screamed.

“Beast! The beasts are here─!!”

**

“This is a battle situation. Report our current status.”

The many teachers who had been standing guard all pulled out their staves from subspace. Klais and Meriga were amongst them.

“The northern security had no problems, nor were there any immediate signs that the Iron Drakes were flooding the mountain.”

“Then where did they come from?”

“They seem to have materialized from underground.”

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“Was it teleportation magic?”

“No. They would have been detected by the Air Mages if that was the case. I believe it could be a remote construction spell.”

“Damn it....... They’re being rather clever for tin cans.”

With the exception of Klais and Meriga, there weren’t any first-class mages left in the theater at the moment, since most of them were camping at the mountain’s entrance.

The beasts were targeting that as a weak point. By releasing the mid-level beasts in the back mountain, their strategy was to lure them into concentrating the security forces at the base of the mountain, and then construct a transmutation circle in an unexpected place in order to attack the ceremony site.

“We’ve been completely blindsided.”

It was about a twenty-minute running distance between the mountain’s entrance and the amphitheater. It was too late now for backup.

Still, the teachers on standby here had been prepared for this so they soon composed themselves and assessed the situation.

Most of the Academy’s faculty were veteran soldiers who had experienced serving on the frontlines. Without even referring to each other’s titles, they delivered the report that they received from one person to another.

“Around nine fifty-eight local time, 300 mid-levels and 10 high-levels have appeared using the back mountain as a medium. We expect that they will continue spawning unless the source is destroyed.”

“Earth Mages with golems will be in charge of protecting the students, and Water and Fire Mages will form squads and take down the high-levels first. Any objections?”

“None.”

“None.”

“What about Air Mages?”

“Send an Utterance to the group at the mountain to send some of their forces here. Only some. Tell them not to stop monitoring the mountain just because the situation at school is like this!”

Magic Beasts were more cunning than humans assumed. Many of the Calamities and Cataclysms especially possessed intelligence so their next move was hard to predict.

If they summoned all of their forces to the Academy in that kind of unknown situation, things could go as the beasts intended.

“Teacher!”

“Oh...! The top student from elf country, was it? Your name was....”

“It’s Vermel. Vermel Horde.”

“Yes, Vermel. We’re currently short on manpower. It shames me to ask this of you on your first day as a freshman, but would you be able to help us?”

“That’s not a problem. I’ll go round up the students who can handle mid-level beasts and deal with them.”

“Fantastic! You’re quite reliable. If things end well, you’ll be given an award.”

To the surprise of some of the teachers, the student named Vermel maintained calm even in this kind of situation.

It would have been good if everyone had been the same way, but unfortunately, many of them were already in a panic.

Most freshmen entered Tilette without having encountered even a low-level beast since they grew up sheltered under the protection of well-off parents.

If these seeds had to face those monsters just as they were sprouting, then they could be permanently paralyzed by PTSD.

Post-traumatic stress disorder wasn’t a condition that was easily cured. If even a few of the students were traumatized by this event, then that would drastically reduce the forces that could be sent to the northern front.

For the good of the country.... No, for the well-being of the whole continent, they needed to prevent that from happening.

Lotte, who had been following Vermel’s lead since earlier, spoke up once she grasped the gist of the situation.

“I can handle mid-level beasts. Let me help the others nearby.”

“Wait, there’s something else I need you to do.”

“What is it?”

“Let’s get to the central square for now. We have to find the gifted class students first and delegate roles. You’ll be the first.”

“But how? We don’t even know each other yet...!”

“There’ll be those who stand out even under these circumstances. They’re our classmates.”

When she looked around, there was a girl who defeated two Iron Drakes on her own as Vermel said.

She was plunging a spear made of ice into the beast’s neck.

─ Kwooohh!

Crunch!

“Fucking die already.”

It was a female student with a menacing face.

She had ultramarine hair with one eye wrapped in bandages, and the other uncovered one was a shade of blue. The viciousness in her eye gave off an unapproachable vibe.

Vermel called out the student’s name.

“Iluka!”

“Hm?”

“Sorry to do this when we’ve only just met but please help us!”

“Why do you know my name?”

“I heard the rumors within the state, how the Second Prince was rejected after trying to flirt with the daughter of Viscount Eliyev?”

“Ha, fuck. So even some guy from a foreign country knows about that? What a fucked up life, damn it.”

Lady Eliyev, Iluka, glared at her surroundings with a sharp eye. The panicked students were all running to the south where the central square was. The northern area of the Academy was in chaos.

“That bastard Klion already ran off, it seems.... I was planning to punch a hole through his stomach if I saw him.”

Iluka made a face while spinning the Glacial Spear with great dexterity.

“Fine, I can help. What do you need me to do?”

“First, we need to make a way for the students to evacuate. Please look for anyone who’s been marooned.”

“That can be done in no time.”

After assigning Iluka a task, Vermel took Lotte and ran to the shelter where Professor Heerlein was. It wasn’t hard to spot Heerlein with the crowd of large, high-grade golems surrounding her.

Vermel shouted.

“Miss, we can help!”

Heerlein responded while breaking the neck of a Drake trying to ambush the students from diagonally.

“Oh my, aren’t you Mr. Top Student? It’s safe here so come join us.”

“I actually need to be getting back. But isn’t there a short kid here somewhere?”

“Uh.... There did seem to be someone who was exceptionally stunted in her growth.”

Tap tap tap!

“Who are you calling a short kiiiiiid─!!!”

As soon as Vermel asked, one student jumped out holding an antitank weapon.

“Everyone cover your ears and duck!!”

They didn’t notice when, but a full-plated mutant Drake was standing behind Vermel and Lotte. When the little girl activated her magic wand with a short cry, a flash burst out in front of them.

With a Pang, the Drake’s head blew off in an instant.

“Th-that kid just did that...?”

The students who were being protected by the golem formed by Heerlein each commented as their legs trembled.

“I’ve seen that before. It’s a weapon used by beastkin!”

“But that kid doesn’t have any ears or tail....”

Vermel knew this girl’s name just like he did Iluka’s.

“You must be Freyr.”

“Oi, long-ears! You know about me! Has this one’s reputation already spread throughout the capital?!”

Freyr triumphantly approached the headless body of the Drake. The antitank weapon that was tossed to the side as she walked reverted back into an element and dissipated into the air.

Freyr placed a hand on the defeated Drake’s body and cutely cried out, “Hiya!” Then the beast was dismantled in an instant.

The body of the beast that had returned to metal chunks reassembled and transformed into another antitank weapon.

“She used transmutation on the spot...!”

“What.... are you?”

“Is everyone in the gifted class this skilled......?”

“Remember this one, all of you! The bloodline of dwarves hasn’t died yet!”

Having seen Freyr in action, Professor Heerlein gave a pleased smile. As she did, Vermel spoke to her.

“We only came here to check the situation. You won’t be able to move since you’ll be defending here, right? We’ll take care of that part somehow so you only need to focus on protecting everyone.”

“You know how to make good calls, Top Student. I expect that you’ll make a great field commander after you graduate.”

“You’re too kind.”

“Anyway, be careful so that you don’t get hurt. Injuries occur the moment you lower your guard.”

Heerlein was a professor who cared deeply for the students but before that, she was one of the best combat mages of the continent. It wasn’t careless judgment on her part to ask for help, recognizing Vermel’s competence in an emergency situation.

It was now time to inform the red-haired, red-eyed girl what she had to do.

“Lotte, right?”

“Yes. I’ll do whatever I can to help.”

“Do you happen to know where the Golden-Eyed girl lives, the one who got accepted this year?”

“The second place, you mean? No, I’m not sure.......”

“If you mean Aether, she’s staying at my place. There’s a good chance that she left by now and is heading this way as we speak. You should be able to find her quickly if you leave through the east gates and head towards Fifth Street.”

“Ah, thank you. Did you hear that? Please bring her here.”

“A-alright!”

Lotte headed towards the east gate, her feet pounding the ground.

The number of beasts increased as time passed, accumulating to the point that they couldn’t see an end to them no matter how many they killed. They weren’t able to stop all the beasts from leaving for the eastern residential area with the remaining manpower within the Academy.

Watching Lotte run to the east, Vermel muttered quietly.

“... This will change the course if it continues this way.”