Five days passed.

We were now on the sixth day of the exam, and things were going too smoothly.

There was no trouble.

Everything was simply going… well.

Which was pretty weird, considering that Lucas is basically a magnet for trouble. And yet, besides the encounter I had with Kagetaro, nothing else really happened.

I just repeated the same process.

Gathering resources, eating, training my swordsmanship, and then getting some sleep.

I even did a few spars against Lucas.

The first few spars, I always won them, but with every single one of them, Lucas got visually more adept at swordsmanship.

As expected of the Hero, huh?

“…Aestrea! Let’s spar again!”

I looked up, sipping on my coconut water.

It was Lucas, calling out to me with that excited voice of his.

Gosh…

Doesn’t he ever get tired of this?

I sighed softly.

But, well, I didn’t have anything better to do.

“Sure.”

I stood up, putting my sword back into its sheath and walked toward the beach, where Lucas stood, waving his hand at me with his bashful smile.

And surprisingly…

This time we had quite the public.

“Ehhh… you’re sparring with him again?”

Maya’s voice rang out from the side.

“Of course! I’m learning a lot from him!”

Lucas replied excitedly.

“Do your best! I’ll always be here to heal any of you!” Iris cheered from the sidelines, giving us a thumbs-up.

And Ella…

She didn’t exactly say anything.

And instead just kept her eyes on the ocean.

I glanced at her for a moment, but then refocused on Lucas.

“…Let’s start then!” Lucas declared, bouncing on his heels.

“On the count of three!”

I nodded in agreement.

But before he could even speak, Maya jumped in, already counting.

“One!”

I felt the wind pick up, the salty air brushing across my skin.

“Two!”

A faint tension filled the air, the world seeming to slow just a little.

“Three!”

Fwoop!

With a quick lunge, Lucas swung his sword at me, aiming for my midsection.

The blade whistled through the air as it cut toward me, fast and sharp.

Clang!

I raised my sword just in time, blocking the strike with a sharp clash.

The force of the blow sent a jolt through my arms, but I quickly stepped back, keeping my balance.

“Phew…”

Lucas didn’t waste a second.

He followed up with a quick downward slash, trying to catch me off guard.

I sidestepped, the blade missing me by inches, and before he could recover, I stepped in, swinging my sword at his side.

Swish!

He managed to twist his body just enough to deflect my strike with the flat of his sword, the sound of metal scraping against metal ringing in the air.

He then pushed forward with a quick thrust, aiming at my chest.

I blocked again, our swords meeting with a sharp sound that sent a vibration up my arm.

I countered with a low sweep toward his legs, hoping to trip him up.

Thud!

Lucas jumped back just in time, avoiding the strike, but he didn’t stop moving.

He pivoted, sending another wild swing at me, his sword coming from above.

I raised my own blade to parry, but his strike was stronger than I expected.

The impact forced me to take a step back, and my feet shifted in the sand.

And just after, he charged again, this time with a series of rapid strikes aimed at my head.

His sword moved like a blur, each attack faster than the last.

Clang, clang, clang!

I blocked each strike, but barely.

My arms were starting to ache, and my breath was getting heavier.

I needed to find an opening—quickly.

I leaned back, narrowly avoiding a slash to my face, then pivoted on my heel, stepping to the side.

I swung my sword down in a quick arc, aiming for his shoulder.

Whoosh!

Lucas barely managed to bring his sword up to block the strike, the sound of metal ringing out as our swords met.

The force of my blow pushed him back a few steps, but he recovered quickly.

“Haha… this is fun!”

He said, grinning while breathing heavy.

“But I’m not done yet!”

I raised an eyebrow at his words.

Lucas didn’t wait for me to react this time as he rushed in, charging at me full force.

His sword came down, aiming for my head, but I ducked just in time.

Fwip!

I could hear the sound of the sword cutting through the air above me, followed by a loud thud as it hit the sand where my head had been just a moment before.

I didn’t waste any time.

With a quick step forward, I slashed horizontally, aiming for his ribs.

Swish!

Lucas barely twisted away, his body twisting in mid-air, but the tip of my sword caught his side, grazing him lightly.

“Agh!”

He groaned in pain, but quickly composed himself.

Plop…

He took another step back, shifting into a defensive stance, his sword held high, waiting for me to make the next move.

I stepped forward cautiously, testing him, trying to find the right opening.

But his eyes never left me.

“…Come on, Aestrea! Don’t hold back!” Lucas shouted, urging me on.

This guy…

I rolled my eyes.

But as I did so, I saw Lucas flinching slightly.

With that, I lunged forward, faster than before.

Whoosh!

Lucas barely managed to raise his sword to block the incoming strike, but this time, I wasn’t aiming for his sword.

I aimed for his head.

Clang!

Our swords collided, and I twisted my blade to lock his in place. With a quick twist of my wrist, I forced his sword downward, leaving his side open.

I swung my sword toward his torso, aiming for a clean hit.

Thud!

But just before the sword made contact, Lucas dropped to the ground, rolling to the side and narrowly avoiding my strike.

“Close…”

I muttered, taking a step back.

Lucas stood up, a look of frustration crossing his face.

“I’m not done yet!”

He rushed at me again, this time with an overhead strike.

Whoosh!

I blocked, the force of the blow rattling my bones, but I didn’t back down.

I met his next strike with equal force, our swords locking in a fierce struggle.

“…HORAAAAHHH!”

Lucas shouted, using more strength to push me back.

And to his words, I didn’t exactly say anything, just adjusting my grip, eyes scanning for his next move.

Suddenly, he broke the stalemate with a quick shift, stepping to the side and aiming a quick slash at my legs.

Swish!

I barely managed to jump back, but the tip of his sword grazed my ankle, leaving a small cut.

Damn it…

I got careless.

And then, Lucas went for another overhead swing, but this time, I was ready.

I twisted to the side, avoiding the strike and countering with a sharp slash aimed at his back.

Swish!

It landed, but Lucas spun around just in time to block with the side of his sword. He was breathing heavily now, sweat pouring down his face.

‘An opportunity…!’

Fwoop!

I lunged forward aiming directly for his side, catching him completely off guard.

He barely reacted in time.

With a swift adjustment, he shifted his stance and swung his sword in a wide arc, aiming to slice me in half.

Fwip!

I raised my sword, the sound of the blade meeting his ringing in the air.

It felt like the entire beach held its breath.

But as soon as the swords clashed, I noticed him lose his footing on the soft sand.

His stance was unstable, and in that moment, I twisted my blade, pushing his sword aside.

THUD!

The hilt of my sword slammed straight into Lucas’s chest.

“KUGH—!”

He gasped, a grunt of pain slipping past his lips as his body stumbled backward, the breath knocked from his lungs.

Thud!

He fell hard into the sand, his sword falling from his grip as he lay there, staring up at the sky.

“…Aestrea is the winner!” Maya announced cheerfully.

Next to her was Iris, clapping with a small smile on her lips, as for Ella, she had her eyes on the ocean still.

“Ahhhhh! I lost again! Shit…!” Lucas, splattered on the sand, grumbled in pure frustration.

Pfft…

I extended my hand to him, which he took, and then, I pulled him back up to his feet.

“Damn it… I’ll win the next time!” he clenched his fist tightly.

He was pretty determined.

“Sur—!”

—BOOOOOOOM!

A massive explosion rocked the outskirts of the forest, the sound of it echoing in the air like thunder.

Thick, black smoke billowed up into the sky, swirling like a storm was brewing.

And immediately…

A loud voice rang out.

{ATTENTION STUDENTS! A HUGE AMOUNT OF DEMON BEASTS HAVE BEEN DETECTED! YOUR SEALED MANA IS NOW UNSEALED, AND THE EXAM WILL CHANGE. THE STUDENTS WHO CONTRIBUTE MORE WILL RECEIVE A BETTER GRADE! THIS WILL BE A TEAM ASSESSMENT—THE GROUP THAT SLAYS THE MOST DEMON BEASTS WILL GET PERFECT MARKS, WHILE THE OTHERS WILL BE JUDGED BASED ON PERFORMANCE!}

Zeva’s voice boomed from the distance.

The moment I heard those words, my body didn’t wait.

It just reacted.

I shot forward without a second thought.

Fwoosh!

Mana surged from deep within me, rushing out like a flood.

I could feel the heavy weight that had been pressing on me these past days lift from my body, leaving me much lighter than before.

“Fuuuu…!”

Fwoop!

The speed increased. My feet barely touched the ground as I dashed, the wind cutting through my hair.

In just a few minutes, I was there.

The place where the explosion had come from.

I skidded to a halt, scanning the area.

The trees were completely obliterated, their trunks splintered and charred.

The grass was gone, replaced by dark, charred soil.

A strange silence hung in the air, broken only by the distant groans and growls.

I took a deep breath before finding some unusual… demon beasts.

They looked something similar to… zombies?

In front of me… there were…

Humanoid creatures with rotten, decayed flesh hanging from their bones.

Their eyes were sunken, their mouths twisted into grotesque snarls.

They made these low, guttural sounds, like something trying to grunt through a clogged throat.

The air around them smelled rank, like death.

『 Judgement Eye (✦ S+ Level Skill ✦)』

I narrowed my eyes.

“B-rank?”

That surprised me.

These things looked weak—really weak.

But their power… it was high.

How could something so ragged and disgusting hold such a dangerous level of strength?

『 Ice Generation (✦ 1st-Level Spell ✦)』

I raised my hand, the familiar icy cold creeping up my arm.

A sharp shard of ice appeared in my palm, sparkling in the light.

Fwoop!

I hurled it at the nearest zombie.

The shard flew through the air and hit its chest.

Splurt!

Green, rotting blood sprayed everywhere, the stench hitting me like a slap to the face.

But to my shock…

“Graaahhh…”

The thing didn’t even flinch.

It just kept moving, staggering forward like nothing had happened.

“Is it like the movies?”

Without hesitation, I threw another ice shard—this time, aiming for its head.

Splat!

The zombie’s head cracked open, and its body crumpled into a pile of black wisps, dissolving into nothingness.

I stared, stunned.

“The fuck…?”

It should have dropped dead. It should have fallen to the ground like any other demon beast I’ve fought.

But no… it just disappeared.

Into thin air, like it was never even there.

That… is indeed weird.

I took another look around.

And strangely, the other zombie-looking creatures had completely disappeared.

“Where did they go?”

I muttered under my breath, taking a cautious step forward.

I reached out, extending my senses, trying to feel any sign of movement.

“Fuck..!”

A chill ran up my spine.

Fwoop!

I instantly jumped back, barely avoiding the shadow that crashed down where I’d just been standing.

BAM!

The ground shook violently as a massive figure rose from the earth.

My eyes widened.

A giant zombie.

At least ten meters tall.

“An S-level demon beast?”

Once again, I was surprised.

S-level demon beasts were rare.

Really rare.

And they were dangerous.

So dangerous, they could destroy entire cities.

One of them could easily lay waste to an entire nation, slowly and painfully.

Even if they didn’t pack the power for instant destruction, given time, they could bring everything to ruin.

But well…

If it was a few months ago…

I would’ve been terrified.

An S-level beast would have been a serious problem.

But now…

After I beat down an Archdemon in a one-to-one…

This demon beast could only be considered some kind of warm up.

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