Turning around, I saw Chenbi staring at me with a dazed expression.
"Are you okay?"
"A, yeah…."
He nodded in response to my question, but his condition didn't look good at all.
His ankles were swollen, and his body was drenched in sweat. But what was most serious was the blood flowing from his nose.
The cause was probably…
I looked at the structure that had risen in front of Chenbi.
'It seems he used a spell beyond his level.'
A spike that had risen from the ground.
It looked like a lance used by knights on horseback, but with only the tip moved.
While this might sound ridiculous, it was by no means a funny spell.
The material of earth magic tends to be determined by the location, but Chenbi's spell, when examined closely, had a different material from the rocks that formed the Chamber of Trials.
'So, it's not just about changing the form of the medium, but also transforming its quality…'
A spell that changes both form and quality is quite advanced.
It was beyond Chenbi's current capabilities.
"A, that… It was a spell given to me by my teacher, I guess. It's called 'Spear of Earth.' The name sounds grand, doesn't it? ……Haha."
Did he read my expression?
Chenbi added an explanation, almost as if making an excuse.
But, 'Spear of Earth.'
"It's not that grand a name."
"Really?"
"It's not completely unimpressive, though."
"……"
Chenbi tightly closed his mouth.
I added,
"Such a spell, the name is something the caster must prove. Whether it's grand or not depends on you."
"Ah… Yeah!"
Chenbi, who had been listless a moment ago, now answered with renewed vigor.
I turned away from him and looked up.
'Anyway…'
The ceiling in my field of vision was ordinary.
An ordinary artificial cave. There were no common stalactites or traces of the layered rock formations characteristic of natural caves.
However, what I sensed with my perception was quite strange.
Sssss…
Distorted and writhing flows of mana.
It wasn't a function of the Chamber of Trials.
But why?
'It feels familiar, but… it's not Deculan's style.'
The moment I faced this magic that had taken over the entire Chamber of Trials, a strange sense of alienation kept rising from my subconscious.
Like finding a musty old diary in a forgotten attic.
Just as I thought this,
Chenbi's voice reached my ear.
"Ah, Aster. Right. Thank you. I should have said this first…"
He expressed his gratitude anew.
I replied calmly,
"If you're grateful, pay me back later. Not now, but when you become a named mage, pay me back then."
"Ah, yeah…!"
The words to pay back later were not empty.
I wanted to ask for the 'Spear of Earth' grimoire, but if I took the Spear of Earth from Chenbi now, what would be left?
It was a tempting grimoire, but I wasn't Deculan.
I wasn't a greedy goblin who coveted everything.
Anyway,
'What to do with this guy.'
I had something else to do, so I couldn't drag Chenbi around.
'But, I can't just leave him like this. Let's see…'
I spread my perception widely, checked the surroundings, and soon took out a piece of parchment from a subspace to make a map.
Crackle.
As I touched it, the parchment began to char, forming a map.
I marked our current position with an 'X' and handed it to Chenbi.
"What is this…?"
"A map of the Chamber of Trials. See the 'X' mark? That's where the students are gathered. We're over here."
I had pinpointed the area where the most students were gathered when I spread my perception.
But, was my attitude strange?
Chenbi asked,
"Aster, you… aren't going?"
I nodded.
"I have something to do. By the way, and…"
Crack!
I tore off the bracelet Chenbi was wearing.
"Eh, eh? Why the bracelet…."
He seemed surprised and flustered.
Before replying, I broke the bracelet and explained,
"The golem's recognition range isn't that wide. It's easy to evade."
"Then, could it be…."
I nodded.
"This is the charm."
The reason the golem could chase the students, despite its limited recognition range, was the bracelet.
Both the golem and the bracelet were devices linked to the Chamber of Trials' control system.
I finished the additional measures and turned around.
"Can you go alone? If you can't, find a suitable place to hide."
"Okay, I understand."
His sprained ankle and the overuse of magic had likely damaged his mana circuits.
But Chenbi didn't ask for help, and I didn't offer it either.
The priority now was to identify the source of this alien feeling.
I composed my mind, which was rarely confused.
I don't know who they are or what they've prepared. But one thing is certain: the golems are not the end.
However, no matter what they've prepared…
'I'll find out when I beat them.'
My gaze turned to the deeper part of the Chamber of Trials, the direction of the final gate.
Though blocked by walls, I knew without seeing.
The control room of the Chamber of Trials.
They are there.
When I confront them and grab their throats, I'll understand this mysterious discomfort.
* * *
When Aster began his real action.
In the control room of the Chamber of Trials.
One of the intruders, the magitech engineer Frezen, was monitoring the students' movements projected on a holographic device.
'Hmm, as expected…'
Indeed, they are students of the Jenion Academy.
After a brief moment of panic due to the sudden emergency, they were now adeptly dealing with the golems.
Among them, one stood out particularly…
'The platinum-haired heir of the Blando family? They say he has talent on par with the best. It's not an exaggeration.'
On the screen, Damian's performance was remarkable.
Using vines to bind the golems and restrict their movements, he managed to immobilize three at once.
Even if they were student test golems, the fact that he could do this with their maximum output was truly…
'What a monstrous talent.'
Considering his age, it was almost impossible.
Anyway, the students gathered around Damian were systematically dealing with the restrained golems.
Not only Damian stood out.
Frezen shifted his gaze to another screen.
'The third child of the Dinaig family. Hmm. I heard he had ordinary talent, but maybe not?'
While Damian was at the center of the group, dealing with the golems, Dalia was handling them alone.
She dispelled the force fields with pure firepower and finished off the cores with simple spells.
The entire process was so textbook and clean that even Frezen was impressed.
Of course, it wasn't just them.
They say crisis breeds growth.
Students who were initially running for their lives had gathered in small groups, devising their own survival strategies, and were now systematically fighting the golems.
'Hmm.'
Frezen leaned back in his chair, folding his arms.
'This is…'
Actually, this was a situation that could be unpleasant for Frezen.
The better the students' response, the more his plan to take over the Chamber of Trials would be thwarted.
But, why?
'Good, hehe. Very good.'
Frezen smiled broadly at the students' response.
'Yes, you should easily withstand the golems. Only then can you taste the main dish, right?'
The golems were merely simple entertainment.
An appetizer to whet the appetite before the main course.
Especially,
Look at the students' expressions on the screen.
Despair had initially filled their faces, but now hope was blooming, and confidence was growing.
Their psychology was clear.
'We can endure, definitely. The professors will come to save us. We just need to hold on until then… Yes, wait as long as it takes.'
The professors won't come.
When they realize this, how will their expressions change? They will surely face a despair as great as, or even greater than, the hope they had.
Frezen thought this far and then gathered his thoughts.
Someone was urging him from the side.
"Frezen, are we still far? A student is approaching."
A man with a strange voice, a mage with a half-mask covering his face, looked down at Frezen.
At his words, Frezen turned his gaze back to the screen.
"A student? What student… Ah? Really."
In his eyes, a boy appeared.
A boy with ash-gray hair, running through the Chamber of Trials at a fierce speed.
Whenever he encountered golems, a single strike.
One attack to destroy the core, and he smoothly navigated the Chamber of Trials' corridors.
The scene looked like the golems were shutting down on their own.
"Is there such a guy? What, he's not in the information?"
"Considering it's Jenion Academy, isn't it possible to have such a guy?"
At the masked man's words, Frezen shrugged.
"So what? He's just a kid, right? What's the big deal? Are you lacking in confidence? Hehe, you, the hunting dog of the great Vimar family."
The hunting dog's demeanor changed at that moment.
"Do you want to die? How dare you mention the family name with your filthy mouth?"
A chilling aura.
"Ah, I get it. I was just about to recharge anyway. I told you, to control such a large space, one charge isn't enough."
Frezen was startled and cowered.
'What… a big deal. The Vimar family, followers of Deculan.'
Vimar is one of the vassal families that follow Deculan.
No matter how much they claim to be noble and great, they are ultimately just strong slaves.
…Of course, their strength is the problem.
Anyway,
Frezen stood up without a word.
At that moment, Vimar's voice came from behind.
"Don't forget the contract. You must cause chaos at Jenion Academy. To the point where its prestige hits rock bottom. And in return, we will…"
"Provide a continuous experimental site and regular sponsorship. Right? And the sponsorship has already started, so I must fulfill the contract. How many times do I have to say it?"
Having heard it many times, Frezen cut in irritably.
On the other hand, he thought,
'What crazy guys…'
It wasn't his place to say, but the Vimar family were crazy.
'To offer a professor to Deculan, what? Lower the prestige of the Academy?'
The Vimar family's plan was simple.
They wanted to offer a professor to Deculan, but the Academy and the Empire were protecting them, making it difficult.
So, they decided to lower the Academy's prestige.
In essence, it wasn't a bad plan.
The Empire protects a professor, that is, a single mage, for one reason: the prestige of Jenion Academy.
But if the Academy, the bulwark, is gone? The Empire won't need to lift a finger.
Well, that was the plan, but…
'It's absurd.'
Frezen shook his head and clicked his tongue silently.
Who could cause a situation that would lower the Academy's prestige?
Especially now, when the Academy's defenses have been heightened due to Deculan's interference.
It would be impossible for anyone.
'Except me… hehe.'
In the center of the control room of the Chamber of Trials.
Frezen stopped in front of a crystal sphere about a meter in diameter.
The core of the Chamber of Trials.
However, the color of the core, which should have been transparent, was strange.
How to describe it? It was like ink mixed into clear water, with black currents swirling inside.
"How much progress has been made in controlling the core?"
"Let's see…"
At the hunting dog's question, Frezen took out a glove and put it on.
Then, he touched the core and sent mana to check its status.
"Almost 90%? It should be done in about 5 minutes."
"Not much longer."
"Right, not much longer. Just wait a little. With this, what you desire will be achieved."
Frezen looked down at his glove and smiled.
This was not an ordinary glove.
An ancient artifact.
It has two functions.
One is spatial isolation, creating an independent space by completely isolating a certain area from the outside.
And the second is…
'Mana erosion.'
Eroding the isolated space with negative mana, or mana, to create a new environment.
An environment eroded by mana.
The continent has called such a space this since ancient times.
The Demon Realm.
Frezen smiled as he activated the artifact.
The Chamber of Trials of Jenion Academy was the first experimental site provided to Frezen.
Frezen intended to construct a Demon Realm in this place.