Final Exam (5)

As expected, Aster was the first to reach Frondier.

Baldur’s divinity in his hand enhanced all of Aster's abilities. Simple yet overwhelmingly brutal.

"Frondier! You shouldn't be stealing!"

Frondier laughed at Aster's words.

"Just like you."

Clang!

Something blocked Aster's hand as he reached for Frondier. Aster looked at Frondier, withdrawing his stinging arm.

Strange. There was nothing visible, yet something had blocked it. The sensation in his hand was clearly that of metal.

Jane and Elodie started deploying their mana behind him. As mages, their magic projection speed was much faster than their running speed. It only took a few seconds for the rune to appear. It was an exhilarating speed.

Rumble!

However, their runes were blocked by a wall of ice that appeared in front of them.

The scale and the bitter chill of the ice gave away its owner.

"Aten...!"

Elodie had spotted Aten. Aten was casting magic far away from Frondier.

'He must have secured his position early on. A large-scale spell like that must have been in preparation for quite some time.'

This must be Frondier's team tactic. After all, Frondier wouldn't have made the reckless decision of carrying away the injured person all by himself.

However, what could be the intention behind this strategy? Even if they could stop Elodie and Jane, Aster and Azier were still here. Was Frondier planning to deal with the two of them on his own?

As Elodie had expected, Azier quickly closed in on Frondier.

Azier headed straight for Frondier. Aster, who was nearby, needed to be cautious, but his priority was to secure the person acting as the injured person.

Azier thrust his spear first. He already knew that Frondier had an invisible weapon. Moving in a straight line, the spear deflected most of Frondier's Weaving weapons.

"Ugh...!"

Startled, Frondier stepped back. Azier was not someone to be left alone. Quickly closing the distance, Azier grabbed Frondier's collar and reached out towards the student he was carrying, who was playing the role of a victim.

──Why did Jane believe the student carried by Frondier was 'playing the role' of a victim?

Because the student was carried by Frondier, wore a senior student's uniform, and had a similar appearance.

In front of Azier, who reached out his hand, Frondier's hidden card slightly smiled.

Swish!

The student carried by Frondier reached out her hand. A fan was in her hand, and from within the spread fan blades, a blade shot out.

"……!"

Azier quickly swung his polearm to deflect the blade.

This blade, and the fan being held.

The woman carried by Frondier, could it be.

"Would you so boldly touch a lady's body, Mr. Azier?"

Quinie de Viet. Her black fan gleamed.

Frondier was not carrying a victim from the start. He was carrying Quinie, making her appear like a victim.

And at this moment.

The moment everyone realized that the 'victim' Frondier was carrying was actually Quinie.

'Do you understand what this means?'

Frondier had no time to speak. He couldn't even casually move his eyes.

'The situation has changed.'

Frondier gripped the necklace 'Black Lotus' in his hand. The moment Azier stepped back from Quinie's attack.

Azier's moment of vulnerability, hard to come by. However.

It wasn't Frondier who was aiming for the gap.

'Aster!'

Frondier called out in his heart as if wishing.

In response, Aster suddenly changed direction, extending his blade towards Azier.

The person carried by Frondier was not actually a victim. Meaning, Frondier was not a competitor but an ally.

The situation, which had been pressing against Frondier, was reversed in an instant, pressing against Azier.

Evans family's martial arts

Basic swordplay

Horizontal slash

Aster's sword swung horizontally once more. As Azier retreated, his posture grew vulnerable.

However, Azier always had one more trick up his sleeve: his unique spear technique, Falling Edge.

Azier's extended spear connected with Aster's sword. In an instant, the two weapons collided, and Aster's strike was nullified.

Aster's eyes widened in surprise.

'From such an unstable position…!'

Due to Falling Edge, Aster lost his grip on his sword.

Azier, witnessing this, tried to regain his composure.

"Menosorpo."

A familiar voice chanted the unfamiliar words. It was Frondier. In that instant, Azier could feel magic coursing through the area.

A rune? Activating a rune without drawing it on the ground?

But before he could fully process the thought, Azier witnessed a sword piercing through the air before his eyes: Enfer's sword, Gram.

"…!'"

Azier abruptly opened his eyes and evaded the blow. Frondier, who had delivered a vertical strike, twisted the tip of his sword as it descended.

Azier’s Basic Spear Technique

Frondier Style Swordsmanship Transformation

Diagonal Cut

As if Frondier had foreseen Azier's evasion, the Diagonal Cut was relentless.

"Don't be ridiculous!"

However, the Diagonal Cut executed by Frondier was originally Azier's technique. He could perfectly predict its trajectory.

Azier brought his spear forward in a thrust, parrying at the exact right moment.

Thwack!

But Gram vanished, or rather, it dispersed into a liquid like ink.

'──What?!'

Azier's spear whipped through the air. It was the first time in years that he had missed so completely.

Quinie seized the opportunity.

Swish!

Quinie shot blades from her fan at Azier.

Despite the opening, Azier deflected the blades using his shoulder and arm.

But then, right after:

"This is the real deal."

Quinie's fan was mere inches from piercing his neck. He tried to turn his head to evade it, but:

"…!'"

Four spears, suspended in the air around Azier, were already poised to strike at his neck from all sides.