The test was over.
"…Team 3 wins."
"No way, Fernan and Ruina pulled that off?"
"Did you see the ground collapse? That was insane."
"But the map didn't burn in that situation?"
"I've never seen joint magic used in real combat before."
Everyone in Team 3 was eliminated except for Gert and his partner, yet Fernan and Ruina survived until the end.
And the two of them managed to eliminate everyone else, including Karlo.
The pair who had pulled off the reversal emerged as the final victors.
"This is ridiculous. I can't believe we lost like this…"
"It was just luck."
"Luck? Then we're just fools who couldn't beat a lucky guy."
Ludger let out a bitter laugh.
"It really was nothing but sheer luck that Almon happened to be there."
"This was only one of the many practical courses, Fernan."
"I know."
Clicking his tongue in displeasure, Ludger turned his body away.
"It ended too blandly, Ruina. Next time, I'll show you the real difference in skill."
"Anytime. I won't lose to you again."
Almon, who had been talking with Ruina, followed behind.
"Fernan…!"
"How the hell did we lose this…?"
Ignoring Karlo and the other students consumed by anger and disbelief, Fernan headed to the infirmary with Ruina to heal their wounds.
"You did great today. Thanks to you, we were able to take first place."
"It's not over yet. Like Ludger said, that was just one of the tests."
Of course, with all the points he'd accumulated, he had gotten a step closer to being the top student—but no one could say what would happen next.
"Still, if it weren't for you, I wouldn't have made it this far today."
"Well, I won't deny that."
"Let's meet again soon. Oh, and if it's about the Aberrants, don't hesitate to contact me anytime."
Just as Ruina was about to leave, Fernan gently stopped her.
"I'll make sure that what we found underground ends up with its rightful owner."
"Do as you wish. I have no interest in things that aren't mine."
Ruina disappeared.
"…What's mine is mine, and what's yours is also mine."
Clicking his tongue, Fernan sank into thought.
'For now, the top priority is making sure Aint gets that inheritance.'
The words he said to Ruina weren't a lie.
The arrangement left by the former emperor had to be returned to its rightful owner—Aint Armian.
Even if now wasn't the intended timing, things had gone off course, and he had to act now.
'If it had stayed hidden, maybe it wouldn't matter, but now that it's been exposed once, it's only a matter of time before it's revealed to everyone.'
Fernan had taken temporary precautions, but the academy was full of mages more powerful than him.
"Hyde, where's Aint Armian right now?"
"Aint Armian."
Aint unfurled the map.
After the test ended, he had received an unexpected visit from Fernan.
"I think I found the secret dungeon of House Armian."
The words he suddenly spoke were quite shocking.
"It sounds suspicious, right? You'd doubt if it's even real—and if it is, why I'd tell you so easily."
"You're right. I'm a merchant. Normally, I would've sold this info to you at a steep price—or taken it for myself. That is, if I hadn't run into those Aberrants and monsters."
It wasn't something Aint could refute. When asked if he thought he was the right person for this, Fernan nodded without hesitation—for one simple reason: Aint was an "Armian."
— The power of the Armians is the bane of demons. That guy made the wisest choice possible.
— Those nouveau riche bastards always had sharp instincts.
In the end, Aint had no choice but to accept it. Which meant he had to set out to find the inheritance Fernan spoke of—immediately.
It was still test season, so he had hoped for a little more breathing room—but that was no longer possible.
If the inheritance had remained completely hidden, it might have been different. But now that it had surfaced once, it wouldn't be strange if someone else found it again.
"Normally, you can't just access field zones freely during test season. I'll help you."
That led to what Aint now held in his hand: a map.
It only covered a section of the northern mountain region, but it was a special map that displayed the real-time positions of the assistant instructors scouting the area in preparation for the exams.
It was a professor-level map.
—"So these bastards, supposedly the ones teaching the future of the Empire, sell out their guts and gallbladders for a few coins."
Gardner grumbled, clearly displeased. But to Aint, it was something he desperately needed.
"We're here."
Aint, having taken a slight detour to avoid the instructors, arrived at his destination. Despite the ground having collapsed during the commotion earlier, the terrain looked relatively intact.
— Looks like the professors already repaired it. In that case, maybe there's no need to retrieve it right this moment?
Still, it felt wrong to come all the way here and leave empty-handed.
Gardner guided Aint somewhere else—into a cave entrance not far off, leading underground.
This was not some unnatural route caused by a ground collapse, but a proper path designed to reach the hidden inheritance.
"If I didn't know better, I'd just think this was some rabbit hole."
— If it were easy to find, it wouldn't be an inheritance—it'd just be a banquet hall for grave robbers.
That was true enough.
Regardless, Aint walked into the pitch-dark underground. Along the way, the passage appeared blocked at times—likely due to the collapsing ground above.
Luckily, the underground area was spacious. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to reach the destination through this route.
— It should be around here… There.
Gardner instantly saw through the concealment spell Fernan had placed. A door appeared, engraved with the symbol of the Armians—a Saintbird in bas-relief.
"What's in here?"
— If I had to name it… the Core.
"The core?"
— Not my actual body, but an artifact meant to be mounted in a sword's hilt, to amplify aura. Made from the heart of a Saintbird.
"…Huh? Come again?"
— You, who already ate a Saintbird's heart thanks to that nouveau riche bastard, might not find it essential—but more is always better.
"I'm surprised. A Saintbird isn't exactly a common mythical beast. But how do I open this?"
Aint put all his strength into it until his face turned red, but the door didn't budge.
— Bleed. Let your blood spill. It only responds to the bloodline of Armian…
Gardner suddenly fell silent. The blade of the sword trembled faintly.
Aint straightened his half-bent posture. Srring—he slowly drew his sword.
A foul stench struck his nose.
The palpable killing intent raised goosebumps on his skin.
Then it came.
A horrifying presence triggered a reaction from his aura.
— …Monsters.
Wrong. Not just a monster.
Monsters.
From the shadows, pairs of glowing red eyes began to emerge. Aint pushed aside the question of when they had arrived.
— Skolds.
They were Rank 7 monsters—enormous scorpions, each around three meters tall. And there were dozens of them.
Each one was as strong as a well-trained knight, and far from easy prey.
"…Why are there monsters here?"
— Worry about that after you've dealt with them all.
If Aint hadn't been who he was…
If he hadn't used the swordsmanship of the House of Armian—imbued with the attribute of light, the natural enemy of monsters—anyone else would have died here.
A brilliant white aura surged along his blade.
The Skolds instinctively hesitated before the overwhelming force of their natural enemy—and Aint didn't miss that opening.
Slash!
The frontmost Skold had its leg severed. It shrieked and lashed its tail.
Clang!
Its poisonous stinger scraped across Aint's sword. Seizing the exposed gap, Aint drove his blade straight in.
The Skold's skull shattered, and its body couldn't withstand the power of light—it vanished.
That was the beginning. The hesitant Skolds roared in rage at the death of their kin.
But Aint didn't retreat. Activating his aura hole, he radiated an even more intense light.
The weakling from the early days of enrollment no longer existed.
Now there stood only a predator of monsters—trained by Gardner, strengthened by consuming the Saintbird's heart, and hardened through countless battles.
Slash!
Crash!
Blinding white flashes pierced the darkness.
The monsters weakened in the presence of light, and with every white arc that sliced through the air, a monster's body was split apart.
Screams and shrieks filled the cave as death and purification cycled again and again.
Eventually, when the storm passed, only Aint Armian and the remains of what had once been monsters were left.
"Huff… huff…!"
— You've improved a lot. Compared to when we first met, this is leaps and bounds.
Aint let out a faint smile at Gardner's rare praise.
His breath was ragged. The question of why monsters had been there remained unanswered—but the joy of victory and the deep sense of achievement washed over him.
"…I really killed dozens of Rank 7 monsters. Just a few months ago, I couldn't have even imagined it."
— Don't be satisfied with just this.
— You are an Armian—the one destined to destroy all demons.
"Honestly, at first I wasn't sure I could really do it. But now… it doesn't seem impossible anymore—"
That was when it happened.
— Dodge!
At Gardner's shout, Aint hurled himself to the side.
The ground where he had just been standing shattered. A black flash. Nothing fancy—just a clump of demonic energy.
Dozens of them came streaking toward Aint like rays of black lightning.
Clang!
He barely deflected them with a swing of his sword, but the force of the impact sent him sliding backward.
Aint swallowed a groan.
"I hadn't planned to show myself, but…"
From the darkness came a voice that sounded like nails scraping a chalkboard. Aint grimaced.
"Now that I've seen you for myself, I understand. You're a massive obstacle to our Great Order. A truly cursed bloodline."
"…An Aberrant?"
The figure took the form of a human. But its eyes were lifeless, and its skin deathly pale—it could hardly be called human.
"His Excellency ordered us not to touch you within the academy, but now I understand. If I don't kill you here, I'll regret it forever."
Even if it meant their existence was exposed to the world—he had to do this.
"You must die."
A dense murderous aura erupted like an explosion.
Aint gasped.
"If sacrificing this worthless insect life can help build the Great Order, then I have nothing to regret!"
The Aberrant snapped his fingers. Ten black masses of demonic energy launched at once.
They were faster and larger than before.
"…Tch!"
Aint desperately threw himself to the side. The spot where he had stood was torn to pieces, and the Aberrant closed the distance in a flash.
Long claws swept through the air, leaving a streaking arc.
Clang!
Even with the power of light slightly weakening the demonic energy, Aint felt like he couldn't breathe.
— Where the hell did this guy come from!?
In just a few seconds, they exchanged dozens of blows.
It was one-sided. The enemy was faster, stronger, and far more destructive than Aint. All Aint could do was block, dodge, and block again.
Small wounds accumulated all over his body. As his breathing grew rougher, the confidence he had just moments ago quickly crumbled.
— Above you!
— Next one's coming from your lower left!
Without Gardner's help, Aint wouldn't have lasted through even a few of those exchanges.
There was no hope in sight. Death loomed closer, tightening its grip around his throat.
Crack! Aint's hand split open from the pressure. His sword, losing its support, flew from his grasp.
"Die, Aint Armian! You cursed bloodline!"
The Aberrant didn't miss the opening.
A massive claw shot toward Aint, ready to tear his body in half.
— Aint!
In that moment—
BOOM!
A spike of rock erupted between them, disrupting the claw's trajectory. Another boulder struck the Aberrant's side from the flank.
The Aberrant was flung across the chamber and slammed into the ground, rolling.
Gasping for breath, Aint collapsed to his knees.
"I… I'm alive…? Senior…?"
"…I had a feeling, so I came. Looks like it was the right call."
From seemingly nowhere, Fernan appeared and stood protectively in front of Aint.
"Aint. Are you all right?"
"…Yes. Thanks to you. But… how did you…?"
"Like I said. I came just in case."
And it seemed that precaution had just saved a life.
"Fernan Pellenberg?"
"You know me?"
The fallen Aberrant slowly rose to its feet.
"Right… you're here too. But what does it matter if it's one or two of you? This place will be your grave."
"You're saying my line."
Trying to kill the one who holds my future? How dare you.
"Sorry, but I don't do funeral donations."
With a flick of Fernan's hand, the earth roared and surged.