Vicas Lazalarius, this time without any of his friends, casually strolled his way towards the training field where the first-year students had the second part of their physical evaluation.
He was there purely to check on the performance of the peasant exchange student who didn't know his place, as well as the disrespectful brat shielded by his family name.
While originally Vicas wanted to make sure that the Vallhall brat had any connection to deofol or was polluted by gedwyld, that suspicion got blown by the wind after a bit of digging into it.
Deofol's mana, that is gedwyld, was quite easily identifiable if the person dropped their natural mana barrier, which was a necessity for receiving any form of treatment. And, as it turned out, Rotsard Vallhall had frequented the hospital wing more than an average student, and nothing came out of it.
That left the question…
Was the peasant and Vallhall brats' talent worth the trouble of stealing?
"..."
Vicas furrowed his brows. Acting all nonchalant while stopping by the opposite side of the field appropriated for the exam, not bothering to acknowledge the Academy's staff moving the unused training dummies left over from the first-years' magic evaluation.
As the red-haired young man leaned against the Academy's wall, he let out an annoyed sigh. If not for the staff walking back and forth, he could freely summon his contracted fea, Strig, and she would immediately tell him whether the two nuisances were even worth his time.
"Hmm?"
But then the movement at the starting line far back caused Vicas to let out a confused voice, and even the assistant teacher at the finishing line halfway from the starting line to Vicas's position seemed confused, but signed her readiness anyway.
It appeared that the Vallhall's brat was crouching down for some reason?
Was that supposed to be some experimental starting position giving one an edge over opponents during a race or something…?
If so, then Vicas never heard of it.
It looked ridiculous, that's for sure.
"Ready?! GO!"
The teacher at the start was using magic to make his voice carry, which was why Vicas heard the command and…
"WH-WHAT IN THE BLAZES!?"
The red-haired youngster ended up choking on his saliva as a bleached-blond-haired boy launched himself like a stone bullet, leaving the other four in the dust and leaping one-third of the distance in two steps before seemingly falling face-first… Only to use both hands to push himself to go even faster…!
Something was wrong…!
It had to be wrong!
This couldn't be happening!
"!!!"
"FHUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"
As Vicas straightened his back and stepped forward, staring at the scene in disbelief, Rotsard Vallhall unleashed a bloodcurdling roar that sent chills down the spines of every living being in his reach before dropping on all fours and launching himself into a mad dash!
"...h-huh…?
As if he didn't notice it, Rotsard passed the finish line, and Vicas froze up with his mouth agape…
Was… was that brat… ch-charging at him…?
"OH, SHIT!"
*WHAAAAAAAAM*
For Vicas, it felt as if he blinked and Rotsard was already right in front of him, so the red-haired young man did the only logical thing and yelped in panic while jumping to the side as the bleached-blond-haired boy rammed head-first into the wall, only coming to a halt upon impact without any signs of even attempting to slow down!
The hit was so strong that a cloud of dust covered the immediate sight, but even so, the actual, usually invisible magic barrier covering the premises of the Royal Academy appeared as it vibrated and fluctuated from the impact, causing the sky to be filled with a myriad of rainbow colors…!
Just like oil spilled on top of water.
"Wh… WHAT IN THE BLOODY HEL IS HAPPENING?!"
After rolling in the dirt, Vicas sat up and shouted upon witnessing the sight, both mesmerizing and terrifying for those who understood what it meant.
The Royal Academy's great barrier didn't break, but it still remained visible and fluctuating even as the dust settled and revealed a wall covered in cracks, a pulverized training dummy that one of the staff dropped before escaping to the side just like Vicas, and the motionless, bleached-blond-haired boy beneath it.
"..."
Words got stuck in Vicas's mouth as he gulped down his saliva and looked around.
The students and teachers all the way in the back seemed to be petrified by the situation, and none seemed keen to approach the scene. Similarly, the Academy's staff merely stood there with baffled or scared expressions, glancing at one another in silence.
It really felt as if it was up to Vicas to check on the madman who charged full speed into the wall.
"...hel…"
Vicas opened and closed his mouth only to breathe out and shook his head before getting back on his feet and approaching the body…
"...ugh…"
"Wh-wha…!?"
But the supposed corpse of the bleached-blond-haired first year suddenly twitched and even released a groan of pain, causing Vicas to stop right in his tracks and gasp.
As it turned out, those weren't just some post-mortem twitches and air escaping the lungs!
The supposed body sat up and touched its head before pulling its hand away and checking how much blood was on it.
…by the way, there wasn't nearly enough blood considering the force of the impact, even taking the training dummy lessening it into consideration, and the minuscule amount that was there was thick and gooey with barely any flow when there should be an outpour.
"...teacher… I don't think I'll be able to continue the evaluation… I'm going to the hospital wing…"
Rotsard then stood up, glanced over at Vicas, but clearly didn't recognize him, and muttered before slowly walking away with an unsteady step.
*crack*
"!?!?"
After the bleached-blond-haired boy left, the already cracked wall crumbled down at the spot of the impact, presenting a gaping hole to the wide-eyed Vicas.