Chapter 260 -----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 260
Chapter Title: The Wrong Bait
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260
5,000 years ago.
After the end of the Age of Disaster, many races scattered to find new homes.
The elves headed north, and the beastkin went south.
And the humans settled in various places all over the world.
Finally, the dwarves.
They made their home in the rugged Drakin Mountains of the east.
And they founded the world's largest mining kingdom.
Using a warp gate, we arrived at the heart of the Drakin Mountains.
We were in Dweronia, considered the capital of the dwarves.
Named after Dweno, who was praised as the Smith of the Gods, this city had a history of 5,000 years.
It was the oldest city in the world.
The Lumerne students who arrived at the warp gate stared with wide eyes.
The warp gate itself was nothing short of spectacular.
The walls were all plated with gold, and beautiful jewels were embedded throughout.
"This is incredible."
"So this is the wealthiest city in the world…"
Murmurs of admiration could be heard from all around.
Even for the students of Lumerne, many of whom were children of prestigious families, the splendor of Dweronia's warp gate was on a level they had never seen before.
"Wow, how much is all that worth?"
Karl muttered, his jaw hanging open.
"Look at the ceiling."
"Aren't those the Great Heroes?"
"It's a complete work of art."
On the ceiling, the figures of the Great Heroes were depicted in a mosaic made of colorful, sparkling jewels.
Of course, it only showed the four heroes.
The portrait of Kyle, whose existence had only recently been confirmed, was not yet engraved there.
We exited the warp gate and entered the plaza.
Sedjen, who had come out into the plaza, spoke to the students.
"You won't be able to enter Demian until this evening."
Sedjen pointed a hand toward the massive mountain situated next to Dweronia.
It was a mine with a huge hole bored into it.
And nestled within that hole, a great castle was visible.
It was Demian, the hero academy of the dwarves.
"Until then, you have free time, so feel free to tour the city."
"Whoa!"
The students let out a cheer.
After the roll call and announcements were finished, only the students remained.
They began to gather with their close friends.
"How about we split up with our friends and go sightseeing for now?"
"Let's do it! Let's do it!"
"Chloe! Let's get the Class 1 girls together for old times' sake!"
Four female students who had been in Class 1 approached Chloe.
Class 1, along with Class 5, was a class where not a single student had been recommended for expulsion, so the bond between the students was exceptionally strong.
At the suggestion of her first-year classmates, Chloe smiled and nodded.
"Should we? But let's not get too carried away. We're not here to play, after all. First, let's set a time to meet back up…"
"The class president is the same as ever."
"Right! But that's our class president's charm."
The girls giggled.
"Should we call Celia over too?"
"Sure. I'll go get her."
Just as one of the girls smiled and was about to go find Celia.
"You all, you're from Lumerne."
A group blocked their path.
The Class 1 girls' eyes widened.
"Azonia?"
It was true.
Ten students wearing Azonia uniforms stood before the girls.
At their head was a male student who looked to be at least 190 cm tall.
The bear beastkin, whose entire body was armed with visibly solid muscle, had wild brown hair and eyes.
His somehow belligerent impression made the girls shrink back slightly.
Chloe stepped forward.
"What business do Azonia students have with us?"
At Chloe's question, the wolf beastkin spoke.
"My name is Wern Damun."
"Wern Damun?"
"He was ranked 8th among the Azonia second-years, right?"
The girls nodded.
Wern Damun.
Ranked 8th among the Azonia second-years.
In other words, he was the student with the eighth-best grades among the Azonia sophomores.
He was the biggest and strongest student at Azonia.
Just as the girls were looking intrigued by the sudden appearance of a big shot from a rival school.
"My name is Chloe Müller."
"Never heard of you."
At Wern's words, the girls bristled.
"What? How can you not know Chloe?!"
"That's right! She's a top student who vies for first or second place in our school's magic department!"
Chloe was a world-famous hero candidate.
So when a student from another hero academy spoke so dismissively, the girls couldn't stand it.
But despite their reaction, Wern merely snorted.
"I have no interest in mages or summoners."
"Oh my! Oh my! What a thing to say."
"Hmph! If you're not interested in mages and summoners, why did you talk to us!"
"Right! Go away! There isn't a single knight department student among us, you know?!"
At first, the girls were intimidated by Wern's size, but soon their expressions turned fierce.
They had been through all sorts of trials and tribulations for a year at Lumerne.
They wouldn't be cowed just because someone was a little bigger or had more numbers.
Moreover, his comment seemed to belittle their departments, so their reaction was bound to be even sharper.
But even with the girls' reactions, Wern didn't bat an eye.
"Is there any student among you who is close with Leo Flove?"
At that question, Chloe spoke.
"Leo is my friend."
"Perfect. Come with us."
Wern reached out to grab Chloe's wrist.
*Crack—!*
In an instant, a wall of ice shot up in front of Wern.
Wern flinched and stepped back, and the other beastkin also assumed wary expressions.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Chloe's voice turned as cold as ice.
Seeing Chloe's sudden change in atmosphere, Wern narrowed his eyes.
'Seems the talk about her vying for first or second place in the magic department wasn't a lie.'
Beastkin were a race that worshipped strength.
But that strength was confined to 'physical' strength.
5,000 years ago.
The Brave Hero Ar-on, whom all beastkin revered, was a man who had reached a formidable level using only the power of his body.
For that reason, Azonia nurtured its students with the goal of becoming the strongest martial artists.
In a way, their tendency was similar to Seirun's.
Just as no one who hadn't learned Star Magic could enter Seirun.
No one who was weak as a martial artist could enter Azonia.
Because of this, the vast majority of Azonia students were indifferent to the top students of Lumerne's magic and summoner departments.
Chloe knew that Azonia students had such a tendency.
That's why she wasn't particularly offended when he said he didn't know her.
However…
'To just try and drag me away.'
Wern's action was extremely unpleasant.
At Chloe's question, Wern said.
"I have no ill intentions."
"By suddenly trying to take me away?"
"You just need to be the bait to draw out Leo Flove."
"Bait?"
Chloe narrowed her eyes.
"Yes."
Wern's lips curled into a smirk.
"I am well aware of Leo Flove's reputation. I know he is Lumerne's strongest warrior."
"And?"
"But I cannot accept that he is a martial artist who surpasses even us Azonia students!"
"So? You're going to set a trap to defeat Leo?"
"Hmph! Do you think I would resort to such cowardly means?"
Wern snorted.
"I intend to challenge him to the Rite of the Great Warrior!"
The Rite of the Great Warrior.
The other Lumerne students didn't know what it was, but the knowledgeable Chloe was well aware.
'A traditional Azonia ritual to compete purely in martial arts.'
It was a duel to determine the strongest through pure physical strength, without even borrowing the power of Aura.
And the one defeated in the Rite of the Great Warrior had to obey the winner's command.
"What's the point of that? Leo isn't even an Azonia student."
"Hah. I simply wish to defeat Leo Flove and prove that the truly strong martial artists are at Azonia."
At Wern's words, Chloe crossed her arms.
'So that's why he called me bait.'
It made sense.
And…
'How annoying.'
Chloe's face turned as cold as ice.
'So, you think of me as just some bait to lure Leo?'
She didn't like the method, but she liked the intention even less.
At this point, even knowing Azonia's tendency to disregard mages and summoners, she was offended.
'He's completely ignoring me, isn't he?'
Chloe let out a small laugh.
If Celia or Duran had seen it, they would have flinched.
"Alright. I'll go with you."
"C-Chloe."
"It doesn't seem like he intends to harm me. If I don't go, it might cause a scene. And causing a disturbance on the first day would be a big problem for the school's reputation."
"B-but…"
"Don't worry about me."
"That's right. She will be treated with respect as the bait."
'He's still treating me like bait until the very end?'
Chloe beamed.
If the other girls had seen that expression, their faces would have turned pale as they tried to stop Chloe.
But unfortunately, all they could see was the back of Chloe's head.
*Shuffle—!*
The Azonia students surrounded Chloe.
"Let's go. With this, I have earned the chance to be the first to defeat Leo Flove. The reward will be mine as well."
Wern left with a satisfied expression.
Chloe walked behind Wern, thinking.
'I'm going to freeze you all and escape.'
Chloe, the always-composed top student.
But the moment her lid was flipped, she transformed into the most reckless student among the second-years.
Unaware of Chloe's state, the other girls' faces turned pale.
They ran to get help from the other students.
"C-Celia! It's an emergency! An emergency!"
They spotted Celia and Duran and shouted urgently.
"What's wrong?"
Celia asked with wide eyes, and the girls cried out.
"Chloe's been kidnapped by Azonia students!"
"What?"
Celia's face hardened.
"Who was kidnapped?"
And a cold voice came from behind.
The girls turned around and their expressions brightened.
Standing there were Duran and Howl, who had also been in Class 1.
Howl's face was twisted into a fierce scowl, and Duran wore his usual expressionless face.
But his eyebrows were twitching, a sign that he was displeased.
"Explain in detail."
At Celia's words, the girls explained the situation.
After hearing the story, Celia said with a firm expression.
"I'll go tell the professors right away."
"Hmph, you're soft, Celia Jerdinger."
"What?"
"The Azonia bastards' intentions are obvious."
Duran cracked his knuckles.
"Kidnapping Chloe Müller under the pretext of luring out Leo Flove? This is a clear challenge to us."
"So?"
"Telling the professors and having them resolve it would be the same as avoiding their challenge."
"So? Are you saying we should start a war between schools?"
"That's a good idea, too."
"Chloe went quietly to avoid escalating things. We should avoid making the incident bigger if possible."
"I'm disappointed, Celia Jerdinger."
"What?"
"This isn't just a matter of school pride. Those bastards laid a hand on Chloe Müller, the one you and I acknowledged as our class president."
Duran looked at Celia with an expressionless face.
"If we tell the professors, we won't be able to beat them up."
At Duran's words, the girls started whispering among themselves.
"Um, so to translate… is he saying, 'How dare you touch my friend! Unforgivable!'?"
"I think so."
"Come to think of it, Duran always acted prickly, but he did subtly look out for her."
"Shut up."
Duran said to the whispering girls, his face still blank.
Meanwhile, Celia, who had been pondering Duran's words, crossed her arms.
Then she nodded.
"You know what? You're right."
"Finally, you understand."
Just as Duran wore a satisfied expression.
"Let me join in, too."
At that moment, someone leaped down from a rooftop.
It was Chen Xia.
"This is Class 1's business, Chen Xia."
"But Miss Chloe is my friend, too, you know? Besides, she's our dorm head now. I think I'm involved, don't you?"
"Hmph. If that's the case, I won't stop you."
Duran crossed his arms.
Seeing this, Howl asked.
"What's the plan?"
"First, we find an Azonia student."
Duran answered.
"And then?"
"We beat them to a pulp and then ask where this Wern guy is."
Chen Xia said with a grin.
"What if they say they don't know?"
"We find the next Azonia student and repeat the process."
Watching Celia answer as she swept her hair back, Howl thought to himself.
'To be targeted by these three at once, of all people. I feel sorry for that Wern guy.'
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