Chapter 41. The Pervert Trio

Fwoosh!

At the hour when the sky was at its most brilliant, as the sun slowly hid its face, the forest that had felt no warmth was engulfed in a conflagration.

“Th-this is insane.”

Piontek, who was inside the forest, was greatly flustered.

“Snap out of it and run!”

Adellian grabbed Piontek’s arm and pulled.

“You’ll die if you lose your senses,” Michelle said in an emotionless tone as she passed Piontek. Odekerkh, running beside her, nodded. At this, Piontek wore a look of bewilderment.

“Are they really unfazed after seeing that?”

No one answered Piontek. They simply moved to deal with the remaining enemies, just as Maxim had told them to.

Piontek scrunched his face. The one who set the forest on fire was the King Pervert, whom Maxim had said he would deal with himself. He had flicked his finger to create a small flame.

That flame had seemed so insignificant. But that was Piontek’s mistake. The flame that fell to the ground instantly grew enormous. It was even hotter than any fire he had ever experienced.

‘Is everyone in their right mind?’

He could tell without even fighting him directly. The King Pervert was stronger than anyone else here. On the other hand, Maxim was the weakest among them. Yet, they were leaving the two of them alone and moving to another location.

‘Shouldn’t we be focusing on one enemy instead of splitting up?’

Piontek couldn’t understand Maxim, who said he would do it alone, nor could he understand Adellian, Michelle, and Odekerkh for accepting it.

“Snap out of it!” Adellian shouted at Piontek.

Kwoong!

The earthen wall created by Odekerkh trembled violently, shedding dirt.

“Focus. This is no easy opponent.”

Adellian said, keeping her eyes on the earthen wall that was cracking with a splitting sound.

Piontek swallowed hard. The tension that had been somewhat loose tightened up.

‘Adellian is that nervous?’

While not the strongest person in the academy, she possessed a considerable level of martial skill. She was, after all, the top student. But Adellian was nervous. Severely so. Her trembling hands, quickened breath, and tightly bitten lip said it all.

Kwarururu.

The earthen wall crumbled. Perverts holding axes, swords, and spears burst out, radiating heat.

“Michelle!”

No sooner had Adellian’s voice risen than two arrows were shot.

“I knew you’d do this!”

The one at the very front let out a sneer and swung his axe. With a Kang! sound, the arrow fell helplessly.

Adellian, who had quickly stepped back, raised her sword and stabbed the ground. The piled-up snow rapidly froze, forming sharp spears.

“So obvious! Way too obvious!”

This time, the one with the spear charged out, jeering.

Kagang!

The heat-infused spear drew a large circle, slicing through the ice that had shot up.

“Odekerkh!”

Adellian shouted as if she had been waiting. Odekerkh then slashed a long gash into the ground. A brown energy cut through the earth, advancing forward. The place it reached was the enemy’s feet.

Kwarururu.

The ground collapsed helplessly. The perverts who had been charging forward so valiantly were dragged into the crumbling earth.

“T-trapped them!” Odekerkh said.

Michelle took a deep breath and released the bowstring she was holding. With thin Ping!

Ping! sounds, the arrows flew.

Adellian, with a tired face, smiled. It was a smile of confidence that this attack would succeed. But it was too soon to think so.

Fwoosh!

Flames erupted from the hole, burning the arrows. The arrows, having lost their fletching, wobbled erratically before hitting the enemy’s body and falling to the ground.

“It was perfect…” Piontek cried out in dismay. In his view, Adellian’s command had been flawless. She had utilized Odekerkh’s ability to create a defensive barrier and induced the enemy’s isolation. She had used her own ability to create an opening and used Michelle to exploit that gap. It wasn’t clumsily executed either. It was done as if their teamwork had been perfected through long practice.

‘Wasn’t that more impressive than what Maxim did? So why?’

When Maxim had commanded, they had wiped out half of the swarming enemies. He had even killed the comrades of the ones they were fighting now. And with Michelle’s bow, no less. But now…

‘L-like monsters.’

The pervert trio crawled out of the pit.

“Piontek.”

“……”

“Piontek!”

Adellian called out sharply, hitting Piontek’s arm. Piontek looked at her, breathing harshly.

“I’m going to lay down water where they’re standing, so hit them with lightning.”

“Huh?”

“Get a grip! Are you going to die here?”

“N-no.”

“Get ready, now.”

Adellian raised her sword and rapidly circulated her mana. A faint blue light flickered near her heart.

“Tahat!”

Adellian kicked off the ground towards the enemies.

Piontek swallowed hard and ran after her.

Chwaak!

Adellian’s sword aimed for the ground beneath the enemies’ feet.

The pervert trio snorted and jumped lightly.

“You’re the leader, wench. Your neck is so slender, I want to snap it with my hands!”

The one with the axe sneered, mocking Adellian. At that moment, the frozen ground melted and became incredibly muddy.

“Now!”

Adellian’s signal was given. Piontek thrust his sword towards them.

“Fucking bastards!”

The one with the sword turned his blade towards Piontek. Flames became a line, aiming for Piontek. Startled, Piontek twisted his body and swung his sword. Lightning was shot out. But it was suppressed by the flames and fell onto the wrong patch of ground without even making a sound.

“Look at that. That idiot.”

The pervert with the spear giggled, looking at Piontek.

Piontek’s face flushed. The others were all doing their part, but he felt like he was the only one acting foolishly.

“Who are you calling an idiot!”

A surge of stubbornness arose, and Piontek circulated his mana with all his might. Electricity sparked around his sword. A stinging, crackling sound spun ceaselessly.

“I’ll show you exactly who the best swordsman of Saint-Denis Academy is!”

Piontek aimed his sword at the opponent, declaring his will.

But Adellian and Odekerkh looked at him with indifferent faces.

“Th-the best swordsman… is he?”

“I don’t know? First time I’m hearing it.”

Odekerkh and Adellian said a word each. Naturally, Michelle, who didn’t know the situation at the academy, just scratched her head with a blank expression.

“Sh-shut up! Just watch!”

Piontek’s face, so red it looked like it would burst, ground his teeth.

The pervert with the sword, watching this, snickered. His eyes were filled with ridicule.

“I’ll take care of that bastard, so don't interfere.”

The pervert with the sword said confidently and stepped forward. The ones with the axe and spear snorted and stepped back.

‘What’s this?’

Adellian observed their changed atmosphere. Just a moment ago, they had been attacking with all their might, saying they would kill them. But now, they were full of leisure.

‘Are they saying they can finish us off anytime?’

Her pride was wounded. She had attacked with all the strength she could muster, only to confirm the gap in their power.

“Adellian,” Piontek called.

“Watch the situation and jump in immediately.”

He didn’t care one bit about a fair and square fight. Only survival. He thought only of surviving, even if it was cowardly, and returning to the academy. To do that, he had to deal with the guys in front of him quickly and go help Maxim.

“Are you starting a love affair because you think you’re going to die?” the pervert with the sword jeered.

Instead of answering, Piontek composed his breathing and took the basic stance of Poinus swordsmanship.

“The beginning is the center.”

He looked at his opponent and gripped his sword. He planted his left foot heavily and slowly exhaled, feeling the mana swirling in his Circle.

“The world is made of 36 spaces, and the space is mine. Thus, no one can cut me. Only I can cut you.”

He awakened the senses of his entire body. Feeling each collision of mana floating in the air, he said he would answer the call of Plumen, the God of Thunder.

“Just mere lightning.”

The pervert with the sword snorted and kicked the ground.

Kwang!

A sword shrouded in fire and a sword wrapped in electricity clashed.

‘H-heavy.’

Piontek bit his lip.

“Kikikik, seeing your face turn blue is quite a sight.”

The pervert, leaving a sneer, flexed his muscles.

Piontek, not to be pushed back, took a deep breath. A larger amount of mana than before entered his body. Normally, he would have tried to selectively receive only pure mana, but not now.

‘I’ll just have to suffer a bit later.’

Expelling impurities was as hard as suffering from a high fever, but it was nothing compared to his body literally being on fire.

“Haap!”

Piontek shouted and vigorously shook the surrounding mana. A larger amount of electricity than before gathered on his sword.

Kagak!

The two swords, which had been in a power struggle trying to crush each other, separated.

Sparks of fire and electricity flew, and fierce gazes were exchanged rapidly.

The pervert brought out fire and drew a circle. The air boiled, distorting everything in sight.

Swish.

Piontek’s neck was slit, and blood flowed. It happened in an instant.

“Piontek!”

Startled, Adellian shouted. She readjusted her grip on her sword and prepared to intervene in the duel.

“I’m fine!”

Piontek raised his hand to signal not yet. He held his slit neck and steadied his ragged breath. It wasn’t cut deep into the muscle, so his life wasn’t in danger.

‘That was close.’

Piontek had been watching the mana collide within the hot air. The moment the heat weakened, he had planned to imbue even a little electricity into his sword and stab the guy.

As he watched, the point he was waiting for came into view. As planned, he intended to imbue the tip of his sword with electricity and stab the enemy's vital point.

At that moment, a chilling sensation swept through his body. Piontek sensed danger. At the weak point he had spotted, there was no mana collision. Naturally, no electricity was generated. The sharply cut space had become a vacuum, preventing mana from moving.

The moment he realized this, a sharp sensation flew towards his neck.

‘If I hadn't twisted my body, my neck would have been cut, not just my skin.’

The slit area throbbed with a burning sensation.

“You couldn’t even finish that?”

“There’s no bigger idiot.”

“Shut up!”

The axe pervert and spear pervert teased the sword pervert. The pervert with the sword ground his teeth and glared at Piontek.

“To bring such shame upon me, I will burn even your ashes.”

“That will never happen. Because I will kill you before that.”

Piontek recited the fundamentals to himself and took his stance.

‘I don’t need a single blow. I just need to block that guy and break his balance.’

He had no need to rashly attack the sword pervert. All he had to do was deliver death one way or another.

Fwarururuk!

A wider and thicker fire than before flared up.

Piontek saw the perverts smiling viciously beyond his blurred vision. They were checking their weapons and preparing their movements.

“Adellian.”

Piontek signaled to Adellian that the time for a joint attack had come.

Adellian nodded and took a step back. Then, thinking of Aquoris, she summoned a denser aura of water than before.

Kaang!

The sword pervert, covered in flames, let out a bizarre laugh and unleashed a sword strike.

Piontek twisted his body, deflecting the guy’s sword.

“Talking about being the best swordsman and all, is this all you’ve got?”

The opponent’s taunts continued.

But Piontek ignored them. Instead, he threw his body and rammed into the sword pervert’s back.

“Now!”

He shouted as soon as he saw the pervert’s footwork get tangled.

Adellian raised her sword and rushed at the pervert.

“You damn vermin!”

The sword pervert screamed and spewed a huge flame.

At that moment, Adellian’s sword drew a powerful stream of water and struck down the fire.

The water crumpled the flame and soaked the pervert’s body.

“Worthless bastards, is this all you’ve got?”

The pervert, seeing his power was still intact, smirked and turned his sword. The pervert’s water-soaked sword glinted in the light of the fire.

Piontek’s eyes flashed.

“No! This is it!”

Piontek’s sword struck the pervert’s sword.

Zzzzzzt!

Electricity danced on the pervert’s sword. Then, the vast amount of mana lingering nearby rushed towards the sword-wielding pervert. Mana collided with mana, creating a large amount of electricity. The electricity added its power to more electricity, and the combined electricity boasted immense strength.

“Kkeuaaak!”

A desperate and agonizing sound, as if his blood was boiling, poured out of the pervert’s mouth.

“Those bastards!”

The axe pervert and spear pervert tried to rush to help their comrade. But Odekerkh was not just watching. He created a mire, binding their feet. Then, borrowing the power of trees, he stabbed their legs with sharp branches.

“Piontek! One more time!”

Adellian, reading the confusion of the remaining enemies, shouted for an additional attack.

Piontek, who had used his strength to the limit, wiped the blood trickling from his mouth and grabbed his sword. Then, glaring at the enemy, he clutched his heart where his mana Circle was.

“Ughhh!”

He screamed from the pain, as if his heart was about to tear, and summoned lightning.

“Don’t make me laugh!”

The axe pervert tried to evade the attack by cutting off his own trapped foot.

“You’re the one who’s funny.”

A green light flashed in Michelle’s eyes. The arrows she shot aimed precisely for the axe pervert’s eye and the spear pervert’s neck with a fiercer momentum than before.

Thud!

The dull sound of an arrow embedding itself.

Bright red blood splattered where the lightning had missed. A fist-sized hole appeared around the axe pervert’s eye, and the spear pervert’s neck was half torn off, as if ripped by a wild beast.

And so, the hot lives of the pervert trio grew cold.

“Cough!”

Piontek coughed up blood and collapsed on the spot. Adellian and Odekerkh also lay on the ground, panting heavily. Michelle, with her trembling hands dangling, stared at the place where Maxim had been.

“To where His Highness is…”

Michelle, with a nosebleed, collapsed forward.