“Why did you do it?”
Linus grumbled.
“I could’ve solved the situation by myself. You didn’t need to interfere.”
Julien listened without saying a single word.
“Is it because of what you’ve seen last time? The situation is different. If I wanted to, I could probably beat him. I just need a little bit more time. You didn’t have to interfere. Now all you’re doing is starting rumors.”
Linus continued to pile up excuse after excuse.
“…Next time, mind your own business.”
He seemed somewhat desperate.
“Are you even listening to me? Do you even care about what I say?”
“Why aren’t you speaking? I told you not to interfere next time. Let me handle my matters on my own.”
||
“Say something! Why aren’t you speaking?”
“Something.”
Linus’s steps came to a sudden stop when he heard Julien’s response. With open eyes, he looked at him.
“Seriously?”
“….You asked me to say that.”
“You’re so immature.”
“If that makes you feel better.”
Tsk-Linus clicked his tongue and looked back. Their group was following from behind, keeping a certain distance from them. Linus could feel their resentful gazes and could only silently curse his own brother.
‘If only he didn’t interfere.’
Did he really think he needed babying?
No, in the first place, why was his brother even helping him? It was strange. He wouldn’t normally do this. Was he doing this to take care of his own image?
“Ukh-!”
Jolting him out of his thought was a sudden, yet painful tap on his head. When Linus looked up, he saw Julien staring in the direction of the Mirror Crack.
“Get your team ready. We’ll be leaving shortly.”
“Ah, but…”
“Get it sorted.”
Julien then proceeded to walk ahead to where the Professors were. Around them were several other groups that were being called up one by one.
Linus could only watch as his brother departed before turning around and staring at his group. With just one look, Linus understood that the situation wasn’t looking good.
Holding his breath, he silently cursed.
‘Bastard.’
***
The task that was assigned to us was rather simple. ‘Act as the first-year cadet’s guardians while they complete their task.’
Given how shorthanded the staff was, they decided to delegate the task to us. Given our current strength, which was higher than several of the first-year Professors, delegating the task to us seemed appropriate.
“Make sure you don’t wander outside of the safe zone. Their task should be simple. Let them complete the task without interfering. Only do so when the situation calls for it. Otherwise, it wouldn’t really be much of a training task for them.”
“I get it.”
I wasn’t planning on interfering anyway.
At least, not when it came to important decisions. There was a reason why I let Linus be the team’s captain. In that regard, I did interfere, but it wasn’t because he was my brother.
It wasn’t because of blood.
I made him the captain because he was smart enough to be one. Plus, if he couldn’t even solve a situation such as this, then I was simply overrating his capabilities.
Turning over to look at Linus who was standing by himself, I quietly remained where I was.
‘….Can you adapt?’
“Oh, right.”
Turning my head to look back at the Professor, he pointed in a certain direction.
“Since you’re one of the higher-ranked cadets, take him with you as well.”
When I looked in the direction of where the Professor was pointing at, my brow raised.
“Since he’s a transfer student he doesn’t know much about how the environment within the Academy’s Mirror Crack. Furthermore, with his capabilities, I’m sure things will be easier for
you.”
“Oh… yes.”
Though I nodded, I wasn’t sure how to feel.
Staring at the gray-eyed figure who was looking around with a lost look, I silently hissed.
‘Leon Jr…’
*
There were times when the Mirror Cracks around the world became unstable. This wasn’t a strange phenomenon, but each time it happened, serious trouble would come.
What did the changes entail?
I wasn’t really aware until I stepped into the Mirror Crack.
“Cold~”
My skin stung.
“…Hoo, it’s so hard to breathe.”
There was little oxygen in the air.
“Why is it so dark?”
And the usual white sun that once hung in the sky now sagged low, hiding behind the jagged peaks of the North, its feeble light barely enough to cast a fleeting, mournful glow across the
fading world.
It was different.
…But that wasn’t all.
“Awooo~”
Behind the walls of the supply stations, the heartwrenching, deranged howls of the ‘children’ echoed relentlessly. Rumble- The walls shook as a claw suddenly clamped the top of one of
the walls.
“Block it!”
“….Take care of it quickly.”
While the camp was alarmed, nobody was panicking. The monster was a mere Junior ranked
one.
It was something the first years could take care of.
“As you can see, there’s a reason why we need you second years to supervise the first years. We’re quite busy here. The monsters within this area shouldn’t be any higher than Junior ranked which is something you all should be able to handle without any problems.” Stopping by one of the tents of the safe station, the Professor turned around and addressed all
of us with a serious expression.
“If on the off-chance that a Terror-ranked creature does show up, I’m also confident you will be able to handle it. Of course, I don’t suggest you take care of it, but you should at least be
able to retreat without any worries.”
Terror rank?
…Thinking about it, I could probably handle it without too much trouble.
If it was just holding them back that was. Defeating a Terror-ranked monster? I wasn’t so sure. It really depended on the type and how close it was to the Destroyer rank which shouldn’t be anywhere near this place.
‘And even if they do show up, they’ll probably be noticed by the higher-ups within the Safe Station.’
“I’ll let you all make the final arrangements now. You have about thirty minutes before the gates of the station will open. If you need to gather some supplies or need to discuss strategies, do so now before it’s too late. Points will be deducted by your guardian if you make such mistakes.”
When all was said and done, the Professor nodded satisfactorily and proceeded to enter the
tent.
Staring at his departing back, I turned around to look at my assigned group.
Counting Linus, there were a total of five members. I didn’t quite know their names but the composition wasn’t very balanced. In the entire team, there were only two mages with the
rest being [Body] users.
Only Jacob and Linus were multi-talented users.
Following the two of them there was an elemental user specialized in the [Ice] element. She was a young girl with long silky black hair that was tied in a ponytail. Alongside her was another girl with short blonde hair and green eyes. She was a [Body] user who specialized in
stealth and speed.
Lastly, the last member of the team was a spear user. He was tall and lanky, his height
towering over me as well.
There was a clear divide between the group but I didn’t care.
“You heard the Professor.”
Shifting my attention towards the current Black Star, the one who was the least pleased by the
arrangement, I found my tone lowering.
“…Don’t play any tricks while I’m watching. I won’t hesitate to deduct points from your team.
If it’s just like what you said before, I’m sure you can put your ego aside when it matters the
most, right?” Jacob’s brow raised upon hearing those words.
He looked surprised by the fact that I had heard his words, but how could I not when he was
being so loud?
“Can you do that?”
||
||
Jacob’s jaw visibly clenched, but eventually, with a low sigh, he nodded his head.
“Yes.”
He then turned his attention towards Linus.
“What should we do?”
“Eh?”
Perhaps not expecting this sort of reaction, Linus flicked his head in my direction but I
ignored it.
I wasn’t the team leader.
…And I was also impressed by this Black Star’s attitude.
‘I guess he didn’t become the Black Star for no reason.’
He was arrogant but he knew when to put his arrogance down. That was a very nice skill to
have. At least, this was how it seemed on the surface.
Whether he could keep his arrogance in check, was for Linus to find out later.
For now, there was a bigger problem that I was supposed to handle. Narrowing my eyes, I
turned to my right where Amell was standing.
“…Yes?”
Noticing my gaze, he tilted his head.
I stared at his face for a good minute before closing my eyes.
“As expected…”
“…It must run in the family.”
“??”
“Stupid looking…”
***
Before being let out, the cadets were all given a small bracelet that would count the number
of points they collected. Points were assigned based on the number of monsters they
managed to kill and what their rank was.
Naturally, the higher the rank, the greater the points.
Kurukuru Ku…
A rattling sound echoed in the air and a wave of cold air plunged through the supply station.
Linus’s hair and clothes fluttered.
He stood at the front while his group stood behind him.
While they all were silent, Linus could feel their displeasure. However, despite their
displeasure, they all stood behind him without saying a word.
Why was that?
There was only one reason.
‘It’s because of him.’
From the corner of his eye, Linus caught a glimpse of a figure. His gaze was icy, his back
unnervingly straight. Yet, even in his stillness, there was an oppressive weight to his presence
-one that crushed the air around them, towering over all, as if the very ground beneath their
feet quaked in his shadow.
His words alone silenced their protests.
‘…Why is he doing this?’
Even now, Linus was confused by his brother’s interference. He couldn’t understand why he
would do all of this.
Was it so that he could watch him humiliate himself in front of everyone? No… how could that
be?
If he performed badly, it would also reflect on him as his brother.
So what was it…?
Why was he doing this?
“The gates have opened! You may go! The points will be tracked in real-time. The team with
the highest score will win!”
A voice boomed and Linus snapped out of his thoughts.
Shifting his thoughts away from Julien, he took a quiet breath and stepped forward.
While he still didn’t know why his brother had made him become the leader, Linus wasn’t
planning on wasting the opportunity.
Dashing forward, he quickly left the tall walls of the supply stations.
He only had one goal in all of this.
Reach first place.