How to Survive at the Academy - Chapter 25

Chapter 25: Glasskan Subjugation Expedition (5)
Takan’s roar traveled all throughout the vast corridor of Nail Hall.
The sound was sharp like a knife, enough to cut through one’s eardrums and make everyone swallow their saliva dry.
The vanguard leading the way into battle inside the corridor was Gloomy Clevius.
“Whatever! I don’t care! This is the end of my life!”
He was the top student among the first-years of the Combat Department.
Clevius was prone to saying ominous things and was always complaining. Coupled with his gloomy appearance, one couldn’t help but think of him as someone who’s rather pathetic. However, he was actually pretty resilient in a crisis.
Even with how cowardly he tended to act, he was still able to take the top spot in the Combat Department’s first-year students. Although, strangely, he was unsure of his own skills. Maybe it was due to his past, maybe an unfortunate family upbringing or history, but whatever the case, it wasn’t what was important right now.
What was important was that he was able to withstand attacks at a level that anyone would be in shock of.
“Waaaaaaaah!”
He had one of his arms in a splint due to a fracture, but Clevius was running across the corridor of Nail Hall as if it was nothing.
Nail Hall was one of the three buildings in the Student Center. It was used as a venue for various assemblies and was also often used as a training field. It was properly managed as it was a building where crowds of people would come and go all year round. To prove this fact, not a speck of dust could be seen on the marble floor of the whole corridor which stretched all the way out.
At the end of the corridor, about fifty meters ahead, was a large door that led to the Combat Training Field. It was where the first-years and second-years held their Joint Combat Training class every year. That majestic door that would normally welcome any student in Silvenia was now being blocked by a massive burning lizard.
Just looking into its eyes would flood the fear of the previously attempted subjugation attempt.
Takan slowly stood up, letting out a rather sharp ear-shattering roar. Fear began to take over Clevius the minute he saw Takan, his legs trembling.
“WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!”
Clevius clenched his teeth as he managed to get his trembling body under control. All of his senses were screaming at him to run away, but he knew there was no positive outcome if he were to throw everything away here.
Fortunately, he had companions with him. He didn’t need to deal with the overwhelming fear by himself. There was Ed Rothstaylor, who was, for some reason, overflowing with confidence while still remaining calm. There was also Lortel Kehelland, who was always able to stay cool-headed regardless of the crisis at hand. They were extremely different people compared to Clevius, who was prime to making a fuss and getting scared of even the smallest of crises.
Clevius didn’t think any of them would be able to deal any significant damage to Takan, but at least he didn’t have to enter this hell alone. The fact that he wasn’t alone served as solace in this hopeless situation
“It’s coming! The battle is starting! Now what…?!”
As he saw Takan run towards him, the burning lizard spirit looking like it was going to devour him, Clevius looked back at his teammates to ask about the plan.
But nobody was there.
Clevius didn’t look back when he ran as fast as he could. He couldn’t afford to pay attention to anything because he was in a state of panic, running with all of his strength.
The corridor of Nail Hall stretched out far, and his teammates who should’ve been running with him weren’t there at all.
A cold sweat ran down Clevius’s back.
“I got tricked! You tricked me!”
Clevius screamed, almost in tears.
“HEY, YOU CRAZY SHITS! HEY! WHERE ARE YOU?! COME OUT! WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO?! OF ALL PEOPLE, WHY DO I HAVE TO BE THE SACRIFICE, HUH?! IF WE WERE GOING TO DO THIS, WE SHOULD HAVE JUST SENT TAYLEE! HE ALREADY VOLUNTEERED ANYWAY! SO WHY ME?! AHHHHHHHHHHH!”
Clevius continued to scream in the most pathetic way as he ran like crazy, leaving Takan behind.
If he knew this was going to happen, he shouldn’t have trusted that damn Ed Rothstaylor. Clevius would’ve persuaded Princess Penia, even if it meant hitting the floor and throwing a tantrum like an immature child.
He blamed himself for believing in the commanding presence of Princess Penia and following this plan she approved of.
“WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME?! AGHK! I HATE YOU! I HATE THIS WORLD! SAVE ME! PLEASE, I’M SORRY! AGHHH!”
Clevius running away with tears in his eyes was truly a pitiful sight.
* * *
“Act like we’re going to enter with him, and once Clevius is focused on Takan, we will run out of there. He wouldn’t agree to this if we just tell him since he’s such a scaredy-cat. That’s why it’s necessary we do it like this.”
The light of dawn was rising from the east. This long night would soon come to an end.
Lortel slowly closed her eyes only to open them again. She was in a corner of the Student Square where she could see the three large buildings: Nail Hall, which Clevius entered, the half-collapsed Glockt Hall in front of it, and right next to it was Obell hall, which Ed Rothstaylor just ran into.
Pulling her full focus, she gathered all the magic power in her whole body.
Her conversation with Ed a while ago played in her head again.
“The first step is to make Clevius enter Nail Hall’s corridor.”
“So you were just going to sacrifice Clevius in the end. It might not be a bad move, but morally speaking, criticism is inevitable.”
“I wouldn’t have said anything if it was such a one-dimensional plan.”
Lortel focused on Clevius’s screaming in the corridor, the sound ringing in her ears.
“You have the most important role, Lortel. You’ll be in charge of securing the entrance for the other group who will defeat Yennekar. You’ll also be in charge of dealing the fatal blow to Takan.”
There was no hint of hesitation in any of what Ed Rothstaylor said. In the midst of this confusing, chaotic, and urgent situation, he had no hesitation in making decisions. He had complete confidence in his own plans.
Lortel closed her eyes.
She had experienced countless crises since she was young, having been in business from an early age
The reason a crisis was a crisis was because it was unexpected. From paperwork crises in logistics like the halt of distribution or an issue with the cash flow at a store, to a practical crisis like a business competitor’s secret or scheme.
From Lortel’s experience, she knew very well that a crisis was a unique opportunity that gave insight into a human’s true nature, as well as their worst qualities.
She thought back to Ziggs just before he left the camp earlier.
In an unpredictable crisis, he was disillusioned by his selfishness prioritizing his own emotions.
She also remembered how Princess Penia helped Ziggs.
She despised the fact that this person, who was supposed to be firmer and stronger than anyone else, made such a poor decision.
A person who was truly trustworthy was one who looked for the answer in a time of unexpected crisis, while still holding strong to their beliefs. Someone who wasn’t swallowed by fear or swayed by their emotions. And they should be someone who would never doubt their own beliefs.
“The most urgent thing we need to do is to send the group that will defeat Yennekar into the Combat Practice Field. We can worry about how we can defeat Takan after. So make sure to focus on listening. When you think Takan is far away enough, destroy the wall next to the field to let them in.”
The key was to keep Takan and Velosper apart.
The worst possible outcome would be to deal with both of them at the same time.
“Whew… Well… I think he’s showing off a bit too much…”
Lortel was originally in a position of directing others rather than receiving orders.
But currently, she was only a first-year student. Not only that, but she was also in the same class as someone from the royal family.
At Elte Company, Lortel had a quite high position that even old merchants would bow their heads toward her.
She was someone who made her living in business, so she never had to be in an academic setting until now.
But although she entered Silvenia out of a ‘necessity’, the essence shouldn’t have had to change.
A fallen noble. A person on the edge of a cliff with nothing left.
She didn’t have to listen to the orders of such a person.
However, Ed Rothstaylor’s words had a strange sense of conviction.
He had confidence that they would overcome this crisis as long as they followed his plan. This crisis that even a monarch like Princess Penia was struggling with.
The tone of his voice that had no ounce of doubt made it seem like he had already experienced countless crises.
Just what was Ed Rothstaylor’s worst quality?
He returned Lortel’s three gold coins when he shook her hand.
“Hmm…”
As someone who lived in the slums before being picked up by The Golden King Elte, Lortel knew the mindset of someone pushed into a corner.
She fully understood just how great of a temptation even a single gold coin was to a person who couldn’t guarantee to live another day.
“Well, I don’t think I’m the type of person to jump to conclusions just by hearing mere rumors.”
Lortel had a giant ice spear floating above her head. No matter how good Clevius was at taking hits or how fast his reaction speed was, Takan would eventually end up catching up.
The only way was the aggressive decision to break down the walls of Nail Hall, walls that boasted a long history.
It was quite a simple plan, but it wasn’t a plan that would come to mind easily.
They were students who usually walked around the academic district and visited the Student Center as if it was their own home.
The magnificent Nail Hall was among the academy’s pride and was a landmark that represented the Student Center.
They never even considered or thought of it, taking it for granted, as it was a permanent part of their environment. To destroy it with their own hands was something they would have never thought of.
But then, wasn’t Glockt Hall already destroyed? No matter how many years a building has stood for, it could never take precedence over a person’s life.
These types of drastic decisions were needed in such a large crisis. It’s just a building. They could just rebuild it. Either way, Takan was already going crazy inside anyway, so it probably already suffered a lot of damage.
Who would be responsible for such destruction? This wasn’t the time to be afraid of such things, but for inexperienced students, making these types of valid judgments was outside of their jurisdiction.
The magnificent Student Center was the academy’s treasure, it shouldn’t be damaged so recklessly. In this situation, one wouldn’t normally be able to make the best judgments, trapped by these rules and way of thinking.
But if there was a fire in your home, you would have to break the window to escape. No matter how expensive the stained glass may be, no matter how valuable a piece of art might be, you would have to break that window without hesitation and escape. Destroying an old building like this, Lortel should have nothing to worry about.
“I can’t believe I will destroy Nail Hall with my own hands. When else would I experience something like this?”
But then again, Lortel had already blown off the roof of Nail Hall once.
Having thought this far, she finally understood what Ed meant before he left for Obel Hall.
“You’re good at this type of stuff.”
Lortel chuckled. Ed Rothstaylor really was quite an interesting guy.
When this crisis is over, should she go and strike a casual conversation with him?
BANG!!!
Lortel smashed her ice spear into the outer wall of Nail Hall, nearest to the Combat Practice Field.
Dust rose as the thick wall collapsed.
She smiled neatly as she saw the other group waiting on the outskirts of the Student Square.
Everyone’s puzzled expression was quite memorable. Anyhow, their entry point had been secured.
The only thing left to do was take care of Takan.
They just had to buy enough time so the other group could defeat Yennekar. It was obvious what she needed to do now.
“If we do something about its scales, then your magic will become effective against Takan. I’ll take responsibility and figured out what to do about the scales, so just gather all the magic power you have and cast the strongest ice magic possible then.”
Lortel became quite curious about this guy who gave such straight-to-the-point instructions.
The possibility was slim, but perhaps, she had found someone just like her. Her heart would’ve skipped a beat if that were the case, but she wasn’t immature enough to get excited over such a slim possibility.
Lortel quietly began to gather her magic as she watched the group in charge of defeating Yennekar enter the Combat Practice Field.
This was a thousand times better than the commands of that princess who was still naive and easily swayed. Ed’s was an unfounded conviction that it would all work out. And if this was the wrong way, then it would all be useless. But at least, right now, it didn’t feel that way at all.
“KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! LORTEL! I’M GOING TO KILL YOU ALL! I WON’T LEAVE YOU ALONE!”
Clevius screamed as he ran out of Nail Hall, Takan almost catching up to him, on the verge of eating him whole.
“NEVER MIND! I’M GOING TO DIE! IT’S TOO DANGEROUS! SAVE ME! I’M SORRY! I’M SORRY I SAID I WOULD KILL YOU! I’LL FORGIVE ALL OF YOU! JUST PLEASE SAVE ME!”
Watching him scream in a pathetic manner, Lortel gathered all the magic power in her body.
* * *

* * *
BANG!!!
Obel Hall was located on the southwest side of the Student Square. It was a building that Princess Penia would frequently visit when she become the Student Council president. It was full of privately owned rooms used as warehouses, along with conference facilities for the Student Council. It was a place of no importance right now, located outside of the current story.
As I ran up the stairs like crazy, I could see the outer wall of Nail Hall collapsing outside the window.
Lortel was able to secure the entry point as Clevius ran away in fear. Then I saw the group in charge of defeating Yennekar entering the Combat Practice Field. Having confirmed that everything was going according to plan, I continued my climb up the stairs.
Act 1’s finale has finally entered Phase 4. The Glasskan summoning ceremony was near completion, and the sun would soon rise in the sky from the east. I thought this would be our last chance. If we were to fail in defeating Yennekar here, then everything that would happen afterward would completely be unknown territory.
This was such a crazy situation, the Takan and Velosper battles happening at the same time.
It’s completely arrogant to have a fair fight against Takan without Elemental Slash.
It would be like trying to burn a person to death when that person was wearing two or three layers of fireproof clothing.
It might be possible to inflict a light burn or have them faint, but if you wanted to completely burn them to death, then there was no choice but to overwhelm them with firepower, or even use magma.
But there wasn’t a member among the subjugation team capable of doing that.
Among the subjugation team.
BANG!
I kicked open the door to Obel Hall’s roof. The view of the entire rooftop greeted me… and a familiar witch hat caught my eyes.
I would have stopped by Obell Hall first thing if I had the time, but I had to let the group in charge of defeating Yennekar in first because the summoning ceremony was just about completed. But it’s a good thing I got to the roof of Obell Hall just in time to see this girl here. Everything would be okay now.
If we were to discuss the method on how we should break through Takan’s scales, we would have to go against the story of Act 1’s finale. Instead, we would have to look at the first part of the strategy guide.
■ Phase 1: Gathering your subjugation force
Achievement Conditions:
Please gather these characters at the Student Square!
‘The Princess of Benevolence Penia’
‘The Spear from Nature Ziggs’
‘The Golden Daughter Lortel’
‘Companion Ayla’
‘Nosy Elvira’
‘Gloomy Clevius’
For additional achievements, also gather:
‘Romantic Adele’
‘Lazy Lucy’
‘Senior Maid Bell’
※ Meeting the additional achievement conditions only give a little bit of Likeability for each character. The characters will not participate in the subjugation. But try to meet ‘Romantic Adele’ since she gives a useful buff for attacking the boss later on.
If you’re trying to 100% clear the stage: Adele can be found playing ukelele in the grass behind the Western Archery Center, Lucy can be found taking a nap on the roof of Obel Hall, and Bell can be found next to a statue in Olin Square.
There were barely any players who wanted to clear the additional achievements during the finale’s Phase 1. The chapter was already short on time and finding the additional characters didn’t mean they would participate in the subjugation, nor was the achievement itself that great in the first place. Additional achievements such as this were usually treated as useless content.
But as I had already cleared this stage countless times, I already knew where the additional achievements were hiding. And I knew that among them was a weapon that would completely overturn the flow of the story.
In front of me was a ‘grenade’ that could even break through the scales of Takan.
A girl who was able to sleep through the ongoing crisis.
A spear that would break through any shield no matter how thick it might be.
If you were going against something irrational, then there was no choice but to counter it with something irrational yourself. If someone wasn’t playing fair, then that leaves you no choice but to not play fair as well.
I hadn’t completely finished training yet. And my advantage of knowing insider information wouldn’t enable me to defeat Takan.
But there was no reason to be upset. This side was in desperate need as well.
BANG!
I jumped over the handrail and hurriedly picked up Lucy. She was so light that even the piles of firewood I carried every day seemed heavier.
“Eh? Huh? Eghk?”
This girl was taking a pleasant evening nap while the entire academic district was being destroyed. There should be a limit to how lucky someone can be.
“W-What? Ugh, so shaky… Uhhh…”
It wasn’t even daytime anymore. It was already nighttime. This couldn’t even be considered a nap at this point. I wanted to ask her why she’d been sleeping for so long, but the reason was pretty obvious so I didn’t.
For Lazy Lucy, sleeping was a means to restore her power. And given how she ran away from the senior maid Bell last night, she consumed an enormous amount of mana and had not lost her energy.
She used such high-ranking spatial-type magic with quick casting. It allowed her to skip the chanting altogether, and came all the way from Ophelis Hall to the northern forest. The only reason she ran out of magic power was because she did something this crazy. She needed to take a break if she wanted to recover that huge amount of mana back.
It was very like her to be sleeping on the rooftop of Obel hall, but now is not the time to sleep.
Besides, how many pieces of my jerky had she already eaten? She even ended up breaking my drying rack, something I had painstakingly made. She had to do something in return for it. There was no such thing as a free lunch in this world.
But I’m not that cold-hearted. I took out the leather bag from the reading room and opened it. It was full of strips of jerky.
“Hmm… Jerky…? Something smells like jerky.”
She was still half-asleep, so she didn’t seem like she was conscious just yet. And yet she could still smell the jerky like some ghost.
I grabbed a handful of the dried meat and stuffed it into Lucy’s small mouth.
“Eughk–! Eugh–!”
“Eat a lot.”
I then picked Lucy up once again and jumped over the railing once more.
“Mughk! Mudhka!”
‘My jaw hurts! Too much!’
At least, that’s what she sounded like.
I could see the high-ranking fire spirit Takan over the handrail. And running away while crying from it was Clevius, who was excellently performing his part. Meanwhile, I could barely see Lortel, who seemed to be casting the largest ice spear she had ever made.
Lucy’s magic power probably hasn’t fully recovered yet since her capacity to store mana was as deep and vast as the sea. It was likely she had only been able to recover a small portion of it.
But that should be enough. Just like how Takan’s existence was irrational, Lucy herself was also an irrational existence.
“Once you’re done eating, I need you to take care of that thing’s scales!”
“W-What?”
I positioned Lucy properly. She couldn’t say anything properly because of all the jerky stuck in her mouth.
Good thing the target was a lizard on fire, so we could clearly see it even in the dark.
Would this distance be enough?
There was nothing to worry about. I had already done this a bunch of times in the military.
First, check the target.
Second, remove the safety clip.
Lastly, take out the safety pin and throw it!
“Everyone! Get down!”
I shouted with a voice so loud it spread across the Student Center.
Then, I threw Lucy over the railing using all of my strength, straight to where Takan was visible.
“Muumama!”
Lucy screamed, finally awake.
“Mahfahaf Mafmad-!”
I think she said, ‘This is too much!’
Sorry, Lucy. But from my point of view, this was the only way out.
Lucy’s screams, impeded by her mouthful of jerky, slowly echoed across the Student Square the farther she got away.
This is too much– too much– too much–
There was a moment of silence as Lucy sailed across the sky.
And then–
BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG!
It was the high-ranking lightning magic Divine Judgment.
The lightning magic spread around Lucy, covering the entire field. The shock happened in an instant, leaving behind a huge gust of wind that I had to hold onto the railing for support as it flew by.
“Hah!”
Now that its scales have been blown away, us alone should be enough to take Takan down.
I stood and climbed back onto the railing.
It was about time to wrap things up.
All this while, I’d been worried my plan would fail, but having come this far, there was only one important thing left.
It might sound a bit selfish considering the situation, but this was a serious matter.
Takan was a high-ranking fire spirit. The amount of spirit-type experience I would get should be enormous… I couldn’t let this go to waste!
This was, somehow, the most important moment.
“Last hit…!”
Last hit!
I needed to get the last hit!
I wouldn’t give this up!
I quickly ran to the side of the Student Square where Lortel and Clevius were.
* * *
“I’m so proud of you, my beloved daughter, Yennekar.”
“I’m so proud to be your friend, Yennekar.”
“You’re the hope of the second-years. You were the only one who properly showed off your skills this Joint Combat Practice.”
“Of course, you can trust Yennekar.”
“Without you, us second-years would be the worst year. I’m glad you’re here, Yennekar.”
The memories leaking into her consciousness made her heart ache.
Beyond the collapsed wall of Obel Hall, the sky had gradually begun to brighten.
In the young girl’s eyes, the twinkling stars had disappeared like melting snow.
She couldn’t help but sneer at herself as she witnessed such sentimental scenery.
The number of students who came to defeat her was not as large as she had expected.
She quietly stood up from chatting a choral song in the middle of the Combat Training Field.
The oak wand she always carried was now stained black.
The eyes of the spirits protecting her were different from usual. They were glaring. And those who saw it couldn’t help but have their hairs stand on end.
Hidden among the many fluid spirits, the low-ranking spirits, and the spiritual spirits… the young girl who was chanting a spell slowly glanced back.
Shedding tears, she looked for the face of a certain boy.
But that boy wasn’t there. That was an obvious fact.
The faces of the students who came to stop her were all stiff.
Velosper’s curse had embroidered itself all over her body like chains that bind her. She gave a regretful smile and quietly kept on reciting the mantra.
“Welcome.”
Act 1 Finale’s final battle.
The subjugation of Yennekar Palerover.
Sadly, there wasn’t much time left to talk things out with each othe