REAPER SCANS
[The Legendary Hero is an Academy Honor Student]
[Translator – Aine ]
[Proofreader – Ash ]
Chapter 10
Gullivan was confident he would pass the exam.
After all, he had managed to endure without being eliminated thus far.
He’d joined a strong party, as well.
The reason for his survival was straightforward.
The first group of candidates he encountered had decided to work together to fend off monsters.
He had stuck with them ever since.
Even better, the party's abilities were exceptional.
Particularly in dealing with trolls.
In a previous battle, Gullivan had managed to kill a troll on his own with a Fireball.
‘Quite impressive, if I do say so myself.’
He internally patted himself on the back.
But deep down, he knew it was all mostly luck.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
Gullivan's scream pierced the air.
Screeeeeeeeeech
The party leader, his arm already halfway chewed apart, quickly shattered his bead, escaping from the Hero’s World, leaving the rest behind.
Suddenly, a deafening roar echoed through the area.
It was the first time Gullivan had encountered such a monstrous creature.
It was a giant spider with ten grotesquely bent legs, save the front two.
A mangled body, spewing a chunky thread.
And a head half-torn apart, bizarrely crushed.
Despite its horrifying appearance, however, the creature was very much alive.
Screeeeeeeeeech
"F-fireball!"
He shouted, hastily casting his spell.
Boom! Boom!
The fireball struck the spider's face.
"Hahaha! How's that for a taste of my Fireball?" he boasted.
Gullivan clenched his fist, basking in his own glory.
But his confidence quickly evaporated as the spider emerged unscathed from the attack.
To Gullivan's horror, it seemed to have no effect.
Screeeeeech
"Ugh! Argh! Argh!"
Terrified, Gullivan turned and fled as the enraged spider lunged towards him.
The knights among the group attempted to fend off the spider, but their efforts proved futile against its overwhelming strength.
Thwack! Clang!
Screeeeeeeech
But it was all in vain compared to the spider’s force.
This arachnid foe was impossible for them to defeat.
"H-how the hell do we defeat this thing?" one of the students cried out in desperation.
Trembling, Gullivan retrieved the blue bead with trembling fingers.
‘I-I need to escape…ha, but if anyone can just defeat that spider, I might just pass the exam!’
He was torn between the desire to escape and the hope that someone else would defeat the spider and allow him to pass the test.
Just then—
"Wind Fang."
A powerful gust of wind descended from the sky.
Booooooom!
Screeeeeeeeech--!
The wind's fury pierced the spider's back.
Dark purple blood sprayed the landscape.
Screeeeeeeeech--!
Though the wound healed almost instantly, the sight left everyone in awe.
"...What a monster."
Abad remarked with a furrowed brow, hovering in the air.
Flutter, flutter
This time, the flames descended, coalescing into a single point.
Celia, gathering the flame of her Aura onto a rapier, hurdled her sword against the monster with determination.
Crunch!
Screeeeeeeeech--!
The spider let out a piercing scream and flung its front legs in pain.
Swiftly dodging its counterattack, Celia landed on the ground.
"Tcht! Is it healing already?”
Celia and Abad, having rushed to the scene upon hearing the scream, immediately launched their attacks against the spider.
Yet, despite their combined magical and Aura-infused assaults, the spider remained unscathed.
"I've never encountered a monster like this before."
"Perhaps it's from Tartaros," Celia speculated as she readied her Flame Storm once more.
"This must also be part of the test," Abad mused.
"Huh? So, you think defeating this creature is the key to conquering this World?"
Abad's lips curved into a smile.
With his cane, he began to inscribe runes in the air.
Suddenly, he was surrounded by swirling wind magic.
Startled by the sight, Celia summoned her Aura.
‘I knew the competition would eventually resume…’
If defeating the giant spider was indeed a task engineered by the exam, of course Abad would try to beat her to it.
Until now, cooperation had been paramount, but now it was back to being every candidate for themselves.
Crackle, whoosh!
A determined glint flashed through her red eyes.
Celia gathered her flaming Aura at the tip of her sword, Flame Storm, pulling her left arm back as she prepared to strike.
Crack!
Her feet planted firmly, she focused her energy for her ultimate attack.
‘Prominence!’
It was the most powerful attack Celia could muster, channeling all her Aura into a single point.
Crackle…CRASH!
The blade of her scarlet sword was unleashed, piercing through the spider's half-torn head, into its core.
Screeeeeeeeech
The flame penetrated the creature, piercing through to its abdomen.
"Alright! No matter how resilient you are, this should be enough..."
Crash! Crash!
Screeeeech!
“No way!”
The giant spider rose once more with a piercing scream.
"It was a formidable attack, but..."
Abad, floating in the air, smiled knowingly.
"There is a clear difference between the destructive power of a knight and a sorcerer."
He spread his hands as he prepared to deliver the finishing blow.
"Rafale."
The arcane magic of the Lewellin family.
A gust of wind enveloped the spider.
Screeeeee!
"Oh, is this the magic of a sorcerer our age?"
The other candidates caught in the wind were left astonished.
‘Done.’
Abad looked lovingly over his work.
But...
“No?”
His magic had been dispelled, and the giant spider appeared once more.
Though his gusts tore through its body, the spider quickly regenerated.
Although Abad had unleashed the most powerful attack of them all, it seemed to have been ineffective against the resilient creature.
Celia's frustration was evident on her face.
"How do we defeat this thing?"
* * *
"What incredible talent the Zerdinger and Lewellin representatives possess! Such powerful attacks at their age!" the aide exclaimed.
"They've chosen competition over cooperation."
A hint of satisfaction playing on Albi’s lips.
It was not a bad mindset to strive to be the best.
Celia and Abad were undoubtedly skilled…
“But will they be able to take down the monster alone?”
A creature that regenerated infinitely couldn't be defeated without a decisive strike.
Celia and Abad were the only ones that possessed the ability to land a viable attack against the monster.
Yet even they seemed inadequate.
‘True heroes overcome such trials.’
* * *
Reaper Scans
[Translator – Aine]
[Proofreader – Ash]
Join our discord for updates on releases! https://dsc.gg/reapercomics
* * *
‘Just as I thought.’
Leo’s eyes gleamed as he observed Celia and Abad.
‘The Spider Princess, Tarantulia..."
Leo had suspected the monster's identity when he saw the state of the defeated troll bodies.
The patterns on their remains reminded him of the way that Tarantulia fed.
Ruler of the cursed Wild Forest and daughter of the witch queen Sillatna.
Tarantulia had once been a fearsome and formidable threat capable of single-handedly destroying a country.
However, time had taken its toll.
Her body was tattered, barely maintaining its original form.
And her half-torn head exuded an eerie aura.
Compared to her prime, Tarantulia was now a mere shadow of her former self.
‘And, just as I thought, the power lying in Albi’s left eye is the magic of the fairy king.’
Fairies.
A high-ranking race, on par and coexisting with the Elves since ancient times.
Fairies, only palm-sized with transparent wings, were powerful magical creatures.
Though, the only beings capable of contracting fairies were elves, leaving them a rare occurrence in the human realm.
The Fairy King had been severely weakened after Tarantulia devoured his right hand 5,000 years ago.
Luna, whose hometown had been destroyed and whose king had been left mangled by Tarantuli, couldn’t find the means to forgive the beast.
Thus, the Spider Princess, who was single-handedly destroying the country, was killed by the Poet of the Stars.
But now, thousands of years later, Tarantulia was alive.
The reason for that was simple: ‘You are what you eat.’
She had been sustained by the power of the Fairy King's ring of life, a relic and symbol of the King that she had consumed along with his hand.
Leo adjusted his grip on his sword.
He assumed a throwing stance and launched it with precision.
Stab!
Screeeeeech!
The monstrous creature screamed in agony as Leo’s sword embedded itself into Tarantulia's head.
He swiftly joined Celia's side.
"You look exhausted."
"Stay back, Leo. You're not equipped to handle anything without Aura."
A blade of wind descended from the sky, striking Tarantulia.
Struggling with this onset of pain, the creature leapt into the air.
Its strength allowed it to hurdle through the air towards Abad with incredible speed.
"Wind breaker!"
Chelsea invoked a spell, sending another blade of wind crashing into Tarantulia.
Whooooosh!
Her current of wind whirled over her arachnid body.
The combined assault forced Tarantulia to the ground with a deafening thud.
Screeeeeech!
"Are you alright, brother?" Chelsea inquired as Abad descended from the air.
“I’m fine. Thank you, Chelsea.”
Abad joined his sister on the ground.
Now, he was suddenly quite wary of the dangers of staying airborne.
The other candidates closed in around Tarantulia.
“How did you knock it down?”
“Wow! That’s amazing!”
In their clamor, Leo asked, "Is it regenerating?"
Abad's response was grave.
"It appears to recover from its wounds no matter what magic we use."
Celia sighed in frustration.
"My most powerful attack seemed to have no effect either."
"In that case, it's simple," Leo declared.
"What do you mean?"
"If we can't defeat it individually, then we must join forces. It's as simple as that."
"But this is a competition."
"I agree with Celia this time. The one who brings down the monster first will take the lead in the exam rankings," Abad said.
Leo looked troubled as he considered the implications.
“But what if we can’t defeat it, then?”
“What?”
"What if it keeps regenerating endlessly? What if our Aura and magic run out before we can defeat it?"
He gestured towards Tarantulia, whose resilience seemed inexhaustible.
He spoke coldly, "If the test is asking us to conquer the Hero’s World, then we’ll all fail if we cannot defeat it."
Chelsea objected vehemently. "That's unfair! If my brother and Celia can't defeat it alone, then no one our age can. This test would be flawed, then."
She pouted.
But Celia and Abad couldn't argue against Leo’s logic.
It seemed absurd to be eliminated simply because they couldn't defeat that monster.
But the World they were in was inherently absurd.
"Even if we join forces, it will take time to execute an attack that can kill that monster in one blow."
Despite being attacked by upwards of 30 well-trained students, Tarantulia remained unscathed.
Rather, the students were the ones who were being attacked and forced to retreat instead.
"How can anyone stop that monster?" Celia wondered aloud.
Abad glanced at his sister Chelsea.
'Chelsea is not good enough either.'
In this world, a single mistake could mean death.
And death in the Hero’s World also meant death in reality.
Chelsea wasn't skilled enough to take on such a risk.
Leo, unfazed by their serious expressions, confidently declared, "I'll hold it off."
"What?"
Celia and Abad exclaimed in unison.
"I can hold it back for about five minutes."
“That’s suicide! You can’t even use Aura!”
"So then five minutes is my limit."
He turned to them, determined.
"So, you guys gather as much strength as you can for those five minutes."
"What if you can’t hold it off for so long?" Abad asked coldly.
Leo chuckled.
"Then we'll all be eliminated. But I don't think that will happen."
"Why?"
"Because fire and wind are good friends. They make a good match." Leo replied casually as he walked towards Tarantulia.
"Get ready, Abad," Celia said, preparing herself for the forthcoming battle.
Abad smirked.
"Ha, I didn't expect us to team up like this."
As Leo approached Tarantulia, Celia and Abad exchanged glances, bracing themselves for the challenge ahead.
* * *
Step, step
Gurgle gurgle
"Are you alright?"
Leo asked, extending a hand to help the fallen applicant up.
“I’m going to hold him off for five minutes.”
“What?”
The fallen knight looked up in surprise.
Leo picked up a long pole nearby which had an ax head attached to it, feeling its weight.
“Let me borrow this for a minute.”
Step, step
Screeeeeeeeee!
Tarantulia emitted a low, hostile growl.
“It’s just like the old days,” Leo remarked with a cold smile.
"It's been a while since I faced such an ugly opponent. But don't worry, bug, I can handle it."
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