REAPER SCANS
Necromancer Academy's Genius Summoner
[Translator - Ramen]
[Proofreader - Artethrax]
Chapter 375
"Chatelle, wake up. Chatelle!"
Chatelle was born deep in the mountains.
There were no people, no interactions.
A world where what you saw was all there was. Chatelle thought all people's fathers were this small.
"Today, we're going down to the village."
But on his fifth birthday, when he went to the village for the first time with his father, Chatelle realized.
He was the only one who was big.
People were terrified of Chatelle. Many ran away, some pointed and gossiped to each other, and others laughed mockingly.
"Why are you so obsessed with that giant brat?"
"You still haven't snapped out of it, even after being chased out of the village."
Every time he heard these words, Chatelle's father told the villagers,
"He may be big, but he's a kind boy."
And his father told Chatelle, too,
"Although the sizes of everyone's bodies may be different, our hearts are all the same size."
That these people were actually good people.
Then, his father gave a reassuring smile.
That was his father's last smile.
Fwoooooosh!
That night, on his way back from hunting in the mountains, Chatelle saw a bright light on his way back home.
Immediately, he dropped everything and ran as fast as he could.
But he was too late.
Soldiers, having been informed by villagers about a wild giant, had set the house and fields on fire.
Crackle…
To avoid dealing with the giant, they burned down the entire area, joking about how giants burn well because they're fatty as they went back down the mountain.
"…"
Watching what little remained of his house turn to ash, Chatelle wept.
Father, you were wrong.
They're small in body…
And small in heart.
Finding his father's bones in the charred ruins, Chatelle trudged toward the village.
In his hand was the hunting knife he had used to slay monsters.
"Hello?"
As he was descending the mountain path, a human blocked his way.
Humans were already small, and this girl was even smaller than an ordinary human.
But that girl with silver hair muttered in sorrow,
"I was too late."
Then, the human pointed at the knife Chatelle was holding.
"Are you going to kill them all?'
"…"
Chatelle charged at the girl without a word.
And then…
When he opened his eyes, he saw the orange-blue sky of dawn.
He had been knocked unconscious in a single blow.
A little distance away, the girl was playing in the dirt with the knife Chatelle had raised against her.
Chatelle gritted his teeth and slowly stood up, despite being covered in wounds.
"Do you really think your father…"
The girl spoke with an incredibly measured voice, not matching her appearance.
"…would want you to seek revenge made of blood?"
At her question, Chatelle bit his lip until it bled.
He knew. That this wasn't what his father wanted.
Seeing his hesitation, the girl finally smiled brightly.
"Let's do something even more fun than revenge!"
* * *
After meeting Nefthis, Chatelle learned dark magic and how to become stronger.
But the discrimination never faded.
No matter where he went, people pointed and stared. Over time, he began to stutter and stopped going outside.
He spent years shut up in a cave, communicating only with Nefthis.
He became a man with nothing to lose.
His father died because he was looked down upon by the villagers.
Pointed at, and shunned.
And yet he did nothing but smile.
Chatelle was resolved not to live like his father.
Born a monster, he swore to live like a monster. To crush all who opposed him with overwhelming fear so they wouldn't dare to challenge him again.
That was his way to survive.
After making that decision, Chatelle's life changed.
He didn't avoid fights, and he lost to no one.
Arriving at the school of necromancers where all that mattered was one's merits, everyone looked up to him. No one dared to challenge him anymore.
It should've stayed that way, but…
Slaaaaash! Slaaaaash!
The audience could be heard shouting in excitement.
[Simon Polentia: 98%]
[Chatelle Maerre: 3%]
Dozens of skeletons freely wielding emerald flashes of steel.
Behind them, a blue-haired boy commanding the undead.
Chatelle had no more jet-black left to squeeze out. All that remained was his sturdy body.
He was enraged.
In this duel, he lost if some arbitrary barrier gauge reached 0%. So he was cautious, wrapping himself in dark magic. However, this was inefficient, and it depleted his reserves.
If it was just his body, those sword strikes would be nothing.
Slaaash!
A turquoise sword grazed his back. His barrier flashed red once again.
[Simon Polentia: 98%]
[Chatelle Maerre: 1%]
Was he destined to lose because this duel was built on man-made rules?
'No, I still…!'
Swish.
'I still haven't been defeated!'
Seeing through the movements of the Royal Bodyguards, Chatelle crouched down and clenched his fist.
Simon and the royal bodyguards were connected.
He planned to destroy one of the skeletons and charge in while Simon was stunned by the damage.
Swoosh!
A sword was swung straight at him by one of the bodyguards.
But Chatelle's fist was faster.
Bang!
A solid hit.
The skeleton was shattered into chunks of broken bones and flew away.
Chatelle turned his head to charge at Simon, but…
"Hm!"
Simon was standing unscathed.
"I saw you targeting the Royal Bodyguards."
Simon had also thought a lot about the Royal Bodyguards' weaknesses.
Just before Chatelle's attack, Simon had removed the Cloud cast on his summon, so all Chatelle destroyed was an ordinary skeleton.
"You're really amazing, Chatelle."
Simon raised his hand. The emerald light surrounding all the skeletons went into the magic circle by his side.
"As a sign of respect, I'll also do my best until the end."
Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing!
With the motion of drawing a sword, dark-blue jet-black gathered and intertwined in one place.
Soon, it all collapsed into one shape: a sword.
{Simon Remake - Blood Sword}
It was a greatsword with dark-blue shimmer.
Until now, he had used his decisive skill in the form of bow and arrow, {Blood Arrow}, but this really was his preferred weapon.
Simon grabbed the sparking greatsword with both hands and raised it above his head.
"I don't think I'm superior to you based on the result of this match."
Chatelle was disadvantaged in the match up, and now facing S.A.1 Simon right after surviving Herseva.
"I don't know what's driving you so hard, but…"
Chatelle ran in with the force and fury of an injured bear. The last few drops of jet-black he could squeeze out faintly flickered in his fists.
"At least in this school, there isn't anyone who doesn't acknowledge you."
"!"
Chatelle's eyes shook.
'The sensation of…'
The greatsword, lifted high above Simon's head…
'…slashing the space itself.'
It drew a clean line through the air as it swung down.
Slassssssssssssshhhhhhhhhhhhh!
The dark-blue slash passed perfectly through the middle of Chatelle as he charged.
The moment the slash reached Chatelle, it caused a secondary explosion, crashing down against his barrier.
Rrrrrrrrrrrrumble!
In the black smoke, the two boys stopped simultaneously.
[Simon Polentia: 98%]
[Chatelle Maerre: 0%]
The judge who was observing was drenched in sweat as he raised his right arm and shouted,
"The match is over! The winner is Simon Polentia from Class A!"
Wooooooooooaaaaaaaaaah!!
Thunderous cheering erupted.
Simon finally let his arms relax as air rushed out of his lungs due to the breath he was holding. Rick, Camibarez, and Benya came down from the audience seats and shared the joy with him.
"…"
Sitting quietly as he watched that scene, Chatelle tried to stagger to his feet but slammed back down on the ground.
He had lost so decisively. Now he would be a laughing stock once more.
"Chatelle!!"
"You fought well!"
Yet, instead of mockeries, words of encouragement poured in from the audience. Soon, students from Class I were running to Chatelle as well.
"Chatelle, do you think you can stand up?"
Despite the huge difference in physique, friends were struggling to help Chatelle up.
"..."
"At least in this school, there isn't anyone who doesn't acknowledge you."
It wasn't much of a help, but just having his arms around a few shoulders…
His steps felt a little lighter.
* * *
Reaper Scans
Translator - Ramen
Proofreader - Artethrax
Join our discord for updates on releases!
* * *
"Run! Run!!"
Sprinting out of the arena, Rick led the way. Simon and Camibarez were following after him, panting.
"The duel on this side took longer than expected! They must be fighting already!"
Rick glanced at his watch. Camibarez, running alongside Simon, looked at him in concern.
"Simon, are you really okay? The medical staff said you should get checked."
"I'm fine."
Said Simon with a smile.
"Herseva did most of the work in this duel, not me."
Herseva almost fainted as soon as the duel ended.
It was the first time Simon or Herseva had used their second and third level of powers that much. The ability to raise mummies was also a skill Herseva had acquired after becoming a lich, so she didn't know her limits.
Later, when the domain broke and Herseva faced the recoil, it was so dangerous that her life vessel almost got damaged.
Fortunately, when Simon opened the subspace and examined the lich's body, the life vessel was pulsing, although it had a precarious amount of jet-black left.
[Kuhehe! There's no power without a price, Boy.]
That was Pier's impression after checking Herseva's condition.
Simon nodded too.
'It really was too good to be true.'
Building cities and raising mummies.
It was especially likely that the mummy dragon she raised at the end was what made her almost faint.
Simon thought that from now on, he'll have to train to use Herseva's abilities more efficiently and learn how to distribute her power.
"Oh, I see them!"
Shouted Camibarez. The third indoor arena, where Meilyn's duel was being held, came into view for the three of them.
Rick shouted,
"A duel between Meilyn and Serene! Even if Meilyn wasn't our groupmate, we can't miss such a big match!"
The three quickly ran up the stairs to the audience seats inside the arena.
"Urk."
As they climbed the stairs, they felt intense heat and and the whole place stunk of smoke. Unable to bear it, some audience members were fleeing the arena.
'Is there a fire?'
Looking around, they saw thick black smoke filling the arena as blazing black flames roared like a demon king.
The audience seats were covered by a barrier, yet the heat was still this intense.
Simon quickly ran to the railing and looked inside the arena.
Fwoooooooooosh!
The arena was a sea of fire. In the midst of the flames, a blue-haired girl staggered, panting heavily.
"Meilyn…!"
She had even activated the oxygen tank magic circle she used in the sea-themed BDMAT, and her entire body was covered in soot.
Perhaps because of the smoke, she couldn't stop coughing and she wiped her endlessly flowing tears and snot with her sleeve.
And not far away, a girl with ivory-colored hair was smiling calmly. It was Serene Aindark.
It was to the point where it was hard to believe they were in the same space. Not only was Serene unharmed, but she looked perfectly clean.
She stood with her arms crossed and chin raised arrogantly. A relaxed smile was on her lips.
Above her head, twenty 'Dark Flare' magic circles readily floated.
[Serene Aindark: 100%]
[Meilyn Villenne: 9%]
"Just give up already~ Mei-Mei."
Said Serene in a teasing voice, pretending to wipe tears from her eyes.
"Serry's heart hurts so much, she can't fight anymore."
"…"
Covered in soot, Meilyn staggered to her feet.
"…up."
"Hm? What did you say?"
"I said, shut up!"
With bloodshot eyes, Meilyn reached her arms out. Two jet-black flame spells shot from her outstretched palms.
"Yawwnn~"
Lazily, Serene waved her finger and two Dark Flares shot from the twenty magic circles floating in the air.
The two jet-black flame spells collided mid-air, causing a huge explosion. The intense heat made the audience scream.
"Boom~ Boom~"
When Serene raised her finger and wagged it, more Dark Flares shot from the magic circles in the air. Meilyn quickly threw herself to the side in order to avoid them.
"…Woah, isn't that basically cheating?"
Rick let out a feigned laugh.
"Meilyn…!"
Camibarez covered his mouth, trembling as she stared in the direction of the explosion.
Simon tightened his grip on the railing.
"Why is she not using her specialty, the jet-black ice, and only using fire?"
"It can't be helped."
Responded Rick.
"Look at the heat inside the arena. Ice would melt instantly."
If Simon had an overwhelming advantage in the previous duel with Chatelle, it was absolutely the opposite here for Meilyn. It was a battle of fire and ice.
"However…"
Camibarez continued in a trembling voice.
"Meilyn doesn't seem to have any intention of giving up."
The panting figure of Meilyn emerged from the explosion. Simon nodded as well.
The only reason Meilyn enrolled Kizen was to surpass Serene Aindark.
The Ivory Tower originally planned to send Serene this year and Meilyn next year, so Meilyn's admission this year was entirely her decision.
The reason she sealed her jet-black ice magic and used only jet-black flame spells throughout the first semester was simply because she had a disadvantage against Serene.
However, as she spent time with Simon and the members of Group 7, she gradually became more relaxed, and her personality became more lively.
She began to unleash her jet-black ice again, and her potential was finally being discovered.
But…
'This is bad.'
She was up against this wall named Serene once again.
This final battle against Serene in their first year was more important to Meilyn than any exam.
How much had she caught up to Serene since coming to Kizen?
If she lost without even touching Serene and her spirit became broken, Meilyn might seal her ice again and revert to her old self from the beginning of the first semester.
"Ah~ I see! Are you being sarcastic to me right now? It’s all my fault!"
Back to when her heart was closed and she acted rash.
When just hearing Serene's name made her extremely gloomy.
'If she loses here like this, we might never see this Meilyn again. Isn't…'
Simon pondered with a stern face.
'Isn't there any way she can win this?'
——
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