Ten people stood still on the training ground. Some were anxious, some were calm, and some were serious. There was only one who was different from them. It was the silver-haired elven youth standing before everyone else.
Of course, the people in front of Yuna were none other than her students. They had their weapons out and ready, and their resolve steeled beforehand. It was finally time for their final test.
There was only one person missing in the final assessment, it was George von Beldon who was still confined inside his own house, closely being monitored and was undergoing rehabilitation.
'Mhm... I wonder what's for dinner...' ［Yuna］
Even with the seriousness of the situation, Yuna only thought of dinner. Grey had previously agreed that they celebrate the final day like they did the first day. She was really looking forward to it.
"Instructor, is everything alright?" ［Elise］
Worriedly, Elise asked Yuna after seeing the latter being too silent for too long. Not just her, all of the class were wearing worried faces, adding up to the nervousness they were feeling.
"Ah, I'm fine... Anyway, are you all ready for the test?" ［Yuna］
"""Yes!"""
The students sang in unison as they answered Yuna's question. The nervousness they previously felt slowly died down along their yells and their hands now trembled in determination. Determination to win, that is.
Seeing their resolved faces, Yuna couldn't help but compare them to how they were before. The students who were scared pale from her on the first day now truly looked like the knights they aspire to become.
"Alright, then let's start with the class representative, Cadet Elaine." ［Yuna］
"Yes!" ［Elaine］
All eyes one her, Elaine breathed out a short breath before standing up and walking up to Yuna. With her was the halberd Grey and Yuna had gifted her. Although it looked big compared to her build, it fitted her perfectly.
The day before, Grey had already talked with Yuna how they would proceed with the final assessment. It was then that he decided that he was going to do a team battle. A test which will test out how much their cooperation is worth.
Yuna wanted to do the same thing as Grey, but she also wanted to do something different. In the end, Yuna settled with an individual exam for the students to test out how they would fare in a 1 vs 1 battle.
Following her decision and the fact that all of the students have almost reached middle of F-rank, the opponent selected to fight against the students were ogres, F-rank monsters which could crush bones with their bare hands.
Of course, it wouldn't be a test if they were to fight monsters they have fought against for three weeks straight. Yuna had strengthened them to be about 50% stronger than the students.
Yuna had already told the class that they will be fighting ogres, but she didn't tell them that she had strengthened them. It was a part of their test to gauge the opponent's strength and not underestimate them.
It only takes one a single glance to know that such an arrangement would be greatly disadvantageous to the students, but Yuna had also told them how to deal with monsters and their weaknesses. In another perspective, one could say that it was a fair test.
"Everyone, please stay a safe distance away from Cadet Elaine." ［Yuna］
Following Yuna's instruction, all of the students stepped back from me and Elaine. A few moments later, it was only Elaine left in front of Yuna and the other students were more than a dozen meters away.
Rummmblleeee
The ground shook subtly as the students went far enough. All of a sudden, four gigantic earthen walls rose up from the ground, enclosing Elise and Yuna, and leaving the other students outside.
It was of course to prevent the students from spectating. After all, the test would be useless if they could just watch the previous participants and copy from them. It would just be unfair for the ones going first.
Rummmblllleeeee
The ground shook once again and rock formations slowly emerged from the ground, turning the once flat training ground into a jagged and rocky setting. It was Yuna's attempt at simulating a more natural environment.
Neither one of the students had fought in such an environment before. It was not just made to limit the students' movements, but also to test how well they adapt to the surroundings and how able they are in using it to their advantage.
⟨⟨Summon: Ogre⟩⟩
All the preparations set, Elaine prepared her stance and brandished the Silver Sky Halberd, making electricity coil all over it. The opponent only watched it with empty eyes, waiting for Yuna's command.
"Then... Start!" ［Yuna］
Gruuwaaaaaa
⟨⟨Flame Burst!⟩⟩ ［Elaine］
With a quick wave of her palm, flames quickly engulfed the inside field and immense heat vaporized the moisture in the air, but rather than an attack, Elaine only fired the spell to distract her opponent.
Receiving the attack, the ogre crossed his arms to protect its eyes, but the moment it let its guard down, Elaine had already appeared in front of it, ready to land an attack at a moment's notice.
Gripping her spear tightly, Elaine released a torrent of attacks towards the enemy's upper body, making blood splatter all over the place as the ogre received a wound time after time.
Gruuuwaaaaaaa
Anger building inside of it, the Ogre grabbed Elaine's spear with all its might, but the moment it was in its grasp, lightning coiled on it like a snake, making the ogre shriek in pain and agony.
Taking the opportunity, Elaine quickly backed off and hopped off from boulder to boulder until she was at the highest point. She used the mobility of her light body to escape the ogre who was not an expert in traversing rough terrain.
Elaine then switched into long range attacks, trying to make the ogre drop its weapon by hitting its wrist with the chance she got. She rained down a barrage of lightning upon the large target.
⟨⟨Lightning Bolt!⟩⟩ ⟨⟨Lightning Bolt!⟩⟩ ⟨⟨Lightning Bolt!⟩⟩ ［Elaine］
Again and again, Elaine's relentless attacks pierced the ogre's skin with much precision and power, making the ogre's bloodlust increase over time as it received more wounds.
Gurwaaaaakkkk
The ogre tried to charge recklessly towards Elaine, but by the time it had reached her previous position, Elaine had long run away from there as she hopped from rock to rock, creating a chain of chase and run.
To its rage, the ogre tried to pounce towards Elaine like a starving tiger, every time it had the chance. Elaine simply stood on top of the boulders and with minimal movements, dodged its attack, making it crash towards the boulders behind.
⟨⟨Thunderpierce!⟩⟩ ［Elaine］
A loud boom resonated all over the field as Elaine's halberd struck the ogre's chest. Not only did it leave a deep wound, it also blasted it away into another boulder like a helpless rag doll.
Elaine then used the chance the ogre was still down and ran away, using a little help from earth magic to create more boulders to serve as footing and to gain a higher ground to attack from.
Crassshhhh
The ogre tried to follow Elaine, but little did it know, one of the boulders Elaine made was much weaker than the others. While it could support Elaine's weight, the same couldn't be said for the ogre. It magnificently crashed once again.
Guuurwaaakkkk
Having gone berserk, the ogre threw its sword towards Elaine in hopes of pinning her down. Too bad for it, Elaine's reflexes were quick enough to dodge the attack by a large margin.
The sword struck one of the boulders with great power, causing cracks to appear in its vicinity and dust to cloud over it.
Disregarding the fact that the sword missed, throwing the sword was the ogre's greatest and fatal mistake. With the way it is now, Elaine no longer needs to be wary of the sword and could attack all she wanted.
Not wasting any more time, Elaine dashed towards the ogre with the intent to finish the battle evident in her eyes. She was fast as lightning as she approached the ogre with the intent to kill.
Gruuuuwaaaaaaa
Legs, ankles, wrists, shoulders, knees, Elaine targeted the ogre's joints one after another, and with each strike, the ogre's mobility and strength diminished significantly like a little flame facing a downpour.
The o, with all its ability, tried to hit Elaine again and again but it was all in vain. As time passed, it was just getting slower and weaker, and there was nothing it could do about it, but wait for its death.
"Haap!" ［Elaine］
With a slash of her spear, Elaine severed the ogre's right arm and blood came gushing out of it like a fountain. The ogre tried to bellow in agony, but the moment it opened its mouth...
⟨⟨Lightning Spear!⟩⟩ ［Elaine］
... lightning crackled and thundered as it coiled over the spear from tip to bottom, and with a thrust from both of her hands, the spear pierced the ogre's chest skillfully, destroying its heart in the process.
With its mouth opened in pain, the ogre's life vanished as abruptly as it started. Even in death, lightning still enveloped its body, turning its once green skin burnt black as time passed.
Not even having the chance to fall into the ground, the ogre vanished into thin air while its body was still pierced by Elaine's spear. Soon enough, the only one who remained was the victor of the battle.
"I declare Cadet Elaine as victor of the battle!" ［Yuna］
Along with Yun'a declaration, Elaine finally collapsed to the ground along with her spear, trying to grasp her breath from the exhaustion brought about by the fast-paced and exhausting imatch.
One of the walls slowly came down with Elaine's victory. When the wall was down, all the students could see was Elaine, who was collapsed on the ground, and Yuna. They didn't see any rough environment of anything of the sort.
While it would usually be a waste of mana to flatten the ground and raise the walls time after time, to Yuna who was an S-ranker, it didn't matter. She also had to repair the broken terrain anyway.
It was also Yuna's intention to confuse the students and let them be complacent by having a peek at what was inside the walls. And of course, to see whether they would still have the same resolve after seeing Elaine, one of their strongest, in such a state.
"Elaine, are you alright?!" ［Elise］
Seeing her cousin collapsed on the ground. Elise quickly rushed to her aid as soon as Yuna lowered down one of the walls. She was obviously worried as she even dropped her sword just to get to her.
Yuna had already casted healing magic on her, but didn't cast anything which cured fatigue. It was a part of the test how the students would handle their mana, and as consequence for overusing it, she wanted them to experience the pains of rapid mana exhaustion.
After all, if they were in a real battlefield, misuse of mana and suffering rapid mana exhaustion could lead to serious injuries and death as it gives the enemies time to attack them. She wanted them to learn it by experiencing it first hand.
"Y... Yesh... Huff... Just a little... Huff… tired..." ［Elaine］
"Awh,,. Thank goodness..." ［Elise］
"Anyway... Shouldn't you be worrying... Huff... about yourself...? Knowing Instructor, you'll... Huff... probably go up next..." ［Elaine］
"Well, let me assist you first. You still can't walk, can you?" ［Elise］
"Th-Thank you... That would be... Huff... much appreciated..." ［Elaine］
Whilst holding Elaine's spear with her left hand, Elise lent her right shoulder to assist Elaine in walking outside of the walls. She then gently dropped off Elaine by the bench outside.
Of course, so that she won't tire herself too much, Yuna also lent an arm and helped in carrying Elaine over the bench to rest. After all, she was technically the reason why Elaine was in that state.
"You did well, Elaine. I'm really proud of you!" ［Yuna］
"Well, all those training... was really worth it... Instructor..." ［Elaine］
"Pfft. What's with that formality? As soon as the exam is over, I'm no longer your instructor, you know?" ［Yuna］
"Ah... Well then, thank you, Yuna." ［Elaine］
After Elaine was dropped off by the nearby bench. Elise and Yuna returned to where the others were. During their return, Elise couldn't help but show signs of concern as he glanced at Elaine from time to time.
Elise knew full well that Elaine would have been able to take care of a single ogre without much trouble. It didn't take her and the others to figure out that the test was much harder than they thought.
"Alright, it's your turn, Cadet Elise. Are you ready?" ［Yuna］
"Yes." ［Elise］
"Remember, you'll also have to fight against an ogre like Cadet Elaine. Please be careful and do your best!" ［Yuna］
"Don't worry about me, Instructor. I'm your student, aren't I?" ［Elise］
Elise declared proudly as she entered inside the walls, and with a nod from her, Yuna once again raised the walls and altered the terrain to become rougher, in preparation for the incoming battle.
Seeing the ragged terrain before her, Elise finally understood why Elaine was so tired despite fighting only a single ogre. After all, moving in such uneven terrain required more effort and energy than flat surfaces.
⟨⟨Summon: Ogre⟩⟩ ［Yuna］
Once again, mana swirled inside the walls and around the field. It then concentrated into one spot and took the form of a huge monster, dwarfing over any human in height and size.
"Ready... Fight!" ［Yuna］
With the signal delivered to Elise's ears loud and clear, earth started rumbling as earthen pillars started rising from the ground one after another. The cause was none other than Elise herself.
As the battlefield slowly turned into a forest of pillars, the ogre hastily charged towards Elise as it swung its sword effortlessly, destroying all the pillars on its path like a wrecking ball.
The moment it arrived at where Elise was, the ogre raised its sword with both of its arms, and with tremendous power, it destroyed the pillar into smithereens in a single powerful strike.
Dust filled the battlefield as debris from the pillar flew in all directions, hitting other pillars on its path and creating a dent on them.
By the time the cloud of dust cleared up, there was no Elise to be seen behind the crushed pillar, nor were there any traces of her. In the eyes of the ogre, it was as if she vanished into thin air.
But the reason was simple, it was because of the pillars itself. Elise did not create the pillars in order to defend herself, rather, it was made so that she can easily move inside the battlefield which had been previously altered by Yuna.
With the way the pillars were positioned the ogre would have a hard time figuring out where Elise was, not to mention the fact that the pillars were thick enough to completely hide Elise's slim figure.
⟨⟨Soaring Edge!⟩⟩ ［Elise］
A blade of mana flew from behind the ogre, hitting its nape without much difficulty. The ogre tried to turn around as swiftly as it could, but by the time it did, another blade hit it from behind.
Gruuuuuwaaaaaaa
Nape, chest, calves… Wounds appeared one after another before the ogre noticed. Elise was traveling so quickly that by the time the ogre figured out where she was, she had already transferred locations.
Pillars crashed and bellows of agony rang throughout the battlefield as the one-sided battle between Elise and the ogre continued. It was a technique Elise had incorporated from her battle with Eliza.
⟨⟨Tidal Blade!⟩⟩ ［Elise］
The assault continued for minutes upon minutes until Elise's mana was low enough that she couldn't maintain the pillars anymore. Thankfully, the ogre was already covered in wounds ready to go down at any moment.
Gruuuuwaaaaaa
The ogre swung its sword left and right like a madman, obviously berserked with nothing else inside its mind but crushing Elise. It didn't matter what it came across, it just swung it mindlessly.
And as the one on the receiving end, Elise parried the heavy blows with her own sword, landing blows herself whenever she had the chance to. It was as if they were trading blows with one another.
The clanging sounds from the swords hitting each other, accompanied by short bursts of wind reverberated throughout the battlefield as the battle between the seemingly delicate girl and the ferocious monster continued.
Neither of the two wanted to give in from their opponent. Their eyes were still burning brightly with passion. One was burning with the passion of a knight, while one was burning with a passion to destroy. They were two opposing forces.
Gruuuuwaaaaaa
With the intent to finish the match, the ogre gripped the sword tightly with both of its hands and with all its might, it brandished the sword fiercely again and again and again, each force contained its will to defeat the one before it.
Elise had a hard time parrying all the attacks from the ogre, but in spite of that, she still persevered and endured all of its blows, not letting her resolve get broken from the barrage of blows raining towards her.
A few moments later, the ogre's blows slowed down drastically until it was too tired to even lift its own sword. It was already over for it. The moment it stopped, it was Elise's turn to strike.
Not letting the opportunity slip past her fingertips, Elise tightly gripped her sword with both of her hands, just like her opponent and started her counter-attack towards the ogre who was once on the offensive.
A multitude of slashes and thrusts pierced and sliced the ogre's thick skin and blood gushed out from it as wounds opened up one after another. The tide of the battle had completely turned.
"Hya!" ［Elise］
A severed head flew towards the walls as Elise landed the final blow towards the ogre, making its head fly and its body fall to the ground with a loud thud, all later vanishing into thin air.
"I declare Cadet Elise as the victor of the battle!" ［Yuna］
Just like before, the terrain flattened out and the walls came down with Yuna's declaration. If there was anything different, it was that Elise did not collapse just like Elaine did.
"Good job, Elise!" ［Yuna］
"Ah... Yuna... Huff... please help, I... Huff... I can't move my body anymore..." ［Elise］
Elise pleaded as her sword dropped to the ground. It seemed like her body froze from all the exhaustion she suffered. She was basically a statue with how stiff her body became.
"Ah, sorry... "Heal"!" ［Yuna］
After Yuna casted recovery magic on her body, Elise fell to the ground on her knees without any resistance. She then looked at her numbing arms and hands with them now trembling.
"Do you want to join your cousin over there?" ［Yuna］
"Yuna... Please～!" ［Elise］
Elise pleaded with an innocent face and almost teary eyes. It was the same face that Eliza made whenever she wanted something from either me or Grey, save for the tears, of course.
"Mmm... I was just wondering, but Elise, you really are Liz's older sister, aren't you?" ［Yuna］
"Hm? What's that... Huff... all of a sudden...?" ［Elise］
"Ah, nothing... I was just mumbling to myself." ［Yuna］
After Yuna delivered Elise to where her cousin was, the test continued with the other students. Although some students received wounds, they were all minor ones and not life threatening. All of the students passed with flying colors!
With the test over, Yuna dismissed all of the students for the day. She, Elise, and Elaine then headed then headed to the cafeteria to eat some snacks. Even then, Yuna still had one thing on her mind...
'Hehehe, I can't wait for dinner!' ［Yuna］
CHAPTER 98 END