A Villain's Will to Survive novel Chapter 121

Chapter 121: Story (3)

Epherene faced the pop quiz head-on, relying solely on her own abilities at first. However, the calculations in the opening sentence of the first question—laden with numbers and intricate magic circuits—stretched on endlessly, overwhelming her almost immediately.

“Ughh...”

Epherene had envisioned a mana circuit in her mind, but something went wrong. Without warning, flames flared up in the air, catching her off guard.

At that moment, Grand Prince Kreto raised his hand and asked, “Professor, could you clarify what you mean by allowing us to discuss the questions?”

Deculein replied, “Just as I stated, Grand Prince. However, I will ask a few questions to confirm that you fully grasp the material.”

Kreto glanced over at Rogerio, but she was already deep in concentration. The iron-colored mana flickering in her eyes was distinct, even for someone at the Ethereal-grade—a rare and special kind of mana. As a genius in Ductility, even her aura shimmered with metallic tones.

“... Ah,” Kreto muttered, momentarily mesmerized as he stared at Rogerio.

However, Epherene quickly turned her focus back to her quiz. She started working through the long, intricate calculations, carefully transcribing the complex spells onto her magic answer sheet.

“Uh... Epherene?” a quiet voice called out to her. “How does this look?”

Epherene turned to see Drent, who cleared his throat and showed her his answer. His approach to the first question had started off like hers, but as he went on, several errors had crept in.

Epherene suggested, “Yes. Right here, see? I split these sections and worked them out separately before connecting them.”

“Oh, really? I calculated everything together.”

“That’s going to be too hard. It’s easier if you break it into parts, right?”

“... But breaking it into parts makes it harder for me.”

“I’ll show you how to do it. Look.”

"... Uh, yeah, okay," Drent replied, nodding to her suggestion.

While the two spent time collaborating on their work, suddenly...

Squeak—!

Rogerio shot up from her seat, marched over to Deculein, and put the paper down as she said, "Heah ya go."

Deculein gave the paper a quick glance and nodded with indifference, saying, "Full marks. You may move on to the next room."

At Deculein's gesture, a new passage opened, and Rogerio stepped through. The red-furred munchkin trailed after her inside.

One by one, the other students finished their work, each offering a brief comment as they left.

“I’m finished as well. These questions were excellently crafted.”

“Me too. I’m done as well. Wow, that was difficult, though I doubt I’ll get full marks.”

“I hope full marks aren’t the only way to pass this exam, right?”

Astal the Addict, Professor Louina, Professor Relin, and several others had finished next, each offering a brief remark as they handed in their papers.

However, for Epherene and Drent, as low-ranking Soldas, the quiz remained painfully difficult. They had no time to notice anyone else and instead focused entirely on solving their own problems.

"... Half the time is already up," Epherene muttered, glancing at the clock. Ninety minutes had passed, and now, Kreto had joined them as well.

“This section,” Kreto said, “appears to be the core circuit responsible for purifying mana. What are your thoughts?”

“Yes, it looks about right. Drent, how’s the calculation I asked for?” Epherene asked.

“Ah, just about finished,” Drent replied.

The three of them collaborated, splitting tasks and solving the questions. After three grueling hours, they finally neared the end.

Click—!

The sound of Deculein’s timer echoed throughout the room.

"Time is up. Submit your answers."

“Oh, yes, Professor!”

The three stood side by side, their hands trembling as they submitted their papers. Even though it was just a few sheets, their hands shook with anxiety.

As Deculein reviewed their answers, the tension in the room became stifling. Sweat gathered in Epherene’s palms, and her throat constricted, feeling as though it were caught in a vise.

“Epherene,” Deculein said, lowering the paper as his gaze settled directly on her.

“Y-yes, Professor,” Epherene answered hastily.

Deculein pointed to a section of the answer and asked, “Who came up with this approach to segment and rejoin the spell?”

Segmenting and rejoining involved splitting a spell into parts for separate calculations before carefully stitching it back together. The process was as intricate as performing a surgical transplant. When executed properly, it could save a life; if not, it could result in disaster—like grafting a monkey’s arm onto a human body.

“Oh, it was... my idea,” Epherene said hesitantly. “They assisted with the calculations... and breaking down the spell, but I handled the rejoining.”

Deculein gazed down at her, his eyes cold and appraising.

... We must've made a mistake.

Drent and Kreto had already anticipated the result and let out deep sighs. However, Deculein’s following words caught them completely off guard.

"Excellent work."

It was praise they hadn’t expected. Epherene, who had lowered her head, braced for criticism. Her eyes widened in surprise as she looked up at Deculein.

“This approach and technique will be of great use to you in the future. Continue refining it,” Deculein said in his typical dry tone. “You have all passed.”

"Yes!" Drent exclaimed instinctively, unable to contain his excitement.

“Whew...” Kreto sighed in relief.

Epherene stood motionless, her gaze locked on Deculein as confusion clouded her thoughts. No one had ever told her she had done anything excellent. Praise was foreign to her, and now Deculein, of all people, had offered it. A troubling thought settled in—perhaps this, too, was just part of his calculated effort to flatter her.

“Epherene! Let’s go!” Drent called, pulling her by the arm.

“... Huh? Oh... um... I...” Epherene mumbled, still dazed, as she followed Drent like she was in a trance.

***

The second lecture hall was reserved for those who had passed. The ground had an earthy texture, a stream ran in the distance, greenery flourished, and fireballs drifted lazily through the air.

"One hundred passed, fifty failed."

Though it had been an open-book quiz, where discussions were allowed, fifty students still failed, unable to understand even half of the questions. In just three hours, a third of the class had been disqualified.

"Those who remain have shown a grasp of the fundamentals. Now, I will assign your task," Deculein said, as he compressed the dirt beneath his feet into a spike using the basic spell, Earth’s Mold. “This is a simple application of the earth-element spell Earth’s Mold. It’s not a longsword, dagger, or axe—just a spike shaped by a basic nine-stroke spell.”

The spell Earth’s Mold allowed the user to shape earth into various weapons, which were often paired with Telekinesis or wielded directly by hand.

"Right. Ya need at least twenty strokes to make it a real weapon," Rogerio cut in, her excitement obvious, given that this was her area of expertise. "With nine strokes, ya barely get a spike. Eighteen’s a dagger, and by thirty, ya can forge a sword better than any smith in town."

“Correct,” Deculein nodded in acknowledgment of her input. "However, the essence of Pure Utilization is found in mastering the fundamentals to their extremes. Allen?"

"Yes, Professor," Allen said as he stood nearby, handing Deculein a block of mana-infused metal.

Gripping the spike formed by Earth’s Mold, Deculein said, “When magic is purely utilized, even the most basic spell can be significantly amplified, depending on the caster’s proficiency. For example...”

Using just a nine-stroke spell, the spike was small but sharp. Deculein aimed it at the mana-infused metal and, with a swift thrust, pierced through it cleanly.

Poke—!

Rogerio's eyes widened in shock.

"Even a spike like this can pierce through mana-infused metal valued at five thousand elne."

The metal block now bore a clean hole, a testament to the spike's sharpness.

Rogerio immediately reached out and said, "L-lemme give that a go!"

Deculein tossed the mana-infused metal to her, and Rogerio quickly crafted a spike using Earth's Mold. However, when she struck the metal, it merely clanged with a sharp ring, leaving no trace behind.

"No friggin' way! How'd ya do that? Ya musta used a diff'rent spell or somethin’, right?" Rogerio asked.

“I used Earth’s Mold. The type of spell, however, is irrelevant,” Deculein continued, disregarding Rogerio. “If you can pierce, shatter, or melt this metal with any spell of fourteen strokes or fewer, you will be considered to have met the requirement.”

"Fourteen strokes..." Epherene murmured, noticing that the other students appeared just as puzzled.

Fourteen strokes were an improvement over nine but still fell under basic spells. The mana-infused metal, however, was clearly meant for a knight. Priced at five thousand elne, it was likely of intermediate or higher quality.

“If you fail, you’ll be disqualified. The deadline is before the next class,” Deculein said, snapping his fingers. “Now... we will proceed with the theory lesson.”

The remaining ninety students had looked startled, while the ten Addicts among them smiled. They had thought the class had ended, but the theory portion was still to come.

***

On the 99th floor of the Mage Tower of the Imperial University, in an office the size of a stadium, the Chairwoman sat with her small puppy.

“Professor Deculein! What brings you here?!” Adrienne inquired.

I went to see her immediately after the lecture and handed her the document.

“Ohh! This must be the paper you’ve been researching! Is this the thes...is?” the Chairwoman continued, her excitement wavering as she glanced between my face and the document, repeating the motion several times before slamming her hand down on the desk.

“Aha~! This must be a dream, right?”

“No, it is not.”

“What?!” the Chairwoman gasped, covering her mouth with both hands as if completely stunned. “If this isn’t a dream... Professor Deculein! You must be in disguise?!”

I stared at her in silence. Her reaction had taken me by surprise. I had expected her to be pleased with the paper, yet instead...

Adrienne shrieked, “No answer? You must really be an impostor Deculein! You little!”

“No, I’m not.”

“Then why...”

Despite it being the kind of news that would usually thrill any gossip, she didn’t look the least bit pleased. Instead, a rare frown creased her brow, and confusion overshadowed any hint of joy.

“... Professor Deculein! Professor Deculein! Professor Deculein!” Adrienne called.

“Why do you keep repeating yourself?”

“Are you seriously going to submit this as it is?!” the Chairwoman asked, pointing to a specific section of the paper.

It was on the very first page, the line introducing the thesis’s first author.

“Yes,” I nodded.

Her eyes widened in disbelief as she brought the document closer, practically pressing her nose against the paper. She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself.

Whooooosh—!

Wind Erosion was a highly advanced spell meant to strip away any magic or mana-infused enchantments from its target. The fierce gusts whipped through my hair and pulled at my clothes and after five seconds, the wind died down.

“That’s so unlike you... Hmm...?” Adrienne said, tilting her head. “But hasn’t this research yet been experimentally proven?”

“I don’t like people hanging around while I’m studying! Shoo, shoo!” the Chairwoman said, waving her hands at me as if she were batting away a fly.

“Aha, so you’re just leading her on? Letting her try, knowing she’ll fail?”