Chapter 17: 17

Mightiest Melee Magician

Chapter 17

Orcs.

The orcs of old were said to be lacking in intelligence and were weak to strategic combat, but that was not the case now.

As humans progressed throughout their lives, so did the intelligence of the orcs.

The orcs of nowadays were fast, strong and meticulous in their plans.

“A-Ack!”

“Avoid it!”

They broke through the front line of knights and aimed straight for the backline magicians.

“I–it dodged that?”

“No way. It dodged an Ice Arrow?”

They also dodged the laughable magic of students just by slightly turning their bodies.

Its strength was so immense that it could destroy the formations of knights in an instant, and Professor Hydel had to personally step up and suppress it every time an orc charged too close to a student.

“Were the orcs this strong of a species?”

“We’ve only heard what they were like. Now that I try to fight it, I can’t even think of a way to beat it.”

“Me too…”

It was strong.

Since the battle experiences of the students were too low, they felt the strength a bit more, but the orcs certainly felt beyond the abilities of the students to subjugate.

I also felt the same.

‘This isn’t a joke…’

As my turn crept closer, my head was only filled with worry about how I would fight the orc.

The other magicians could throw their magic from afar, but I was different.

First of all, it had an imposingly huge figure that would make me shudder just by being in its presence.

And a layer of dense muscles that made me question if my magic would be able to damage it.

I had to fight this orc face on, whose fist, if I exaggerated a little, was as big as my head.

I’d punched those stationary scarecrows during training, but I’d never learnt professional close quarters combat before, so my worries only increased.

‘With this, would I be able to fight an orc…?’

Even though I became a Player, this would be the first time I’d fought a real monster in a real battle.

However, even during my fearful contemplations, the edges of my lips kept twitching up.

Yeah.

Honestly,

‘It looks fun.’

Half worry.

Half expectation.

This weird nervousness that drained my body felt pretty nice.

But not all things were meant to go as planned.

As soon as it was my turn, Professor Hydel came and looked for me personally.

Bearing bad news.

“Ruin Ardell. It’ll be good for you to firmly resolve yourself for your test. It’ll be especially hard for you.”

“What do you mean by-”

“It seems that the academy has placed a great deal of expectation on you as you’re a student that received 100 points from Kingram. Your test will be harder than the other students. Meaning, the monster you will face will not be an orc.”

“Pardon?”

The appearing monster wouldn’t be an orc?

Then what was it?

“It’s an ogre.”

“……”

I thought I heard him wrong.

But I hadn’t.

“Oh ho! For you to fight an ogre as your first real battle! This will be fun.”

Since Straang definitely heard the same thing.

Professor Hydel continued to speak.

“Including me, the captain of the knights of the Plodren territory we hired will come out to ensure your safety. So, your safety shouldn’t be a problem… I’m only uncertain about if you can take the test properly.”

I was the unique student who had received max points from Kingram.

Thanks to this, it seemed I would receive some very special(?) privileges.

An uncomfortable privilege of being able to fight an ‘ogre’ that was three times as big as an orc.

I chuckled nervously.

“Ahahah… This… I can’t say I welcome it.”

“It’ll be a difficult enemy for you. Resolve yourself.”

For a moment, Professor Hydel looked at me with a gaze that reflected his now complicated thoughts.

It’d end one way or another, Professor.

“Ruin Ardell, ready up.”

“Yes.”

As I was called up, I lightly stood up from my seat.

“Go obliterate it!”

I walked onto the testing grounds, carried by Jason’s cheers.

But my triumphant expression faded as soon as I saw the reality of the ogre before me.

“……”

Was this… really ok?

* * *

* * *

“KROAARRR!”

“W-what the?”

The mood of the training grounds instantly became chaotic at the entrance of the ogre fuming with anger.

“W-what kind of orc is that big?”

“You idiot, that’s an ogre!”

“That’s an ogre… So Ruin’s test monster is that ogre?”

“Woah… How do you even fight that thing…?”

Ogres wore the bones of their kills as a necklace around their neck.

The ogre that appeared on the testing grounds had at least ten skulls hanging on its neck.

There were human skulls, but also skulls of magical beasts.

It meant that this ogre had at least fought and killed ten or more enemies.

At that moment, a man with a large build opened his mouth while holding his sword.

“Oh dear. We brought it here since they asked us to… but I never would’ve thought that they would use that guy for the test. Are they saying there’s a student in the academy that can face off against an ogre?”

His name was Coulter Pirante.

A Rank 6 Knight who could handle a bluish aura, and the current captain of the knights of Poldren territory.

He was the one who captured the orcs and ogre alive and brought them to the academy.

Coulter Pirante asked Professor Hydel,

“I did receive the request from the director… But are you really using that guy for the test? We had trouble capturing it, even with a lot of knights charging it together.”

At the question, Professor Hydel calmly nodded his head.

“That’s right. This is the Director’s order.”

Seemingly unsatisfied by Professor Hydel’s answer, Coulter furrowed his brows a little. 

“It seems some risk their lives in the academy.”

“……”

It was a statement with hidden thorns.

The ogre was strong.

If you got hit by his full swing, your skull would split into two and your spine would be bent the wrong way.

Of course, it was a monster you must fight on the real battlefield.

But for it to be used as a ‘test subject’ for a student.

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How great must this student be!

At that moment,

“Yes. I am risking my life.”

“Hmm? Who are you?”

The one who answered Coulter’s thorny statement wasn’t Professor Hydel.

It was Ruin, who had just entered the testing grounds.

Ruin bowed his head to Coulter.

“I am Ruin Ardell. I’m the student taking this test.”

“…You are?”

“Yes. Please take care of me.”

A student with dark black hair and a decently good-looking face.

He looked as if he would snap at the slightest breeze, and to Coulter, who had lived through all sorts of hardships in life, Ruin was just a skinny 16-year-old kid.

‘This kid here is fighting the ogre?’

Of course, he would get help from himself and the knights,

No matter how much he thought about it, Ruin was not a magician at the level of fighting an ogre.

On top of that,

“You… What are you doing?”

“I’m prepping for the test.”

“Your position is back there, not here.”

Coulter pointed to the rear position where the students stationed themselves in their tests.

But where Ruin was standing right now was not the rear, where magicians should be, but the frontline with the knights.

Coulter thought that Ruin was just an idiot who couldn’t even find the right position, but the words that came out of Ruin’s mouth were more than unexpected.

“I’m fighting from here.”

“…What?”

“My magic is a bit… different.”

“What nonsense…”

Coulter’s eyes shifted to Professor Hydel.

He was asking if what he was hearing was real, and Professor Hydel just quietly nodded.

Coulter, not caring anymore, clicked his tongue.

“Even if you dawdle next to me on purpose, I’m not fully confident I’ll be able to protect you. That guy there isn’t so simple-minded.”

“Yes, I understand.”

“You said before that you’re risking your life for the test.”

“Yes.”

“For what reason?”

“Because this is that desperate for me.”

“……”

Coulter quietly observed Ruin’s eyes.

His eyes were different from those blurry and fearful eyes of other students.

The spirit seen in his eyes was nervous, but there was no fear.

Rather, he looked confident and was enjoying the moment.

‘Hm… I guess he’s a bit different?’

And as Ruin took off his robe, Coulter was surprised for a second time.

‘What kind of magician’s body…’

Contrary to his previous guess, Ruin’s body wasn’t weak and skinny at all.

The robes were covering muscles that weren’t big, but rather tight and compact.

‘Did he receive some knight training?’

These questions of Coulter were answered as soon as the test started.

“Hey, hey! What are you doing right now!”

As soon as the shackles restraining the ogre’s hands were removed, Ruin charged straight at it.

* * *

Coulter felt a swift sense of dread.

‘Damn it!’

He had never even imagined that student would charge directly at the ogre.

He moved his body too late while shouting,

“Hey! Hey! What are you doing right now! Stop!”

However, Ruin didn’t slow down. Rather, he used Haste magic on himself and quickened his rush.

The distance between him and the ogre soon shrank.

“KROAAAR!”

The ogre lifted up the boulder near its feet and readied to smash Ruin’s head as he came closer.

“Damn it.”

Coulter unsheathed his blade.

Fwoooosh!

His longsword was instantly covered and gushed with a radiant blue aura.

He was thinking of cutting down the ogre in a single strike.

If he didn’t, the many students gathered around the testing grounds might’ve witnessed one of their peers instantly die from a broken skull and bleed out on the ground.

However…

The instant before Coulter’s aura poured out.

In that short instant,

‘…huh?’

What caught Coulter’s eyes was the huge flame flowing out from Ruin’s hand.

In that short instant when Coulter stared dazed at Ruin’s magic.

K-K-K-KABOOOOM!

The sound pouring out from the explosion and the rising sand clouds made him clench his eyes closed.

‘What the…?’

As the sandstorm subsided, what Coulter saw as he opened his eyes was none other than a totally unscathed Ruin and an ogre staggering, as if it were on death’s door.

There was no way he could know what happened.

There was only one thing that he could be sure of.

‘A Melee… Magician?’

Now he understood the secret of why this particular magician had a trained body and must fight on the frontline and not the rear.

Coulter ran up to Ruin while frowning a little.

“You! If you were gonna do it like this, you should’ve told us at the start. It could’ve been dangerous!”

“I apologize. But… if I told you, would you have let me do it?”

“What?”

“Please wait a bit, the test hasn’t ended yet.”

Ruin’s sight reached the ogre.

The ogre was staggering after being hit by the Flame magic, but its eyes still reflected its savagery. 

No, rather,

“KROAAAAR!”

He seemed to have angered it more.

At the sight of the ogre pounding its chest with increased rage, Coulter stood in front of Ruin to cover him.

“This… looks pretty dangerous. Stand back. From here on, I’ll handle this.”

However, Ruin lightly bowed his head to the worried Coulter.

“This is my test.”

“…What?”

“Please only help me to finish the test.”

Coulter looked at Ruin baffled.

‘This type of person exists?’

——

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