Point-of-View: Persia Gerit

  During: Infiltration Arc

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  "That's a, uh……a lot," Laughed Rai nervously.

  "When I give the signal, which will be when they're within twenty meters of us, hold your breath. They might use sleeping gas or something," I replied, focusing my senses to determine the distance between us and them as accurately as possible.

  "It's too risky to take on that many. Azyl, take them all out," Instructed Key with a serious expression.

  "Uh……I don't get it, won't it be better if we all fight them instead of just-?" Began Ilian with a confused look.

  "Yeah, exactly-," Az started to add, attempting to get out of having to show his full power.

  "No, we can't risk it! Take them out when they get within twenty meters of us, Azyl. Persia, give him the signal."

  "Oh, uh……okay. Let's see……forty meters……thirty meters……aaalmost there……twenty meters, go!" I exclaimed, giving him the signal.

  "Fine, whatever……gather close around me," He sighed, raising his hands after we all moved in close.

  Water gushed out all around and burst out into massive tidal waves in every direction with us in the center, and within seconds, yells began echoing all around us.

  "Now, then……freeze," Muttered Az, snapping his fingers with a sigh, all the water instantly turning into ice.

  "W-woah……," Stammered Ilian, his eyes widening, as did the other first years.

  "Incredible, I've never seen anything like this," Remarked Arts with a shocked look.

  The other two first years were completely speechless.

  "You, uh……didn't kill all of them, did you?" Inquired Rai with a nervous laugh.

  "Oh, good point……," Replied Az, taking a step forward and tapping on the ice, the entire mass of it shattering into tiny pieces, "There, they're all dead now, so they won't be able to escape if the ice melted. That's what you were worried about, right?"

  "N-no, I wasn't trying to tell you to kill them, I……never mind, what's done is done, I guess. Let's keep going," Sighed Rai, a bit of conflict in his expression.

  He really is against killing, isn't he. Kuro said that he respected each person's opinion on that matter, but……I think it's a stupid way to live. If someone's trying to kill you, why wouldn't you kill them? If you spare them, they might try to kill you again, or end up killing someone else, which would definitely be the case with bandits.

  "Hey, what's your opinion on killing?" I asked Az, as we all continued walking forward, "Back during our first Quest, I think you were the only one who didn't say."

  "Hm? Let me think……I don't have a problem with killing someone who deserves to be killed, but I wouldn't kill someone who's innocent or is minding their own business," He responded with a shrug, after mulling it over for a bit.

  Not too different from Kuro or myself in that regard. As always, Az was hard to read. The next half hour or so was pretty quiet, until the first years eventually got over their disbelief.

  "Hey, how come you didn't fight in the Brawl of Glory? You totally could have won!" Arts broke the silence, walking up to Az with an intrigued look.

  "……tell anyone about what I did and I'll freeze you," Came the blunt reply.

  "Ooh, I get it, you're keeping it a secret for as long as possible so that you can shock everyone at some point, am I right?"

  "No."

  The only reason that his abilities weren't common knowledge was because he'd essentially threatened anyone who found out. He apparently threatened the classmates he was grouped with during the shuffle Quest, and anyone who's seen what he's capable of wouldn't be stupid enough to ignore his threats. Still, a fair number of people had seen what he can do so far, so I doubt he'll be able to keep it a secret for much longer. If he had figured that out, then his bad mood makes a lot more sense.

  "Can anyone actually defeat you in a duel?" Ilian asked curiously.

  "Dunno, I haven't ever dueled."

  Oh, yeah, that's true……I wonder if I can beat him? It was hard to imagine. His only real weakness was close-range combat, but getting close to him was no easy feat, he could conjure up incredible masses of water or ice in a matter of seconds, and I don't know if I can make use of that narrow window even at my full speed. The move he just used against the bandits, I might have been able to spring over it using Propulsion, but it would take a lot of high speed evasion to then get close. Kuro's Vampire Mode might have the speed to do so, but I don't think I did.

  That's all just in theory though, in reality I could be either overestimating or underestimating Az's abilities, there was really no way to know for sure since he adamantly refuses to accept duel challenges.

  "How much did you have to train to get that powerful?" Lesca asked him.

  "I……don't train."

  "He's not kidding, his Water Magic apparently comes natural to him," Laughed Rai with a slightly envious look.

  "That's……unfair," Muttered Lesca with a slight frown.

  "Life is unfair," Az shrugged with a yawn……

  Soon after that, we ran into a pack of Devilmonkeys, nine in total. They were up in the trees, holding rocks and branches to throw down at us.

  "Alright, keep your guards up, everyone……let's each take on one of these things, and you take on two of them, Azyl," Instructed Key, drawing out her sword.

  "Fine……done," He sighed, firing two large icicles at two of the monsters, killing them instantly.

  Ilian then fired off a couple of lightning-enhanced arrows at one of the monsters, the first striking it in the neck and the second right between the eyes.

  Arts then flew up using his wings and fluttered above the monsters, before rapidly flapping them to unleash a powerful wind down at them, knocking them off the branches and sending them crashing down onto the ground. One of them hit their head against a rock and died, which left five more.

  I fired off a blast of Propulsion from my feet to shoot forward towards one of them, wrapping wind around my right hand in the shape of claws and swinging at the monster's neck as I shot past it, decapitating it. Huh, come to think of it……that was the first monster I'd fought on this Quest so far.

  Key dodged a rock thrown at her by one of the monsters and sprang forward at it, swiftly driving her blade forward. It pierced through the monster's chest, as she twisted it while thrusting her arms forward, killing the monster.

  Rai ran lightning through his scythe and slashed away a couple of rocks thrown at him, before jumping up and swinging the scythe straight down at the monster's head, slashing it in half.

  Two more left……

  Lesca blasted a barrage of small yet rapid spheres of water at one of the remaining Devilmonkeys, blasting it full of holes.

  The last one charged at Prato, who took aim and formed a ball of flames in his hands and rapidly firing it in a thin concentrated beam of intense heat, burning a hole through its head.

  That took care of that.

  "Let's keep going, we still have about three hours to go before we set up camp. We'll probably run into more Devilmonkeys, and we might encounter Giant Poison Frogs too, so stay alert," Instructed Key, sheathing her sword.

  "I hate walking," Sighed Az, rubbing the back of his head irritably……

  For the next couple of hours, we ran into a few more groups of Devilmonkeys, but didn't have any trouble against them. And not too long after that, we ran into three Giant Poison Frogs.

  "Careful, don't get anywhere near them, specifically stay more than twenty meters away, long-range attacks only!" Advised Key.

  "So these things are just sitting ducks so long as you keep your distance, huh?" Responded Arts, as Ilian and Lesca stepped forward.

  Prato and Arts stayed back. Prato would just set the shrubbery around on fire, and Arts had weak Wind Magic, in other words, all the intense wind he generates was solely due to his wings. His abilities didn't make him a very effective fighter, but he was highly effective as support, especially to Fire Magic users. Huh, I wonder how he passed the entrance exam.

  Anyway, Ilian's arrows and Lesca's water spheres made quick work of the monsters, taking them out with ease.

  "Aw, man, I feel so left out! I so need a finishing move," Arts sighed wistfully.

  "I-I'm sorry, it's because my fire isn't suitable here," Prato replied apologetically.

  "Huh? Ease up, what in the world are you apologizing for? It's not your fault that I don't have any real attacking moves in my arsenal," He responded, before turning to us and adding with a slightly hopeful expression, "So, uh……I don't suppose you second years have any suggestions on something I can work on? My Wind Magic can barely even generate a mild breeze without my wings."

  "If you're up against enemies that can't fly, you can just fly away," Suggested Az with a stifled yawn.

  "Yeah, uh……that's not what I'm looking for."

  "Be serious, Azyl, as second years we have an obligation to advise underclassmen when necessary," Stated Key matter-of-factly……

  I think she's enjoying being the leader, she's been pretty vocal during this Quest.

  "I was being serious."

  "Ooh, I know! You could fly directly above someone and blast wind straight down at them relentlessly, like a gravity bomb or something! They won't be able to move, and it'll be hard for them to breathe, so if you can keep that up for like a couple of minutes, they'll probably pass out!" Exclaimed Rai, before his expression changed and added, "Oh, uh……I should explain what gravity is."

  "What are you talking about? Gravity is gravity," I replied with a raised eyebrow.

  "Huh? So it's a thing in this world? Wait, so does that mean Isaac Newton existed here?"

  "……who?" Asked Key, with a confused look.

  "Woah, dude……are you……?" Arts began with wide eyes, staring at Rai.

  "Am I……what?"

  "U-uh, well, you know……never mind, it's nothing."

  Okay, that confirms it, this guy is also someone who has their old memories intact……he probably dropped it because he's afraid of that divine intervention thing. Rai didn't seem to get it though, he had a puzzled look on his face.

  "Well, anyway……if no one else has any advice for Arts, let's keep moving," Said Key, starting to continue walking.

  "Oh, I thought of something! What if you flung a bunch of needles and used your wings to blast them with wind and speed them up?" I suggested.

  "Hm……that could work, but……controlling that'd be tough, and it won't work unless the point of the needle is facing the target, otherwise it'll just harmlessly bounce off……," He replied with a frown after mulling it over.

  "Then use bombs or spiky metal balls," Shrugged Az, stifling a yawn.

  "That's……kinda like copying Riefe, he uses those," Sighed Arts.

  Who? Oh, right, the first year with the slingshot and big bushy tail, he'd participated in the Brawl of Glory. Anyway, no one had any other suggestions for him, so we continued on……

  The rest of the day went pretty smoothly, we encountered a few groups of monsters, but at most we ran into five, so we were never outnumbered. No signs of any more bandits either, Az probably finished off the last of them in that previous encounter.

  Not long after the sun finished setting, we found a small, grassy clearing in the middle of a grove of trees and set up camp there. We started a fire to heat up our canned food and had dinner, keeping an eye out for any monsters or bandits that might attack.

  After we finished up, it was still a bit too early to go to sleep, and that's when……

  "What an awful day……good thing I brought these," Remarked Az, reached into his armor and pulling out a small case, opening it to reveal……five joints.

  "Way to go, dude, you're so reliable!" Grinned Rai excitedly.

  "You……! -idiots……," Key began to exclaim, before trailing off with a sigh, rubbing her temples.

  "Um……what are those?" Asked Prato curiously.

  "Hold the phone, those are……!" Arts exclaimed, his eyes widening.

  "Did you just say 'phone'!?" Rai responded……loudly……

  I'll just skip the next hour or so. In a nutshell, we convinced the first years to join in, just like Kuro had convinced us when we first came across those hidden cove, and by the time we were done, all of us were lazing about.

  "Interesting……I feel lethargic yet relaxed, it's……pleasant," Remarked Lesca with an intrigued look, before rubbing her eyes and letting out a wide yawn.

  "Y-yeah, this is nice," Agreed Prato with a nod, on the verge of dozing off.

  "Wooo! It's been like……twenty years since I had this stuff!" Celebrated Arts with a fist pump.

  "That makes……no sense. You're, like, seventeen years old, you idiot," Muttered Ilian, staring up at the stars with a day-dreamy expression.

  "Yeah, well……you wouldn't get it, Il!"

  "I told you, I don't like that nickname, you make it sound like I'm ill!"

  "Huh? But you are Il?"

  As they began bickering, I noticed Key looking less than relaxed.

  "This is bad……how are we supposed to keep watch while in this condition? What if we're attacked? Or what if……?" She muttered to herself with a frown, her words starting to flow out too fast for me to make sense of what she was saying towards the end.

  "Be quiet, I can't relax. Don't worry, I made a barrier," Said Az, taking out a scroll, pointing it up and activating it.

  We were surrounded by a large barrier as he did, in the shape of a dome and red in hue.

  "Woah, cool, I've never seen a barrier like this!" Exclaimed Arts.

  "I made it, it's my Anti Sleep-Interruption barrier, as the name suggests, it's to keep anyone from interrupting my sleep. If anyone touches the outside of it……heh," Replied Az, a slight smirk appearing on his face for a moment.

  "……Azyl, what does this barrier do?" Key inquired warily.

  "Don't worry, we're safe inside it, touching it from the inside is fine. But anyone who touches it while outside it will regret it."

  "Yeah, I'm asking why they'll regret it!"

  "You're being so annoying. Fine, I'll tell you. If a monster touches it, they'll die. If a human touches it, they'll feel excruciating pain, which also depends on gender. It's technically an illusion that gets triggered when a human touches it, males will feel like their testicles are about to explode while females will feel like their breasts are about to explode. Oh, and they'll also relive their worst memories. It's the least someone deserves for trying to interrupt me while I'm sleeping. Oh, but don't worry……they might cry out in pain, but this barrier is also soundproof, so we won't hear a thing. It's my greatest masterpiece, the best spell I've ever created."

  "……"

  "……"

  "……"

  "……"

  "……"

  "……"

  "……"

  "……what, why are you all staring at me?"

  Like I said before, he was really hard to read……

  We woke up the next morning after a nice, long uninterrupted sleep. The, uh, details of Az's barrier surprised us, to say the least, but it definitely did its job. I wonder if the stress of his apprenticeship to Miss Elina had something to do with this, it was no secret that he hated working under her.

  Key was the first to wake up, and was quick to wake the rest of us, including Az, who naturally wasn't happy about it. But she had a good reason to wake us. There were two people outside the barrier. Two young women, they didn't seem to be bandits, they looked more like Adventurers. Anyway, they were both on the ground, clutching onto their chests and screaming, though we couldn't actually hear them, what with the barrier and all.

  Az took down the barrier and we walked over to them, their screams ringing out and echoing through the forest. How long have they been here? I imagine the only reason no monsters or wild animals attacked them is because their screams were terrifyingly loud.

  "Hey, Az, undo the illusion or whatever. They're really loud, and they seem to be in a lot of pain," Remarked Rai, rubbing his ear with a wince.

  "……I can't."

  "Huh?"

  "Seriously?"

  "Yeah, I didn't make a spell to undo it. And I made it so that it won't undo itself on its own. Someone might be able to break free if their will was strong enough, but that clearly isn't the case with these two," He explained with a shrug.

  "Well, we can't just leave them here……do something," Key sighed in exasperation.

  "……what a pain. Fine, does anyone have a blank Spell Scroll?" Inquired Az reluctantly.

  "Oh, yes, I do," Chimed in Lesca, taking out a scroll and handing it to him.

  He made no effort to hide his disappointment in the fact that someone actually had a blank scroll, since it meant more work for him. Not that it took him any real effort, fifteen minutes later he was done. He pressed the scroll to the two women and activated it, both their expressions easing as he did.

  "Gahhh! Wha-!? The hell just happened!?" Exclaimed one of them.

  "Ow, my chest……wait, it doesn't hurt at all……," The other one remarked in surprise.

  "So, uh……who are you two? You don't look like bandits," Remarked Key, a bit cautiously.

  "Huh? Of course not! We're S-Ranked Adventurers from Bronztan! Who are you people, and were you the ones who put us through that torture!?"

  "Calm down, Lonfi. Our nations are allied, so let's first introduce ourselves," Said the other one, who was a lot more calm.

  The angrier one was named Lonfi Nemowd, she looked like she was in her mid-twenties, with shortish frizzy black hair tied in a short ponytail, light red eyes, sharp teeth and a golden lip ring on her lower lip. She wore a dull purple leather armored sleeveless top with just one shoulder strap, over her right shoulder. She wore black knee-length tights under a short purple skirt. She had a hole on her forehead, it almost looked like she was breathing through it, weird. She had a large metal club on her back with spikes on the heavy metal sphere.

  The other one was called Marti Touw, she looked like she was the same age as the other one, with short dark blonde hair tied in braids on either side of her head that stopped just above her shoulders, dark brown eyes, a snake-like tongue, freckles across her cheeks and nose, and green scales on her neck. She wore a dark blue leather armored sleeveless dress that stopped just above her knees with a slit on right side, with dark gray shorts underneath. She had two medium-length swords on her back.

  They were both S-Ranked Adventurers from Bronztan, the former was ranked eighth out of fifteen, and the latter was ranked sixth.

  "So, who are all of you, and what was that barrier?" Asked Marti, after she finished introducing the two of them.

  "We're student Adventurers from the Rustlands, and……"

  Key explained that we were on a Quest and that we'd put up a barrier for protection while we were asleep, and then apologized for what they went through, after clarifying that we didn't intentionally put them under that spell.

  "I've never heard of a spell like that, how did student Adventurers get such a powerful barrier?"

  "O-oh, well, uh……he created it," Key replied sheepishly, nodding at Az.

  He didn't look too happy about her revealing that fact.

  "Huh, this gloomy-looking shit?" Remarked Lonfi, walking over to Az with a glare.

  "That was uncalled for," Sighed Az with an annoyed expression.

  "Apologize, you put me through hell for like three hours, you little asshole!"

  "Nah, that's okay, I'd rather not. You're rude," He replied bluntly.

  Was it just me, or did he used to be more passive than passive-aggressive?

  "Excuse me!? How dare you talk to me that way, I outrank you and I'm older than you!"

  "Respecting elders is overrated, not all of them deserve respect. And from what I've seen so far, that includes you."

  "Woah, when did Az get so savage?" I heard Rai mumble to himself.

  Okay, so it wasn't just me.

  "Alright, that's it, I'm going to teach you a lesson, you arrogant brat!" She snapped, taking her club in her hands and raising it threateningly above Az, "Apologize or I'll smash your head in!"

  "Get lost," He muttered, blasting her with a ball of water, knocking her back a few meters, though she managed to stay in her feet.

  "This is so dramatic, awesome!" Laughed Arts, watching with interest.

  "Uh, maybe we should all calm down," Said Key tentatively.

  "Yes, I agree. Lonfi, please stand down, a S-Rank should not bully a student Adventurer-," Began Marti.

  "Shut up, I'm going to kill this brat! Tch, I'll admit that your Water Magic isn't bad, but my Anima is a dolphin and water attacks don't affect me!"

  She shot towards Az with her club raised, two water whips extending from her back. She really looked like she intended to kill him. But she had no idea who she was up against, which was why none of the us were stepping in.

  "Azyl, wait, don't kill her!" Warned Key.

  Yeah, it probably wouldn't be a good idea to kill a high ranking Adventurer of an allied nation.

  "Tch, so annoying……I said get lost!" Az snapped, raising his voice louder than I'd ever heard before, sending out a blizzard of ice in front of him.

  Lonfi got encased in ice from the neck down, in a massive pillar of ice. It was about twenty meters tall, with her head poking out the top, it sort of looked like a candle.

  "Incredible, are you really just a student Adventurer?" Remarked Marti in surprise.

  "He's pretty awesome, right?" Grinned Rai proudly.

  "……why do you look so smug?" Sighed Key with a raised eyebrow.

  "H-hey, get me d-d-down from here, I'm f-f-freezing up here!" Stuttered Lonfi, the sound of her teeth chattering echoing down.

  Az let out a sigh and looked up at her, before saying……

  "Sure, but first……apologize."

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  Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to vote, and feel free to leave a comment, I appreciate any and all feedback and criticism!

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