TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 109
The Arena Training Ground, ravaged by the secret techniques of Kairan and Kraush in succession.
Inside, silence prevailed.
This was due to the battle between Kraush, the examinee, and Kairan, the Entrance Exam Supervisor.
And the result now reflected an unbelievable sight.
Standing on two legs above the training ground was none other than Kraush.
While the one collapsed on the ground was Kairan, renowned as the Pirate Queen.
An unprecedented situation where an examinee had defeated an associate professor.
The Third Exam, proposed by Kairan, was known to all enrolled in the Academy.
It was said to be an impossible test to pass from the very beginning.
Thus, its original purpose was to gauge the level of the test-taker and assign them to the Special Class.
However, there was someone who had just passed that Third Exam.
Kraush Balheim.
A direct descendant of the Balheim Family, a boy who had turned eighteen this year and was once regarded as a mere half-penny.
“Crazy.”
One of the students watching from afar muttered a curse without realizing it.
The sight before him could only be explained with such a curse.
Even when Kraush shattered the Aurora Stone, it wasn’t this shocking.
The Aurora Stone could be rationalized as merely having an immense natural aura.
However, the fact that he had defeated Kairan, who was practically a professor—
That was an entirely different matter to discuss.
Because it signified the arrival of the Eye of the Storm that would shake the era, extending beyond Rahelrn Academy itself.
The gazes of the students changed.
Those gathered at Rahelrn Academy were future leaders of their families.
It went without saying how Kraush must have appeared to them at this moment.
Those destined to change the era always leave extraordinary anecdotes from their youth.
And now, they had witnessed one of those anecdotes with their own eyes.
[Why didn’t you just drop dead right there?]
However, contrary to that anecdote, Kraush was being scolded by Crimson Garden.
Well, it was only natural.
Kairan had responded to Kraush with all her strength.
Likewise, Kraush had to pour all his energy into facing her head-on.
That meant Kraush had pushed the limits of Annihilation Erosion and used it continuously from start to finish.
While Kairan was the one who collapsed, Kraush was also in a terrible state.
His overheated body barely allowed him to breathe, using Lunar Body to cool down even slightly.
[Sigh, I’ll give you credit for not using that during the fight, as you promised when we first arrived. But still.]
Crimson Garden, referencing the promise made on their way to the Entrance Ceremony, looked at Kraush with discontented eyes.
[So, are you satisfied with the results?]
Kraush, feeling the strain throughout his body from using Annihilation Erosion, glanced toward the spectator seats.
The Skyborne Generation, future leaders, had their eyes practically popping out of their sockets.
Those who had once treated him as nothing more than a disposable tool.
If nothing else, this outcome was surely satisfying.
“Yeah.”
With that brief reply, Kraush finally succumbed as his willpower, which had held out to the end, snapped.
Why did it always end like this?
* * *
With both Kairan and Kraush collapsed, the Second Exam was temporarily halted.
The judgment was that the students who witnessed their battle wouldn’t be in the right mind to continue the test.
And that judgment was accurate.
The students were too busy chattering about the battle they had just witnessed.
The same went for the upperclassmen.
An examinee who had defeated an associate professor.
Because of that, Kraush’s story spread like wildfire within Rahelrn Academy.
As Kraush’s story circulated on everyone’s lips,
The sun had already set, and a full day had passed.
Swish—
When Kraush opened his eyes, he felt the morning sunlight streaming in through the window.
The distinct, sharp scent reaching his nose confirmed that he was in a hospital room.
Even though the Heavenly Slaughter Star heightened Annihilation Erosion’s tolerance, he had used it to the point of collapse.
There was no way to recover without being hospitalized.
‘This is unbearable.’
Although he had no intention of dying, his body was sore enough for him to joke about it.
On top of that, for some reason, his chest felt vacant.
As Kraush groped around to figure out why he felt this emptiness, he soon realized and let out a faint chuckle.
The emptiness he felt was none other than because of Bianca.
Whenever he was in this state, she would always stick close to his bed.
But now, she wasn’t here.
A white chick seemed to flicker before his eyes for no reason.
The hand that usually ruffled her hair aimlessly pressed into the bed.
‘Am I missing her?’
He wondered if she was learning well from their mentor, Jena.
Though it had only been a few days since they were separated due to the Entrance Exam, he was already worrying like this.
Kraush suddenly realized how much time he had spent with Bianca.
Perhaps he should write her a letter to share the story of the Entrance Ceremony later.
Just as he was thinking that and trying to get up—
“If you’re planning to rush off to training like last time, stay in bed.”
At that moment, Kraush heard a familiar voice and lifted his head.
A chair placed in front of the bed.
On it sat a woman flipping through what appeared to be a magazine.
With crimson hair reminiscent of the sun and a figure that couldn’t be mistaken for someone her age.
Her intelligent eyes gave off an intriguing aura.
Faced with her, Kraush belatedly showed puzzlement.
Because his senses, dulled from overusing Annihilation Erosion, had failed to notice her presence in the room.
“Austria?”
“Isn’t it sacrilegious to casually call out the Saintess’ name?”
Austria joked as she looked up from her magazine and turned her gaze toward Kraush.
However, she soon averted her eyes.
“Your clothes are disheveled. I know you just woke up, but could you at least fix them properly?”
Words he had heard quite often in the past came out of her mouth.
Now knowing that her words stemmed not from dislike but embarrassment, Kraush casually tidied his clothes.
‘No wonder, despite using Annihilation Erosion, I’m moving better than usual.’
It seemed Austria had healed him.
But more importantly, how was she even here?
The Holy Kingdom wouldn’t have allowed her to come to Rahelrn Academy.
“You’re wondering why I’m at Rahelrn Academy, aren’t you?”
“Sharp as ever.”
“You have to be sharp to survive in the Church.”
Saying this, she crossed her legs as she sat.
Her pale legs became visible, but she didn’t seem to care.
“I used the information you gave me. If I were to renounce my position as Saintess, it would cause an uproar.”
It seemed Austria had chosen a path similar to the previous timeline.
“The only difference is that the timing was significantly earlier, I suppose.”
“And I dropped your family name a bit, too.”
Did she even use that against them?
As expected, the Church hadn’t given their permission for nothing.
“The results are modest at best, like simply attending the Academy. But still, the cage has loosened a bit. For reference, I’m studying Theology under a special admission program.”
However, Kraush still had lingering doubts.
“Why Rahelrn Academy, of all places?”
Someone like her could go anywhere, not just an Academy.
So when Kraush expressed his doubts, she habitually began to curl a strand of her side hair with her fingers.
“Well, there’s no place with as many talented people as here, right? My goal is to completely break free from the Church. I’m planning to gather people who can back me up. And, of course, you’re included in that backup, so keep that in mind.”
“That’s not particularly difficult, though.”
Kraush squinted his eyes slightly.
“Have you been here all night?”
Austria’s hand, which had been twisting her side hair, froze abruptly.
Her eyes began to dart slowly back and forth.
Considering the Saintess’s abilities, it would have been sufficient to heal and leave.
Yet, she deliberately stayed, claiming she needed to monitor the progress, and waited in this hospital room for Kraush to wake up ever since he had collapsed.
Austria subtly lowered her hand and closed the magazine she had been holding.
“W-Well, you seem fine, so I’ll take my leave. Take care of yourself. Even if it’s your own power, using it like that will shorten your lifespan.”
Perhaps because Kraush had once seen through her inner thoughts before, she stammered and abruptly stood up.
Deep down, she wanted to talk more with him since it had been a while, but her face felt too hot for her to stay.
‘Why does his face have to be exactly my type?’
…Though, it was true her taste had led to this situation.
In the end, she fled the room as if running away.
Through the crack in the door, her guard knight, Diona, briefly nodded in greeting before leaving as well.
Kraush stared at that direction for a moment before finally getting up.
Though their meeting had been unexpected, Austria coming here wasn’t necessarily bad news.
It meant that even if he overworked his body, recovery was certain.
He had already forgotten her earlier comment about shortening his lifespan when he tried to step out of the hospital room.
As Kraush was about to leave, he heard a faint commotion from the hospital corridor.
Turning his head toward the noise, he saw two people approaching, each carrying a tray with water and towels.
Both of them were dressed in maid uniforms.
One of them was Alicia, who had accompanied him as his servant.
The other was an entirely unexpected figure.
“…Miss Lirina?”
It was Lirina, the personal maid of Aslan Igrit.
As the two finally noticed Kraush observing them with curiosity about why Lirina was with Alicia, they turned toward him.
“Ah, Mr. Kraush, you’re awake.”
Beside Alicia, who still spoke with overly polite honorifics, Lirina flashed her characteristic smirk, lifting only the corners of her lips.
“To think that you’d be unconscious the last time we met, and once again when we meet now. Mr. Kraush, you must be a Sleeping Prince.”
It was a comment typical of her sharp wit.
“Why are you here, Miss Lirina?”
“Well, Alicia was so flustered when she heard you’d fainted that she didn’t know what to do. I came along to help.”
Was that so?
Alicia had been trained by Aliod, but she still wasn’t used to handling emergencies.
Hearing that her master had collapsed must have shaken her greatly.
He owed them a bit of gratitude for this.
“By the way, you seem to be in better shape than expected. Could you perhaps repay my heartfelt concern?”
“Should I pay you money?”
“Charge me a high price, please.”
“Ah, no! I’m the one indebted. Let me pay instead!”
It was Alicia who panicked at the joking exchange with Lirina.
As Alicia hurriedly reached into the pocket inside her skirt to pull out money, Lirina explained that it was just a joke.
“By the way, where is Aslan?”
“He finished his Magic Studies exam and has been assigned a dormitory room. Lord Aslan must be eager to meet you again. Please greet him later at the dormitory.”
“Sure. Alicia, my dormitory room has been assigned too, right?”
“Yes, it has. All your belongings have been moved in as well.”
Having a dormitory room assigned meant, of course, that he had passed.
Defeating Kairan, the chief admissions officer, made it an obvious result, but still.
“That confident expression makes you look a bit shameless.”
Lirina commented on Kraush’s expression.
“One must have confidence in oneself, mustn’t they?”
“Really, I wonder if the innocent Mr. Kraush I used to know has disappeared. Such a shame.”
Saying so, Lirina stepped closer to Kraush and subtly looked up at him.
He hadn’t been this tall before.
Among growing children, Kraush had grown particularly quickly, and now there was a significant height difference between him and Lirina.
“Still, it’s nice to see you looking so gallant. Not quite at Lord Aslan’s level, but I bet you’re breaking quite a few hearts.”
“There aren’t any women I’ve…”
As he was about to say “made cry,” Kraush suddenly thought of Bianca.
Come to think of it, he had made quite a few people cry in various ways.
“You’re thinking about your fiancée, aren’t you?”
Narrowing her eyes slightly, Lirina pointed it out.
“They say you shouldn’t flaunt your love too much.”
It was just that she had come to mind, that was all.
Yet Lirina grumbled with a sulky expression, as if annoyed.
“I’ll head back to Lord Aslan now. Here, take this.”
Lirina handed the towel she’d been holding to Kraush and left without further ado.
She was always like a storm, causing a whirlwind wherever she went.
Given that she was Lord Aslan’s personal maid, he’d likely see her often in the future.
“Alicia, when is the entrance ceremony?”
“The entrance ceremony is tomorrow.”
At least he had woken up before the entrance ceremony.
As Kraush thought this and turned his head, he noticed a crow from the Crimson Garden perched by the window.
Through the window, she gazed at Kraush silently, then sent her thoughts his way.
[A notorious womanizer.]
It was a rather awkward statement for Kraush.