A wave of cheers, a mixture of awe and shock, erupted from the audience.
"That was insane."
"As expected of Special Admission Number One."
"Where is that kid headed after graduation? We should..."
"Sir, I doubt Kizen would ever let a talent like that go."
"How long has it been since we've had an ace from the Summoning department? He's certainly unique."
While officials from various organizations exchanged remarks, the students in the front rows leaped to their feet.
"SIMON! You were amazing! The best!" Kamibarez cheered.
"Ugh, seriously! You really had us on the edge of our seats," Meirin added, feigning annoyance.
"That was a brilliant strategy! Ahaha!" Dick roared.
Simon spotted the three of them and waved back with an awkward smile. One of the officials crossed his arms.
"Our kids are cute."
"Uh, sir, that comment..."
"What are you, crazy? They're my direct juniors!"
"Ah, right. You graduated from Kizen."
After waving to his group, Simon turned his attention back to the arena. Haren, who had been embedded in the wall, slumped to the ground. Medics rushed over and carried him away on a stretcher.
Simon overheard them say that thanks to the protective suit, he had no serious injuries; his body was just in shock from the massive impact. Haren himself was blinking with a dazed expression.
"Haren," Simon said, walking over to him.
"I'm not sure what grudge you have against me," Simon began with a calm smile, "but you can never beat me with 'borrowed power' that isn't your own."
Haren's eyes shot wide.
"Alright, let's get you moving," a medic said gently.
Haren, his face pale, was carried away. Simon lightly dusted off his hands and turned around. It was only then, seeing the gaping hole in the arena wall with the wind whistling through it, that a wave of embarrassment washed over him. 'I know they can fix it with magic, but I still feel bad.'
Dismantling the golem here would only cause more of a scene, so he led it out of the arena. Meanwhile, the referee began the next match.
"Simon!"
Kamibarez and the others came running out to meet him.
"Are you hurt?" she asked, her voice laced with concern.
"Nope, I'm fine."
"Hey! What the hell was that?" Meirin demanded. "You scared us! Why didn't you tell us anything?"
Simon just smiled sheepishly. "Sorry for making you worry."
"Hmph! I wasn't worried!"
Meanwhile, Dick was approaching the Mud Golem with a look of pure admiration. "Whoa, so this is Simon's golem!" As he reached out to touch it, the golem recoiled, glaring at him. Dick flinched and took a step back. "Hello? Nice fella..."
This time, Kamibarez approached and gently stroked the golem. It didn't refuse her touch. In fact, it even lowered its body slightly, making it easier for her to pet it.
Dick's face soured. "...That thing might not be a golem."
"What are you talking about?" Meirin retorted.
"Simon! Can I ride it?" Kamibarez asked, her eyes sparkling.
Simon just laughed, sweating nervously.
"Kami," Meirin said, sweeping her hair back. "Maintaining a golem constantly consumes Jet-Black. At this rate, Simon's going to wither away."
"Oh! Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry! I was being so thoughtless...!" Kamibarez exclaimed, quickly stepping away from the golem.
Only then did Simon release his mental command, and the golem collapsed into a mound of earth. He walked over and pulled a large, orb-like object from the pile. It was the Golem's Core.
"So this is what it looks like," Kamibarez and Meirin said, crouching down to carefully touch it. Suddenly, a soft 'ting!' sound came from its surface, and Kamibarez yelped, jumping back.
"It's okay," Simon said with a laugh. "It does that sometimes when it's in a good mood."
"Ahh..."
"Isn't this thing incredibly expensive?" Meirin asked. "How did you afford it?"
Simon grinned. "Somehow, with the money from the mission and a little credit."
Simon had earned 500 gold from his last mission, plus an additional 200 gold from Lord Raymond for clearing out the Gray Orcs. A few days ago, he'd spent 90 gold on three Skeleton Archers in Rochest, leaving him with 610 gold.
—"A Golem's Core starts at 700 gold, minimum."
At the shopkeeper's words, Simon had been ready to give up. But then, the man made him an offer.
—"This isn't a small purchase. As a special discount, I'll make it 650 gold. I can even give you 50 gold on credit. How about you take it for 600 gold today?"
Completely won over, Simon had splurged on the core. 'I might have overspent a bit, but oh well.'
The golem was worth every coin. Its combat power was undeniable, and unlike skeletons, it was built to last. He carefully placed the Golem's Core into his Subspace.
"By the way, Dick, when's the next mission period?"
"...Why the sudden question?"
Because he needed to get back out there and earn more money. For a necromancer, money was power. Simon smiled at the thought.
With the morning evaluations over, Simon's group had a light lunch and moved to the 4th Arena, where Dick, Meirin, and Kamibarez were scheduled to compete. Dick, who was up first, headed to the waiting room to prepare.
"Kami, are you sure you don't want to eat something?" Simon asked.
Huddled with her knees drawn up, tense about her upcoming duel, she managed a strained smile. "I'm fine. I really can't stomach anything right now."
"Are you sure you're okay?" Meirin asked, crossing her arms and eyeing Simon. "Don't push yourself just to watch our matches. Go get some sleep."
"I'm fine, really. That duel woke me right up."
"Honestly..."
"Oh, there's Dick!" Kamibarez pointed.
Sure enough, Dick and his opponent, both in protective suits, were walking to the center of the arena. His opponent was a female student named Rigang Chopra, who had dark brown hair tied in a ponytail and slightly tanned skin.
"Tch, another girl," Dick muttered, resting his hands behind his head.
Rigang's expression hardened. "And? I'll crush you so hard you won't make a peep. Just you wait."
"Yeah, yeah," Dick replied with a sly grin, shaking her hand. As the two took their positions, their barrier gauges appeared on the mana projector.
[Dick Hayward: 100%]
[Rigang Chopra: 100%]
"Are both students ready?" the referee asked.
"Yep!"
"Yes."
The referee nodded. "Then, the dueling evaluation between student Dick Hayward and student Rigang Chopra will now begin." He lowered his arm. "Match start!"
Dick immediately opened his Subspace and drew a sleek sword. 'Enchant.'
A magic circle enveloped the blade, turning it pitch black. He gave it a light swing and settled into a combat stance.
"Is that all?" Rigang scoffed, opening her own Subspace. A cascade of twenty swords tumbled out onto the floor. Murmurs of confusion rippled through the stands.
"What is all that?"
"...Can she even use all of them?" Meirin and Kamibarez wondered aloud. Just then, a magic circle spread over the pile of swords, and all twenty began to turn black.
'Multi-Enchant...!'
It was a duel between two enchanters. Even seeing twenty swords enchanted at once, Dick remained unfazed. Unlike Rigang, he was layering multiple enchants onto his single blade. 'Heh, she doesn't get it. The power of an enchanted weapon is determined by how much Jet-Black you pour into it. Multi-Enchant is a technique most pros avoid for a reason.'
"Shut up and watch!" Rigang commanded, spreading her hand. The twenty swords trembled as if alive and rose into the air.
'Ooooh—'
A mix of gasps and screams echoed from the crowd as the swords danced around her like a protective guard. A closer look revealed fine Jet-Black threads attached to their tips, which she was using to levitate them.
"Die," she spat, flicking her fingers. Three of the floating swords shot toward Dick at a blinding speed.
"Whoopsie-daisy!"
Dick dashed across the floor on a current of Jet-Black, swinging his shortsword. 'Clang! Clang! Clang!' Sparks flew with each metallic impact as the swords clattered to the ground.
'SWOOSH-SWOOSH-SWOOSH!'
As if she had found her range, ten more swords now flew at him from different directions.
"Whoa, this is tough!" Dick dropped his sword and pulled an object with a handle from his Subspace. Kneeling, he thrust it out in front of him. 'Enchant!'
Dick's Jet-Black flared out like an umbrella. The swords slammed into it, creating a deafening shriek of metal. Blocking all ten proved impossible; a corner of the Jet-Black shield tore, and several blades grazed his body.
"Dick!" Kamibarez cried out, her eyes fixed on the mana projector.
[Dick Hayward: 69%]
[Rigang Chopra: 100%]
His barrier gauge depleted, Dick staggered backward. "Phew, that was close! But now it's my turn... huh?" The swords that had attacked him trembled on the floor before flying back to Rigang's side. Dick's mouth fell open in a hollow smile. "You're good."
Rigang frowned. "Still have the energy to run that mouth of yours?"
"Of course! Want me to show you just how much?" Dick took a deep breath. "Name: Rigang Chopra. Real name: Priyanka Chopra."
Rigang's eyes widened.
"Originally from the Deepak territory of the Shahed Kingdom. You took your mother's surname, Chopra. Core opened by the village sage. Took one year to manifest Jet-Black. Specialty: hunting. Hobby: cooking."
"What—what are you doing?!"
"After entering Kizen, you were placed in Class G. Average test score in the 70s. First friend was Narsha Abra. You're aiming for Jet-black Dynamics but have recently taken an interest in Combat Magic. You have a minor knee injury. Height five feet, four inches, weight 134 lbs, waist circumference is..."
"SHUT UP, YOU CRAZY BASTARD!" Rigang shrieked, her face turning crimson.
Embarrassed to be in the same group, Meirin covered her face with her hands, while Kamibarez hung her head low.
"Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated," Dick declared with a grin, opening his Subspace. He pulled one of five metal stakes from within and drove it into the ground. "That's my motto. See, I know better than anyone that I'm weak. That's why I'm 'very' interested in knowing about others."
"Stop talking and just die already!" Rigang screamed, sending ten swords flying at him.
Dick placed his palm on the metal stake and infused it with magic. 'Enchant!'
As magic flowed into the stake, the swords flying toward Dick were suddenly pulled off course, sticking to it with a series of loud 'thwacks'.
"It's basically an electromagnet," Dick explained, pushing himself up. "When activated with Jet-Black, it attracts metals with similar properties. A fifty-fifty mix of carbon steel and amarinium. Right?"
"How could you possibly know that...!"
Dick pulled a note from his pocket and unfolded it with a smirk. "This is your purchase history from the Rochest weapon shop."
"You bought twenty swords the second you got paid from the mission evaluation. And that tells me one more thing." Tossing the note behind him, Dick rummaged in his pocket and produced a one-silver coin, already dyed black with an enchant. "You didn't buy a single shield or piece of armor, did you?"
Dick manifested a magic circle on his right palm and another on the coin. Pressing them together, he squeezed his fist tight. "Maybe you got careless because your opponent was a pure enchanter, but that means...!"
Dick swung both arms behind his head and lifted his left leg. Planting his foot, he let his center of gravity shift forward. At the same time, his right arm whipped around, his palm snapping open as the two magic circles sparked. "...you're completely vulnerable to a high-speed projectile!"
With a piercing shriek, the coin shot forward like a flash of light.
'That's so... so fast!'
She couldn't dodge it. Rigang desperately tried to move her swords to intercept, but the coin was a step ahead, slipping past them to strike her squarely on the forehead.
'THWACK!'
A circular shockwave erupted from the point of impact. Though the protective suit's barrier held, the concussive force snapped her head back, and her eyes rolled into her head.
'Thud.' Her body collapsed to the floor.
[Dick Hayward: 69%]
[Rigang Chopra: 35%]
The enchanted coin hadn't been powerful enough to defeat her in one hit, but the impact had knocked her unconscious. The referee checked her condition before declaring, "Match suspended! Rigang Chopra has lost consciousness. The winner is Dick Hayward!"
"Ahahah!"
Dick pumped his fist with a triumphant grin.

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