A dangerous hunt for a venomous monster as a two-person assignment? As the students of Class A gaped in disbelief, Byulya called out, "Head TA."
"Ah, yes! Ma’am! Professor!" The Head TA, who had been standing at the back, scurried forward and snapped to attention.
"Randomly select pairs and send them to the teleportation circle."
"Right away! And you, Professor?"
"I’m going to prepare some antidotes in advance," Byulya replied, a meaningful smile playing on her lips. "I’m sure there will be a few students who come crawling back on death’s door."
A heavy tension descended upon the lecture hall. Byulya’s gaze swept over the students.
"And you all better remember this: don’t get cocky chasing a high score."
With that final warning, she swept out of the room. The Head TA pressed a hand to her chest, letting out a quiet sigh of relief before turning to the students.
"Alright, you all heard her. I’ll be sending you out in pairs."
Just then, Claudia raised her hand. "Excuse me, Miss TA! Could we possibly form our own teams...?"
"You know that’s not allowed," the TA said gently. "The professor specified random pairings."
At Kizen, a professor’s command was absolute. As the students began to murmur anxiously amongst themselves, wondering who their partners would be, the TAs diligently wrote each name from the roster onto a slip of paper.
"However," the Head TA announced, placing two empty boxes on the lectern with a smile, "we’ll have one male student and one female student per team! How does that sound?"
Professor Byulya’s order had only been for random pairs; the method of selection was left to the TA’s discretion. The announcement sparked an immediate and powerful reaction. The boys were a mixture of apprehension and excitement, while the girls, despite a chorus of "Oh, come on!" didn’t seem entirely opposed to the idea, subtly fixing their hair or glancing into compact mirrors.
"...What a pain," Hector muttered, propping his chin on his hand and clicking his tongue in annoyance.
Soon, the drawing began. The Head TA drew a boy’s name, and another TA drew the name of his female partner. For the next round, they reversed the order. The Head TA had intended to ease the students’ tension before the evaluation, but the simple lottery had morphed into a surprisingly entertaining event. Before long, the entire class was completely invested, shouting and reacting dramatically as each name was called.
"Alright, next up is a male student!"
The Head TA pulled a slip of paper from the box and unfolded it. A hush fell over the room as she read the name aloud.
"Dick Hayward!"
Dick threw his arms wide, expecting a roar of applause, but the female students collectively grimaced.
"We’ve got a landmine."
"Ugh, kill me."
"Dick is... fun, I guess... but he’s also a little... much."
Hearing their comments, Dick’s face flushed with anger as he glared at them. "Hey! What’s your problem? I’m a great...!"
"And his partner is Catherine Turrel!"
A girl, presumably Catherine, slammed her head onto her desk with a dull ’thud’. The boys howled with laughter, slapping their thighs, while the other girls patted Catherine’s back in sympathy.
"Good luck on the bomb squad."
"You can do it."
Meirin, one of her teammates, added her own condolences. "Catherine, we won’t forget your sacrifice."
Dick’s face was practically boiling with rage. "Just you wait! All of you!"
Simon, sitting behind him, gently pulled on Dick’s arm. "Don’t get so worked up. They’re just messing with you."
"Okay! The next student is... Simon Polentia!"
A dead silence swept through the lecture hall. The girls who had been teasing Dick were suddenly stone-faced, their laughter gone as they stared straight ahead. Meirin nervously clutched the hem of her uniform, and Kamibarez clasped her hands together tightly. The only sound was the collective gulping of the students.
"You have got to be kidding me! The difference in reaction is insane!" Dick cried, feeling as though he’d died a second death.
"Honestly, you can’t even compare the two," Cindy Vivace remarked, waving her hand dismissively and delivering the final blow.
Meanwhile, Simon considered who he’d want as a partner. A complete stranger would be awkward and a tactical liability.
’I’d love to be paired with Meirin or Kamibarez,’ he thought. ’Or at least one of the girls I know reasonably well.’
Just then, a male student spoke up. "Miss TA, isn’t it the girls’ turn to be picked first?"
"Oh, that’s right!" The Head TA stuck out her tongue playfully. She neatly refolded Simon’s slip of paper, dropped it back into the box, and gave it a shuffle, all under the piercing glares of the female students.
"Then the next female student is!"
She unfolded a new slip and read it.
"Kamibarez Ursula!"
"WHOAAAAAA!"
A cheer louder than any before erupted through the hall. She was Class A’s beloved little sister, adored for her cute appearance and kind, gentle nature. Nearly every boy in the class had hoped to be paired with her.
Kamibarez herself, however, was so nervous that she was trembling like a penguin. Her face flushed, she kept her head bowed, but her eyes darted one last time toward Simon.
’Please let it be Simon...!’
"And the male student is... Simon Polentia!"
At those words, Kamibarez’s mind went completely blank.
’Really? For real?’
"You bastard!"
"Team 7 always gets to monopolize Kamibarez!"
"This has to be rigged!"
Blinded by rage, Dick and the other boys grabbed Simon by the collar and shook him.
"Alright, alright, quiet down! I’ll draw the next male student! Hector Moore!"
Fortunately, the class’s attention immediately shifted. In the ensuing chaos, Kamibarez scurried over to Simon.
"Simon!" she chirped, grabbing the hem of his uniform with a radiant smile. "I’m so glad we’re partners!"
Simon smiled back at her, though the back of his neck prickled under the heat of the hostile glares boring into him from across the room.
Soon, all the teams were decided, and Class A headed for the hill where the teleportation circle awaited.
Meirin had been paired with Toto and looked utterly furious. With her arms crossed and eyes blazing, she radiated an aura that promised death to anyone who dared speak to her.
’Poor Toto.’
The boy, a full head shorter than Meirin, watched her with a terrified expression. Simon approached Meirin and spoke in a placating tone.
"Don’t be so hard on him. Try to get along."
Toto shot Simon a look of profound gratitude, but Meirin just snorted, her expression still sour. "You must be thrilled to be with Kamibarez. I’m sure you’ve already got an A+ in the bag."
But Meirin’s sulking never lasted long. Like a true necromancer, she quickly and coolly accepted the situation, turning to Toto to grill him about his black magic and formulate a strategy.
"We’ll begin preparations immediately!" the TA announced.
This evaluation was strict. A subspace inspection was conducted to ensure no one was carrying pre-made antidotes, and students had to change from their Kizen uniforms into athletic wear. They also had to wear a small ’Memorial Crystal Orb’ around their necks, which would record the battle to prevent cheating.
Pressing firmly on the back of the orb would also send an emergency signal to Kizen. However, requesting aid from the school meant automatically accepting the lowest possible score.
"We will now begin teleportation! When your name is called, please step forward quickly!"
The teleportation was surprisingly short.
’We’re already here.’
When Simon opened his eyes, he found himself facing a vast sand dune, even more desolate than the Neutral Zone he had visited before. Behind him stood a lush, ordinary forest. Desert in front, woods behind—it was as if he stood on a natural border.
"I never knew the Dresden Kingdom had a place like this."
"It used to be all forest," Kamibarez said, smiling brightly as she waved the mission brief in her hand. "But it started turning into a desert after a dungeon appeared nearby! That’s what it says here, anyway!"
"...Haha."
Thrilled to be outside with Simon, just the two of them, Kamibarez’s little bat wings fluttered nonstop. The sight drew a small laugh from Simon.
"Shall we get going?"
"Yes!"
They were off Roc Island, but only for a single day. With eight hours on the clock, they began to walk, discussing their plan. Kamibarez continued to read from the brief.
"The venomous monster we have to hunt is the Desert Scorpion. It’s a Danger Level 5!"
"Level 5?"
That was the same classification as the ’Gwoegong’ they had fought in the sea during the third BMAT. Of course, the Gwoegong’s rating had been artificially low because it never left its underwater cave, whereas the scorpion’s was inflated due to its venom. They weren’t equally powerful, but being in the same class meant it was extremely dangerous.
"I think we’ve reached the scorpion’s habitat," Simon said, pointing to a nearby sign. They were standing at the edge of the desert, which was littered with warnings: SCORPION WARNING! and EXTREMELY DANGEROUS!. Many were adorned with skulls and crossbones.
As Simon scanned his surroundings, his foot bumped against something hard. An old human skull lay half-buried in the sand.
"This is creepy," Kamibarez whispered, wrapping her arms around herself.
They proceeded with caution, taking slow, deliberate steps.
"We need a scorpion to show up before we can do anything else," Simon mused, then abruptly fell silent. A section of the flat sand ahead had begun to bulge upward.
’It’s here!’
Simon instantly scooped Kamibarez into his arms and dove to the side. A massive, barbed tail erupted from the sand, slamming down where they had just been standing.
’Boom!’
Sand exploded into the air like a fountain, a testament to the creature’s immense power.
After setting Kamibarez down, Simon turned back, but the tail had already vanished without a trace, leaving behind only a patch of sand stained with a sickly green liquid.
"Poison," Simon warned. "Let’s be careful, Kamibarez!"
"Okay!"
As expected of a Level 5 monster, it was far faster than they had anticipated. As they scanned their surroundings, on high alert, another patch of sand began to rise. Kamibarez spotted it first.
"Simon! To your right!"
Realizing his left foot was stuck fast, Simon narrowed his eyes.
’Gate Open!’
’Ch-ch-ch-chak!’
Two spectral blades shot up from the ground just as the scorpion’s tail descended.
The two blades and the tail collided in a deafening roar.
A classic hit-and-run. Its attack blocked, the Desert Scorpion tried to retreat back into the sand.
Suddenly, a small pool of blood formed around the scorpion, trapping it. With her eyes closed in concentration, Kamibarez gracefully waved her arms.
’Blood Thread’
Crimson tendrils shot out from the pool, wrapping around the scorpion’s body. The creature strained against them, trying to burrow into the sand, pulling the threads taut.
"Ugh!" Kamibarez let out a pained groan and staggered.
"I’ve got you, Kamibarez!"
’Cloud’
Turquoise smoke streamed from Simon’s ten fingers, forming ropes that coiled around the scorpion’s body.
"One, two—pull!"
They both bent their knees and yanked with all their might. Entangled in the green and red lines, the scorpion staggered, lost its balance, and crashed to the ground.
’Thud!’
The scorpion thrashed violently. Its pincer-like claws, sharp as razors, swung wildly, severing several strands of the ’Cloud’ and ’Blood Thread’.
’Ugh!’
A jolt of extreme pain shot through Simon, whose nerves were connected to the ’Cloud’.
"Simon!"
The scorpion’s claw sliced through the air, grazing Simon’s shoulder. He leaped back just in time, clutching the wound.
’Ugh, the poison...!’
The enraged Desert Scorpion charged straight at him.
They collided head-on. Overpowered, Simon was driven back, his boots carving long furrows in the sand.
’Jet-Black Internal Eruption!’
Beads of black sweat dripped from his body. With his physically enhanced state, he just barely managed to halt the creature’s advance. The flustered scorpion raised its massive tail to strike him down, but—
Kamibarez had cleverly focused her ’Blood Threads’ exclusively on the tail, immobilizing it.
"Nice one, Kamibarez!"
While still holding the scorpion at bay, Simon opened his subspace. Skeletons poured out, swarming over the creature. They plunged their spears into the gaps of its carapace and hacked at it with their swords. The scorpion shrieked in pain and struggled.
"Are you ready?"
"Yes! I’ve been ready!"
Simon’s eyes hardened with determination.
’Gate Open! Maximum number!’
’Booooom!’
Six Overload blades erupted from the ground, launching the scorpion’s body into the air. In that brief moment, Simon staggered back and shouted.
"Now!"
Her eyes bloodshot, Kamibarez raised both arms above her head, unleashing the pinnacle of Hemomancy.
’Hemorrhage - Overflow’
A massive torrent of blood erupted from the wounds the skeletons had just inflicted. A crimson rain fell from the sky.

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