One hour earlier.
While most students had already completed their Skeleton Knights, Simon was still concentrating all his efforts on his.
"Now!"
Simon’s Skeleton Knight swung its sword.
’Whirrrrrrl—’
As it swung, its waist spun with it, causing the entire upper body to rotate a full two times. The other students were too busy clutching their sides, howling with laughter.
"S-Sorry, Simon. ’Pfft!"
Even Toto was covering his mouth, his face flushed red. It was a coMikel sight, yet among all the students, only Simon’s eyes were sparkling with excitement.
"This is brilliant!"
"...Huh?"
Toto looked at Simon with a bewildered expression.
And now, an hour later, Simon and Aseraz stood on the platform with their respective Skeleton Knights.
"An undead duel. You’ve done this many times in your first year, so I assume you know the rules," Aaron announced. "The caster’s black magic is strictly forbidden, and the first to sever the opponent’s undead’s head wins."
"Yes, sir!"
"Yes, sir!"
Simon and Aseraz answered energetically.
’Simon Polentia.’
Aaron turned his head.
’You always had a natural talent for coming up with unexpected moves.’
The memory of Simon modifying a bipedal skeleton into a quadrupedal one during a duel still gave him chills. But the situation was different this time. The undead was defective, and more importantly, it was a Skeleton Knight. Because it was wearing armor, it was impossible to move the bones to reassemble it into a new form.
’Still, seeing as he stepped up to win, he must have a reason.’
Confirming that both students were ready, Aaron spoke.
"Begin."
’Thud.’
’Clank.’
Simon and Aseraz simultaneously took their stances.
"Sorry, but I have no intention of going easy on you," Aseraz said, raising her slender arm. Her Skeleton Knight raised its two swords and assumed a clean, flawless combat stance.
"I wouldn’t expect you to," Simon retorted as he readied his own knight.
Seeing this, she frowned.
"...What do you think you’re doing?"
Just like her own, Simon’s Skeleton Knight had also come out with two swords in a twin-blade style. Murmurs spread among the students.
"Did you even achieve a consciousness bloom? Did you properly grasp the Skeleton Knight’s nature before giving it those swords? Or are you just trying to insult me?"
"None of the three." Simon gave a slight smile. "But I’ll be the one to win."
Her eyes flashed with anger.
"Just try it!"
’Thwip!’
Responding to her mental command, her Skeleton Knight charged forward aggressively. It held its arms slightly apart, its two swords lowered in an ideal dual-wielding stance.
In contrast, the stance of Simon’s Skeleton Knight was peculiar.
’Shnk!’
’Shnk!’
It simply spread its two sword-wielding arms wide to the left and right, like wings.
"Stop messing around!" Aseraz shouted in fury.
The two swords of her Skeleton Knight flew toward the opposing knight’s neck at a perfect angle.
’I’ve got it!’
’Whoosh!’
However, the two swords cut through empty air. From behind, Aseraz had the illusion that the target had simply vanished. Simon’s knight had evaded the attack, arching its back to a degree impossible for any living creature.
"Tricks!"
Just as Aseraz’s Skeleton Knight reacted and tried to slash its swords downward, Simon’s straightened its bent knees and closed the distance.
’The timing is perfect!’
Simon deactivated one of the magic circles connected to the skeleton. The threads securing its waist snapped, and the Jet-Black that had been twisted like a pretzel began to violently unwind.
’Whirrrrrrrrrrl!’
The Skeleton Knight, with its arms spread wide, spun like a top while holding its swords. Aseraz’s knight hastily raised its two swords to guard, but—
Sparks flew as the two swords were easily knocked away.
’What?!’
Simon’s knight then passed Aseraz’s and landed on the floor.
The spinning Skeleton Knight came to a stop, kneeling on one knee. At the same time, the opposing knight’s head was flying high into the air.
’Rotation!’
Aseraz’s pupils trembled. The students watching also had their jaws dropped. Her Skeleton Knight’s head fell to the floor with a dull thud and rolled away.
Aaron lowered his arm and shouted, "The winner is Simon Polentia!"
"WHOAA!"
It was a completely unexpected conclusion. The students, mouths agape, excitedly chattered among themselves.
"What was that? Did you see that just now?"
"How did he do that? The skeleton was spinning like crazy!"
Aseraz stood with her arms hanging limply, a look of disbelief on her face. Simon’s Skeleton Knight struck a cool pose, raising its two swords, but its dignity was diminished as its waist began to wobble again before bending backward.
"Explain to your classmates how that happened, Simon Polentia."
Simon nodded. "The waist section of the knight I initially purchased was defective. So I just separated the upper and lower body."
"Separated?"
"Yes."
Simon took something like a bluish artificial cartilage out of his pocket. When he pulled it with his fingertips, it stretched out, showing how elastic it was.
"I connected the upper and lower body with this—it’s used for the joints of skeleton archers—and then twisted it like a top. I sealed it with a magic circle to keep it from unwinding. The operation is simple. When I remotely release the seal on the magic circle, the twisted cartilage returns to its original position, causing the sword-wielding Skeleton Knight to spin at high speed for ten seconds."
Simon made a circling motion with his fingertip.
"It was defective, but I was lucky to discover a gimmick like this! Wouldn’t it be great to have knights start spinning the moment they’re summoned from subspace? I’m thinking of refining it a bit more and registering it for a Pentamonium patent."
Aaron simply pressed a hand to his forehead. Even as his head throbbed, the corners of his mouth were turned up.
"You crazy bastard."
Simon managed to earn an A+ on the first performance evaluation, ’Skeleton Knight Creation.’ Whistling cheerfully, he carefully stored the spinning knight in his subspace and left the classroom.
He wanted to have a leisurely lunch, but his next major class was right after, so he just bought a sandwich from the store and started walking. Other students were doing the same, eating easy-to-handle food as they moved.
"The next class is Summoning Material Studies, and the classroom is a bit far!" Toto said, looking at his notebook.
"How far do we have to go?"
"Here."
Toto unfolded a map of the second-year campus that was tucked into his notebook and pointed.
"Wow, that’s pretty far."
"Yeah. It’s about the same distance as Professor Hong Feng’s outdoor class."
Since that class was just an hour away, the Summoning Department students had to move quickly. Fortunately, the vast Kizen second-year campus had free carriages operating within it.
After taking a carriage, crossing a bridge, and passing through a forest, they finally arrived at their destination.
’Woooooosh—’
Before them yawned the entrance to an enormous cave.
"We’re having class here?"
"I’d believe it if you told me it was a dungeon."
As the students were murmuring, someone suddenly emerged from the darkness of the cave. Toto, who was next to Simon, let out a startled "Wah!"
"Greetings," said a strangely dressed man. He wore an unidentifiable martial arts uniform, and a band was tied around his shaved head. Tattoos of unknown meaning marked the skin under his eyes and across his face, and his gaze seemed unfocused. He pressed his hands together and bowed to the students.
"I am the teaching assistant in charge of guiding you for this class. Please follow me."
With only those words, the TA turned his back and walked into the darkness of the cave. The students murmured among themselves and quickly followed him.
’Drip— Drip—’
The sound of water dripping in the cave was unusually loud. The sound of crashing waves and scraping rock faces could also be heard, as if from a great distance. Simon looked around with curious eyes.
’How deep is this place?’
After walking for about twenty minutes, they saw a railway laid out in the cave.
"Please put on your safety helmets and board the train."
Toto looked around with an anxious expression. "Good heavens, we’re going even deeper?"
"Ah! Aaaah!"
Students screamed and ducked as a swarm of bats suddenly flew over their heads.
’That was a surprise.’
Simon also looked up. The TA had a placid expression, as if he had just seen a bird fly by.
"Alright, please board."
The railcar was structured to fit three people per cart. Simon handed a safety helmet from the wall to the short Toto and put one on himself.
Suddenly, a hand grabbed Simon’s wrist.
"Hurry up, Simon!"
"S-Serne?"
She winked. "Dark places are scary, so you have to stay with me. What are you doing?"
"What are you talking about—"
In the end, Simon was dragged by Serne to the front of the train cart. It didn’t seem to be designed for carrying people; it was covered in black soot everywhere.
"Hmph—"
Serne, looking at it with displeasure, held her skirt and hopped in place. That ability of hers was amazing no matter how many times he saw it. White feathers cascaded from her body, glittering as they flew into the train cart, transforming into a luxurious feather duvet and carpet. The other carts were filthy, but this one looked like a luxury cabin.
"Here, let’s sit together, Simon."
However, a shadow silently settled over that luxurious cart, and a black-haired girl appeared as if she had been sitting there all along. Serne’s face crumpled into a scowl.
"Why are you here without permission?"
Without even looking back, Lorraine replied coldly, "You have a record, don’t you? I can’t leave you and Simon alone."
"Ugh, seriously! You interfere with everything!"
They had to depart soon, so there was no choice. Serne grumbled as she boarded the train, and just as Simon was about to get into the cart last—
"Train No. 1 departing now."
The TA who had appeared out of nowhere entered that last cart. Simon was pushed back, bumping into him.
The train started immediately, and the TA pressed his fists together and bowed. The sound of Serne, left behind with Lorraine without Simon, screaming in rage could be heard.
And then, Train No. 2 arrived on the track next to Simon. A new TA, dressed exactly like the previous one, emerged from the darkness.
"Students, please board the next train."
Train No. 2 departed. Simon wore a perplexed smile as he looked up at the cave ceiling.
’How did it end up like this?’
He thought he would be riding with Lorraine and Serne, but when he came to his senses, he was squeezed between two guys.
"Ugh, ughh!"
To his right was Toto, who had followed him. Gripped by terror, he was trembling while clinging to one of Simon’s arms.
And to his left.
Was Hector. He, too, seemed to be in a very bad mood, having been separated from the friends he was supposed to ride with. And since he was so large, Simon was completely squished in the cart.
Simon and Hector maintained an uncomfortable silence, while only the frightened Toto made whimpering noises.
"Shut your mouth," Hector’s voice cut in. "Chirp, chirp, chirp. You’re noisy, dwarf."
He was speaking to Toto. Under Hector’s pressure, Toto hiccupped and clamped his mouth shut. But he still flinched at every scary sight, tightening his grip on Simon’s arm.
Simon glanced at Hector for a moment before speaking.
"Hector."
"Don’t talk to me," Hector replied coldly, but Simon decided to try making conversation rather than letting things get awkward. He felt like he hadn’t had a proper conversation with him since the end of their first year.
"Didn’t you get in trouble with the third-year seniors last time? You kicked me out before the department welcome party even started."
"Don’t talk nonsense." Hector’s eyes narrowed. "And according to regulations, the department representative can only make recommendations; they have no authority to interfere in Student Council affairs. That’s the only reason I didn’t stop you."
"Ah."
"But the reverse is also true. Even if you’re on the Student Council, you can’t meddle in the department’s affairs. That would be an abuse of authority."
Simon gave a slight smile. "Still, if you cross the line like last time, our Student Council might have to step in."
"...You bastard."
The two boys’ glittering eyes met head-on. After a brief, tense stare-down, Hector suddenly let out a long sigh and closed his eyes.
"Of course, regarding you stopping the hazing ritual last time, I’m personally grateful."
Simon’s eyes widened. ’What did he just say?’
"But there won’t be a second time."
After saying that, Hector remained silent until the train arrived.

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