CHAPTER 177: EXTRAVAGANT
Aurora watched her so-called hired beast as she stood in the waiting room.
“You look excited,” Aurora pointed at Rupert with a smile.
That three-meter tall gorilla let out a chuckle as he watched her with a bright smile.
“Sure, it’s not every day I get to let loose,” Rupert replied, revealing his fangs.
Having an old man for a companion it was hard for a thundering gorilla who was usually animated to let loose completely.
Now was an opportunity, and Rupert was very excited.
“We’re up against Merlin Academy and Paladin Academy. Those kids are very strong,” Rupert muttered and with a low growl, exclaimed. “It’s going to be a lot of fun!”
Would it?
Aurora couldn’t help but be infected by that excitement and enthusiasm.
Before she let out her enthusiasm, the event authorities entered with a group of skill users wearing demon masks.
All group challenges had a ‘scenario’, which meant there was always a context.
“Will we be the bad guys?” Doubted Rupert grunted with excitement.
That was what it looked like.
Among the people already in the room, some began to murmur amongst themselves, most were teachers or some guild members, but it wasn’t the whole raiding party.
“These will be your companions,” the manager said, pointing to the skill users behind his back and with a smile, he explained. “The scenario is simple. You are from an evil cult who has to attack the group of students.”
The companions showed their demon masks, and the attendant continued the explanation.
“As evil individuals that you are, you don’t have to hold back with your blows and can show your full strength. The coliseum barrier is also active in this area, so serious injuries will be avoided. However, they will feel a percentage of pain when they are hit in such a way.” The attendant reported and then explained more carefully.
They were the bad guys and could act as such.
They could throw deadly blows, scare the students, trick them, or just beat them up.
The only thing they had to keep in mind was that they were the attacking group.
Because here were some teachers or veterans whose abilities were high, their equipment was limited.
They could only carry certain items and take other items that were available.
But that was not the total limitation, the limit was the ‘life bar’ they had.
It was an artifact that protected them and when it was completely reduced by enemy attacks, then they would disappear from the battlefield.
They too were affected by the barrier that prevented mortal blows, but what was sought was that, as veterans, they would show greater ferocity.
With an active life bar, they would have to move in such a way so as not to take risks and always ensuring that they did not suffer so much damage.
That was a big disadvantage for fighters or knights who could be considered tanks.
The only good thing was that the artifact seemed to be fairly accurate in determining what was damage or not, so if they shielded themselves from some attacks, the theoretical ‘damage’ would decrease.
“We have two S-Ranks at our disposal,” informed the attendant, pointing to a demon masked fighter, and when he looked at Aurora, he pointed. “The strongest always leads, as a Rank-S tamer. You will lead the group and create the strategy.”
Rupert gently nudged her as he heard those words, looking excited.
“I agree,” the S-Rank fighter interjected.
His black demon mask couldn’t hide his eyes that let an amused light shine through.
With the S-Rank’s agreement, the attendant withdrew and left Aurora to receive the gaze of the entire raiding party.
Among them were quite a few B-ranks and about ten A-ranks... Basically equaling the number of the two academies.
“Boss, what’s the strategy?” the S-ranked fighter asked.
Aurora’s expression quivered at the naturalness of that tone, getting Rupert to laugh and nod at ease.
Strategy... Just like the students who were just now planning their strategy, they too could create one.
Because of the time they had, it was perhaps impossible to be as prepared as the two academies that had a longer time to organize, but as experts, they could adapt quickly.
“We are demons. We need to act like it,” Rupert growled with a savage tone and then looked at Aurora, waiting for her response.
It was clear he wished to continue his role as a battle-crazed cult member.
“As my partner said, we have to be wild and aggressive, act evil. We are demons,” Aurora stated, getting a few laughs and feeling excited, she reported. “As for strategy... We just need to get ready to start hand-to-hand combat, and then we can unleash.”
She didn’t want to be too extreme with the students and, while pushing them a bit, is fine; she didn’t want to formulate a very methodical strategy.
She had the odds thanks to the fact that among those present were mages and psionics, looking like veterans in their respective ranks.
That meant that as long as she organized them as a professional force, they could prove overwhelmingly effective.
However, it was more fun this way.
Aurora donned a horned demon mask and when it adjusted to her face, she laughed inwardly.
She was now a demon.
******
Laurence Mayer was the S-ranked student of Merlin Academy and leader of the alliance between Merlin Academy and Paladin Academy.
He checked his surroundings with a serious expression.
The students of Merlin Academy were mostly mages and because of the way they studied, they were individuals who showed great cooperation and greater strength when working as a team.
The mages using earth magic created a wall and then the paladins installed a barrier covering their entire small fort.
It was a barrier that would prevent long-range damage while allowing those on the inside to attack outward.
“How’s the scouting going?” Laurence asked the approaching young man.
Wearing full-body metal armor, he had a large shield on his back and a sword.
It reminded those looking at him of a medieval knight, only with a fantasy style.
White armor with gold accents, his silver cape billowed in the breeze and even though it looked too heavy, the young man wore it undeterred.
Elliott Lynch S-Rank paladin and leader of the Paladin Academy.
“Each student uses their scouting spells, but I don’t think it’s too useful,” Elliott replied and looking at the barrier, commented. “Defend reduced our scouting advantage.”
Laurence nodded.
The students were not specialized for scouting, at least not completely.
That led to the fact that being locked in here, their scouting ability was reduced and that meant that if their enemies approached in hiding, they could cause them a great loss.
But that issue was the least of it.
They set up their small camp in an ideal spot to see a bit of the surrounding.
While their view was perfect at about thirty meters and then filled in with trees, it was enough to allow them to see their enemies beforehand.
*BOOM*
At that moment, an explosion resounded as a fireball hit the barrier and it only subtly trembled.
Elliott put on his helmet and braced himself, while Laurence took to the sky to watch.
“Are they trying to probe us?” He hesitated silently.
Even though the fireball was A-rank, the damage was minimal, thanks to the barrier.
If the paladins and mages maintained the barrier, then it could withstand a large siege, and at the same time, they could cast their spells on the enemies.
That would lead to the enemy group eventually tiring out, thanks to the fact that most of the students were mages and could hold out longer.
“They’re coming from the west!”
A warning came and Laurence looked to the west, but only noticed a small group charging towards them.
Were they trying to probe them by expending their forces?
That question could not be answered as reports came in.
“They’re coming from the east too!”
“To the north, another group!”
“To the south, a group is coming!”
Hearing those reports, Laurence had an immediate response.
“It’s an all-out assault! Be careful and prepare long-range spells!” ordered Laurence.
In an all-out assault, their enemies would receive their long-range spells and reduce the number by a margin.
The idea was a good one, and the students were prepared to carry out the order.
At that moment, Laurence heard a whistling sound and looked up at the sky.
A man in a demon mask dropped from hundreds of meters in the sky like a meteorite.
“BEWARE!”
*BOOM*
*BOOM*
His voice was swallowed by the explosion of that fighter shattering the barrier and the following explosion of him falling to the ground.
A vast cloud of dust billowed up and Laurence watched as a teammate flew, hitting the wall from the concussive force of the fall.
“Hahahahaha!”
With the laughter of a demon, the fighter quickly got up and hit a vital part of the wall where the barrier generator was located.
The barrier became impossible to recover from, and the fighter began to address the mages.
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“Elliott!” Laurence exclaimed.
*BOOM*
Before the S-Rank fighter reached the mages, the paladin withstood the fighter’s blow with his shield, managing to move several steps back.
“We have to take care of the others...”
*roar*
Before he could give his orders, a deafening roar came from the northwest side and when Laurence looked, he shivered subtly.
A blackish-haired Thundering Gorilla with blackish fur next to a young woman affirmed on his shoulders was in sight.
The gorilla had strange demonic horns on its head, which made Laurence think it was an accessory, but that thought disappeared when the gorilla ripped off a large tree with its arms and threw it at the wall.
“Look out!”
His shout didn’t help because those mages were targeting another group with their spells and when they tried to dodge, it was too late.
Being hit by a large tree thrown by a thunderous gorilla known for its strength, one mage’s barrier was broken and the mage disappeared when the barrier was activated.
“...”
Then, when they looked at the gorilla, they noticed that he was bringing a large seven-meter tree as a weapon.
All while on top of the tree was a young woman looking as if she was the master of that vile demonic gorilla.
Combat broke out as troops from the surrounding area arrived at the wall.
******
Aurora heard Rupert’s suppressed laughter as he ran along a huge tree.
She was up the tree, keeping her balance as her gaze was fixed on the fort where the students secured an area to protect themselves.
The S-Rank fighter knocked down the barrier on his own and started the battle inside the fort, leading to everything becoming chaotic.
Now that reinforcements arrived, the paladins were facing the ‘demons’ who were skilled in close combat, while the mages were facing other mages.
In other areas, some of the demons were taken down by spells cast from a distance, unfortunately for the students, many made it to the walls.
Not all the ‘demons’ were melee skill users, but mages, psionics, and archers were to be found.
There were even mechanics and firearms masters, but since the order was an all-out assault and to ensure close combat, they obeyed by charging forward like lunatics.
“Attack the gorilla! It’s an S-Rank!”
The mage who was flying gave the order and some mages who were unoccupied started aiming their weapons at the duo.
“You’re not going to be able to use that,” Aurora muttered, lowering herself to the ground.
Rupert let out a pitying grunt and then, seeing that she had gotten off his weapon, tossed the tree towards the mages.
Aurora’s expression quivered as the mages had to jump off the wall because of Rupert’s accuracy.
“Come on up. Let’s speed up,” Rupert urged, and Aurora immediately obeyed by climbing on his back and grabbing him by the neck.
For a three-meter tall gorilla that was very burly, there was no other more aesthetically pleasing way to move.
The horns on Rupert’s head were just a helmet that served as an accessory to give him a more terrifying atmosphere... Trying to imitate the masks of demons.
*Roar*.
With a ferocious roar that made Aurora’s ears hurt, Rupert charged forward.
*BOOM*
A huge explosion sounded near them as a spell hit nearby and even though the blast wave moved them, Rupert continued to move his gigantic body swiftly.
Onlookers watched a gorilla dodging spells and running to the wall undeterred, while a young ‘demon’ woman swung at his neck.
Aurora didn’t mind her image and laughed because Rupert was laughing as well.
“Let’s crush them all,” Rupert muttered then, Aurora soared up and for a moment had a perfect view of the battlefield as she was high above.
Elliott was facing the black demon and seemed to be holding him back, but that demon was cunning and made the battle go inside the fort.
Always trying to attack the mages.
Elsewhere, the paladins were facing off against other demons while the mages were attacking and defending with spells.
And the one she saw best was the S-Rank mage from Merlin Academy, who was a few meters away from them, raised in the air.
Aurora didn’t hesitate and, using Rupert’s back, she jumped towards Laurence.
That young man was a summoner and not an attack mage!
*BOOM*
The explosion echoed from the ground, from Rupert’s fall, and Aurora tried to hit Laurence’s barrier.
“Do you think you can do anything to me?” Laurence asked and waved his wand, throwing a gust of wind that sent Aurora flying to the ground.
It was a spell to protect herself that was inside the wand and the force was not simple, leading to her retreating.
“GRAAAAAA!”
Roaring like a beast, Rupert unleashed his blows, raising clouds of dust and destroying the walls.
Some mages cast some spells to hit him and Rupert, in response, used his fists to collapse any spell.
Proving that he was an S-ranked beast that was not to be trifled with.
It was at that moment that Aurora saw something fall to the ground.
Standing four meters tall in the shape of a gorilla, but with thicker arms, was a rock golem.
Laurence’s Rank-S summoning.
That rock golem immediately attacked Rupert and the thundering gorilla roared to meet it, starting a battle in the middle of the camp.
Two battles in the camp turned the whole previously chaotic situation into an all-out disaster and to the advantage of the students, they quickly organized themselves in this chaotic place.
Aurora, sensing the atmosphere and hearing the battle cries, began to get excited and her eyes filled with enthusiasm.
With a quick glance, she identified her opponents and charged towards them.
“Try to break our formation! Watch out!”
A warning shout rang out as the students noticed Aurora charging towards the Merlin Academy A-Rank group.
They had a curse mage, and that mage was the cause of most of their group’s casualties.
His spells weakened their team so much that he made it so that the students could face two against one.
Aurora watched as a paladin stepped in front of her.
“She’s just a tamer without her beast,” the paladin said, swinging his sword diagonally.
That slash would normally push her away, but Aurora took a step forward and as she entered the area of the slash, she angled her body to subtly dodge it.
Without giving him time to react, Aurora grabbed the paladin’s wrist, who was surprised at the quick reaction.
“Ugg...”
Extending her fighter aura that kept her hidden, Aurora squeezed the paladin’s wrist, pushing the sword away towards that paladin’s chest, and with her free hand, she punched him in the nose.
As a fighter, Aurora was strong, and even though the paladin had a barrier and wore a helmet, the blow was intense enough to stun the paladin.
Out of the corner of her eye, Aurora noticed that the space mage moved the darkness mage to her side, in the best place to attack without affecting his partner.
“Shit!”
Then when the darkness mage cast his spell, Aurora, using the paladin who was dazed and unsteady, threw him into the sphere of darkness with full force.
*BOOM*
The explosion echoed as the paladin and the spell collided, sending the paladin flying into the wall.
Aurora’s mind focused into a state of heightened concentration.
Each second lasted a longer time and her reflexes followed the movements of her opponents, who moved rather slowly.
The A-Rank students of Merlin Academy were surprised, but the curse wizard was preparing a spell.
The truth was that those blows she gave were not fatal and while the paladin hit the wall, he would soon recover and with that, the group would regain formation.
However, Aurora would not let them.
Grabbing the paladin’s shield from the ground, she began to run towards the curse mage as everything moved again.
Protecting the curse mage, there was still the space mage, the magic swordsman, and the female student of light magic.
“[Fireball]”
The swordsman cast his spell and seeing that fireball, Aurora advanced forward and at the last moment took a leap, performing a pirouette in the air as she dodged.
She could feel the heat below her and then behind her back, however, the movement was perfect to dodge the fireball at high speed and keep running.
“[Space Cut]”
This time the space mage moved and Aurora, realizing she couldn’t avoid it, raised the shield and used her magical energy to activate it.
She was a swordsman, and that meant she could employ her magical energy to reinforce external objects.
Be it her sword, a rock, or this shield.
“Shit!”
At the space mage’s exclamation, Aurora felt the shield shake, and that was it.
Unlike using another element to protect herself, this shield was designed to withstand these attacks.
Normally a fighter wouldn’t be able to use their magical energy in this way or they would just focus on reinforcing their body to avoid damage, so seeing that it was different, the space mage cursed her luck.
“Coming!”
The light mage moved with her wand, but that movement hid the curse mage who was already prepared to cast her spell.
So Aurora, without hesitation, threw the shield reinforced with her magical energy at the curse mage.
“Ugh...”
For a moment everyone felt like they saw a comic book superhero, with the curse mage who was hit in his stomach after his barrier was broken, being the one who felt it most certainly.
“[Blinding Light]”
At the light mage’s chant, Aurora’s vision turned boundless white.
They blinded her completely and she could see nothing, but her instincts and keen senses kicked in instantly and she rolled on the ground, feeling a searing heat at her back.
She closed her eyes and in her mind, her surroundings began to take shape as her other senses were heightened to their maximum, and Aurora, sensing the light mage’s presence, charged towards her.
“How the hell does she dodge it?”
Perhaps this was from her standard strategies for defeating dangerous enemies and Aurora even though she couldn’t see their reactions, she knew they were surprised.
She wasn’t able to see, but they were, and they watched as she dodged the magic swordsman’s slash.
The light mage was startled and immediately reacted by casting another spell.
This time she didn’t say it out loud and instead swung the wand, sending several spears of light flying.
Aurora could sense how the magical energy distorted and the warning of her senses, but instead of running to dodge it, she reinforced her body with the combat aura and unleashed a punch.
*BOOM*
The spear shattered as it met her fist and Aurora took no damage and her charge didn’t stop, either.
“Stop her, we’re dropping into other areas!”
Laurence’s shout came and with that shout, Aurora rolled again, dodging some earthen spikes that sprang up behind her.
A summoning mage had his methods of defending himself and attacking, if necessary, such ability he showed here.
Unfortunately, he lacked the dexterity and ability to control the elements at will, so his strength was at most a limited A-Rank.
*BOOM*
Being on the ground, Aurora picked up a stone and dodged another attack from the fire swordsman.
Then, sensing the magical energy stirring around her, she threw the rock reinforced with her magical energy and threw it at the space mage, managing to break his concentration and stopping the spell.
Aurora had trained with her master for years and her senses were sharp, while her instincts were high enough so that losing her sight didn’t matter.
While it was fine to be able to take them on and she was able to push them, she wasn’t able to defeat them.
The teamwork was too high and even using her combat suit’s ability to ‘blink’ didn’t help because of the space mage blocking those moves.
However, this was leading to other students being pressured and knocked down, so there was no need to overdo it and go all out.
Aurora could hear Rupert’s roars and the fury behind his explosive fists.
That he didn’t show why he was known as Lightning Fists made it clear that he was having fun and wasn’t going seriously, and she was similar as well.
“We’ll have to reveal our cards!” Laurence announced.
Aurora could feel the surrounding magical energy stirring.
Dodging the attacks of that A-Rank group and feeling her vision returning, Aurora could finally open her eyes.
However, her expression trembled at the sight of the creature that fell to the ground.
A huge ‘head’, large eyes, and with several thick and long tentacles.
Measuring twenty meters in length, the tentacles were the main body part that gave it that size.
This creature that should have been at sea came to land and seemed to be completely fine.
The Colossal Squid did not use magic, but it had a great defense and its tentacles were fast and strong.
This was Laurence’s secret card; he was an S-Rank summoner, but he did not summon a single creature but could summon two of the same rank.
“Summon it!”
At Laurence’s command, Aurora watched as a tentacle flailed towards her, sweeping the entire floor.
Would this Giant Squid show greater prowess in the water?
It was just a joke!
Aurora dodged some tentacles, trying to get away, and that beast immediately followed her.
At this moment, she felt how hard it was to face against someone like Alice!
The tentacles were fast, and it felt like they were tearing the air, but Aurora couldn’t help but get excited.
The squid was a strong S-Rank opponent and was demonstrating unparalleled skill.
The pressure increased and Aurora used all her moves to dodge creating platforms, one after another, jumping and contorting her body in the air.
From the corner of her eye, she could see how Rupert finished off the rock golem making it disappear, and realizing that her partner was free, she moved, taking a risk.
Looking at an approaching tentacle, Aurora welcomed it with her arms.
“Ugh...”
The blow was so hard that it dragged her into the air as her platforms broke one after another until she managed to stop it.
Then, when she wanted to do something, she realized that the squid was truly colossal.
Its strength was S-Rank, way above her, and its weight was also very high.
Moving it was an impossible task, but that’s not what Aurora was looking for and she just held the tentacle and...
“GRAAAAH!”
She let out a lightning discharge, making the squid scream as it felt the pain of having its body burned.
The barrier would protect him like the common students, and while the damage wasn’t fatal, it still hurt.
To her lament, in the angry state, the squid flailed its tentacles and in the end, managed to hit her hard enough to send her flying.
In the end, it crashed into the wall near Rupert.
“Ugh... That was... Less painful than I expected.” Aurora muttered as she realized that the pain wasn’t that deep.
However, the life bar was on its last legs and at the slightest damage, she would ‘die’.
As the students were re-organizing themselves, Rupert approached and subtly leaned over.
“Are you okay?” he asked quietly.
He didn’t sound worried, but amused, and his eyes were on the squid next to the summoner.
“Yes, but I don’t think I can join you,” Aurora replied, trying to get out of the wall and having trouble, she looked at Rupert and announced. “I think it’s your time to shine... Go on for me.”
Her tone was somewhat tragic, but it was unavoidable because of the scenario she was in.
“I will avenge you!” Rupert snarled, and letting out a mighty roar that further weakened his life bar, the thunderous gorilla thumped his chest as he glared at the squid.
Fists released lightning bolts that covered their bodies and, by the looks that were given to him, he intimidated those poor students.
Not knowing that he was having more fun than ever.
“I WILL AVENGE MY PARTNER!” Roaring with fury, Rupert charged at the squid.
In the middle of his path, lightning began to cover his fists and, with a single punch, they swept around, knocking the students down.
Rupert was demonstrating the dignity of his title... Lightning Fists!
A thunderous gorilla of enormous strength was also capable of using magic!
The expression of Laurence and the other students turned horrible, as the battle with the colossal squid began.
Aurora, for her part, just pretended she didn’t know him, as even though he said he would ‘get revenge’ he was laughing in the middle of the battle.
Leaving the wall, she walked away from the fort, trying to find a secluded and inconspicuous place to leave the fight.
She would literally be disqualified if she was touched lightly and instead of trying to survive, she preferred to retreat.
It wasn’t that she couldn’t do much this way, but the students already had too much with a battle-loving gorilla.
At that moment, high in the sky, explosions were heard and a ‘meteorite’ fell near Aurora.
*BOOM*
Due to quick movements, she was able to move away to dodge the explosive damage from that hit.
When the dust cloud disappeared, Aurora noticed her partner, the black-masked demon.
“Tch... Limiting with a life bar was a bad idea,” the fighter muttered and pulled off his mask with an amused grin.
Aurora froze as she saw Emperor Victor reveal himself in front of her.
The S-Rank fighter was actually the person who organized this tournament and was one of the strongest men in the world.
“It’s boring just to watch, don’t you think so?” Victor asked with a smile.
That question was directed at her, and Aurora, looking at that man, could only nod.
She had fun participating too!
“So, keep this secret. I don’t want people to realize that I lost,” Emperor Victor said, after getting up from the crater and shaking his clothes, he muttered. “The South American Emperor lost to a student... What an eye-catching headline.”
With those words, the secretary who always accompanied him suddenly appeared at his side, and with a casual farewell wave, they both disappeared using space magic.
Aurora didn’t know what to say from beginning to end.
His words were only a joke, as he didn’t show all his battle prowess and was just having fun fighting.
In that sense, he was just like her.
In the end, she could only sigh.
The powerful were always extravagant.