The Academy’s Weakest Became A Demon-Limited Hunter

Chapter 291: Iron Fairy Subjugation (1)

Chapter 291: Iron Fairy Subjugation (1)

A strange grave of swords.

The numerous swords stuck in the ground were made entirely of iron, including their hilts.

None of these weapons were crafted by human hands.

However, they were weapons that imitated those made by humans.

In the center of the grave of swords, there was a hill of bones filled with skeletal remains, and on that hill, a greatsword stood tall, battered by the wind and rain.

A man approached the greatsword. He had immaculate, snow-white hair.

The raging wind and rain couldn’t reach the man wrapped in radiance, evaporating before touching him. Such was his holiness that something as insignificant as raindrops couldn’t even dare to come close.

At last, he arrived before the greatsword and came to a stop.

[Fairy, Rachnil. I know what you’re up to, you scum, lurking in silence.]

Soon, the numerous swords began to tremble, making a metallic sound as if they were screaming.

Then, the iron mana contained in the greatsword flowed out, taking on a strange form, and glared at the white-haired man.

[Move that plan forward a bit.]

[And who are you to command me?]

A child’s voice echoed inside the white-haired man’s head.

The iron mana was on the verge of forming sharp weapons as if it would rip the man to shreds.

But the man simply smiled as he gazed at the form.

[Command, you say? Nonsense. I am Vuel. Fairy Rachnil, I’ve come to bargain.]

This was a story from several months ago.

***“W-what is that?”

“What is this mana… What is it!”

“I’m scared…”

The students were thrown into a panic.

Noah, in front of me, was in shock, muttering in a barely audible voice, “Rachnil…?”

Why is that coming out already…?

Something, somewhere, had gone wrong.

Even though there was no guarantee the scenario would unfold as I expected, that massive greatsword in the sky shouldn’t have appeared.

?Magic Knight of Märchen? ?Act 11, Scene 2, Fairy War (1)?.

It was a scenario that began after the Academy Clash ended, with the appearance of Rachnil, the Iron Fairy.

Rachnil began a death game targeting the handful of students remaining in the arena, using rules similar to the Academy Clash.

As the player progressed through the game, other fairies arrived to battle Rachnil.

At that point, our protagonist, Ian, temporarily borrowed the power of fairies and landed a powerful blow on Rachnil, clearing the scenario.

But right now, it was only the very beginning of the Academy Clash.

There are still way too many students.

Even though the people around me were powerful students from the Empire’s top academies, against Rachnil, they were nothing more than helpless scarecrows.

Fairies were the most dangerous beings in the world. Though they lived quietly for the sake of nature’s order, balance, and peace, their strength was beyond description.

Among them, Rachnil was especially dangerous, as expected of the final boss of the?Fairy War?arc.

Even someone as mediocre as Noah became a level 189 powerhouse with just one instance of iron mana. So, how monstrous must Rachnil, the source of iron mana, be…

What went wrong?

The reel of memories in my head spun rapidly.

Then, the meaningful encouragement I had heard yesterday suddenly flashed through my mind.

? Isaac, I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s event.

Vuel…?

My pupils trembled.

I shifted my gaze and activated [Clairvoyance].

With my eyes glowing in silver, I looked toward the distant stands, at the instructor Ronzainus, also known as Vuel.

He seemed to have noticed my [Clairvoyance] and looked back at me, grinning broadly as his long lips curled into a sinister smile.

As if he had expected things to turn out like this.

His relaxed expression seemed to say, “Try to overcome this situation.”

Surely, you didn’t fail to predict even this?

That was what Vuel’s lips seemed to say.

“That son of a…!”

Clenching my fist, I reflected on the past.

Vuel had come to Märchen Academy and declared war on me.

But that was all. He hadn’t done anything to me yet.

Is he underestimating me?

Then why did he come to Märchen Academy? Why did he reveal his true identity to me?

Isn’t it obvious?

No way.

Of course, he knew.

And yet, he made sure I would immediately recognize who he really was.

There was no way I could choose not to keep an eye on him, a high-ranking Heavenly being and an immortal who intended to kill me.

In other words.

So, did he declare war on me because he actually wanted me to keep an eye on him?

My thoughts were starting to organize.

There was no doubt that Vuel actually wanted me to monitor him thoroughly and pour all my efforts into it.

I was renowned as an archwizard capable of foreseeing dangerous futures to some extent. Moreover, to others, the extent of my powers was an utter mystery.

That was why Vuel must have taken measures to address factors that could threaten me even before coming to the academy, in order to test the limits of my abilities.

The greatsword in the sky was meant to expose my limits right here.

This is no time to be thinking about that. I need to take care of the students first!

I quickly wrapped up my thoughts. In any case, there were more pressing matters at hand.

I urgently tried to shout.

“I’ll protect you all, so get out of here…!”

[Who gave you the right?]

A child’s voice rang in my head.

It was the voice of Rachnil, the Iron Fairy.

A chill ran down my spine.

Is he aiming for me specifically?

Whooooosh!!

Boom!!

“Kyaaa!!”

“Wait, what?!”

Iron mana enveloped the dark clouds. The clouds, like liquid mercury, soon began pouring down a rain of swords.

The veteran wizards hired by the organizers of the Academy Clash unleashed powerful elemental attacks and layered barriers one after another.

Crash!!

The rain of swords easily cut through all the attacks, shattering the barrier and pouring down in countless numbers.

No matter how skilled the veteran wizards of the Empire were, these hastily cast barriers were as flimsy as paper in front of Rachnil.

Only by taking the time to cast and deploy strong barriers could they barely fend off Rachnil’s attacks. If Rachnil really intended to break through, any defense would be rendered useless but there was no need to worry about that just yet.

I quickly scanned my surroundings with [Clairvoyance]. Under Emperor Carlos’ orders, the wizards were preparing to cast their spells and deploy more powerful barriers.

“Run, quickly!!”

“Save me!!”

“Please!!”

“We’re going to die, hurry!!”

“Aaah!!”

The spectators screamed as they fled.

The more skilled spectators used magic to temporarily block the rain of swords, buying time for others to escape safely.

Injuries were occurring one after another.

At that moment, a pale green tree sprouted in the stands, scattering a broad light. The wounds of the injured were healed in an instant.

It was Kaya Astrea’s plant magic.

Chaa-clang!!

At the same time, brilliant starlight magic shimmered, disrupting the rain of swords and minimizing the damage.

It was one of the exceptional types capable of effectively countering the power of the fairies.

Another fairy’s power.

Kaya and Dorothy were hard at work.

Other capable spectators were either evacuating the recently healed or casting magic to assist them.

I need to buy time here, too.

My current level was 157. I had leveled up once before the Academy Clash started.

I had a total of 73 remaining stat points, and before the event, I invested 69 of them into [vs. Other Races Combat Power].

In other words, my current status was:

[Potential]

Stat Points: 4

? Vs. Race Combat Power

- Vs. Other Races Combat Power (A-): 70/100 [UP]

[Status]

Name: Isaac

Level: (192)

With the [vs. Other Races Combat Power] activated, my stats surged dramatically.

I deployed [Fossilized Ice], a wall of ice through through which rock mana flowed, so that it enveloped the arena of the Academy Clash.

Rrrrrumble!!

Wooosh

In an instant, the academy’s battlefield was encased by the shimmering [Fossilized Ice].

The continuous clash of [Fossilized Ice] with the rain of swords filled the air with a constant, loud noise.

“As expected of the Ice Sovereign…!”

“Amazing…!”

“Thank you, Ice Sovereign!!”

The students’ cheers didn’t particularly please me.

I had the means to fight against Rachnil with my unique trait, [Nightfalls’ Edge].

However, that trait only had the effect of landing a valid hit on Rachnil, and nothing more.

As for Rachnil’s iron attacks, I would have had to fend them off purely with my elemental magic.

I don’t think I can hold out for long…!

Even my strongest defensive magic was struggling just to block the downpour of swords.

According to the original scenario, the rain of swords wasn’t intended to target the spectators’ lives and only served to drive them away from the participants.

As they fell, the swords would shift their trajectory and transform into an outer wall separating the arena from the audience.

The kids won’t die for now, but…

It was merely a stalling tactic to delay the completion of the stage Rachnil desired.

“What should we do now?!”

“Ian Fairytale! From our academy, the guy with the black hair! Find him!”

I answered a student’s question with a loud voice.

“Ian Fairytale?”

“Oh! The Child of Light! Right?!”

“We’ll go find him quickly!”

Ian had the power to oppose the fairies.

Even in the game, he fought desperately against Rachnil with the support of his teammates, landing effective blows against the fairy.

If Ian possessed the unique trait [Nightfalls’ Edge], it would’ve enhanced his damage output.

Ian can stand against Rachnil, and as long as the enemy isn’t a demon, he won’t die.

After all, nothing but demons could kill Ian.

Ian was a cheat character blessed by the fairies, a legacy passed down in the Fairytale family.

If Rachnil appeared here, the plan was to take him down as quickly as possible with Ian’s help.

Even with my unique trait [Nightfalls’ Edge], I wouldn’t have been able to protect all the students in the altered Academy Clash that Rachnil was orchestrating.

“Noah.”

I looked at Noah, who was standing in front of me.

Amid the deafening noise, he was trembling, staring up at the beautiful ceiling encased in [Fossilized Ice].

It must have been due to the trauma Rachnil inflicted in the past.

“Noah!”

“Y-yes…?”

When I shouted, Noah turned to look at me, his face startled.

“Rachnil is going to target you. This isn’t the time to be trembling like that.”

“You know Rachnil…? But more importantly, how do you know my name?”

“That’s not important right now. Get a grip and brace yourself.”

As I looked up at the ceiling made of [Fossilized Ice], I summoned an ice crystal onto my palm.

“Because today, we’re going to subjugate that fairy.”