Iron Blooded Hound

Tudor recalled the fight with Highbro that had nearly turned into a duel not long ago.

"Asshole. I'll see you someday in Naphtali, and I'll kick your ass again."

"Wow, you sounded like a real third-rate villain."

Bianca jerked a thumbs up at Tudor.

It was quite a surprise to see Tudor and Bianca in the same group, as they were always arguing.

"Will we be okay?"

"...Mmm."

Piggy and Sancho looked at them, uneasy.

Beep-!

[First year group 108, the four members of the first year group 108, please come up to the stadium now].

But it was an unnecessary worry.

"Now then, please cover me as a range dealer from behind, Ms. B."

"Don't worry about it, Mr. T."

Because as soon as the exam started, Tudor and Bianca completely put aside their personal feelings and became businesslike party members.

Tsutsutsuts...

Before my eyes, I was summoned to a dank darkness, to a dank crypt, to gloomy molds and foul slime, and to a mass of eggs and eggshells that stirred unpleasantly.

Dgldgldgldgldgl...

And among them, countless armies of ants began to swarm.

A monster wave! A monster wave! It soon rushed towards the four examinees, almost overwhelming them.

-Tingling!

A magical status board appeared in front of everyone's eyes.

<Map: Killer Ant Colony, 'Filthy Spawning Grounds'

Let's join forces with our allies and fend off the murderous ants!

Time remaining until the end of Phase 1: 19 minutes, 59 seconds

1. Don Quixote, La Mancha Tudor

HP: 100/100

Kill point: 0 points

Assist point: 0 points

2. Sancho Panza Barataria

HP: 100/100

Kill point: 0 points

Assist point: 0 points

3. Usher Pou Bianca

HP: 100/100

Kill point: 0 points

Assist point: 0 points

4. Piggy

HP: 100/100

Kill point: 0 points

Assist point: 0 points

"Alright, let's set a new record!"

Tudor, the most promising young man in the Don Quixote family of spearmen, lunged forward, holding a large spear.

...Whoosh!

A steamy aura of blue light emanated from the spear, indicative of an expert rank.

Although it is weaker in hardness and density than the liquid aura of a Graduator or the solid aura of a Swordmaster, the expert's gas aura is still the lightest in weight.

That means it's easy to swing!

Puff-puff-puff!

The ants in front of him got caught in the storm of auras from the spear and were torn apart like paper.

Bianca snorted at the sight.

"Do you really need to tear them to pieces? It's inefficient to waste energy you don't have to use."

"What? Fine, then you can try it."

"I'm sure I can; just watch."

Bianca let go of the demonstration as she spoke.

Poof!

An arrow imbued with mana flew in a bluish trajectory.

It pierced the brow of the ant crawling in front of her.

It flew all the way back, lodging itself halfway in the brow of the ant behind it before exerting its full force.

Bianca killed the ants one by one, using minimal effort.

Bianca's arrows hit just the right spot, wounding the ant just enough to kill it.

Her penetrating shots, imbued with the unique gas aura of an expert, leave the ants lined up and dying.

"Oh-so arrogant."

"Do you get it now, ho-ho-ho?"

Tudor and Bianca smirked at each other. They were bad friends who got along well together.

Just then, ants fell from the ceiling toward Bianca.

They opened their big, sharp jaws and aimed for her head.

"Where!"

"How dare they!"

A huge axe and a sharp longsword blow the ants' heads off.

Sancho and Piggy were now at Bianca's side, playing tank.

Puck! Pow! Pow! Pow! Pow! Pow!

Sancho swings his two axes with tremendous force, chopping up the ants.

Piggy swung his longsword and slashed at the ants, all the while barking orders.

"Tudor! I think it would be more effective to get to the corner and deliver the blow when the line of ants breaks; Sancho, let's try to draw them in a little further rather than blocking them from the center straight; Bianca, if you can, aim for the middle row of ants, preferably at the front leg joints so you don't have to kill them."

Piggy's orders were so precise and sharp that even Bianca, who didn't like to be told what to do, looked surprised and moved accordingly.

"... You're really good, aren't you?"

"Hehe, thanks. I didn't want to embarrass you, so I studied a lot!"

Piggy may not have had the combat prowess of the other three, but he was just as intelligent and dedicated.

Because of this, Tudor, Sancho, and Bianca were able to hunt more efficiently than ever before.

"See! I told you Piggy was good!"

"I don't think anyone ever refuted that. Hehe!"

Tudor's spear smashed through the ants in front of him, while Sancho's double axe sliced through the ones coming out of the side.

"I think our combination is pretty good."

Bianca was firing well-timed arrows that were causing the ants to tangle in their ranks, noticeably slowing down the monster wave.

"Thanks for believing in my order; I'll be right there, Tudor. Just a little more distance; your spear skills are amazing; maybe you can expand your area a little more, ah! Same goes for Sancho; you're doing a great job as it is, but I think you'll be much more efficient if you fight in the corners a little more, and Bianca's doing so well right now that I think we can just keep going as it is. Go, guys!"

And it's all done under Piggy's orders.

As Tudor crushed the ants' heads, dodging the venom that poured down the back of his head, he exclaimed.

"Man, this is good, and if I do it right, I'll break Vikir's record!"

Then Sancho, Piggy, and Bianca joined in.

"We can do it! Break the record!"

"Huh, this is really hard. I wonder if Vikir had it this hard."

"The Baskervilles' dogs are so strong and stubborn, it must have been hard."

Everyone feels sorry for Vikir, who was with the Baskervilles' triplets.

They talk about things that Vikir would have loved to hear.

Time passes.

Countless ants have died and piled up, and Tudor, Sancho, and Piggy, who had been on the front lines, are exhausted.

Everyone's HP was so low that Bianca, who was now a range dealer, had to step forward and stand upright.

And finally.

<Map: Killer Ant Colony, 'Filthy Spawning Grounds'

Together with your allies, let's defend against the onslaught of killer ants!

Time remaining until the end of Phase 1: 0 minutes, 8 seconds

1. Don Quixote, La Mancha Tudor

HP: 0/100

Kill point: 231

Assist point: 81

2. Sancho Panza Barataria

HP: 0/100

Kill point: 189

Assist point: 94

3. Usher Pou Bianca

HP: 0/100

Kill point: 156

Assist point: 179

4. Piggy

HP: 0/100

Kill point: 58

Assist point: 89

Eight seconds left!

We beat the record set by the Baskerville triplets by two seconds.

The total score at the end of the trial is 312 for Tudor, 283 for Sancho, 335 for Bianca, and 147 for Piggy.

Kills and assists totaled 1077 points, and if you add in the 19 minutes and 52 seconds they lasted, at a rate of one point per second, they totaled 1192 points.

That's a total of 2269 points, 16 points ahead of the original first-place record of 2253 points.

The first-place record has been broken!

Looking at the status window, Tudor, Sancho, Piggy, and Bianca, with their HP-recording suits half off, shouted.

"We're in first place! Yay!"

"Well done, everyone."

"Really? We're in first place? Hooray!"

"Good job."

Tudor, who killed the most ants up front; Sancho, who killed the next most ants; Bianca, who had the highest score for kills and assists combined; and finally Piggy, the unseen hero who gave orders at just the right time.

Their synergy set a new record in spectacular style, and there's not a group in sight that can top it.

Tudor looked down at his suit's HP log and breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm glad impacts are quantified in HP, because if this was real life, it would have meant death, right?"

With that, everyone realizes the horror of the real thing.

They look back at the number of monsters they've defeated and realize their capabilities, limitations, and potential for improvement.

"Now, let's get out of here!"

Piggy shouted, and everyone nodded.

First-year students only have to complete one phase of the test.

In the second year, they'll have to endure another twenty minutes of Phase 2, and in the third year, they'll have to endure another twenty minutes of Phase 3.

Bianca muttered.

"One day I'll be a warrior like Ms. Dolores, who can last an hour."

Tudor, Sancho, and Piggy nodded in agreement.

They headed for the dungeon's entrance.

Soon, the holographic spell would lift, and they would be back in the real world.

The illusory anthill would disappear, the real arena would appear, and the magic wall would be lifted.

Then you will hear the thunderous roar of the crowd.

Tudor, Sancho, Piggy, and Bianca walked on, wondering how they would respond to the cheers.

... but.

"Huh?"

"What?"

"Huh?"

"Why isn't it over?"

Tudor, Sancho, Piggy, and Bianca's faces are colored with puzzlement.

Despite the end of the first-year-only Phase 1, the illusion of the anthill still hadn't faded.

Everyone looks back at the status window in confusion.

1. Don Quixote, La Mancha Tudor

HP: 0/100

2. Sancho Panza Barataria

HP: 0/100

3. Usher Pou Bianca

HP: 0/100

4. Piggy

Piggie: 0/100

Everyone's HP remains the same. A power retirement signals the end of the test.

Just then.

Rumbling, rumbling...

Behind the last of the ants, another huge swarm of ants began to swarm.

"What the hell!?"

"Why are they swarming again?"

"I thought we were done!"

"Open the door!"

Everyone panicked and banged on the magic wall behind them, but there was no response from the outside.

Instead, what flashed before their eyes was.

-Ting!

<Page 1 has ended.

<This is the end of the first grade monsters.

<Page 2 has begun.

<From here on out, these monsters are for second graders only.

.

.

This time, it's not just worker ants.

They were swarming with giant-sized army ants.

They were enormous in size, and their entire bodies were coated with an exoskeleton like an iron shield.

"X that."

The blood began to drain from the faces of Tudor, Sancho, Piggy, and Bianca.

__________________________

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