The Extra’s Academy Survival Guide - Chapter 96

When walking down a road, for whatever reason, the path each person takes is different. There is no such thing as fairness in this world.

Someone’s path might be peaceful and flat, something like a paved pathway towards the forest to have a nice trip.

The daffodils blooming alongside the road exude a beautiful flower aroma. Here and there, as you walk down the path, you will be greeted by green pines and elk trees. You will hum along to the sounds of the birds chirping… When suddenly, a stone on the side of the street hits your feet.

Then, wiggling your tingling toes and feeling timid, you speak.

“I’d also had difficulties in my life, too. It was hard, but I got through it. Because I could overcome them, I succeeded.”

So for Clevius, who lifted his head, what was the path ahead of him?

The thick smell of blood and the odor of rotting carcasses filled the road he walked, gathering starving wolves to block his way. On the roadside, there was nothing like a flower. There was only a gutter with a horrific stench. It’d been a long time since the sun had disappeared underneath those gray clouds. Only a thick darkness was left on the long road that stretched ahead of him. It had become a daily occurrence to end up with rocks in his shoes. Taking them off revealed feet full of calluses.

It seemed like an obvious fact that if he tried to sprint through it for a hundred days, he would only be miserably killed down the road before reaching the end. That was why the boy never chose to run in the first place.

Back then… There were definitely times where he tried to run with all his might. But it almost always ended in failure.

“Whew…”

The first thing Clevius did as he stood there in the rain, blocking her path—was stab himself in his own shoulder.

Shink!

Plasssssh!

His body, which was already covered in blood, began to be covered in blood once more from the new injury. Clenching his teeth and enduring the pain for a moment, Clevius staggered as he stood up. His red eyes were revealed underneath his drenched, low-hanging bangs.

Elvira gulped at just the sight of that terrifying appearance of his. Blood Swordsmanship. Considered taboo by the Nortondale house, it was never to be passed on to anyone. Born with the fate of the Sword Demon, Clevius had learned it on his own, without anyone’s teachings.

With his back hunched over and the rest of his body relaxed, he looked like a living corpse. The blood on his body reconciled with his magic power as it stuck to the blade of his sword.

Then, kicking off from the ground, it was as if Clevius had already ‘disappeared’. Only the marble floor, which had been lifted from the massive impact, could be seen.

It was the time to put aside any moral discipline he had that centered around the prohibition of murder. If he didn’t attack with the intention of killing, he wouldn’t even be seen as an opponent.

Jumping out like a spring, the sword Clevius held in his hand had already cut towards Lucy’s neck.

Clang!

Of course, the blade never fully reached.

The blade that touched her neck didn’t move. It was as if it had been blocked by a massive iron wall.

‘Beginner’ defensive magic.

Despite the fact that it was only beginner magic, when Lucy’s magic power is used it, it became as durable as a massive iron wall.

Lucy then waved her arm, as if she were trying to get rid of a pesky mosquito. Striking Clevius, his entire body was once again sent flying.

Clevius had been sent flying, smashing into a corner of the pavilion in the rose garden. Before fainting completely, he kicked off the ground and jumped back up.

The horrific look in Clevius’ eyes was able to accurately catch Lucy’s magic power. Lucy’s fighting style was rather simple, as it was just tearing down enemies with an overwhelming amount of magic power. For Clevius, who was born with a transcendent agility, as long as he could familiarize his eyes to the pattern it was enough for him to avoid the attack.

However, Lucy’s range of magic was so massive that it would be impossible to familiarize himself with all of it. The only reason she didn’t use them all was because it was a pain to do.

A large recurve bow.

An item left by Ed that was now floating in the air. It was loaded with dozens of magic arrows, which were engraved with all sorts of mid-high level magic spells.

Clevius realized that as he turned, looking over at the direction of the growing magic power. At a speed that a human could never dream of, he quickly bent his body over to dodge, but… the dozens of arrows that were engraved with the intermediate fire magicFlame Pillarhad made direct contact.

Boooooooooom!

Fwoooooosh!

Dozens of massive pillars made of fire rose up. In an instant, the massive flame pillars—which completely ignored the falling rain—erupted around Clevius.

“K-Keuk…!”

If the flames had directly hit him, he would have been fatally wounded. Fortunately, before the magic had activated he had managed to roll out of the way, escaping to the outskirts of the rose garden. Clevius clenched his teeth as he pulled out the magic power arrows that were stuck in his left shoulder and thigh.

The magic power arrows he pulled out dissipated into the air. However, the injury they left behind still remained. The blood that poured out of his new wound covered his body.

However, the major taboo known asBlood Swordsmanshipused the blood flowing out of one’s body as a new source of magic power.

The more wounds that were left, the more blood that poured out. That also meant a larger amount of magic power, which would wrap around his body and sword.

However, even if he were pushed to the verge of death, compared to Lucy’s magic power he wouldn’t even be able to reach her ankles.

The overwhelming difference in power between the two wouldn’t change even if hisBlood Swordsmanshipwere pushed to its limits.

Flick.

Lucy raised her small hand. Her palms were open. Her hand appeared so small and frail that it looked like it could easily break at any moment.

But what would really break were the necks of those that lost their focus in front of her.

And with a clench of her hand, the magic power that was spread out across the area quickly gathered into one spot.

Boom!!

Intermediate Fire Magic,Point Explosion.

Clevius, who had received a direct hit, fell to the floor as he coughed up blood. From above, the Advanced Lighting Magic,Divine Judgment, struck him.

B-Boom! Boooooom!

It was nothing special. It was only lightning. However, what made it special was that it was imbued with Lucy’s magic power. Someone who boasted an immense amount of it.

A bolt of lightning imbued with her magic power was enough to have even destroyed the outer shell of Takan, the high-ranking fire spirit, in a single blow. Clevius, who was still barely able to come to his senses, took a defensive stance—but it wasn’t an attack that could be defended against in the first place. He was able to tank it to a certain degree, but in the end, with the damage he had already accumulated on his body beforehand, he had already exceeded his limit.

Fighting while using her magic properly. For Lucy, it was the greatest amount of respect that she could show to her opponent.

For Lucy Mayreel, in terms of magic power efficiency against the majority of students, wouldn’t even have the need to use elemental magic.

For the majority of them, they would die instantly, without ever having the chance to even question how they would go up against her advanced magic. However, Lucy had a gut feeling. Her opponent right now wouldn’t die even at that level.

Through the rising smoke, Clevius once again jumped out. He didn’t care about his uniform, which had become nothing more than a tattered rag, or his crippled body that was so full of wounds that it would be harder to find a part of him that wasn’t unscathed.

Clevius’ movements couldn’t be followed with one’s eyes. However, looking at the puddles on the ground that splashed and the fragments of the wall that flew around as he sprinted past, she could guess where he was.

Clang!!

When Lucy finally figured out exactly where he was, she stretched her hand out as she turned, already making contact with the end of his sword.

However, the massive defensive magic circle that had risen blocked Clevius.

Screeeech!

A trembling blade.

Clevius’ body had already reached his limit.

Clevius clenched his teeth as he used all his strength, pushing his sword against the defensive magic circle. Alongside the sound of his grinding teeth, the defensive spell also started to crack.

Through the slowly widening crack in the spell, the face of the Blade Demon could be seen.

At that point, his face was mostly covered in his dark red blood rather than the color of his skin. Blood mixed with rainwater ran down between his temples and forehead.

As if his entire body that was covered in blood and wounds was nothing, his eyes—which burned with the desire to fight—were completely red.

Boom!

Then, Lucy’s defensive magic circle broke. It was a sight that was hard to believe. Lucy’s defensive magic circle was at a level where it could even block advanced magic, despite it being put up quickly.

Paang! Shatter!

Perhaps at the price of such a feat, the blade of Clevius’ sword—which he was holding—also broke into half. However, even with only half the blade left, a sharp blade still remained.

Pang!

At an unbelievably fast rate, she cast a new spell. Three shots of the intermediate ice magic,Ice Spear, pierced his abdomen. But Clevius clenched his teeth, unwilling to give in, and didn’t change his stance.

Then, the broken edge of his blade reached Lucy’s forehead.

Clang!

Of course, it couldn’t cut into her skin. That was because, apart from her defensive magic circle, the surface of Lucy’s body was also covered in ‘beginner defensive magic’.

In addition to that, once after a certain period of time,Storm’s Blessingwould also manifest. No matter how you approached it, being able to break through to her all by oneself was an impossible task.

“Seriously… You fucking monster…!!”

Clang!

After being blown away by the attack of her blessing, he stood up again. He picked up the dropped sword of a nearby student that had been struck byTime Prison.

The blade of the sword he had picked up was still intact. The original sword he used had already broken in half, so he held it in his left hand to use for defense.

The warrior that held both a full sword and one broken ran back towards her to get into range. By doing so, even if he were to get injured even more, he had no intention of slowing down.

With every one of his movements, his blood dripped down. The bleeding continued without stopping. Saying he was drenched in blood would be an understatement. It was a miraculous sight to see a human with so much blood inside of them.

But all those that went against Lucy were the same.

Closing his eyes, an image of a massive mountain came to mind.

The feeling of going up against an ever-rising mountain, only holding a mere sword… Was that what that feeling was?

He was then struck by four or five magic bullets, alongside the intermediate wind magic that was knocking him down. Yet in the thick dust, he stood up once more—as if he were a zombie.

He was a blood-crazed berserker that the concept of death didn’t apply to. At that point, it was obvious that going up against her any more would still be no chance of victory. Yet, he continued to stand up as if he didn’t realize it.

The memory of the day he had stabbed his older brother resurfaced in his mind.

Even when everyone within the house looked down at Clevius, treating him as a ghost, he was the person that recognized and comforted Clevius until the end.

Being thrown into a fit of blood, he slashed away at his brother. And by the time he came to his senses, he had already stabbed a blade into his stomach.

His older brother ground his teeth, enduring the pain as he held the boy’s hand, barely retaining consciousness. And his final words… That memory was still engraved in Clevius’ mind.

“I’m glad the person you killed this time was me, and not someone else.”

How ridiculous it was for those to be his final words as he continued to bleed out.

“At the very least… I can forgive.”

“So… Don’t feel too guilty.”

The best swordsman, rumored to bring the Nortondale family to their second heyday, had died in vain. All that was left of him were those words.

***

The rain fell onto the world equally.

No matter what part of the world you looked from, the gloomy sky would always look the same.

Even in the rose garden, where the battle was taking place, the gloomy sight of the falling rain was the same everywhere across Acken Island.

For example, the same was true back at the royal residence outside the luxurious windows.

Claire, who had heard of the accident at Ophelis Hall from the Academic Headquarters, delivered the news to Princess Penia. Sitting by the window, looking up at the rain, upon hearing Claire’s report her expression changed.

***

Clevius got up from the thick smoke as he screamed out again before leaping forward. Gathering the remaining magic power of theBlood Swordsmanship, he was able to break through Lucy’s defenses—but that didn’t mean much.

Lucy’s reflexes had also surpassed the ordinary. Holding down her hat, she gently bent down as she stabbed Clevius’ body withWind Blade. A new wound began to spurt blood into the air.

***

The rain continued to fall equally, even in the education district. There was even the occasional lightning strike that caught people by surprise. As it kept raining, it was enough to call it a proper downpour.

Assistant Professor Cleoh, who sat in the school’s night duty room, furrowed her brow as she heard of the news regarding Ophelis Hall.

Professor Flubin was currently out in the Northern Cliffside for an investigation. Watching the pouring rain outside the window, Assistant Professor Cleoh fell into deep thought for a moment. Outside the window in the education district, the water continued to overflow out of the fountain in the student square.

***

Clevius rolled around on the ground a bit, splashing in the water before standing up. Holding onto both swords, he lowered his posture and crossed his arms. Then, at a speed impossible to see, he let out a sword attack.

A giant clang, one that you wouldn’t even think could come from a sword, rang out. The marble floor around Lucy had exploded into pieces, flying into the air. An advanced skill even among theMagic Power Swordsmanshipunique to the Nortondale House. A technique that was almost able to cause an explosion on impact. Though, of course, Lucy didn’t take any damage.

***

The rain fell down equally on the windows of Ophelis Hall’s hallways as well. Watching the rain beat down on the luxurious window frames as if it were trying to open it was a sight to see.

After completely defeating Wade, Ziggs took Tanya and quickly escaped through the hallway. Since there were no people in Ophelis Hall’s hallways, it was quiet—as if time had stood still.

As long as he could somehow get Tanya out of Ophelis Hall, he could find a way to prevent the situation from escalating any further. With that in mind, Ziggs hurriedly ran with Tanya towards the back door of the hallway.

However, at the end of the hallway where the raindrops were falling on the window, he saw a girl that was standing still.

He wondered if there were still students that had yet to evacuate, so he went to see who she was. But her face was all too familiar. A fellow student that lived in Ophelis Hall.

Lortel Kehelland.

The young merchant stood there alone at the end of the hallway without evacuating.

***

Clevius’ attack was not yet finished. Once again, he leaped at a speed that surpassed the realm of humans. He jumped forward, kicking away the large pieces of marble that were floating around Lucy. And when he found an opening on Lucy’s back, he gathered all the magic power left in hisBlood Swordsmanshipto deliver a single blow.

Lucy’sIce Spearflew into his shoulder, piercing him. He had nearly collapsed but, grinding his teeth, he used the half-broken sword to slash at Lucy’s defensive magic circle.

Crash!

With an impact beyond one’s imagination, Lucy’s defensive magic circle once again shattered.

And this time there was even more.

Watching him be unafraid of getting hurt, constantly putting his life at risk to attack the defensive magic that surrounded Lucy’s body. Was God touched by the effort the boy was putting in?

Clang! Shatter!

The sword in his right hand, which was still intact, had shattered into pieces. And for just a brief moment, he had succeeded in breaking through all of Lucy’s defensive magic.

Though in the first place, the defensive magic she was using was not at a level that would require much effort for her. With Lucy’s ridiculous level of magic power resonance, it would be near instantaneous for her to recast all of the defensive magic.

But for that… it would still take one hundredth of a second. Or perhaps even less?

Yet for the Blade Demon, who also lived in that instant, it was enough time to push the blade through.

But he didn’t have a proper weapon. One had completely broken into pieces and the other was still broken in half.

However, no matter how much of a genius archmage his opponent might be… her physical ability was still that of a girl her age.

Even if the attack wasn’t perfect, if he could manage to just get one decent sword attack through, it could be a fatal blow.

“…Keuk…!”

Lucy’s pupils trembled greatly. That brief instant was over.

Staggering back a few times, she grabbed her own shoulder tightly.

From the right shoulder of her small body to the center of her chest, the thin line of red blood from the open wound slowly began to spread out. The blood continued to flow as it started to drench Lucy’s clothes.

…Unfortunately, there wasn’t such a scene.

Even though it was only the slightest difference, Lucy’s defense was faster.

***

Clang!!

The last remaining half of his sword had shattered into pieces. Clevius had fallen after getting hit by a magic power bullet that Lucy had instinctively fired.

“Eughk… Keuk… Fuck…! Seriously… You fucking monster…!”

Clevius, who was beaten silly and had injuries across his body, lay there in the middle of the rose garden… With blood all over his body, he clenched his teeth and tried to regain strength in his legs somehow.

However, his physical condition had already reached its limit long ago. His legs no longer listened to him.

Lucy… in a moment of surprise, grabbed onto her shoulder.

It was only an instantaneous moment, but the possibility of what could have happened was glimmering right in front of her eyes like an illusion.

In that instant, she had almost revealed herself.

Clevius had risked his life and pushed himself to the limit while using theBlood Sword Technique. In doing so, even though it was only for a brief moment, he was able to exceed the reaction speed of Lucy’s magic power.

Of course… it wasn’t possible to win a battle just by gaining a speed advantage for a ‘very slight’ moment. Aside from that, it was a completely disadvantageous situation for him. It wasn’t a variable that was capable of overcoming the overwhelming gap in their abilities.

However, the feeling that came from someone that was willing to throw away their own life, all into one sword attack, wasn’t something that could be measured. Blood-crazed berserkers… Occasionally, when having to face off against an enemy that was stronger than them, there were those that held a terrible tenacity that was able to help them overcome and strike down their opponents.

However, the gap between Lucy and Clevius wasn’t something that could be resolved with such a mentality alone.

It was really only for a brief moment, but she could have really died.

The terrible feeling of being near the tip of a bloody sword… For Lucy, who had lived her entire life as a strong individual, it wasn’t a feeling that she was used to.

“Eughk…! Fu…Fuck…!!!”

Clevius continued to try and somehow get his body, which no longer listened to him, to stand up. But he struggled, only having the power to support himself with one arm.

In the end, Lucy, without a single scratch to her body, walked forward. Looking down at Clevius, who was completely defeated, she gathered magic power into her hand.

Clevius relaxed his body as he was.

In the end, he knew that was how it was going to end. He couldn’t understand why he himself went so far, clenching his teeth just to enjoy some glory and wealth.

Clevius let go of everything as he slowly closed his eyes.

For the end of his miserable life to be like that… Disgraceful and stupid until the very end.

Thinking such thoughts, he had managed to reach that far… finally able to put everything down.

Fwoosh! Clang!

Then, suddenly, a single arrow flew by.

An arrow made of magic power… it created a massive pool of water in an instant. From it stepped a mid-ranking water spirit, the ferocious beast ‘Lacia the Lioness’, which stood between Clevius and Lucy.

The appearance of the snarling, mid-ranking water spirit was savage.

A completely unexplainable situation. Clevius and Elvira, who were barely conscious off in the corner, looked towards the direction the arrow came from.

At the entrance of the rose garden, in the middle of the rain, there was a man that held a bow similar to the recurve bow that Lucy was holding onto.

It looked as if he were covering himself wearing a robe that was much larger than him. The robe itself was so worn out and frayed that it was starting to fall apart at the seams.

He looked as if he was a soul that had risen from the dead. They couldn’t help but swallow harshly.