Ryuu Kusari no Ori -Kokoro no Uchi no “Kokoro”-

Chapter 5.12

Translator : PolterGlast

On the outskirts of Arcazam City. In the forest not far from the city. Usually, there were only demon beasts and animals inside, but today hundreds of humans had gathered.

They were students belonging to the 3rd year of Solminati Academy and their school's teachers.

Today was the first day of their Special Integrated Training Class. In the forest, which was usually surrounded by silence, an administrative headquarters had been set up, and the din of hundreds of humans could be heard. Once a year, this forest is free from silence only during this period of time.

Perhaps because the training that was about to be held would directly affect the students' grades, all the expressions of the gathered students were tense and stiff. But at the same time, this training is also a great opportunity for the students. Therefore, their facial expressions not only exuded a sense of tension but also showed some expectations.

"Fufufu. This looks interesting..."

"...You must be looking forward to this, Mars"

Mars, who was near Nozomu, had a fearless smile on his face. There was no tension in his expression and he seemed to be very much looking forward to this event. He wanted to be strong, and he had probably been waiting for this kind of event where he could test his strength.

"We~ will yes. This is a good opportunity for me. And..."

Mars stared at Nozomu and clasping his fists unconsciously. His gaze seemed to be trying to identify something. There was no trace of the frivolous atmosphere he had shown earlier.

"...? What's wrong Mars?"

"... No, it's nothing"

Nozomu made a suspicious expression at the suddenly changed atmosphere of Mars. But Mars didn't talk about his hidden feelings, he just kept his mouth shut.

Nozomu tilted his head. Mars was originally a strong person and had high pride, but Nozomu felt that Mars' behavior recently was a little strange. He seemed to ponder about something and became more and more engrossed in something.

"Hey Mars, lately you seem to ..."

"Oh, there he is! O~i, Nozomu!!"

When Nozomu tried to talk to Mars, he was suddenly called from the side.

Nozomu and Mars turned their eyes towards the source of the voice, they could see Feo waving and coming towards them. Next to him were Shīna, Mimuru, and Tom, who came over with smiling expressions upon seeing Nozomu.

"Yo! Good morning, you two."

"Yea"

"Good morning, Feo. I see, Shīna and her friends were with you."

Nozomu greeted Feo and turned his eyes to Shīna and her friends, and they nodded lightly.

"Yeah. Somehow, it looks like we're going to have a party together. Feo is a versatile type, so I think he can move flexibly according to the situation. That's why I decided to have a discussion with him and get him to team up with us for the first day."

Shīna smiled while saying so. The cool maiden's smile looked very attractive, but for some reason, a chill ran down Nozomu's spine. Was it due to the fact that sweat seemed to be pouring from the foreheads of the three people next to her?

"Discussion? ... I think what you did with a bow and arrow ready in one hand was blackmail, not discussion..."

Feo started muttering in a whisper while dripping sweat from his forehead. Mimuru was also trembling with her face buried in her lover Tom's chest.

"Ha ha ha……"

(...What happened to them?)

Tom rubbed Mimuru's back which was clinging to him while letting out a dry laugh. With their behavior looking like that, Nozomu thought it was better not to ask what happened to them.

"Well, that's how it is. I'm officially a member of Shīna's party, so today we'll be enemies. Please don't hold back."

"...Oh I know."

Feo presented his fist while declaring war on Nozomu. Nozomu also presented his fist and bump it with Feo's fist.

Feo stared at Mars while his fists bumped with Nozomu's fist, but Mars returned it with a fearless smile while crossing his arms and puffing out his chest. His demeanor seemed to declare, "If you think you can, try it", without opening his mouth. They looked at each other with warlike smiles.

However, at that moment, laughter that seemed to mock the three of them resounded.

"Hahahaha! So the ones who make high-spirited noises so loud are the fox guy, the half-hearted person, and the bottom. No matter how you pretend to be strong, you still won't be able to do anything."

A voice suddenly mocking them could be heard. A beastman came from the direction of the voice earlier. Silver ears and tail. It was Kevin Ardinal, one of the five students to reach Rank A. He belonged to the first class at the top of his year. Behind them were students who seemed to be members of his party.

The young silver wolf folded his arms and turned his contempt to Nozomu and the others. His party members behind him also looked down and smirked at Nozomu, and the unpleasant gazes made Nozomu's facial expression stiffen.

"So it's you, d*mn dog"

“To suddenly appear and say something without thinking… didn't you end up making high-spirited noises too?”

“………………….”

Mars and Feo reacted to Kevin's words. Nozomu was also glaring at Kevin with a sharp gaze, and Kevin's party members were also glaring back at him.

Mars had already reached for his specialized weapon on his back, and it seemed that he was about to slash Kevin, but the young silver wolf didn't seem to be moving with his arms folded on his chest. Perhaps he was confident that he would be able to respond even if Mars attacked him.

"Students over there, what are you doing!"

The atmosphere was bound to explode, but there was an angry voice that blew the atmosphere away.

Mars, who was reaching for his specialized weapon, took his hand off from the handle of his greatsword, and when Kevin's party members glanced at the person who made the voice, they were shocked. Inda-sensei, the second-class homeroom teacher, with Irisdina and Tima, the first-year students, walked towards them.

"What are you guys about to do!"

Inda-sensei is a strict teacher. She probably came to scold the students who made a fuss after hearing their voices.

"We didn't do anything. Just said hello to them."

"Kevin Ardinal, your abilities are indeed quite good, but try to act in a way that suits your ability a little bit."

"Oh, I know."

Kevin said he was reflecting, but with his arms still folded on his chest, obviously, his attitude was not that of a person who was reflecting in what he did.

Inda-sensei's scolding flew again towards Kevin who didn't break his irreverent attitude, but Kevin only looked annoyed and shifted his gaze from Inda-sensei to Irisdina.

"Irisdina, it's not too late now. Would you like to team up with me?"

"Sorry, but I've made up my mind."

Irisdina immediately refused Kevin's invitation. Judging by Kevin's tone of voice, it seemed like he had invited her many times before.

Kevin, who was rejected, distorted his expression for a moment, but immediately returned to his original confident expression.

"Ha~, I wonder what's good about such a dropout ... Well, it's fine. If it's you, you'll soon understand who deserves to be your companion. Who should stand beside you..."

Kevin left by simply saying what he wanted to say unilaterally. His party members followed behind him. The gazes of Nozomu and his friends watching them leave were cold, and Irisdina was somewhat disgusted without changing her expression.

Maybe because her scolding wasn't very effective, Inda-sensei had a difficult expression while holding her temples.

However, as soon as she returned to her original sharp expression, she left Nozomu, Mars, and Feo who were there, and returned to the administrative headquarters tent.

Irisdina and Tima came to Nozomu and the others as Inda-sensei entered the tent, but their faces were somewhat depressed.

"Sorry, everyone. My classmates did something rude."

She seemed to be apologizing for what Kevin said earlier. Nozomu quickly restored his tense expression and spoke to them as gently as possible.

"It's fine, Iris didn't do anything wrong."

Mars and Feo nodded at Nozomu's words. Irisdina and Tima's facial expressions weren't as tense as before, and they returned to their usual selves.

Originally, Irisdina was innocent. Indeed, Kevin and his entourage were in the same class as her, but she hadn't done anything wrong for which she had to apologize.

Seeing the expressions on the faces of Nozomu and the others, Shīna and her friends also relaxed their tense faces and smiled little by little.

"Well then, it's time to register the party at the administrative headquarters, and then there will be explanations and instructions for the special training we will be doing..."

Today, the first thing to do is to officially register the party and prepare the necessary equipment. After that, the person in charge of the special training, Jihad, will explain the content of the training and provide detailed instructions, and then the training will begin.

"That's right. For now, let's register our party at the reception desk..."

"...U-umm"

As they tried to go to the administrative headquarters tent to register their party for the time being. There were students calling out to him to stop him. Nozomu and the others looked at the source of the voice. There are three boys and two girls.

"You guys are..."

"Hey ..."

"Nozomu, do you know them?"

"W-w. Well... yes..."

Irisdina, who saw the reaction between Nozomu and the other party, asked Nozomu if he knew them. Of course, Nozomu was familiar with their faces. They were students from the same 10th class as Nozomu, and they were students he fought in his class mock battle when Nozomu and Mars formed a party together. They are Jin and Tommy, the swordsman who wields a longsword, Deck, who wields a spear, Cami, who wields a dagger, and Hamria, the mage. They were classmates who initially looked down on Nozomu. Nozomu wondered, what did they call him for? Nozomu spoke with Jin, who was at their forefront, to hear their story for the time being.

"Do you guys need something?"

"Ah. That... Actually, umm..."

Jin spoke while stuttering. The other members behind him also awkwardly averted their eyes when they saw Nozomu and rushed Jin to say something from behind.

Nozomu tilted his head while looking at them which looked strange, but Jin opened his mouth in a hurry as if he had decided something.

"Actually ... About today's training. Can you add us to your party?"

"……Eh?"

At first, Nozomu didn't understand what they were saying, but he finally understood when he saw Mars next to him.

Mars' abilities are high even in his third year, while Nozomu's reputation at Solminati Academy remains at the bottom.

Today, the students had to have a party in the same class, so Nozomu couldn't team up with Irisdina and Shīna.

However, since they couldn't team up with other classes, they probably wanted to gain the greatest power in the 10th class even if they had to go through their anxiety called Nozomu. Or so Nozomu thought.

However, Jin's next words completely refuted Nozomu's thoughts.

"Yes. We'd like to ask you and Mars for help."

"...Eh? Me too?"

Jin wanted to borrow the powers of Nozomu and Mars as well. There was no atmosphere of lying or playing around in their eyes as they looked straight at Nozomu, and Nozomu was overwhelmed with their sincere eyes. Nozomu was confused by their change because, until now, they looked down on him in class.

"...We know we've ridiculed you and said bad things about you, but we still don't want to be expelled from this school! Depending on the results of this special training, it will be a huge plus to our grades. We are totally aware that it is a selfish request, but... please! Please help us !!"

"U-umm ... that is..."

Jin bowed deeply to Nozomu. The other members also bowed to Nozomu, and Nozomu's confusion deepened.

"... Nozomu, isn't it alright? Looks like they really need your help."

"At least I don't feel any hatred or hostility from them, and it doesn't look like they're lying."

Irisdina, who was watching them from the side, suggested that Nozomu let Jin and his friends join. Feo also agreed with Irisdina. Mimuru and Tom also nodded.

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"Yeah. I think their feelings are sincere. I had a similar experience, so I was able to understand their feelings somehow..."

Following Irisdina and Feo, Shīna also agreed with their opinion. Shīna hated Nozomu at first. She had also previously told Nozomu something terrible, and she apologized for it and reconciled with him.

"……Mars……"

Nozomu looked at Mars. Mars closed his eyes for a moment, thinking while he crossed his arms, then opened his eyes again and looked at Nozomu's face.

"...I think it's fine. Since we've decided to win, I think it's better to have as much power as possible."

Nozomu nodded when he heard Mars' answer and faced Jin and his friends again.

"...I understand. Let's work together."

"Thank you!"

Jin, who heard Nozomu's words of approval, smiled as if he was relieved. Perhaps his party members behind him had the same feeling, they all smiled.

"Then I'll go to the administrative headquarters to register our party. But we have to be prepared. This year we have more talented students than usual, so it probably won't be easy."

Nozomu looked at Irisdina and the others while saying so, and Irisdina looked back at Nozomu with a graceful smile. Seeing such Irisdina, Nozomu shrugged it off and headed towards the tent where the administrative headquarters was located.

===================================

After Nozomu and the others registered for their party, all the students in the third year gathered in front of the administrative headquarters tent.

Since Irisdina and the others were his enemies today, Nozomu and his party members gathered at a different place

Jihad Roundel, who was in charge of managing the special training, appeared on stage, and a detailed explanation of the special training began.

"Well now, students, the Special Integrated Training Class will start today, but before that, I'll explain the rules of this special training."

Jihad then took out a pendant from his pocket. If someone else took a closer look at the students, they had the same pendant that Jihad had just shown, hanging around their necks.

"First of all, this pendant is distributed to each student at the time of party registration, and it will determine your health points on this special training. When the pendant owner receives or accumulates a certain amount of damage, it glows red. At that time, the pendant owner will be disqualified and the pendant will belong to the other party. Of course, if you lose the pendant, you will be disqualified. Also, health points are assigned to each pendant, and those belonging to a higher class will have higher health points."

"That means, Irisdina and the others have pretty high health points..."

"That's right. And we will be easy targets, so we need to move in groups.”

Nozomu agreed with Mars's opinion.

Probably it was to maintain the balance between the lower class and the higher class students. Especially the need to seek profit so that students are willing to fight against those who have reached high ranks like Irisdina and the others.

"Also, if the party is annihilated, the points earned by the losing party will also belong to the winning party. The points earned will be counted at the end of each day's training session, and the next day everyone will start from 0 again."

"So the points will reset every day..."

"Oh, it looks like there will be students attacking randomly here and there..."

However, we cannot be relieved just because we have earned points. Even if low-class students beat a high-class student in a group, and they were wiped out afterwards, they would end up back where they started. However, the fact that the points will reset the next day means the points for the first and second day will be calculated separately. In other words, how to survive becomes important.

"Also, there are tasks written on the paper that was given to you when the pendant was distributed. You don't have to complete the tasks, but if you do, you will be awarded points according to the completed task to the party. In addition, for the task of escorting, we teachers will be the escort target and assess the success or failure of the task."

"So, what are we going to do? We can get more points if we complete the task..."

"...To be honest, I can't say anything because I don't know how the other party will work, but let's take it as a prospect to earn more points."

Jin asked Nozomu what to do, but Nozomu withheld whether to decide to complete the task or not.

It would be better if they could complete tasks and earn points, but the other party naturally thought of stealing their points. He wondered whether to earn points by completing tasks or to hide and preserve their points. Taking this into account to decide what to do will also be very important.

"The practice area is written on the back of the paper where assignments are written, and when you leave the training area, the pendant will react and you will be disqualified. In addition, we teachers have already investigated the area in advance and monitored it, and even though the repellant to prevent monsters is already sprinkled on the boundaries of the training area, the threat of monsters and demon beasts is not completely eliminated. Lastly, consider using your specialized weapons like in the usual class, and be very careful.”

No matter how many times they did investigation and monitoring in advance, nothing was absolute. What's more, this time's training was serious, and it wasn't the mock combat training they had in class until now. In fact, past special training has resulted in casualties, and students had to complete a contract first to participate in this training. In other words, their life is their own responsibility.

Of course, not filling out the contract and not participating in the special training will not reduce their grades, but it is undeniable that participating in this training will be a big plus for their grades, so only a few students do not participate.

"Also, the area around the administrative headquarters is a non-combat area. Please note that parties fighting in this area will have their points deducted."

This is natural in a sense. This cannot be tolerated. Management will be delayed with a battle near the place required for management.

"In addition, a special target will be set in the training area. One of our teachers will be the special target, and the party that defeats this special target will be awarded higher points than any task. However, this special target will attack you and rob you of the points you have earned. But if you win, you will also get the points robbed by the special target."

"So, a teacher will also participate..."

"Perhaps, the teacher is acting as a powerful demon beast, or to move around and keep the special training in check."

Cami is holding her head while groaning. Certainly, a teacher taking the role of the villain is nothing more than a threat. As long as Sominati Academy's teachers were gathered from all over the continent, every teacher will have considerable ability.

"This concludes the explanation of the rules for this special training. I look forward to your good performance... That's all."

Jihad's explanation was over, and the bell was brought on stage. Special practice begins when the bell rings.

"Nozomu, what are we going to do?"

Jin asked Nozomu's opinion. As the bell was getting ready to ring, Nozomu whispered in a hushed voice so others couldn't hear him while looking around.

“...If we stay here, we will be attacked by the other party or we will be involved in their battle, and if that happens, we will be the ones who will be exhausted first. First, let's stay away from this place as much as possible and make a base. "

The other party members nodded at Nozomu's words. They slowly moved to the edge of the venue. This was so that they could run as soon as the starting signal rang and leave this place as soon as possible.

"We'll sprint after the starting signal. Head to the west side of the training area. After that, set up a base and consider our next course of action."

Nozomu reconfirmed their future actions, and when everyone nodded, the bell was ready to ring.

"Hmm?"

Nozomu was waiting for the starting signal to ring, but suddenly he felt someone's gaze staring at him. He turned his gaze to the part of the place that was crowded among the students.

It was too crowded that he couldn't see the person looking at him at all, but suddenly he saw a familiar red hair through the gap between the students.

"... Lisa?"

"With this, the Special Integrated Training Class for the first semester of the school year begins!

Nozomu tried to make sure who was the owner of the red hair, but the next moment, the bell rang along with Jihad's declaration. All the students who were there were scattered in all directions.

Nozomu was forced to give up on confirming the owner of that gaze and rushed out of the venue area with all his might. Finally, as soon as his figure disappeared from the venue, angry voices, screams, and yells began to be heard here and there. Apparently, battles immediately started here and there the moment they left the non-combat area.

Thus, one of the biggest events, the Special Integrated Training Class had begun.