The tip of her nose was tingling.
This was a familiar feeling to Janica.
Like when she would put too much pepper in her cream soup at the cafeteria, or when she would get into an argument with her close friend Clara, or when her beloved father got seriously injured after getting hit by a cow at the farm, or when she came back to Sylvania after the long break.
Whenever it happened, Janica would endure the insistent feeling that would creep up the tip of her nose, a frown on her forehead.
"I guess I want to cry."
She knew this feeling.
She would always smile like a princess in some children's fairytales. Everyone knew there was no one more thoughtful than her.
Just spending a day with her would enable anyone to see that the source of her uniquely youthful and relaxed attitude was, ironically, her extremely mature character.
Everyone, from family to friends, to faculty, to upperclassmen, and to those who were younger—all couldn't help but look at her in envy. She was a promising talent who never once lost her position as the top student among the second-years of the Magic Department.
Janica lived her life with these expectations.
She lifted her head and looked at the sight before her.
The high-ranking dark spirit Velosfer was leisurely reigning over the top of the Training Hall's Combat Practice Field. He had the arms and legs of a human but his head was strange, like that of a goat's. His bat0like wings were gigantic, stretching from his back and covering the whole of the Training Hall. He was holding a flaming mace in one hand, and it looked like it could wipe out all the seats in the field in an instant.
Needless to say, he clearly had the appearance of a devil. It was an appearance that would surely inspire fear in those who would see him as they swallow their breaths and take a step back. However, the subjugation team firmly stood in their place with an unwavering gaze.
Taylor , Ayla Triss, Princess Pheonia , Ziggs Eiffelstein, and Alvira Aniston.
The face of each student was burning with a firm will and fighting spirit rather than a sense of fear.
Janica looked at them, and then slowly closed her eyes. She naturally felt an impending sense of defeat.
She would disgracefully lose this battle, that much was certain.
However, the emotions pouring out of her chest were not frustration nor grief.
She opened her eyes gently, and shortly after, lifted her oak wand.
Just as she expected, the tip of her nose was tingling.
To Janica, it was quite a familiar sensation.
I ran down like a madman from the roof of Obel Hall down to the Student Square and saw that they were nearly done finishing Takan off.
Crash! Crash!
"EUGHAAK! KYAAGHK! DIE, YOU SON OF A BITCH! JUST DIE ALREADY!"
Lucy's high-ranking lightning magic was frighteningly powerful, but it wasn't enough to kill Takan immediately.
But even still, considering the fact that Lucy's power was not at its best and that she couldn't properly cast magic in such a sudden situation, the fact that Takan was still able to endure her attack deserved applause.
However, she still managed to completely burn off Takan's scales, so his tremendous magic resistance was now gone.
Magic would be able to finish it off now.
This one fact had just decreased the difficulty of defeating this giant flaming lizard.
Klebias continued to scream as he avoided Takan's attacks. And even though he was trembling in fear with tears streaming down his face, his movements were quite mysterious yet marvelous as he avoided getting hit and kicked by Takan's tail.
This may have been due in part to Klebias's high Agility, but it was also because Takan's movement had noticeably slowed down compared to the beginning.
Like an animal on the verge of death, it was making its final last-ditch effort to survive.
Takan let out a piercing roar that echoed through the sky and over the Student Square.
Its roar from before was fierce, similar to that of a belligerent warrior, rushing into battle. But now, Takan's roar was a scream due to intolerable pain.
I would make that pain go away soon.
I went to Lortelle who was continuously supplying firepower.
"Where's Lucy?"
"She's rolling around somewhere. It'd be nice if she could finish this off but I'm not sure she has the energy."
"It's fine."
It was a relief, in fact. What if she ended up finishing Takan off? I was actually worried about that. Because no matter how low her magic power was right now, Lucy could definitely defeat Takan easily.
As I had mentioned, my ultimate goal was to land the last hit on Takan so I could get that enormous amount of Spirit-type Skill experience points.
And there was a high chance that Lucy's overwhelming power would most likely interfere with that.
"I didn't get to see it but Klebias is quite impressive as a vanguard. I didn't expect him to draw Takan's attention away to this extent with that injury. If only he would keep that mouth shut, then he would be a great warrior."
"Nah, that blabbering mouth of his is his trump card."
"HEY! AGHK! YOU GUYS! WHAT ARE YOU DOING, STARING AROUND LIKE IDIOTS! SAVE ME! PLEASE! SHOOT SOME MAGIC! WHAT ARE YOU DOING! AGGGHK! I'M GOING TO DIE AT THIS RATE! PLEASE!"
Klebias's biggest strength was that people viewed him as insignificant. He screams like crazy no matter what he does, naturally making people look down on him. This makes them think they could easily take him down when, in fact, they couldn't.
He may be imperfect, but that didn't mean he wasn't valuable. He was, after all, the top student among the Combat Department first-years.
It was ironic how his low self-esteem often became his strength.
I also understood where Takan was coming from. Klebias seemed easy enough to deal with as he buzzed around like a mosquito, like Takan could've finished him off with a single flick of its tail. But no matter how many times Takan tried to get rid of him, it couldn't.
"I'M NOT LETTING YOU GUYS OFF THE HOOK! REALLY! YOU'RE USING ME LIKE BAIT AND YOU'RE JUST SITTING AROUND! I'M NOT GOING TO LET THIS GO!"
He was eventually going to reach his limit with how he was running around and screaming like crazy.
"Let's wrap this up."
"That's what I'm trying to do. I've already landed two ice spears but it just kept clinging for its life. It really does have all sorts of defenses."
"We need to cut its neck."
I gathered all my remaining magic power and focused it on my fingertips. After training to my limit at the library earlier, my remaining magic power was nearly all out. But it was still enough to cast a few beginner spells a few times.
"I'll do it, since your ice-type magic isn't suited to cutting cleanly. I'll take responsibility and finish this off so you just stop its movements once. You can do that, right?"
"It's possible. If we do it now."
What's important was attacking Takan's weakness.
Now that it has no scales around its body, even Taylor would be able to cut through it. Yes, even if Taylor is yet to finish his proper training according to the original timeline.
I should be able to cut it off with a single strike using Wind Blade, this skill having exceeded level 10 in proficiency.
My problem was distance. Takan was able to destroy anything that came near it as it swing its tail and stomped its feet like crazy. If I enter Takan's range and make even a single mistake, I would be killed in one shot. It was truly amazing how Klebias was managing to avoid its attacks. It almost looked like a circus.
"You need to restrict its movements the moment I approach Takan, and at that moment, I'm going to cut its off head with Wind Blade close range. If I don't defeat Takan then, I'll be in danger too."
I tapped Lortelle's shoulder.
"I'm risking my life and entrusting you with it, so you have to make sure to do this right."
"Haha! You always say things like, 'I'll take responsibility and finish it off' and 'I'm risking my life and entrusting you with it' so easily… but isn't this all just a gamble?"
"It's not a gamble."
With how fed up I was with constantly having to deal with her in the game, I knew how to handle the Golden Daughter Lortelle all too well. No matter what extraordinary event happened from Act 1 all the way to the final chapter, she was someone who was always able to regain her composure despite being taken aback for a moment. She was a monster when it came to being reasonable.
There were many situations in the original story where she had to act with more urgency and carefulness than she was now. So even though she was acting like she wasn't sure, I already knew what was going on in that head of hers. This was why she's perfect in situations like this, situations where everyone needs to remain calm and composed until the very end.
"This is an investment. Life isn't cheap so make sure to get the job done well."
Lortelle's face hardened for a moment after my words, then she started to treat it as something fun.
"An investment… That's my specialty."
She smiles a mischievous smile.
"But frankly speaking, isn't it better to leave the close combat to Klebias? After all, he's the Combat Department's top student among the first-years. And if you're going to cut something off, isn't it better to use a sword?"
That was a valid opinion. There wasn't any reason for me to get involved in close combat as a student from the Magic Department. Klebias, on the other hand, was expertly dodging Takan's attacks with such incredible movement. He should be able to get up close to the terrifying Takan and cut off its arms and throat.
But I needed to do it.
Why?
It's because I needed to land the last hit!
The high-ranking fire spirit Takan was a treasure full of enormous Combat and Spirit Skill experience points that I couldn't afford to pass up.
But not like I could tell Lortelle that. So I had to improvise with a believable lie instead.
"Does it look like Klebias is in any capacity to do that right now?"
Lortelle's eyes seemed to slightly widen at my answer, and then she let out a beautiful smile, as if flowers were blooming.
"It's true that distracting Takan and actually running up close to it are two entirely different issues. There's no way that scaredy-cat Klebias would be able to do that. Alright, then…"
All this while, Klebias was screaming his head off in the background as he was chased by Takan. Although nobody really cared about it.
Maybe if Takan was still in his prime condition and had the Berserk buff applied. But it won't be able to easily defeat Klebias while in this weakened state. Klebias was so agile he was like a buzzing mosquito flying about.
"Please don't die. You cannot."
Lortelle spoke harshly, and the way she had her eyebrows raised in a funny way and acting all tough was definitely meant to rudely imitate the way Princess Pheonia speaks.
"You're insulting the royal family."
"The princess wouldn't punish me for such a silly impression since she's known for being benevolent. But if you're curious if really would punish me, why don't you try telling her, Ed?"
And the next thing she said was really quite something.
"Frankly speaking, I don't like Princess Pheonia. I'm sure she has her own reasons but I'm sick and tired of being told what to do by that naive leader."
"Those are quite dangerous words you're saying."
"It's just hilarious that such a naive person will occasionally pretend and act like a monarch just because she was born with royal blood. We should be looking at people's abilities before their blood in order for there to be proper order in the world."
I stood still without saying anything and just continued to listen.
"What I'm saying is quite dangerous, huh? It's been a while since I was able to fully expressed my true feelings."
"What would happen if I were to report this to the princess?"
"Who knows? I can't say for sure. Maybe she won't believe you or maybe I'll face capital punishment. I don't think we'll know for sure unless you try, right?"
"What's your purpose for saying all of this?"
With a playful smile, what Lortelle said next was just so like her that I couldn't say anything more.
"Just how you're risking your life and entrusting it with me, I'm risking my life and entrusting it to you too."
She raised both of her hands as if to yield.
"Both sides of a double-pan balance scale must always be kept level. That's the secret to the Elte Company's longevity and success."
It was a bit lame to point it out since we both knew that saying was hypocrisy.
But if I were to think about it, this was just how Lortelle Kecheln was. Even the way she pays respects was unnecessarily complicated. There was never a simple way for her to express her feelings.
And that was one of the characteristics of a merchant.
I should finish this up before Klebias ended up peeing his pants.
As crazy as it may sound, the battle against Velosfer and the battle against Takan were happening at the same time. And somehow, Act 1's finale, even though it was different from the original timeline, was actually looking like it would end well.
Once the other group entered the Velosfer battle, Taylor should acquire the Swordmaster Skill, and from there on, there shouldn't be any more unexpected events.
Though the skill's strength became a bit more ambiguous as time went on, its overpowered specs for Act 1 made it quite powerful. Every player knew how helpful the skill was to break through the early game story.
As long as Pheonia was able to set up her defense magic and Ziggs was in charge of tanking, then Taylor alone would be enough to defeat Velosfer.
The story should go back on track the moment we finish off Takan and clear the road.