At the Baptism Rite an angel descended.
A moment ago the Sacred Flame blazed up.
The story that Lian Ludersk had been chosen by an angel had been coming up now and then anyway.
'He has unmistakably been taught the script of an angel!'
Rahil Runstia was a professor researching ancient holy magic.
The ancient holy magic circles he was currently researching contained things that might be scrawls or might be letters.
He believed those to be the script of an angel.
What was drawn on Lian's steel staff looked extremely similar to them.
'The materials are damaged so I cannot make them out precisely. But I can simply ask young Lian!'
All but certain!
A strange misunderstanding was swelling.
***
The individual tests ended as well.
Corin and I would have passed doing it with our feet.
But Lumiel and Adrian were side by side drinking the bitter cup of failure.
Now they had to choose a second preference.
“Come to Zerotil.”
I said it on behalf of Corin, who was dithering and unable to speak.
Because Corin clearly wants everyone to go to the same dormitory.
“Hey, hey, think about it. Right now the top three from the Baptism Rite are all in Zerotil.”
“...”
“It'll be different from this year on, won't it?”
That was a reasonable guess.
Because.
'I'm going to make it so!'
-Where is this confidence from.
'Being born with this face grows confidence you never had.'
And then there's Lionel Rondoa.
House Rondoa was popular to begin with.
And watching earlier, his ability was outstanding too.
'His swordwork was quite good.'
Lionel's score was 88.
At least I have a reincarnation buff. That fellow is simply a born-to-be monster.
Lumiel agonized and agonized.
In the end.
“Fine! All right. I'm going to Zerotil.”
“Whoaaa! So Group 13 is getting back together?”
“Since when was your second preference Zerotil?”
“I was planning to go to Zerotil the moment I failed? If I can't be a battle priest anyway, better to be with people I'm close to.”
Adrian joined the march to Zerotil quite naturally.
“Whoaaa...!”
Corin's face broke into a wide smile.
I feel oddly proud.
With Lumiel and Adrian's second preferences chosen.
“Next will be the inter-dormitory match. Please gather at your respective hall's position.”
The time had come to raise Zerotil's standing in earnest.
Zerotil Hall.
Having come last in first-preference rankings for several years, the children's faces had always been poor.
This year was a little peculiar.
'First, second and third from the Baptism Rite are all here...?'
'What is this? Is there a trend I don't know about?'
Abruptly the top-ranked children of the Baptism Rite had all gathered in Zerotil, and the odds of winning had shot up!
'I came here after failing my first preference, but maybe this will be all right?'
'The rookie is in Zerotil, so maybe this year will be all right!'
The defeatism of previous years could not be felt on the children's faces.
And that was quite a considerable thing.
Because they weren't beaten on momentum before starting!
“I think they said there was some prize in the inter-dormitory match.”
“That's right. They said the hall that comes first gets a benefit.”
“What is it?”
“Did you not read the academy enrollment guidelines?”
'Koreans skipping the manual is basically the national rule, you know.'
-Lian, you aren't Korean anymore.
My soul is Korean, thank you.
Osten Academy holds an inter-dormitory match every term.
At first enrollment they do a small taster of it.
And in the match held at the entrance ceremony, everyone in the winning hall is apparently given coins.
“Coins?”
“Did you really come in knowing nothing...”
“It's an academy, so I figured I'd study and get good marks.”
Lumiel clicks his tongue at me.
What, what is it.
“To study properly you need Osten Coins.”
What?
“You earn them through grades and activities within the academy. And apart from the compulsory subjects, you can only take a course by buying it with these Osten Coins.”
“Huh?”
“And courses with fierce competition go to auction.”
“Huuuh?”
Is that reasonable?
'Insane. Then winning this inter-dormitory match is absolutely the thing to do!'
“Normally first-years in the first term have no coins, so they only take compulsory subjects. The only ones who can register for electives are the kids who won the inter-dormitory match.”
Besides that, apparently library loans and equipment repairs all take coins too.
The one thing you pay actual money for is the basic cafeteria food, was it?
'This practically forces you to get good grades.'
Merciless grade supremacy!
'Isn't this worse than Korea?'
-It couldn't be.
I think it is, though.
“So what do you actually do in the inter-dormitory match?”
This was the most important part.
“The inter-dormitory match normally does both a subjugation match and a duel match. But at the entrance ceremony it's only the subjugation match.”
“Why?”
“Because the duel match needs selected representatives, so it can't be done right away.”
From what I heard, it's five against five.
'Against...?'
I was far too soft, thinking of something like basketball.
“So the subjugation match is the team event?”
“Right.”
Hmm.
Once the entrance ceremony is over I really should read the enrollment guidelines properly, shouldn't I?
There were unexpectedly quite a few interesting parts.
“Where you will be entering is a labyrinth structured to descend endlessly. The goal is to go down as deep as possible.”
The Infinite Descent Match.
Apparently that is the name of the inter-dormitory match we are about to do.
“So the entrance ceremony really is the Infinite Descent Match.”
“There are others?”
“Mm. A speed match and a survival defense match. Of those, the Infinite Descent is the easiest difficulty and the safest, so at entrance ceremonies they almost always do only the Infinite Descent.”
Is all of that written in the enrollment guidelines too?
Or did Lumiel research a great deal.
'Well, I have a fellow right beside me who explains it, so it's convenient.'
There is an exit on every floor inside the labyrinth, so if you feel you've hit your limit you can escape before moving to the next floor.
The difficulty rises the further down you go, and as the floors descend, people drop out.
A structure where the probability of clearing the next floor falls exponentially!
'And a wipe means a score of zero.'
After clearing a floor, you have to look at your teammates' condition and decide whether to escape as a group or press on!
“So as long as you don't wipe, the score only goes up.”
“But one or two people can't break through, can they.”
“Well, that's something you only know once you're in.”
I was about to focus on the cautionary notes that were coming.
“Pfft—”
A laugh from not far off drove itself into my ear.
'Something's off.'
Lumiel and the children nearby didn't seem to have heard.
I listened closely.
“Hey, hey, look at the Zerotil kids' faces. They seem to think they can win?”
“There really are still kids who believe Baptism Rite results are ranked by ability.”
Sneering voices come through.
'Ooh... strong stuff for children who'll be clerics one day.'
A glance showed a child standing on the Delucel side.
Brown hair and brown eyes, the most common in this country.
“They went into Zerotil because they're nothing special. Aren't Lionel Rondoa and Lian Ludersk both bubbles?”
The mockery seemed to have started around that child.
Well, I agree that Baptism Rite results are not ranked by ability.
And no wonder, since Corin came last, didn't he?
'Even so, I think we can beat you lot.'
Let's have a proper go at it with ability, then.
I smirked and turned my head away.
The cautionary notes finished.
We took up our personal equipment and lined up before the portal into the labyrinth.
Zerotil Hall's total number was twelve.
Compared to the other halls' fifteen or fourteen, that was quite a gap.
“But the numbers are different. Isn't that a disadvantage for us?”
“They say a team below the maximum headcount gets one person's contribution calculated and added as bonus points.”
Aha.
Judging by the lack of complaints around me, everyone already knew that.
Looking around at the twelve children lined up, apart from a familiar blue head they were all strangers.
'Still, for seven-year-old micro-brats they're holding up without crying.'
-It's probably the blessing, isn't it?
The blessing?
-This world's chief god laid a powerful blessing, which is how children can be brave.
No wonder.
The children believe in the god readily and carry themselves well. There was a reason.
'I was worried about getting strange looks. But if everyone's strange, it's fine.'
-Lian, you seem like an ordinary seven-year-old, so don't worry.
'That gives me mixed feelings, though?'
Chatting with Elly, I crossed the portal.
Shoooom—
Passing through a ticklish sensation, a corridor walled with brickwork appeared.
“A tower-like structure?”
“Let's go for now!”
The children walked forward step by step, faces half wonder and half tension.
The broad corridor would have seemed a cavern if not for the path opening ahead.
“Kii! Kiiik!”
“Sounds up ahead!”
An unidentifiable noise coming from the far side of the corridor.
What emerged through the darkness.
“A One-Horn Rabbit.”
A Class 5 monstrosity.
A rabbit with a single horn on a head that came up to about a seven-year-old's waist.
“A monstrosity... it's a monstrosity!”
Tension spread across the children's faces.
'Ten... sion?'
Over a mere One-Horn Rabbit?
While I was making a puzzled face, Lumiel poked me in the side.
“Hey. People don't normally train with monstrosities before entering the academy.”
“I did, though?”
And with a Class 4 Silver-Mane Wolf, at that.
“That's you being peculiar...”
What are you talking about, you lot came to my house and did it too.
The only ones not intimidated by a One-Horn Rabbit were the old Group 13.
'Ah, that fellow isn't intimidated either.'
The blue head standing well apart.
Lionel Rondoa's expression wasn't especially tense either.
Well, his house is Paladin Order, so perhaps he alone has trained with monstrosities?
When I tapped Adrian's shoulder, he nodded resolutely.
“A fight is about momentum! Whoaaaa!”
Adrian dashed out first through the dithering children.
Still a head or more taller than the others, he was very easy to see.
THOOM—!
Adrian's shield strikes two One-Horn Rabbits at once.
The shield glows faintly yellow.
'Ooh—'
He must have succeeded at loading the shield with destructive force in one go, because the tips of the rabbits' horns visibly shattered.
The shield lodged into the floor with a crunch.
“Attack!”
The instant Adrian's words came, I shot out.
CRAAACK—!
“Kyeek!”
Swinging the steel pipe at the One-Horn Rabbits swarming Adrian sends them flying briskly.
At the same time, Lumiel's ice magic flies in from behind!
Sharp shards of ice pour down onto the One-Horn Rabbits.
They can't punch through a One-Horn Rabbit, but they're enough to wound.
And onto the wounded rabbits pours Corin's healing attack!
POP! Pop-pop-pow—!
The One-Horn Rabbits' skin bursts open from the small wounds.
Grin—
Practicing together now and then has our teamwork clicking beautifully.
'So they really are genuine monstrosities.'
At the Baptism Rite, when I dispatched the demons the labyrinth constructed. I felt a subtle difference in the feel from a real low-grade demon.
Now there was no such difference.
There was also demonic energy flowing in from the monstrosities.
Even if holy power reproduces the feel of demonic energy, that isn't real demonic energy, so I shouldn't be able to absorb it.
Right now, through the prophet's eye, demonic energy was being absorbed.
Proof that what stood before us were genuine monstrosities, not labyrinth constructs.
“Adrian. Shield, once more!”
“Okay!”
Adrian raised his shield again, pulling the aggro of the One-Horn Rabbits in front and attacking.
“Everyone! Attack!”
“Wh-whoaaa!”
“Let's gooo!!”
Only after seeing our attack did the children move.
To children whose morale had risen, One-Horn Rabbits were no great threat.
Slipped in the first selection they may have been, but everyone here is a future priest!
It wasn't that they lacked ability.
We passed the first floor easily.
Naturally, with nobody dropping out.
I don't know whether it should be called a basement.
At any rate we went steadily downward.
The numbers grew, but down to basement floor five it was nothing but One-Horn Rabbits.
The anomaly began from basement floor six.
“Huh? A Three-Horn Stag!”
Mixed in among the One-Horn Rabbits were stags with two horns on the head and three on the back.
Three times larger than a One-Horn Rabbit, and it attacks using the horns on its back.
Graze against a horn and a weak paralysis sets in, so your hands or legs shake.
“Urk!”
The attribute conversion didn't catch on the shield of Adrian, who had run out front.
At a fifty percent cast rate, it couldn't be helped.
“Kyaaagh!”
SCRAAAPE—!
The Three-Horn Stag drew back a moment, then twisted its body and struck the shield with its back.
The shield, having lost its Enhancement, passed that impact straight through to Adrian.
Adrian's hands trembling violently!
Scrape—
The shield of mixed wood and iron is scraped by the stag's horns.
Tatatat—
Whoooom— WHACK!
The stag's face turns crisply sideways under the steel pipe.
'Lose your head to the aggro and you get hit.'
Mm, as expected.
Easy.