Just how the hell did things end up like this?
I thought to myself as I frantically turned the corner, ducking behind a segment of the luncheon. Just 30 seconds ago I had been diligently listening to Credo's lecture when the topic of delusions was brought up. As an extension of that, Pride had been brought up. When Alice had asked Credo about how Pride was defeated, he had placed the entire weight of the situation on me.
Being completely caught off guard by the fact that the entire class was looking at me for an answer, I froze up. Before I knew it, the bell had rung, and Credo was giving out our special examination for today. And that just so happened to be putting a bounty on my head for the entirety of the second year to try and claim. If it hadn't been for that fact, I would have already talked.
But now I was on the run. I managed to get a nice head start because most people were still caught off guard; however, I was sure that it wouldn't last for lo-
Right on cue, two students burst out from the opposite corner of the luncheon, running full speed. I stopped on a dime and pivoted, only to see two students rushing me from where I came from. Charging mana into my legs and activating an enhancement spell, I jumped up into the air. As I landed on the roof of the luncheon, I was blindsided by a strong blow to my left side.
Flipping over once or twice in the air, I slid backwards, only to feel my back hit something solid. In an instant two strong arms locked around me, and I was rendered immobile. In front of me, an Asian girl with long, straight black hair approached me. If you had told me she was genuinely a shinobi, I would believe it because the number of knives and weapons she had on her person was more than even any student needed.
What was her name? Touka.
"So you were the one to defeat Pride." I have to say I am very interested in how you managed to pull something like that off." As Touka spoke and approached me, I took a small glance behind me.
I wasn't being held by a person, but instead by a summon. This one took the form of a knight.
Summons were creatures that took the shape of people or animals, made purely out of mana. They essentially served as an extra body that could be used to fight alongside you, able to self-process magic spells that you imbued within it. And you could teach a summon any array of magic spells. The only downside is that keeping one active took a significant amount of magical effort on the part of the summoner.
Looking back at Touka, she was under no sort of physical strain. And from my mana sense I could tell she wasn't processing anything, so this summon wasn't hers.
"You know, I find Shinobi really cool. In fact, I spent a lot of time studying them as a kid. Maybe if you let me go, we could compare experiences." I tried to buy some time until I could find the summoner.
Touka laughed. "Flattery isn't saving you. Talk." She drew a kunai from her weapons belt. The weapon was so sharp that the reflection from the sun nearly blinded me.
"Hey hey, you're not planning to use that on me, right?"
Activating mana sense, I got a wide-scale picture of everything going on. In just a few more seconds I'd be run down by an uncountable number of students rushing forward. But more importantly, I traced the line of mana from the summon and found the summoner hiding within the luncheon.
"It depends on how much time you plan to waste." The way she was staring at that weapon, it seemed like she was itching to use it. And hold on, did they really just let people walk around armed like they're going to war???
They're forming groups to catch me? As if I didn't have enough problems already.
Already having devised a strategy, I waited for a split second before the rest of my pursuers appeared on the roof. And just as they made their way onto the roof, Touka was momentarily distracted. I sent out a small burst of lightning, which ran along the trail of mana connecting the summon to the master. The small spark was enough to shock the master out of their focus, and the knight behind me dissipated.
I broke free just as the rest of the students got onto the roof of the luncheon, and not wasting a single second, I dashed away.
Unfortunately for me, the luncheon was far out from any other sections of the magic academy, and that meant I had to travel across a large open field to get anywhere where I could hide.
And as I took my next step, I ran into another problem.
Barrier spells. Four walls made out of mana descended down from the sky and trapped me. Coming to a stop, I turned around to see a boy with long locs leaning against the wall of the barrier. He was tall, taller than me, and his dark skin glowed radiantly in the sun. Along with that, he had hazel-colored eyes with flakes of gold. Guy could have been a supermodel.
I looked behind me to see the wave of students hunting my bounty getting closer and closer.
"Don't worry, they won't be able to get you in here." He tapped the barrier. "This spell is borderline S-rank. It's my specialty, you know?"
"It is impressive." I complimented his work. Placing a hand on the barrier, I could tell there was no way to force it open with brute strength. "But I have to say, is caging me like a zoo exhibit in the middle of the field really the smartest thing to do?" I may be safe here, but you definitely aren't. They'll be all over you."
He smiled. "My brother, you think I couldn't tell that? My job in all of this was to just restrict you. The next part of the plan is up to her."
"Man, has anyone told you that you're absolutely stunning?" Maybe a job in modeling would be more fitting." I asked him, more in genuine amazement than anything.
He laughed heartily. "I like you. Name's Aven. If those two don't kill you, maybe we should talk later."
Before I knew it, a portal spell appeared underneath me, and I fell through it just as the students were about to reach me. My last thought was, what do you mean if they don't kill me???
In a second I went from being trapped in a barrier to falling to my death. The portal spell had taken me into the air, and now I was on a crash course straight for the ground. Before I could even formulate a plan, I was grabbed by someone and thrown through another portal. And the portal threw me into another. And another. And another. I was being bounced around the portals like a ping pong ball, and before I knew it, I had completely lost track of my surroundings and was slowly becoming disoriented.
Closing my eyes to prevent myself from becoming more disoriented, I seriously regretted not learning how to use any sort of healing magic. Something that could clear the mind and dispel headaches would be really nice right now.
I was still bouncing from portal to portal when suddenly it stopped, and somebody grabbed me. Things had finally straightened out, and when I opened my eyes, I realized I was quite literally flying. High above the Magic Academy were the dots that were people running about frantically. I felt like I was going to throw up.
Finally looking up, I saw that I was hanging off of the edge of a flying broom. And sitting on the broom next to me was an actual witch. Rubbing my eyes a few times, I looked back up, and—no, I wasn't seeing things.
I was on a flying broom with a witch. A brown-skinned girl with braids in a purple skirt and blazer, as well as a purple coat, sat on the broom. She even had the overly large witch's hat on her head and everything. From her neck hung a cross keychain.
"Fuck me....." I whispered, gripping onto the edge of the broom tighter as the sudden urge to throw up overcame me. That bouncing between portals really wasn't good for the mind. Or the body.
"Now that's no way to thank the person who saved you, is it?" She had a sly smirk on her face. She knew what she did, and she's proud of herself. "I'm sure you don't want to go through that again. So you could make this quick and just talk. If you do, I promise to spare you from her."
I didn't even want to question what could have been worse than being juggled around the sky by a literal witch. "Hey, are you real?" I didn't recognize her. There was no way she was in the same year as me.
She giggled sinisterly. God, she really was a witch. "That's hurtful. We literally have the same homeroom class! It's Misa!"
"Yeah, no way." I replied immediately. There was absolutely no way I'd be able to miss a girl dressed up like a literal witch in my homeroom. Impossible.
That just made her laugh even more. "Well, whether or not you believe me isn't a problem. I just want you to talk before we have to move to the final stage of our plan. I'm doing this for your own good. Talk, and you don't have to come face-to-face with the bloodhound."
"The what now? You know what? Don't answer that. I'd really rather not know." The way she said that name sent shivers down my spine. How many nutjobs are we dealing with here?
Ariel: You know, say something to distract her and then jump off of the broom. Right now your hand is locked to the broom because of some spell she's using.
Ariel broke my train of thought, but this time it was actually with something useful instead of her usual nonsense. That shocked me even more than the literal witch staring at me like she wanted to stick me in a cauldron.
Ariel: Alright, fuck you.
I thought of something distracting to say.
"Hey, I can see up your skirt." Butterfly-themed?"
She froze, her face heating up and her hand rushing to cover her skirt. She literally squealed, and her focus broke, causing the broom to stop midair and the spell keeping me trapped to fall. "It's not what it looks like!"
I said the first thing that came to my mind. It was something I made up on the spot, but judging from the way she reacted, I probably hit the nail right on the mark. I dropped off of the broom, falling towards the ground.
Ariel: You're such a creep.
I literally did what you told me to!
Ariel: I told you to distract her, not sexually harass a girl with words.
It was at that moment I sensed it. The first thing I sensed was the massive amount of mana being built up below me.
The second was the heat. It was hot as hell. This heat was more than just the light of the sun; it felt like there was genuinely a furnace down below me. I had an idea of who was responsible for this before I even broke the cloud coverage.
And as I did, my theory was proved correct.
Down below me was Erika, standing with a cyclone of flames gathered around her sword and a crazed smile on her face. The vortex of flames she was charging up was so large that it cast a shadow on everything below.
If that wasn't S-rank, I don't know what was. The heat was burning me from over here.
Also, why the actual fuck is that allowed?
"Aren't you supposed to catch me?" Not wipe me off the face of the earth?!?!" I shouted down at Erika.
Erika's smile only widened. "You're not going to die! "Well, as long as you block that, that is!" I resisted the urge to argue against her, and it turned my gaze to Nova.
Who was staring at me with pity?
At least try to stop her!
Pulling my blade out of a reality marble, I charged up a large-scale water spell. I wouldn't have enough time to charge a spell that could equal Erika's, so instead I decided to redirect hers. Imbuing my blade with water, I put it up just as Erika sent the flames straight from hell at me.
"HELLFIRE PHOENIX" The flames literally took the form of a massive bird the size of an apartment complex. The roar of the flames resembled the screech of a mythical beast. My vision was blinded by the burning red-orange flame. At some points they even burned a purplish blue.
Holding my blade above my head, I brought it down in a horizontal slash. The water from my blade clashed against the beak of the Phoenix, and a shockwave of energy emerged so large that people were blown back by the force, and the entire cloud coverage was blown away in an instant.
Struggling against the spell for a moment longer, I finally managed to redirect it. The phoenix crashed into the top of the barrier and dissolved into a cyclone of flames that created a beautiful light show as they dissipated.
Before I could even congratulate myself on that, Erika was on me.
She was way faster than even I had expected. I had dueled her once before, and I knew she was quick, but this was beyond that. She was clearly being enhanced by something. Maybe it was her ability?
Just before her burning red sword cleaved me, I was saved by a portal.
Internally I thanked Misa.
But that wouldn't be for long.
I was transported to the stairways of the first-year building, which were empty as class was in session by now.
I landed directly on the railing of the stairs, back first.
"AUCCKK!"
I rolled down the railing and landed on the floor, clutching my back in pain while coughing.
I looked up at the clock in the hall, only to see that there was still a whole hour left in the day. There was just no way I was going to be able to avoid capture for that long. It was impossible.
Just as I began to stand, I heard the sound of something jingling, as well as footsteps. I went silent. The sound's gotten louder and louder. It sounded like bells and jewelry clinking together. At the same time, I felt an imposing aura begin to dominate the stairway.
I wasn't even breathing anymore.
Ariel: I don't even think I need to say anything. This one's crazy, for sure.
And then, I heard the voice. It belonged to a girl. Slightly raspy, but humming with excitement. As if they were about to explode from how happy they were. "It's been a while. I've been craving this for god knows how long."
The jingling reached its climax. And then it stopped as someone turned the corner. She was tall. Dressed in black pants and a dress shirt. However, her uniform had been cast to the side, and she was just in her undershirt now. She had gloves on her hands, and jewelry hung from them. Her boots also had jewelry hanging from them.
Her hair was long and black, but it was wild, with no specific style. It most resembled a wolf cut. Her hair covered one of her eyes, but the other was naked, staring directly down at me. Sharp black eyes. Like those of a predator. And the most horrifying part was the smile on her face. One of enjoyment. A wide, crazed smile that showed all of her teeth.
I didn't even need to think twice.
This was the bloodhound. The one Misa warned me off. The name was fitting. She seemed like a hound ready to hunt its prey.
In the back of my mind, I only had one thought.
Is this still a test, or am I really going to die here?