Cheers continued pouring down from the stands for Knox.
Most of the spectators joined in, from ordinary students and commoners to the nobles seated in the VIP section. After witnessing such an overwhelming conclusion to the duel, it was difficult not to react, especially after Seiros Ballista had torn straight through Hector's final attack and ended the battle in a single decisive blow.
And considering just how cool that final move had looked, Knox naturally earned quite a few excited screams from the girls in the stands.
"Kyahhh!"
"Knox!!"
"So cool!"
Normally, this would have been the exact moment when Lorain silenced those vixens and hyenas with a single death stare. In fact, Serene would usually join her, and between the two of them, it wouldn't take long before the girls around them suddenly remembered how to behave.
There was only one small problem this time.
Among all the girls screaming "Kyahhh!"...
"Kyahhh!"
"So cool, Knox!"
...were Lorain and Serene themselves.
Simon: "..."
Rick: "..."
Meilyn: "..."
Of course, there were exceptions.
Darkos Moore certainly wasn't celebrating, and neither were his men who had accompanied him. However, among them, one person stood out even more than the head of the Moore family himself.
It was the same man who, only moments earlier, had nearly jumped into the arena alongside Darkos to catch the unconscious Hector before the referee reached him first.
His face had turned almost ashen.
Unlike Darkos, whose expression remained heavy as he watched his son being carried away, this man's face was filled with barely concealed anger and hatred. His fists were clenched tightly at his sides, yet beneath all that fury was an even stronger sense of helplessness.
There was a simple reason for that.
He was the very member of the Moore family whom Knox had beaten in the past, the same man Darkos had remembered earlier and Lorain had mentioned while explaining the incident to the others.
Seeing Hector lying unconscious after suffering another overwhelming defeat at Knox's hands had clearly brought back some unpleasant memories.
Unfortunately for him, no matter how angry he became, there was nothing he could do about it.
Even if he suddenly raised his head and shouted the magical words, "I couldn't do anything!" at the top of his lungs, he wouldn't suddenly receive a miraculous power-up and become the Herrscher of Cook...
Ahem. I mean, the Herrscher of Thunder, like Raiden Mei.
Reality, sadly, wasn't that convenient.
So, instead of awakening some mysterious lightning power and challenging Knox on the spot, the man could only swallow his anger as Darkos finally turned away from the arena. The other members of their group followed soon afterward, and together they left the VIP section to check on Hector.
Meanwhile, the cheers behind them showed no sign of stopping.
Knox Aznable's name continued echoing throughout the stadium.
***
Time passed, and before long, the schedule for another practical evaluation was announced during Summonology class. Unlike an ordinary class evaluation, this one was large enough to clear out the students' entire schedule for the day.
The gathering place wasn't the usual Summonology lecture room, but the teleportation magic circle they used when heading out on missions.
This clearly meant they'd be going off Roke Mountain.
The moment Knox saw the announcement, however, his thoughts drifted back to a conversation from not long ago.
It had happened after his duel evaluation with Hector had safely come to an end, when Knox and Simon stopped by the Mutant Club room together.
"Hey, Knox, Simon."
Benya, who had been standing nearby, suddenly called out to them.
"You two are taking Professor Aaron's class, right?"
"Yes, Senior," Knox replied.
"What are you learning these days?" Benya asked curiously.
Simon paused for a moment to think before answering.
"Hmm... Come to think of it, we've been setting aside skeletons and the other undead lately. Professor Aaron has been focusing almost entirely on zombies."
"...Zombies?"
The moment that word left Simon's mouth, Benya froze with a strangely grim expression. At almost the same time, Dio, the second-year student who had been lazily sprawled across the clubroom sofa as usual, lifted his head and looked toward them.
"Yeah. Is there a problem?" Simon asked.
"No, there's no problem. But if you're studying zombies right now, then soon..."
Benya slowly shook her head before giving the two first-years a meaningful look.
"You'll be going there."
"There?" Simon repeated in confusion.
Unlike him, Knox immediately understood what she meant.
"Ah... there, huh?" Knox nodded before a faint smile appeared on his face. "I've heard that place was a nightmare for most students~"
"...Ugh!!" A sudden scream interrupted their conversation.
Everyone turned toward the sofa, only to find Dio clutching his head with both hands as though Knox's words had physically wounded him. The relaxed expression he had worn only moments earlier was completely gone, replaced by the look of someone whose worst memories had just been dragged back to the surface.
"Damn it! I told you not to bring that up!" Dio complained as he continued clutching his head. "It triggers my freshman-year trauma!"
"I had fun, though!" Benya replied with a dazzling smile.
"Fun, my ass! It's horrifying just thinking about it!"
Dio's expression couldn't have been more different from Benya's cheerful one, which only made her burst into laughter. Knox, rather than helping the poor second-year escape his misery, casually added a few comments of his own to fan the flames, earning several more anguished complaints from Dio.
Simon, meanwhile, had absolutely no idea what the three of them were talking about.
His gaze moved from the happily reminiscing Benya to the traumatized Dio, then toward Knox, who somehow seemed to be looking forward to whatever nightmare had caused a second-year student to react like this.
Eventually, Benya decided to put Simon out of his confusion.
"Once you're done with the zombie lessons in Professor Aaron's class, there's an important practical evaluation," she explained. "It might seem horrifying when you're actually going through it, but when you look back on it a year later, it'll all become a fond memory~"
Benya's expression softened as she reminisced about her own experience, apparently remembering the mysterious evaluation very differently from Dio.
Over her shoulder, however, Dio was staring directly at Knox and Simon.
His eyes were filled with pity.
You poor souls.
At least, that was what his expression seemed to be saying.
However, when Dio's gaze shifted toward Knox, he paused.
Rather than showing even the slightest concern after hearing everything they had said, Knox stood beside Benya with an expression that practically screamed, Looks fun!
Dio stared at him for several seconds before silently giving up.
...Except this person.
Back in the present, Knox looked at the newly announced practical evaluation schedule with a knowing expression.
He already knew what awaited them there.
So the time has finally come to meet the Zombie General of the 7th Legion... 'Prince.'
As that thought crossed his mind, another memory from the original story surfaced. Much later, Simon would eventually succeed in controlling Prince's crown, gaining command over the massive number of zombies gathered there. That experience had also become something of an enlightenment for Simon, giving him a much deeper understanding of how to command a large undead force.
Knox rested his chin against one hand as a rather interesting idea slowly entered his mind.
Now that I think about it, Simon will eventually control Prince's crown and command the zombies of the 7th Legion.
His lips gradually curved upward.
Hmm... should I try clashing my Legion against Simon's 7th Legion when that happens?
The more Knox thought about it, the more entertaining the idea became. Simon commanding an enormous army of zombies on one side, while Knox brought out his own Legion on the other. Even if it was only a friendly clash, seeing two massive undead armies collide would certainly be quite the sight.
Sounds interesting, right, Igris, Beru, Cyrene~?
Three different voices immediately answered inside his mind.
"Yes. If that is your order, I will carry it out," Igris replied without the slightest hesitation.
"Leave it to me, my liege!" Beru's excited voice followed immediately. "I alone am enough to rip their entire army apart!"
Compared to the two of them, Cyrene sounded far more amused than eager for battle. A soft chuckle echoed through Knox's mind before she finally answered.
"Hehe~ I already feel bad for Simon."
Hearing their completely different responses, Knox had to suppress the smile threatening to appear on his face.
Well, I didn't say we're going to bully him.
Although judging by Beru's enthusiasm, someone would probably need to explain the meaning of a friendly battle before that day actually came.