Chapter Chapter 40: 6. Hell is just beginning. (1) (2/2)

I accepted the blessings of the wind elemental and raised my speed.

Around me, earth elementals broke the walls that shot up, blocked the arrows and disabled the traps.

“Stairs to the fifth floor! I repeat, stairs to the fifth floor!”

“Each man is to watch out for the traps on his own and move quickly!”

The stairs had more traps than any other structure in the school.

To reduce the number of traps by even one, the student council laid a complaint regarding what the school would do if someone got seriously injured or killed as a result of setting traps on the most hazardous structure, the stairs.

And to our complaints, Professor Nicerwin laughed, turned his back to the stairs, and threw his body backwards.

The result, just before Professor Nicerwin’s head was about to hit the stairs, something shot out of the stairs like the walls in the corridors, and Professor Nicerwin’s body fell onto it and bounced a couple of times before he stood up none the worse for it.

What did he say, he implemented earth magic similar to the ramparts to create a sponge effect?

When we asked just how on earth was that kind of technique possible, Professor Nicerwin raised a thumb and said.

“Made in, Black Anvil.”

We didn’t know what that meant, but that answer was filled with so much confidence that it gave us an odd feeling of wanting to go out and buy a product with the name Black Anvil stamped on it.

But even so, we couldn’t let our guards down.

The stairs are dangerous.

Although we won’t get hurt if we fall, the stairs are dangerous.

We don’t know where the arrows will fly from, the next step of the stairs could suddenly change height.

The ceiling could shoot god knows what sort of magic at us, and if we stepped down wrongly our legs could be trapped like we were caught in a swamp.

And if we were ever to fall…

“Uwaahhhk!”

“Damn it! One person retired!”

“Give up for today! Abandon him and go!”

“He, help me! Ahh! No! Not, not in there!”

A boy that looked like a third year fell while trying to dodge the arrows on the stairs.

And after that was a soft landing that Professor Nicerwin had shown us in the past.

But if there was something different, it would be that the soft wall that helped us to land, instantly transformed into legs of the legendary ocean beast, a kraken’s legs, and wrapped around his entire body.

Thanks to that, the morale of the female students who saw something they should not have seen plummeted.

And the fear that that could happen to them next dropped morale even further.

But, just for today! “Hold on everyone, we’re nearly at the second floor!”

An even faster advance than yesterday where we defeated everyone except Professor Maroon and Aruhan.

A strategy only possible today, when the fourth years’ Dean was absent due to a cold.

“President!”

“You did it, Lady Aris!”

The scene in front of me.

Many students had fallen, but seven of the teachers had also been defeated.

“Damn it, I didn’t think you kids would do this.”

Professor Aruhan’s face was rigid as he faced off against a number of students, isolated on his own.

Normally Lady Aris would have held off Professor Aruhan, while the others tried to break through but today was different!

“Thy blessings to the president!”

“Will of steel, lend my comrade your power!”

All of the strategies so far were for this one move. For this moment, when all the buff spells were casted on me, I kicked off the walls and raced towards the path my allies before me had carved out.

“Risen, I’m counting on you!”

“Leave it to me!”

That moment, I felt a speed that a wind elemental simply couldn’t compare to.

Loki’s shoes.

The god’s equipment that Risen was so proud of, the sole god’s contractor before Professor Nicerwin arrived.

The shoes that could run on the oceans and the skies granted the user speed that could rival teleportation.

“Fire, water, wind, earth. Gather the almighty power of nature in this place!”

With my chant, I called on spirits from each element.

The strongest high-class elementals from each element that I could call out.

While imbued with the powers of elementals, accelerate onwards with Loki’s shoes!

“No!”

“Stop him!”

The target was Professor Maroon.

If I could deal with the professor who stood as the backbone of the teachers’ defensive line, the other students could defeat the other teachers!

“Very well, come! I will show you my full strength!”

That moment, the two high-class spirits fused into one.

And what appeared was a giant of earth that couldn’t even stand up straight in the corridor.

“Now, this is my full power! Can you get through this!”

I knew that he had at least three contracts with high-class spirits, but I could never have imagined that he’d made a contract with a highest-class spirit.

Just below the Spirit Kings, highest-class spirits were beings were actually stronger than the successors of the Spirit Kings in terms of strength alone.

Officially, there were five people in the Empire’s army that were contracted with highest-class spirits.

But, if what was in front of me was not a lie, then the Empire’s army was probably much stronger than we all thought.

“But, I, no we! Cannot looosseeee!”

I guarded my head with both my arms and charged forward.

It’s alright if both my arms shattered.

Since Professor Nicerwin created the self-directed night study just for this purpose anyway, he had also brought in highly talented medical professionals just to deal with the aftermath.

If he hadn’t.

The teachers that had to fight with thousands of students daily would have all collapsed long ago.

Believing in my friends’ magic and Professor Nicerwin’s efforts to work us to the bone tomorrow as well, I will fire off my strongest magic right here!

“Haaaaaaahhhhhhhh!”

Max speed. The realm where my body couldn’t even make sense of the surroundings.

The acceleration close to teleportation that only the god Loki could use, was combined with the power of my elementals.

Kuuwaanng!

“Kuuuuhhgh!”

“Guhhh!”

While everyone else was keeping the other teachers in check, my strike which aimed for a single opportunity broke through the highest-rank spirit and directly struck Professor Maroon!

“Not… bad…”

Looking at Professor Maroon that had collapsed with blood trickling out of his mouth, I made a satisfied smile where I lay, completely spent.

Even though both my arms were broken, and one of my legs were suspect.

We could finally, finally break through the second floor!

Back then, I had truly believed that.

Until I beheld the silver devil.