Chapter 103. Configuration Demolition (5)
“We’re going to break through.”
Argeria decided to move forward with the appearance of the Mother Great Worm. He could not give up the attack in this way.
They decisively fell back to launch their assault.
“No matter how strong it is, there’s still only one enemy. If we do our best, we can somehow get past it.”
He felt that they could win. They were the strongest party of Hebrion Academy, after all.
The modifier ‘strongest’ was never an exaggeration. They had two Fourth-Circle wizards and three Rook-Level knights in their party.
No other party that participated in this party competition had this much power at their disposal. This was something only the Blue Moon party could achieve.
No matter how strong the opponent was, it was just one enemy afterall, and it was against the best six people in the Academy student body.
The plan was also perfect.
While Rook-Level knights and Third-Circle wizards slow the Mother Great Worm, the two Fourth-Circle wizards, including Kelt, would unleash magic that could damage the Mother Great Worm.
It was fine if they failed to defeat it. They could just break through if they keep it preoccupied for just a few seconds as a result of their offensive.
For a party this well equipped and with a plan this fool-proof, moving on to the third stage was a guarantee.
After they re-entered the hall, they put their plan into action. They used shields to form a barrier of defense against the Mother Great Worm’s acid and the wizards used magic to damage it.
As everyone expected, the battle was proceeding smoothly.
But it was all just a delusion.
The tail of the Mother Great Worm, which was buried in the wall up until that moment, freed itself from the wall and sped towards the party.
A massive amount of dirt was flung into the air, obscuring everyone’s sight. At the same time, the Mother Great Worm’s tail struck someone in the neck.
*Thud*
Their head was flung from their body. The body fell down a bit later.
Shortly afterwards, an announcement sounded.
[Kashu Madahit is eliminated.] Argeria whined in complaint.
“Damn it! Such an idiot! How could we lose someone here?! ”
If just one person dropped out at the second stage, it would be very difficult to get far in the third. Without going this far though, it would be very difficult to deal with the Mother Great Worm in front of them.
The opponent in front of them was like a boss monster from a Level Three Shadow World. It was a very powerful opponent. Even as the Blue Moon party, they would need to try their absolute hardest to have a chance at beating it.
*Bam*
“Eek”
Argeria screamed as some part of the Mother Great Worm bounced off of his shield. “Focus on your opponent first!”
Focus was the most important thing when dealing with strong monsters.
There was no way out of this now. He would be eliminated and moved to the real world. This was the reality of the situation unfolding in front of him.
Unexpectedly though, there was a voice in his ear. “That… Look over there leader… ”
It was Kelt. “What?”
“His body… It’s still there?”
To confirm it for himself, Argeria’s eyes turned towards the party member who had lost his head before.
“Whaaa… ”
The corpse that had lost its head had not disappeared and instead remained in the dungeon. “It isn’t gone… ?”
The blood was vividly oozing out of the corpse that had lost its head.
Argeria was a veteran amongst veterans and immediately noticed what this meant. Not only him but the other Blue Moon party members also realized what situation they were in.
It meant that this was no longer simulated training but an actual dungeon invasion.
In this space created by the technology of the Hebrion Acedemy, death should be impossible and pain should be limited.
Argeria shook his head and tried to deny the reality he was faced with. *Throb*
As if to immediately snap him out of it, his wrist sharply throbbed in pain. When he lifted his gloves, he saw a deep black bruise. This wound was probably caused by blocking an attack from the Mother Great Worm. There was absolutely no pain reduction in effect. “This is… real… ”
“Kiyaa aaahhh!”
However, the Mother Great Worm in front of him wasn’t kind enough to wait until they had sorted out their thoughts. Opening its mouth wide, it charged at those who had threatened its colony.
“… ”
He thought this was a no-risk environment. He thought it was just a test. That’s why he was willing to take the risk and make such a daring assault.
However, in reality it was truly a test with consequences unlike any practice or mock battle.
If he knew that they were risking their actual lives, he would never have approached this so recklessly. He had taken dozens of precautionary measures to lower the risk of death and figure out all relevant attack patterns up until now. This was how he had survived in this dungeon so far.
But it was now too late.
Not only was it too late but the level of the enemy they were dealing with was far from normal.
“Ha”
As soon as Argeria laughed at such an incomprehensible situation, the body of Mother Great Worm swept over towards him.
*Thud*
He flew away as if swept by waves on the level of a tsunami.
“Cough”
He was in excruciating pain. Argeria coughed up several mouthfuls of blood. All he could taste and smell was blood. His right arm seemed completely broken and the pain in his abdomen was also serious.
Argeria could only tremble in the face of guaranteed death. *Booooom*
Something was launched from behind him. It was Fourth-Circle water and electric magic. They were the most powerful spells that Fourth-Circle mages could invoke.
Magic exploded on the body of the Mother Great Worm. The magic made a loud burst and a brilliant light could be seen by all! The two Fourth-Circle magic wizards had unleashed their strongest spells.
“Kia-a-a-ak!”
The Mother Great Worm that had been aggressively attacking them so far, temporarily ceased moving.
It was clear that the magic had hit. Its body was singed all over and part of its outer carapace had even crumbled.
But that was all. It was neither decisive nor fatal. Almost as if it were human, the Mother Great Worm seemed to frown and complain about the pain but it then resumed moving faster than ever.
The Fourth-Circle spells that had just been used required a long time to prepare and using them had merely bought a short reprieve for the party.
Argeria stood up while leaning heavily on his sword. His legs shook in response. ‘However… ’
The Mother Great Worm was devastating the Blue Moon party.
It was different from when it had first encountered them.
“Was our plan too reckless to defeat such a ferocious monster?”
They were struggling but it wouldn’t last much longer. They were falling one by one.
If the front knights couldn’t stand, then the next would be the wizards. In short, the party was on the brink of a total wipe out.
“Ha”
*Clink*
The Mother Great Worm moved. Its countless legs were a thing of nightmare now. Its attacks were strong and merciless.
Forget about trying to defeat it, or even getting to the third stage. Was it even possible to survive this ordeal they had gotten themselves into?
***
“What the hell is happening?” “Check the situation!”
The Hebrion Academy had a crisis on their hands.
This was an unprecedented event. The Party Competition, such a historical test, had malfunctioned somehow. Such a brutal massacre was by far the worst tragedy to ever occur on academy grounds.
“We have confirmed that the dropouts in the first stage are safe.”
Those who fell in the first stage had all returned safely through the shadow gate. But none of those who dropped out after entering the second level were coming back.
As to why this had happened, the panel in front of them was clearly showing the answer. Those that hadn’t returned had all faced death in the virtual space created for the Party Competition.
There was no exception.
“Is there a problem with the configuration?”
“If so, there should have been abnormalities from the start of the first stage too.”
The biggest problem, above all, is that most of the Alpha Class students had entered the second level. They were gradually made aware of the abnormalities, but there were also a lot of people who had not yet noticed. There was also a party currently dealing with an enemy beyond their abilities that they couldn’t afford to lose.
“This can’t be happening!” Pugman shrieked.
The centre-most panel showed the party at the top of the leaderboard.
The Blue Moon Party.
The Mother Great Worm was flailing its legs and trampling the Blue Moon party members with its massive frame. The acid that it flung melted even rock while its hard carapace acted like an impenetrable armor.
“My brother is in there! What measures can we take… ?!”
As more than two students had died already they were in dire need of assistance. Annihilation didn’t look to be too far away.
“Check the number of students!”
“How many Alpha Class students have entered the second level?"
Prof. Bridgette calmly tried to grasp the situation. She slowly but deliberately confirmed what had happened and what information they had to work with. After arranging the information that she had, she then talked, no longer staring at the panel.
“What has happened here? Is there something wrong with the magic ore?”
The virtual Shadow World was created by extracting traces contained in the magic stone obtained by clearing a real Shadow World.
There were ways to change the various configuration settings, but considering the current situation, there was no choice but to suspect that there was a problem with the ore.
“It seems that the configuration in the stone was changed right before the Party Competition began.”
Prof. Bridgette’s question was answered by the professor of Shadow World Studies, Pelsta. “Someone deliberately manipulated what was set in the ore?”
“… I believe so.”
It was the most terrifying possibility. “Damn it!”
Prof. Bridgette bit her lips.
‘Obviously the security was multiplied several fold. Someone couldn’t just break in from the outside… ’
Her fine brows furrowed into a frown. ‘How on Earth… No, who the hell did this… ’
It was clearly an act of terrorism against Hebrion Academy. “Is there any way to force the students to all quit?”
“No, our controls are completely unresponsive… At the moment, their only chance of survival is to clear the dungeon.”
“So it’s just like a real Shadow World… ”
Listening to Pelstar’s despairing answer, Bridgette looked at the panel in serious contemplation.
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