The blind villain of the academy

Chapter 194: Last exam [1]

Chapter 193

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Episode 47 - Last exam [1]

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"There is an important announcement regarding the final exam."

"The exam for these past few days has been changed."

The room fell silent for a moment as Professor Ashly’s words echoed through the classroom.

Even though no one actually knew what the exam was about, at the Holy Academy, whenever exams changed, it meant one thing.

’Something has happened.’

That something could be related to many things, from William and all the Ten-Star Awakened leaving for the World Congress...

To some unknown incident that had occurred somewhere within the Abyss Containment Team.

’This isn’t in my memories. No matter how much the future has changed from what I remember, there shouldn’t be any anomaly capable of changing the exam.’

Thinking about it carefully, the only difference was that I had destroyed three villain laboratories that weren’t part of my memories.

But what else had I done besides that? Well, I had killed Cassian while deceiving everyone into believing that the Devil of Phlegra was responsible.

But his death was bound to happen anyway.

I wondered what the reason for changing the exams was.

In any case, I pushed those thoughts aside.

Professor Ashly remained silent for a few moments before continuing.

"I know it’s strange for us to change the exams. The original exam was supposed to focus on subjugating Abyssal Creatures, but because something happened..."

"Something I can’t tell you about, partly because I don’t know much about it myself. Anyway, the exams will continue over these remaining two days."

"The main theme of this exam isn’t very different from the first one. It’ll actually be easier, but we had no choice except to put this exam together at the last minute."

At that moment, a cadet raised a hand and asked,

"Um, Professor, will each Squad have a different assignment?"

Professor Ashly nodded.

"Yes. For example, the Chaos Containment Squad will carry out its usual duties. The cadets there will have the same objective as before, but also a slightly different one."

"You’ll each be given specific tasks. Think of them as unique missions to complete while you’re on duty with your Squad."

The cadets nodded repeatedly as Professor Ashly continued.

"Today is Saturday. The exam will end around noon on Monday next week. After that, we’ll return to the Academy early Tuesday morning."

"So you’ll have the chance to enjoy what Ortlock City has to offer or join a tour organized by the Abyss Containment Team to see a few things you haven’t seen yet."

"Alright, that’s all for the announcement. Your Squad leaders will give you your tasks or missions once you return."

With that, Professor Ashly stepped down from the podium and left.

I leaned back in my seat as I went over her words.

’So the theme of this exam is basically the same as the first one, except we’ll have tasks to complete. But then, how is this exam supposed to be graded?’

Maybe the evaluation would be the same as the first exam. Probably.

Just then, Clana’s voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

"What do you think about it? We’re in the same Squad, so I think it’d be a good idea to share our thoughts."

I opened my mouth, then closed it again.

The exam itself was simple, really, but that wasn’t what mattered to me.

’The time to kill the Ice Queen is approaching.’

The moment to kill her would be tomorrow.

According to my memories, the Ice Queen would appear halfway up the mountain.

I wasn’t sure why she appeared there, but if nothing had changed compared to my memories...

Then the Ice Queen would be there.

I shook off my thoughts and answered Clana.

"Just one word: simple."

"What do you mean by that?"

"It means the exam isn’t a big deal, so there’s nothing to worry about. Oh, and I’d rather be alone."

"...?"

"Hey, wait. What do you mean you’d rather be alone? It’s not like I..."

She suddenly stopped mid-sentence, frowned for a moment, and then her eyes widened.

Then she stared straight at me.

"W-wait, I already told you I’m not that kind of person. Please, listen to my explanation, I..."

"Relax. I don’t remember saying anything like that."

I stood up from my seat and turned toward the exit while Clana continued speaking.

"I-I’m serious. Hey, I’m not that kind of person. I’m not a stalker..."

But then she stopped after realizing she had shouted. Several cadets turned to look at her, each wearing a very different expression.

Meanwhile, I laughed to myself.

’Only a stalker denies being a stalker.’

***

When we returned to the Field Exploration Squad Tower,

Arwen and the other members were already there.

Lumina and Clana had also returned.

Then Arwen handed us a list. It contained the tasks we had to complete while exploring the mountains and the surrounding areas.

"Everyone, I won’t interfere with your exams, but that doesn’t mean you can ignore my orders, understood?"

"I understand."

I nodded, and the other two did as well. Arwen leaned back in her chair and said,

"Good. Since each of you has different tasks, you’ll naturally have to complete them individually."

"So I asked the other members who would accompany each of you."

Clana nodded and asked,

"Oh, then who’s going with us?"

Arwen smiled and shifted her gaze toward us.

Then three people appeared behind us.

"They, of course."

Behind Clana stood Arianala, the most talkative and the most childish one; behind Lumina stood her twin sister, Ceres.

Then I raised my head and "looked" at who was standing behind me.

I thought it would be the other twin, Celestia, but it was the one they called the tsundere, Noelle.

Clap! Clap!

Arwen clapped twice and said,

"Well, the three of them will be your partners. And remember, the three of them chose you three with great enthusiasm."

At that moment, Noelle’s voice interrupted Arwen.

"I didn’t do it enthusiastically."

Arwen lazily waved a hand.

"Yes, yes, whatever the tsundere says."

"I’m not a tsundere. I’ve said it thousands of times."

This time, Arwen ignored her and continued,

"Anyway, we’re leaving in a few minutes. They’ll tell you which area you’ll be exploring."

***

About thirty minutes later, Clana and Lumina, together with their companions, headed to their respective exploration areas.

Arwen and Celestia, Ceres’s twin sister, also left for their respective areas.

After that, I left with Noelle, of course.

Noelle took the lead after snatching the list from my hands.

As we walked toward our exploration area,

she began reading the list of tasks aloud to me. On top of that, she deliberately told me where to step, which way to move so I wouldn’t slip, and so on.

Whenever she had the chance, she seemed to watch over every step I took, even though I was walking perfectly normally.

’She’s like an overprotective older sister, isn’t she?’

Maybe that was why she was a tsundere. Even though her overprotectiveness was so obvious, she flatly denied it with a serious expression.

And, naturally, her concern was impossible to miss.

"And the last task is to eliminate a pack of wolves on the merchants’ route in Zone 0-18, near Ortlock City."

Then Noelle turned toward me and asked,

"If you don’t remember it, I can read the list again. Just ask me as many times as you need, all right?"

I nodded and said,

"Yes, I understand."

Even though I remembered every word perfectly.

Maybe because I have so few memories, I’m very good at memorizing anything with ease.

At first, I thought I had a photographic memory, but even if it was rare, there were times when I forgot certain things.

And above all, I couldn’t recall my memories with perfect accuracy.

As we walked, silence settled between us. The only sounds were our footsteps crunching through the snow, the raging wind, and the various sounds of our surroundings.

Other than that, there was a strange silence.

Although, to be more precise, I was lost in my thoughts about tomorrow.

Then Noelle asked,

"What’s life like at an Academy?"

I looked at her expression and noticed that her curiosity was genuine, so I answered,

"It’s like an elementary school, with the only difference being that people can see the different powers of the Four Specialties, and above all, there are plenty of practical demonstrations and a lot of theory."

"Really? And what about the relationships between the cadets?"

"Most of them are spoiled nobles. They think they’re superior, they’re arrogant, they form factions to intimidate the weak or the commoners, and in general, ninety percent of them are nobles. The rest simply keep quiet or stay out of everything."

Noelle remained silent for a few seconds before asking again,

"And how do they see you?"

Her question caught me a little off guard, so it took me a moment to answer.

"Mhm, from the very first day, they cursed me, made up rumors about me, gave me all kinds of nicknames, and countless other things. All because of the Dark Attribute. After all, this is the Holy Continent."

Noelle looked at me for a few seconds before saying,

"Don’t let it bother you. They just don’t know what you’re really like, and..."

"Ah, it doesn’t really matter to me. Only my friends know this, but the truth is, I hardly feel any emotions."

Noelle paused for a moment before continuing to walk.

"I understand."

I simply nodded and followed her. From then on, Noelle didn’t ask me anything else about myself or the Academy.