Summoning Genius of Kizen Chapter 135 The Deathland performance evaluation, more perilous than ever, finally concluded safely. All the Class A students washed up and holed themselves up in the dormitory. Everyone was utterly drained, both physically and mentally. Simon and Dick were no different, lying sprawled on their beds, not lifting a single finger. "......." Simon slowly raised his arm, his eyes unfocused. His fingers were visible against the familiar ceiling. Jet Black flowed along his arm. 'It keeps coming back to me.' Pier had clearly said he used Corpse Explosion, but Simon had no memory of it. When he came to, he was in Prince's mansion, with only the lingering sensation in his body remaining. But the moment he saw Aaron's Corpse Explosion, a tremor surged through him. His entire body trembled, reacting as if it yearned to recreate that dark magic. 'But there are no zombies nearby. I can't practice even if I want to.' Thinking he should visit Rochester over the weekend, Simon let his arm drop with a thud. "Dick. Are you asleep?" "Huuuugh, not yet." Dick's sleepy voice came from the next bed. "Do you remember what class we have tomorrow?" "......Oh, I forgot. Wait a minute, now I'm curious too." Dick unfolded a notebook that had fallen onto his bed. "Ah, we're screwed." "?" "We have Martial Arts class in the afternoon! And it's a joint class with Class C." Dick dropped his notebook and scratched his head frantically. "This is bad. My condition is absolutely terrible. This time, I'm definitely going to fall off the hippo." "......." Simon blinked, staring at the ceiling. 'Joint class? Who do I know in Class C?' *** 'Joint classes,' where two or more classes attended together, happened quite frequently at Kizen. This was due to Kizen's flexible timetable. In this case, Aaron had taken up an entire day of each class's schedule for the Summoning Studies evaluation. All of Aaron's Summoning Studies classes were pushed back, and joint classes were being held to make up for the lost time. One might think other professors would be annoyed, but in fact, it was common for professors other than Aaron to use up an entire day or half-day for evaluations or other reasons. Everyone understood each other's circumstances well, so they were generally cooperative with such issues. And today, Class C, who had gone to Deathland first, and Class A, who had gone yesterday, were having a joint Martial Arts class. "Uwaaaaaah." Dick, sprawled out on the grass from exhaustion, was imitating a Deathland zombie. Other students were also sitting slumped, catching their breath, but contrary to Dick's worries, no one fell off the hippo. When pushed to the brink, people somehow found the strength to keep going. "Class A went yesterday, right?" "We were just like that too." Class C students chuckled, watching the slumped Class A students. It was the余裕 of those who had already been through it. "But Simon." Mei-rin, sitting opposite him, wiped her forehead with a handkerchief and spoke. "You really haven't seen that person, Pion?" Simon flinched internally but answered casually. "I told you, I don't know. When I opened my eyes, I was in the mansion's basement." "That's a shame." Mei-rin tilted her head back, genuinely disappointed. Kamibarez, sitting next to her, covered her mouth and giggled. "Yesterday, Mei-rin talked about Pion with me all day in the dorm lounge~" "Ah, he was so cool!" Mei-rin shouted, her face flushing. "Honestly, I never understood why my roommates would squeal and fawn over the professors, but now I think I get how they feel." "Was he that handsome?" "Of course!" Simon, who had been quietly drinking his beverage, almost spat it out. He must have had half his face covered by Pier's skull. "When I was kidnapped and in danger, that person suddenly broke through the carriage ceiling and descended! He beat up that perverted old man who kidnapped me until he was covered in blood, then kicked him out of the carriage! Then he gently carried me like a princess, escaped the carriage, and the carriage fell off the cliff by a hair's breadth!" "Wow! It sounds like something out of a fairy tale!" "......." It was only yesterday, so why was her memory so distorted? Simon found it too embarrassing to listen to. "Honestly, Lord Pion was far from my ideal type." Mei-rin said, crossing her arms. "I really hate ignorant and violent behavior. But what do you call it? That feeling of being drawn to a bad boy?" "Like a dangerous charm?" "No, more precisely, that violent person being gentle only to me? That's a bit of a fantasy, I guess. Oh, well, to be honest, his handsome face pretty much covers everything." "......." Mei-rin, who had been passionately explaining Pion, glanced at Simon. "Hey, why is your face turning red?" "......It's hot." Simon quickly turned his head, just as the teaching assistants' voices were heard. "Alright, class will begin in 10 minutes!" At that, the sprawled students got up and lightly stretched. Simon was about to prepare for class when. "Hello~" A graceful voice came from behind him. 'Ugh.' Simon flinched and turned around. A girl wearing a white coat over her Kizen uniform, with ivory-colored hair flowing down, approached with her hands clasped behind her back. Simon knew someone in Class C too. Special Case #2, the Ivory Tower successor, Serene Eindark. Her uniquely burdensome aura was still present. "It's been a while~ Simon." She slightly lifted the hem of her skirt with her fingertips, greeting him elegantly like a queen of society. Then, the moment she spotted Mei-rin next to him, her expression completely changed. "Mei-riiiiin!" She let out a childish whine and clung to Mei-rin's arm. Mei-rin's brow immediately furrowed. "I missed you!" "Ah, damn it! You're disgusting, get away from me!!" Mei-rin genuinely recoiled, pushing Serene's face away. Her beautiful face was pushed back by a merciless palm, but Serene didn't give up, coming closer and rubbing her face against Mei-rin's arm. "Are you okay? Serene stayed up all night worrying when she heard Mei-rin went to dangerous Deathland!" "Serene my ass! Stop it, it's creepy!" Mei-rin pushed her hard, and Serene fell with an exaggerated motion. Sitting on the grass, she hung her head miserably like a drenched mouse. "......Serene just wants to be friends with Mei-rin." "Get lost." Mei-rin said, her voice seething. "You manipulate people's hearts however you want, so saying things like that is just hypocritical. You know that?" "......." "Let's go, Kami." Mei-rin took Kamibarez and left. A moment of awkward silence passed. Serene elegantly brushed her hair behind her ear, then blinked her eyes and looked at Simon. "A lady has fallen, aren't you going to help her up?" "......." The pitiful expression was nowhere to be seen; a foxy smile had already settled on her lips. Simon reluctantly took her hand and helped her up. "It's been a while since Island Survival~" "Yeah, it has. Work hard in class today too. My friends are waiting, so I'll be going." Dealing with Serene was too mentally exhausting and burdensome. As Simon turned his back and walked away, she caught up to him with light steps. "You haven't forgotten that you owe me, have you?" Then she whispered softly, 'Legion Commander.' Simon sighed deeply and stopped, turning to look at her. "If I hang out with you today, will that debt disappear?" "No~ I'll use it when I really need it." Clap! Clap! At that moment, the sound of clapping, along with Hongpeng's unique awkward common language accent, was heard. "Alright! Gather up!" "The professor says to gather!" "Please gather!" All the Class A and Class C students gathered in front of Hongpeng. "Today, we'll learn a special technique! Keep a good distance and work in pairs!" The teaching assistants went around directly assigning pairs of two. Since it was a joint class, they always mixed Class A and Class C students to form groups. Pairs were mostly assigned by gender, but sometimes men and women were mixed. It seemed to be up to the teaching assistant's discretion. "You two over there. You two here. You two here. And......." The teaching assistant assigning pairs stopped in front of Simon. Simon, feeling burdened by Serene, had subtly moved away and was standing alone. The teaching assistant was about to pick a random Class C male student next to Simon, when suddenly a transparent feather fluttered and stuck into the back of his neck. Then, the teaching assistant's arm rotated 180 degrees, pointing to Serene, who was standing quite a distance away. "With that student." "......." Serene was seen waving her hand with a foxy smile. Soon, the feather fell from the teaching assistant's neck, but he didn't seem to notice at all and moved on to other students. "It can't be helped~ The teaching assistant assigned us." Serene approached Simon with light steps, as if floating. White feathers fluttered to the ground with every step she took. 'Haa.' Simon silently pressed his forehead. He somewhat understood why Mei-rin avoided her. Clap! Clap! "Alright, everyone has a partner, right? Then let's start with a light warm-up!" The teaching assistants, paired up, came forward and demonstrated the warm-up. Students just had to watch and follow their movements. Simon and Serene also faced each other and stretched their arms. She smiled softly and said, "Are Pier and Erzebet doing well?" Simon flinched, his pupils darting around. There was a good distance from other students, but he couldn't help but feel nervous. "Don't worry~ I've set up a device so the sound doesn't leak out." A feather was seen stuck in the grass. Simon sighed softly and said, "I'd rather not talk about that." "Then what would you like to talk about?" Simon said, stretching his side, "Your relationship with Mei-rin?" Serene always seemed to keep a certain distance from others, but with Mei-rin, she was quite informal, like a friend. Of course, every time she did, Mei-rin, the person in question, reacted with disgust. "I don't understand why you cling to Mei-rin. If it's an act, as Mei-rin says, you should stop. Mei-rin sees you as a rival or someone to overcome. Nothing more, nothing less." She smiled sweetly. "I genuinely want to be friends with Mei-rin." "........" "No, isn't it obvious? It's natural for people from the same Ivory Tower to rely on each other in this foreign land." Simon furrowed his brow. "Mei-rin won't think that." "Perhaps. But I'm sincere." Serene was an adopted daughter, not sharing a drop of blood with the Ivory Tower faction families. When the Ivory Tower Lord first brought her, she was said to have faced immense criticism and disdain from people. "It was Mei-rin who reached out to me then." Serene said with a smile. "Mei-rin was a high-ranking person, someone I, as a mere new guest, couldn't even look at. Yet, she took care of me and played with me, saying we were the same age. Even knowing that I was brought in as her rival." As Serene spoke, her expression held a faint, wistful emotion, unlike her usual pretense. "It's still a warm memory for me~ But as time passed." "The situation reversed at some point." "Yes." Serene's talent was truly monstrous, beyond anything seen before. Eventually, the people of the Ivory Tower, captivated by her talent, even changed the tower's laws to make Serene the successor. The situation had reversed. Serene received people's praise, while Mei-rin, who became the object of comparison, was neglected. Everyone who had cared for her turned their backs, and Mei-rin became isolated, her heart slowly being gnawed away. That's why she was still trying to catch up to Serene, even after entering Kizen. "Mei-rin firmly believes that I manipulated and played with her." Serene shrugged. "It can't be helped. My ability is like this, and I tend to be misunderstood a lot." "Don't you intend to clear up the misunderstanding?" "They're already extremely hostile towards me, so do you think a conversation would go well? Oh, of course. Even if an opportunity arises, I'm not sure if I'll clear up the misunderstanding~" "Why?" "Mei-rin desperately trying to catch up to me." As she stretched, a feather fell. She caught it and lightly licked it with her tongue. "It's cute to watch." '......She really has a bad personality. This one.' Simon felt a little embarrassed that he had felt even a fleeting moment of pity for Serene. "Alright, next!" As expected of a joint class, the teaching assistants' demonstration of stretching moved on to exercises done with a partner. It started simply. Two people stood back-to-back, linked arms, and then one person bent forward at the waist to lift the person behind them. "Shall we begin?" "Huh? Oh, okay." The two stood back-to-back. Simon flinched unconsciously as Serene boldly linked her arms with his. "I'll go first!" She inhaled deeply and bent forward with all her might. "......." But it was no use. Simon's feet lifted and touched, lifted and touched, repeatedly. She kept huffing and puffing, straining, but Simon's feet only lifted for about 2 seconds at most. 'So all the Ivory Tower kids have bad athletic ability.' "Alright, back to original!" At the teaching assistant's shout, Serene, unable to lift Simon much, returned to her original posture. The two stood back-to-back again. "Simon." Then Serene's fluttering voice was heard. "It's my turn to choose the topic, right?" "......Do whatever you want." "It's about our future." "Like future aspirations? I haven't thought about it." She smiled brightly, her back against his. "Have you thought about where you'll work after graduating in third year?" 'That's what it was.' What she was going to talk about was obvious. A recruitment offer. Simon sighed inwardly. Just then, the teaching assistant's shout of 'Now the other way!' was heard. Simon took a deep breath and bent his body, and her body lifted effortlessly. 'This isn't even a workout.' Just as Simon was letting his guard down, she suddenly tilted her head all the way back. Her crown touched Simon's neck, and Simon's face flushed. "What are you......!" "Or - how about this for Simon's future aspiration?" Her voice resonated like a song. At her next words, Simon couldn't help but doubt his own ears. "The next Ivory Tower Lord."
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