A Returner’s Magic Should Be Special - Chapter 95

Episode 95. Dungeon Conquest (1)

Chapter 20. Dungeon Conquest

The day the Inter-Party Competition began.
Each party leader gathered in the Grand Hall to hear an explanation of the upcoming Inter-Party Competition. Dezir Armang attended as a party leader himself.
Dezir surveyed his surroundings with measured calm, studying his competitors. When all the academy’s party leaders assembled in one place, their collective presence was formidable.
Notably, as if to express the cold divide between commoners and nobility, the Alpha and Beta Classes sat separately, like an invisible wall had split them apart.
Dezir shook his head at the sight.
A moment later, someone stepped onto the platform.
“Welcome, brave members of the Hebrion Academy parties.”
Felsta, professor of Shadow World Studies, was the instructor who oversaw the Inter-Party Competition each year. He began explaining the competition.
“This year’s Inter-Party Competition theme is ‘Dungeon Conquest.’ The dungeon consists of three floors total. Difficulty ratings, based on Shadow World standards, are as follows: the first floor is Grade 6, the second floor is Grade 5, and the third floor is Grade 4. Should you judge that you cannot proceed further, the party leader must declare the party’s withdrawal from the attempt. Parties that withdraw will be evaluated based on the floors they successfully conquered before withdrawing.”
If one thought about it simply, Dezir’s party already had experience conquering a Grade 4 Shadow World, so they could clear the entire dungeon with ease.
But reality was not so simple.
There was a fundamental difference in perceived difficulty between gathering information beforehand, compiling it, preparing in advance, and then attempting a challenge—versus attempting it with no prior knowledge whatsoever.
“The Inter-Party Competition will evaluate not only how effectively and quickly your party handles the obstacles placed throughout the dungeon, but also whether proper role distribution and cooperation among party members has been achieved. The scoring based on such role distribution will be…….”
Felsta’s explanation continued in this vein for a while. After that came only commonplace details hardly worth listening to.
“Then we shall begin the Inter-Party Competition two hours from now.”
With the customary closing remarks, Professor Felsta ended his explanation, and the party leaders gathered in the Grand Hall began dispersing in all directions.
Because the ability to respond to emergency situations was also an evaluation criterion, the Inter-Party Competition explanation was always given several hours before the competition began. Thus the time remaining was precious to them, and they hastened to depart.
Dezir too quickened his pace toward his party members.
‘I participated in an Inter-Party Competition in my previous life as well.’
In his past life, Dezir had participated in an Inter-Party Competition as a member of a Beta Class party. So he already possessed information about the Inter-Party Competition, but he could not reveal that knowledge beforehand, so he kept silent.
In other words, he had only two hours to brief his party members—the same as any other party leader.
“Dezir, do you have a moment?”
Someone called out to him.
A large, imposing man who always wore a Longsword at his waist as though they were one body—Erschenvlanc.
“Of course. Though the Inter-Party Competition begins in two hours, so I cannot spare much time.”
“Just a moment will do.”
Erschenvlanc led Dezir to a corner where others could not see them. He glanced around to ensure they were alone before continuing his words.
“Dezir, I have great expectations for you. You are the only commoner in this academy capable of standing against the nobility. Despite possessing such strength, you strive not for yourself, but for the common folk……. That is truly admirable.”
Dezir listened to Erschenvlanc’s words in silence.
“This Inter-Party Competition will be an excellent opportunity to overturn the relationship between nobles and commoners. For instance, something akin to a revolution…….”
“Professor.”
Dezir cut off Erschenvlanc’s words. Though Dezir did aim for a change in the relationship between nobles and commoners, it was certainly not what Erschenvlanc was imagining.
Erschenvlanc, heedless of Dezir’s call, continued with his own train of thought.
“I hear that among the Outer who attacked Frichel, there were some from the Revolutionary Army mixed in. What do you make of them?”
The information obtained from interrogating the Outer captured during the Frichel attack had already spread quite widely. Erschenvlanc had apparently obtained it as well.
“I believe they are wrong.”
Dezir added a moment later:
“Perhaps their original purpose was just. But now, thoroughly corrupted as they have become, their methods are unmistakably wrong. In their willingness to harm others without hesitation to achieve their ends, they are nothing more than terrorists. Nothing more, nothing less.”
“So at least you have some sympathy for their cause. Then might you have felt any temptation to cooperate with them?”
Dezir immediately shook his head.
“That will never happen.”
“However…….”
Erschenvlanc’s mouth was about to open again when someone called his name from behind.
“I think that’s quite enough, Professor Erschenvlanc.”
It was Professor Benquick, whose carefully groomed mustache left quite an impression.
Upon confirming the face of the sudden interloper, Erschenvlanc removed his hand from his sword and turned to Dezir.
“……Let us continue this another time.”
After Erschenvlanc bowed his head in greeting to Benquick and departed, Benquick gave Dezir a wink.

* * *

[Participants from each party who will compete in the Inter-Party Competition are requested to gather at the Shadow Hall.]

Only one team per party could enter the Inter-Party Competition, and each team was limited to a maximum of six members.
With seven total members in Dezir’s party, they decided to participate with all six except for Len, the youngest among them.
When they arrived at the Shadow Hall, the first thing they saw was a long row of observation panels. It appeared the professors were using them to watch and evaluate the students’ performances.
Romantika suddenly tapped Dezir’s shoulder and pointed with her finger toward one direction.
“Look over there.”
At the end of her pointed finger were professors whose eyes were fixed on Dezir.
That the professors would lavish such attention on Dezir was, in a sense, inevitable. He had achieved feats without precedent in recent Hebrion Academy history. Not only the students, but even the professors had their attention sharply fixed on his every move.
Moreover, he had recently admitted Beta Class students into his party as new members. The abilities of Dezir’s party members were already top-tier. That such a party would accept a Beta Class student made their intention far too transparent.
To demonstrate the capability of commoners.
The look Fuggman directed at Dezir was like the gaze one might cast upon an enemy.
Dezir let out a low chuckle.
“Don’t worry about it. Focus on what’s in front of us right now. Once we show them clearly enough that there’s nothing left to say, that’ll be enough.”
Dezir needed to establish a solid position both internally and externally to conquer the Shadow Labyrinth.
Though unintended, the attack on Frilecha in the Outer had been enough to build sufficient external standing.
But internally, he could only face obstacles because of the constraint of his commoner status. Hebrion Academy was indeed the continent’s finest educational institution, but it could never be called the finest for someone of commoner birth.
Yet Dezir believed that would change after today.
He had no doubt that if he achieved results in this Inter-Party Competition, the situation would reverse entirely.
Time was running short. This was the moment to finally put an end to this tiresome curse, and prepare himself for the true adversary that lay ahead.
“Do you think we’ll really be able to win the championship?”
It was Frichel. She was wearing a Close Line issued to her by the Magic Tower.
Dezir placed a hand on her shoulder and spoke.
“Frichel, believe in yourself and in all of us. You are far different from who you were before. And more than that, we will never turn our backs on you if you find yourself in danger.”
“Yes, I understand. I’ll do my very best.”
Frichel’s face flushed crimson as she hurried away in quick, short steps.
Romantika, watching her go, found her own hand drifting to her shoulder before she caught herself and flinched.
‘How foolish.’
She hastily dropped her hand before anyone could notice.
A short time later, Dezir called all his party members together.
“I’m beginning the briefing. First, the dungeon we’ll be entering is divided into three main floors…….”
He conveyed to his party members in brief what he had heard in the Grand Hall. During this time, other parties began trickling in, gathering in small clusters.
Since only six members per party were selected to participate, the total number was not particularly large compared to the academy’s entire student body.
Most of the participants were accomplished practitioners and noted experts, including Single Rankers. And the vast majority of them were from Alpha Class.
As Dezir looked at them, he felt that this Inter-Party Competition would be far from easy.
The bell in the clock tower rang out.
And at the same moment, a notification chimed on everyone’s pad.

[All participants in the Inter-Party Competition are requested to gather in front of the gate.]

It was the announcement signaling the start of the Inter-Party Competition. With that, Dezir’s briefing came to an end as well.

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