Necromancer Academy’s Genius Summoner - Chapter 40

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Summoning Prodigy of the Necromancer School — Episode 40
The next day.
At last, the morning of the Practical Evaluation dawned. The students of Class A were traveling by carriage toward the Underground Dungeon.
“Isn’t it remarkable?”
Kamibalez gazed out the carriage window as he spoke.
“I never imagined there could be so many dungeons and ruins packed into such a small place as Locksem.”
Dick shrugged his shoulders.
“From what I’ve heard, Nephthys has quite the collecting habit. Whenever she discovers an ancient ruin, she apparently has it moved to Locksem in its entirety.”
“What! Entire ruins?”
Though Dick and Kamibalez chattered on, trying their best to lighten the tense atmosphere, Simon and Meyrin remained silent all the way until they arrived at the dungeon.
“Here we are! Everyone, step out!”
At last the carriages came to a halt, and the students disembarked.
All eyes turned toward Meyrin as she descended from the carriage leaning on crutches, even as the other students buzzed loudly in anticipation of the Actual Combat test.
“…They’re done for.”
“The Frontline Combatant’s injured, you said?”
The students murmured among themselves.
“If the Frontline Combatant’s in that condition, there’s no hope. Everything’s been cursed from start to finish.”
“Which is great for us.”
“Shh! Shh! Hey, keep your voice down!”
Meyrin trudged forward, deliberately letting the whispers slide past her, with the other members of Team Seven following close behind.
The Underground Dungeon of Keyzen was essentially a colossal prison holding monsters captured from across the continent. And according to rumors, the deepest level of the dungeon also held the continent’s most heinous criminals in chains.
As the students followed the instructor deeper in, their eyes darted nervously about. Terrible screams and monstrous roars echoed from all directions.
“It’s unconfirmed, but supposedly there’s an ‘angel’ sealed and chained at the very bottom of this dungeon.”
At Dick’s words, Kamibalez flinched, his shoulders trembling.
“D-don’t scare me like that! There’s no such thing as an angel in the world!”
“But if demons exist, why wouldn’t angels?”
Fortunately, they didn’t venture that far into the dungeon’s depths.
They arrived at a space sealed on all sides by walls of cut stone. Just like the Training Room, mana projectors were mounted on the ceiling.
“This way, please.”
Upon entering, Jane and the instructors who had arrived first were waiting for them. Since this was Jane’s first lesson after the student protection period, everyone stood at attention with noticeably taut expressions.
She opened her mouth.
“Attention.”
“Attention!”
“This morning, we will conduct the Practical Evaluation for Teams One through Eight in sequence. Once you enter the dungeon, you will face a living Cyclops.”
The instructors circulated, handing each student a clipboard and pen.
It was the death waiver Jane had mentioned in the first class—a document stating that Keyzen bore no responsibility for anything that happened within the dungeon.
“Of course, should you decide that your own life is more precious, you are free to simply set down that waiver and leave.”
It was a decision already made when they entered Keyzen. All the students completed their signatures, and the instructors distributed training uniforms.
“To reiterate, there are three conditions under which the Practical Evaluation is suspended: the Frontline Combatant’s Combat Incapacitation, any team member raising their hand and declaring their withdrawal from the test, or the judgment by a professor or safety officer that combat is no longer feasible. The safety officer dispatched from Keyzen headquarters is Andrew, whom we thank for his service today.”
The heavily armed man standing beside Jane gave a small bow. He had a thoroughly taciturn expression.
“Then let us commence the Practical Evaluation with Team One.”

* * *
Team One remained in the arena while the other team members were escorted to an upper chamber. It functioned as a Waiting Room where they could rest, and one wall was transparent like glass, allowing them to look down directly upon the battles of other teams.
“Th-that’s a real Cyclops!”
“The scale is insane.”
“I never actually believed this Actual Combat would happen until now.”
“I have no idea how…”
Though the Waiting Room bustled with students gawking at the Cyclops, Simon’s group had no time to leisurely watch the other teams battle.
The four gathered quietly in a corner away from the others to discuss their strategy.
“Come on, lighten the mood! We still have a fighting chance!”
Dick clapped his hands, steering the meeting forward.
They exchanged ideas in earnest silence. Every so often, cheers and screams from the students below criss-crossed above them.
They could tell which teams had won and which had failed. Unsurprisingly, Hector from Team Three had succeeded in his hunt.
Time rushed past faster than light, and finally.
“Team Seven, you’re up.”
Before they could even register how an hour or two had passed, it was already Team Seven’s turn.
All members of Team Seven were guided downward by the instructor. Students who had been sitting quietly suddenly surged toward the transparent wall as Meyrin descended.
“Looks like she’s planning to go through with it despite the leg injury.”
“Can she even do that? The doctor must have placed restrictions on her.”
“Wait—hold on!”
Someone pointed at the wall. Simon was wearing the Protective Vest that a Frontline Combatant should have on.
“It’s Simon! They switched Simon Polentia in as the Frontline Combatant!”
“Think he’ll be alright?”
“Of course not! They’ve been relying on Meyrin’s Dark Flare this whole time. Now the whole plan falls apart.”
“But how’s a Summoning major supposed to take down a Cyclops?”
“I guess he’s just trying to put on a good show until the end, whatever.”
Just then, Hector, sprawled across two seats,’s eyes flashed sharp.
“Simon Polentia is the Frontline Combatant?”
“Y-yeah, that’s what they’re saying?”
One of Hector’s faction members spoke with forced cheerfulness.
“Isn’t he the guy you usually pay attention to? Don’t you want to watch?”
……
Hector closed his eyes without answering.

* * *
“Haaah.”
Simon took a deep breath to calm his trembling chest. As he put on the vest, the Barrier Gauge appeared from the Mana Projector in the ceiling.
When this gauge reached zero percent, the Frontline Combatant would automatically receive a Combat Incapacitation Judgment, and the test would stop immediately.
Behind Simon, Dick, Meyrin, and Kamibalez stood in Set Position one after the other. Fortunately, Meyrin had convinced the instructor to allow support members to stay in place without moving.
“Nothing’s really changed.”
Simon turned to his teammates and spoke.
“Even if the situation’s shifted, what we’ve worked for doesn’t disappear. Let’s give it everything until the end.”
The three nodded.
Meyrin, who had been dazed for a while, snapped to attention as soon as the Practical Evaluation began, her expression terrifyingly focused.
Safety Officer Andrew glanced at his wristwatch and spoke.
“Next Cyclops. Please release it.”
Clang-clang-clang!
The dungeon’s iron gate rose. From the darkness, a real Cyclops bound in chains emerged into view. Four guards strained to pull the chains, guiding the monster’s steps forward.
Gulp.
Facing the monster, Simon’s throat went dry.
Its form was exactly as it appeared in the Simulation, but the real thing was unmistakably different. A foul stench assaulted his nose, and its irregular breathing filled the air with dread.
His heart thundered in his chest from the tension. If he’d encountered something like that on a mountain…… it would have been hell.
And floating above the Cyclops’s head was a pitch-black Magic Circle.
The curse was why the creature’s eye had lost all focus, but the moment that Curse lifted, reason would return, and it would begin attacking whatever stood before it.
Click! Click!
The guards removed the iron chains and bolted from the dungeon.
-Now we’ll begin the Practical Evaluation for Group Seven.
Jane’s voice sounded from the ceiling.
-There’s no need to push yourselves. If at any point you feel it’s hopeless, anyone may raise their hand to request the test be stopped.
“Yes, Professor!”
Andrew, the Safety Officer, faded from sight at some point.
Now only the four members of Group Seven and the Cyclops remained in this space.
-Curse released. Test begins.
The Magic Circle hovering above the Cyclops’s head shattered with a loud crack. Simultaneously, the monster’s previously unfocused eyes blazed with awareness.
-KWAAAAAAARRRRGH!
It let out a deafening roar. The sheer force of its breath felt like it would blow them away.
“Simon! Focus!”
Combat erupted immediately. Simon seized an imaginary lever and summoned his Skeletons.
Three armed Skeletons charged from different angles.
‘Just like practice. Stick to what we practiced.’
Though the Frontline Combatant had changed, the basic strategy remained intact.
While Simon held ground with his Skeletons, Dick, Kamibalez, and Meyrin would all go for Curse magic. They’d layer Exgust to its limit to disable the Cyclops, then Simon would strike its chest and bring it down.
But.
Bang!
The Cyclops ignored the Skeletons entirely. It charged forward like a tank, smashing them with its body, then barreled straight toward Simon.
“……What?”
“What—what’s happening?”
The plan crumbled from the start.
With eyes bloodshot and veins bulging, the Cyclops swung its Club in a vicious arc.
A deep, resonant boom shook the cavern.
Simon threw himself desperately out of the way. The club crashed down where he’d been standing, and the dungeon trembled violently.
“What are you doing, Hector?”
Kamibalez, who had been preparing a Curse, asked in confusion.
“This isn’t like the simulation!”
“Are you trying to show us the difference between simulation and reality? But this….”
Hector bit his lip slightly.
‘It’s as if it’s been targeting Simon from the start!’
Crash! Crash! Crash!
The Cyclops frothed at the mouth as it swung the club with frenzied abandon.
Simon had to roll across the floor like a ball to escape the savage onslaught.
“Ugh!”
The uneven stone floor scraped his back raw. Having evaded every attack, Simon pushed himself up and extended his right arm.
Clang!
The Skeleton that had moved behind the Cyclops swung its blade, raking across the creature’s back.
‘Damn—it’s far tougher than in the simulation!’
The strike hadn’t even left a scratch on its hide.
Unable to inflict serious damage, the Cyclops ignored the Skeleton and continued its assault on Simon alone.
‘Stay calm.’
Simon’s eyes flashed with intensity.
‘Diagonal downward strike.’
With his knees bent, Simon suddenly tilted his body to the side. The club whistled past just above him.
‘Long breath, horizontal sweep!’
As Simon sidestepped and his body slipped backward, the Cyclops’s blow went wide again. The students watching from above gasped at his fluid movements.
Simon himself, however, was barely holding on.
‘I never thought the analysis I did on the Cyclops to help Meyrin would save my own hide!’
A guttural roar erupted from the creature.
Just as the enraged Cyclops wheeled around to charge forward—
“Exgust!”
The three standing in Set Position finally unleashed Exgust. The Cyclops’s movements froze for an instant, and in that narrow window, Simon drove forward.
He leaped off the pitch-black ground, extending his arm behind him. The spear the Skeleton threw landed perfectly in his grasp.
‘Now!’
A sharp whistle split the air.
Simon’s spear streaked toward the Cyclops’s eye like lightning.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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