Old School Building.
First floor of the Sealed Tower of Earth.
“We did it!!”
“We succeeded!!”
The members of the special class cheered.
They jumped in excitement as if they had just conquered something they had previously failed at.
It was only natural.
When vacation started, they had attempted the Trial of the Four Founders but failed to clear the first floor.
However, the Red Sol Phoenix squad of then and now were different.
After successfully clearing [Gerrquan Wiperus] and the Ant Nest beneath Baron Balzac’s territory, the three had gained confidence—not just in themselves, but in their ability to face SS-rank monsters as individuals and A-rank monsters in groups.
They had accumulated experience.
And not through simulated battles in a mental domain, but through actual combat.
Even if dozens of Blue Fire Squad trainees had supported them, and even if Instructor Esta had watched over them, their battle experience was still very real.
Besides, just because a monster is SS-rank doesn’t mean only SS-rank individuals can defeat it.
“We really did it!”
“Incredible. I never thought we’d take down a [Baryceratops].”
I couldn’t help but exclaim as I watched the SS-rank monster slowly dissolve into nothingness.
It was a colossal rhino-like beast, over 10 meters in size, but the three of them had taken it down with near-perfect coordination.
“Who would have thought that riding on top of an SS-rank monster to lure it would actually work?”
“If we lack the power to suppress all the monsters outright, then it’s also a strategy to make them fight and kill each other. Don’t you think?”
Yunia extended her hand forward, casting a red-tinged spell.
A type of light magic, similar to cellophane, that turned the entire world crimson.
With Ludmila Lionheart’s support, Yunia had climbed atop the SS-rank monster and blinded it with red light.
A world stained blood-red.
The boss naturally went berserk, thrashing at everything in sight.
Its lance-like horn impaled A-rank monsters—creatures that were technically its subordinates and kin—without hesitation.
“We used its reaction to mana and attached residual mana to its underlings, making the boss attack them instead. How would you grade us?”
“Putting Yunia on top of the boss was risky, but with floating magic and Ludmila supporting her, it was fine. I’ll give you… 95 points.”
“Where did we lose the 5 points? Was it because we didn’t slay all the monsters ourselves and let them kill each other?”
“If the challenge had three stars, then you cleared it with two. The final condition is: ‘Slay all the monsters directly.'”
“…That would be possible once we reach SS-rank.”
Ludmila gave a wry smile and raised her hand.
The strategy of making the boss kill its own underlings was undeniably clever, but in another sense, it could also be considered a loophole rather than a proper challenge clear.
“How did Instructor Esta clear this stage?”
“7 minutes and 23 seconds. She wiped out all the underlings, then cut off the boss’s head before unlocking the next floor.”
“…So a perfect score, three stars.”
“Exactly.”
The special class looked a bit disappointed.
Just like many stage-based trials, even if you cleared it, failing to complete every challenge condition left a lingering sense of dissatisfaction.
Especially when—
“Wow, the Four Founders really went too far. Did they have to make it so obnoxiously visible in the sky like that?”
—The results were displayed prominently in the sky, like a status screen or result board.
“But… this actually seems like a good thing?”
Yunia, trying to lift the party’s spirits, pointed at the bottom of the floating result screen.
“That text must be from the Four Founders. …Right?”
“Yeah, that’s correct.”
Advice for a 2-star clear.
[The [Baryceratops] tramples even its own offspring when enraged. If a trampled underling dies, you cannot retrieve its magic stone. For optimal rewards, slay all creatures directly.]
A blunt but oddly considerate piece of advice.
“Which of the four do you think wrote it?”
“No idea. But we’ll figure it out as we clear more floors.”
“Instructor Esta, did you see this message when you cleared it?”
“No. I cleared all conditions at once, so I saw a different message. A snippet of an episode from 500 years ago, when the Four Founders cleared this floor themselves.”
“!!”
The three of them gasped in unison, eyes widening.
“S-So… you’re saying…”
“If we perfectly clear the trials, we can see memories of the Four Founders?”
“In what form?”
“A brief conversation, less than a minute long. It appears like a holographic replay—as if the moment was recorded and played back.”
In the original game, this was just a short text snippet.
But in this world, it manifested as a visual and auditory replay of their actions.
“That said, it might be better not to watch it—if you want to keep your idealized image of the Four Founders.”
“…Huh?”
“If you clear with 2 stars, they leave guidance for their successors.”
“But if you clear with 3 stars, they see you as an equal rather than a junior. And… they act accordingly.”
“That means… they acknowledge our skills, right?”
“Exactly, Ludmila.”
“Then isn’t that a good thing?”
Ludmila studied me, eyes scanning me from head to toe.
“Phoenix, you don’t look particularly excited.”
“…Huh?”
“Being able to witness the Four Founders’ past should be an earth-shaking revelation for scholars. Yet, you don’t seem all that eager about it.”
“Ah… Do I really look that way?”
“Yes. The way you’re speaking… it’s as if—”
Ludmila suddenly stopped herself, swallowing her words.
“What? Just say it. Don’t leave me hanging.”
“N-No, never mind. Evangeline, let’s talk about it after we meet the Four Founders’ in person.”
“Ugh, what the hell? You two always have your own inside jokes!”
“That’s not it. It’s just… the Four Founders might be much more down-to-earth than we thought.”
“…So they might be completely different from their legendary image?”
“…Yes.”
At Yunia’s words, Ludmila nodded gravely.
“For 500 years, humanity has revered and praised the four heroes who made the greatest contributions to our history before vanishing. The records they left behind only highlight their glory and devotion—so much so that it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say they have been deified.”
“They were also the founders of Esdinas Academy.”
“Yes. But if such figures were to display a more… human side, well…”
Ludmila shuddered.
“I personally don’t mind, but people like my grandfather might find it a bit shocking.”
“The [Fist King], shocked? If anything, I think he’d be the type to say, ‘Even heroes were just people,’ and be excited to see a new side of them.”
“I’d like to think so… but still.”
“Well, whatever happens, happens.”
I calmly raised both hands in a gesture of surrender.
“Don’t worry. No matter what, it’s not like it’ll be anything too shocking.”
“So you’re saying… there might be some shock?”
“…”
“Like what, exactly?”
“Just that… the image we know of them might be completely different from reality.”
500 years ago.
A time when humanity lived more harshly than ever, and survival was the highest priority.
The Hero, Emperor, Sage, and Saint.
The figures known as the Hero of Justice, the Great Emperor, the Wise Sage, and the Compassionate Saint—
These titles, these images, could very well have been created by later generations.
Propaganda, perhaps.
Or a deliberate cover-up of their true past, buried as a forgotten history.
Or maybe—
Those close to them intentionally glorified them, believing that the truth should never be known by future generations.
The truth lies beyond reach.
Or perhaps—
Within this trial.
* * *
[Meanwhile, Esdinas Academy – Old School Building, Instructor Research Room.]
“What’s up, Esta? Why’d you turn off the magic pad?”
“Did Phoenix say something cryptic again?”
“Well… yeah, you could say that.”
Two instructors from the Old School Building sat across from each other, sipping tea as they spoke.
“About mana that lacks [Angelic Power]. He referred to it as ‘non-attribute mana,’ but honestly, it’s more like ‘pure mana’ in its truest form. What do you think?”
“I agree. The real question is…”
Esta pointed at her own heart.
“Does this apply to us as well? I want to check my own mana signature.”
“…”
“Judging from your expression, I take it you’ve already checked yours?”
“Some things in this world… are better left unknown.”
“That ship has sailed. I’ve already learned too much—partly thanks to Phoenix.”
Esta tapped her temple with her finger.
“Information about the Sage, [Allister]. You don’t want to know?”
“…”
“What do you think, Kadisha Allister?”
Kadisha remained silent for a moment before answering.
“An ancestor is just an ancestor. It’s been 500 years. It’s not like I inherited anything from him.”
“But aren’t you even a little curious? Why would the Sage leave behind nothing for his descendants? No research materials, no knowledge as a Sage, no records of the world’s secrets—just a surname.”
“Do you know the reason?”
“Unfortunately… I do.”
Esta stretched out her hand, summoning a radiant aura that shimmered with an ethereal glow.
“I’m still figuring things out, but there’s one thing I can say for certain—
There exists a darkness in this world that should never be known.”
“…That’s why the Sage left behind nothing? I always thought it was something like, ‘Knowledge must be sought out on one’s own’ or something along those lines.”
“No. The truth is…”
Esta gestured toward her aura, and Kadisha adjusted her monocle, observing it closely.
“If what we call ‘magic’—or rather, ‘mana’—was actually supposed to be a perfect balance akin to a [Philosopher’s Stone]…”
“…”
“What if the mana humanity possesses is, in fact, ‘corrupted’?”
“If everyone carries corruption within them… then pure mana would feel like poison to us?”
“Exactly.”
“…Then we need to find more people.”
Kadisha mimed zipping her lips shut, then pointed downward.
“Here. In the Old School Building.”
“The new student roster for the second semester—is it out?”
“Yeah. And the lineup is… quite something.”
Kadisha placed a finger on her lips and grinned mischievously.
“Among them, no less than a direct descendant of the Four Founders is joining us.”
***
And so…
The vacation came to an end.
