The Return of the Iron-blood Sword Hound

Chapter 184 Random Defense in the Midterm Exam (6)

In their weakened state, Tudor, Sancho, Figgy, and Bianca had no way to defend themselves. They were drained of both their physical and mana reserves, and the pressure from the golem-like ants was too much for them to bear. They felt helpless and despaired, lamenting the fact that they hadn’t even become heroes yet.

“Ugh. To meet my end like this… I never imagined.”

“My final moments… to think they’d be like this…”

“Hey, Figgy! Why isn’t he saying anything? Is he already dead!?”

Tudor, Sancho, Figgy, and Bianca were overwhelmed by despair, unable to make any moves. It seemed they were about to give up their last shred of hope.

Then, suddenly, a loud bang erupted.

The immense pressure they were under vanished along with the ants’ weight. The oppressive atmosphere lifted as fresh air filled the space, dispelling the suffocating fog.

Confused and gasping for air, Tudor, Sancho, Figgy, and Bianca raised their heads.

There, the black hem of a billowing cape came into view. It was none other than Vikir.

“Step aside.”

Tudor, Sancho, Figgy, and Bianca looked on in amazement.

“Vikir? How did you get here?”

However, Vikir remained silent. He only raised his bow.

“Vikir!? You’re here to help us?”

Although Tudor, who still had some strength left, attempted to question him, Vikir offered no reply. Instead, he just nocked an arrow and drew the string.

Simultaneously…

With a thunderous burst, a fiery aura emanated from Vikir’s bow.

A red trail was etched across the sky as a single arrow flew.

Thud! Thud! Crumble!

The arrow shattered the head of the giant soldier ant charging toward them.

The shock was palpable among Tudor, Sancho, Figgy, and Bianca.

* * *

A few minutes earlier, Vikir inspected the magical barrier surrounding the arena. He noticed a small, furry creature hiding in a corner, baby madam. The creature was crying and seemed insignificant to most people, but it had been detected by tlife reaction checking magic of the magic stone.

“When I took the test, it didn’t detect any life response. Is it because the baby madam was too hungry at the time?”

In an extremely malnourished state, the baby madam had ingested various poisons during Vikir’s test, shedding its skin in the process. As a result, it had acquired a significant amount of vitality and was now clearly detected by the magical life-sensing network of the magic stone.

Vikir touched his face.

In the end, this whole incident had occurred because the baby madam had developed a strong desire to eat more poison. It had noticed that its master, Vikir, had disappeared while it was consuming poisons, which led to its current situation, hiding behind the magical barrier and whimpering.

Far away, professors were bustling around.

“No, who will take responsibility for this?”

“Let’s start by dividing the responsibilities clearly!”

“That’s enough; dismantle the magical barrier! Hasn’t Professor Sadi contacted us yet?”

Even Dolores, who was worried about her younger classmates, glared at the professors.

This might end up causing an accident.

Vikir shook his head. “Once the magical barrier is dismantled and the investigation begins, they’ll discover the baby madam. That would be a problem.”

That’s why proper training for the spiderlings was necessary.

He moved out of the sight of the audience, heading towards the northwest corner of the magical barrier.

Tss tss tss tss tss…

Vikir wore a Picaresque mask on his face.

He looked like a miniature black dog with pink paws and cute red eyes.

Hodaak-

After transforming into a dog, Vikir easily passed through the magical barrier to the inside. He had been aware of the cracks at the southern edge of the magical barrier, thanks to his regression and the triplets.

“Cracks exist at the lower part of the magical barrier’s southwestern side.”

The triplets, Highbro, Middlebro, and Lowbro, had accumulated many personal grudges during their time at the academy.

They often suffered attacks even while taking exams in the arena. One time, an assassin had burrowed into the arena, infiltrating the lower part of the magical barrier from the southwest. Highbro, Middlebro, and Lowbro had been his targets.

Later, the professors somehow found the crack and probed it. It was a 7-meter-long tunnel that went underground.

Anyway, once through the magical barrier, the rest was easy.

Vikir entered the magical barrier’s interior and searched for the crack.

“Then, the baby madam can be discovered once the magical barrier is dismantled.”

It seemed the baby madam needed better education.

Vikir decided that he would have to scold the baby madam when he got back.

He hurriedly moved towards the southwest part of the magical barrier, searching for the crack.

Tss tss tss tss tss…

With his small dog-like body, he easily dug through the earth and entered the lower part of the magical barrier.

“Heh, that’s the same as in the past.”

When he came out of the narrow tunnel, his body grew larger, and he screamed with horror at the sudden increase in size in the tight tunnel. He used the strength of Styx’s strength and the vast amount of mana to push away the dirt and make room for himself, forcing the earth to give way. Breaking the stone floor of the arena, he emerged from the ground.

“…”

As he emerged from the ground, he saw that everything was covered in a green haze. It was due to the paralysis poison emitted by the ant golems.

“If the poison fog is this dense, it would be difficult to look inside from the outside.”

Vikir felt fortunate that he couldn’t see the outside well beyond the magical barrier.

Since this side can’t see the outside, the same should apply to the outside as well. Vikir thought, “Alright, then…”

Surrounded by the dense green toxic fog, Vikir’s first action was to retrieve the baby madam. However, there was no need to go looking for it; it had come to him, whimpering and immediately attaching itself to Vikir’s hand.

Rub rub – The baby madam seemed to be berating him for where he had been. Vikir couldn’t help but frown at its audacious behavior.

“This cheeky little rascal.”

After retrieving the baby madam, Vikir decided to train it properly later.

For now, the most pressing issue was to rescue Tudor, Sancho, Figgy, and Bianca.

Vikir confirmed that it was difficult to see inside from the outside due to the thick toxic fog. He quickly nocked an arrow to his bow.

Even if it was just a supply bow and arrow, with Vikir’s skill in archery, combined with his mana, would be enough to serve as a formidable siege weapon.

Pew pew pew kaboom! Vikir’s rapid shooting began to clear out the mass of ant monsters. Once touched by Vikir’s arrows, no matter if they were worker ants or soldier ants, they were instantly destroyed.

Vikir only had to shoot a few times, and an opening appeared ahead, where Tudor, Sancho, Figgy, and Bianca could be seen.

“…Vikir?”

Tudor’s expression was as if he had seen a ghost. Sancho, Figgy, and Bianca were in similar states.

Vikir approached his friends without a word.

“Everyone looks weak.”

Although he wanted to ask them to crawl through the tunnel, they appeared too exhausted even to move. Especially Figgy, who seemed entirely powerless due to being poisoned by the paralysis toxin.

In the meantime, the gigantic ant monsters began to surround Vikir.

Name: Carnage Ant (Worker Ant)

Danger Level: C

Size: 1m

Habitat: Large Colony Zones

Also known as “Worker Ant”

The most common form of Carnage Ant.

It serves as the frontline soldier, scout, assault unit, nanny, etc., performing various roles.

Armed with a tough chitinous exoskeleton and powerful mandibles, these are the warlike colony-type demons that burrow deep from the human world to hell.

Name: Carnage Ant (Soldier Ant)

Danger Level: B+

Size: 5m

Habitat: Large Colony Zones

Also known as “Soldier Ant”

Some individuals among the discovered ants have undergone mutations, resulting in an even more substantial build and a more robust exoskeleton.

Regarded as the ultimate manifestation of the Carnage Ant colony’s evolution, they are seldom seen in ordinary ant nests but are typically found in super-sized ant nests or nests left neglected for extended periods.

Amid countless worker ants, which would act like a giant pair of garden shears, the Carnage Soldier Ants that could handle as many as 1,000 worker ants each were nestled.

Tudor, Sancho, Figgy, and Bianca confronted the vast army of ants, standing behind Vikir, their faces filled with despair.

“Vikir! Don’t be reckless! We don’t stand a chance!”

“…And thanks for what you’ve done, but we’re done for.”

“Please, Vikir, at least you run away!”

“Idiot, you’re going to get yourself killed!”

Everyone showed an attitude bordering on resignation.

However, Vikir didn’t budge from where he stood.

He had only pulled an arrow back.

And then, almost immediately…

“…Huh?”

The expressions of everyone began to fill with astonishment and disbelief.

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