The World After the Bad Ending - Chapter 45

The Tenth Apostle.

Thunderbird.

The Thunderbird has three defining traits:

[Miniaturization][Durability][High-Speed Movement]

With its small, sturdy body, it moves at incredible speeds.

Its speed is so fast that it resembles the sound of thunder.

This is the definition bestowed upon the Thunderbird.

As soon as the Thunderbird appeared, Sharin sacrificed her staff and activated her magic.

Sharin had also seen the Thunderbird when Iris’s team fought it.

Because of this, she unleashed large-scale magic with the intent to end it from the very beginning.

CRAAAAAASH!

White flames engulfed the surroundings, attempting to burn the Thunderbird to ashes.

But in that moment, the Thunderbird vanished.

BOOM!

With a thunderous roar reverberating in her ears, the Thunderbird reappeared before Sharin.

The creature spun its body fiercely, aiming to pierce through her entirely.

CLANG!

However, before it could make contact, a rising shadow intercepted the Thunderbird’s attack.

The Thunderbird, extending its shadow, came dangerously close to Sharin’s face but stopped just short.

The thing that blocked the Thunderbird was Card’s shadow magic.

“Take that!”

Card swung two staffs, one in each hand, as if dancing.

In that moment, the elasticity of the shadow repelled the Thunderbird.

Sharin’s expression twisted in frustration.

She realized that even if she tried to aim her magic, the Thunderbird’s speed far exceeded her expectations.

The Thunderbird would dodge at the slightest sign of Sharin activating her magic.

No matter how powerful her magic was, it couldn’t hit if it could be avoided upon activation.

Furthermore, the Thunderbird’s trait of durability granted it absurdly high defense.

It had already endured dozens of fierce attacks from Iris.

Even Sharin’s magic, if not perfectly executed, couldn’t take it down in one blow.

Tick-tock—

Time continued to flow.

The mere three minutes we had were now nearing two.

“It’s too fast!”

Seron groaned as she chased after the Thunderbird.

No matter how wildly she swung her axe, she couldn’t land a single hit.

“Ugh!”

Instead, the Thunderbird struck her, sending her rolling across the ground.

Had Grantoni not crafted a protective bone armor for her in time, she might have been knocked out with a single blow.

Everyone began to feel the pressure mounting.

The Thunderbird was an opponent their party could defeat if given enough time.

But the time limit was making everyone increasingly anxious.

Card conjured shadows.

Grantoni activated his spirit magic.

Seron’s axe glowed with explosive power.

Sharin began sketching out another spell.

However.

Three minutes wasn’t enough to capture the Thunderbird.

That’s why.

I had prepared for this moment.

I raised my head to the sky.

“Sharin, cast a defensive spell with everyone.”

My warning echoed softly.

Card noticed something and swung his shadow.

“Kyah?!”

Seron was ensnared by shadows and pulled toward Card, Sharin, and Grantoni.

At the same time, Sharin’s defensive magic activated.

Sensing something amiss, the Thunderbird zigzagged through the air with a thunderous roar.

It moved so quickly that it became almost invisible to the naked eye.

In the midst of this chaotic battlefield, I raised my hand above my head.

On that hand was a single ring.

Tick-tock—

Amid the flowing time and the stillness it carried,

the sky began to darken with storm clouds.

One by one, people started to notice something unusual and looked up.

The sky, as if heralding a downpour, turned an ominous black.

The Thunderbird was undoubtedly fast—so fast even I couldn’t follow its movements.

But no matter how fast it moved, the Thunderbird was only an illusion created by the arena’s magic.

Its wings were trapped within the cage of the arena.

This meant it could not escape beyond its bounds.

BOOM!

And this also meant…

RUMBLE, RUMBLE, RUMBLE!

If the entire battlefield was swept away, there would be no escape.

This was my final move, prepared for this very moment.

“Come forth.”

Divine Relic

Lightning Magnet

FLASH—

A blinding blue flash engulfed everything in the arena.

Within the light, even the defensive magic shielding the outside world shattered, leaving the onlookers in shock.

Amid the stunned gasps, however,

there were those who kept their eyes wide open, watching this scene unfold.

A storm of electric blue energy swept across the arena.

—– —– —– —-!

Everything around me turned an overwhelming shade of blue.

The oppressive force of the currents flowing through my steel-like skin weighed down on me.

It felt as though I might lose consciousness under the crushing pressure.

But.

Tick-tock—

The time that continued to flow, refusing to stop, held my mind steady.

In this world bathed in electric blue, I saw the Thunderbird, caught in the storm of lightning energy.

Paralyzed by the shock, it was frozen mid-air, unable to move.

Despite its name, the Thunderbird had no innate ability connected to lightning.

Instead, it moved as swiftly as thunder’s echo. To catch it, one had to harness a force of equal speed.

Iris tackled it with brute physical strength, but I relied on the power of the Divine Relic.

Even so, thanks to its Durability trait, the Thunderbird managed to survive the lightning strike.

THUD!

Amid the electric storm, my foot stepped forward.

Across my steel-like skin, glowing letters began to emerge, radiating light.

I reached above my head, and the currents flowing over my body were drawn into my grasp.

In response, a lance formed from the electric blue energy, a spear of lightning manifesting in my hand.

Magic Inscription • Lightning Catcher

The blue lightning of the goddess rests in my grasp.

To pierce through Durability, two things are required: A powerful attack that overwhelms it, or piercing force capable of penetrating it outright.

That’s why I prepared.

The ultimate spear that can pierce through anything.

The currents flowing through my steel-like skin surged violently.

Mysticism and the magic inscription activated simultaneously, amplifying the power of the magic inscription.

Thud—

With a heavy stomp, I planted my foot firmly, channeling strength through my waist.

Crack!

The act of swinging the lightning tore at my shoulders.

If that was the case, I would simply add even more strength to it.

The magic inscription engraved on my elbow activated once again.

BOOM!

With an explosive burst from my elbow, my arm swung with all its might.

The blue flash left my hand, cutting through the air and striking the Thunderbird.

KRAK-KRAK-KRAK-KRAK-KRAK-KRAK-KRAK!

The spear of lightning drove into the Thunderbird, hurling it to the edge of the arena.

But in that moment, my eyes widened.

The spear of lightning had undoubtedly struck the Thunderbird.

It was clear that the Thunderbird wouldn’t survive and would meet its end.

Tick-tock!

However, the timer in my vision showed a mere five seconds remaining.

The lightning continued to spread, breaking the Thunderbird apart piece by piece.

But there wasn’t quite enough time to finish it off completely.

My body was utterly spent, drained of strength.

I had no other moves left.

At that moment, all I could do was hope—hope the Thunderbird would perish swiftly.

Right in front of the Thunderbird there stood someone holding an axe.

Amid the blue flash, red hair tied in a bundle danced wildly in the storm.

The forehead beneath it gleamed vividly.

Seron Parmia.

She was there.

When had she moved to that spot?

Seron had leapt out of Sharin’s defensive magic, her body covered in layers of shadows and bone.

With support from Card and Grantoni, she had reached that place.

It dawned on me at that moment.

I wasn’t the only one who wanted to be first—everyone did.

Her axe, wreathed in explosive energy, came crashing down.

‘Smash it!’

Everyone, including me, cried out in our hearts as we watched.

As if answering that plea, Seron’s axe finally struck the disintegrating Thunderbird.

BOOOOM!

With an explosion, the flashing lightning dissipated, and smoke began to rise.

Collapsing into the stance I had taken to swing the spear, I gasped for air.

Having been struck by lightning and wielding it in my hand, black smoke seeped from my mouth and body.

With the magic undone by the lightning’s release, the dignitaries and students outside the arena became visible.

But not one of them uttered a word.

The arena was cloaked in silence.

Amid my dazed thoughts, I fixated my gaze on a single point.

The surrounding smoke gradually began to clear.

Through the thinning mist, Seron came running, having tossed her axe aside.

“Hanon!”

For the first time, she called my name properly and threw herself at me, wrapping me in a hug.

She held me tight and began to bounce excitedly.

As I realized what was happening and lifted my head,

31 minutes, 20 seconds.

With barely one second to spare, the frozen timer appeared before my eyes.

My eyes widened in disbelief.

Seron’s final axe, with everyone’s support behind it, had delivered the finishing blow to the dying Thunderbird.

“Ha, haha…”

Laughter spilled uncontrollably from my lips.

We had defeated Iris’s team.

“Ha-ha-ha, we did it!”

“Ha-ha-ha, can’t believe this actually worked!”

“Sheesh, I hate being this nervous!”

Card ran over and tousled my hair wildly, while Grantoni and Sharin trudged toward us.

This was a victory we could only have achieved together, and my heart swelled with a deep sense of fulfilment.

But then, looking at Seron’s beaming grin as she quipped,

“Heehee, raise my allowance now!”

that warm feeling quickly cooled off.

In the distance, I spotted familiar faces.

The Lazy Genius nodded in approval, as if everything had gone just as expected.

Isabel clenched her fists tightly, clearly spurred on by a competitive spirit.

Aisha and Poara, both first-years, were celebrating our achievement with genuine joy.

Then my gaze fell on Iris.

Her teammates were staring at us in disbelief, but Iris herself looked at me with an unreadable expression in her eyes.

Finally, I saw the White Wood Duke, the living history of the Empire, who had shot up from her seat, standing tall and focused.

We’d shown them all we could.

Now it was up to them to decide their response.

“Hanon’s team: 31 minutes, 20 seconds.”

At that moment, Beganon’s voice announcing the results echoed across the arena.

“Currently ranked first among second-years.”

Our victory was sealed.

* * *

Right after our team’s match ended, I completely collapsed.

I didn’t lose consciousness, but my body had no strength left to move, so I was forcibly escorted to the infirmary.

Considering I had pushed myself relentlessly up until facing the seventh apostle, and then endured the lightning strike head-on, it was a miracle I could still function at all.

Afterward, Isabel’s team put up a strong fight, but ultimately finished third behind Iris’ team.

No one else managed to overturn our score.

And so, our team safely claimed first place.

Lying on the infirmary bed, I quietly stared up at the ceiling.

Not long ago, I had been lightly scolded by Professor Beganon.

She’d pointed out that, despite this being an exam, I kept pushing myself too hard—this time and last.

But for me, every match had to be my very best, and there was no other way.

‘Even with all my preparations, it was still a close call.’

I had thrown everything I knew into this, crafting the most thorough strategy possible with the clear intent to win.

However, even with all that effort, we barely managed to secure a margin of just over one second.

This was due to the differences between the game and reality.

And because of those differences, which I hadn’t fully accounted for—

‘I have no choice but to prepare even more.’

Everyone’s help had been crucial.

But this was only the middle phase of the scenario.

There was still a long road ahead.

With Lucas absent, I had to accomplish even more than I ever thought possible.

I pushed myself upright from where I had been leaning on the bed.

Because I had a feeling it was about time.

Knock, knock-

Sure enough, I heard a knock at the door.

“Come in,”

I called out.

At my response, the door creaked open.

A towering man wearing an eyepatch stepped into view.

And walking past him was a woman with flowing, snow-white hair.

She had a figure so striking that it could catch anyone’s eye, and at first glance, one might mistake her for someone in her early twenties.

But in reality, she was an ageless relic who had lived alongside the Empire her entire life.

Thud!

She strode confidently into the infirmary, her cape billowing dramatically.

“Greetings, boy,”

She said.

The White Wood Duke.

Laxid Anavesia.

“You could have informed me in advance.”

A faint, chilling smile crept up her lips, and with it, a crushing pressure began to fill the room.

Just standing before her felt like a weight pressing down on my shoulders.

It was as if the atmosphere itself was forcing me to kneel.

“Harboring mysteries is punishable by death under Article 253 of the Niflheim Empire’s Penal Code,”

She declared.

What?