Chapter 203.1

The Enora Meadow.

It was a vast field located 60 km southwest of Gairadite.

The students of both the Demon King and Hero Academies were gathered in this place of unspoiled nature, overflowing with green gra.s.s and flowers.

All three of our teachers were standing in front of us.

Eldmed, s.h.i.+n, and Emilia.

Well then, ladies and gents, today were going to have a P.E. cla.s.s in preparation for the dragon subjugation. Physical apt.i.tude isnt something that can be improved overnight. Even when fighting a dragon, theres an appropriate level of agility to possess. Once you learn that, youll have a much easier time defeating them. (Eldmed)

Eldmed twirled his cane and thrusted it on the ground.

So first, lets play tag. (Eldmed)

At that moment, someone from the Hero Academy sighed.

The h.e.l.l? Were supposed to hunt those dragon monsters, and now youre telling us to play tag? Talk about carefree. Raos said lazily.

Yeah, same. And here I was thinking wed get a proper lecture, so this is kind of a letdown. Heine said mockingly, while Ledriano pushed up his gla.s.ses.

I understand the importance of the basics, but at this pace, I dont think we will be ready to subjugate dragons in 10 days. I believe a slightly more rigorous lesson would be more beneficial. (Ledriano)

Emilia glared sharply at the three complaining Heroes.

Raos-kun, Heine-kun, Ledriano-kun, cant you three even listen to the cla.s.s quietly? (Emilia)

n.o.body asked you, Emilia. (Heine)

Thats Emilia-

sensei

to you! (Emilia)

Yeah, yeah. Heine said while mockingly waving his hand in the air.

I dont mind it, Emilia-sensei. Khahaha! Now arent you three quite eager to learn? (Eldmed)

As Eldmed said that, Emilia reluctantly backed down.

In that case, heres an idea. You three will run to that tree over there. If you can reach it in three minutes without using magic, we will provide tougher lessons. How does that sound, hmm? (Eldmed)

Three minutes? Hey now, you better not take us lightly just cuz were humans. Three minutes is more than enough. Raos said, laughing off the challenge.

The Conflagration King removed his hat and pulled out three hourgla.s.ses from it.

Well then, as soon as the sand starts falling, the race begins. (Eldmed)

He flipped over the floating hourgla.s.ses, then announced the start.

Go! (Eldmed)

At that moment, Ledriano and the other two began running toward the tree, looking bored.

Even so, they had still trained their bodies at the Hero Academy, so they were several times faster than ordinary humans.

In about 10 seconds, they had covered half the distance.

Haha! We dont even need to run, wed still make it in time by walking. (Raos)

Whats the Demon King Academy even trying to accomplish by making us do such an easy exercise? (Heine)

At that moment, the ground exploded.

WHA?! (Raos)

Huh? A-AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!! (Heine)

A green dragon with sharp horns, huge wings, and covered in tough scales appeared directly beneath the three runners, and soared into the sky.

Its huge body, perhaps thirty meters in length, floated in the sky while flapping its wings.

Ledriano and the others, who were blown away by the dragons violent rush from underground to the surface, were miserably tumbling on the ground.

Their entire bodies were covered in blood, and they were probably not breathing anymore.

H Heine-kun? Raos-kun? Ledriano-kun?! Emilia shouted in concern.

She immediately tried to run to them, but the dragons glare from above left her paralyzed in fear.

Khahaha! I checked this area yesterday, and it turns out theres a dragons nest nearby. If you provoke them carelessly, they will fly out of there, so you better be careful. (Eldmed)

Eldmed laughed, as if to say that he planned for all this.

W-W-What is the meaning of this, Eldmed-sensei?! I thought you said that todays P.E. would be about improving their agility in a game of tag! (Emilia)

Exactly. A game of tag with dragons! No matter how much theory we teach them or how much simulation training sessions we run, real battles will always play out differently. So I told myself, why not just experience the threat of dragons first hand, then?! (Eldmed)

Hmm. So as we play tag with dragons, our bodies will acquire enough agility to face them, huh.

A perfectly sensible exercise, indeed.

You do realize that this will also get them killed, dont you? (Emilia)

Not to worry. (Eldmed)

When Eldmed said that, the hourgla.s.ses flaring in midair emitted a mana-filled light.

As if in tandem, light gathered around the bodies of Raos, Heine and Ledriano, healing their wounds and reviving them.

Wha? What happened? (Heine)

I have no idea (Ledriano)

This was probably their first time dying.

The three of them looked at each other in shock.

As long as the sand in these Hourgla.s.ses of Conflagration is still flowing down, no matter how many times youre killed, you will come back to life. So if you dont want to die, youll have to get back here and flip them over again. (Eldmed)

The moment Eldmed said that, the dragon, which had been flapping its wings and hovering, turned its horns toward the ground and swooped down on the three.

They did everything they could to evade it, but they were knocked away and killed again.

The dragon went back underground with that same momentum.

Oh, but I should warn you, though: dont let it devour you. If that happens, itll digest your sources along with the rest, and youll never be able to come back to life again. (Eldmed)

The Hourgla.s.ses of Conflagration glowed, resurrecting the trio once more.

They were two-sided magic items that served as a life-destroying curse when used on enemies, and a life-saving blessing when used on allies.

f.u.c.king h.e.l.l Are you s.h.i.+tting me?! (Raos)

You call that a game of tag?! You want us to die or what?! (Heine)

Seeing that the sand in the hourgla.s.ses was about to run out, Ledriano and the other two came back here in a rush. Then, they flipped them over in extremis.

Thats right! When youre dealing with dragons, even a game of tag becomes a struggle for life! Eldmed declared enthusiastically, while the students looked frightened.

Now, s.h.i.+n-sensei, would you please show us a demonstration? (Eldmed)

Very well. (s.h.i.+n)

s.h.i.+n headed straight for the lone tree.

Dragons do not use their Magic Eyes to capture the creatures on the surface, but sense the vibrations they generate instead. Therefore, if you run quietly, they will not be able to grasp your position so easily. (s.h.i.+n)

s.h.i.+ns voice flowed into all of the students heads via

.

He started to run, but unlike earlier, the dragon showed no sign of flying out of its nest.

If you proceed like this, the dragon will gradually wonder what is happening on the surface, and move closer to it. When it does, its enormous body causes the ground to shake slightly. You simply have to sense it with the soles of your feet. (s.h.i.+n)

By focusing my Magic Eyes, I could see that the area where s.h.i.+n was running was trembling a bit.

If you sense that the tremors are growing louder and that the dragon is close to ground level, then you can also make your footsteps louder to lure it out instead. (s.h.i.+n)