Chapter 98

Part 23: The Ruins

"When a large number of humans gather in one place, more monsters are drawn to them."

The information about the seal and monsters that I heard during the field trip was true. I could clearly see this from the monsters swarming towards us.

The number of monsters rushing towards nearly a hundred people was more than double our numbers, and what was even more terrifying was that various types of monsters were attacking simultaneously.

Monsters, which create their own ecosystem in the absence of humans, would immediately attack humans as both prey and predators when humans appeared.

With a small group, we mostly faced only one type of monster, but with such a large group, we inevitably attracted various types of monsters from far away.

"Form ranks!"

The royal knights at the front drew their swords and engaged the approaching monsters.

They clearly demonstrated what it meant to be a knight who could use inherited abilities.

Those with acceleration abilities darted forward and scattered the approaching wolf-like monsters, while those with enhanced strength and endurance raised their shields to block the monsters' advance.

The mana cultivation ability users, who had stepped back a step, slipped through the gaps between the shield-bearing knights and split the stopped monsters in half.

It was a seamless and natural chain of attacks, as if they had practiced it dozens or hundreds of times.

Although we managed to break the initial attack of the monsters, the number of monsters still rushing towards us was significant.

More types of monsters emerged from the front of the forest, following the fallen ones.

"Fireball!"

Several monsters leaping over the fallen ones were swept away by the fireballs that flew from behind the knights.

Then, water blades continued to slice through the emerging monsters, and vines moved to bind them.

Additionally, electricity surged and the air exploded.

The noble officers at the back were using their abilities.

Indeed, the wide-area attacks created by inherited abilities were incomparable to the knights' abilities.

The number of monsters continuously pouring out suddenly decreased.

The noble officers and the students from the Inherited Ability Department also showed off their abilities to the monsters, but unlike the noble officers, it seemed difficult for them to cause significant damage.

"Pair up in groups of two or three and attack a single target."

Thanks to the advice from the noble officers, the students began to produce meaningful results.

Finally, we, the students from the Knight Department, surrounded the noble officers and the students from the Inherited Ability Department as planned.

The royal knights were the shield at the front, we, the Knight Department, were the armor, and the noble officers and the Inherited Ability Department were the weapons.

The leaders who formed the formation intended to operate the exploration team like a single knight.

It was not a bad plan and was indeed effective, but it was not a good strategy for the students of the Knight Department.

As we continued to move forward, the main force of the monsters clashed with the royal knights, but this sealed area was a place where monsters poured out from all directions.

Monsters attacked us from other directions as well.

The armor formed by the students of the Knight Department was not as sturdy as the shield formed by the royal knights.

Although the armor did not fly away and injure the people inside, it was impossible to prevent it from being damaged in multiple places.

In the face of more intense attacks than expected, I stayed close to the princess and did my best to deal with the monsters.

I tried to help other students as much as possible, but the person I was most concerned about was still Princess Aisha.

Although the number of monsters continuously pouring in was not as large as the initial wave, they relentlessly attacked us as we moved through the forest.

The students of the Knight Department began to get injured, and eventually, there were fatalities.

The first to die was unexpectedly a third-year senior who had been kind to me.

He had dreamed of becoming the next leader of the royal knights, but he could not avoid the fatal blade.

No, his kind nature led to his death.

He did not spare himself to help the students around him, which led to his early demise.

Indeed, the battlefield was a place where the kind die first.

The monsters attacked us at any time, but we continued to move forward.

We occasionally paused to recover our strength when the attacks stopped, but most of the time, the movement and battles continued.

By the time it was night, two more students had died, all from the Knight Department.

The situation made it clear why the Cheifrey family's knight team had failed in the exploration 50 years ago.

It might be possible for a small team of 4 or 5 people, but it seemed difficult to survive with a large group crossing the sealed area, even with adequate preparation.

Even with the royal knights, noble officers, and the professors and students of the Royal Academy, people were dying, so it was impossible for a single family's knight team to survive.

Cheifrey, realizing this, looked increasingly grim.

Before nightfall, the exploration team found a place to rest.

There was a large clearing in the middle of the forest where the entire team could stay.

The area was free of trees, providing a clear view, and the ground was flat, making it suitable for setting up camp.

Once the group settled, the dean installed a box in the center of the clearing.

It was the same item we had seen during the field trip, a great artifact that kept the area out of the monsters' sight.

When the dean opened the box, a beam of light shot into the sky, and the surrounding air changed.

With a separate group on watch, the people began preparing meals and setting up camp.

It was there that we realized how amazing the artifact bags and the noble officers' subspaces were.

Various food ingredients and camping equipment continuously emerged from the bags and subspaces, and the people who had come almost empty-handed were able to prepare a rich meal and a comfortable camp, making it hard to believe we were in a sealed area.

I had brought a personal artifact bag filled with equipment and food, but it seemed I didn't need to secretly take anything out.

"Feels like we're losing something."

"What do you mean by losing something?"

While I was muttering to myself, Varya suddenly appeared.

Clearly, this was where the students of the Knight Department were camping.

Varya was obviously from the Inherited Ability Department.

However, after finishing her meal, she came over to our side and chatted with the female students, sitting right next to me.

I knew she had many friends in the Inherited Ability Department, but I couldn't understand why she was here.

"Nothing. Why are you here?"

"Of course! I came to comfort everyone because I thought everyone would be down."

She answered my question confidently.

As she said, the atmosphere in the Knight Department was not good.

Three of our classmates and friends had died in one day.

All the fatalities were from the second and third years.

As a result, the first-year students were quiet, watching the upperclassmen, and the second and third years were trying to act normal, but the atmosphere was heavy.

"I'm from the Inherited Ability Department, so I can lift the mood without worrying about what others think."

Even if she wasn't from the Knight Department, she still had to be mindful of others.

Indeed, she was a hard-to-understand girl.

Still, thanks to her chatting with the princess and other female students, the gloomy atmosphere lightened a bit.

However, Bria, who had already seen death several times, seemed to be struggling more than others.

"How much further do we have to go?"

Was it PTSD? Although this world was tougher than the previous one, seeing a friend die was still difficult.

I answered her question without much thought.

"We should reach the ruins in about a day."

However, everyone around her looked at me.

"Hey, how do you know that?"

"I didn't hear that either."

As people looked puzzled and the princess shook her head, I sighed inwardly.

It seemed I had made a mistake out of unnecessary worry.

Thinking about it, there was no way I could know the schedule.

The senior knights of the royal knights, the dean, and Cheifrey had not told us the schedule.

But I did have a way to know.

The front of the map I had showed the route to the ruins.

Of course, when the map was drawn, this area was the center of the ancient empire, and now, with the demon king sealed, it was covered in forests and vines, but I could still find terrain that matched the map.

'Cheifrey must have used the map to find the ruins, so it's natural that I can recognize it as we get closer.'

I could still find terrain similar to what was drawn on the front of the map. The small river flowing next to the clearing and the distant rocky mountains were also on the map.

It seemed we had traveled about half the distance, so it should take one more day.

The map was more detailed, but unfortunately, most of the landmarks were buried in the dense forest, making them impossible to find.

Still, I could clearly see that we were heading towards the center of the empire.

A broken bowl was rolling in front of me, with ancient patterns that were now invisible. It was a bowl from the ancient empire.

I had been lost in these thoughts for a while.

People were still looking at me with bright eyes.

"I overheard it while passing by."

In the end, I had to tell a lie that didn't hold up.

The princess and other students nodded at my words, but Varya looked at me with a strange expression.

Clearly, her eyes showed that she didn't believe me.

"But thinking about it, I'm not sure if we can even enter the ruins."

A nearby first-year student sighed.

His name was Leonel.

A male student I had spent a week with during the field trip.

"That's true. We're not experts in ruins."

"With the noble officers and the royal knights, they will explore the ruins. We might just guard the entrance."

Other students started to chime in.

The overly positive students had returned to reality after just one day.

"Thinking about it, maybe we were all just overthinking. It doesn't seem much different from other field trips."

Some students felt discouraged.

"At least we saw the royal knights, so maybe we'll get extra points in the interview."

Some students tried to see it positively.

And I.

Checked on the princess for a moment.

She was still a young girl but was calmly discussing things like an adult.

The princess seemed like a real genius, and she would have looked that way to her two older brothers as well.

The princess would definitely enter the ruins, and if she went, I would also participate in the exploration.

* * *

The next day, the exploration team, having lost another student, finally reached the old ruins in the evening.

Inside the ruins, there was a path leading to the ancient site.

The princess, along with a few students, was selected to participate in the exploration.

And I was included among those few students.