Chapter 88. Entrance Exam (10)

Even when they were separated, they communicated through Stitch.

Cecil’s other companions came out to watch the Guardians.

The sun was setting, so he preferred to stay at the base with Cecil.

When night fell completely, her companions returned.

The group consisted of Cecil’s cousin and four women.

They met with Cecil to talk.

He asked her how she managed to endure the silence when she was with him.

From the moment Cecil met her companions, he kept his distance from them.

He felt he didn’t fit in there, he better start working in earnest.

***

The stamina potion allowed Lilith to get halfway to the base.

After that everything was very easy, she didn’t have to do anything else.

This was because she did not meet Planteras on the main road.

However, she took another additional stamina potion so she did not rest. She only had one potion left after arriving at the base.

She was not used to walking in steep areas alone, and all her life she was accompanied by knights when she went out.

Lilith experienced intense fear.

So when she arrived at the base she felt more sadness than relief.

Her desperation for a partner had become intense. She didn’t care if he was competent, she at least wanted someone to talk to.

When the moon was in the sky, crystal balls were placed around the chapel to illuminate it. The place looked gloomy.

She wandered around to look for someone. Lilith was also among the first to arrive at this place. That’s why there weren’t so many people to choose a companion.

Is there no one here?

Her connections seemed useless here.

Then she could find a masked man in an open space beyond the garden. He was sitting with his back against a rock wall.

He hugged his wooden sword.

It looked like the man was in the same situation as Lilith.

Great.

Lilith sat about ten paces away from him.

Suddenly, a woman approached from the garden.

Lilith recognized her identity when she was close. It was a person she had not expected.

Her wavy brown hair reached her chest. She had thick eyebrows. Her facial features had a mysterious aura unique to multiracial people.

A genius of Sorcery. That was Cecil Fontar.

Cecil? Why is she here?

She crouched before the masked man.

Then she cleared her throat twice.

“Candy, we decided to leave early tomorrow.”

The masked man nodded. They seemed to know each other.

“I see. We plan to take a detour to do the assignments. We’ll get to the summit a little late, but it’s not a big deal because we’ll get extra points for cooperating. But we don’t have a swordsman, so…”

Cecil paused for a moment.

“So, will you join us?”

What…?

Those words surprised Lilith.

She wasn’t the only one who had eyes on this man. Cecil had noticed him, who would probably be at the top of the Sorcery Department.

And his response was even more impressive.

The man shook his head.

Cecil smiled as if he had expected this response.

“I thought so.”

Cecil took out five deep red balls from her bag and placed them in front of his feet. They were magic bombs that were made with a high level of mana refinement.

“It’s a reward for taking care of me. You know what it is, right?”

She slowly stood up.

“Tell me your name next time. People will think we have a strange relationship if I continue to call you Candy. Besides, I only like handsome men.”

Lilith pondered her words. It seemed to her that Cecil knew the man’s face.

Did he wear a mask to hide his ugly face?

Her doubts about this man grew.

“Then I’ll be going, see you later!”

Cecil walked away.

They seemed to have accompanied each other this far.

Lilith did not feel in a good mood.

He had treated her coldly, but he had taken care of Cecil.

It didn’t even seem like they had known each other long.

She felt he had discriminated against her.

Her discontent gradually increased. Finally, she approached him.

“Hello.”

“……”

“You’ve seen me before, right?”

***

She expected him to reject her, but she couldn’t help but feel annoyed.

He didn’t even think about it.

Cecil looked back as she returned to her companions.

Her gaze was fixed on the beautiful aristocrat.

The woman spoke as a monologue.

It seemed as if she had a friendship with him.

Cecil’s invitation to partner up and earn extra points together was attractive. As competent as he was, alone he could not make his way through the Guardians along the a-b routes. He had to have a team, too.

Now she understood why he had turned down her proposal.

The culprit is that woman.

She felt a sense of indescribable resentment.

She really had no personal feelings for him. Cecil’s proposal was due to the real need his group had, not personal interest.

But it had become an emotional issue before she realized it.

The man was with a rather beautiful woman.

She felt rejected by this girl.