Arriving in Kurat [1]

"Now, after we walk through this portal, we will be landing in the lands of Kurat. As students of Ainu, we are all expecting you to carry our name with pride. If you somehow make a fool out of yourself in front of the king, there is no doubt that it will follow you for the rest of your life."

"Kukuku! It's time! The world will now see, everyone will see!"

Although I still felt a shiver down my back every time Peter spoke, it was a fact that he had started to back up his words. It turns out, in pure efficiency during dungeon dives, he was on top of everyone, beating out even Arthur.

So even though I wanted to somehow shut him up, I couldn't; He had proved himself enough to act however he so chose.

Still, that didn't mean that Mr. Brown and Ms. Turner wouldn't completely ignore him and continue speaking about what was to come. With a bit of a flushed face, still not used to 'The Harrower's' personality, the man now dressed in the traditional uniforms forced himself to continue.

"Cough! Anyway... The first thing that will happen is that we will arrive at the royal castle, where you will get to have a short audience with Adrian Zekhet, the king of Kurat. The meeting will be only pleasantries, as he will welcome you to his country and you will pay your respects."

At this point, every single one of us was pretty tense, knowing that we didn't just represent ourselves, but the entire academy as well as Mensch. So it might have been weirder if we didn't feel the pressure, as, even if only to a small extent, the future relations between Mensch and Kurat were dependent on us.

Taking a step forward, the former teacher of the B-class, now co-teacher with Mr. Brown for the joint class, opened her mouth, "I understand that you all might feel a bit nervous about all of this, but do not worry. Although the examination in the dungeon will be held as per protocol, we have already made sure that the difficulty will stay the same.

And you don't have to worry about the meeting with the king so much either. As Oliver stated, it's mostly just formalities. Your only challenge is to challenge that dungeon with all your might and show us how much you have improved during this year."

With November already rolling in, this was the last hurdle for us to overcome before we could relax for a bit more than a month before the next semester started. 'Reminds me of the time I went to university, doing my finals...'

We had all prepared meticulously for this last challenge that would make out a big part of our final grade, and although rankings didn't matter to bring us any financial gain anymore, they were still important to see who was on top. For example, right now, the top five rankings were like this:

Arthur was 1st, Sebastian was 2nd, Suzan was 3rd, Peter was 4th and Adriana was 5th.

Strangely enough, I didn't care at all about the fact that I wasn't in the top five among us; It just didn't matter to me.

With our teachers turning their bodies around to the portal that had been set up in the main office building, we knew that it was time for us to depart. With a gentle smile, Arthur reached his hand out to me, "Are you ready, Sophie?"

"Yes."

Then, in a not-so-neat line, we all walked through the portal, entering the unknown lands of Kurat.

****

[James's Pov]

'So they are here...'

Using Ezrals shoulders as support for my slithery body, we were currently standing next to the king, watching as a number of all too familiar faces came through the portal in front of us. With Oliver and Jessica taking the lead, as was natural for their role as teachers, it didn't take long until each and every one of them had arrived in the throne room.

Looking at their faces, I could see their surprise when they saw the gigantic man sitting on the throne. His size was more than enough to put even Sophie's height to shame, and his muscles made Mr. Brown almost look small.

This was the king of Kurat, the [S]-ranker who had used pure force to unite his country, making sure that no one could refuse his rule with his own strength. Even amongst [S]-ranker, he was an outlier, someone who might be able to reach even further beyond if he kept growing.

Sadly for him, there was a certain demoness who would make that impossible, as she had already made sure that he wouldn't spend his time improving. Instead, he now spent his time trying to please the woman I was sitting on, hoping that one day he would get a taste of the sweet nectar that she could offer.

With each and every one of my former classmates looking incredibly nervous, it was hard to keep my laughter in. Even Sebastian couldn't help but crack under the immense pressure of the [S]-ranker, as shown by the sweat pouring down his forehead.

However, there was one thing I didn't like about the king purposefully pressuring them, and that was the look of one of the students. Seeing the golden-haired woman I thought I could be loved by staring down at the floor in order to endure the king's ambiance, I felt myself snapping a bit.

"Ssss!"

Understanding what I wanted to say, Ezral caught my drift and put a hand on Adrian's shoulder, "Dear, don't you think that's enough?"

Instantly withdrawing his pressure, the stone-hard face of the king changed into the one of a smiling idiot, "Oh, sorry dear. I just wanted to see what the students of Ainu were made of. I have to say, it's not bad."

Turning his head back to the visitors, the meeting could finally begin for real, now having set a tone that couldn't be refuted. "Welcome, people of Mensch, and, more importantly, the ones who are called the future of the allied races. I am thankful that you accepted this old man's suggestion for having your final excursion in my lands."

Mr. Brown took a step forward, and took a knee, as it had already been decided that he would converse on the behalf of the academy. "We bring with us the warmest greetings from the country of Mensch. We are grateful that we are given the chance to experience the great lands of yours."

Continuing on spouting meaningless pleasantries, the two of them continued while my attention went back to my former friends. From just a look, I could feel that a lot must have changed while I was gone, with the most prominent change being the fact that it was now Arthur who stood slightly in front of Sophie.

Also, he was holding her hand, showing that their relationship must've progressed while I had been gone. Sadly, I wasn't too happy about it. Instead, I felt a huge wave of displeasure wash over me, unable to stop my mind from thinking about 'what could have been'.

I might have been able to stand with them, holding the hand of the girl who had now become able to breathe properly again. Focusing my eyes on her, it was also obvious that she had changed, and for me, not for the better.

She was still incredibly beautiful, her curves elegantly filling out the black uniform and her hair complementing the golden adornments. However, the sweet, innocent look on her face was no more. It had been replaced by the face of someone who wanted something, needed something, had to do something.

Although she had been quite pressured by just her situation as the princess, I couldn't imagine the pressure she must feel now that it was cemented that her father was a cripple. Still, I didn't regret my decision to let Loki handle the situation the way he did. After all, if I didn't, I would have been buried deep underground now.

'Ah... I didn't think it would hurt this much...'

Even if I had realized that some leftover emotions might come crashing in when I saw her face, I hadn't expected it to make my heart quite as heavy as it did. "Ssss..."

Luckily, our meeting was just about to end, with the king concluding the audience and sending them to the rooms where they would be spending their week here. "Now, I understand that many of you might be excited to venture out on the streets of Kuul as soon as possible, but I would advise you to get to the designated rooms first. My servants will show you the halls where your quarters will be."

****

[Ezral's Pov]

Coming into my room after talking to the king a bit after the audience, I was met by an extremely strange sight. The man who had led me by the nose for several months was standing by the window, looking out as if he was desperately looking for something that could never be found.

It was truly a beautiful sight, his white hair lit up by the light that the snow outside reflected, while his whole demeanor showed how fragile he was right now. Sadly, my body once again made it know what I was, quickly urging me to get to work.

'I need to get rid of him...'