This time, Liakade took Sistem’s earlier warning to heart.
Even when she sensed something was off, her expression remained unchanged on the surface, staying calm.
After the Grade Director finished the announcement and dismissed the students, she returned to the Palace with the other three.
“Field, Alice, and Her Highness Sistem, I have something to say to you.”
As soon as they entered the courtyard, Liakade called out to the three.
“Let’s talk in my room.”
Alice and Field nodded.
Seeing Liakade’s serious expression, and recalling what she discovered in the hall that morning, they guessed she must have noticed something else.
The three followed Liakade to her room.
Around the Palace, there were Exorcists and Sisters carrying church artifacts, so if Darkness tried to follow them here, she would definitely be discovered.
Here, there was no worry of being overheard.
“Everyone, sit down first.”
Liakade let the three sit and relax, while she stood up, pouring black tea from the teapot, organizing her thoughts as she did.
After all, it was difficult for Liakade to explain this to others.
Originally, the location for the final assessment should have been the Nasca Labyrinth, but it suddenly changed to the more difficult Bibo Gorge.
To others, this seemed unremarkable, because they didn’t know about the original location or the changes from the previous world.
Although the development of this world had already deviated far from the Original, Liakade couldn’t find any actions they’d taken that would warrant such a change in the test site.
“Did you notice something else?”
Sistem looked at Liakade, who was brewing tea, and asked suspiciously.
“Yeah.”
Liakade replied, pouring hot tea for the three.
“There were indeed some suspicious points, but I’m still organizing my thoughts. Let me think about how best to explain.”
“Thank you, Liakade.”
Looking at the steaming, delicate teacup in front of her, Alice thanked Liakade.
“You’re welcome.”
“So what is it? Don’t keep us in suspense, Liakade.”
Field seemed a bit impatient, wanting to know what Liakade had realized.
Once Liakade sat down, Field tugged gently at her arm.
After all, having a demon lurking in the Academy, watching them, was unsettling even if it didn’t attack immediately.
“Alright, alright, I’ll tell you now.”
Liakade smiled, gripping Field’s hand in return, then began discussing with everyone.
“Her Highness Sistem, didn’t you say earlier that the difficulty of this assessment is higher than before?”
“Indeed.”
Sistem, seated beside them, nodded and explained to Field and Alice.
“In previous years, the exams usually involved exploring nearby dungeons, with students typically only allowed on the first three floors.”
“The monsters on those floors rarely exceeded LV.30. If you just wanted a passing grade, defeating enough monsters on the first floor, which are usually around LV.10, was sufficient.”
“So when I heard the exam location changed to Bibo Gorge, I was surprised too.”
“Her Highness Sistem, is that place really dangerous?”
Alice asked Sistem, a little uneasy.
“Well… It depends on what you’re comparing it to. Compared to past exam locations, it’s certainly more dangerous.”
Sistem rested her chin on her hand thoughtfully, then looked at Alice.
“Unlike ordinary dungeons, Bibo Gorge is divided into inner and outer zones. Monsters in the outer zone can range from LV.10 to LV.40, a wide gap. In the inner zone, they go from LV.40 to LV.65.”
“The boundaries between inner and outer zones aren’t clear, and sometimes inner zone monsters appear outside. So, this year’s exam is definitely much more dangerous than previous ones. The Teachers will probably keep you in the outermost area.”
At this point, Sistem also noticed the oddity.
“What? LV.10 to LV.40? Monsters with that kind of level range might appear in the outer zone? That’s too dangerous for an exam!”
After hearing Sistem’s explanation of Bibo Gorge, Field immediately pointed out the unreasonableness of this final assessment.
Although Liakade had reached LV.57, Field was LV.45, and Alice LV.32, so operating in the outer zone wasn’t particularly threatening for them.
But for first-years, whose average level was only around LV.25, even if they worked in teams, facing LV.40 monsters could put students in real danger.
Moreover, with the possibility of inner zone monsters appearing, even Liakade and the others would have trouble dealing with them, let alone other students.
“Yeah… What about the other students?”
Alice questioned the choice of exam site, unless students were kept strictly in the outermost area and accompanied at all times by Mage Teachers and the Grade Director. Otherwise, it would be too easy for accidents and casualties to occur.
Although previous exams had casualties, they were within controllable limits.
This year’s risks were clearly much higher.
“Exactly. We can all sense something unreasonable about this assessment, but the Academy still arranged it this way.”
Liakade’s gaze grew serious as she spoke her speculation.
“I suspect that person isn’t just hiding in the Academy’s Shadow. She probably bribed or controlled someone high up to have the exam location changed.”
“Earlier, Darkness sent us to the Nasca Labyrinth and set a Trap for us.”
Liakade looked at the others, exchanging glances, then continued her analysis.
“But relying on our strength, we even defeated the Labyrinth Boss. The Nasca Labyrinth perfectly fits the exam standards.”
“Our completion of the Nasca Labyrinth was surely within Darkness’s surveillance. After we passed, the final assessment’s difficulty increased as well. Isn’t that too much of a coincidence?”
“Could the Academy have raised the difficulty because we cleared the Labyrinth, wanting to toughen us up? No! With the average first-year only at LV.25, the Academy wouldn’t change the entire exam just for the three of us.”
“Therefore, I suspect Darkness secretly controlled someone high up to change the final exam location. Maybe she’s already set Traps in the Gorge, all to wipe us out during the test—even if it means putting other students at risk.”
“What!?”
Alice listened in shock to everything Liakade said.
Even someone as gentle as Alice was disgusted by Darkness’s cruelty and schemes.
“Those students are innocent… How could she put them in danger too?”
“Tch, still scheming to kill us?”
Field’s eyes burned with anger, her fists clenched.
“Now that we know what she’s after, why don’t we just go drag her out from among the Academy higher-ups?”
“Don’t rush, Field.”
Sistem looked at Field’s angry expression and motioned for her to calm down.
“There are so many higher-ups at the Academy—how could we find the exact one? Instead, why not use this chance to turn the tables on her?”
“Yeah.”
Liakade gently squeezed Field’s hand to calm her.
She agreed with Sistem.
“Right now, Darkness probably doesn’t know we’ve seen through her plan. We still have ways to counterattack.”
“Oh? Let’s hear it.”
“Do you have a plan, Liakade?”
“Hurry and tell us, I want to beat that woman up right now!”
“Actually, all we need is to prepare properly, Your Highness Sistem.”
Liakade looked first at Sistem.
“When the assessment comes, please stick with us, to boost our fighting power.”
“Of course.”
Sistem took a sip of the black tea Liakade had poured earlier.
Even if Mage Teachers and the Grade Director refused to let Sistem accompany them, she would still find a way to join Liakade and the others in the Gorge.
After all, this was a matter of life and death.
“Field, be sure to prepare over these three days, and keep your condition at its best. If you have any items or Magic Scrolls that can temporarily boost strength, bring them all. If danger strikes, don’t hesitate—hit back hard.”
Liakade turned to Field, instructing her firmly.
“Understood.”
As the Kingdom’s Third Princess, Field should have plenty of items and scrolls saved up.
“Alice.”
Liakade looked to Alice last.
“Do you still have the Fourfold Element Amulet from before?”
“I do, I’ve been wearing it the whole time.”
Alice nodded, pulling the amulet’s necklace from her collar.
“You’re LV.32 now, and with your amulet, leveling up to LV.35 during the exam in the Gorge should be no problem.”
“All we need to do is prepare, avoid Darkness’s Traps, and then share Experience Distribution with Alice so she can reach LV.35. After that, we can track Darkness directly. Darkness doesn’t know Alice has that skill, so we’ll strike just as her plan fails, catching her off guard!”
Liakade assigned tasks to the three.
Although Darkness still hid in the shadows, Liakade had already seen through her plot.
She would use this chance to lure the snake out of its hole and drag Darkness into the open.
If she could do that, perhaps she would also find answers to the parts of the story that had diverged from the Original.
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