The Nameless Extra: I Proofread This World

Chapter 297: Still Make Me Anyone’s Prey?

[You have eliminated ’Ekunkz Santos’!]

[You have eliminated ’Matthew Lansiquot’!]

[You have eliminated ’Belial Lyristra’!]

[You have eliminated ’Gyro Girard’!]

[You have eliminated ’Squad 39’!]

[You have eliminated ’Squad 75’!]

[You have earned 3,165 Pts!]

[You have received 3,000 Plot Points!]

...

...

Bringing the [Evervow Waterskin] to his lips, Ruvian drank deeply, gulping down generous mouthfuls of water.

’Ah, that’s better. Water always tastes best when you truly need it.’

Over the past three hours, he had relentlessly hunted down three squads without pause. And with the help of the {Executioner} Nature Card, he had also amassed an enormous number of points for this examination.

He inspected his bracelet.

[Ruvian’s Points: 9,925 Pts]

[Squad’s Points: 15,105 Pts]

Seeing the number of points he had accumulated, it would not be an exaggeration to say that Ruvian was well on his way to shattering the academy’s first-year Vazrun Island Examination record for the highest individual score.

’If I keep this pace up, I’ll eventually surpass him.’

Honestly, for a Class E scholar, possessing this many points would be highly abnormal. It would inevitably attract needless attention. But so be it. He had long since decided to make that a part of his plan.

Of course, simply securing first place would have been more than enough.

However, there had been a flaw in his original plan.

It would only have worked if the Catastrophic Event were still three or four years away.

But after witnessing OG Ruvian’s regression and learning the truth about the attack on the capital city, he realized the disaster was only a year away.

Thus, Ruvian had no choice but to revise his plans.

One of those changes was to amass such an absurd number of points during this examination that it bordered on the unimaginable.

Because...

’No matter what, from this point onward... I have to draw... Ophelia Dumblelore’s attention.’

Ruvian let out a tired yawn as he stowed the waterskin away.

"Morvayne, thanks a lot for tonight. I’m going to get some sleep before morning. Can you keep watch for me and wake me up later?"

[Of course, child. Rest well.]

"Thanks..."

Ruvian was utterly exhausted. Without another word, he simply let his body drop onto the ground and closed his eyes.

Before long, sleep claimed him.

Meanwhile, Morvayne quietly conjured a [Dark Barrier] around him before silently standing watch through his soul for the remainder of the night. After a while, she emerged from Ruvian’s soul in her human form and sat next to him.

Then, she glanced at his face.

Slowly, a single thought came...

[Until now, I’m still curious... the way you fight certainly belongs to someone that’s very experienced. Child, I wonder... who are you truly?]

*****

It was when morning arrived that everyone on the island woke up in shock and disbelief as their bracelets informed them that three squads had been eliminated during the night.

Naturally, that was all the information they received. There were no details about how those squads had been eliminated, who was responsible, or where the battles had taken place.

Since everything that happened after midnight was now counted as part of the seventh day, most scholars quickly arrived at the same convenient conclusion. They assumed that several nighttime ambushes had taken place.

Which meant there was supposedly a squad that had deliberately waited for the cover of absolute darkness before launching their attacks and wiping out other scholars while they were at their most vulnerable.

It was a reasonable assumption.

After learning that, those who could not fight in the dark naturally became even more anxious. No one was particularly eager to become the next unfortunate victim of a midnight ambush.

But what none of them knew was that those three squads had not been eliminated by another squad at all. They had all fallen to a single scholar who hunted them down alone beneath the veil of darkness.

And yet, oblivious to that truth, several squads already within the vicinity of that lone executioner continued marching toward him, fully intent on claiming his head.

However, none of them realized they were not approaching any prey. They were walking straight toward the very hunter responsible for last night’s massacre.

Before long, they all arrived at where he was, sitting at the edge of a cliff in the F4 region, with the vast lake of Vastafall stretching behind him.

*****

[Ardyn’s POV]

Ardyn slowed his steps as the trees finally opened before him. His four teammates stopped behind him, their eyes immediately turning toward the cliff ahead.

Ruvian Castelor was sitting there alone — on a pristine crystalline-like chair — exactly where the bracelet had shown him.

Ardyn stared at him from a long distance away.

’What... has he already accepted his fate and willingly cornered himself up there? There should be no possible way for him to escape now.’

His eyes then shifted toward the chair beneath Ruvian.

’And where the hell did he even get that chair?’

Slowly, he looked around.

There were other scholars already standing around the field, and more were slowly leaving the trees. They had all come from different directions, but every pair of eyes was fixed on the same person.

One of Ardyn’s teammates quietly stepped closer to him. "It looks like quite a few people came for his head as well," he said. "I thought we would be the first squad to reach him."

Ardyn said nothing as he carefully surveyed the area. Two squads had gathered on their left, while another two stood on their right. Together with his own squad, there were now five squads surrounding Ruvian.

The squads on the right were likely cooperating, judging by how closely they stood and the unified formation they had adopted. Meanwhile, the two squads on the left maintained a cautious distance from one another.

Even so, their positions had formed a wide half-circle around the lone scholar.

The fourth member glanced between the other squads.

"This might become troublesome," he said in a low voice. "Even if we defeat Ruvian, the others will not simply allow us to claim all his points."

Ardyn’s gaze remained cold.

Then, he smiled proudly.

"Troublesome?" he repeated. "No. This merely makes everything more convenient to us. I’ll let them know who they are messing with."

His squad members looked at him in confusion.

Ardyn turned toward one of the scholars beside him. "Use a sound spell and amplify my voice," he ordered calmly. "Make certain every squad here can hear me."

The scholar hesitated for a moment before raising his staff.

"Understood."

A faint ripple of mana gathered around the tip of his staff before flowing toward Ardyn’s throat.

[Resonant Voice]

"Ahem!"

As his amplified voice echoed across the area, everyone immediately turned toward him. Now that he had successfully captured their attention, Ardyn continued.

"Quite a number of you have gathered here for his head, haven’t you?" he said with a short laugh.

His eyes then settled on one of the squad leaders standing to his left.

"However, I would like to inform everyone that he is my prey to hunt. So, if any of you want him, then you will have to go through me first."

Several expressions immediately hardened.

Some scholars looked offended by his declaration, while others quietly tightened their grips around their weapons. Yet before anyone could respond, Ardyn raised his bracelet.

At that moment, the second {Bounty Card} was activated.

[Scholar ’Ardyn Renhart’ has activated a {Bounty Card}.]

[A bounty has been placed on ’Ruvian Castelor’.]

[Current Bounty: 2,000 Points.]

Every scholar present was stunned. The bounty had doubled, but Ardyn’s intention was obvious. He had activated the card openly as a warning.

And by adding his own bounty, Ardyn had openly marked Ruvian as his prey.

But just as one of the other squads was about to retaliate, another amplified voice suddenly echoed across the area.

This time, it came from the edge of the cliff.

"Hey, Goldie."

The casual greeting sliced through the tension like a blade. Startled by the unexpected voice, they all turned their heads toward its source.

There, seated upon a chair near the very edge of the cliff, was Ruvian Castelor. Then, with grim composure, he spoke.

"Tell me, who gave you the damned right to decide that I am your prey? Is it merely because you were willing to place a bounty on my head? And only an additional thousand points?"

He let out a groan, sounding genuinely disappointed.

"Seriously, that bounty is embarrassingly low. You just put that much on someone who knocked you out during a spar? Anyway, I deserve something far better."

A moment later, a mischievous smile appeared on Ruvian’s face.

Hearing that, Ardyn grinded his teeth.

’That bastard...’

Then, a sharp chime suddenly rang from every bracelet across the island.

Chime!

’Huh?’

At that moment, the third {Bounty Card} was activated.

[Scholar ’Ruvian Castelor’ has activated a {Bounty Card}.]

[A bounty has been placed on ’Ruvian Castelor’.]

[Current Bounty: 5,000 Points.]

"There," Ruvian said, leaning back comfortably against his chair. "If you are going to place a bounty on me, at least make it this much."

Every scholar present froze.

Even those scattered across the distant regions of the island could scarcely believe the notification they had just received. (+2,000PP)

Ruvian Castelor had placed a bounty upon himself. The very prey they had all come to hunt had willingly raised the price on his own head.

They could not help but assume that he had already lost his mind. Because who the hell would do that?

Ironically, they were not entirely wrong either. He truly had once lost it, only to recover his sanity afterward!

Ruvian slowly spread his arms, his smile never leaving his face.

"Anyway, now, do tell me..." (+500PP)

His cold gaze descended upon the five squads gathered below.

"Does this...

──────── ✦ ────────

[Chapter 297: Still Make Me Anyone’s Prey?]

Plot Points= 40,000 PP

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