The Strongest Student of the Weakest Academy
Chapter 234: Aestrea Against The World (XI)

Chapter 234: Aestrea Against The World (XI)

[Aestrea’s POV]

It didn’t take me long to reach the northern ridge.

This place… it was perfect for someone like me.

The cold air, the soft crunch of snow under my boots, the pale blue sky dimmed by falling flurries, it felt like the world had practically frozen in time.

White hills stretched out in every direction, untouched and quiet.

But even then…

“…Lumi still has a bunch of spells I’ve been avoiding,” I muttered under my breath, bitterness crawling in my chest.

They weren’t just dangerous spells.

They were actually forbidden magic, the kind that could make the whole world turn against you…

And now, thanks to Lumi devouring Beelzebub’s core, I have access to all of its abilities too. Spells that corrupted, melted, decayed… spells meant to torture people, instead of killing them directly.

As for Belial… it still annoyed me that I couldn’t extract anything from him. I wanted Lumi to absorb that bastard, too.

But there hadn’t been enough left to consume his core since I’ve evaporated him from sight, leaving nothing behind.

“Damn it…”

My boots crunched deeper into the frost as I walked across the ridge, eyes scanning the horizon.

Still nothing.

No sound, no movement, and strangely… not even a single trace of mana.

Where the hell are they?

The Frozen Elves should’ve been here already. If they were really planning an ambush near the border, this would’ve been the perfect place.

But…

“…Nothing.”

It didn’t sit right with me.

Could this be bait?

A trap that I walked straight into?

But then again… even if they were trying to hide, they shouldn’t be able to hide their mana completely.

Not from me.

“…Dammit,” I whispered, rubbing the back of my neck as I looked around again.

Something was off.

“I should get back quickly…”

I spun on my heel and shot down the ridge in a burst of mana, the snow erupting behind me like a wave.

In seconds, the camp came into view, the rows of tents, soldiers hurrying, armor clinking, spell circles lighting up across the field.

Still no signs of an attack… but the atmosphere was still tense.

Everyone was bracing for something.

I could feel Zeva’s aura flare from the main tent, along with three others inside with her, probably division commanders discussing defense strategy or formation placements.

Good.

That meant leadership was still intact.

Now… where were the idiots?

I searched the camp with a glance, but my brows furrowed deeper with every passing second.

I didn’t feel them.

Not even a flicker of their mana.

Derek and James were both gone.

“What the hell…?” My eyes narrowed as a knot tightened in my stomach.

“Where the fuck are they?” I muttered, my voice low with frustration as I scanned the area again, faster now, pushing my senses outward.

And when my mana extended for a bit over three thousand meters, I was finally able to sense them, but they were strangely moving quite fast.

Too fast for their strength level…

And I knew that they weren’t fused because I could feel their aura individually.

“…Someone’s dragging them…”

It was the only thing I could potentially think of.

I vanished from my spot without a sound, hiding my presence completely as I shot toward their direction.

I weaved through the tall snow trees until I spotted it.

Two cloaked figures… both moving swiftly through the woods, gliding like phantoms across the snow, nearly untraceable.

And behind them, there were the idiots, Derek and James.

Unconscious, and being dragged.

My blood ran cold.

Their bodies were half-slumped, heads drooping.

One of the cloaked figures held James by the collar, the other carried Derek over their shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

They didn’t even bother to hide it.

They knew I’d sense them eventually.

But then, I saw it, the wind made the hood lift up slighly, and from there, I could see… pointed ears.

They were probably the frost elves…

“Those fucking bastards…”

My heart began to pound, not from panic, but from fury.

So that’s how it was.

They didn’t come to fight the army; instead, they came to take both Derek and James, probably to use them as bait.

They probably knew that I cared deeply about my friends…

“That’s fucking… irritating…!”

I clenched my fists so tight my nails nearly cut into my palms. But I didn’t hesitate atll, I didn’t wait for some grand entrance or flashy technique.

They touched what they shouldn’t have.

And now… they were dead.

My body shot forward like a bullet, ripping through the snow-laced silence.

BOOM!

I appeared above them in a flash, already mid-swing.

“Move.”

FSSSH!

Dozens of frozen lotus blades erupted around me, glowing with a faint blue light, slicing through the air like knives thrown by a vengeful god.

The air cracked as the spell burst forward, targeting only the two cloaked figures.

They looked up, too late.

One of them barely had time to raise a hand, but the ice tore through the edge of their cloak, slicing into their shoulder with a sickening crunch.

The other tried to vanish into mist, but I’d already set a second layer of mana behind them… ice chains.

Thud!

They dropped Derek instantly, a choked sound coming from beneath the hood. And then, I landed between them and my unconscious friends.

“Wrong move,” I whispered coldly.

“You messed with the only thing I won’t let slide.”

One of the cloaked figures groaned, trying to push up with a trembling arm as blood stained the snow beneath them.

The other, caught in the grip of two ice chains, squirmed silently, their entire body trembling from the pressure of my magic.

I walked forward slowly until I stood just above the elf I had wounded first.

Their cloak was torn, and blood soaked through the fabric of his clothes, and they were still trying to crawl toward the tree line with one arm, desperate and pathetic.

I reached down, grabbed the back of their head, and slammed their face into the snow-filled ground.

CRACK.

“Try anything, and I’ll turn your spine into a flute,” I hissed.

They groaned, blood spilling from their mouth, but still said nothing.

“Why were you targeting them, huh?” I growled, grabbing a fistful of their long hair and yanking their head up.

“You think I’m stupid? You knew who they were. You knew they were my only weakness. So who told you?”

Still nothing.

The other one thrashed lightly against the ice chains, muffled grunts slipping from under the cloak.

“…Fine.”

I shoved the elf in my hand onto their back and reached for the edge of their hood.

“Let’s see who you really are.”

RIP!

I ripped it off… and froze entirely.

“…What the hell?”

The face staring up at me was pale, with skin like moon-touched marble. Their long hair was silver-white, but the ears weren’t like the frost elves at all.

Their eyes were slit, almost serpentine, but glowing faintly red under the moonlight.

And their ears, though pointed, were slightly curved upward, sharper than the usual shape I knew from frost elves.

No markings on their face.

No kingdom crest.

Just blank black tattoos stretching across the neck like cursed vines.

I narrowed my eyes.

“…You’re not a Frost Elf…”

The elf flinched, expression contorting slightly in pain.

“…You’re… a Dark Elf.”

The one trapped behind me stiffened.

And I felt my breath hitch slightly… why would the Dark Elves want something from me?

“…Say something,” I ordered shortly after, standing up.

CRUNCH.

“ARGH—!”

“Start talking,” I said.

“Or I’ll leave you with frostbite in your lungs.”

Still, nothing clear.

The other elf behind me let out a muffled noise, and I slowly turned, releasing the ice chains with a flick of my fingers.

They collapsed to the ground, coughing hard.

Then they spoke.

“…We weren’t going to hurt them.”

Their voice was soft…

Females.

“But you knew they were important to me,” I said, stepping closer, frost gathering at my fingertips.

“That just makes it worse.”

“We needed leverage…” she said, lifting her eyes to meet mine.

“To speak to you.”

I blinked.

“…What?”

She lowered her hood.

And her face was just as strange, ashen skin, white brows, those red eyes.

But her expression wasn’t hateful… it was desperate instead.

“…You’re the Vessel of the Moon Goddess, aren’t you?” she said.

I froze at her words. How did she know about something that had just happened just a while ago?

Did their god tell her about me or something? But aren’t Dark Elves some kind of… forbidden thing in their kingdom?

Do they have a god of their own?

…Many thoughts struck my head, but I decided to shrug it off, and stared at her face for a moment.

Her lips trembled, and her eyebrows contorted slightly.

“…We need your help.”

She finally spoke.

Snow was falling slowly around us like silent feathers of ice.

My fingers twitched with the urge to strike again.

But I didn’t.

“…Start explaining,” I growled.

“Now.”