AEKMEM chapter 18

An Qiao was extremely frustrated.

The Demon King’s curse activated mostly at night, when dark magic was strongest, and only a few times during the day, when light magic was strongest.

However, after meeting Chu Heng, the curse activated during the day three times, and Chu Heng happened to be there each time.

This weak and powerless appearance made the Elf King, who had to maintain an eight-ton idol image, feel slightly embarrassed.

“It’s alright… I… I’ll be fine soon.”

**

The curse only lasted about half an hour.

An Qiao leaned listlessly against the soft, comfortable sofa, idly poking at the cushion with his fingers.

He heard Chu Heng say that the 2S-rank elf healer they were looking for—the only one in the Empire—who had treated him when he was seriously injured had been found on the Blue Planet. He added that they should leave for the Blue Planet tomorrow without delay.

An Qiao refused without hesitation. “…But I still have the freshman final assessment to take, don’t I?”

His condition required that he recover his magic power, then use his light-attribute magic to heal his injuries and suppress the demon king’s curse within him.

An Qiao had a premonition that he would regain at least 30% of his magic power in the Star Beast Forest, where the final assessments were being held, and that he might gain unexpected benefits.

Chu Heng: “…”

“You’re in this state, and you still want to take the assessments?”

Chu Heng felt helpless and slightly irritated.

An Qiao was weak and sick, yet he still wanted to take the assessments.

Chu Heng had to patiently persuade him, saying, “It’s not necessary to participate. If a freshman has an unforeseen circumstance, they can opt out of the assessment. Participation isn’t mandatory.”

In general, the Imperial First Military Academy does not allow students to skip the final assessments for their freshman year. If you choose not to participate, you may withdraw.

However, if you are severely injured and unable to move, for example, you can apply to take the assessment before the start of the next semester.

Almost all of the beastmen freshmen enter the academy hoping to join a particular legion. Taking a makeup assessment would mean missing the opportunity for legions to select people at the academy.

Elves, who are not skilled in combat, cannot skip the freshman final assessments unless there are special circumstances.

Elves are physically weak, and because their special ability is healing, a healing-type ability with little offensive power, most have poor combat abilities.

Since healing abilities cannot be used offensively, elves can only use their mental power.

In other words, they can use mental power attacks to enhance their combat power. However, although elves have a greater talent for controlling mental power than beastmen do, mental power is extremely fragile and unstable. Even elves with good mental power talent cannot effectively control it for attacks.

Therefore, most elves can only use mental power attacks to a limited extent—barely enough to deal with low-level star beasts. Only a few elves possess high mental power and the ability to effectively use mental power attacks, and even fewer are proficient in them.

Once mastered, though, mental attacks can be quite lethal. Jun Yiran, the medic of the Second Legion, is particularly skilled in mental attacks.

Elves come to the Empire’s First Military Academy because of its powerful elf instructors, extensive experience teaching healing abilities, and abundant hidden advantages, such as energy crystal resources and connections.

Some elves come to the First Military Academy of the Empire to find wealthy husbands. After all, the majority of the Empire’s most outstanding young beastmen choose the First Military Academy.

Others come specifically to join a particular legion. Becoming a medic in the army is also a good career path because it avoids direct combat and offers excellent benefits.

Regardless of the reason for choosing the Empire’s top military academy, however, one must abide by its rules. Skipping the freshman final assessments without a valid reason is not allowed.

Of course, energy shields can be used during the assessments to avoid life-threatening situations. Alternatively, one can send out a distress signal in case of danger. Although temporarily withdrawing due to danger might result in a lower score, it still counts as participation.

An Qiao’s situation is somewhat special. While withdrawing from the final assessments could be considered legal, it’s still a matter of respecting Chu Heng’s feelings.

An Qiao’s case is special in that regard. Although it is possible to withdraw from the freshman finals under the guise of legality, it is not entirely against the rules. However, even if some members of the school leadership have reservations about An Qiao withdrawing, Chu Heng’s feelings cannot be ignored.

Chu Heng came to see An Qiao, intending for him to give up the upcoming assessments and go to Blue Planet the next day or the day after to find the 2S-rank elf healer.

Now that An Qiao’s injuries have flared up again, Chu Heng is even more reluctant to let him participate in the assessments.

Unexpectedly, though, An Qiao insisted on participating and seemed quite determined.

An Qiao was helpless against Chu Heng’s lack of support.

“Actually, I’m fine. That won’t stop me from taking the assessments.”

“You want to go to the Star Beast Forest?” Chu Heng asked suddenly, staring directly into An Qiao’s eyes. His gaze was so intense that it seemed as if he wanted to see right through him.

Although his tone was questioning, his meaning was clear.

Chu Heng recalled the first time he met An Qiao, when the young man said he wanted to go to the Star Beast Forest.

At the time, he thought An Qiao was despondent again and wanted to commit suicide there.

However, after spending time with him these past few days, Chu Heng knew An Qiao wasn’t the type of person to use suicide as an escape.

Now, An Qiao insisted on going to the Star Beast Forest to participate in the assessment, which made Chu Heng suspect his motives.

“You want to find herbs in the Star Beast Forest that can bring people back from the dead?”

He had heard two versions of why An Qiao went to the Star Beast Forest alone: one said that An Qiao was on the verge of suicide due to despair, and the other said that An Qiao believed a rumor that there were herbs in the forest that could bring the dead back to life.

An Qiao remained silent.

“There are no such miraculous herbs in the Star Beast Forest. Instead of placing your hopes on such an elusive herb, you’d have a better chance of finding the 2S-rank elf healer with me. He healed me when I was severely injured, allowing me to break through, rebuild, and achieve my second awakening and ancestral rebirth.”

Seeing Chu Heng’s earnest expression and his own reflection in his deep rose-red eyes, An Qiao was slightly taken aback. A complex expression flashed across his pale face.

He tilted his head slightly, avoiding Chu Heng’s direct gaze. “That’s not the reason. But don’t ask anymore; I don’t want to lie to you.”

“…Alright.” Chu Heng looked at An Qiao and said, “You can tell me later if you want to.”

**

Marshal’s Residence, Study.

Adjutant Jiang Qi wailed, “Your Highness Marshal, the candidates have already been chosen. Now, you suddenly say that you want to judge the First Military Academy’s freshmen final assessments the day after tomorrow? This makes things difficult for me and adds to my workload.”

Chu Heng sat at his desk and gave Jiang Qi a cold glance. “Then how about we practice on the field now?”

“No way, Your Highness! If you want to be a judge, I’ll arrange it for you right away!”

Many members of the Second Army Corps had been beaten up by Chu Heng—the kind of beating where he could take on a whole group single-handedly.

As the adjutant, Jiang Qi was beaten up the most. It was euphemistically called “instruction,” but broken bones and bruised faces were commonplace by the end. After each beating, they all had to go to the recovery pod for treatment.

Although this kind of “instruction” did lead to rapid improvement, Jiang Qi was a battle maniac, but he didn’t want to be “instructed” by Chu Heng so frequently. It was just too gruesome and painful!

“So, Your Highness, why did you suddenly decide to become a judge for the assessment?”

Chu Heng rubbed his temples helplessly. “An Qiao doesn’t want to withdraw from the freshman final assessment.”

Jiang Qi’s eyes widened in shock. “What?! Is An Qiao going to participate in the freshman final assessment too?”

“Your Highness, why didn’t you try to persuade him? Didn’t you tell him that the assessment could be dangerous?”

Chu Heng looked at Jiang Qi as if he were an idiot. “Nonsense! Do you think I didn’t try?”

If he could have persuaded him, he wouldn’t be in this predicament.

Jiang Qi: “… ”

No wonder Chu Heng’s aura was particularly terrifying today. That oppressive aura was suffocating.

Jiang Qi couldn’t help but complain mentally: Why are you giving me that dark face? If you have the ability, try giving your wife that dark face. But, judging by how much of a “wife-slave” he is, he definitely wouldn’t dare.

Seeing how troubled and angry Chu Heng was, Jiang Qi suggested, “If you’re really worried, why don’t you just forbid him from participating in the assessment? Wouldn’t that solve the problem?”

Chu Heng remained silent.

He was utterly speechless at his adjutant Jiang Qi’s suggestion.

An Qiao wasn’t a soldier in his army who had to obey orders.

Besides, An Qiao had his own reasons for insisting on going. Even if he didn’t want An Qiao to go, he wouldn’t interfere against his wishes.

After some thought, the only thing he could do was spend money to prepare a few more A- or S-grade energy shields for An Qiao.

Also, how about we see if there are any suitable candidates among the freshmen and arrange a few reliable teammates for An Qiao?

Never mind, arranging teammates is up to An Qiao’s wishes.

**

Two days later, the freshmen taking the final assessment boarded a large battleship and traveled to the outskirts of the Star Beast Forest.

The forest was incomparably vast and filled with star beasts. The interior was extremely dangerous.

However, this assessment only took place in the outer region, not the interior.

The section used for the assessment had been closed off beforehand.

School and military personnel had cordoned off the assessment area, scouted it, and cleaned it earlier to ensure that no high-level star beasts would appear in areas designated for lower-level trials.

Specifically, to ensure proper training and minimize danger, the assessment area was divided into S-, A-, B-, and C-level zones.

Each zone contained star beasts corresponding to its level. Between each zone were energy barrier walls designed specifically to block star beasts. People could pass through them, but star beasts could not.

The assessment used a point system:

Killing one S-level star beast awarded 100 points.
One A-level star beast was worth 20 points.
One B-level star beast was worth 5 points.
One C-level star beast was worth 1 point.

The total points at the end determined the ranking. The top ten students would receive generous rewards from the school, and the student ranked first would receive the honorary title of “Chief.”

It was a tremendous honor. Who among the young and proud beastmen didn’t want to be the center of attention and admired by all?

Students with strong family backgrounds weren’t interested in the rewards, but they cared about the “Chief” title.

The battleship hovered above the assessment area.

After all the freshmen were dropped into their designated zones—

Inside a luxurious hall on the battleship, the seven judges—composed of school representatives and representatives from the five major legions—sat before a huge projection screen.

The massive screen was divided into thousands of smaller screens. Each one showed a student’s live feed with their accumulated points displayed in the corner.

The assessment would last three days. Each freshman had a special terminal device. Unlike personal terminals, these special devices could record video, stream live, automatically calculate points, and send emergency distress signals.

“This year’s freshmen don’t look that impressive,” said a major general from the Third Legion.

The Third Legion was currently under the command of Grand Marshal Jiang, the Empire’s other 3S-level beastman besides Chu Heng and a loyal royalist.

Among the Empire’s five major legions, the royal family controlled the First Legion.

The Second Legion was under Chu Heng.

The Fourth Legion’s marshal was from the Zhou family. However, because the Zhou family’s foundation was weak and the marshal was semi-retired, the Song family controlled half the legion’s authority.

The Fifth Legion was controlled by the Mo family, the family of the current empress and mother of the Second Prince.

“Overall, they’re not bad—around the average of past years,” said the principal of the First Military Academy, smiling.

Among the seven judges, two were from the academy, including the principal.

“Overall, they’re fine,” said a representative major general from the Fifth Legion. “But isn’t the lower limit a bit too low this time?”

His tone was meaningful.

Anyone could tell he was mocking An Qiao, the crown princess.

Of all the freshmen, An Qiao was the weakest.

The other five judges all looked toward Chu Heng, who was seated in the center.

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