I Became the Golden Sun That Steals the Academy’s Aircraft

032. Surviving on a Deserted Island

Demaia Academy’s comprehensive evaluation did not have a set evaluation method. Sometimes, there were mock battles such as entrance mock battles, and other times, there were tournament sparring between cadets.

The evaluation method has changed each time because the professors who have identified the current level and deficiencies of each grade agree and submit the submission. The gap in opinion between professors that arose in the process was narrowed through meetings, but it was not that easy.

Because each professor had a different field and was well-known in that field, there was never a consensus of opinion.

To be precise, it was rare for opinions to be narrowed down to one even through meetings, so usually several representative evaluation methods were selected and then the evaluation method was decided through voting.

The first comprehensive evaluation of the freshmen was decided to be survival.

The majority of cadets who entered the Demeia Academy, which was equivalent to a military educational institution, were nobles. Since one had to graduate from Demeia Academy to prove one’s blue blood, there were bound to be many cadets of noble status.

And inevitably, most of the noble cadets who had grown up in good environments lacked the venom that was a prerequisite for war. It’s not that they were bad because they never struggled to get something, but that kind of mindset was not the type of talent that Demeia Academy wanted.

Of course, the same was true for commoner cadets. Although they were more venomous than the noble cadets, they were not worthy of Demeia Academy.

For this reason, the first comprehensive evaluation of freshmen was often determined as survival. The intention was to naturally teach them how to survive when left alone on the battlefield while filling them with the stamina they lacked.

For the first comprehensive evaluation of freshmen, the faculty simply had a different evaluation method under the theme of survival.

Gilbert once again recalled the first comprehensive evaluation, commonly known as Chapter 1 of the main story. Survival, unfolding under the name of comprehensive evaluation, was like a graveyard for newbies.

It is said that Teacher Yan plays the role of gatekeeper, but it was not at a level comparable to the first comprehensive evaluation. There were many cases where a team was eliminated due to a rear-end surprise attack at a near miss.

Survival Survival usually takes place on a large uninhabited island owned by Demeia Academy. Extreme hardcore rules were applied in which participants had to survive for a week without being eliminated in a dense forest.

Furthermore, this time, Professor Alexander’s opinion was adopted and the giant soldiers and magic weapons were hidden in a secret location. Cadets could use both to fight or cooperate.

In the end, survival to the end in an extreme, raining battlefield was the theme of this evaluation.

“Gilbert. What do you plan to do?”

Hans, who was looking at the large magic circle heading to the uninhabited island where the comprehensive evaluation was taking place, asked Gilbert, who was lost in thought.

He was lost in deep thoughts, and only then was he able to realize that Angelina and Hans had gathered by his side.

“We should focus on surviving as much as possible.”

“That’s not what I’m asking! I’m asking if you will become a commander this time too!”

Hans, who had been shaking when he first saw Gilbert, was no longer there. As he got to know Gilbert little by little, he realized that Gilbert was different from the rumors, and that he was comfortable within the line that should not be crossed.

“Hans, please be quiet. If you make a fuss like that, you’ll be called unsophisticated.”

“Angelina came here to ask Gilbert that too!”

“But making a fuss like you do is uncivilized behavior.”

Gilbert chuckled as he looked at Angelina and Hans, who showed a strange combination. They were two people with a clear difference in social status, a nobleman and a commoner, but after they became united by the commonality of Gilbert, they became a casual relationship.

Of course, Hans, a commoner, was speaking highly of Angelina, a noblewoman, but Angelina did not treat her rudely even though she was a commoner, so they had an established relationship.

It was surprising to Gilbert that the two were more harmonious than expected, but it was actually a good news for him, who had planned to keep them as colleagues and go all the way to the end. There is nothing more troublesome than having bad relationships with colleagues.

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“It would be nice to form a team. But it’s different from the entrance exam mock battle.”

“I guess so, right? Still, I think it’ll be okay if we’re together with Gilbert.”

Angelina shook her head at the sight of Hans clenching her fists and sighed deeply.

“Whoa. Gilbert. Can’t we make a team without this idiot? It’ll be a pain in the ass.”

“Huh? Angelina! Aren’t you taking that action too far?”

“So, show a bit of culture.”

Gilbert, who had been watching the two’s conversation for a while longer, called them out as he felt that the comprehensive evaluation would soon begin.

“Angelina, Hans’ comprehensive evaluation begins, and the first thing to do is join. You both know that, right?”

“The problem is where to gather. If you land on an uninhabited island, it is difficult to pinpoint the location. Even Gilbert knows that.”

“Hmm… I guess it would be impossible to go in one direction.”

“That’s right. It may be impossible to get direction. Information about the uninhabited island is so limited that it’s difficult to decide on a policy.”

It was usually correct to think of the two as two people, but Gilbert was different. The place I went to when I was already bored while playing Tactical Combat was the island where the comprehensive evaluation was held. I had all the terrain in my head that could be the point of the island I had visited countless times.

However, only the professors knew the information about the island, so they could not reveal the information about it. So the method he came up with was a bit irresponsible.

“I don’t know how big the island might be, but seeing as it’s uninhabited, it’s probably an island. If that’s the case, there’s a good chance it has a coast.”

“So, are you saying we should walk along one side of the coast?”

“The basic movement is to move to the southern coast and then move west.”

“Have you ever thought it was too absurd?”

“There would be no other alternative.”

Angelina closed her mouth. As Gilbert said, it was difficult to determine the exact meeting point unless there was a map of the area.

“Wouldn’t it be a bit problematic to continue going to the coast? The terrain is so open that I think I’ll be a target…”

As Hans carefully expressed his opinion, Gilbert and Angelina nodded at the same time.

“It is best to move around the coast and prioritize hiding.”

“There is no clear way, so let’s follow that policy first. But I think it would be better to set a period. I think it will be difficult to survive for a week if we only focus on joining.”

The three reconciled their differences and decided on a policy. The joining time is between the second and fourth days after entering the island. Afterwards, it was agreed that if he was unable to join, he would survive alone. Because we had no idea how big the island would be, we decided to wait three days before joining.

“Attention all first year students.”

When the three, including Gilbert, decided on a policy, Professor Brianna appeared in front of the teleportation magic circle. She drew the attention of the clamoring first-year cadets and began a brief explanation.

“I think everyone has heard the explanation from the professor in charge of each class. For the next week, the cadets just have to survive on an uninhabited island with all their might. Of course, the bracelets distributed to the cadets in advance are automatically sent here the moment their lives are threatened. There is a magic circle engraved on it. So don’t worry and go through the evaluation. If you want to abstain, you can just rip off the bracelet yourself. Do you have any more questions?”

None of the cadets questioned Professor Brianna’s words. Professor Brianna slowly glanced at the cadets, found her student, and glanced at him for a moment.

He was not her student before, but now he was Professor Brianna’s exclusive student in name and reality. Her pride did not allow her to hear that such a student was not good at anything.

Of course, there was nothing to worry about in this evaluation as she was already a person who showed signs of growth even before becoming her student. Rather, I shouted to the first-year cadets with some anticipation of what kind of performance they would perform.

“Then, the first comprehensive evaluation begins. Get on the magic circle starting from the 1st class!”

Gilbert looked at the cadets going up one by one to the huge moving magic circle. Among them was Ian, the protagonist of Tactical Combat, and Lily, who looked at him as if he was going to kill him.

After making up his mind, he stood on top of the magic circle, following Angelina and Hans.

Soon, blue magic began to flow, and my vision became dark.

***

When Gilbert’s darkened vision returned, what he saw was a dense forest. The uninhabited island where the comprehensive evaluation was conducted was a place with a forest lined with trees so large that they blocked the sky. Other than that, there was only the coast with an endless view of the sea.

Gilbert first climbed the largest tree in sight to find out where he was.

The speed of his growth was doubled by the award badge he received in the entrance mock competition, and his physical abilities had increased by 1 through training every day.

He had an insane ability score of 90 even before entering the academy, and even if his ability score increased by 10,000, the effect was much more efficient than other people.

Considering that the upper limit of ability score was 100 in the first place, an ability score of 90 meant that it was almost complete. In the meantime, the fact that his ability level increased by 1 was the same as saying that he had become a superhuman, far beyond an ordinary human being.

By climbing a tree with such a superhuman body, I was able to reach the top of the tree in an instant. He looked at the location from the treetops and quickly realized that it was towards the center of the island.

‘The joining date starts tomorrow, so I’ll have to get what I need to survive first.’

Gilbert set an order for what he should do.

He brought out the survival knowledge he had acquired while serving in the military and the knowledge he had gained by watching survival-related programs. Since all of these had been used numerous times in actual combat or tactical combat, I was able to make a quick decision.

The priorities for survival on an uninhabited island have always been a shelter, a device for requesting rescue, and water and food. In the case of the hideout, anyone who can handle mana could easily create it, so it was put on the back burner.

There was no problem with the rescue request device as it would naturally be summoned to the academy after a week, so the first thing to get was fresh water.

It would have been easy if he were a wizard who could use magic, but unfortunately, Gilbert did not have such magical abilities.

Gilbert, who climbed back down the tree and came down to the ground, first carefully went down to the south and began exploring the forest.

He also did not forget to check to see if there was as much water trapped in the leaves as possible. There were puddles of water along the way, but I ignored them because I didn’t want to eat well and could get sick.

Despite his efforts, there were no trees with broad leaves around. He quickly gave up looking for stagnant water and instead pricked his ears and checked to see if there was any flowing river water nearby.

How long has it been since you first arrived on the island?

Gilbert felt that after about an hour had passed, the sound of water flowing could be heard through his sensitive hearing. Thinking that there was a river nearby, he quickly started moving to find the source of the sound of water.

After about 10 minutes, he was able to find a small stream just as he thought.

Gilbert’s expression brightened as he finally found drinking water. Even if he had no water, any knight who could handle mana could survive, but mana was not infinite.

Worse, using mana carelessly on a battlefield designed for open fighting could mean putting one’s life on the line. That’s why he tried to find drinking water.

Fortunately, there were no cadets near the stream that could become enemies. For this evaluation, there were no restrictions on bringing belongings other than magical items, so I took out the water bottle I had prepared in advance.

First, he quenched his thirst with the stream, filled a bucket with water, and then climbed up the largest tree in front of him.

Now that he had water, it was time to get food. If this was a water source, there were bound to be animals coming to drink the water.

Gilbert climbed the tree to hunt such an animal, and as he rested, he waited for the animal to approach him to drink water.

The most important virtue in this type of survival was the will and persistence to survive. Since it was essential to not give up, Gilbert waited for the animals with a relaxed mind. In the meantime, a few cadets who had visited the stream came, but no one sensed his presence.

He did not want to relax from the first day, so he just quietly watched the cadets pass by with their necks quenched. After hanging out on the tree for a while, Gilbert finally saw what he had been waiting for. It was an animal called Kelney, which looked similar to a deer with small horns on its head.

Gilbert held the small dagger he had prepared in advance in his hand. Even if it fell from the tree in an instant, it was difficult to pull out a long sword in this place with many trees, so it was an item prepared in advance.

He waited patiently until Kelney, who cautiously approached with a wary look, drank the water.

Usually, the moment when an animal near the water is most let down is when it drinks water. Finally, the moment Kelney craned her neck to drink water, Gilbert jumped down from the tree like a thunderbolt and plunged his dagger into Kelney’s neck.

“Quick!”

Kelney died with a terminal illness. Gilbert, who had obtained his daily bread with great ease, hurriedly tied Kelney up and left her place. He quickly moved quite a distance away, looked around her, put Kelney down, and sat down.

Carrying Kelney around like this was inefficient and, above all, there was a high possibility that carnivores would be attracted by the smell of blood.

Gilbert took out his dagger once again and skillfully peeled off Kelney’s skin and removed the flesh. He cut off his legs to make it easier to carry around and used the twine he had to knit the four legs together.

It was a waste to throw away part of his torso, but Gilbert, satisfied with his four legs, once again climbed a nearby tree to check the direction he had come from.

Since he was moving more toward the east than expected, he adjusted his direction again and moved south.

Even though the trees were tall enough to cover the sky, it did not mean that day and night could not be distinguished. Gilbert noticed that it was starting to get darker and decided to stop his movements at this point.

Walking around at night was reckless, and now was the time to eat.

Gilbert, who had luckily found a cave suitable for camping, threw away the bundle of Kelney legs he was carrying around his shoulder and first started a fire. He could have seen the lights or smoke and the cadets would have come, but that didn’t mean he wanted to eat Kelney’s legs raw.

He skillfully lit a fire with dry twigs and picked up a large Kelney leg. He obtained a long, strong tree branch, cut it between the Achilles tendon and the leg, hung it on the branch, and placed it over the fire.

Just looking at the Kelney Bridge, which had started to turn golden brown, was enough to make my mouth water. The oil dripped and the meat finally began to cook enough to eat. Among them, I cut the ripe part with a dagger and tasted it.

It’s delicious as expected.

Gilbert, satisfied with the juicy taste spreading in his mouth, removed the Kelney leg from the branch and began preparing to eat it in earnest. It was a lot to eat alone, but it was something I could eat before leaving tomorrow morning.

The moment he was about to eat the meat with ease, something caught Gilbert’s senses. When I saw a sign approaching this place, it was not an animal. In that case, the only ones left were cadets like him.

He held the long sword that was next to him in his hand and waited for his opponent to approach. The figure gradually got closer and closer until it reached right in front of his nose.

Rustling!

With the sound of blades of grass being stepped on, Gilbert pulled out his long sword and aimed it at the other person.

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“Ugh!”

The unidentified person who suddenly appeared hit his butt, probably because he was startled by the sudden sword thrust. When Gilbert saw the intruder’s face reflected in the flames, he couldn’t help but curse inwardly.

Pink hair and overwhelming size.

It was Pingchang Lily.

“You…”

As soon as she realized that the person pointing the sword at her was Gilbert, Lily’s gaze became fierce. Lily gritted her teeth as she had to make an unsightly appearance in front of her enemy.

“Is it Lily?”

Gilbert was equally embarrassed. Gilbert, whose relationship with Lily was inevitably strained, was not happy about meeting her.

He didn’t do it himself, but the one-liner he added without thinking left an indelible memory in her life.

That bothered him, but as Gilbert, he couldn’t decide what to do with Lily. It was clear that even if I apologized hastily, it would be offending her.

“Eliminate him.”

Lily said that while glaring at Gilbert as if he were going to kill him. Gilbert already had a long sword in his hand, and she had fallen and was defenseless. She felt better about getting off cleanly like this rather than earning his sympathy.

‘My head hurts.’

Gilbert wondered what to do about Lily’s treatment. If it weren’t for her, she would have dropped him mercilessly, but because of the sin he committed against her, she didn’t willingly let go of her hand.

As the moment passed, Gilbert had countless thoughts.

Growl!

“Ugh!”

Lily, who had not eaten anything all day, rang indifferently from her stomach.

For Lily, this has become the moment she wants to die the most in her life. I couldn’t believe it. There was no shame in saying such a thing in front of Gilbert, who was so horrible to look at.

Gilbert looked at Lily, her body shaking, and thought she was being foolish for worrying so far. With a lighter heart, he put away his sword and pointed his thumb behind him.

“I was going to eat too. Let’s finish eating first.”

“….”

Lily wanted to refuse, but she thought it would make her more miserable, so she reluctantly nodded her head.