Chapter 63
After finishing all the classes of the day, Prince Arterion of the Ocel Kingdom was heading to the training ground to practice his swordsmanship.
In the opposite direction, the excited chatter of two male students running down the hallway reached Arterion’s ears.
“Did you hear? Tigres from Class 2 and Alicia from Class 1 are going to have a proper showdown!”
Thinking it was just idle chatter, he half-heartedly listened with one ear and let it flow out the other.
Then he stopped.
“Tigres from Class 2 and ‘Alicia’ from Class 1 are really going at it!”
If it’s Alicia, she has to be the one serving Vargan. The same one who stood her ground during their class battle, showcasing her beliefs instead of succumbing to brute force.
“…….”
Tigres from Class 2 was also a swordmage like Arterion. He had ranked 28th on entrance exams and was the second son of a marquess from the Laban Kingdom. He was the sort who took pleasure in bullying others, flaunting his status like a spoiled brat.
Arterion had almost no good impression of him. He treated commoner women like objects and eagerly approached those with striking looks.
Rumor had it he had already received two warnings; another would lead to expulsion.
If there was one redeeming quality about this hopeless case, it was that he had a knack for “deflecting” attacks with his sword. He used his innate sense to predict opponents’ movements and effortlessly step aside from their kinetic energy.
Things would be different if the opponent was a magician, but facing Tigres, a weapons user, was no small feat. If their skills were comparable, a loss was a natural outcome.
“…There’s still time left.”
Arterion surveyed the passage of time and decided to drop by the event, wanting to see how much Alicia had grown and how she would tackle the challenge ahead.
If it were anyone else’s duel, he probably wouldn’t have felt this way.
Did this mean he held her talent in high regard?
If that was truly the case…
“…What a curious situation.”
*
A crowd had gathered in the arena just a block away.
Members of Arbol Frutal, of course, but also many unrelated folks who came after hearing the rumors filled the place.
Standing in the arena, Laban del Tigres was in a highly excited state. He was already drenched in the thrill of victory, unable to calm his heated body.
Before him stood a beautiful woman.
In his assessment, Alicia was top-tier, among the absolute best. She stood out remarkably compared to any other women he had seen, even those from the Academia.
Through this ranking battle, Alicia had not only put up a wager of 10 Cattia for the maximum prize but also added the stipulation that the loser must humbly serve the winner.
This meant soon…
That fair and soft skin…
Tigres could only gawk at Alicia with disturbingly lecherous eyes.
Alicia was captured in his filthy gaze.
She could guess what kind of ecstasy he was experiencing.
His admission score was 28th.
Meanwhile, she herself was 47th.
No matter how much attention she had received through the class battle and heard that she was a promising talent with high growth potential, there was no way to bridge this gap in such a short time span of less than two months.
She responded defiantly, but in reality, Alicia was anxious. Every time that unpleasant gaze touched her, goosebumps crawled all over her body, making her want to avoid it.
However, this was a kind of assignment given by her master, Vargan. Her master had clearly allowed that person to pass the assessment on purpose to create the current situation.
It was no simple coincidence.
There were many factors that couldn’t be overlooked to call it a coincidence.
The fact that the ranking difference between Tigres and herself was within 20 places, allowing for a rank battle. The fact that he hadn’t participated in the rank battle this month. The fact that the Young Master had given her a heads-up beforehand, and so on.
Though unspoken, her master undoubtedly planned this whole event. Now, Alicia could easily grasp that much.
So she absolutely couldn’t lose.
She would give it her all.
Because that was the Young Master’s wish.
Alicia drastically elevated the mana within her body.
She focused all her attention.
Once she was ready…
Beeeeeep???!
The combat begins.
“…!”
Charge!
In an instant, Alicia’s body accelerated to a furious speed, closing the distance to Tigres to ‘0’.
Startled, Tigres swung his sword not with reason but instinct.
Kwaaaaazzzzz???
Two blue auras clashed, sending sparks flying.
Tigres found himself staring into Alicia’s eyes, blinded by the brilliant light. Her gaze was entirely different from before.
“Kuhah…!”
Tigres let out an animalistic laugh and shoved her sword aside with sheer strength. Ignoring the crackling aura, he leveraged his body’s movement.
He stomped the ground and delivered a side kick.
But…
Chwaaaak??
Alicia’s body was protected by a thick barrier of wind, and his kick came to a halt.
Seizing the brief moment, Alicia swung her sword again.
Her blade crashed down explosively like a bomb exploding behind it.
A fierce strike.
Tigres could feel a shiver down his spine from the stimulation on his peripheral nerves.
‘This is… much better than I expected!’
Tigres angled his sword to deflect Alicia’s attack. He felt pain in his hand as he did so.
It was considerable output, but it meant nothing if it didn’t connect…!
Throwing his head back, Tigres stomped the ground and cast a spell. Just like that…
A stone column surged toward Alicia’s jaw.
Thin enough to be caught in a fist, yet possessing a terrifying speed and strength akin to solid iron.
Just before it struck Alicia.
The stone punctured Alicia’s jaw fiercely.
And then, Alicia vanished like a black mist.
“Tricks…!!”
But the tricks were not just the mist.
Without warning, droplets that struck from all directions engulfed Tigres.
The highly compressed liquids shot like bullets.
Tigres hurriedly protected himself with his sword or thickened his aura in certain areas to defend.
“Hah…!”
There was no pain.
The droplets that touched Tigres evaporated into smoke.
It wasn’t real; it was the same immature illusion as before.
Alicia revealed her true self.
Kaang! Kaang??!
Continuing her relentless assault, Alicia mixed illusions with swordsmanship, cornering Tigres.
Tigres fought back with magic and his specialty in swordsmanship, but he began to get pushed back, step by step.
Feeling that the tide was turning against him, Tigres wiped the smile off his face and replaced the emptiness with rage.
Wiping the laughter clean, he packed his empty emotions with rage.
That rage stemmed from a distorted sense of hierarchy.
“Do you think I would fall to a lowly servant like you!!”
Swish?!
Once more.
Tigres successfully knocked Alicia’s sword away.
Her body went careening in the wrong direction.
The rising pillar of Tigres.
Struck by the pillar, she scattered once again into black smoke.
Next came dozens of droplets aimed at Tigres.
‘It’s the same pattern as before…!’
He gritted his teeth, feeling humiliated, and unleashed his mana. Could this level of shock be enough for a hallucination?
“?Cough?!”
Dozens of solid droplets pierced through Tigres’ mana and slammed into his body. Thanks to his trained hero’s physique, he could withstand it, but an ordinary person would have been full of holes.
“This guy just keeps… targeting… me!!”
As Tigres opened his mouth,
Chaang???!
A sharp pain resonated in his hand.
With a clear vibration, his sword flew far away.
He lowered his gaze from the sword spinning in the air.
He saw the woman’s eyes fixed on him.
「Predator’s Eyes」。
Her gaze, which was clearly nothing more than an object, seemed ready to swallow him whole. A creature at the top tier of the food chain pyramid.
In those seemingly calm ocean-like eyes, there was an unfathomable depth. It awakened a fear akin to that of the deep sea, completely freezing Tigres’ movements.
‘Is this also a hallucination…?’ It jolted his mind awake.
In his vulnerability, hundreds of high-density liquids were aimed at him.
?Gwaah, Gwaaaah!
He screamed.
Yet, no sound escaped his lips.
In an instant, he lost all will to fight.
Clack.
Alicia approached.
Even as she sheathed her practice sword, her gaze never left him.
?I recently realized something.
She said.
“Originally, I thought it was fine if I were insulted. Compared to the many nobles here, my status is indeed low, and maybe I was used to it, so it didn’t bother me much.”
Something like poisonous powder was subtly woven into her kind voice.
Alicia did not stop walking.
“But, that wasn’t the case. I’m… really thankful to be… Vargan’s servant.”
So many projectiles surrounded Tigres that they almost obscured Alicia’s approaching figure.
What had once been liquid now appeared as dark iron bullets.
“I realized late that insulting me is akin to insulting my lord… Tigres. You mentioned wanting to experience something happening with my lord at night, right?”
Alicia looked down at Tigres, who was trembling on the floor. Her eyes were certainly kind, yet cold as her master.
“I hope you manage to endure safely.”
“Ugh…!!”
With those words as her last,
The bullets that filled the surroundings struck him.
And he lost consciousness.
『7:20 PM. C-5 Arena. Winner, Alicia. Winner, Alicia.』
Tigres awoke with a start, realizing that the last volley had all been hallucinations.
It was not until the morning sun rose the next day.
*
Tick-tock.
The clock on the wall pointed to the exact hour.
Two hands overlapped to form one.
Finally, April 28th ended.
I could once again use my mana freely.
Until the next restriction came, a year remained.
A year… Am I supposed to wait until then?
I hoped it would pass quickly, so I could be restricted again. That way, I could loosen all my shackles…
“Let’s see….”
I fumbled with the bracelet I was wearing, trying to activate it. Meanwhile, thoughts occupying a corner of my mind flowed in parallel.
I heard news of Alicia’s accomplishments.
I heard the news.
Of course, she moved as I wanted in my storyline.
What was her name again…?
Right, Laban del Tigres. That guy.
I used that lousy sidekick who calls himself a villain to reestablish Alicia’s position in ‘Stem.’ While there wouldn’t be any issues in ‘Branches,’ which is mostly commoners, it was only natural for problems to arise due to class distinctions in ‘Stem,’ filled with nobles.
Even without Tigres, grievances stemming from the commoner background would have eventually bubbled up after a few months.
Feelings that living beings experience are not always beautiful. When someone inferior tries to command you, resentment naturally builds up.
It accumulates, whether consciously or unconsciously.
It definitely piles up.
Even if you prove your skills in the Class Battle, there will always be lowly folks stuck in their hierarchy refusing to acknowledge that.
So, I intentionally threw in that third-rate villain to stir up trouble. Since I knew Alicia could easily suppress him, I didn’t bother to comment.
To minimize the growing resentment and to delay it as much as possible, you need fear, ability, and recognition.
This is why there are fewer opposing forces against a leader with proper charisma. Depending on her circumstances later on, that might change, but this at least sets the minimal conditions for Alicia to lead the Stem.
A gentle charisma.
Is Alicia akin to Liu Bei from the Three Kingdoms?
“Oh, it’s done.”
When Helion activated the relic he handed to me, I felt a bracelet absorbing my mana to its maximum potential.
What a mystical sensation.
Should I liken it to the feeling when you see something brutally cruel or frightening, leaving your muscles immobile? I suppose once you get used to it over time, it wouldn’t be a big deal.
“Under these conditions for one month. It’s supposed to release on the 29th of next month.”
No matter how top-tier this relic is, it does forcefully limit the wearer’s mana, so I must leave intervals when using it to avoid side effects. It’s safer to wait about 9 to 10 years before using it again.
As far as I remember, Vargan wore this kind of relic at the age of 6… which makes it the perfect timing. For the time being, I can’t engage in Class Battles or roam freely, but so what?
I can fly around freely in a month.
I immediately assumed the lotus position, starting to expand my mana within. The total amount of mana is always a priority. For me, this is foundational.
I felt my mana’s movement slow drastically, and the output dropped to child-like levels. There’s a suffocating discomfort like my insides are filled with foreign substances. The effect seems to be right on target.
That means the level of achievement when it’s released will be significant.
Considering my current achievements…
In about a month…
“All preparations for the desired unique spell will be complete.”
A foundation will be laid to create a unique spell at a higher level than what Vargan previously exhibited. Even if I get stuck halfway and settle at a mediocre level, the output will definitely differ.
“I can’t wait to see it.”
The saying about the aesthetics of waiting is meant for times like this.
….
Oh, speaking of Vargan’s incurable disease, I almost forgot.
There’s no need to worry about that.
Would I really die because of such a line of setting trying to turn everything upside down? The incurable disease, one of Vargan’s weaknesses, actually helps overcome another weakness with a remedy.
Fire with fire.
Poison with poison.
Weakness with weakness.
Well, that Liam guy might take it seriously on his own, but for me, a weakness is not despair but another opportunity?
