#40. Exchange Meeting (4)

The Magic Department training grounds of the Pellit Academy.

Ivan Ward sat there alone.

“……..”

Meditation.

The circulation of mana.

With the sensation of honing something sharp, he processed the mana within his body.

Work done to wield more potent magic.

More than five hours had already passed in silence.

Ivan intended to forego sleep this night.

Click.

It was then that the door opened.

“……Ivan.”

“I instructed that no one was to enter.”

“Even so, you must get some sleep.”

A woman with the same hair color as Ivan.

Michel Ward, twin to Ivan Ward, sighed heavily.

“Is it really necessary to go this far?”

“Of course it is.”

Ivan had no intention of letting this matter slide.

That impudent Lunia, who dared to disregard him, would be thoroughly crushed and taught a lesson.

“Losing in the knowledge showdown was purely because I wasn’t prepared.”

Ivan ground his teeth as he spoke.

“I admit I was lacking. However, now, I have to show an overwhelming difference in force.”

Michel sighed again.

He had been like this since childhood. She had constantly tried to dissuade him from the side, but it never worked.

“So, you really intend to go out first?”

“Isn’t it obvious?”

“The professor told you to be placed last.”

“Doesn’t matter. I can just finish it all myself anyway.”

“…”

As always, Ivan would push through with what he had decided alone.

“Ivan.”

Michel knew that fact better than anyone, yet she still tried to guide him down the right path.

It was the responsibility she held as his older sister.

“This is just a fleeting encounter we’ll have during the exchange. It doesn’t seem right to ruin yourself over this.”

“I told you, it doesn’t matter.”

“Just listen to me, please…”

Of course, she never succeeded.

“Michel, are you saying you’ll just sit by and watch Lunia climb over us?”

Her head was starting to ache.

Ultimately giving up, Michel exited the training grounds once more.

“You know you’ve been acting strange lately, right?”

Her final words were laced with concern.

The training grounds fell silent again.

Ivan resumed his meditation.

When he opened his eyes again, it was morning.

His body and mind were slightly fatigued.

But it was the perfect condition to use magic.

Ivan rose from his seat.

Finally leaving the training grounds, he frowned at the sunlight that felt brighter than usual.

“Shall we go, then?”

There was nothing to prepare. He didn’t need any tools.

Right now, it felt like he wouldn’t even lose to the professor.

He headed toward the tournament venue.

As it happened, the first match was Pellit versus Lunia.

“Hey, Ivan. Where have you been…”

“Out of the way.”

The start was imminent.

Ivan brushed past his comrades and strode directly onto the arena floor.

A wide, rectangular ring. Spectators thronged every side.

He could feel their gazes focused on him, a tangible weight.

Ivan grinned and shouted,

“Come out, Lane Ortiz!”

The honor you sullied this time, I will reclaim it without fail.

*

“Nah, I don’t feel like it.”

Kevin was up first. I decided on the order to punish his gall in wanting to go last.

“Alright, hurry up and go.”

I pushed Kevin’s back.

Grasping the practice sword provided by the Empire, Kevin stepped into the arena.

Ivan recognized Kevin’s face.

His expression instantly hardened.

Then, he bellowed something incoherent before grinding his teeth and glaring at me.

I silently raised my middle finger.

“Is there any benefit to provoking him?”

Charlotte, who had been watching beside me, asked. Her expression conveyed her incomprehension.

“The opponent is from the Fellit Academy. If they’re good enough to come to the exchange, they must be quite skilled. I just don’t see the point in stirring them up.”

“Not really.”

“……Excuse me?”

“They were being dicks, so I’m just returning the favor.”

Kind words beget kind words. A proverb almost sacred in Korea.

My actions depend entirely on how the other party behaves.

If there’s no good reason for an unprovoked insult, there’s no reason for me to back down either.

“You’re something else.”

“What’s that?”

“In many ways.”

While we were making small talk, Kevin’s match began.

Honestly, Kevin and I don’t share particularly fond memories. If anything, they’re filled with bad ones.

But for now, we’re on the same side, and there haven’t been any conflicts recently…

Should I cheer him on?

“Do your best~!”

I offered some perfunctory encouragement.

After all, support from allies is bound to be empowering.

But rather than being invigorated, Kevin stared at me with wide, bewildered eyes.

As if he’d heard a hallucination.

“Hey, hey! Are you even paying attention?!”

The problem was, a fireball was already hurtling towards Kevin’s face.

Belatedly snapping to attention, Kevin swung his sword, laden with aura.

The cleanly cleaved fireball dissipated in an instant.

“Maybe we shouldn’t cheer for Rein-nim?”

“Why?”

“It feels like it’s draining your energy.”

Charlotte had grown accustomed to using honorifics since this morning.

And become even cheekier. Seems like a counterproductive effect.

I unleashed a burst of light magic in front of Charlotte’s eyes.

“Agh!!”

Charlotte’s back arched like a bow.

Serves her right.

Leaving Charlotte to writhe in the afterimage, I refocused on watching the match.

Kevin was attempting to close the distance with all his might.

Since mages typically specialize in ranged attacks, it was a smart move.

A reckless charge from a simple swordsman. How would the arrogant mage respond?

Ivan began calculating wind magic. A strong gust started swirling through the arena.

Followed by flight magic and then, again, fire magic.

As Ivan took to the sky, escaping the range of the magic, a raging inferno, fanned by the wind, engulfed Kevin.

“……?”

Something felt off.

Wasn’t magic with lethal power prohibited?

It was a neat application, but if the opponent was even slightly weaker, they’d be severely injured.

“Rein-nim, this…”

“I know.”

It wasn’t just high praise for the opponent.

I’d only watched for a moment, but I already understood Ivan Ward well enough.

So, a more plausible deduction would be this:

“He intends to hurt us.”

As the flames subsided, Kevin emerged from within.

Fortunately, he seemed unharmed. He’d shielded himself with aura, enveloping himself like armor.

The match wasn’t halted.

“Lethal power,” after all, was ultimately relative. Kevin had demonstrated a flexible response, so Ivan’s attack was deemed within acceptable limits.

“Let’s observe for now.”

Kevin was a recognized elite in his own right.

Not one to simply suffer through some petty revenge scheme.

“You seem to have faith in Kevin.”

Professor Cecil addressed me.

“Whether I have faith in him or not… more like, I’m just staying put because I don’t think he’ll lose.”

“That’s what believing is.”

She settled naturally beside me. Just moments ago, I’d thought this was a pretty comfortable chair, but with Professor Cecil next to me, it became incredibly awkward.

What is this? Magic?

“I believe in Kevin too.”

Professor Cecil was smiling.

“Probably a little different from when you defeated him, though. That boy Kevin’s grown quite a bit during the break, you see.”

“Is that so?”

“I guarantee it.”

“Oh…”

Hearing her say that made me anticipate it.

Just what kind of performance would he show?

Kevin casually hoisted his sword onto his shoulder. Then, he stomped hard on the ground, extinguishing every last spark of flame that lingered around him.

It wasn’t put out by wind pressure.

“…Did the professor teach him that?”

“You could say so.”

A glint of silver shimmered in Kevin’s eyes.

The knights’ secret art, Aura Release.

The sword aura surrounding his blade intensified.

That, for sure, was something that warranted talk of ‘growth’.

Kevin, smiling confidently, swung his sword with all his might. At precisely the right moment, the released aura formed a sharp, crescent-shaped slash.

The fierce slash flew, attempting to intercept Ivan, who was floating in mid-air.

At that instant.

*Thwack.*

Blood scattered in the air.

*Thud.*

Something fell to the ground, following after.

“…”

The competition arena, filled just moments ago with cheers and roars, fell into a silence as if time had stopped.

I, too, said nothing.

Or rather, it would be more accurate to say I had lost the words to say.

“That crazy b*stard…”

The one phrase I managed to mutter wasn’t exactly kind.

Kevin was collapsed on the ground.

Clutching a bleeding wound, with his head pressed to the floor, his body trembled violently.

“Ugh, aaah!!”

He screamed.

Kevin’s arm had been severed. Ivan’s doing.

『Competition Rule Number Two:

Attacks with high killing power are prohibited.』

The rule for safety existed plainly.

It must be obeyed, for the penalty of failure is disqualification.

But it had just been violated. Some lunatic used ‘Severing Magic,’ of all things.

Severing Magic.

Magic that severs everything within sight. While essentially akin to cutting with a blade, and therefore ineffective against sturdy materials, it’s a dangerous art capable of slicing through a human arm with ease.

And they used it on a student?

Just because they took offense?

“I knew he was a piece of trash, but…”

Never imagined it would go this far.

The match would be suspended soon. I rose from my seat, intending to check on Kevin.

“…Wait.”

Then I realized.

Someone had rushed onto the field before me.

“No, no.”

Every time I see that person, the thought arises.

Does that person truly possess the ‘qualifications of a professor’?

Seems not.

“What are you doing there, you madwoman?!”

The one who had taken the field in my stead was none other than Professor Cecil.

Her hand went to the hilt of her sword.