Chapter 180 - Misgivings (10)

The bell signaling the start of the match rang.

The murmuring from the spectator seats surrounding the circular arena instantly died down.

Though she'd seen many matches before, Haley clenched her fist, empathizing with Damian's position.

In truth, Haley couldn't guarantee Damian would definitely win. While Ruscus had the advantage in objective strength, she just vaguely believed Damian would put up a good fight based on intuition.

Ruscus prepared to strike first, quietly chanting spells as if talking to himself.

In matches between mages and swordsmen, the closer the distance, the more disadvantageous it was for the mage. Therefore, controlling the distance between opponents determined victory or defeat.

The mage would try to secure time and space to cast spells while catching their breath, while the swordsman would use all their strength to force close combat and disrupt concentration.

The problem was that Ruscus was proficient in both swordsmanship and magic.

If distance was maintained, he would shower magic from afar; if close combat began, skilled swordsmanship would greet the opponent.

When Ruscus chanted, dozens of ice spheres formed from condensed water vapor floated in the air.

Everyone gasped at the strange sight of a Combat Department student skillfully casting magic.

The ice spheres began flying at Damian without giving him time to prepare.

Damian approached cautiously as if probing his opponent's strength, twisting his body to dodge attacks and deflecting some with his sword.

"Dodging those with no armor and bare skin? Hmm, that's too reckless."

The ice spheres were quite numerous. Though it seemed reckless to dodge the hailstorm by instinct, Damian was surprisingly adept at evasion.

The ice hit the ground with enough force to embed deeply—one hit would be enough to break bones.

Seeing his unexpectedly good movement, Neria awkwardly rubbed her chin.

"Hmm..."

It wasn't just quick reaction speed. His movements were concise, as if reading his opponent's attack intentions from their trajectories.

But they couldn't gauge his full capabilities from just this brief movement.

When Damian tried to close in on Ruscus, more ice spheres formed in the air and began pouring down like rain. This prevented Damian from easily approaching.

Ruscus hadn't moved a single step from his position. And he continued chanting spells without stopping.

Haley said, "Looks like Ruscus is preparing something big."

Neria nodded in agreement. 

"A magic trap. It's intermediate-level magic—seems he sharpened his skills during the break."

It was magic that required time to cast and demanded concentration. At such times, one should force close combat to interrupt the spell, but Damian seemed not to notice this.

"Your junior seems too preoccupied dealing with the ice spheres."

Following Ruscus' magic, the air condensed, and moisture gradually filled the ground, changing the color of the dirt.

Once casting finished, it would freeze instantly.

If Damian, who had no options besides swordsmanship, fell into the magic trap, the match would obviously end.

And Damian either didn't notice this or took no countermeasures.

Haley anxiously chewed her lips.

"First-year..."

Neria shook her head as if she'd already seen the outcome.

Damian seemed unable to take any action besides dodging attacks.

Several minutes passed with Damian showing no clear strategy, merely being toyed with by the ice spheres.

The fact that Ruscus hadn't moved a single step also seemed to clearly show the difference in their abilities.

Finally, as if the magic trap casting was complete, Ruscus pressed his lips together and raised one corner of his mouth.

Then he provoked Damian, "I wonder how you earned Duchess Bibi's recognition with such skill."

Ruscus stretched his palm out into the air. Then, taking a deep breath, he clenched his fist.

Instantly, the ground that had been thoroughly soaked while Damian was distracted began to freeze.

Along with it, Damian's feet, which had been dodging ice spheres, froze to the ground.

"...!"

Damian glared at Ruscus with startled eyes.

Ruscus shook his head at him with a pitying expression.

"Think of what happened in the Principality as just a momentary dream."

Then ice walls suddenly shot up from the ground, surrounding Damian in layers.

Damian was completely sealed like a beast trapped in a cage.

Haley sighed.

"Haa..."

The ice was too thick and solid to pierce with a sword. He was effectively incapacitated. It was clearly Ruscus's victory.

The students in the spectator seats burst into admiration.

"Woaaah!"

Though Ruscus' face was pale from the large mana consumption, he maintained his smile and waved to the cheering crowd.

He didn't forget to give a light greeting to the Yulisia Principality's ambassador sitting in the observer's seat.

Certain of his victory, he turned toward the waiting tent. But then he felt something strange and turned back.

The audience hadn't stood up. And the instructor hadn't come out to wrap things up.

Because the match-ending bell hadn't rung.

Ruscus sensed something wrong and looked back at his ice prison.

Light was seeping through the pale ice walls.

Like a magic stone lamp made of crystal, a crimson light beautifully illuminated the surroundings.

"...?"

As he approached the ice prison again with suspicion and touched the wall for a moment.

A crimson blade pierced through the ice wall, stopping just before Ruscus's brow.

"Ah-ahhh!"

Startled, he stumbled backward while drawing his sword.

The blade that had pierced through withdrew, and flames burst violently through the hole.

Sensing danger, Ruscus chanted more spells to reinforce his magic.

Ice sheets rose from the ground and began wrapping around the prison from all sides.

But the reinforcement speed couldn't keep up with the melting speed. Ruscus...

"T-this is..."

Soon after, Damian stuck his sword into the thick ice wall and cut through it like butter. Then he kicked away the broken ice walls and came out.

Damian swept back his soaked hair while holding the glowing red sword.

A surprised murmur spread through the spectator seats. Haley, who had been watching, jumped up and shouted while clenching her fist, "That's it! Beat him up good, First-year!"

Neria, sitting beside her, tried to pull down Haley's clothes to make her sit, saying embarrassedly, "It's not over yet. Even if Ruscus' mana is depleted, it's useless unless he can subdue him with swordsmanship."

Now that Ruscus's trump card had been defended against, it was time for a direct confrontation.

Damian immediately rushed at Ruscus and swung his sword.

Clang!

Their swords clashed against each other.

Neria watched closely to see how Damian would proceed. But she didn't get a proper chance to observe his swordsmanship.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

After just three exchanges, Ruscus' sword went flying from the sheer force.

Neria doubted her eyes for a moment.

Even considering his body was exhausted from excessive magic use, Ruscus had been subdued too easily.

"Haah, haah."

His heart was pounding like it would burst. Damian had struck precisely at a vital point despite blocked vision. This wasn't normal human perception.

Ruscus jumped up, gripped his sword tightly, and shouted, "Come out! Fight me head-on with your sword!"

In response, Damian suddenly burst out of the steam and landed a punch straight to his face.

Ruscus tumbled to the ground without any resistance.

Damian mounted him and delivered a series of punches.

The sound of brutal strikes echoed continuously.

Flailing his arms, Ruscus shouted, "S-stop!"

Damian grabbed the collar of Ruscus, who was now streaming blood from his nose, and said, "Do you covet my achievements?"

"..."

His tone suggested he knew Ruscus wanted to steal his accomplishments.

"If you can prove you're worthy of protecting the Duchess, I might hand over all my roles to you."

"..."

"Conversely, if you're unworthy, never show your face around the Duchess again. Understand?"

"Cough, I'm a born 'Child of the Stars’. Regardless of... your approval... I'm more than qualified, you bastard."

Even in this situation, Ruscus cast magic to make the surroundings cold.

At that moment, Ruscus felt a pressure as if his heart was being squeezed.

"Kuhak!"

Then the air grew heavy, as if pressing down on his body.

A terrifying amount of magical pressure had suddenly burst forth around Damian. It clearly wasn't coming from Damian himself. Something formless in the air was radiating a powerful presence.

"Huh, huk, huk, wh-what are you..."

As he writhed in pain, feeling like he would suffocate.

The match-ending bell rang out. And that tremendous magical pressure vanished in an instant.

Damian shook his head at Ruscus and stood up.

"Child of the Stars my ass."

***

The Art Club members came down to the arena, making a huge fuss as if Damian had won a tournament, congratulating him.

Luna, who had watched the entire battle peeking from the waiting tent, quietly celebrated when she confirmed Damian's victory. Though she wanted to join in congratulating him, she regretted that she couldn't due to too many watching eyes.

While admiring Damian, she noticed someone watching him with fond eyes from the opposite waiting tent.

"...?"

Blue-white hair.

It was that woman from in front of the Guardian Tree.

Her seemingly affectionate gaze made Luna uncomfortable. 

What relationship does she have with Damian?

Like her connection to Ppiyak, there were many suspicious points about this woman.

Before leaving the arena with the others, Damian quickly glanced at Luna's waiting tent.

Then he waved at Luna when no one was watching. Startled, she hid.

After calming her heart for a moment, she slightly revealed herself again and shyly waved back.

Damian confirmed Luna's greeting and left the arena.

When she checked the opposite tent again, the blue-white-haired woman was gone.

A cool breeze blew into the tent—perhaps some of Ruscus' ice still remained somewhere.