Chapter 91
“The pre-event festivities are finally drawing to a close!! And the results so far are, unbelievably, a slight lead for Reinhart!!”
As soon as he said that, some people frowned, while others wore satisfied expressions.
The former was Lunaris's department head, while the latter were the Reinhart professors, including Isabel.
Karnarof was expressionless.
But I could tell.
That was his satisfied expressionless face.
If he had been displeased, he would have worn a displeased expressionless face.
You could more or less tell by watching Karnarof.
“But the highlight is ultimately the top students! The battle between two supernovas is about to take place here and now!”
The announcer then shouted out my and Richard's accomplishments until his voice nearly gave out.
Perhaps because of the earlier performance, the audience's reaction was quite intense.
I looked straight ahead.
Richard was staring at me with a confident expression.
“No matter how powerful your great warrior is, it won't be enough to defeat me.”
Certainly, his mana was S-rank or higher.
If I summoned Leokan, I would be subdued easily.
But.
“I'm not going to use Leokan.”
I showed it to you because I wasn't going to use it.
I took out my wand and chanted a spell.
“Casting, Bullet, Deca, Delay.”
I left the spell waiting in midair, then immediately swapped to a sword.
This was the combat style I had developed.
“…A sword? No, is it unique magic?”
“You have to fight a melee warrior in close combat.”
My firepower was lower than Linia's.
But when it came to combat sense and martial arts?
‘I'm overwhelmingly ahead.’
Richard and I both stomped once.
That was enough for us to close the distance simultaneously.
—Klang!!
Mana was coursing through Richard's entire body.
And all his stats rose explosively.
“Physical enhancement!?”
“My physical enhancement rate is something you won't easily find even among the upperclassmen! You'd better be on your guard!”
Blue, vivid aura.
Indeed.
He wasn't the top student for no reason.
“I'm still stronger than you.”
We exchanged attacks.
The basic movements of thrusting and slashing.
But when it came to the battle of wits beyond that, I was winning every time.
“That's because our experience is different.”
I had experience facing countless criminals, along with the ability to read people's psychology and habits.
There was a clear difference between us there.
I exploited the opening created by his habit.
Then I guided the mana bullets I had cast into it.
—Bang, bang, Baaang!!
“Kgh!”
That created an even larger opening.
I didn't miss it and slashed at him.
He somehow endured through physical enhancement, but the damage accumulated.
This flow repeated again and again.
Unless Richard was an idiot, he would have already realized that he was being drawn into my rhythm.
“How about that?”
“…I'm curious about your true identity.”
It was a difference in pure skill.
Anxiety began to seep into Richard's previously relaxed expression.
“How can you wield such experienced swordsmanship?”
“Hm?”
“With a body that doesn't even appear to have reached adulthood, you wield a sword as though you had spent decades in a knight order.”
That's because I'm older than you, you punk.
“That's none of your concern.”
You wouldn't believe me anyway.
I grasped Tier 2 again.
The blue aura still hadn't gone out.
This time, I dove straight into his blind spot.
‘It's over!’
Then Richard muttered.
“Unfortunately, I won't be able to win unless I do this.”
The pattern of the mana he spread was a little different, but it was ordinary physical enhancement.
But the medium used for it was…!
Dangerous.
I sensed it with my body, not my head.
It was before I even activated Dragon Eyes.
My body reacted first, bending my waist backward,
and a sword filled with vicious mana swept over me.
The Protector almost activated in a single blow!
This was at least in the upper ranks of A-rank.
It was powerful enough to aim even higher.
“Hey! That was dangerous!”
“The Protector provided for the examination is top-grade. It won't be destroyed by something of this level.”
I could tell.
That suspiciously dense substance was unmistakably dragon mana.
Physical ability, mana density, and pressure.
All of them were incomparable to before.
I slowly observed him.
Mana was circulating through his body.
The surroundings darkened.
As if rain and thunder were about to break out.
‘Is this… a half-dragon?’
His mana pool was nearing S-rank, and by simple calculation, half of it was filled with dragon mana!
If I summoned Leokan… it would certainly be easy.
I could put Leokan in front, then bombard him from behind with magic using dragon mana.
It was a boring but stable plan.
But when Richard crooked a finger at me as if telling me to come closer, that plan went out the window.
“I can't let that go.”
It meant I could fight an opponent of that caliber head-on without worrying about getting hurt.
If so, this chance…
‘I absolutely can't miss it!’
I raised the corners of my lips.
“Casting, Bullet, Delay, Penta.”
Blue mana bullets began circling around me.
Mana bullets whose power had been enhanced by mixing in the tiniest bit of dragon mana.
It was a technique I had become capable of using after obtaining a good wand.
I wasn't using a shield.
It would be destroyed anyway.
“W-what kind of fight is this!? Richard has powered up in an instant! He's overwhelming his opponent!”
Richard drove me back with monstrous mana.
Every time our swords collided, a terrifyingly loud shattering sound rang out.
The offense and defense had been reversed.
“Kgh!”
With the aura I possessed, all I could do was deflect his attacks!
I had no room to switch to the offensive.
All I could do was activate magic to block.
So I used my hidden card too.
“Oz Caster, Silver Shoes!”
After using the magic, I immediately swapped back to my sword.
Since activation took time, I deflected one more attack with my aura, then
moved to the air dozens of meters away.
“Casting, Bullet, Deca, Explode!!”
The basic attack magic, deployed at full power, tore through the air and surged forward.
I made up for my lack of firepower with the number of mana bullets!
—KWA-AAAAAANG!!!
I somehow forced damage into him, but it didn't seem to affect his body enhanced by dragon mana.
“Overwhelm!”
Instead, a storm made of dragon mana chased after me.
“Eek, Wind Riding!”
I nearly flew far away, but somehow returned using Wind Riding.
I almost got knocked out of bounds.
“How do you like that!? This is the power of a Thunder Dragon!”
“You're definitely strong.”
Covered in dust, I smiled faintly.
“Why are you smiling?”
“Because I got the hang of it.”
“Pardon?”
“So that's how physical enhancement is supposed to be used.”
My consciousness flickered once.
And when I opened my eyes again,
“Heh.”
The air had changed.
…This is strange.
My mind was a complete jumble.
Is physical enhancement supposed to be like this?
[Warning! Warning! Your stats have exceeded the critical point!!]
[Your body cannot endure it!! Collapse is beginning!!!]
[Your blood is fusing with ???!]
[Your blood is becoming closer to the Red Moon!]
“Hah, ha! Hoo! I somehow succeeded!”
I spread all the mana in both eyes throughout my body.
And after that, I couldn't remember anything.
But why did I feel so good?
“Heh, hff. Hahaha.”
I looked at Richard.
He seemed to be gauging my level.
“Tier 7? No, even higher! I have to go all out…”
He also raised his mana to match mine.
However.
“Sloppy.”
—Crackle.
A single crimson-black flash.
That one flash was enough to close the distance between Richard and me.
Richard was staring blankly ahead.
I threw a punch.
—KWA-AAAAAANG!!!!
That alone sent Richard flying into the wall.
“Kgh!”
I instinctively chased after his trajectory.
I could finish this by snapping my fingers once.
But I felt I could get an even better feel for it here.
An incomplete enhancement. A feeling I had grasped by chance. An opportunity that might not come again.
It should be fine just this once, right?
A black wand appeared in my hand.
The wand fit snugly in my hand, as always.
Hot mana flowed through my body.
“Casting, Bullet, Expl—”
‘Sis. I told you, didn't I? That we're on different levels.’
I froze for a moment.
‘Not yet.’
Taking advantage of that instant, someone's cold hand seized my wrist.
A rough arm wrapped in a navy-blue robe.
When I looked up, Karnarof was there.
He had completely erased even my mana.
“That's enough. The spectator stands aren't far away.”
Karnarof had come from this side, while Robin had come from the other.
My red-tinted vision had returned before I knew it.
“Judge, determine the winner.”
“Pardon? Y-yes! Winner! Yumia!!”
Countless cheers rang out.
The roar was far louder than when Linia defeated the second-place student.
Amid it all, Karnarof looked at me and spoke.
“I told you to exercise restraint.”
“What could I do? The opponent was strong.”
Karnarof looked over there.
Richard was unconscious, embedded in the ground.
“…Use only as much power as you can handle.”
“Hmph, I don't do that.”
I did feel a little guilty, but I had ultimately managed to control it.
There was no way Adrian had spoken directly inside my head.
It was sleeping time now.
In the end, my own self-awareness had stopped me at the last moment.
‘Well, that's everything settled!’
But what would have happened if I had gone further then?
Well, another chance would come.
* * *
I returned to the spectator stands.
Aris, Robert, and Linia welcomed me.
“That was truly amazing! Good work, Yumia!”
“I've never seen a School of Magic student beat down the Knight School's top student before.”
“…That was amazing. Could I have fought like that? Especially that physical enhancement at the end…”
“Ah, I wanted to finish it with magic too.”
It would have been neat if I had finished with magic.
But if I had, I would have been sent flying all the way into the spectator stands.
I didn't even know whether I could activate it again now.
I thought I had gotten the hang of it, but after it ended, I couldn't remember a thing.
‘I guess I need to learn physical enhancement.’
The students also glanced at me and talked among themselves.
“What was that last move?”
“I couldn't even see it.”
“I didn't know you could use magic like that against a knight! That's the first time I've seen it.”
“Do you think you can do it? You're not Yumia.”
“I could if I practiced!”
While listening to them, I took out an eye mask and placed it over my eyes.
I felt an absurd lack of strength throughout my body.
“Nyaaak… I'm tired.”
“Get some rest.”
Linia also moved aside from the portable bed.
I rested while receiving their consideration.
* * *
But the listlessness, as though something were missing, wasn't relieved even after I returned to the dormitory.
Even so, I wasn't sleepy at all.
In the end, I had no choice but to visit the western forest.
For medicine, go to a pharmacist; for dragon mana, go to a dragon.
Since the problem had occurred while using dragon mana, Adrian would know the solution.
“Adrian! Big Sis is here!”
“Sis! Did you win?”
“Of course. Though I did have a little trouble.”
“Your opponent must have been stronger than expected. Still, with magic using my mana, it would be easy… Why is your body like that?”
As expected of Adrian.
She immediately knew that something was wrong.
“Sis, sit here for a moment. No, just lie down.”
With a serious expression, Adrian laid me down on the usual rock.
Then she immediately drew out her own blood.
[The cracks in your body are being repaired! The collapse has stopped!]
[Dragon Heartblood (UR) has penetrated your heart!]
[A racial change is taking place in your body! Current: 20 percent]
[Your body is preparing for a change!]
“Gyaaaaaaaaaaah!!!”
It hurt far more than usual!
What the hell are you doing!
The moment I got up to demand an explanation, I realized it.
“…What? I'm completely fine now?”
The color had returned to my previously pale face, and the listlessness had disappeared.
“Hmm. If I had been late, it could have been serious. Though normally, I would know if one of my kin were in danger.”
When I looked up at Adrian like that, she smiled and said,
“Sis. Don't use that again.”
“Huh? Why!?”
The performance had been incredible.
It had felt like I had become S-rank.
“Because that thing would kill you in a human body, you know?”
“Huh.”