*Woooong!*
As the long chant came to an end, a warm wind began to blow from her fingertips.
“Hup!”
With a short shout, a warm current of air swirled around her body. The flow of air gradually quickened. As the wind spun like a top, everything in the vicinity, including the silverware, began to vibrate.
“Oh.”
It was a new kind of energy. However, the reason Dien was surprised was not because it was his first time encountering magic.
‘♪♪♪.’
‘I can hear the sound of a guitar in magic too.’
His special ability was not limited to the flow of the sword. The formless power also revealed Lamie’s chanting and the flow of her mana through the sound of a guitar. Although Dien, who had never learned magic, could not properly evaluate her spell, the “performance” reaching his ears still seemed to have many clumsy notes.
However, the students who were unaware of this could only watch in admiration.
“She manifested heated wind to act like a shield!”
“As expected of Lady Lamie… To manifest two 2nd-Circle spells simultaneously… What incredible concentration.”
“She has the best talent among the academy’s magic students. To be at the 3rd Circle at such a young age!”
Many students were full of praise for Lamie’s magic.
Judging by their reactions, Lamie’s talent truly was the best among the academy students. It was now clear why she had been so proud of her level when he saw her at the academy earlier today.
*Clap, clap, clap, clap!*
Thunderous applause poured out, and Lamie turned around regally while pulling down her rolled-up sleeves. She looked around at the audience with a satisfied expression. When her eyes met Dien’s, she lifted her chin as if boasting. Seeing this, Dien gave her a short smile and offered his praise for showing him such wonderful magic.
‘She’s an interesting young lady.’
“Is Baran next?”
Baran loosened his neck while touching his shoulder with one hand. Leisure was evident even on his face. His sparring opponent was Arnold, the one who had been presiding over the social duels.
***
“We should be able to start now.”
“Arnold, show him what’s what.”
“You have to crush the spirits of these desk-jockeys beforehand so they don’t act up even after they’re commissioned.”
The knight cadets surrounding Arnold whispered maliciously while massaging his body. Unaware of this, Baran simply climbed onto the platform with a bright smile.
“I’m going to show off my skills properly!”
Baran was thinking of several movements to show himself off.
“I’ll draw my sword with a chest-dance and then leap. After that, toward the head…”
“Sure.”
Baran approached Arnold and tried to coordinate their moves in a whisper. However, Arnold barely listened. He simply gave a half-hearted reply and waved his hand.
“Shall we start?”
“Let’s do that. It’s a social duel, after all…”
At Baran’s words, Arnold replied while picking his ear. The duel began. As promised, Baran drew his sword toward Arnold’s chest. However…
*Thwack!*
Arnold violently struck Baran’s wooden sword upward. It was a force that far exceeded expectations. Pushed by that strength, Baran failed to make the promised leap and stumbled for a long time.
‘What was that?’
Baran tilted his head at the large vibration felt through the wooden sword.
The situation was different from the script they had written beforehand. Should he still attempt the leap as planned? While Baran was lost in thought, Arnold’s shadow loomed large before him.
And one person watching this, Dien, widened his eyes.
‘The sound got louder!’
Dien stood up from his seat in surprise. This was because the guitar sound, which had been faint in previous duels, rang out loudly from Arnold’s sword path. This level of sound was something that would only come out in a real battle.
‘That bastard, he intends to do this for real!’
Dien felt a sickening malice in Arnold’s eyes. As expected, his following attack was intense—something that could not be seen in a formal duel.
*Thack, thack, thack!*
Arnold began to thrust his wooden sword into Baran’s vital points without hesitation. Because of that, Baran was pushed back incessantly, and he could barely even breathe due to the attacks that came lunging at him precariously.
“Ugh… Master Arnold… This is…”
A pained groan escaped Baran. However, Arnold paid no heed and unfolded his techniques even more fiercely, leaving Baran’s mind in utter confusion.
“Damn it.”
He belatedly regained his senses and tried to face Arnold’s attacks seriously, but the balance that had already been disrupted could not be easily recovered.
Eventually, pushed to the edge of the platform, Baran tumbled down awkwardly.
Even as Baran was falling off the stage, Arnold made sure to thrust his wooden sword into the man’s shoulder.
*Thud!*
“Argh.”
As Baran fell and clutched his shoulder, Dien clicked his tongue at Arnold’s final attack.
“That was excessive.”
Then, quite absurdly, Arnold approached Baran with a look of feigned surprise.
“Master Baran! Are you alright?”
Contrary to his words, his eyes were hypocritical. It was clearly an intentional attack, but he shrugged his shoulders and pretended not to know, claiming it was an accident.
“Master Arnold…”
Baran glared at Arnold irritably. However, even under Baran’s gaze, Arnold maintained a look of grievance. Furthermore, he even poured out spiteful words while scratching his cheek.
“I intended to go easy on you… I’m sorry. If I had known Master Baran’s skills were this lacking… I would have held back even more.”
He spoke this loudly enough for everyone to hear. To anyone watching, it was a sarcasm intended to belittle Baran’s swordsmanship.
Baran frowned at Arnold’s words. Was this really something that happened because his skills were far inferior, just as the man said?
Even if that were the case, it was Arnold who had failed to keep the promised coordination. Although anger surged within him, Baran had no choice but to swallow it down.
“Ugh.”
Anger bubbled up at his hypocritical attitude, but since he had apologized publicly, Baran couldn’t say anything.
‘To humiliate me like this!’
As he stood up, he could feel the eyes of many students looking at him with pity. Moreover, he had just been boasting about his swordsmanship to the administrative students. Baran felt ashamed of his pathetic fall.
*Step, step.*
Discovering the reactions of the administrative students sending him sympathetic looks and the knight cadets sneering, Baran eventually tried to rush outside in a fit of indignation.
“Baran.”
Dien, who had been watching the scene, tried to grab Baran’s arm at the entrance of the mansion to comfort him, but Baran even shook off Dien’s arm and left the outdoor venue.
*Tsk, tsk, tsk.*
As Dien turned his head while watching Baran’s receding back, he saw the knight cadets laughing in a corner.
‘Those immature brats… They won’t wake up until they experience it themselves.’
Even if other students didn’t know, he knew for certain. Arnold’s techniques were practically lethal moves. Even if it was a wooden sword, the attacks were sufficient to injure an opponent.
Dien’s eyes grew cold.
Baran was essentially the first friend he had made here. He could not just stand by and watch their behavior after they had trampled on his friend’s pride.
“I’ll go instead.”
Dien approached an administrative student who was trembling before his duel and spoke. Whenever they dueled with an administrative student, the children of knight families poured out merciless attacks. Since that student had also applied for the social duel underestimating it, Dien intended to take his place.
“Dien. Will you be alright?”
“Yes, it’s fine.”
Answering with a bright smile, Dien stepped forward toward the platform without hesitation.
“The next duel is…”
Just as Arnold was about to continue the proceedings, Dien approached him and spoke.
“I’d like to go instead. Would that be alright, Master Arnold?”
“Hahaha, Master Dien, you mean?”
Arnold could not hide his pleasant smile at Dien’s sudden appearance.
‘The guy I hated seeing the most walked in on his own!’
Dien stated his intention to participate, and it wasn’t just Arnold who was surprised by his participation.
“Dien! Are you going to be okay?”
Zalz, who already felt that the situation was turning strange, hurriedly blocked Dien’s path.
“It’s alright, Master Zalz. It’s just a social duel, after all.”
“No, they are intentionally picking on our administrative students to humiliate them…”
“Hahaha, there’s no way knight cadets would act like petty, third-rate thugs. Don’t worry, Master Zalz.”
Dien cut off Zalz’s words and gestured that it was fine.
“It seems Master Zalz has a misunderstanding. Isn’t that right, Master Arnold? For knight cadets, who must maintain their dignity, to use a social duel to humiliate others… It seems Master Zalz spoke without knowing the dignity of the Deros knight cadets.”
“Hmph, are you ready?”
“Yes.”
Arnold’s face turned bright red at Dien’s words. The expressions of the knight cadets who heard this also stiffened noticeably. However, no one opened their mouth.
“Let’s start the duel quickly. Who is my opponent?”
“Hahaha, it is Master Asner.”
“I see.”
Dien picked up a wooden sword that was already heavily nicked.
‘This is the first time I’ve been in a proper, real combat situation.’
Holding the wooden sword, Dien sharpened his senses. Then, he felt a subtle vibration.
A real battle disguised as a social duel. But Dien didn’t care. He had already perfectly gauged the skills of the knight cadets.
“I look forward to this…”
Asner, who had no intention of coordinating their moves from the start, let out a sickening smile.
Even after hearing the comment about being third-rate thugs, he was thick-skinned enough to emit murderous intent.
“It’s a light duel, so feel free to come at me comfortably, haha!”
“It’s fine, you come first. Looking at you, it seems this will be over quickly anyway.”
Dien, who cleanly dismissed Asner’s bluff, looked at him as if he were insignificant.
Feeling that cold gaze, Asner crumpled his face.
“Arrogant brat. I’ll teach you a lesson!”
Dien was exactly who the knight cadets had been targeting. Asner erased his sickening smile and charged toward Dien with a large movement.
Hidden within his movement was the intention to knock Dien down and humiliate him in one go.
Asner’s deep thrusting attack.
It was an attack that a swordsman unaccustomed to the blade could never avoid. Although it was an attack that didn’t consider what came after, a person like Dien, who hadn’t learned swordsmanship, would most likely be sent flying by this strike.
However, his expectation was brilliantly missed.
*Tak.*
No sign of panic appeared on Dien’s face as he leisurely avoided Asner’s attack.
‘You really take me for a fool.’
Dien let out a laugh at the honest attack whose intention was glaringly obvious.
Even while watching his opponent’s sword, Dien constantly thought of the swordsmanship he had mastered, and he did not let his posture falter for even a moment so that a beautiful sound could emerge from his own sword.
“What!”
Instead, it was Asner who stumbled. Because the tip of his sword hadn’t been blocked, his movement had become even larger. Sensing a crisis, he tried to retreat, but Dien’s gracefully moving wooden sword had already reached his wrist.
*Thwack! Thwack!*
Soon enough, Dien’s wooden sword struck Asner’s wrist, and at the same time, Dien grabbed the nape of Asner’s neck—which was leaned forward due to his shifted center of gravity—and slammed him into the ground.
*Crash!*
Seeing Asner fall unsightly beneath the platform, everyone’s mouths, including the knight cadets, hung wide open.
“My goodness.”
“How…”
It had happened in an instant.
The knight cadets were beyond shocked, and a few with good eyes rubbed their own as they recalled Dien’s fluid and natural technique.
Asner was a top-tier student with excellent skills even among the knight cadets. No matter how much he let his guard down, it was rare for him to lose his balance and fall.
Yet, the sight unfolding before their eyes was also a clear fact.
“He probably just made a mistake because he was careless… Surely…”
It must have been a fluke. There was no way a knight cadet majoring in swordsmanship could lose to an administrative student.
The knight cadets desperately began to deny what had already happened.
“To think he would make a mistake in a duel against Master Dien, of all people…!”
The knight cadets began to let out low groans, their expressions twisting.
“Oh… is it over already? I thought someone of your skill would be able to respond to a counter-attack of this level… My apologies.”
As the saying goes, what goes around comes around. The faces of the knight cadets turned beet red as they were mocked in the exact same manner they had used.
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