/
Finally, the day of the last test, <Man-to-man Combat Test>, had arrived.
After I entered the <Mana Barrier Hall>, where the tests would be held, I looked at the one who stopped me in my way.
“Did you come to say hi before the fight?”
Michael appeared before me in his signature swagger and cocky face while looking more confident than usual.
“Your recent academy life has been pretty fun, right?”
“What?”
“Am I wrong? I heard your popularity is pretty high. Everyone’s trying their best to be on your good side.”
“……”
Wow, what was this?
It looked like he thought I stole the fame that should’ve gone to him.
Fame.
Even though I had no interest in that sort of thing…
I wanted to respond with some provocation.
“How about you?”
“What?”
“Don’t you want to be on my good side before it’s too late?”
As I showed an innocent and naive smile, Michael’s forehead started to crack.
“…You little…”
And the rage of this lad,
“You. Don’t you know who I am? No matter how good your marks are, in the end, it’s my father who has the Radian Kingdom’s magic world in his hand! The one who needs to be on the good side isn’t me, but you! Do you understand?!”
Exploded spectacularly.
Like, Boom!
“…I’m not deaf. Can you say that a bit softly?”
He was right.
The influence of the ‘Galehill’ family in the Radian Kingdom was enormous.
Even the academy, which should be pure of influence, was still within reach of the ‘Galehill’ family.
And it got worse in the Royal Court and the Magic Tower.
However, what could I do?
My end goal wasn’t ‘the magic world of the Radian Kingdom’.
It was ‘the whole continent’.
I asked while smiling brightly,
“Sure, that can also be called influence if you say so. Even though it’s all rotten and corrupt power. But Michael… are ‘you’ included in that influence you’re talking about?”
“…What?”
“Don’t you need to be recognised as a magician to be accepted as a ‘real’ Galehill family member? But what about you?”
Since a long time ago, bad rumours had circulated about House Galehill.
They cruelly treated and abandoned family members who were talentless in magic, and if another family’s kid showed talent, they would take them and raise them as one of their own.
Also, to prove their ability in magic, they must graduate as the top of the class.
In this sense, Michael Galehill hadn’t been accepted by his family yet.
“…My father’s recognition?”
As if my words hit the mark, Michael Galehill’s face soon became crumpled in anger and started to grind his teeth.
“That recognition. I just need to get it today after defeating you.”
“Really? I’m looking forward to it.”
As I twirled around, Michael said one more thing behind my back.
“Ruin.”
“What?”
“The disrespectful behaviour you’ve shown today. I’ll definitely make you regret it.”
“……”
Just how much had he prepared to be so confident?
I just shrugged my shoulders at Michael.
“Sure. Do whatever you want.”
* * *
The most important point in a Magician vs Magician spar was…
Casting speed.
And on top of that, the discernment to deal with the opponent when they start casting a Defense spell.
However, for this sparring, I needed to look at it from a different perspective.
Because, no matter what I did, I was still a magician who casts in the ‘melee’ range.
I needed to look at this from a Knight vs Magician standpoint.
“The ones Draka had the most trouble facing were High-ranking magicians. Especially magicians who were good at Restriction magic to keep distance from him.”
Restriction magic that hindered my movement.
Freezing magic that froze my body.
Spells that summoned tornadoes combined with other magics that could stop knights from engaging in close combat.
And so on.
“Your opponents will know you will try and fight them in close combat. If they prepare for it, the fights won’t be easy.”
Just as Straang said, if Michael had prepared well for this fact, the situation would definitely become complicated.
However, on the other hand,
“You’re saying it’s possible if I can get close?”
“Well, yeah. Since they’ll fall to one punch.”
If I could approach them, it’d be my victory.
I stretched my arms above my head and looked around at my surroundings.
The distance between Michael and me was around 100 meters.
Pr/n: approx 110yd
If I wanted to narrow this distance efficiently, I needed to use the terrain features effectively.
The <Mana Barrier Hall> was one of the prides of the academy.
The benefits included all flow of magic power here being controlled and the lethality of attacks being reduced by 99%, so safe sparring was possible.
It also contained various terrain features that could be used by magicians to simulate realistic combat.
“Pillars, boulders, platforms…’
Other than the myriad of terrain features, they also had a few small dirt mounds, so it was an area where we could fight using real tactics.
I prepared for the spar by memorising the position of these features.
To understand the surroundings and use them for my benefit.
This was a basic combat tactic.
At that point, a professor who had stepped in as the judge spoke up.
“Is everyone ready?”
“Yes.”
As soon as I replied, Michael, who had his eyes closed, slowly opened them, and nodded.
Michael and I locked eyes simultaneously.
* * *
Reaper Scans
Translator – Jreaming
Proofreader – Artethrax
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* * *
“……Eh?”
Michael Galehill.
He stared with a fierce gaze, and didn’t conceal his killing intent.
However,
‘Something’s off…’
There was an unusual atmosphere around him.
From his eyes, he looked anxious about his surroundings while also being drenched in a thick aura of madness, and the tips of his fingers were shivering.
I knew.
That Michael may have looked to be a consistently arrogant and cocky guy.
But he actually was a coward who only acted confident to hide the fact that he had a timid personality.
No matter how much he hated me, he was not one to show such insane killing intent.
I activated my ‘Player’s Eye’ and read Michael’s Status Window.
And that’s how…
I figured out why Michael was showing such an appearance.
Michael Galehill
3rd-Class Magician
Potential: High
Specialty: Double Casting
Special Condition: Berserk (Hidden)
‘Berserk’
That category only appeared in the Status Window under one circumstance.
It was when someone consumed an unstable compound during Potion Crafting class.
On top of that, with ‘Hidden’ written next to it, I could easily guess that he took an illegal potion and drank another potion to hide the fact that he drank the first potion.
The one who checked for potion doping before the test was Professor Elrick.
Who is the uncle of Michael Galehill.
‘Damn it…’
This was the reason Michael was unnaturally confident.
It all started to make sense.
Then, the judge continued to talk.
“Ok. The only magic banned in the spar is black magic. All magic based on the 4 Elements are allowed and we consider the level of magic that hits the opponent to measure your score. However, if you use a spell with the intent to kill, you will instantly forfeit. Any questions?”
I swiftly raised my hand.
“I have a question.”
“What is it?”
“If one were to consume an illegal potion and this fact is discovered, what happens?”
“They forfeit their right to take the text and is failed. Depending on the severity, an examination to determine expulsion could also proceed. But, why do you need to know?”
“It’s nothing.”
Michael’s eyes narrowed at my question.
It was like he was saying,
‘You, how did you…?’
Huhu.
Why should I answer that?
That’s right.
The only thing I had was nothing but a ‘hunch’.
There’s a limit to asking them to believe this ‘Status Window’ that only I could see.
That’s why, for now, I needed to find evidence.
Conclusive evidence.
“Ok. Everyone to their positions.”
At the judge’s command, Michael and I both stood in our ready positions on the circular disk.
And then, NNNNNNGGGGG—
The batteries that had come to life coupled with the sound of mana resonating, and the judge shouted in a loud voice,
“Sparring, begin!”
“Ruin! Die!”
The first to act was Michael Galehill.
* * *
The magic Michael had cast against me.
Frozen Tree.
The branches that bursted out from the ground tangled the opponent’s ankles and slowly reached out and around their whole body, restraining them.
It was the most basic Nature Type Restraining magic, but the effects were significant.
In a single moment of hesitation…
Ssssssshuk.
The branches shot out from the ground in an instant and wrapped around my ankles.
It was hard to believe even with my eyes how fast it was.
Michael Galehill’s first strike had successfully hit.
“The next one will end you!”
After determining I was perfectly bound, Michael started to cast Flame magic.
However,
Shuk.
I lifted my leg out of the binding with a kick.
And then,
Crack! Crunch!
“W-what?”
The branches made a crunch sound and all the roots started to break away from my ankles.
Michael wasn’t the only one surprised.
“H-how did he untie them so easily?”
“Did Michael’s spell not hit properly?”
“……”
No.
The magic hit its target perfectly.
However, there was a variable that Michael had failed to consider.
My strength.
<Strenght: 1200> +++
<Agility: 100>
<Wisdom: 1550>
At some point, my strength had increased to 1200.
I didn’t really know what strength of 1200 meant, but after gaining 300 strength from using <The Ogre’s Rage>, I was able to fight the ogre on equal footing.
The <Mana Barrier Hall> could suppress my magic, but it couldn’t suppress my natural strength.
That was why breaking a few branches was really nothing to stress about.
“You bastard… Die!”
Seeing me easily nullify his own magic, after being shocked for a split second, Michael finished casting his Flame magic and poured it out on me.
“Fire Breath!”
Fwoooosh!
Fire Breath.
A huge skull materialized above Michael’s head, and that skull started to spew out burning fire.
“F-fast!”
“Was Michael always this strong?”
It was an area attack spell that was hard to dodge, and this time too, the casting speed was faster than normal.
I dodged this with the Haste spell and took cover behind a pillar I saw before.
As I hid behind the pillar, Michael taunted me, madness in his voice.
“Ruin! Are you going to keep hiding? L-looks like you only know how to hide!”
However, I did not reply and started thinking while standing outside his range.
‘The casting speed became faster…’
This meant he drank a potion that increased his mana collection rate and quickened his mana empowerment.
Also, the area affected by his Flame magic had also widened.
‘Increase in casting speed and magic power’.
As someone who had gotten full marks in all the written tests in the last five years, there wasn’t a potion that I didn’t know about.
After a brief calculation, a few potions came to mind.
“Get out here nowwww! Ruin! Let’s do a real battleeee!”
“……”
Seeing Michael being excessively more excited than usual, I could pinpoint it to one specific potion.
‘Herb of Awakening, Burning Flower’.
If it was that, it could explain everything.
The side effects of this potion.
Shaky hands, excessive endorphins leading to excitement, suppression of pain receptors, and lowering their ability to distinguish between friend and foe.
They all matched up perfectly.
There was only one thing left to check.
‘Pain suppression’.
After I finished my calculations, I walked out from behind the pillar and said to Michael,
“Michael, I thought you were too confident… So, it’s because of that?”
“What?”
“Burning Flower.”
“……”
With that phrase, Michael’s expression crumpled like paper.
And I smirked, looking at that Michael.
“I’m coming, Michael.”
I threw my body at him.