Chapter 412

Book 1 Chapter 412

412.

Clack— Clack— Clack—

The rhythmic strike of footwear reverberated through the stone corridor leading out to the grand arena.

Juen crossed paths with Luke, the triumphant combatant, midway through the passage.

“I caught your performance out there—it was absolutely spectacular, wasn’t it?”

Juen offered a playful wink.

Luke met her gaze with a humble grin.

“I simply gave it everything I had.”

“Oh, come now, it wasn’t just a matter of ‘giving it your all,’ was it? Spill it, what’s the trick?”

“Endless, grueling practice, I suppose.”

Luke shifted his gaze toward the open horizon as he spoke.

‘I’ve heard plenty of rumors regarding how merciless Senior Leo’s training regimens are… but it clearly isn’t an exaggeration.’

“Setting that aside, how much longer do you intend to speak so formally to me? We are in the exact same class.”

“Pardon? But Miss Juen, you are the noble successor to the Southern Magic Tower Lord.”

“What relevance does that have when we are both just ordinary academy students?”

“Hmph!” Juen let out a soft snort, tossing her head slightly.

“We’ve been attending classes together this entire time, haven’t we? Our camaraderie goes all the way back to orientation day, so maintaining such stiff speech feels entirely unnatural.”

“Understood. I will adopt a more casual tone moving forward.”

“You should have done so from the very start.”

Hearing Luke’s concession, Juen nodded her head, looking thoroughly pleased with the outcome.

“Show them what you’ve got.”

“Naturally. It goes without saying that I have every intention of claiming victory.”

Responding with a radiant beam, Juen strode confidently toward the far threshold of the passageway.

A brief moment later.

Halting just before the brilliantly illuminated colosseum, Juen drew a deep, centering breath.

Exhaling sharply, she delivered a firm slap to both of her cheeks.

‘Do not let the pressure get to you, Juen Torbina. This isn’t like you at all.’

Ever since her initial enrollment, Juen had maintained an undisputed position as the premier scholar within the Magic Department.

Yet, when taking the entire first-year class into account, she had been forced to relinquish the absolute peak.

The obstacle was none other than Aina Badeyna, the unshakeable, overwhelming titan of the freshman class.

As the great-granddaughter of the legendary Sword Saint who had dominated a historic era, her bloodline alone was devastatingly prestigious.

To make matters worse, Juen was a classic, traditional spellcaster.

In a strict one-on-one confrontation, the natural matchup placed her at a distinct disadvantage against Aina, who operated as a martial knight.

In many respects, this clash represented the definitive focal point of the current examination.

Even so, virtually no one among the spectators anticipated a victory for Juen.

Aina’s reputation was simply that insurmountable.

Despite her usual unwavering self-assurance, Juen could feel cold sweat forming on the palms of her hands from sheer tension.

Taking one final deep breath, she stepped forward into the entranceway.

-Juen Torbina is making her entry! Let us give her a thunderous welcome!

Waaahhhhhhhh—!

“Show them your power, young lady!”

“Bring home the win, Juen!”

Deafening cheers erupted from every corner of the stadium.

Foremost among the crowd, the upperclassmen from the Magic Department were vocalizing their passionate encouragement for her.

These individuals were none other than scholars affiliated directly with the Southern Magic Tower.

Juen offered them a brilliant, dazzling smile before directing her steps toward the center stage.

Upon the platform, Aina was already waiting, her eyes serenely shut, maintaining her characteristic emotionless visage.

Juen felt a distinct tremor in her legs as she closed the distance to the stage.

Though she had boldly proclaimed her certainty of success the moment Aina was revealed as her opening opponent, shaking off the crushing weight of reality was proving difficult.

Juen recognized better than anyone the sheer disadvantage a mage faced in a solitary duel against a knight.

She had merely bluffed and projected an aura of absolute certainty.

By employing a form of self-hypnosis, she had convinced herself of her own triumph and executed flawless preparations.

Yet now, standing face-to-face with the reality, her heart hammered so violently it felt as though it might burst from her chest.

‘You are entirely capable of this, Juen Torbina. Stand firm.’

Juen squeezed her hands into tight fists and released them, regulating her breathing.

A chill bead of sweat traced its way down her spine.

“Juen!”

A highly recognizable voice cut through the din.

Shifting her gaze, she spotted Kal, who had been busy managing the event merchandise.

Kal had pushed his way to the absolute vanguard of the spectator railings, shouting at the top of his lungs.

“Cast aside your anxieties! Victory is within your grasp!”

“…Senior.”

A faint, appreciative smile began to form on Juen’s lips.

“No! Let me rephrase! You WILL triumph! You absolutely MUST win! I have wagered every single coin from this tournament’s merchandise sales on your victory in the match predictions! If you stumble here, I am utterly bankrupt!”

The warmth instantly vanished from Juen’s expression, leaving her face entirely deadpan.

Inhaling deeply, Juen called back through the noise:

“You realize you are obligated to treat me to an incredibly lavish dinner once I win this, correct?”

“Without a doubt!”

Kal flashed a wide grin, thrusting a thumb into the air.

Juen abruptly snapped her gaze away from Kal and stepped firmly onto the dueling platform.

By the time her feet touched the stage, her nervousness had completely dissipated.

A subtle, confident smirk played upon her lips.

‘Precisely. Victory is mine to take. Have I not spent all this time preparing for this exact triumph?’

Juen’s deep brown eyes gleamed with intense focus.

Thud—

Juen took her position directly across from Aina.

Aina, who had been quietly resting her eyes, slowly opened them to look at Juen.

The sharp gazes of the two young women locked tightly in midair.

-Sensational! The opening round’s blockbuster match that everyone has been dying to see! No, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to label this the single greatest confrontation of this entire promotional examination!

Runba commenced his play-by-play analysis with an incredibly animated delivery.

-We have a monumental clash between Aina Badeyna, the premier student and class representative of the Knight Department, versus Juen Torbina, the undisputed top student of the Magic Department! Haha! Regardless of who emerges victorious, it serves as a massive win for the Summoning Department! Wahahahahaha!

-Runba Tess, who granted you permission to deliver such blatantly biased commentary, dragging departmental rivalries into the official broadcast?

-Hieeeek?!

Harlind’s frosty voice sliced through the microphone.

Immediately following the reprimand, Sedjen, who possessed an insatiable desire for the spotlight, swiftly snatched the broadcasting device.

-I simply cannot tolerate such unrefined, prejudiced reporting! It entirely lacks sophistication! On that note, I shall assume control of the broadcasting duties henceforth. Citizens, feast your ears upon my elegant narration…!

-Remove him from the stage.

-Mmph! Mmph! Mmph!

Harlind was absolutely unwilling to permit a scenario where a supervising professor of the second-year curriculum interfered with a first-year proceeding.

After Sedjen was promptly hauled away by the surrounding student proctors, Runba received a stern admonishment and was barely permitted to resume his role at the microphone.

Once the chaotic interlude settled, Mel approached the center of the arena.

“I trust that both of you will deliver a contest devoid of any lingering regrets.”

Mel succinctly reiterated the structural guidelines before retreating to a safe distance.

Juen, crossing her arms defiantly, took a profound breath.

“Habidan Birshen! Shasha Sienne Lodren! And Luke Eldar!”

Her sudden, booming exclamation instantly brought a dead silence over the noisy stadium seats.

“Just you wait!”

Juen extended a sharp finger, pointing directly at her opponent.

“You are next on my list!”

-Oooooh! The freshman powerhouse Juen Torbina! Out of nowhere, she has thrown down the gauntlet to all of her primary contenders!

Runba roared into his microphone, thoroughly energized by the unexpected theatricality.

“I am seizing the title of class representative! Furthermore, I shall become the upcoming student council president!”

Having delivered her proud manifesto, Juen leveled the pointed tip of her magical staff squarely at Aina.

The crowd erupted into thunderous cheers, completely captivated by Juen’s audacious pronouncements.

“Ooooh!”

“Now that is spectacular!”

“You have my full backing, Juen!”

Faced with this sudden declaration of war, Aina merely stared back at Juen, her face maintaining its characteristic, porcelain doll-like neutrality.

Juen shouted across the distance:

“Brace yourself!”

“It makes no difference to me.”

“What did you say?”

“The role of class representative, or the position of student council president. I possess no particular desire for either.”

Aina unsheathed her blade with an entirely flat, mechanical tone.

“If you stand in the path of my objectives, I will simply strike you down. That is the entirety of the matter.”

Observing Aina’s detached demeanor, Juen ground her teeth in mounting frustration.

“I truly despise you, Aina Badeyna.”

Mel positioned a metallic coin carefully atop her thumb.

“That insufferable attitude of looking down upon the goals everyone else strives for!”

Ding—! Whizzzzzz!

“That infuriating way of speaking as though no one else in the room matters!”

The coin rotated rapidly, carving a path through the wind.

“I absolutely loathe it!”

Clink—!

The exact millisecond the tossed coin made contact with the arena floor, a blinding golden streak exploded toward Juen.

Right at that critical juncture.

Whoosh—!

Juen’s entire physical form vanished into thin air.

‘Concealment magic.’

Aina’s hyper-attuned perception immediately radiated outward, blanketing the entirety of the platform.

Aina was intimately aware that high-tier stealth applications were among Juen’s greatest proficiencies.

She also recognized that Juen’s specific execution of stealth was remarkably polished and notoriously difficult to counter.

With Juen masking her physical form and completely suppressing her presence, tracking her location would normally prove an immense challenge, even for someone of Aina’s caliber.

‘However, that tactic only functions effectively if she had established the stealth parameters prior to the engagement.’

Aina’s brilliant golden eyes swept across the arena floor with lethal efficiency.

The disparity between anticipating a technique and being caught unawares was monumental.

Her highly trained martial instincts instantly pinned down Juen’s exact position.

Thrust—!

The precise moment Aina’s blade pierced through Juen’s apparent position.

Flash—! KABOOOM—!

A cataclysmic detonation ripped through the space.

“What is your assessment of this confrontation?”

Chen Sia inquired, turning her gaze toward Chloe.

“It will undeniably be an uphill battle for Miss Juen to secure a victory, wouldn’t you agree?”

Chen Sia offered her perspective plainly.

A formal one-on-one duel pitching a traditional spellcaster directly against an elite knight.

Operating under the assumption that their fundamental capabilities were comparable, the knight archetype maintained an overwhelming structural advantage.

Furthermore, Aina stood unchallenged as the pinnacle of the entire freshman demographic.

It was an inherently lopsided battle for Juen to wage.

Chloe observed her first-year underclassman enduring the fierce struggle upon the stage.

While Juen did not fall under her direct mentorship, she was a junior by a single year, causing Chloe to keep a watchful eye on her progress.

‘She even went so far as to challenge me openly during the practical admissions test.’

Chloe was well aware that Juen possessed an extraordinary level of raw competence.

Even so, Chloe shared the sentiment that carving out a victory would be an immense challenge for her junior.

“Leo, what is your take on the situation?”

“Analyzing the matter purely objectively, Aina’s triumph is a virtual certainty.”

Leo articulated his thoughts without hesitation.

“However, a multitude of unpredictable elements can manifest in a direct duel. Particularly when one considers that Juen’s personal strategist is Kal. There is absolutely no scenario where he failed to construct a counter-strategy specifically designed for Aina.”

“That is an excellent point; Juen has the backing of Kal.”

Though his practical execution of magic might be severely lacking, Kal possessed an exceptional aptitude for dismantling an opponent’s patterns and drafting meticulous countermeasures.

That specific brilliance was the sole reason Kal had managed to survive within the academy hierarchy up to this point.

“Sir Kal is indeed remarkably adept at formulating schemes to catch adversaries completely off-guard.”

Chen Sia nodded in concurrence, envisioning Kal’s distinct methods.

“Kal does not represent the sole wild card here. There is also the fundamental issue regarding Aina herself.”

“An issue regarding Aina?”

Chloe tilted her head slightly in confusion.

In contrast, Chen Sia nodded slowly, as though the realization had instantly clicked.

“Ah, indeed. Miss Aina’s internal perspective could easily prove to be her most devastating vulnerability.”

“What exactly do you mean by that?”

Chen Sia offered a subtle smile in response to Chloe’s prompting.

“If she fails to acknowledge Miss Juen for the true threat she represents, Miss Aina may find herself facing a surprisingly difficult path to victory.”

Processing Chen Sia’s breakdown, Chloe reflected for a brief moment before her expression lit up with sudden realization.

She vividly recalled a previous conversation with her closest companion, Celia, concerning her respective student.

‘She mentioned that Aina pays absolutely zero attention to the rest of the freshman class.’

Juen, who had spent an entire academic term focusing every ounce of her being on dismantling Aina, stood against an opponent who hadn’t given her a second thought.

This profound disparity in psychological preparation was bound to manifest significantly.

Right at that precise instant.

Flash—! Bang—!

A blinding eruption of radiance and a ground-shaking blast materialized simultaneously.

The entire surface of the dueling platform was instantly encased in a thick sheet of frost.

Chen Sia’s eyes gleamed with renewed curiosity.

“What specific classification of sorcery is she employing there?”

“She has successfully amalgamated cryomancy with explosive property manipulation.”

Chloe identified the underlying framework of the spell instantly.

‘An elemental ice clone.’

It happened to be one of Chloe’s own signature arcane techniques.

‘Three distinct spells… No, wait. Has she actually synthesized four independent magical formulas?’

Chloe found herself thoroughly astonished.

Spell amalgamation.

It was an advanced methodology of magical enhancement that compounded overall destructive yield by seamlessly weaving multiple distinct incantations into a singular manifestation.

Leo let out a quiet chuckle.

‘Up to a threshold of two concurrent spells, an individual can generally force a success through sheer, unyielding effort.’

The true wall manifests once a caster attempts to bridge a third.

‘Because from the third layer onward, one enters a territory governed purely by innate genius and abstract sensory perception.’

Fusing three spells simultaneously also represented Leo’s personal threshold.

Chloe and Abbad, who reigned as the undisputed elite scholars of the second-year Magic Department, similarly possessed a documented maximum of three layers.

Chelsea lacked the specific cognitive flexibility required for spell amalgamation, leaving her capped at a maximum of two.

‘Well, when looking at Chloe, Abbad, and Chelsea, there remains significant room for future refinement.’

For the sake of context, Luna had previously demonstrated the ability to interweave seven independent spells simultaneously.

‘Then again, that individual is an absolute statistical anomaly and a literal powerhouse of raw mana.’

For Juen, a mere first-year student, to successfully stabilize a four-layer amalgamation was an astonishing feat.

“It appears her ultimate talent lies within the domain of spell synthesis. I was entirely unaware.”

Chloe murmured in genuine awe, her gaze locked onto the spectacle.

‘How will you respond to this development, Aina Badeyna?’

Leo crossed his arms across his chest, peering intently down at the unfolding combat.

‘If you refuse to look your challenger directly in the eyes, you will find yourself unable to claim victory.’

Crackle—

Aina casually flexed her posture, shattering the layer of frost that had adhered to her frame.

Despite being caught at ground zero of a high-yield cryogenic blast, she appeared entirely uninjured, showing no signs of meaningful trauma.

Aina’s refined perception suddenly registered the distinct signatures of multiple entities.

‘Every single one of these presences identifies as Juen Torbina.’

Clink—!

Aina adjusted her fingers around the hilt of her weapon, tightening her stance.

“Is this the full extent of your preparation?”

“Not by a long shot.”

Juen’s voice echoed from an unidentifiable position within the mist.

“I have conceptualized an immense array of strategies specifically engineered to pull you down from your pedestal.”

Juen ground her teeth together with fierce intensity.

“What you are witnessing is merely the opening act! You would do well to anticipate what follows.”

Fueled by an unyielding combat spirit, Juen’s voice rang out across the stadium:

“Because I intend to shatter your perfection utilizing every single ounce of my power!”