Chapter 413

Book 1 Chapter 413

413.

Aina extended her perceptions to the absolute maximum using her energy.

‘It’s impossible to tell which one is genuine.’

The quartet of sorceries Ju-en had combined consisted of Stealth, Ice Clone, Explosion, and Mana Distribution.

Stealth forced her to keep her awareness heightened, rapidly building up exhaustion.

By concealing her true self amid the frozen duplicates, she deterred Aina from blindly striking at them due to the threat of explosive magic, while simultaneously disrupting any attempts to track her via energy detection by utilizing mana distribution.

It was, quite simply, flawless execution.

Aina narrowed her gaze.

‘The spellcaster’s exact position eludes me, however…’

Whir—! gleam!

As a torrent of potent energy gathered, Ju-en launched a magic bullet spell directly at Aina.

Aina’s amber eyes gleamed.

Crash—!

Employing an Aura Step, she dodged the projectile as it roared past at incredible velocity.

‘As soon as you launch an offensive, your hiding spot is revealed.’

Whoosh—!

She lunged toward the origin of the spell, moving with a swiftness that defied the naked eye.

Any hesitation would allow her opponent to vanish into the duplicate illusions once more.

Refusing to grant her that opportunity, Aina sought to bring the practice match to a swift conclusion.

Closing the gap in a heartbeat, Aina drove her blade forward without a trace of reluctance.

Thrust!

“Gah?”

With her shoulder impaled, Ju-en gasped in pain.

Shimmer—!

The Stealth spell dissolved away.

“This is the end,” Aina remarked quietly, looking down at the shivering Ju-en whose face was hidden.

Hearing this, Ju-en froze for a second before raising her gaze with a soft grin.

“Hardly.”

“…!”

Bright light! Boom—!

The frozen duplicate detonated violently.

Aina, though shielded by her Aura Armor, grimaced in shock.

‘But how…!’

Taking advantage of Aina’s sudden disorientation, a brilliant light flared.

Ju-en unleashed another strike directly at her.

“Ugh!”

Narrowly evading the incoming blow, Aina threw herself forward in another rush toward Ju-en.

“Incredible! Ju-en has seized control of the pace and is utterly overwhelming Aina!” Runba bellowed with intense excitement.

“Wow, I didn’t see that coming at all!” Illiana exclaimed, her eyes widening as she munched on popcorn while spectating the duel.

The general consensus had favored Aina to win, though most anticipated a tight contest.

Still, no one had foreseen Ju-en delivering such a flawlessly dominant display.

Turning her head toward the passing youth, Illiana called out, “Khal! Get me another tub of popcorn! The one with the caramel glaze!”

“Hey, I’m glad you’re enjoying it, but that’s your third serving. You’re going to turn into a gluttonous pig at this rate, you know?”

“Who are you calling a pig?” Vexed, Illiana swung a kick at Khal, who deftly and frustratingly slipped out of reach.

“Leo, how do things look from your perspective?” Khal inquired, walking over to Leo.

“Should she keep commanding the flow like this, Ju-en will take the victory,” Leo observed, his gaze locked onto the ongoing arena struggle. “Furthermore, reclaiming the upper hand won’t be a simple task for Aina in this particular bout.”

Ju-en Torbina was an exceptionally gifted individual, being the daughter of the Southern Magic Tower Lord.

She possessed the rare capability to manipulate all magical attributes, exhibiting a remarkably profound comprehension of each element.

On top of that, her internal reserves were vast, and her incantation speed was incredibly swift.

‘Rather than a sorcerer who relies on sheer destructive power, she is a conventional mage boasting exceptional balance.’

Her greatest strength lay in her ability to endlessly rain down spells of formidable strength.

Moreover, her versatility with numerous magical forms allowed her to adapt effectively to any circumstance.

When facing an opponent of that caliber, recovering the momentum after losing it is a grueling ordeal.

“However, the conclusion isn’t set in stone yet.”

Even as they spoke, Aina was swiftly slashing through Ju-en’s duplicates.

Each shattered ice clone triggered a detonation that washed over Aina repeatedly.

Yet, these impacts failed to inflict critical injuries upon her.

This was not due to any lack of potency in Ju-en’s incantations, for her spells carried substantial destructive force.

“Minor tactics aren’t very effective when dealing with an all-rounder magician like Ju-en.”

A spellcaster is at their absolute peak when defending a fortified position.

Consequently, establishing dominance for a mage involves turning the environment into a personal stronghold.

“But blindly rushing forward would only lead to self-destruction.” Leo observed Aina as she dropped into a lower posture. “Aina possesses the raw power required to smash through Ju-en’s defenses directly.”

“I see!” Khal murmured, folding his arms with a solemn look.

“To be fair, her natural disposition is to rely on instinct rather than deep calculation.”

To phrase it favorably, she was an individual who charged forward with unyielding determination; phrased harshly, she was merely a brute forcing her way through.

‘Yet, there are times when that exact type of adversary is the most daunting.’

Aina embodied that reality perfectly.

‘What a terrifying monster!’ Ju-en cursed silently from within her cloaked state.

Aina was systematically destroying the duplicates without uttering a word.

With every shattered illusion, she absorbed the brunt of an explosion and sustained minor injuries, yet her advance never faltered for a second.

‘There should be a limit to being this single-minded!’

To Aina, the harm inflicted by a single freezing replica might have seemed trivial.

Even so, small wounds would eventually mount into a debilitating burden if left to accumulate.

Faced with such a choice, an ordinary person would waver, but Aina exhibited zero reluctance.

She pressed onward, unblinking and entirely steadfast.

Her sole objective appeared to be the absolute destruction of any barrier in her path.

‘I knew this wouldn’t be sufficient to bring Aina down completely, but I never anticipated she would dismantle my stealth magic with such speed.’ Ju-en clicked her tongue in frustration and tightened her hold on her staff.

‘I must stall for time.’

Engaging in a straightforward melee was a guaranteed loss regardless.

To secure a win against Aina, Ju-en required a finishing strike.

While Ju-en’s spellcasting was remarkably powerful and could be unleashed in rapid succession, Aina was no ordinary opponent.

Her offenses were lethal enough to instantly overwhelm the majority of students at the knight academy, but Aina belonged to an entirely different league.

Furthermore, the velocity of Aina’s blade outpaced Ju-en’s magic.

‘She can effortlessly deflect and nullify my spells using her swordsmanship.’

Ju-en’s gaze tightened.

‘Even if a projectile connects, her Aura Armor will absorb the impact, preventing any real injury.’

Should that scenario play out, she would be left wide open to Aina’s retaliation.

In stark contrast to Aina, whose robust defenses could endure numerous spells, Ju-en would fall from a single clean hit.

‘If I cannot end this with a singular, definitive strike, I have already lost.’

Therefore, securing the necessary interval to ready a devastating trump card was imperative.

Ju-en squeezed her staff even harder.

Just as Aina moved to cleave through the final duplicate—

A bright light flashed!

Ju-en leveled her staff at Aina, expelling her internal reserves in a sudden burst.

Humming—! Gleam—!

A barrage of dense energy projectiles streaked toward Aina.

Right then, Aina’s golden eyes glinted fiercely.

Light! Roar—!

An upward slash of her blade unleashed a radiant golden wave.

Cleaving the spell perfectly down the middle, Aina broke through the remaining concealment and locked her gaze onto Ju-en, who was now exposed.

“I’ve spotted you.”

Without a moment’s delay, Aina bounded toward Ju-en.

Faced with the incoming threat, Ju-en immediately deployed her offensive.

Spells cascaded wildly from glowing arrays materialized in midair.

Aina’s brilliant eyes narrowed as she tightened her grip on the hilt, executing a powerful sweeping strike against the oncoming barrage.

Boom! Thunder—!

An endless series of magical bursts detonated harmlessly in the sky.

“Again!” Ju-en cried out, drawing upon her reserves to unleash another chaotic onslaught.

“Oh no! Ju-en is burning through her resources with highly reckless attacks! Deploying spells of that magnitude consecutively will deplete even her massive reserves in no time!” Runba commentated with rising panic.

“Her initial cloaking strategy was clever, but…”

“The circumstances are simply stacked against Ju-en Torbina. Had this duel taken place in an environment with ample cover, such as a dense forest or a cityscape, the playing field would be far more level.”

“Ultimately, a direct clash between a close-range specialist from the knight course and a traditional sorcerer usually ends up like this.”

Murmurs of disappointment and pity echoed from the older students watching.

Accompanied by a brilliant golden arc from Aina’s sword, Ju-en’s latest spell was countered once more.

“Phew… gasp…”

Ju-en panted heavily, her breathing ragged from the extreme strain of over-casting.

A thin trickle of crimson escaped from the side of her lips, a consequence of overextending her mana circuits.

She had hit her ceiling.

Ju-en recognized this truth on an instinctual level.

Conversely, Aina appeared largely unaffected.

Despite taking multiple explosions head-on, her state was vastly superior to Ju-en’s exhausted condition.

“A barrage of basic attacks relying purely on volume will not be enough to overcome me,” Aina stated, allowing the tip of her blade to rest toward the ground. “You are merely delaying the inevitable. Yield the match.”

“There is no way I am surrendering to an individual who constantly looks down on everyone else, acting as if we are completely irrelevant,” Ju-en spat back.

“I have never looked down on anyone,” Aina responded, casting her eyes downward. “My focus is entirely fixed on my personal goals.”

“That behavior is exactly what looking down on others means!” Ju-en ground her teeth in frustration.

When Aina initially claimed the role of class representative, Ju-en had felt a quiet irritation, yet she could not deny her rival’s competence.

The prowess Aina demonstrated during the trials for entry far surpassed her own capabilities.

At that juncture, she had to begrudgingly accept Aina’s superiority.

Havidan and Sasha harbored similar sentiments.

They had both set their sights on the representative role, dedicating their efforts toward matching and surpassing Aina.

‘Aina Baydona! Don’t get comfortable, because I will be taking that representative title from you shortly!’

Yet, when confronted with that spirited declaration of war, Aina had merely responded with complete apathy.

‘The position of representative means nothing to me.’

‘What? If that’s the case, why do you bother taking the top spot?’

‘To earn the acknowledgment of Leo senior. You are welcome to the representative title if you wish. I care nothing for it.’

‘Hold on. I have absolutely no desire to inherit the title as a handout, understand? I intend to best you fairly and earn it!’

‘Then feel free to consider yourself the victor.’

‘Pardon?’

“I am going to best you right here,” Ju-en proclaimed.

“In your current condition, that is an impossibility. Your body has given everything it has left.” Aina shook her head slowly, dismissing the statement.

Observing her opponent’s reaction, Ju-en let out a weak chuckle.

“Surpassing one’s boundaries—isn’t that the core tenet of our academy?”

“…”

“And it is precisely because your vision is restricted to what lies directly ahead of you…”

“…?”

“…that you fall right into a trap.”

“…!”

As Ju-en gestured toward the ground with her finger, Aina’s eyes grew wide, and she quickly shifted her gaze downward.

‘What is this?’

Her lower limbs were completely immobilized.

‘Concealed strands?’

Resembling an intricate arachnid web, fibers woven from pure energy had ensnared Aina.

Clack—!

Ju-en pointed her staff squarely at Aina.

“The frontal assault was merely a diversion! The actual goal was laying down this snare to secure you!”

‘When did she manage to pull this off…?’

This was Arachne, Ju-en’s signature spell.

It was a technique designed to lock an adversary’s feet in place using energy strands akin to a spider’s web.

Furthermore, once trapped within its grasp, any attempt to thrash around would only tighten the bindings.

Naturally, given a brief window, Aina would easily break free from such a restriction.

Be that as it may—

“A few moments are all I require!”

Ju-en’s internal energy erupted with massive force.

The pressure was entirely unlike her previous attacks.

“Maximum output!”

Boom—!

It felt as though a heavy cannon battery had fired.

The atmosphere nearby vibrated violently.

Aina’s gaze shook as the devastating spell materialized immediately before her.

Crash! Kaboom—!

The resulting detonation was so intense that the platform itself seemed to dissolve.

Ju-en stared into the dense plume of smoke and debris that billowed upward.

Swoosh—!

Abruptly, Aina burst forth, piercing straight through the obscuring cloud.

Her clothes and skin were heavily battered, yet Aina’s amber eyes blazed with undiminished intensity.

She had successfully withstood Ju-en’s ultimate technique and closed the distance.

“I figured a single strike wouldn’t be enough to put you down!” Ju-en shouted.

“What?”

Aina’s expression filled with genuine shock at her rival’s exclamation.

Ju-en, extending a single finger toward Aina, discharged the final remnants of her energy.

Coughing up a splatter of blood, she nevertheless projected a final magical projectile.

Bang—!

“Gah!”

Taking the blunt force of the projectile directly, Aina tumbled roughly across the arena floor.

‘This… is my absolute threshold…’

Leaning heavily on her blade like a walking stick, Aina forced herself upright.

She clenched her jaw, desperately trying to force her limbs to move, but her muscles refused to cooperate.

Ju-en drew closer, her finger still leveled forward.

Thud… thud…

Accepting the imminent outcome, Aina shut her eyes and lowered her head in resignation.

When the anticipated spell failed to strike, however, she opened her eyes and raised her face once more.

Before her stood Ju-en, her vision glassy and unseeing, her shaky hands still pointed directly at Aina.

Right at that moment—

Flop—

Ju-en lost consciousness and fell forward.

Mel stepped forward, verified that Ju-en was completely blacked out, and loudly announced the verdict.

“The victor, Aina Baydona!”

“Whoaaaaa!”

“That was an incredibly tight finish!”

“Incredible! If the terrain hadn’t given Aina Baydona the upper hand, the outcome might have been entirely reversed!”

Exclamations of awe rippled through the crowd.

Aina stared down at the inert form of Ju-en.

Her opponent had broken past her physical thresholds a long time ago.

Even in that broken state, she had relentlessly pressured Aina.

Aina clenched her teeth tightly.

She compared herself, who had essentially conceded the moment exhaustion set in, to Ju-en, who had pushed through agony to claim victory.

Had Ju-en maintained her consciousness for just a fraction longer—

‘The true loss is mine.’

Her inner self churned with emotion.

She had never imagined she would be pushed to such extreme lengths.

Her sole aspiration had been to demonstrate her absolute peak performance to earn Leo’s acknowledgement.

Yet…

‘This is pathetic.’

Plodding forward with heavy steps—

Despite the roar of the audience, Aina kept her face downcast.

The memory of Ju-en pushing far past her physical boundaries flashed in her mind.

Similarly, she recalled Luke, an individual who constantly battled against his own limitations.

Was she capable of that level of sheer resolve?

Aina’s features twisted into a grimace as she stared down at her palms.

To secure the validation of Leo, claim the heritage of the Sword Saint, and exact vengeance upon Tartarus—those were the pillars of her drive.

Up until this very encounter, Aina had firmly believed that attaining raw power alone would guarantee Leo’s approval.

And yet…

‘Can someone like me… truly earn the respect of Leo senior acting in this manner?’