Chapter 412
Tap- Tap- Tap-
The sound of shoes echoed through the hallway leading to the arena.
Juen ran into Luke, the victor, in the corridor.
“I watched the match. You were awesome!”
Juen winked.
Luke smiled back.
“I worked hard Juen-nim.”
“Hard work is an understatement. What’s your secret?”
“Hellish training, I guess.”
Juen stared at Luke’s distant gaze.
‘I’ve heard a lot about Leo Sunbae’s harsh training… it must be no joke.’
“By the way, how long are you going to keep using honorifics with a fellow student?”
“Huh? But you’re the daughter of the Southern Magic Tower Lord.”
“What does that matter? We’re both students.”
Juen scoffed lightly.
“We’ve been going to school together anyway, right? We’ve been close since enrollment. It’s uncomfortable.”
“Then I’ll speak casually from now on.”
“You should’ve done that sooner.”
Juen nodded, satisfied.
“Good luck.”
“Yeah I know. It’s obvious, but I plan to win.”
Juen smiled and walked toward the end of the hallway.
A moment later, standing before the brightly lit arena entrance, she took a deep breath.
Then she slapped her cheeks.
‘Don’t be nervous, Juen Torbina. This isn’t like you.’
Since entering the academy, Juen had been the undisputed top student in the Magic Department.
But when you looked at the entire freshman class, she couldn’t claim the top spot.
Because Aina Beidna existed—the immovable strongest freshman.
The great-granddaughter of the Sword Saint who carried an era on her shoulders.
Her lineage alone was extraordinary.
And Juen was a traditional mage.
In a one-on-one fight, she was at a disadvantage against a knight like Aina.
In a sense, this was the biggest match of the exam.
And almost no one predicted Juen’s victory.
Aina was that overwhelming.
Even Juen—always confident—found her palms slick with sweat.
She took another deep breath and headed for the entrance.
-Juen Torbina is entering! Please welcome her with cheers!
Waaaaaaah-!
“Miss, fighting!”
“Win, Juen!”
Cheers erupted from everywhere.
Among them, the Magic Department upperclassmen were especially loud.
They were students from the Southern Magic Tower.
Juen smiled at them and stepped into the arena.
Aina was already there, eyes closed, her expression as blank as ever.
Juen’s legs trembled as she walked out.
When Aina had been assigned as her first opponent, Juen had confidently said she would win.
But she couldn’t shake the pressure.
More than anyone, Juen knew she was at a disadvantage in a one-on-one fight.
So she bluffed. Acted confident.
She kept telling herself she could win and prepared thoroughly.
But the closer it got, the more it felt like her heart might burst.
‘You can do it, Juen Torbina. You can do it.’
Juen clenched and unclenched her fists and drew in a deep breath.
Cold sweat slid down her back.
“Juen!”
A familiar voice called out.
When she turned, she saw Carr, still selling goods.
Standing at the very front of the stands, Carr shouted at the top of his lungs.
“Don’t be nervous! You can win!”
“…Sunbae.”
Juen’s lips curved slightly.
“No! You will win! You have to win! I bet all the sales from this tournament on your win prediction! If you lose, I’m totally screwed!”
Juen’s face, which had softened for a moment, went cold.
She took a deep breath and said,
“You know you have to buy me something really expensive if I win, right?”
“Of course!”
Carr gave a thumbs-up, grinning.
Juen turned away and stepped up toward the arena.
Her nerves were gone now.
A faint smile lingered on her lips.
‘Right. I can win. I’ve been preparing to win, haven’t I?’
Juen’s brown eyes sparkled.
Step-
She stopped in front of Aina.
Aina, who had been standing with her eyes closed, opened them and looked at Juen.
The two girls’ gazes collided in the air.
-Now! The big match everyone’s been waiting for! No! The biggest match of this tournament exam!
Runba began in an excited voice.
-It’s a battle between Aina Beidna, the top of the freshman Knight Department and the class representative! Versus Juen Torbina, the top of the Magic Department! Well! Whoever wins, it’s good for the Summoning Department! Uwahahahaha!
-Runba Tess, who said you could do biased commentary by dragging departments into a freshman match?
-Hiiiiik?!
A cold voice cut in.
Then Sedgen—ever eager to butt in—snatched the microphone.
-I can’t leave this low-quality biased commentary alone! It’s not elegant! In that sense, I’ll be taking over from now on. Everyone, to my elegant commentary…!
-Drag him out.
-Mmph! Mmph! Mmph!
Professor Harrid would never tolerate a second-year general professor disrupting a freshman event.
Sedgen was hauled away by the surrounding students, and Runba—after being warned—barely returned to the commentary.
After the commotion, Mel stepped forward.
“I hope both of you have a match you won’t regret.”
After explaining the rules, Mel stepped back.
Juen, arms crossed, took a deep breath.
“Haviden Birsen! Sasha Sienne Lordren! And Luke Elda!”
Her sudden shout silenced the noisy arena for a moment.
“Wait for it!”
Juen pointed at Aina.
“Next is you guys!”
(T/N: Chilllllllls)
-Oooooh! Freshman Juen Torbina has suddenly declared war on her rivals!
Runba shouted, thrilled by the turn of events.
“I will take the position of class representative! And I will become the next student council president!”
Juen’s confident declaration drew cheers from everywhere.
“Oooooh!”
“Awesome!”
“I’m cheering for you! Juen!”
Aina stared at her with that doll-like face.
Juen shouted at Aina.
“Be prepared!”
“I’m not interested.”
“What?”
“I’m not interested in being class representative or student council president.”
Aina drew her sword in a dry voice.
“I’ll just knock down anyone who gets in my way. That’s all.”
Juen ground her teeth.
“I hate you, Aina Beidna.”
Mel balanced a coin on her finger.
“That attitude—ignoring what everyone wants!”
Ting-! Whirr-!
“That way of talking like you don’t care about anyone else!”
The coin spun, cutting through the air.
“I really hate it!”
Ting-!
The instant the coin hit the arena floor, a golden blur rushed at Juen.
In that moment—
Whoosh-!
Juen vanished.
‘Invisibility Magic.’
Aina’s sharpened senses spread across the entire arena.
Aina knew well that one of Juen’s strengths was Invisibility Magic.
And that Juen’s Invisibility Magic was elaborate—hard to deal with.
It was difficult for Aina to find someone who had concealed their presence with it.
‘But that’s only if she uses it in advance.’
Aina’s golden eyes swept across the arena.
There was a vast difference between not noticing something at all and noticing it the moment it happened.
Her honed senses found Juen almost instantly.
Thwack-!
The moment Aina’s sword slashed—
Flash-! KABOOOM-!
A massive explosion erupted.
—
“What do you think of this match?”
At Chloe’s question, Chen Xia answered,
“I think it’ll be hard for Juen to win.”
She spoke calmly.
A one-on-one fight between a traditional mage and a knight.
If their skill levels were similar, the knight had an overwhelming advantage.
And Aina was the strongest among the freshmen.
For Juen, it was an extremely unfavorable matchup.
Chloe watched the freshman hubae fighting an uphill battle.
Even if she wasn’t her mentee, Juen was only a year below her, so Chloe couldn’t help paying attention.
‘She even challenged me during the entrance exam.’
Chloe knew Juen was skilled.
Still, she didn’t think it would be easy for Juen to win.
“Leo, what do you think?”
“If we’re talking pure power, Aina’s victory is almost certain.”
Leo answered evenly.
“But there are always variables in a one-on-one match. Especially since Juen’s mentor is Carr. He must’ve prepared for Aina.”
“True. Juen has Carr.”
Even if Carr’s magic was terrible, he was good at analyzing opponents and devising strategies.
That was also how Carr had survived this long.
“Carr is definitely the type to catch someone off guard.”
Chen Xia nodded, recalling him.
“Carr isn’t the only variable. There’s also Aina herself.”
“Aina herself?”
Chloe tilted her head.
But Chen Xia nodded, as if it were obvious.
“Aina’s issue is the most fatal.”
“What do you mean?”
Chen Xia smiled faintly.
“If Aina had looked at Juen for what she really is, it might’ve been hard for Juen to win.”
Chloe pondered, then her eyes widened.
She remembered what her best friend, Celia, had said about her mentee.
‘She said she doesn’t care about the other freshmen at all.’
Juen had spent the entire first semester preparing to defeat Aina.
Aina hadn’t.
That difference mattered.
Then—
Flash-! Bang-!
A blinding flash and a bone-rattling explosion struck at once.
The arena was swallowed in ice.
Chen Xia’s expression turned curious.
“What kind of magic is that?”
“She fused Ice Magic with Explosion Magic.”
Chloe immediately recognized it.
‘Ice Clone.’
One of Chloe’s signature spells.
‘Three spells—no. Did she fuse four?’
Chloe was impressed.
Magic Fusion.
A reinforcement technique that maximizes an effect by fusing multiple spells.
Leo chuckled.
‘With effort, you can manage two.’
The real problem started at three.
‘From three on, it’s talent and instinct.’
Leo’s limit was three.
Chloe and Abad—the top students of the second-year Magic Department—also had records of three.
Chelsea, lacking talent for fusion magic, only managed two.
‘Still, Chloe, Abad, and Chelsea all have room to grow.’
For reference, Luna had fused seven spells.
‘Well, that girl’s a magic idiot and a mana monster.’
And Juen, a freshman, had done it with four.
“She’s specialized in fusion. I had no idea.”
Chloe exclaimed, eyes shining.
‘So what will you do, Aina Beidna?’
Leo crossed his arms, looking down at the arena.
‘If you don’t look at your opponent properly, you can’t win.’
—
Crack-
Aina shook off the ice clinging to her body.
Despite being caught in the powerful ice explosion, she didn’t seem to have taken much damage.
Aina’s senses picked up multiple presences.
‘All Juen Torbinas.’
Step-!
Aina tightened her grip on her sword.
“Is that all you’ve got?”
“Of course not.”
Juen’s voice answered without revealing her position.
“I’ve prepared a lot to defeat you.”
Juen gritted her teeth.
“This is just part of it! You can look forward to the rest!”
Her voice burned with fighting spirit.
“I’ll use everything I have to defeat you!”