Ch. 74

The unprecedented new kind of match was prepared swiftly.

As I stepped back onto the arena amid the roaring crowd, I couldn’t help but wonder just how much longer my fate would be tangled up in one disaster after another.

Considering how badly things had been going since I left Dmitri, it was obvious—I wasn’t meant to travel.

‘Once I get back to the Academy, I’m staying put.’

The world was so dirty and petty that even the Academy was starting to seem like paradise.

– Announcement: A special match between the champions, specially arranged by His Majesty the Emperor, will now take place!

Maybe the tournament had indeed been dull because of the overwhelming favorites—because the cheers from the spectators shook the entire arena.

Most of them were shouting Rovenin’s name.

Disgusting.

– Taking into account the difference in age and profession, Lord Rovenin Fedri will be restricted from using his left hand.

There’s a limit to how much you can look down on someone!

– Contestants, bow to each other.

Even after winning the tournament, I still had to hear that same old line.

“Rovenin Fedri, swordsman.”

“Geenie Crowell.”

“It’s my first time fighting a Spirit Mage.”

“I don’t feel like talking to you.”

– Prepare.

“Undine.”

Throwing off the cumbersome Academy cloak at my feet, I summoned Undine.

It was already my third match today, and my insides felt unbearably sore.

Instead of healing, my internal injuries were only getting worse.

The doctor was going to be furious. I should’ve drunk more green juice earlier.

[Undine, go invisible as soon as the match starts. Hold that guy back however you can. Also, flood the arena with rain.]

[Got it!]

I gave Undine rapid instructions while keeping an eye on Rovenin.

It was the first time I had ever truly felt nervous about an opponent.

Until now, all my matches had been against kids from the Toddler Division—there had never been any reason to feel like this.

I never thought I’d have to face a monster like him out of nowhere.

My luck was definitely cursed.

– Three, two, one. Start!

The moment the match began, Undine vanished from sight.

I caught a faint twitch at the corner of Rovenin’s eyes as he watched her.

And in that brief instant, a massive stream of water surged toward him.

Normally, the opponent would get caught and it’d be over, but Rovenin dodged it effortlessly.

He kicked off the ground lightly and shot forward.

He was faster than the speed of the enclosing water—there was no catching him. I knew it.

“Undine!”

Undine revealed herself midway and transformed into water, aiming to engulf him.

But even then, she barely managed to grab his ankle.

The moment Rovenin was caught, he stabbed his sword into the water.

However, the water Undine formed wasn’t ordinary—it clumped and clung to him heavily like a slime.

It wasn’t just water—it was compressed water, making it impossible to escape easily.

[Master! I got him!]

The water rapidly expanded, wrapping completely around Rovenin’s lower body, but he remained calm and expressionless.

That was when a bluish aura wrapped around his blunt-edged sword.

Rising like a mirage from the blade—it was unmistakably [Aura Blade].

It was my first time seeing it in person.

What made Aura Blade terrifying was that it could cut through anything—even spirits.

It was swordsmanship capable of disrupting magic itself.

If he used Aura Blade, the bluntness of the practice sword became meaningless.

– There it is! Lord Rovenin shows his Aura Blade for the first time in this tournament!

[Get away, Undine.]

Also, water cut by Aura Blade would completely break free from the spirit’s control.

Undine shot up high before Rovenin could cut through her, and began pouring rain across the arena.

Creating rain consumed a lot of mana, and I could already feel myself starting to weaken.

I needed to end this fast.

“So this is a spirit, huh.”

“…You’re awfully relaxed.”

“Yeah. I want to feel the spirit a bit more.”

Standing there in the rain, Rovenin looked as if he was casually out for a walk in his front yard.

The Aura Blade faded from his sword for a moment.

Everyone knew that Rovenin Fedri was the youngest swordsman on the continent capable of wielding Aura Blade, with the next youngest being a nineteen-year-old Holy Knight. The gap was enormous.

Realizing anew just how much of a genius he was only soured my mood further.

“So? Are you not going to attack?”

Around me, the rainwater pooled upward, forming a prison-like structure to surround me.

But it had no real defensive power.

It was simply a trap meant to snatch him if he approached.

“That looks dangerous.”

“Yeah.”

The ground around me was filled with rain puddles—all traps waiting to bind him.

The moment he stepped on one, the water would entangle him and throw him out of the arena.

The problem was catching him in the first place—he moved faster than water could react.

* And now! Lord Rovenin, after completing his survey, moves to attack again!

“Tch.”

Shut up, commentator.

When he got close, I slid away atop the water, dodging him.

Sliding was faster than running alone, and the marble floor made it possible.

The water helped me move as naturally as breathing, and I barely managed to keep him at bay.

But Rovenin quickly adapted to the water hindering him, slashing at it with Aura Blade as he advanced.

The water could trap his ankles if it compressed around them—but he jumped before that could happen, making it impossible to snare him.

[What should we do, Master!]

[This is so annoying.]

There was no choice left—only ‘that method.’

Creating a water droplet the size of the arena itself.

* Oh, what is that?!

While he remained within the arena, there was no way to avoid it. Rovenin was finally swallowed completely by the water.

The massive water sphere rapidly shrank around him.

Compressing water created intense pressure on the human body.

Just like how a human would be crushed without protection if thrown into the deep sea,

“Crazy.”

But even as the water compressed around him, Rovenin unleashed his [Aura Blade] and slashed apart the giant water sphere.

My precious water! Do you even know how much mana it cost me to create that?!

* He’s escaped!

“This won’t do. Undine! [Drain]!”

I really hated using this technique too, but losing was even worse.

There was no time to compress the water, so I had no choice.

The masses of water clinging to him began to take on a reddish tint as time passed.

That—

* Why is the water turning red?

It was bloodsucking.

It drained moisture from the opponent. Honestly, it was a heavy technique for a low-ranked spirit like Undine to use, and I would’ve avoided it if I could. But if I wanted to win, I had to use every tool available.

When blood is drained, the human body naturally starts to feel numb.

It wasn’t until a bit late that Rovenin realized what the water surrounding him was doing. He began to generate [Aura Blade] and slash it away.

While cutting the masses clinging to his shoulders, waist, and knees, the water still latched onto his ankle turned almost crimson, like pure blood.

I made sure the blood-sucking droplets were small—couldn’t risk causing fatal blood loss, and besides, I didn’t have enough mana to make them any larger.

But even losing that much blood, Rovenin didn’t seem the least bit dizzy.

He brutally slashed away the blood-colored blob clinging to his ankle and then immediately charged toward me.

Unfortunately, I was stuck in a corner.

“Damn it, [Fog]!”

Since dodging was impossible, I tried blocking his vision instead.

The rain turned into mist, engulfing Rovenin first.

[Undine, make it as thick as possible!]

In just a few seconds, the entire arena was swallowed by dense fog.

The problem with this technique was that even I could barely tell where Rovenin was anymore.

* Could this be Crowell’s spirit magic? Nothing is visible!

I was trying to run, following Undine’s guidance, when she suddenly shoved me hard.

I stumbled and fell—just in time to see a sword slash horizontally right where my head had been.

“You crazy bastard!”

I couldn’t help but scream out loud, and before he could swing again, I grabbed onto Undine and slid as far away as possible.

By now, I was so out of breath that I could barely even speak.

Physically and skill-wise, the longer this dragged on, the worse it became for me.

If I ran out of mana, I’d be helpless. But even if Rovenin ran out of mana and couldn’t use [Aura Blade] anymore, he could still swing a sword just fine.

“Damn it… like hell I’m going to lose.”

Muttering under my breath, I made a desperate decision.