episode_0016

A faint noise grazed my ears. Dozens of sword strikes flashed within my flickering vision.

Silver threads surged with murderous intent.

“Tsk.”

I stepped back.

While narrowly evading, I directly intercepted the persistently digging attacks.

Sparks continuously flew from the black sword in my hand.

–Crash, screech…! Thud!!

Fragments of steel fiercely clashed.

With every step I took, the surrounding terrain twisted. Bushes soared into blades, and swaying flower petals shot out like daggers.

Rose petals bristled in all directions, hindering my path.

The metallic tang of blood grazed my nostrils.

I groaned, blocking the stubbornly clinging fragments.

‘…This is definitely annoying.’

Perhaps this truly was the continent’s greatest prodigy.

Even before her awakening, she was strong enough to beat down most graduates.

I rolled my eyes, blocking another incoming slash.

Clang-!

The barrier covered the entire arena.

The ground, which had been a flat sand floor, had transformed into the texture of cold steel.

The neatly blooming sword-flowers swayed wildly.

It was as if I was looking at a garden made entirely of steel.

‘Ash Garden.’

This was Charlotte’s ultimate skill.

To deploy an absolute domain around herself. Within this space, Charlotte gained near-invincibility.

It looked like a gorgeously blooming rose garden.

But in reality, every single flower was a sea made of swords.

When the girl waved her hand, the bushes moved. Hundreds of sword blades swept along like waves.

I braced myself to avoid being swept away.

Clang! Grinding…!

Sharp petals scraped loudly across my sword’s surface.

As I deflected each incoming downpour of steel, I saw the platinum blonde hair at the far end.

“Hmm.”

“Ugh…!”

“Is it an act? Or are you truly weak?”

“I don’t know what, you are, talking about…! I am giving, my all…!”

“…That’s strange.”

Charlotte tilted her head quietly.

As if there was something suspicious, the young prince did not easily lower her guard.

I pondered inwardly.

‘Why is she doing this?’

My act was perfect.

This time, I hadn’t made any mistakes in controlling my strength, and I had thoroughly hidden my killing intent.

Not only that, but I was currently clad in ‘lies’ to perfectly portray the image of an utter weakling.

Clang-!

Again, sparks flew from the sword tip.

It seemed like a wild assault, but it was an attack with finely adjusted intensity.

Charlotte’s will to test me was clearly evident.

What did Charlotte know, exactly?

No… *how* did she know?

I continued to move, racking my troubled brain.

‘Perhaps it’s fortunate?’

To test meant to doubt.

At the same time, it also meant she wasn’t certain yet.

I didn’t know why she suspected my ‘existence,’ but as long as she wasn’t certain, I could brazenly continue my act.

After all, Charlotte would have no way of knowing.

“I’m curious about you. You’re difficult.”

“Again, I have no idea what you’re talking about…!”

“But, that makes me want to know even more.”

Thud-!

A heavy impact slammed into my sword.

It was definitely a more powerful attack than before.

Had she decided to increase the output?

I wiggled my tingling hand and clicked my tongue.

‘She really does have an unparalleled talent.’

One of the flagship beauties of the original ‘The World Seen by the Young Prince.’

Overwhelming performance. She was considered the best playable character, so if it weren’t for me, she would definitely have taken first place.

This is why talk of a ‘bubble top student’ came about.

To the students, Charlotte must have appeared as something beyond ordinary.

‘Since it’s the early part of the story, it’s a bit disappointing… but I suppose this is a passing grade.’

I muttered to myself.

By the way… how could I lose naturally here?

While dodging the swirling fragments of steel, I glanced at the magic tools placed here and there.

Screen transmission magic tools.

Although the arena was covered by Charlotte’s barrier, the situation inside was being broadcast through the magic tools.

The faculty must be gathered, watching.

‘It would have been good if other students could watch too.’

Unlike the entrance exam, there was no separate scoreboard prepared for students this time.

These magic tools were prepared solely for scoring.

In short, others besides the faculty had no way of knowing what was happening inside the barrier.

If it were a barrier deployed by an ordinary student, its interior would be transparent, but this was a ‘domain’ created by none other than the young prince.

An ordinary person’s eyes wouldn’t even register an image.

“Huff, huff…!”

“It’s strange. Are you really just weak? Are you not hiding anything?”

“Didn’t I, tell you, already…!”

Crunch, grind…! Clang, thud!!

It was about time to collapse.

I wished a big attack would come, but it was troublesome since only ambiguous attacks had been pouring out.

Her strength control was adjusted to the level I could parry.

Perhaps she was considerate, not wanting to hurt me.

‘At this rate, it’ll never end.’

Of course, I’m touched! I’m so happy to be taken care of!

But I still have to do what I need to do.

Amidst the fierce clang of steel, I subtly twitched my finger.

A single thread of a lie fell to the floor.

The shadow squirmed a few times like a snake, then moved toward the platinum-blonde girl.

And then.

Snap-!

It bit her ankle without hesitation.

“Urgh…!?”

A faint groan escaped her lips.

For a moment, Charlotte’s leg stumbled.

The fiercely dancing petals fell back into place. The girl stood frozen like a stone.

“…Your Highness?”

I asked as if wondering what was wrong.

My tone was worried, but a smile I couldn’t quite hide was etched on my lips.

Everything was going according to plan.

I smiled ominously.

***

“Hoo.”

Charlotte quietly caught her breath.

Perhaps because she was deploying such a wide-range domain, her mana was draining faster than expected.

The thought that she might have overdone it crossed her mind, but she quickly shook it off.

A landscape filled with the pungent smell of iron.

Beautifully blooming roses. In this cruel yet infinitely beautiful garden, only two people stood.

“….”

The girl gazed silently forward.

Reflected in her clear blue eyes was a boy with golden hair and narrow eyes, an unusual appearance.

His name was something like Yuda, she thought.

Clang! Grinding…!

The boy was busy blocking the sword strikes pouring in from all directions.

The sweat profusely wetting his forehead gave the impression that he was truly pushed to the brink.

Charlotte casually asked.

“Hmm.”

“Ugh…!”

“Is it an act? Or are you truly weak?”

“I don’t know what, you are, talking about…! I am giving, my all…!”

“…That’s strange.”

A panting reply came back, but Charlotte still didn’t lower her guard.

Instead, she tilted her head suspiciously.

There was a reason for her suspicion.

It was due to a scene she had witnessed half a month ago.

-The atmosphere in the slums has been unusual recently.

-Incidents of kidnapping, murder, and disappearance are happening ceaselessly… it seems cultists are running rampant again.

It was a report she received from her direct informant.

To confirm the details, Charlotte herself went to the slum.

As she wandered around, collecting clues, she coincidentally witnessed a chilling scene in a deep alley.

-I clearly gave you a chance.

-You’re the one who threw it away.

-Right~ A person should know their place, shouldn’t they?

A bizarrely squirming shadow.

It soon spread into a vast blackness, swallowing its surroundings. The landscape, devoid of even a sliver of light, resembled primordial darkness.

Nothing survived in that pitch-black mist.

There was only a golden-haired man smiling as if enjoying himself.

Charlotte could only hold her breath.

If she showed even the slightest sign of presence, she felt her life would be instantly cut short.

A rope of silence tightened around the girl’s neck. In her trembling eyes, the retreating back of the ‘monster’ still remained.

‘That was the first time I saw something so terrifying.’

A transcendent power with no end in sight.

Simply facing it brought a despair as if falling into an abyss.

It was, quite literally, a calamity… no, an apocalypse.

The girl had witnessed a fragment of destruction, brief as it was.

Her breathing trembled with an eerie tension.

Charlotte painstakingly maintained her composure and focused entirely on the opponent before her.

‘That student, Yuda… he resembles the man from back then.’

Of course, many things were different.

Compared to the man back then, his aura was fainter, and his skill was far below her own level.

But there was one thing that was similar.

It was the atmosphere.

A sticky, sweet, and ominous… unique atmosphere existed.

It was a scent that, once smelled, could never be forgotten.

“I’m curious about you. You’re difficult.”

“Again, I have no idea what you’re talking about…!”

“But, that makes me want to know even more.”

Thud-!

So Charlotte pushed harder.

To confirm if the boy’s true identity was the person she knew. And hoping it wasn’t.

The flower petals of the garden fluttered mournfully.

“Huff, huff…!”

However, as the situation continued, her confusion only deepened.

Her fundamental senses pointed to the boy, but his fighting style was merely that of a frail student.

At best, he was barely clinging to a spot in the top 10.

“It’s strange. Are you really just weak? Are you not hiding anything?”

“Didn’t I, tell you, already…!”

Her certainty slowly vanished.

Charlotte thought.

Was it just a misunderstanding? Was she simply tormenting an innocent person?

Such thoughts gradually permeated her mind.

Her heart softened.

Naturally, the strength in her attacks also weakened.

Just as the girl’s suspicion was slowly falling away… something bit her ankle.

“Urgh…!?”

A momentary wave of nausea rose.

Her consciousness grew hazy with an unknown dizziness, as if she were intoxicated by a potent alcohol.

Her managed mana scattered, and her concentration shattered into pieces.

Charlotte swayed for a moment.

Stumbling, she unconsciously swung her arm.

It was an unconscious movement caused by nausea, but the result it brought was immense.

Rumble-!

This steel garden reacted to the girl’s movements.

The larger the motion, the wider the power generated.

This was why Charlotte had been standing still, only wiggling her fingers until now.

“Oh, uh…?”

She hadn’t intended to launch an attack that would endanger the boy’s life.

She had been meticulously adjusting her control with that thought, but then an unknown force abruptly intervened from outside. This caused a control error.

Swish-!

The ground roared.

Behind the vast backdrop, vines, roses, bushes, and all other structures squirmed and rose.

They seemed to mix and align, then became a massive current, forming a wave.

This wasn’t just an exaggerated expression.

It was, quite literally, a colossal steel tsunami crashing down.

Roar!!

The tidal wave of blades tore apart everything in its path.

Standing where the calamity looked was the golden-haired boy. He appeared rigid with panic.

“No, no…!”

Charlotte’s consciousness finally returned.

She hurriedly moved her hand, but it was already too late.

The flow of the garden was raging more fiercely than ever, making it impossible to stop it without damage.

Even for Charlotte, who was called an unparalleled prodigy.

‘This isn’t right.’

She had intended to test the boy.

But she hadn’t wished for this.

She no longer wanted to see others get hurt.

In Charlotte’s world, there was only one person who could be hurt, so she reached out without hesitation.

“Hup…!”

If she couldn’t break the flow, she would slightly shift it and turn it back.

The girl reset the attack’s targeting.

Not on the boy, but on herself.

The tsunami that had been rushing towards the boy changed direction.

Her clenched fist, and behind it, the wave of blades was drawn in like a magnet. To swallow her.

Swish, Roar-!

A storm rushing in with a fierce roar.

Charlotte stood still and looked up at it. It seemed difficult to block it without damage.

At the very least, she’d be carried to the infirmary.

“…It’s going to hurt.”

Charlotte murmured politely.

Even in this situation, the girl didn’t lose her characteristic composure.

She was simply satisfied that she hadn’t harmed the boy.

Swish…!

A single rose brushed past her nose.

The girl closed her eyes, bracing for the impending impact. Immediately after, a shattering sound hit her ears.

Boom-!

“….”

But why was it?

Long after the loud sound had resonated, no pain was transmitted to Charlotte’s body.

Could it be that she was too injured to even feel anything?

“….?”

With that question, she slowly lifted her eyelids…

“Are you alright?”

There was the golden hair, calmly illuminated by the sunlight.

As their eyes met, his rarely open white eyes closed again, returning to their narrow slit.

“Well, well… I suppose you owe me one, wouldn’t you say?”

The boy, holding her in his arms, smiled slyly.

Behind him were the shattering remnants and the landscape of the garden dissolving into dust.