End of the 2nd Semester (1)

Two days after I attached a flame spirit to Agnes and received punishment-like physical contact from Ethan in return.

In Harold’s final swordsmanship lecture of the second semester, “Applied Magic Swordsmanship,” I stood tense, facing off against Harold.

This sparring match with him was essentially the last assignment of the semester.

“……”

“……”

-Clang!

The Sword Master stood silently, gripping a single greatsword, his gaze fixed on me as he waited for my move.

Though this was a handicap match, the gap between a Sword Master and an academy student was still absurdly wide.

Moreover, unlike Harold, who had spent his entire life mastering the sword, swordsmanship wasn’t even my specialty.

Since I belonged to the Magic Department, I could enhance my blade with stronger magic, but physical limitations were still hard to overcome.

Faced with his flawless stance, I could only tighten my grip on the dagger in my hand.

‘…It’s okay. Just stick to what I practiced.’

This was the last chance of the semester-the final spar.

Whether I could land a single decisive blow here would determine my second-semester grade.

Whether I could earn an A+ in Harold’s “Applied Magic Swordsmanship” exam.

Of course, even if I didn’t get an A+, my grade wouldn’t plummet drastically, but I still wanted to achieve the highest possible score.

As in the original game, additional rewards depended on academic performance, something I had already confirmed last semester.

If possible, I needed to land at least one decisive blow for the sake of stat growth.

…In this once-in-four-years opportunity, I had to seize everything I could.

“You may attack at any time, Lillith.”

“…Yes, Master… Professor.”

“However, if you do not attempt an attack within one minute, I will take the initiative. I cannot afford to spend time on just one student’s spar.”

“…Understood.”

It would be dozens of times harder to counter Harold’s attacks than to strike first myself, so I had no choice but to move first.

After steadying my nerves, I dashed forward, utilizing a newly learned dagger technique.

『Iaido Slash: Increases the attack power of bladed weapons immediately after battle begins.』

The first-tier dagger skill, Iaido Slash.

I hadn’t wanted to invest too much in dagger skills, but with half-hearted determination, I wouldn’t have stood a chance against Harold in the first place.

Hoping that the course rewards and grade bonuses would justify the skill point investment, I charged at Harold with the new technique.

At the same time, I didn’t forget to apply the Sharp Blade buff.

-Tap tap!

My body, propelled forward with a push off the ground, immediately closed in on Harold’s lower half.

While aiming for the neck or heart would have been more effective for a decisive blow, that was only an option for those with the skill to pull it off.

Given my short reach and height difference with Harold, it wasn’t the best strategy.

My target was the abdomen or waist.

With only the thought of driving my dagger into that area filling my mind, I closed the distance to Harold.

First, I thrust the dagger engraved with the Blackwood crest in my right hand toward his solar plexus.

-Clang!

“Ugh…!”

Harold calmly deflected my attack with his sword as he saw me aiming for his waist.

I hadn’t expected my first strike to land anyway.

It was just a feint to draw out one of Harold’s moves-nothing more, nothing less.

Fortunately, he had mitigated the impact, so I didn’t lose grip of my dagger. Without missing a beat, I cast a newly learned arcane spell.

『Energy Bolt: Fires a medium-sized mana bullet at the enemy.』

Though it worked on the same principle as Mana Blast, this was a lower-tier spell that could be cast much faster.

Of course, its power was significantly weaker compared to Mana Blast.

Still, a direct hit would deal some damage. Even Harold would have to either dodge or block it.

And if three of them came flying at once, he’d have to block at least one or two with his sword.

Especially if his vision was obscured by a hazy, whitish mist.

-Flash!

“……”

A burst of light and a faint, misty glow enveloping Harold’s body.

Three mana bullets flew toward him as his vision was momentarily obstructed.

With luck, at least two would hit their mark. Given who my opponent was, I couldn’t expect direct damage, but…

I had to force Harold to waste his opportunity to counter by blocking with his sword, so I immediately prepared the next technique to take him down.

The rules of the Applied Magic Swordsmanship spar were simple: use every available means to defeat Harold.

“Now, Sally! Sei!”

‘Take this!!’

A massive fireball launched from the hands of the high-level flame spirit, Sally.

Despite consuming about a quarter of my maximum mana, the fireball wasn’t particularly large.

Since my contract with Sally was temporary, the efficiency wasn’t great yet.

But it didn’t matter. With Sei’s help, even Sally’s mediocre firepower could be utilized much more effectively.

‘Ugh, whoooosh…!!’

The sylphid, Sei, exhaled a fierce gust of wind toward the direction of Sally’s fireball.

Sally’s fireball and Sei’s support magic collided midair, sucked into the hazy light.

Immediately after, a loud explosion erupted from within the mist.

-BOOM!!

“……”

At least the explosion itself wasn’t canceled or blocked-it went off properly.

He wouldn’t die from this, right? Given who he was, his physical resilience should let him withstand an explosion of this magnitude.

But whether my attack had actually landed effectively on Harold was another question…

Since I couldn’t be sure of victory yet, I prepared another technique.

Meanwhile, Sally’s cursed muttering from the side made my heart race even faster.

‘…Did I take him down?’

-Slash!

‘Ah, no…’

The flame spirit muttered in disappointment as Harold emerged from the dust cloud, cleaving through it with his sword.

I wanted to smash her mouth with my fist, but unfortunately, I didn’t have the luxury of distraction right now.

In a hurry, I threw Seraphine’s dagger in my left hand at Harold with a 『Dagger Throw』 as he charged toward me.

-Whoosh!

“……”

Harold tilted his head slightly, effortlessly dodging the dagger as if it were no threat at all.

His clothes were slightly disheveled, but there was no sign of burns or scorch marks from the explosion.

Meaning, even that explosion hadn’t dealt any meaningful damage to Harold.

‘What kind of monster is this…?’

How could he emerge unscathed from a combo that would turn most monsters into roasted meat the moment they were caught in it?

I couldn’t help but wonder if he had used energy or mana to block it while his vision was obscured.

Harold now pointed his sword at me with an almost terrifying pressure.

I tried to hold my ground using support magic and dagger techniques, but with most of my trump cards already spent, subduing me wasn’t difficult for him.

-Clang!

“Ugh…!”

-Clash!

“Hah, ngh…!!”

The Blackwood dagger in my right hand and Lizzie’s silver dagger I hastily grabbed with my left.

In a few precise strikes, Harold targeted the weak points of my blades, sending my last means of attack flying.

Effectively securing a flawless victory, Harold’s gaze quietly shifted toward me.

“…Not a bad attempt.”

“……”

His words were a roundabout way of saying it hadn’t worked on him.

Well, if it had been a good attack, the one delivering the final blow would’ve been me, not Harold.

Seemingly convinced he had thoroughly subdued me, Harold continued with his evaluation of our spar.

“Right from the start, you used your sword to force me into a defensive position, then immediately followed up with another attack.”

“…Yes.”

“The Blurred Light wasn’t necessary. Obscuring your opponent’s vision isn’t a bad choice, but it doesn’t work on me. At my level, I can sense where magic is coming from even with my eyes closed. Besides, you missed one of your spells because you couldn’t locate my faint silhouette either.”

…It wasn’t that I missed because my vision was blurred. I just had poor accuracy.

Of course, I couldn’t interrupt the professor’s lecture to argue, so I had no choice but to listen quietly.

“Your affinity with spirits seems quite good. Coordinating combo magic like that must have taken a lot of practice.”

“Yes. I also took the Spirit Communication lecture this semester.”

“That will likely prove useful in life. As long as you can distribute mana well and fight alongside spirits.”

“…Yes.”

Lowering the sword he held in both hands, Harold gradually relaxed from his sparring stance.

His final evaluation was nearing its conclusion.

“Your swordsmanship has improved significantly since the start of the semester. That first strike you opened with was the sharpest I’ve seen from you yet. …Though the final exchange was a bit disappointing.”

Well, the Iaido Slash effect had worn off by then. What could I do? It was a buff skill that couldn’t be reused mid-battle.

Harold continued with his assessment, offering various explanations, while I pretended to listen attentively.

Secretly, I was preparing one last decisive strike-targeting a fatal oversight Harold had made in this spar.

…To exploit the critical mistake he had unwittingly overlooked.

“…So, overall, Lillith, your grade will likely be…”

“Professor Harold, before you finalize my grade, there’s something I’d like to say.”

“Hmm? What is it?”

“…The spar isn’t over yet.”