episode_0062

Irene’s heart, watching the duel, became inexpressibly gloomy.

As she expected, Violet was being utterly crushed. Even when she first deployed dozens of clones, Irene clung to a faint hope, wondering if there was a chance.

Her expectations collapsed instantly, like a house built on sand.

Violet’s fighting style was similar to a pack of rabid puppies charging a wolf. The wolf could easily bite and kill the puppies, but the puppies, regardless of whether their siblings died, would relentlessly charge, tiring out the opponent.

If it hadn’t been a duel, it might have ended in a draw. Because a tired opponent would have simply left.

However, in a situation where a clear winner had to be determined, the undeniable skill gap was an insurmountable wall that numbers alone couldn’t overcome. It was like trying to smash a tank with bare hands, no matter how much effort was put in.

‘I should have stopped her more actively! I should have prevented her from leaving, even by force!’

Irene resented herself for not giving Violet more help.

As a result of the nearly 20-minute battle, the inside of the dueling arena was a bloodbath. Seeing the scene, other students watching the duel frowned or gagged, then left their seats.

When Violet’s clones were destroyed, the sight was similar to that of a human. It was excessively disturbing. Even Irene herself, quite accustomed to bloodshed from her dungeon-raiding experience, found it burdensome.

And so, the end of the duel arrived.

Anyone could see that Violet was utterly exhausted. Judging by her not using her unique ability anymore, her magic power seemed to be depleted as well.

‘No…’

On the monitor displaying the dueling arena’s interior, Violet was seen holding her sword and laughing, as if she had lost her mind. Martina approached. Now, with a single blow, Violet would be incapacitated.

It was then that an unexpected turn of events occurred.

The transparent barrier surrounding the dueling arena began to change into a milky, opaque form. The monitor broadcasting the interior also suddenly went black, displaying a “ ” signal.

Students whispered among themselves at the sudden situation. Irene also stood up in surprise. The flustered disciplinary committee students could be seen operating the devices.

‘What’s happening?’

***

Violet de-generated all her other clones, excluding herself. She gained surplus magic power.

A similar turbid sword aura, as if imbued with soot, surged from Violet’s one-handed sword. Martina involuntarily flinched at the momentum, like a small volcano erupting.

“Violet” discreetly formed hand seals with her left hand behind her back. Magic power flowed out, manipulating a part of the dueling arena’s virtual reality deployment spell.

She chuckled inwardly. The security system here was abysmal. With this measure, the inside and outside of the dueling arena were completely cut off. It would probably last about 10 minutes.

She thought back to the previous situation; there were too many eyes watching. As long as that Helios girl was here, she couldn’t reveal her true form right away.

And, for the sake of long-awaited amusement, it was necessary to block external gazes.

But why shouldn’t I be caught? Why am I fighting?

Question marks appeared in Violet’s mind. Perhaps because only a part of her had been severed and brought here, her purpose and memories were fragmented and dim. Therefore, Violet didn’t fully grasp what she truly was or why she was here.

Vague memories only told her that she was somehow, after uncertain attempts, gradually sending parts of herself somewhere.

Well, it didn’t matter.

One thing was clear: before her lay an unresolved, ill-fated connection from her short school days.

So, let’s enjoy the present.

Violet circulated magic power throughout her entire body as a test.

“My magic power is almost depleted…and I have no understanding of release or enhancement…This has become troublesome…”

“Hey, what are you muttering about?”

Ignoring Martina’s sharp gaze, which held a hint of agitation, Violet raised her sword with an expectant expression, like a gourmet picking up a knife before a steak.

What she would wield was sadism, what she would savor was screams.

Magic power flowed into her two legs, and every muscle fiber was drenched with superhuman strength. The joints and muscles of her arms also felt a different kind of power compared to her previous memories. Her optic nerves and pupils trembled, her vision expanded, and her nerves accelerated, making the world slow down.

As if a bowstring was drawn, her muscles contracted, and Violet violently sprang off the ground.

“…Gah!”

Terrified by the unimaginable speed, Martina barely managed to swing her rapier and defend against the attack. The unfamiliar power and speed almost made her lose her grip on the hilt.

‘What the hell? This crazy bitch! Did she take drugs or something?’

The inside of the dueling arena was filled with the crackling sound of sword aura and sharp metallic noise.

Thinking it was just a moment of carelessness, Martina focused on defense and then counterattacked. It was blocked. She rotated and tried to bypass to counterattack. The sharp tip of her blade, imbued with white magic power, aimed for Violet’s neck.

‘Got her!’

Violet, with an indifferent expression, used the handguard of her one-handed sword to parry it.

In a flash, the dark red blade flew towards her face. Martina felt a searing sensation on her left cheek.

“Argh…!”

She took a step back and immediately jumped backward. When she touched her cheek, blood flowed down. Violet’s gaze swept over her face once, then she giggled. Martina had no time to resent it.

‘Fast…! Her skill suddenly increased too!’

Martina denied the situation. It couldn’t be. That girl was just a first-year student. This was just a last-ditch effort. If she intended to win, she would have used her unique ability. It was proof that she wasn’t at ease. There was still a chance to win.

“Looks like you can’t summon any more clones, huh?”

As Martina sneered to regain her composure, Violet tilted her head.

“Clones? For someone like you?”

“…!”

Violet felt inwardly bewildered.

She should know her place. How dare a mere B-rank hunter wannabe order her around.

She had no intention of wasting her precious and beautiful self on such a worthless girl. She could sweep away such riff-raff alone, even if they came in brigade-sized numbers.

Seeing herself unable to defeat this common Awakener and whine about it, it was clear that her current ‘self’ was truly foolish.

Violet decided that she needed to finish quickly, as there wouldn’t be enough time to play.

One step, two steps. Once again, Violet advanced like a bullet.

“What the—!…You! Why did you hide your skill?!”

“Me?”

Under the barrage of tyrannical sword strikes, Martina cried out as if in despair.

Now she was suffocating. That wasn’t a person.

Just a few minutes ago, the sword swung by the girl in front of her was, to exaggerate, nothing more than a swaying reed. Martina had simply swung her sword diligently, like a farmer harvesting a wheat field, to cut down the clones.

But the current attacks were simply impossible to withstand. The sound of tearing air that defied common sense, the skill in wielding the sword – this wasn’t the ability a first-year student, no, a girl of that age, could possess. She had no idea where such a monster had come from.

*Clang! Clang clang!*

The sound of impacts echoed, and her hand tingled.

It was coming. She couldn’t block it. She couldn’t dodge it. The firepower of that dark red sword aura was beyond imagination. Not only that, but the speed, direction, and posture of the sword’s movements. Everything was overwhelming.

If the weapon she held hadn’t been a valuable artifact, her sword might have broken long ago. One step back, two steps back; the only steps allowed to her were retreating ones.

Even amidst all this, Violet was smiling. She was enjoying it with such ease. It was a pure, spotless smile, like an elementary school student crushing ants.

Violet’s sword strikes were simple, yet truly destructive and flawless. The combination of barbaric violence and mechanically tuned regularity resembled a fiercely rotating, massive meat grinder. In despair, Martina gritted her teeth. Once she was caught deep, she wouldn’t be able to escape. Never.

“Aargh!”

Large and small wounds continuously appeared on her face. Violet was deliberately targeting only her face.

‘She’s doing this on purpose! She’s toying with me!’

Swallowing her humiliation, Martina accepted reality. She didn’t know what methods were used, but whatever looked like Violet had dramatically improved its sword fighting skills. She also had to resort to a trick.

Violet, who had been leisurely swinging her arm, looked at Martina’s rapier and spoke with an intrigued tone.

“That sword, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen it. One of the Inspector’s students used it. Oh? Maybe you wouldn’t know if I put it that way.”

“…Just shut up!”

Martina made up her mind. Despite the disadvantage of consuming vast amounts of magic power, there was no other way to bring Violet down than to borrow the power of this artifact weapon.

Another clash occurred.

A sword flew towards her face. A burning pain was felt near her ear. Had her ear been cut? But a gap opened. She aimed at her opponent. The scarlet flames that had just incinerated Violet’s clones surged from the sword’s surface once more.

“…Eat this!”

A wave of flames unleashed at close range, absolutely unavoidable.

She instinctively sensed victory. She should have done this sooner. A sense of exhaustion filled the void left by her drained magic power, but Martina’s lips curled into a smirk.

With a loud bang, dark red magic power surged vertically. The flames split on both sides, and Violet ran out from between them.

“H-how!”

“Magic can be nullified with magic power. You don’t even know something this simple, do you?”

‘That wasn’t the kind of thing that could be nullified!’

Martina’s eyes were tinged with the color of despair.

She struggled violently.

In a misstep, her rapier slipped from her hand and flew up into the dueling arena. A spinning kick flew towards her, as if refusing to simply take the abuse. Violet caught it as if embracing it, then spun her body and threw her away. It was a jujutsu technique to receive power and redirect it.

Just before Martina, who had barely regained her balance, landed, Violet approached her nose, jumped up, and struck her solar plexus with a knee.

“Cough!”

It was a shock like being struck by a battering ram. Her body flew straight back and crashed into the barrier surrounding the dueling arena. A thudding sound was heard, and Martina collapsed onto the floor.

She couldn’t breathe. She had no strength. It was painful.

Martina lifted her head and stared blankly up at Violet. Any further resistance was meaningless.

It was her clear defeat.

“…Yes, I lost. I surrender…”

She gasped out the words, barely opening her mouth. Now, she just wished for the barrier to lift.

The barrier did not disappear.

“…?”

She looked around. The disciplinary committee’s declaration, which should have come from the speakers, did not. Before that, the barrier had turned opaque. Why?

“…To spend two minutes dealing with such a girl. My senses must be dull.”

Shaking her head, Violet slowly raised her left hand, moving her five fingers diligently as if typing in the air.

“Pain intensity setting is 70%. First, to 100%, and if I manipulate a few more values…hmm, 150% is the limit? And I can adjust the perceived time speed too. Maximum, 50%. Possible. Good.”

Violet was satisfied.

Thanks to this, the internal time of the dueling arena had now increased to 16 minutes. It’s possible here.

Muttering, Violet walked up to Martina and picked up the red rapier that had fallen nearby. The rapier disappeared.

“I’ll take this, alright? Now, shall we play a bit?”

“Wh-what are you doing? That’s…”

“Will you be quiet for a moment?”

Clones, whose creation went unnoticed, grabbed both of Martina’s legs and tore her ligaments.

“Ah…? Ah? Aaaaaaah!”

Martina screamed from the burning pain. The torment didn’t stop. The clones now severed all her remaining tendons.

“Let go of me!! Argh! I won’t let you get away with this!”

“Hm? Didn’t you understand? I told you, let’s play. Why are you being such a crybaby? This is just virtual reality. Though the pain is a bit amplified.”

Violet mumbled, pretending not to hear Martina’s half-hearted threats.

A clattering sound was heard. Hacksaws, screwdrivers, wrenches, scissors, and other small tools fell onto the floor.

Violet carefully picked up one of the tools, as if examining a gift. It was a hacksaw.

Then she grabbed Martina’s tied-up hair from behind and lifted her head. Her face was a mess of blood from her wounds and tears.

“Cry if you want to cry. No one will hear you anyway. See the barrier?”

Only then did Martina look around. The barrier had turned opaque.

“You’re really slow on the uptake, aren’t you? The barrier and the internal broadcasting equipment are all neutralized. It’s a simple applied spell.”

“Ugh…How did you do that? What do you mean?”

“It’s nothing special. It’s a trick I learned when I was under Sycamore. Hmm, I guess you wouldn’t know who that is.”

Violet continued to ramble. Her listener might not have understood, but she didn’t care. This was a kind of routine she performed before tormenting her victims.

“This virtual reality training system is quite old-fashioned. While it has very high realism, its functions are limited. Its scale is also too large, so it could only be used in the headquarters building. However, it was useful for espionage activities and some operations. For example…”

The clones began to cut off her fingers with scissors.

“When interrogating an opponent you can’t injure, just like now.”

“Agh. Aaaaaaah! Aaaah!”

“Why are you being such a crybaby? I told you, it’s not real! When the barrier lifts, everything will go back to normal as if nothing happened, won’t it? Ah, right…”

Listening intently to the wailing, Violet’s mouth widened as if something had occurred to her. Her red eyes gleamed with new interest as a blurred memory from the past surfaced.

“Now I remember. Did you call me a cripple or a slut? It hurt quite a bit back then.”

“I…when!…”

“Don’t know? I don’t remember well either! When was that… Ah, I don’t care! It’s none of my business. I just personally want to try something now.”

Squeezing out her last bit of venomous defiance, Martina snarled.

“Hey..! Stop…! If I get out of here… I won’t let you off the hook! I’ll report you!”

“Oh really? Go ahead. Even if you get out of here, you’ll never be able to do that anyway.”

This time, a skewer was plunged into her spine. The searing pain that felt like her entire body was being scorched made her lose her mind and thrash about.

“There’s about 7 minutes left now. Due to time dilation, it’s about 14 minutes in here, but…I don’t know if that’ll be enough.”

Violet tapped the bridge of Martina’s nose with the hacksaw she was holding. As the cold hacksaw grazed her forehead, Martina’s mind cleared despite the pain.

“Ugh…ugh…wait…ugh…!…just? Wh-what are you going to do?”

“You’re still talking, so you must be able to endure it. What do you think I’m going to do?”

Violet playfully tickled the bridge of Martina’s nose with the hacksaw, and Martina realized what was about to happen to her.

She thrashed in despair.

“Argh…! St-stop! Stop! Stop it! Aaaaah!”

The hacksaw moved.

*Sawing* sounds, and warm blood flowed. Violet savored the fragrant screams echoing in her ears. The clones on both sides also held one arm and one leg each, engrossed in their respective tasks.

“In my experience, it takes about 30 minutes to drive someone insane. It wouldn’t be bad to set a new record this time.”

“Hwaaaah! Pl-please…Aaaargh!”

*Sawing, sawing.* The sawing continued.

Suddenly, Violet felt regret that she didn’t have a plane. Wouldn’t it have been more fun to use that? Then the appearance would have been closer to her imagination.

“Aaaaaah…I-I was wrong! Please! I was wrong, so..! Ughh!”

Even amidst the pleas, the sawing did not stop.

*Sawing. Sawing. Sawing.*

***

Anger and fatigue washed away from her mind.

She turned her head, and Martina was collapsed before her eyes.

What happened?

“I don’t know! We don’t remember well either. When only you, Unit 1, were left, you fought hard.”

“Ugh, I’m tired.”

Yes, as I recall, I fought my best against her. Martina gradually lost strength and eventually suffered a fatal blow from us. Was it a victory through human wave tactics using clones?

The weight of the one-handed sword in her right hand felt particularly heavy today. She was exhausted.

The moment I turned my gaze to Martina, I involuntarily flinched. What on earth happened?

Her appearance was a complete mess. Her entire body was covered in wounds, and even her face… was disfigured to a painful extent. Was it because of my attacks? Did she end up like that because I used clones to hack at her?

The barrier surrounding the dueling arena was hazy. At some point, the barrier turned transparent. I could feel the people outside watching us.

“…What on earth happened…”

A murmuring sound was heard from the speakers. A moment later, the declaration of victory came.

“…Duel over. Martina Perian confirmed incapacitated. Violet Ruzilin, wins.”

The barrier slowly began to lift. Her vision distorted, and space bent. The elements forming the scene before her eyes slowly began to change, as if computer graphics were breaking apart.

In the blink of an eye, I was back in reality. The wounds on my body and my torn clothes had returned to their original state.

“Ugh…ugh-ugh!”

Martina let out a short scream and woke up. She sat still, blankly rolling her eyes around, then frantically touched and rubbed her own face. Was she checking if her face was still attached?

What’s the problem?

“Ugh…ugh-ugh! Oh…it’s here…I’m fine…I’m out…ugh…ugh-ugh…”

“…What is it?”

As the disciplinary committee members walked into the arena, I approached her, feeling bewildered but determined.

“Hey, you admit I won, right?”

“Huh…?”

The moment our eyes met, Martina’s face froze. Just as I was about to prompt her again, Martina started trembling all over as if she had caught a disease, then began crawling backward to escape.

“Ah…Aaaah! No..! That’s right…Yes!…No! Don’t come! Don’t come!”

When I walked closer, she flinched in terror and retreated.

She tried to stand up multiple times, but kept falling as if her legs had no strength. Was she unable to accept that she had lost?

I approached right to her nose, and Martina, whose face had turned pale, suddenly burst into tears. She began frantically rubbing her hands together, begging. The surroundings stirred upon seeing the sight.

“Ugh-ugh…I was wrong…I was wrong…! Please…I won’t say anything…Really! Ugh-ugh…”

“Hey! Why are you doing this?”

When I put my face close to hers, Martina, who had been writhing in terror, widened her eyes and trembled, mumbling.

“Ugh-ugh…Please!… Please!…No!… Aaaaaaah!”

Martina screamed until her voice was hoarse, then fainted. Water flowed between her legs. I was speechless at the sight.

I don’t understand why she’s doing this. Was the defeat that shocking? She was more confident just a moment ago.

The unconscious Martina was carried away on a stretcher. The disciplinary committee members also seemed bewildered, merely shrugging their shoulders.

After going through several confirmation procedures and signing, I turned around and saw Irene descending from the dueling arena seats.

“…Irene, I won.”

“Yes, it’s a huge relief that you won, but…what exactly happened? And why is Martina like that?”

According to Irene’s explanation, the dueling arena’s barrier had been cut off from the outside for over 10 minutes. When the barrier became transparent again and the internal cameras and speakers resumed functioning, Martina was already collapsed in front of me.

“…I don’t know. I just fought like crazy, and when I came to my senses, she was collapsed.”

I was tired and exhausted, so I really didn’t know. I was fighting so frantically that I didn’t realize. Irene still looked like she couldn’t understand, but she didn’t ask further.

I won the duel. The management committee would probably be disbanded. There were also a few other responsibilities I needed to inquire about.

But it was really difficult. This duel taught me quite a bit.

“That was close…! She was incredibly strong.”

“Right, we could have lost if we weren’t careful. You know there are hardly any clones left now, don’t you? We’ll have to create them all over again from scratch.”

There was really a lot to think about. But for now, resting seemed to be the top priority. The mental fatigue in this quasi-virtual reality was immense. Maintaining tension for over 30 minutes must not be easy.

I came out of the dueling arena with Irene.

A cold wind blew, stealing the warmth from my face. It was already late September.

The contact informing me that Daphne had woken up came 3 hours later.