Ch.171171. Week 2 Evaluation (7)

‘I expected it to come out, but I didn’t think it would happen from the start…’

Rana takes her stance.

She couldn’t afford to be careless against an opponent who had claimed victory in the individual event.

As someone receiving the most scrutiny from all factions except her own Mirpark, she couldn’t let her guard down.

‘Still, Teacher said I could win if I read him well.’

Even though a formidable opponent had appeared, she could handle it.

Mobility, after all, was said to be the most variable factor in combat.

With a single movement, one could negate an enemy’s key technique or spell, and it was also easy to incorporate feints.

-‘You want me to ask Aris to let me take the vanguard position?’

-‘Yes. Why, you can’t do it?’

-‘It’s not that, but… can’t I at least ask why it has to be me? Since each educator can only enter one student, shouldn’t you be more careful? Ethan is also available.’

Swish.

She reaches into her pocket and pulls out the weapon she had prepared.

-‘Rana, there aren’t many people in the Mirpark faction who have a good matchup against you. Even though Ethan is skilled, he often faces disadvantages in matchups because he tends to confront opponents head-on.’

She summons a spirit behind her back to receive its blessing.

-‘Since you handle wind spirits, it’s easy to create diversions. From your opponent’s perspective, they have to catch you while you’re moving quickly, and the spirits will be moving annoyingly too. That’s why.’

-‘Hmm… I understand. But can I ask one more thing?’

-‘What is it now?’

-‘Will Teacher Junon also participate in this event?’

The wind’s blessing settles on her body.

She had also carefully selected which spells to use, seeking the most appropriate ones.

The fuse signaling the start of the match is lit.

The match will begin the moment the fuse burns completely and the signal drops.

-‘Only one educator can participate in the grand battle. Obviously, Aris will go.’

It wasn’t a curt answer.

Nor was it an absurd response like when she demonstrated something impossible.

It was such a natural answer. But Rana didn’t like it at all. It was as if Junon didn’t even have a place to step up.

Tang-!

“Haaah!!!”

With much more power than usual, Rana rides the wind and instantly rushes to the center of the arena.

And so, with the signal, the match began.

***

Clang! Clang!

Rana darts around the arena, dagger in hand, striking at Demian’s blind spots.

After each sharp sound, there’s always a whoosh as she cuts through the air.

Her hit-and-run tactics are incredibly swift. Rana hasn’t taken a single effective hit from Demian.

“You little rat…!”

Demian, thoroughly frustrated, spits out harsh words.

His pride wouldn’t allow him to be toyed with like this.

Creating a battle axe with magic armor, Demian swings it around with fierce magical power.

The sound is so menacing that even the spectators hold their breath as they watch.

In this situation, Rana nimbly moves around, creating openings in Demian’s defense again and again.

Even at a glance, it’s clear that Rana has the advantage, dodging enemy attacks while gradually landing her own.

Swish!

Finally, Demian’s uniform takes damage.

Though the match isn’t decided yet, it could be said that Rana had scored the first point.

‘He’s glaring fiercely. Is one cut enough to make him look at me like that?’

With Rana, whom he had taught, fighting valiantly in the arena, how could Junon remain indifferent at a time like this? He was taking in every moment of the scene.

But rather than preparing feedback for Rana, he was more concerned.

This matchup, no matter how he looked at it, was worrisome.

“Hmm…”

Despite moving constantly to create perfect blind spots, the damage she inflicted was too shallow.

“It should have gone in deeper.”

While the wind’s blessing significantly enhances physical abilities, its magical efficiency isn’t that great.

The opponent isn’t someone who primarily uses magical attacks.

He’s someone who surrounds his body with magical power for close combat. As a Dube type in the vanguard position, there’s no way to win in a direct confrontation.

If she takes even one hit from that fierce magical armor, it’s an immediate retirement.

“I hoped she wouldn’t have to use it, but I see she is.”

It couldn’t be helped. Rana herself must have felt it too. That she needs to end the match as quickly as possible.

***

‘Huh? Why is she suddenly channeling her magic like that…’

Renias, cheering from the stands, widened his eyes.

‘Did Senior Junon instruct her to do that…? Why?’

Even in a clearly advantageous situation, she suddenly surrounded herself with all the spirit’s power, which Renias couldn’t understand.

“Oh. Good judgment.”

Jake nods in approval as he watches. But Renias, unable to nod along, had to ask immediately.

“Uncle. Surrounding herself with the spirit’s power like that means she’s going for a one-hit finish, right?”

“That’s right. It’s like she’s drawing on all the power available to a spirit user of the buffer class.”

“I think it would be better to move with the spirit like before… I don’t understand why this is good judgment.”

Rana had been skillfully evading Demian.

Thanks to that, she hadn’t taken significant damage and had forced her opponent on the defensive, gaining a one-sided advantage.

If she maintained this approach and continued to accumulate damage on her opponent, she could secure victory.

Even if not, with the limited match time, she could also win by dragging it out.

But suddenly, she abandoned her advantage and took a completely aggressive stance, which didn’t make sense.

“Reni, do you remember how Rana defeated her opponents in the individual event yesterday?”

“Umm… I’m not sure.”

He knew she increased her mobility by borrowing the blessing of the wind spirit, but he didn’t know exactly how she won.

“Rana is a spirit user, but she didn’t use that power for attacks. As you saw earlier, she only used the blessing to support her attacks, and when she saw an opening, she finished with magic. By causing a mana down in her opponent.”

“Mana down… you mean she used reverse calculation?”

“No. You know there was no trace of such a high-difficulty technique.”

“I guess that’s true…”

Reverse calculation is a technique that takes control of an opponent’s magic.

There’s no way such a complex process could have taken place here.

“Then… how did she induce a mana down?”

Mana Down. The recoil that comes when the smooth flow of magical power is suddenly cut off.

Such a symptom couldn’t occur unless someone forcibly cut off the flow of active magic.

“Without interfering with someone else’s magic, such a thing… huh?”

Could it be.

“D-Don’t tell me she shot magic at the magic circle to cause a mana down?”

“I told you. When she saw an opening, she finished with magic.”

It wasn’t a high-difficulty technique like reverse calculation.

Simply, she blocked the opponent’s magic. With greater risk.

“Uncle, then… the reason she’s putting all her power into the spirit’s blessing now…”

“She’s trying to create just one opening. Even though the opponent is using magical power, it’s more for physical enhancement than spells. I think the person who taught her probably gave her a hint beforehand.”

Even though Rana had gained an advantageous position, she judged on her own that she couldn’t maintain it.

Unlike during the midterm evaluation when she was floundering and indecisive, this time she made the best move.

It was a moment that showcased the excellence of her teacher.

Of course, that doesn’t guarantee everything will go well.

“However, I think winning will be difficult.”

“What?”

Rana moves with the wind’s blessing maximally infused in her body.

Given the variety of attacks she’s shown so far, her opponent will certainly remain vigilant.

Everything is outmatched.

From raw power to magic-related metrics.

Not a single thing measures up. But, just one thing. There’s one area where she’s confident in her superiority.

‘I’m faster in terms of speed…!’

What works against Demian is the mobility created by leading with the spirit’s blessing.

Rana had to maximize this mobility.

‘Once is enough!’

She creates just one opening.

Like a turtle, she repeatedly probes the man who has surrounded his entire body with magical power.

With this small dagger, with attacks that won’t even properly penetrate.

But he will react, of course.

It was said that no one is without weaknesses.

That’s true even if they’re surrounded by magical power.

-‘It’s not just magic circles. Even when magical power surrounds the body, weaknesses exist. Think about it, Rana. How can a human, not being a machine, spread it evenly all around?’

If they concentrate magical power to defend the front, the back becomes empty.

They can’t cover all 360 degrees.

So, from the waist to the shoulder line where magic isn’t present.

She gathers all her magic, even what she used to resonate with the wind spirit, for a decisive strike.

Slash!

‘…I did it!’

The uniform tears under her dagger.

Just as the human body has vital points, when surrounded by magical power, those points become even more vulnerable.

The spot touched by the dagger was, without a doubt, Demian’s weak point.

“Huff… huff…”

Rana collapses to her knees, exhaling rough breaths.

It’s over.

She remembers the sensation at the tip of her dagger.

She should have won.

As Junon had taught her in advance, she aimed for the weak point, so her opponent’s uniform should have taken enough damage to signal defeat.

But… even after catching her breath three times, four times, the whistle doesn’t sound.

A chill runs down her spine as Rana raises her head.

‘…What?’

She was kneeling beneath Demian, who stood tall. Goosebumps involuntarily rose all over her body.

Above the kneeling Rana, the shadow of her opponent moves.

It was a kick.

***

‘Everything was just as Uncle Jake said…’

Rana lost to Demian.

Despite bringing out her best move and fighting with all her might.

Honestly, Renias had hoped for Rana to win.

‘Senior…’

What would happen if the student he taught performed well as a faction competitor?

If she achieved excellent results, people would naturally look back at who her educator was.

The rumors and curses that had been directed at Junon would vanish.

That’s what Renias had hoped for. For Junon’s mask to break.

“…What’s going on, why suddenly?”

Jake stands up abruptly.

Strange words came from him, who had been watching the match continuously.

“A referee rushing in, something must be happening.”

“…?”

Renias, who had been looking down and consoling his disappointment, raised his head again, wondering if something was wrong.

‘Uncle Jake? What did you see…’

When Renias looked back at the arena.

“…Senior?”

There stood Junon, blocking Demian’s magic armor axe.