Ch.281276 – Prelude to Victory

The students chosen as the vanguards from each academy faced off on opposite sides of the arena.

‘Mana isn’t something you see or hear. You have to distinguish between what already exists and what will exist, and find it yourself. Do you understand what I’m saying? Hey, why are you nodding when you don’t understand?’

With a simple enchantment device strapped to her wrist, Ji-hye closed her eyes slowly, recalling NoName’s advice.

She overlaid her aura onto the ornament fluttering in the wind.

“Are you ready, participant Ma Ji-hye? If you’re ready, I’ll start the countdown.”

When you close your eyes, you realize how much humans have relied on sight throughout their lives.

The vast and profound flow of nature felt like nothing more than a gentle breeze to young Ji-hye.

Even that was a world she could barely detect with the help of her wand.

‘I wonder what the world looks like through NoName’s eyes.’

When Ji-hye opened her eyes again, her vision expanded infinitely.

The arena, larger than a futsal court, felt as small as a millet seed.

What she was seeing was the other side of the world.

Things that don’t exist yet but could exist in the future.

Like the light barrier separating the arena from the spectator seats, and the spark of life emanating from the participant on the opposite side.

“I’m ready.”

The aura hearts of the children, barely eight years old, began to resonate with the world.

Homo sapiens sapiens, or sometimes called Homo sapiens modificator (homo sapiens modificator), are the apex predators who came to dominate Earth.

Unlike other animals, they measure nature and act according to laws and principles.

And the eyes of a girl who once stood at the pinnacle of her species whirled around.

A 10-second countdown appeared on the display board illuminating the young participants’ faces.

“Woooooaaah!”

“Go second-graders!”

“Lee Ha-ru! Don’t you dare lose!”

Thunderous cheers erupted as the children, wands in hand, clashed in the center.

“Go get ’em, kids.”

At last, the inter-academy competition of honor had begun.

* * *

It’s all too easy for internet broadcasters to give advice to participants.

Telling those who allowed distance that they should have maintained more space.

Telling those who overlooked casting time that they should have shortened it further.

While most commentaries were based on hindsight, discussing past events with the benefit of knowing their outcomes,

an invasive species appeared on Twissy.

[NoName]

[KBS Seoul Regional Academy Competition – Biased commentary of the Academy Competition with father]

[Broadcast time – 0:48:23]

[Viewers – 41,257]

Lee Ha-ru, who had been firing mana cannons from a distance, abandoned her wand and joined Ma Ji-hye.

NoName jumped up from her seat and shouted with slightly elevated tone:

“Contestant Lee Ha-ru canceled her friction coefficient adjustment spell and immediately transformed to adiabatic expansion magic. Her magic circle recycling is fast. The daily practice is paying off.”

“That’s a brilliant decision. Thanks to that, the opponent’s fire mage is being disrupted.”

Professor Cheon added a word of praise, not holding back on complimenting Ha-ru’s handling of the situation.

-Wait explain please lolololol

-??? What exactly is happening right now?

-Weren’t 2nd graders just supposed to trip each other with friction coefficients and shoot mana cannons?

-She was doing well chipping away at the barrier with her zap zap, why stop?

Nothing had even happened yet.

“Altair doesn’t seem to be responding properly! Right now, a direct hit would be critical, so don’t worry about guarding and just go for it!”

The moment NoName said that, Ji-hye and Ha-ru instantly surrounded their opponent 2-to-1, released all their aura, and delivered a strike.

WHAM-!

Under the crushing impact from both sides, the boy’s feet left the ground and his body flopped onto the floor.

“Phew, nice. It was a bit off but well done.”

“NoName, did you teach them that too?”

“Ah… no? I guess they just learned by copying me. The kids are really something.”

-That double lariat was sick lololololol

-Suddenly turning it into a beatdown lolol

└ For real, the way she immediately joined in when she saw the distance between the two opponents widen is truly genius.

-Cephiron is different this year!

-So please give us some commentary, NoName-wagon!

“So far, Ji-hye’s aura strikes have been more effective against that fire mage than Ha-ru’s mana cannons. So the opponent, with little particle barrier left, tried to drive Ji-hye away with the ‘heat transfer – friction ignition’ combination we saw earlier to regain distance, but Ha-ru, watching from behind, boldly countered with ‘adiabatic expansion’. When the temperature drops, the saturated vapor pressure decreases and the relative humidity increases, which can disrupt ignition magic.”

NoName cleared her throat and explained to the viewers in a much calmer tone.

“I didn’t mention this earlier, but friction coefficient adjustment and adiabatic expansion are both ‘L’ series magic, so recycling the main circle can shorten casting time. The sense to guide the residual mana from the deployed adiabatic expansion area and wrap it around her arm to use it shows great mana conservation. Does that explanation help?”

[‘SaveMeFromGradSchool’ donated ₩10,000!]

-Standing ovation with tears in my eyes

[‘ILikeCateMatesBest’ donated ₩50,000!]

-NoName is a god! NoName is a god! NoName is a god!

-Are we even watching the same match? lolololol

-It’s my first time feeling awe while listening to commentary.

-NoName is the top Korean hip-hop rapper.

-The academy level is insanely high this year, what’s going on?

└ If you just look at this scene alone, it looks like middle school level lol

-Plebs like us can’t even join the conversation.

-No no, not all academy students are like that. Lee Ha-ru is exceptionally gifted.

└ She’s the granddaughter of the Samyeon Group vice chairman.

└ Damn, rich people should let their kids play more;;

└ People with means always push their kids to study harder.

-But what doesn’t NoName know??? At this point, shouldn’t we suspect there’s a robot inside?

└ For real lol

-How am I supposed to wait until the afternoon!!!!!

-Why are only the managers donating? I want to donate too! Host, open up the donation link now!

-Isn’t NoName’s chirpy voice so cute?????

└ But the commentary quality is legendary damn

NoName’s commentary, predicting events three seconds into the future, continued throughout.

So much so that some viewers complained about what they thought was a sync issue.

In the end, except for Ji-hye who voluntarily withdrew due to a nosebleed that wouldn’t stop, the Cephiron Academy students still had plenty of barrier left.

The final contestant, Seo Yu-na, came in as a substitute to put an end to this match.

“Contestant Seo Yu-na’s specialty is being able to freely apply both magic and aura. Like now, trapping the enemy’s retreat path with hot wind magic and charging in… if she concentrates her aura on the front of her feet, she can make her steps narrow and quick! If she can just avoid the next attack!”

The student’s fist, covered in steel all the way up the arm, narrowly missed Yu-na’s face.

With her red hair fluttering, she instantly grabbed the boy’s waist and slammed him to the ground.

Their bodies tangled as they rolled on the floor several times.

She grabbed the boy from behind, choking him while raining down punches. Throughout this process, Yu-na showed no restraint.

The heat haze of blooming flame winds naturally subsided, and in the end, it was Seo Yu-na who stood up.

“Our Yu-na never loses on the ground. She has long limbs, is much taller than her peers, and above all, has enough strength and endurance to back it up.”

The essence of dueling is ultimately one thing.

Quickly neutralize the enemy’s attack and accurately land your own.

NoName had taught them only two things.

How to understand the meaning of every movement, and how to use their bodies efficiently.

“Yu-na won! Wooaah our daughter won!”

“Ow Mom, my back hurts! Is Yu-na’s hand so hot because she takes after you?”

“Seo Ma-ru, what are you saying! Seo Yu-na, you’re amazing! Our Yu-na is the best!”

“NoName, it would have been a disaster if you had competed in the second-grade match! The balance is already broken! Hahaha!”

Yu-na’s family stood up from the row right behind NoName, forgetting all dignity as they cheered.

But the atmosphere was already one where all the Cephiron spectators were giving a standing ovation in celebration, so it didn’t seem strange.

‘I’m glad they’re happy.’

NoName relaxed and sat back comfortably in her chair.

The chat was flooded with messages celebrating Cephiron Academy’s first set victory.

“Good job, NoName. I think it’s the first time I’ve seen you raise your voice like that.”

When Professor Cheon smiled, NoName rubbed her nose in embarrassment.

She genuinely wanted the children she taught to win, and she also tried harder with the broadcast because she was in front of Professor Cheon.

“It feels good to win. But I think those friends are probably the happiest right now.”

As soon as the referee’s whistle announced Cephiron’s victory, students who had been waiting outside the arena could be seen rushing to the center.

They gathered around Yu-na and Si-hoo, who were lying spread-eagled, completely exhausted.

Despite the match proceeding without major crises, they hugged each other and sobbed.

The desperation for victory was created by the effort put into winning, rather than by affiliation or honor.

“Are you going to congratulate them?”

“Yes. They’re friends who followed along without a single complaint for almost three and a half months since summer vacation. They must have had a hard time emotionally. Especially Ji-hye, who struggled the most.”

NoName hopped off her chair to praise their efforts and share in the joy of victory.

But NoName was betrayed by her friends in a way completely different from what she had expected.

* * *

“This is your first time participating in the academy competition, how did you approach today’s match, Lee Ha-ru?”

“I had to win this match no matter what. I had to win to get revenge on NoName, that’s what I was thinking…”

Ha-ru glanced sideways at NoName while making her bold statement.

NoName’s expression was already changing moment by moment, and it didn’t look good.

“Revenge? What kind of revenge are you talking about?”

“We made a promise that if we win and NoName loses, she has to play the baby role in our house play and do whatever we say! So please, Altair seniors, teach NoName a lesson! You have to!”

Ha-ru, not at all intimidated by her respected seniors, went on to make the outrageous statement of cheering for Altair Academy.

“…”

NoName’s face, watching from above, darkened rapidly.