Chapter 23 : Half – Assignment Battle – 3

Calming my confused mind as much as possible, I headed toward Class 1-A and soon found the classroom, stepping inside.

Clatter…

Due to my encounter with Emil, my mood had worsened significantly.

And since I was already running late, the classroom was filled with many cadets.

The moment I opened the door and stepped in, I felt their gazes land on me.

“…That’s her.”

“Ophelia?”

Ignoring the murmuring voices of the cadets, I exhaled calmly and maintained my expression as I slowly and steadily walked into the class.

“Hmph, it won’t matter anyway.”

“She’s bound to be kicked out of Class A sooner or later.”

Voices full of ridicule and those refusing to acknowledge me didn’t matter much to me.

After all, I wasn’t seeking their recognition.

I walked towards the blackboard at the front of the classroom, checked my assigned seat, and headed over.

A stack of papers was already placed on my desk. Realizing they were duel challenge slips, I silently stared at them before taking my seat.

Though they were called duel challenges, they were merely sheets with names written on them.

[B: Dobrando] → [A: Luen]

I quietly scanned through the papers, reading each one carefully with a familiar hand motion.

From Class A to C and D.

Realizing that cadets from every class in the academy had challenged me to duels, I couldn’t help but chuckle bitterly to myself.

‘Did they think I’d be an easy target?’

I had assumed that since I carried the name Ophelia, students from Class C or D wouldn’t dare challenge me.

But that didn’t seem to be the case.

If not that, then—

‘Did they already form a group against me?’

Were they ganging up on me to test me?

If I were to pick a duel against a cadet from Class C or D, that in itself would be a problem.

A cadet who received Ophelia’s recommendation choosing to duel someone from a lower-ranked class? That would certainly cause an uproar.

‘Or perhaps this is already Calcento’s doing.’

No matter the reason, if I failed to handle this situation properly, it would disrupt my future plans.

Of course, even if that weren’t the case, I had no intention of tarnishing Ophelia’s reputation.

‘First, let’s analyze this calmly.’

If Calcento had orchestrated something, then countering his move would be meaningful.

Regardless, I had no interest in dueling students from Class C or D.

Even Class B didn’t appeal to me much.

What I wanted was to dominate everyone with overwhelming strength.

To do that…

As I examined the duel slips, I took a deep breath and looked around.

More gazes than I had expected were fixed on me, watching closely to see who I would choose as my opponent.

Smiling inwardly at their interest, I slowly stood up.

The recommended cadets were, of course, outstanding.

That’s why they received recommendations from famous figures.

However, their true skills had not yet been proven.

Even if their abilities were widely rumored, they hadn’t yet been demonstrated to the cadets.

That’s why I wanted something certain.

I planned to choose an opponent from the students who had passed the academy’s entrance exam without any recommendations.

And so, I—

I had no intention of dueling three times.

Having already confirmed his name and seat, I slowly took out the duel slip from my pocket and walked toward him.

Leonhardt Laden Relize.

The top-ranked student in the entrance exam.

Not just first place, but overwhelmingly so—he had completely outclassed the runner-up, making him the undisputed number one at the academy.

With both formidable strength and a kind appearance, I approached him and wordlessly placed the duel slip on his desk.

“…Huh?”

As expected, his desk was completely empty and neatly arranged.

Rumors had it that he had demonstrated overwhelming skill in the publicly held entrance exam, and it seemed those rumors weren’t exaggerated.

Judging by how no one dared to challenge him out of fear, it was clear that his reputation was well-earned.

Leonhardt, too, seemed surprised that I had requested a duel with him.

He stared at me, slightly stunned, before letting out a small chuckle and picking up the duel slip.

By rule, as long as a student received only one duel request, they couldn’t refuse.

Since Leonhardt had received only mine, that meant he had no right to decline.

Still, he looked at me with an intrigued expression before shaking the duel slip with a smile.

“You really want to duel me?”

“Yes.”

When I nodded in response, he smiled brightly and nodded as well.

“Alright. I’ve been wanting to face you, too.”

As I watched his cheerful smile, I gave a final nod before turning away.

A match between the entrance exam’s top student and the one who received Ophelia’s recommendation.

Naturally, it would attract a lot of attention.

And because of that—

‘This will be the perfect chance to make my presence known.’

Even to Calcento, who must have heard about my admission.

Official duels were only allowed starting tomorrow, so Leonhardt and I agreed to meet at the academy’s official duel arena then.

Afterward, I left the classroom without hesitation.

For the next two weeks, while the placement battles were ongoing, there wasn’t much to do in the academy.

At best, students would spend time getting to know their classmates and forming connections.

But none of that mattered to me.

I would rather use that time to deepen my bond with the spirits.

As soon as I stepped out of the classroom, I let out a small sigh.

It was still difficult to endure the overwhelming malice and hostility from the other students.

I had been keeping my expression neutral, but every time I felt those emotions so clearly, I had to suppress the urge to retch.

“…Haa.”

The thought of enduring this for three years was already suffocating.

But if I could get through this duel, things would become easier—so I just had to hold on until then.

“You.”

Just as I was moving forward with that thought, a voice from behind stopped me in my tracks.

“…What?”

Turning around, I saw the light blue-haired girl I had met yesterday and let out a sigh of relief.

At least she didn’t carry any ill will, making her easier to deal with.

“You promised to duel me.”

“I never said that.”

I had only told her that she could challenge me whenever she felt confident enough.

That didn’t mean I had agreed to accept the duel.

As if replaying our conversation in her head, she furrowed her brows in thought before pouting slightly and tilting her head.

“You won’t fight me?”

“You took the entrance exam, right?”

“…Yeah. I was the runner-up. That guy from earlier was first.”

In truth, I had no reason to duel her.

As I mentioned before, Leonhardt had secured first place with an overwhelming gap from the second place.

Naturally, if I could defeat Leonhardt, it would also highlight the difference between me and her.

She must have known that as well, yet she still wanted to duel with me.

“You lost to the top student, didn’t you?”

“…Our compatibility was bad.”

I hadn’t personally witnessed the entrance exam, so I couldn’t say for sure, but she didn’t seem like the type to lie about something like this.

Although, the way she avoided my gaze made her claim a little less convincing.

Regardless, I fell into brief contemplation.

‘Would I gain anything from dueling her?’

Strictly speaking, there was nothing to gain officially.

After all, if I defeated the top student, winning against the runner-up wouldn’t mean much.

However…

“Alright, let’s do it later.”

“When?”

“After my duel with Leonhardt.”

“…Got it.”

I accepted her proposal.

Officially, there was nothing to gain—but unofficially, there was.

‘It’s always good to fight experienced mages.’

Kalbrandt was, in the end, a family of mages.

Even if Calcento fell short compared to his father in terms of talent, he was still a mage—and had far more combat experience than I did.

Not to mention the subordinates he commanded.

That was why I, too, had to fight as many strong opponents as possible while at the academy.

If these battles were unofficial, even better—I could gain experience without revealing my full strength.

After all, there was no way for me to hide the fact that I was a Spirit Contractor.

I couldn’t use magic, nor was I skilled with a sword.

In that sense, this girl was bound to be a valuable sparring partner for me.

“As you may already know, I’m Luen Phil Kalbrandt. Looking forward to it.”

I extended my hand as I spoke.

She stared at it for a moment before nodding and reaching out her own.

“Elicia Zan Serpia. If I win, don’t hold a grudge.”

Her light blue eyes locked onto mine with a determined gaze.

At her bold remark, I smirked and replied,

“Same to you.”

Don’t be too disheartened when you lose by an overwhelming margin.

I swallowed the last part of my sentence as we shook hands.

Her hand was…

Somewhat warm and small—completely opposite to her cool-colored hair.