novelraw Chapter 25
Chapter 25
Chapter 25
Magic Sparring
Splash-!
As soon as Nide finished speaking, a small wave washed across the sparring arena.
When the wave disappeared, a fairly long table appeared, with seven small jars placed on it.
In front of each jar was the emblem of its respective element.
At the same time, a scoreboard appeared in the air above the arena.
[Scoreboard]
-Fire : 0(0)
-Water : 0(0)
-Light : 0(0)
-Wind : 0(0)
-Earth : 0(0)
-Darkness : 0(0)
-Summoning : 0(0)
“It showed the victory points. The parentheses next to them meant winning streaks.”
That was Banshi’s explanation.
“It really felt like a tournament.”
“Right. This was also a match where each subject staked its pride. The top three subjects received points.”
As if it weren’t enough that the History of Mages 2 class already heightened the conflict between swordsmen and the Magical Society, now they even forced competition between fellow mage students……
This hour was filled with nothing but discomfort.
“How were the points given?”
“First place got 500 for each win. Second got 300. Third got 100. And then multiplied by the winning streak.”
If one got 10 wins, that was 5,000 points, and if that entire thing was a winning streak, it became 50,000 points.
“Good for you, I guess you won’t need to get points from me anymore?”
“As if I would’ve recklessly gambled away all my points. Of course I had something to rely on.”
The hopeless act she showed me in the cafeteria had been just that—an act meant to fool me.
“Anyway, was that it?”
“No, the last-place subject must pay 5,000 points unconditionally.”
“What about students who didn’t have 5,000 points?”
“They went into the negative, and naturally they couldn’t use facilities like the cafeteria. If they couldn’t pay it all back before the end of the year, they were expelled.”
“Expelled again, huh.”
Truly, the Magic Academy seemed desperate to expel its students.
Rather than letting students relax and happily learn, they planted the fear that one never knew when they’d be kicked out.
“Now, which subject would step up for the first match?”
When Nide looked toward the stands and asked, Ever shot up from his seat.
“Professor! The Fire Element would like to step up!”
“Teachers also participated in sparring?”
“No.”
“Then why did you volunteer first? You weren’t even going to fight.”
“A subject that went first and achieved three consecutive wins had it reflected in the teacher’s performance review.”
“But the teacher didn’t spar directly?”
“If a student achieved those results, it seemed they interpreted it as evidence of the teacher’s excellent instruction.”
“What a strange interpretation.”
“And of course, even reaching third place was reflected in the teacher’s evaluation.”
If a student achieved those results, they must’ve interpreted it as the result of the teacher’s fine guidance.
Judging by things now, the weekly shared class called Magic Sparring wasn’t only an important time for students.
The futures of the teachers were on the line as well.
Teachers in charge of a subject were still technically students themselves.
Since they needed qualification to take the exam for promotion to a higher class, it made sense they decided things on their own without consulting their students.
And the reason Ever confidently stepped forward was clear—because I was sitting in the Fire Element seat.
Hearing Ever’s declaration, Nide stood before the jar with the Fire Element emblem.
He stuck his hand inside, rummaged around, and pulled out a single water droplet.
“Now then, who would be stepping out for the Fire Element?”
When he flicked the droplet, it burst in front of the scoreboard and showed a student’s name.
‘Banshi’
“Yes!”
“Why was it always me? It felt like they had it rigged.”
As Banshi’s name appeared, Ever clenched both fists tightly, while Banshi herself grumbled.
“Banshi! I trust you!”
Words he left under the guise of encouragement before Banshi went down.
In truth, it was probably because of his performance review.
And so Banshi went down to the first floor and attached the sensor to her body.
“Banshi of the Fire Element is the first contender. Then which subject would face her?”
At Nide’s question, the teachers of each subject turned to their students for input.
If they could step up first and win three times, it would be added to their evaluation—too good a chance to ignore.
But no student from another subject volunteered.
Banshi was in her fifth year of Class 1.
After showing her skills for five years, students must have seen her as too enormous an opponent, unable to gather the courage to step forward.
Banshi wasn’t merely a Fire Element prospect; she was a unified Class 1 prospect.
Because she was a Flewd Elementalist.
In the first Darkness Element class I attended, it was said that Flewd Elementalists could handle all elements but lacked specialization.
But that was wrong knowledge—a distorted principle.
The actual 1st Circle of a Flewd Elementalist possessed power comparable to a 3rd Circle spell.
“Professor, our Summoner will go forth.”
But the first contender ended up coming from a rather unexpected subject.
“Very well.”
Nide walked to the jar with the Summoning emblem, drew another droplet, and selected a student.
‘Kiena’
Things took an interesting turn.
Of all matchups, it had to be Kiena versus Banshi.
Kiena and Banshi still didn’t get along.
Seeing Kiena’s name, Banshi gestured impatiently with her index finger for Kiena to hurry down from the second floor.
‘Well, Kiena wasn’t a match for Banshi anyway.’
Banshi was a 6th Circle Flewd Elementalist.
A student who should’ve been at the main academy.
The outcome was decided before the match even began, but I suddenly wanted to see Kiena’s state for myself.
How had she grown while faithfully attending classes in Class 1?
Kiena came down awkwardly, holding a staff nearly her height with both hands.
She was small to begin with, so holding the staff made her look like a rabbit hopping down the steps.
She finally made it down safely, attached the sensor, and stood facing Banshi.
“Then, begin.”
Nide stepped back a few paces, signaling the true start.
“You catch a fox with a fox!”
Kiena spun her staff round and round, glaring at Banshi with a look she had never shown before.
The animals Kiena summoned were two baby foxes.
It seemed she planned to go all-out from the start, using both of her mana.
“Bite her!”
At Kiena’s command, the two baby foxes sprinted toward Banshi with their mouths wide open.
Banshi, instead, waited with an indifferent expression for the foxes to come within a set distance…….
Fwoosh.
She formed a fire sphere at the tip of her staff, turning it into a torch, and swung it down on the fox’s open snout as it approached.
Thud!
Yelp!
A truly amusing scene unfolded.
‘They didn’t issue those staffs for people to use them like that…….’
Was she using the staff like some swordsman’s blade?
Banshi immediately set fire to both of Kiena’s summoned foxes.
The foxes writhed on the floor in agony.
“Have you ever tasted fox meat?”
Banshi really was a ruthless mage.
Well, she must’ve gone through horrible things when she was younger.
“Don’t talk about my cute summons like that!”
Kiena snapped back, attempting to summon another animal—but at that moment, Banshi burst one of the two fire spheres right in front of Kiena’s face, creating a wall of flame, while she sent the other behind to strike Kiena’s sensor.
Boom!
At the same time, Kiena’s sensor exploded.
‘She used exactly what she once used on me.’
“It’s over. Banshi of the Fire Element wins. Kiena, return to your seat.”
“Huh……? When……?”
Kiena hadn’t even realized she’d been attacked.
The fact that she lost—not to anyone, but to Banshi, whom she disliked—made her glare with all the strength in her eyes.
But when she heard Nide’s voice, she had no choice but to look away.
“Hurry up and head back up, Kiena.”
“……Yes.”
Kiena returned to the second floor with drooping shoulders.
Nide watched her retreating figure for a moment, then shifted his gaze to Banshi.
“Banshi, will you continue?”
“Hmm……”
At Nide’s question, Banshi looked at me.
“No. I’d like to stop here.”
“Magic Sparring follows the rule that winners continue fighting, but if the winner doesn’t wish to, they may choose a substitute from their element. Banshi, who will take your place for the Fire Element?”
Nide explained the rules clearly for the four of us who were taking this weekly shared class for the first time.
Then Banshi looked at me and spoke.
“Artel.”
I was stunned. Banshi suddenly choosing me?
“Come down, Artel. Banshi, hand over your sensor to Artel.”
“Yes.”
When I went down to the first floor, Banshi approached to attach the sensor to me.
“What are you thinking, suddenly choosing me?”
I asked quietly so the other students wouldn’t hear.
“To see and learn again from the magic of the great, pristine white mage.”
She answered in the same soft voice, using formal speech.
She must have added “great” on purpose—her way of saying that, in this false world, she alone knew the truth.
She was surprisingly considerate.
Alright. Since this Magic Sparring heavily influenced promotions, I supposed I might as well play a little.
After passing the sensor to me, Banshi returned to the second floor.
“The initial selection is done, so from here on, we’ll proceed by drawing lots.”
Nide created a large droplet toward the ceiling.
It turned into a transparent roulette, containing all elemental and summoning emblems.
The spinning roulette slowed and stopped at the Water Element emblem.
Nide immediately reached into the jar and pulled out a name.
‘Lamik Vir’
Oh? A mage of the Lamik Family was here?
The Lamik Family was the representative Water Element family.
Its head was my disciple.
And so Vir of the Water Element now stood before me.
An average height for an early-teen.
A handsome face.
His hair was sky blue, unlike Nide’s.
Since he was a Class 1 student, the assimilation wasn’t complete, so his hair color was pale.
Thus, the spar between Vir and me began.
“You were a dual caster of Fire and Darkness, right? But you got the wrong opponent. Of all things, you ended up against a Water Elementalist, the worst possible matchup. You can’t use fire now, huh?”
“Why were all the mages I’ve seen from your family all talk? Go ahead. Attack first. I’ll block it.”
“Yeah? Then let’s see!”
Vir’s magic tool was a wand.
With a swing of his wand, four water droplets appeared instantly.
‘For a 1st Circle, four water droplets…… definitely worthy of a representative family.’
I remained still for now.
How did he plan to attack me using those droplets?
When he swung the wand again, the water droplets shot toward me.
It was true that water and fire were a horrible matchup.
But it wasn’t as bad as the matchup between Fire and Flewd—there was still a chance of victory.
There were plenty of ways to overcome it.
Water could extinguish fire, but if the fire was stronger, it could evaporate the water.
Likewise, if the mana of a Fire Elementalist surpassed that of the Water Elementalist, water magic could be evaporated.
Pop!
I lightly burned and evaporated the first droplet that came my way.
“Interesting.”
But Vir looked even more fired up.
‘Yes, that’s how a mage of a great family should be.’
Vir sent more droplets at me.
Just as I was about to evaporate them again—
Crack.
A very faint sound came from inside one of the droplets Vir formed.
‘That sound……’
When his droplet collided with my flame barrier, instead of evaporating, it pierced straight through and flew at me.
“……?”
I quickly twisted my body to dodge.
‘No doubt. That sound just now was ice magic.’
Ice magic was a high-order Water Element spell.
At minimum, 7th Circle.
The cracking sound was the sound of the droplet freezing.
But the sound was so faint that the other students and teachers probably didn’t hear it.
Even if he was from the Lamik Family, how could a 1st Circle mage use 7th Circle magic?
‘Wait, don’t tell me……’
I turned my head sideways.
Professor Nide was staring straight at me, smiling only with his mouth.
‘Magic implemented by Nide……?’