novelraw Chapter 76 : A New Benefit (1)
Chapter 76 : A New Benefit (1)
Chapter 76: A New Benefit (1)
Hei’s duel lasted unexpectedly long.
Since it was a duel with no time limit, it was the kind of duel that only ended once a winner and a loser were decided.
Even back in the 1st Class, there had been a time when it took as long as two hours against Lamic Vir.
This time, the opponent was an Earth Element.
If one were to ask which side the elemental compatibility favored in a battle between fire and earth, then strictly speaking, it would be earth.
That was because the Fire Element, which had a burning nature, could have some difficulty burning through solid earth.
Moreover, the Fire Element was evaluated as the weakest among the seven elements, to the point that it couldn’t gain an advantage in elemental compatibility against any element.
But that didn’t mean it was greatly disadvantaged either.
As much as I said ‘strictly speaking,’ the influence of elemental compatibility was extremely minimal.
Hei’s duel had already gone past 20 minutes.
Since this was likely his first experience against a 3rd Class Earth Element, I could only assume he was struggling that much.
What was frustrating was that, since the duel took place by entering the Element-Favored Duel Arena through a portal, there was no way to see what the situation was like.
“Will he be okay…… Hei.”
Kiena said anxiously, stamping her feet.
About another ten minutes passed like that.
While Kiena alone seemed to feel the anxiety of waiting, Professor Cullem looked bored, yawning so wide it seemed her mouth might tear.
And finally.
The door of the duel arena opened, and the first one to come out was Hei.
“Hei!”
As if welcoming someone who had just returned from surgery, Kiena grabbed both of Hei’s arms the moment he came out and asked,
“How did it go?”
“…….”
Hei’s expression wasn’t good.
That was understandable.
It was a duel he had right after advancing to the 3rd Class, even before attending his first lesson.
Just as I was about to tell him not to be too disappointed, the student who had dueled with Hei also revealed himself.
His expression was even worse than Hei’s.
‘What? Why do both of them look bad?’
It was a duel where a draw could never happen.
Therefore, one of the two had to be smiling, but with both wearing those expressions, I couldn’t make any sense of it.
I hurriedly checked the ranking board hanging beside the entrance to the duel arena.
[Ranking Board]
Artel, Kiena, Hei - 101
The three of our names were clearly stamped in first place.
All three of us had the same number of points, meaning we were tied for first.
And the fact that the three of us were together meant…….
“You won, Hei?”
“Uh…… yeah.”
When I shouted, Hei replied half-heartedly.
I had no idea what had happened during the duel, or why he was making that expression despite winning.
The three, including Keled, disappeared somewhere immediately after the duel ended.
The moment they called their initiation ended with our victory.
“You won, so why did you make that face?”
After the duel, as the three of us walked side by side down the corridor, I asked Hei.
“I don’t know if I won with skill, or if I won by luck.”
“Why do you think that? A win is a win.”
“No…… I guess it’s more like I can’t quite accept it…….”
Hei then explained how his opponent had come at him.
“He kept moving quickly along these thin, long walls, and while doing that, he kept firing things like rock fragments. I just kept blocking, and since his movement path stayed the same the whole time, I just tried manifesting a Fire Shroud right in his path, really big. And then it ended.”
His opponent, and Hei.
It was the exact same pattern as mine.
“You too? The guy I fought attacked like that as well.”
Even Kiena chimed in.
All three of them, who had so confidently issued the duel challenges, used the exact same duel method.
I patted Hei on the back and said,
“How is that luck? You accurately read the opponent’s movements.”
On top of that, I hadn’t expected him to break it the same way I had.
Hei was showing the results of the training he’d done over winter break.
Well, I had been his opponent the entire two months of winter break.
So it made sense that he’d more or less learned how to use his head during duels by now.
“No…… it was the 3rd Class. They said it was an intermediate class. So I thought it’d be really hard…….”
Hei trailed off and looked at me.
He looked like he was wondering whether the opponent he’d beaten so easily was really the right one.
Doubt had risen first toward the result he’d grasped with his own hands.
“A win is a win. Why worry about that?”
The process was important, but the most important thing was the result.
After being sick of dealing with me for two whole months, it was only natural that opponents would feel easy.
“Well, still, I guess this counts as properly going through the initiation. They won’t mess with us carelessly anymore.”
I asked while putting my arms around the shoulders of Kiena and Hei on either side.
Only then did both of their expressions brighten.
After finishing the duel, I immediately went into Dark Element class.
The theory lecture had already ended, and it was in the middle of a practical lesson.
The moment I entered the classroom and saw the teacher’s appearance, a sigh escaped me on its own.
‘Another Draco Family…….’
The teacher’s name was Draco Melatan.
From the 1st Class to the 3rd Class, the Dark Element instructor was a mage from the Draco Family.
On top of that, even this school’s Vice Headmaster was from the Draco Family.
There was no way this was a coincidence.
With this, I could definitively conclude it.
That the Dark Element instructor for every class was a mage from the Draco Family.
“A duel as soon as the semester starts. Perhaps there were many students who found it interesting, since you’re a double caster.”
He said that while looking at me.
Compared to Draco Walfis from the 1st Class, his impression wasn’t particularly different.
Dark, gloomy, and someone you wouldn’t want to keep by your side…….
His expression was blank, like a puppet devoid of emotion.
He was a teacher who fully retained the distinctive impression of the Draco Family.
Even the way he spoke to me somehow felt provocative.
“Yes, it just sort of happened.”
As I replied, I glanced around with my eyes at the number of 3rd Class Dark Element students.
Ten people.
Compared to the 1st Class, it was definitely a larger number.
However, due to the characteristics of the Dark Element, their hair and eyes all remained black, so it was impossible to visually gauge how much assimilation had taken place.
I could only infer it after directly seeing the magic the students cast.
“Who was it?”
Melatan asked out of the blue.
It was a question so vague that it was hard to tell who he was asking about.
“Who do you mean?”
“The student who applied to duel you as soon as the semester started.”
“Oh. Keled? I think that was the name.”
“Keled……? He’s the top student of the 3rd Class, the Earth Element.”
One of the students said.
No wonder—the utilization of magic had been far superior to what I’d expected.
There had been a reason for that.
I really hadn’t known that guy was the top student of the 3rd Class.
‘I thought a mage from a great family would be holding the top spot.’
“So what happened?”
Now Melatan fixated on the result.
And it wasn’t just him—the Dark Element students all had the same look in their eyes.
“Why ask when you could just check on Mob?”
The promotion system for the 3rd Class was already following the same method that had been changed back when I was in the 1st Class.
It was my way of saying that anyone could check the ranking board at any time through Mob.
The moment I finished speaking, Melatan and the ten students immediately activated Mob.
“…….”
Melatan wore an expression of surprise.
“The top student…… lost…….”
The students let out voices filled with awe.
“How did you win?”
Melatan asked now with genuine curiosity.
I had just entered the 3rd Class and hadn’t attended a single lesson yet.
On top of that, I was a student who came straight from the 1st Class, skipping the 2nd, so it must have been hard to believe that I’d defeated the top student.
No matter how much of a double caster I was, fire and darkness didn’t have a decisive compatibility advantage, so he looked like he was trying to deny the result.
“It just sort of happened.”
Was there really any reason to go into detail about the duel?
He was a mage from the Draco Family, so he wasn’t exactly a teacher I felt inclined toward.
It was the family of the one who killed me—I'm not kind enough to look on them favorably.
“Well, fine.”
Melatan finally took his eyes off me and resumed the lesson.
Then, as if something occurred to him, he asked me,
“From the looks of it, you seem talented. Would you like to try the practical exercise right away?”
I examined how the students were standing.
They were paired up in twos, facing each other, each holding their respective tools.
I didn’t know what kind of magic the Dark Element was currently learning.
But judging by their stance, they were clearly practicing by aiming at the student in front of them.
“What kind of magic is it?”
“This kind.”
Fwoosh-!
Without warning, Melatan manifested the very magic being taught directly at me.
With a light gesture through the air, as if shooing away an insect, a black wave surged forth and struck my body in an instant.
As a result, I was sent flying and only landed after slamming into the classroom wall.
‘……Oh?’
“It’s Wave(Wave).”
I immediately brushed myself off, stood up, and said so.
There was no real impact. My body had simply been pushed back, causing my back to hit the wall.
He had clearly reduced his power as much as possible, intending to aim at a student.
But…….
‘He did that on purpose, didn’t he?’
Melatan had clearly attacked me.
Wave was a spell that generated a shockwave to attack the opponent.
Back in the 1st Class, the very first lesson had been Dark Space, a simple binding spell with no offensive capability at all.
But the 3rd Class started straight off with an attack spell.
That meant that from here on out, all the magic they would learn would be spells designed solely for offense.
“You know it well. But I’m curious how a student who came straight from the 1st Class recognized it at a glance.”
Now Melatan openly expressed his suspicion.
“I’ve seen it in a book.”
“Is there a book in the 1st Class that covers 3rd Circle magic? There shouldn’t be.”
“Do you remember every single book in that vast library? You couldn’t even remember me being there until a few days ago.”
“…….”
After I rebutted him, he fell silent for a moment, then asked something else.
“Anyway, we’re practicing this magic. Do you think you can do it?”
It was exactly the same as back with Walfis in the 1st Class.
The difference was that this time, there wouldn’t be any condition where the reward was exemption from attending class.
Given that many school rules had changed since the 1st Class, restricting teacher-discretion evaluations, I didn’t think Melatan had any reason to make such an offer.
“I think I can.”
“Then go ahead. The target will be…….”
Just as Melatan turned his gaze to find a suitably leveled student—
‘Fine. I don’t need any reward. I’ll return it exactly as given.’
I immediately manifested a single black sphere and used Wave to push it forward, sending it flying straight at Melatan.
Bang!
“……What do you think you’re doing?”
‘Oh? His reaction’s pretty good.’
In that split second, Melatan reacted instantly, striking the sphere away with a hand that had partially manifested Chaos Arm, a Dark Element armament spell.
Not only his reaction speed, but his actual skill as a mage was quite solid.
His face twisted into a deep scowl as he glared at me murderously.
“You told me to try it. So I did.”
The students froze stiff in the chilling atmosphere that had turned the classroom into a bed of nails.
“……Isn’t he crazy?”
“He just attacked the teacher…… right?”
“Teacher Melatan is terrifying…….”
Those were the students’ reactions.
All of them were edging backward toward the corners, trembling like frightened puppies.
Ignoring their reactions, I looked at Melatan with a confident expression and asked,
“What do you think? Isn’t it a pretty decent spell if you apply Wave like this? Using just a simple Wave felt a bit lacking to me.”