Chapter 45: Duel
Chapter 5/5 for the week.
‘Why isn’t he coming?’
A large crowd had gathered, but Zetto was not coming.
“How did I gather this crowd…?’
It was a rumor I’d been whispering to the cadets for days, investigating the senior, first-year, soft-spoken cadets. Everything was in my favor.
The Labyrinth practice must be over.
Naturally, conversations among the cadets could be lively once again, and the seniors in particular needed something more stimulating to look forward to than the usual training.
But if Zetto didn’t come, it would be a lost cause.
He would be tarnishing his growing reputation, but I had nothing to gain if he didn’t come.
“When is he coming?”
“Are you sure he caught the lycanthrope?”
“He came out with his head in his hands.”
“I’m not looking forward to it since she’s in class C…”
Everyone was getting tired of waiting and my throat was burning as I waited for him to show up.
Suddenly, I heard the cadets near the entrance shouting.
I looked toward the entrance of the training center and saw him walking with Yuri.
Zetto is in the arena and all eyes are on him, not me. Even that gives me a little thrill, and my body shakes slightly.
I could already feel the stares and attention that would be showered on me if I beat him.
“…Are you okay?”
The academy staff member who was in charge of organizing this duel asked me with concern.
“I’m fine.”
I straightened up and replied to the staff member.
“Well, what a crowd of people… I hear you’re in Class C, and I’m rooting for you. I was in Class C when I was in the academy, so even if he’s in Class A, I don’t know the big the difference is. Sometimes, there are cadets who blossom in talent during duels…”
“Ah… Thank you.”
Listening to the staff member’s explanation, the excitement I’d been trying to suppress flared up again.
‘Awakening during a duel and overwhelming weakness…’
Such a scenario wouldn’t be so bad.
Before I know it, Zetto is standing in front of me with a cheeky grin on his face.
“This duel will take place within an illusionary realm. You must not carry anything that might interfere with the magic, and since this is not an official match, there are no penalties or rewards for winning or losing. …Any objections?”
The staff member who checked Zetto and me alternately asked.
I couldn’t wait to get started. My body tingled and shivered as the atmosphere in the arena intensified.
“Since you said there are no penalties or rewards, do you think it would be okay if we talked and made a verbal ‘promise’?”
Zetto blurted out, caught off guard by the employee’s question.
“Just for fun.”
I tilt my head in question, and Zetto adds, “It’s just for fun.” This wasn’t mentioned when I met him yesterday.
“…I don’t mind, but it won’t have any effect or enforceability.”
The employee looks at me with a worried glance and stammers.
I didn’t know what he was up to, but it didn’t hurt to be friendly.
“…Is there anything you’d like, Cadet Zetto? The cake you bought me yesterday was delicious, so let’s hear it.”
I didn’t have to play the fool to him anymore. I’d been waiting for this moment to show my true colors.
“Again, what I’m about to say has no force or effect, and I want you to know that.”
The employee’s urgent instructions followed, but there was no stopping the two of us from talking.
“How about you grant me a wish?”
Zetto continued to speak, even after hearing the employee’s emphasis.
“…A wish?”
What he wanted was a wish. However, there was one thing that was predictable about his wish.
‘My body…?’
I grimaced at the absurdity of it all but as if sensing my frown, Zetto spoke up.
“A moderately mild wish?”
“…Yes, although my wish might be harsh on you.”
Then I’d better return the favor.
My wish is that he never touches women. I don’t expect him to honor it.
I’m going to follow my grandfather’s advice to keep my word and grant him whatever wish he asks for, but it’s not going to happen.
The crowd is booing because the duel hasn’t started yet.
These boos would turn to cheers later and were all the more reason for me to win.
“…I think we’ve had enough of this, so I’m going to start the duel. Oh, and I have a request from the instructors to change the broadcast screen to the biggest one, do you mind?”
“No problem.”
“No problem for me either.”
I and Zetto replied firmly to the employee.
“Of course.”
The staff member then placed his hand on the magic circle on the floor and the booing died down and the crowd began to swell with anticipation. Or, more accurately, anticipation for Zetto’s performance.
‘C class should be good enough to check his swordsmanship… What kind of reaction is this?’
I was curious about the reaction of the crowd, who would not only see his swordsmanship, but also his miserable end.
As I concentrate on the sound of the crowd’s voices pounding in my ears, my body begins to heat up.
Soon, the magic circle begins to glow and my vision becomes blurry. The next thing I know, the scene is completely reversed.
I slowly turn my head and look around.
‘A field of reeds.’
Reeds as tall as my waistline covered the area around me.
The wind blew at just the right time, and the reeds bumped against each other, making a soothing sound.
Call it bad luck…Zetto was blind.
He would be sensitive to sound, and the reeds would make it harder for him to pick up on my movements. Still, it wouldn’t make a difference between victory and defeat.
Soon, I caught sight of him, not far away. His head was already pointed precisely at me.
‘Yes. Well, it’s not a good time to start talking about it when you realize you’re being followed.’
It doesn’t have to be a confrontation from the start. There’s a fine line between showing off the skills of an average Class C cadet at the beginning, but not breaking down.
Contrary to what he thinks, I’m not going to break down anytime soon. Sooner or later, he’s going to get flustered and start to unleash his power to take me down because I’m only a Class C cadet. That would be my time to show my strength.
The scenario was perfect and soon enough, I drew my sword and pointed it at him.
‘Balanced, but a little unsteady.’
It was like building a staircase, a staircase to the pleasure of being in a higher position when I unleashed my power.
“Ha…”
A ragged breath escapes my mouth.
I shouldn’t be doing this, but I keep getting overly excited.
I control my excitement for the sake of the spectators who will be watching the competition and focus on Zetto’s movements.
Ideally, I wanted Zetto, a Class A cadet, to come at me, a Class C athlete, full of confidence.
‘I think a decapitation would be a nice way to end this.’
As I waited for him to charge, I pondered which finish would be coolest.
[Ssssssss.]
A lazy breeze swept across the reeds once more as Zetto drew the sword from his belt.
It was the first time I had ever seen him draw a sword.
The exposed blade was blood-red, and the black hilt shone so brilliantly it could have been black crystal.
‘I thought the handle was at least as fine.’
His sword was irritatingly ‘fancy’ but my grandfather told me that a fine sword is only as good as the man who wields it.
Through the reeds, Zetto held the sword in a reverse grip.
Anyone who knows anything about swords knows what a fatal weakness and how impractical it is.
‘Are you ignoring me, or are you taking your time?’
I suppose he meant that he could defeat me with reverse grip.
My hands tightened around the sword.
I had once asked my grandfather about reverse grip.
‘Listen, Kaen,’ he said, ‘there are two kinds of people who wield swords in reverse grip. First, there are those who are just showing off. This is the most common type of swordsman, and they’re the funny ones. They’re the ones who lose their stance and flail about at the slightest hint of a counterattack.’
‘And the second?’
‘The second one is…’
The old man stroked his beard in response to my question.
“…the ones who don’t mind being beaten, because they’re so much better. So be a little careful.
Of course, I didn’t think he’d fall into the second category. But his smirk, looming in the distance, made me unnecessarily wary.
‘Get a grip, Kaen. It can’t be.’
Even for someone who hides his power as well as I do or even for someone who can use dispel with a sword. There is no way he can defeat me with a sword held in reverse grip.
I am Kaen, a disciple of the greatest swordsman on the continent, Sword Saint. I’ll finish him off with a sword blow to the head.
I wondered what the crowd would think if a cadet of the academy, a first-year, and even a C-class student, revealed his sword skills.
I took a deep breath as I felt it was time for him to strike.
‘If he hits me hard from the first move, I’ll try to make it look like I’m a little overwhelmed.’
Thanks to illusion magic, the duel was a real battle so a single blow would be crucial.
I had done all the calculations in my head, but Zetto still hadn’t charged at me so I decided to make the first move due to the frustration of the crowd.
My leg snaps through the reeds and I take a step but just then his arm moves, however it wasn’t the right arm that held the sword.
Zetto suddenly raised left hand and swept across the hilt.
‘What is that?’
He was preparing something.
‘Let’s not let our guard down.’
If I let my guard down, it wouldn’t be as dramatic as I wanted it to be.
The moment his left hand skimmed over the edge of the hilt, I could sense a change in his aura from the distance.
I couldn’t really tell from the distance, but I knew something had changed.
Next, Zetto’s arm that was holding his sword moved and a split second passed in slow motion as Zetto’s sword slices through the air in a diagonal line.
A lot of thoughts were going on in my head.
‘Is he a swordsman?’
But there was no mana emanating from his sword at all.
Not only his sword, but his body didn’t seem to be emitting any mana.
‘Then what’s with all the pointless swordplay…?’
Maybe I was overestimating him. He could have swung his sword without meaning to.
The moment my thinking reached that point.
[Ssshhhh!]
Out of nowhere, I heard the sound of reeds being cut down in front of me. Then I saw the reeds floating in the air.
I didn’t understand why the reeds were being cut off?
Even though I watched it with my own eyes, I couldn’t explain it.
It didn’t matter if it was a sword or something else his invisible sword strike was already right under my nose.
My body, trained by my grandfather since childhood, was able to react to it but then the unthinkable happened.
‘Which way did he slash…?’
My head spun then my vision tilted.
‘Oh…?’
I tried to voice my question, but it didn’t come out as my vision spins in midair.
My head was literally spinning and my vision sank lower and lower until I saw my body, headless and gurgling blood.
‘My throat was cut…?’
My vision went black.
I don’t know how many seconds passed but when the darkness lifted and I could see light again, I was standing in an arena full of people.
I stagger out of the illusion and fall to the ground.
My throat was slashed but not by a sword. The sword I knew should have cut through the reeds in front of him.
I was out of his reach. Still, Zetto swung his sword, and my throat was cut cleanly.
Contrary to my expectations, Zetto showed his strength from the start.
Instead of hiding his power and sleeping on it, he casually swung his sword and destroyed all the scenarios I had prepared.
From the dispel in the placement test to the unexplained swordplay in the duel my head was spinning from all the confusion.
There was no cheering from the crowd, only questions about his swordsmanship.
They weren’t looking at me, instead their eyes were glued to Zetto, who had a white bandage over his eye.
The crowd looked at him in horror.
‘I lost…?’
Getting people’s attention is one thing but I was completely defeated.
What’s the point in asking him to fight me again, so I can use my grandfather’s sword techniques to beat him?
My defeat as a ‘sword disciple’ only made it uglier.
I had to admit that it was my fault for cutting, judging, and predicting him.
That was the main cause of my defeat.
“It’s not like this…”
Against my will, tears formed in my eyes, blurring my vision.
I was furious but most of all, I was angry that……that in that split-second before my throat was cut, I thought his attack was cool.
That fact made me feel even more miserable.
***
“What did he just…?”
“Did she die in one hit?”
“It’s class C.”
“It wasn’t a sword…”
“What did he just do…?”
The questioning voices of the cadets around him pounded into his ears.
Edward turned his head from the screen to look at Kaliman, who was stunned, and spoke to him.
“I don’t even know what I just saw… What do you think, Instructor Kaliman?”
Edward was a mage, after all, and Kaliman, a martial artist, would know more about swords.
Without taking his eyes off the screen, Kaliman answers Edward’s question.
The screen showed Zetto lingering in the reeds.
“It wasn’t a sword, it wasn’t swordplay.”
“Nor was it magic.”
Reina, with her soup in hand and no longer holding a spoon, echoed Kaliman’s words.
Zetto was a magic swordsman, who studied both magic and sword techniques, but what he showed wasn’t a sword technique nor was it magic.
“……I’ve never seen swordplay like that in my life.”
“I hate to disagree with Instructor Kaliman, but that goes for me as well.”
Edward said in a condescending tone, then slapped his chin. His already thin eyes narrowed even further.
“He made overwhelming progress…his sword has changed, and so has his swordplay.
Edwards looked at Zetto’s mana, which was increasing strangely with each passing day.
As an instructor, there was no point in questioning a cadet’s progress. But this time was different.
“If I’m not mistaken, Cadet Zetto reversed the flow of mana at one point.”
A serious-faced Reina said solemnly.
“Yes, but as you can see, he’s walking around just fine.”
In response to Reina’s words, Edward looked at Zetto, who had come out of the illusionary spell and was approaching Kaen.
Distorting the flow of mana could cause a person to bleed to death, or worse. That was the basic ‘common sense’ of the instructors.
“…What’s strange is that Kaen clearly reacted to cadet Zetto’s attack with some kind of sword technique or something. She’s only a cadet in class C, but I didn’t think she was that good…”
“Perhaps you should take a little interest in your students, Instructor Kaliman.”
Edward said, scratching his beard and glancing at Kaliman, who had been praising Kaen and Kaliman glared back at him.
‘Well, it’s not my place to say.’
Edward thought to himself with a wry smile.
“Now that you mention it, I’m curious as to who cadet Zetto’s teacher is. Maybe I should have gotten his name during the placement test, haha.”
“I’m sure his master taught him the strange way he handles his sword with his reverse grip.”
Edward clapped loudly at this conversation with Kaliman.
“Interesting, interesting.”
Edward was intrigued, and wondered what kind of story Zetto would write in the future.
“I shouldn’t have bought the soup.”
Meanwhile, Reina, who had eaten less than half of the soup, looked at it and said in a low voice.
…The soup was 20 coopers more than the original price, a whopping 50 coopers.
***
The duel ended as cleanly as I expected.
As soon as I saw the ‘weaknesses’ in Kaen’s body, which was in a clumsy position after entering the illusion spell, I knew I had won.
‘…At least she reacted.’
The reeds allowed Kaen to recognize the sword strike a little faster. However, I was relieved to see her head immediately fall off.
Kaen was still Kaen. She was capable of such a reaction.
‘If it had been the Sword Saint standing there…it would have been a different story.’
Thanks to my confrontation with Kaen, I was able to find a small flaw in the first chapter of the Reverse Heaven.
As soon as I broke free of the illusionary spell, I pondered.
‘I wonder what else I could use Kaen for.’
It was a bit of a spur-of-the-moment thing, and I didn’t have anything planned. Still, it gave me the opportunity to have a level 30 swordsman at my disposal. And she was a girl.
In the game, the gender of the player character often dictates what quests they can receive and what they can do.
For example, it wasn’t a quest, but getting the petals for the Spectral Sword was overwhelmingly easier as a girl because it was in the girls’ dorm.
I think it’s better to take this opportunity to save the rewards for quests and tasks that require women.
‘A woman… was there such a thing…’
This was something I hadn’t considered, but it didn’t take long to think about it.
The plan called for exactly that: a young maiden. And there she was, right in front of me.
Right in front of me was Kaen, cowering on the ground.
With cautious steps, I approached her.
Sierra, who had reached Kaen before me and saw her face, spoke up.
[She looks like she had her heart broken…I thought it was great that she was able to react to my Reverse Heaven…]
Sierra didn’t realize that she was the Sword Saint disciple, so she had every right to make that assessment.
This would be Kaen’s first defeat, her first failure.
As I approached Kaen, she lifted her heavy head from the ground. Her eyes were red, and tears pooled in the corners of her eyes.
I held out my hand to her and spoke.
“It was a good duel.”
It was a very formal greeting.
“…”
But Kaen stared at my outstretched hand and sobbed, but didn’t answer.
“…Since I won the duel, may I tell you my wish, as promised?”
I embarrassedly took my outstretched hand back and continued.
She had to keep her promise since it was the teaching of the Sword Saint, not anyone else and to Kaen it held an enormous amount of force.
“…”
Still not answering, Kaen felt like she was about to burst into tears she had been holding back but I ignored her and continued.
“I was wondering if we could meet tonight, just the two of us, because I need Miss Kaen’s body for something.”
I said this in a voice barely audible to anyone else in the arena since it was a statement that could easily be misunderstood but it wasn’t a lie.
We were to meet at night and leave the academy together.
All misunderstandings would be cleared up when the day came.
“…”
Kaen bowed her head deeply as if she was expecting something after hearing my wish.
I waited patiently for her to say something as Sierra stared at me with a puzzled look in her eyes.
She must have misunderstood, too. But right now, I had a stronger desire to torment Kaen.
It just bothered me that she thought of me as a mere tool for her pleasure.
Kaen wiped the tears from her eyes and looked up again. The faint glimmer of light in her eyes was gone.
After a moment of blurred focus, Kaen stammers back to me in a rather grave voice.
“Hey, a promise… a promise is a promise…do as you please…”