“…It’s starting.”
At that moment, Strauss informed us that the battle was about to begin.
As if on cue, both sides started chanting their magic. Eliza walked backwards while chanting, while Felter chanted quietly on the spot.
Realizing she couldn’t afford to lose in chanting speed, Eliza activated her magic first.
“Sand Wall!”
As Eliza shouted, a wall of sand formed between her and Felter.
She then began chanting a new spell.
Meanwhile, Felter’s magic also activated.
“Power Force!”
The moment it activated, Felter’s body was enveloped in a faint green light. Glowing, Felter began walking towards the sand wall, step by step.
He slowly pulled his arm back and thrust it forward.
“Hah!”
With a shout of effort, he thrust his fist forward. Felter’s fist pierced the sand wall with great force, causing part of it to burst.
“Eek!?”
Shenley let out a surprised cry at the impressive sight. Stras’s eyes widened too.
“It was only that much because it was a sand wall. If it were a rock wall, the fragments would have flown and endangered Eliza on the other side.”
“As planned. The next move should be decisive.”
Just as she said that, Eliza’s magic activated again.
“Sandstorm!”
With Eliza’s voice, a miniature sandstorm raged. It was a dense sandstorm limited to a five-meter square area.
A gale that obscured vision and made it difficult to walk properly assaulted Felter.
However, Felter didn’t panic. He raised both hands and swung them down forcefully. Then, with Felter’s terrifying strength, the ground’s surface burst and flew away as if exploding.
The momentum disrupted the sandstorm’s flow, weakening its wind speed. Seizing that moment, Felter rushed forward, breaking through the sandstorm.
“Sand Fall!”
At the same time, Eliza’s magic activated.
Felter, who was trying to locate Eliza after breaking through the sandstorm, began sinking into the sand as if caught in quicksand.
“This is…”
For the first time, Felter’s expression changed as he flailed his arms, trying to grab onto the ground, but the ground he touched changed shape like water, leaving him unable to find anything to grip for escape.
Judging that escaping with his arms would be difficult, Felter began chanting another spell.
However, not giving him that chance, Eliza rapidly cast several basic spells.
“Sand Ball!”
“Ugh!”
Even though they were basic spells, even the formidable Felter couldn’t chant while being hit. And Eliza, with her ability to shorten chants, was unrivaled in the speed of casting spells.
No doubt about it. A complete victory.
However, Felter didn’t give up. Glaring at Eliza with eyes that almost made a sound, he lowered his head and bent his upper body.
“Gh!”
A sand ball hit him directly on the head, causing Felter’s body to arch back slightly. Even though it was a basic spell, it was a direct hit from magic. It must have had more impact than being punched hard.
“Ah!?”
Eliza couldn’t help but let out a scream.
During that time, Felter chanted a spell. Panicking, Eliza also began chanting and launched sand balls, but Felter continued his chant while taking damage.
“Leg Force!”
And Felter’s magic activated. His body was enveloped in white light.
“Ngh, aaah!”
Groaning, Felter struggled a few times. Then, the ground sank slightly, and Felter’s body gradually rose above the sand.
Finally, Felter leapt out, escaping from the quicksand.
Landing on the ground, he glared at Eliza with eyes full of anger while brushing off the sand.
“…This is the first time I’ve faced such a difficult opponent.”
“Rock Wall!”
Before Felter could take an offensive stance, Eliza’s magic activated.
A massive stone wall over three meters high split the arena in half. However, Felter easily jumped over it.
“Admit defeat.”
Felter said to Eliza as he approached.
“N-No! I can’t surrender!”
Eliza shouted with teary eyes and began chanting another spell.
Felter exhaled shortly and started running.
“That’s enough.”
Just before the two could clash, I leapt in between them with one bound, stopping the match.
As if he had anticipated it, Felter immediately stopped and lowered his fist.
“…Ah, Sensei Aoi.”
Either because my appearance made her relax or due to frustration, Eliza’s hands trembled, dropping her staff as her eyes welled up with tears.
“I apologize. I misjudged Felter’s abilities.”
“N-No! If I hadn’t let my guard down… I’m sorry, Aoi-san…”
Seeing Eliza apologize with slumped shoulders, Felter clicked his tongue.
“…I would have won no matter what happened.”
“That’s not necessarily true.”
When I objected, Felter glared back at me.
“…Indeed, the opponent showed unexpected skill. But I won.”
Hearing Felter’s response, I reluctantly nodded.
“…I understand. Let’s treat your injuries. After that, you’ll fight me.”
Upon hearing this, Felter’s face broke into that ferocious smile.
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If asked about a habit I’ve never failed to maintain,
I would answer without hesitation: the way of the sword.
Of course, I’ve also trained diligently in magic, putting my all into it. But it’s different from swordsmanship.
Swordsmanship has become, one could say, a part of my body.
So when Felter said he wanted to fight, I faced him with a wooden sword in hand.
Felter was bare-handed.
“I’ll allow you to use a weapon.”
“…I already have a weapon.”
Saying that, Felter showed me his fist.
Surprisingly, he was wearing brass knuckles, also known as a knuckle duster. Though I thought a longer weapon would be advantageous, I wondered if it was okay to start like this.
While I was thinking that, Felter glared at me with a ferocious smile.
“This is made of mithril, which has broken swords and spears before. Rather, are you planning to fight with that wooden sword?”
“This is more than enough for me.”
“Then there’s no problem.”
With both of us acknowledging this, the match began.
Without waiting for anyone’s signal, Felter took his stance.
“Here I come.”
“Please do.”
Right after I answered, Felter kicked off the ground.
Skillfully, he swung his fist while chanting. I deflected his fist not head-on with my wooden sword, but by striking it aside left and right.
“Leg Force!”
Then, Felter activated his magic after a brief pause. He threw his last punch at me and kicked the ground, disappearing from sight.
Low rumbles echoed from various places. Felter’s footprints remained on the arena ground that had just been neatly prepared.
While I was distracted by Felter’s footprints, which had sunk in at least three centimeters, I sensed an attack coming from the left.
“Hah!”
Exhaling sharply, I parried Felter’s fist. Then, I kicked through Felter’s abdomen as he stopped to attack.
“Gh!?”
Letting out a gasp, Felter was sent flying backward.
“…Body enhancement, huh? The light was too faint to notice, but you’ve enhanced your leg power?”
“I’ve enhanced my leg power, defense, and arm strength.”
Muttering this, I moved towards Felter. The sliding step I could use unconsciously had become incredibly fast due to the leg enhancement.
Felter’s eyes widened slightly as I closed the distance in an instant, and he jumped to the side.
I immediately gave chase, swiftly swinging my wooden sword horizontally to the ground.
Felter’s defense barely made it in time. He received the wooden sword with his knuckle part while moving back two or three steps to escape the impact.
He has good instincts.
I honestly wanted to praise Felter’s talent for combat.
However, Felter himself seemed unsatisfied with this exchange. He quickly distanced himself and began chanting.
He would use only one spell.
“Power Force!”
Felter, with his enhanced strength, lowered his stance.
“That choice is correct in a sense. You can’t win with speed, nor with technique. So, you aim for a reversal by overwhelming with arm strength.”
As I read Felter’s intentions, a grim expression turned towards me.
“Come at me. If you’re not afraid of counterattacks.”
It’s deliberate. The provocation is so poor it almost makes me laugh, but if I were to back down here, it would create an escape route in Felter’s heart.
Felter, who believes strength is everything, must be thoroughly overwhelmed by force once.
In that case, I must face him head-on.
I approached Felter with a smile, taking each step firmly.
Felter has absolute confidence in his strength. That’s why, in a disadvantageous situation, he increases his power and challenges to a head-on brawl.
Winding up his fist with all his might, Felter let out a battle cry.
With a roar like that of a beast, Felter swung his fist at me.
I received it with the handle of my wooden sword.
My feet sank slightly into the ground with a terrifying boom. Even though I had absorbed the shock, it was still considerable destructive power.
However, it stopped. Now, he probably has nothing left but to attack blindly.
Thinking this, I struck Felter’s abdomen with the returning sword, sending him flying. He was blown away forcefully, like a ball.
Then, Felter stood up unsteadily, unable to hide his agitation for the first time.
“I-Impossible…!”
He shouted, punching the ground. The ground cracked with a sound, and Felter lowered his face.
Then, he picked up a rock larger than his face and turned his chest towards me.
“Take this!”
Shouting, Felter threw the large rock at a terrifying speed.
I swung my wooden sword down on the rapidly approaching rock. With a dry, high-pitched sound, the rock split cleanly in two.
Even Felter was dumbfounded at this.
“W-What are you!?”
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While flustered, Felter didn’t ease up on his attacks. I advanced forward, slicing through all of them.
“…You’ve resorted to ranged attacks, haven’t you? Do you understand? Right now, you’re at your weakest.”