Two meters remaining.
When I said this at about that distance, Felter bared his teeth and raised both hands, bringing them down towards my head.
I discarded my wooden sword to receive this attack.
It was an attack where Felter put his whole body and soul into simply striking down, without stance or martial technique. It must have tremendous power.
My magic reflected it.
“Physical Reflection Material Reflect”
I whispered softly as I caught Felter’s attack with both palms.
Immediately after, Felter’s body was blown into the air as if hit by a large dump truck.
He fell on his back a short distance away, and even the formidable Felter was unable to move an inch.
The spectators, who had been cheering and shouting in surprise until then, fell silent at the sight of Felter’s battered form.
After a second or two, Strauss and Eliza snapped out of their shock and hurriedly sprang into action.
“Anyone who can treat injuries, gather here immediately!”
“A-Are you alright, Felter?”
At those words, several students came running.
Well, the naturally tough Felter should be fine. He might have a concussion, fractured shoulder blade, or broken collarbone, but I could tell from the impact that his life wasn’t in danger.
As I looked around, I saw Shenley standing there, looking flustered.
I approached her and spoke.
“Shall we head back? Would you like to have dinner together?”
“Huh? Um, is Senior Felter going to be okay?”
“He’ll be fine. Nothing to worry about.”
Hearing my answer, Shenley nodded with visible relief.
“Then, shall we talk later?”
I shook my head in response.
“No. After such a crushing defeat, he probably doesn’t want anyone talking to him. That’s how it usually goes. From experience, losing at something you’re good at hits hard mentally. Let’s give Felter a week without seeing him, shall we?”
“…Sensei Aoi, have you ever lost before?”
“Of course. I’ve lost many, many times. Would you like to hear about it?”
“Y-Yes! I’d love to!”
We left the scene while having such a conversation.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.PAGES.DEV
[SIDE: Felter]
At first, I thought she was just someone with genius-level talent and skill as a magician, so I didn’t pay much attention.
In this magic academy, status and connections have little influence. While not entirely absent, it’s abnormal compared to the outside world.
If someone understands magic quickly, even a commoner can skip grades ahead of royalty. If there’s a fight between students, they’re punished regardless of status.
However, these things still depend on the teachers’ discretion. If a teacher favors nobility, they might give preferential treatment to royalty or high-ranking nobles. Currently, there are many such teachers, so nobles might be favored in practice.
From what I’ve seen, Aoi doesn’t differentiate between royalty, nobles, and commoners. She scolds anyone she thinks is wrong, regardless of who they are. This applies not only to students but also to senior teachers, which shows how thorough she is.
You’d think this would lead to her being forced to quit teaching, but it’s the opposite. Despite being new, she’s treated as a senior teacher, and there’s an atmosphere where even other teachers can’t interfere with her.
Especially significant was when she scolded Rocks Kilbegan, a royal of this country, and even summoned the king to the academy.
Any proper noble would shudder at the thought of the same happening to them. Whether the king responds to the summons or not, it would undoubtedly tarnish the family name.
Normally, one wouldn’t be able to do this out of concern for their own well-being. Nobles are creatures with the strongest sense of pride. If they feel humiliated, hiring assassins for revenge isn’t out of the question.
The fact that she can still do this might be due to her strong sense of justice and confidence in her own abilities.
However, her magical prowess backs up these rumors. The most astonishing thing is that no one has ever heard Aoi’s incantations.
She deploys magic at a speed that seems to have almost no charging time. I confirmed this myself right in front of my eyes.
In the middle of a conversation, she quickly used magic against Rocks, who had suddenly sprung into action.
This means she’s activating magic with an incantation of at most one measure long.
Not only because of Aoi’s unfathomable ability as a magician but also because of her actions that disregard royalty and nobles, she has gradually come to be called a witch.
I had thought that magicians would be helpless if you grabbed them by the neck, but if they can use magic in such a short time, it’s a different story. Close combat would be possible too.
Moreover, when I asked her directly, she said she could even fight with a sword. Impressive.
It’s been a long time since I’ve felt this excited. Perhaps not since I fought my father with real swords before coming to the academy.
Thinking this, I challenged Eliza Woodford to a match, considering it as a preliminary skirmish.
But even though I thought the fight would be over once I got close, I couldn’t get near at all. My vision was obstructed, my movements restricted. Furthermore, my freedom of movement was taken away by elusive quicksand.
Up until now, all the magicians I had fought used long-range attacks that spread over a wide area. So, if I could block one attack, I could close in before the next incantation.
Once I got close, no one could beat me.
Maybe that assumption was my downfall. The tables were turned, and as I tried desperately to chant, I felt irritation and impatience at the sand balls flying at me every few seconds.
In the end, I managed to chant recklessly, prepared to take hits, and barely won with the magic I activated, but it was a close call.
Normally, I wouldn’t be able to ask to fight Aoi in such a miserable state, but Aoi understood my intentions.
“Let’s fight,” she said.
For some reason, those words made my body tremble. It wasn’t fear. I just wanted to fight Aoi. That should have been the only thought.
However, as soon as the battle began, I noticed something was off.
Usually, when I move at full speed, my opponents become visibly agitated, looking around frantically or desperately trying to follow me with their eyes.
But Aoi didn’t move. Was she saying she could respond even if I got behind her? Despite her sword being just a thin wooden stick, there was no hesitation in her stance.
For some reason, my irritation grew at Aoi’s unpredictable behavior.
If she could react, fine. If not, that would be it.
Having decided this, I moved to attack. If I could make her block my fist with her sword, I’d win. A wooden sword would surely break with one hit.
That was my judgment as I charged, but my fist was easily deflected. She hit my wrist with the flat of her sword and then kicked me in a sideways stance.
Immediately after, I felt an impact in my stomach.
It was a sharp kick that felt like a heavy stab. I didn’t even have time to twist my body and was sent flying straight back.
My breath stopped for a moment, and the taste of blood spread in my mouth.
“…Body enhancement, huh? The light was too faint for me to notice, but you’ve enhanced your leg power?”
“I’ve enhanced my leg power, defense, and arm strength.”
When I managed to say this through the pain, Aoi simply nodded. Then, she said something unbelievable.
There’s no way such magic exists.
I was about to say that, but Aoi had already started moving.
She came straight at me with her sword at the ready, closing the distance as if sliding across the ground. Though she wasn’t running, her speed was extraordinary.
Moving backward would only allow her to close the distance. So, considering the next move, I jumped sideways. If she lost sight of me, I might be able to get behind her.
Having thought this much in an instant, I moved sideways. Even though I should have put a considerable distance between us, Aoi easily kept up.
As Aoi swung her sword sideways in quick succession, I barely managed to twist my body and thrust out my fist. I received a terrifying impact and stumbled, barely managing not to fall.
I couldn’t take my eyes off her.
Glaring at Aoi, I jumped backward to create distance.
From just that brief exchange, I understood Aoi’s skill as a swordsman. Frustratingly, I couldn’t win with simple combat techniques. Moreover, I couldn’t even win in speed, even if it was enhanced by magic.
In that case, the only option left was to challenge her with raw power.
It didn’t matter if I took hits. I just needed to land one full-power strike. If I could do that, there was no way her delicate body could withstand it.
I used unfamiliar taunting words to lure her into coming at me head-on.
She must have seen right through it. Aoi smiled.
But whether it was the composure of the strong or not, she still came straight at me.
“…Thank you,”
I muttered quietly, only to myself.
It was a head-on confrontation. I would meet her with all my strength and soul.
“Hah!”
I threw a clenched fist straight at her face.
But it didn’t connect. My fist was caught by the thin wooden stick that should have broken under normal circumstances.
Then, just as I saw Aoi twirl both her hands, a terrifying impact ran through my abdomen.
My vision blurred. I saw the ground, then the sky, and then I felt my back touch the ground as I rolled.
I had lost in a head-on fistfight.
The moment that fact surfaced in my mind, everything went blank. I struggled wildly, trying desperately to piece together my shattered self.
I couldn’t counter with magic. I had lost in close combat too.
What should I do?
How can I win?
My mind was in chaos, unable to think straight. Feeling I had to do something, I threw rocks at her.
But even those rocks were sliced apart by her wooden sword.
Monster.
The moment I thought that, the excitement and urgency of the battle were instantly replaced by fear.
I threw rocks. I kept throwing them.
But Aoi sliced through them all. And she kept steadily approaching.
“…You’ve resorted to long-range attacks, haven’t you? Do you understand? Right now, you’re at your weakest.”
Those words, suddenly spoken, cut through my heart like a blade. No, they pierced my heart so deeply that it felt that way.
“N-Noooooo!”
Looking down at Aoi, who had drawn near, I exhaled sharply and swung my arm down from above. It was my strongest blow, putting all my body weight behind it.
I felt a definite response from the impact spreading through my entire arm.
No, the impact was too strong in return. Even smashing rocks doesn’t create this much impact. What had happened?
As I looked down at Aoi, thinking this, an unbelievable sight unfolded before me.
Aoi had let go of her weapon and was facing me with both palms out.
Her delicate woman’s hands had caught my fist…!
That’s where my memory cuts off.
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