TN: Thank Llama for the chapter.
TL/ED/PR: Ruminas
Amelia’s lightning magic was at the highest level even among the top educational institution, the Academy. No, she was the pinnacle.
The already fast lightning magic spell became even faster in Amelia’s hands.
It was a speed that ordinary humans could not even react to. By the time you see it, it’s already too late.
Is it possible for a human to avoid such lightning?
In conclusion, it’s not impossible. This is because magic originally had a vibration of mana that shook just before the spell was ignited.
Someone with a high level of magical knowledge can read the trajectory of the magic by looking at the shaking of the mana.
Iria, rising to become the strongest at the Academy recently, may have reached that level without it being strange.
That’s why Amelia showed the trick shot she used when sniping those who had reached that level.
It’s an advanced technique that hits the target if they try to read the flow of mana and dodge. She had defeated countless strong opponents with this until now.
Amelia thought Iria would be no different from them.
“What is this?”
However, the situation unfolded differently from what Amelia had thought.
Iria had stopped in place and did not move. Did she not read the flow of mana? Then how did she see through it?
Complex thoughts intertwined.
Could it be that she saw it with her eyes and reacted? The fastest lightning at the Academy?
‘No, that’s impossible.’
Amelia came to a conclusion in her mind. It must be some coincidence.
She decided to test it.
Whether it was just a coincidence or if there was some other way to avoid the lightning.
“Bloom.”
As Amelia reached out her left hand into the air, several lightning magic spells bloomed around her. A total of five lightning bolts.
Among them, two were on normal trajectories, and the rest were trick shots that curved in the middle.
Even if she somehow saw through it, calculating and avoiding each one would be a headache.
-Pazik, pazik!
The purple flashes flew towards Iria, who was standing in the arena.
Three of them curved. If Iria tried to move her body to avoid them, she would be hit by the curved lightning.
Then how would Iria react? Amelia was watching her reaction from behind.
And Iria…
-Bang!! Clang!!
Swung the wooden sword in her hand and cut two of the incoming lightning bolts.
The sound of lightning exploding rang out in succession. The movement was so fast that Amelia couldn’t even see it. She only saw Iria raising her head.
“……”
Iria, who had cut the lightning, walked towards Amelia with the sword in her hand.
Her red eyes shone vividly.
“What the hell is this nonsense……”
Amelia’s expression twisted at the unbelievable sight, which she saw with her own two eyes.
Soon, Iria disappeared from her field of vision. There was no time to fully accept the situation.
When she turned her head, feeling the danger signal her body was sending, Iria’s wooden sword flew towards her.
It was a sword swung by Iria, who had moved behind Amelia in an instant.
And…
“Aargh?!”
The sound of the lightning barrier surrounding her being shattered rang out.
***
A great shock twisted Amelia’s whole body, but there was no direct damage to her body.
This is because the thick lightning barrier offsets physical damage. It dissipates the shock, and the scattered lightning damages the opponent.
That’s why she was called a master of close combat. She showed near-invincible defense against pure swordsmen who could not use magic.
It’s not that her attack power was inferior to others either. Unlike a wooden sword, the sword made of lightning was fatal even with a graze.
Both her offense and defense were excellent, which is why she was the top student in the 3rd year.
However…
“Ugh, my head……”
Even for Amelia, this one blow was hard to endure. Although she didn’t take the sword strike directly, it seemed like the shock transmitted throughout her body as the barrier shattered.
So she had to feel the sensation of her entire head ringing.
“You crazy bitch…… Just how strong are you? My barrier shattered with a single sword strike.”
Amelia stepped back and spread her lightning barrier again. The mana required to construct the barrier is not small. She never thought it would be pierced in a single blow.
Iria was much stronger than Amelia had thought.
It’s not that she let her guard down, but it wasn’t the time to be leisurely. If the barrier was shattered in one hit, it would be disadvantageous in a battle of attrition.
“…As expected.”
So that’s why everyone was defeated like that.
It’s simple but strong. The movements are the same, but something is different.
It makes you think you know everything about Iria.
“Lightning…… No, should I stop?”
It’s useless to shoot lightning, not a single attack landed on Iria. It will be a waste of mana.
Rather than that, it’s better to lure her into close combat. It’s unsettling to engage in close combat with Iria, but Iria is the one who ran out of mana anyway.
And Iria wasn’t the only one who excelled in close combat.
-Pazizizik!!
She saves the mana from shooting lightning and spreads the barrier thicker. After grasping a sword of lightning in her hand, she takes a stance.
If you are cut by the sword of lightning wielded by Amelia, the lightning that flows into the wound tears the skin and rips the flesh.
This is what it means to be fatal, even with a graze.
Although surprised, it’s not to the extent that she can’t win. If Iria had been at full power, she might have lost, but in the end, she’s just a toothless beast.
Amelia pointed her sword of lightning at Iria.
And she spread the lightning shockwave so that there was no gap for Iria to enter.
The lightning that spread around became Amelia’s eyes. Hundreds and thousands of eyes focused on Iria. Now, no matter how she moved, she would not lose sight of her.
“I’ve seen through your movements. You’re just a little fast, right?”
Even if she’s fast, if you know where she will come from in advance, you can react, just like how Iria avoided Amelia’s lightning.
That’s when she stood in front of Iria.
“Maybe it’s Amelia who’s slow. You can’t even hit me with magic.”
“If you’re thinking of provoking me in a shoddy way, you’d better stop. Even though I have a quick temper, I’m not like that in a duel.”
“……”
Iria looked into Amelia’s eyes before leaping. It was to read her thoughts.
Iria, who read Amelia’s intentions, tilted her head slightly.
“Do you think you can block it if you know in advance?”
“Yeah, so what?”
“You won’t be able to block it. At least not you, Amelia.”
Amelia frowned at Iria’s calmly spoken words. She blinked with furrowed brows.
And she asked.
“What are you saying now?”
“You’re weak, Amelia.”
“Wh-what?”
Iria’s next words touched Amelia’s most sensitive part.
If the purpose was provocation, it succeeded. Amelia ground her teeth.
However, Iria’s leap was faster than Amelia’s anger.
As if showing that what she had shown before was just a joke, she approached Amelia with an even faster movement than before.
The thousands of eyes that had spread in all directions simultaneously lost sight of Iria.
Amelia, who couldn’t do anything while Iria leaped in front of her eyes, stiffened. In front of her eyes were the endless crimson eyes.
Perhaps it was something Amelia had been fearing all along.
“As I thought, you’re slow.”
Iria swung her sword.
The barrier shattered.
“Urgh?!”
Amelia, pushed by the shock, flew away.
There was no direct damage this time, either. However, the fear of being hit was etched into her bones. Her head was shaken by the shockwave.
“Ugh, ah…… Uuh……”
Amelia, whose center of balance was shaken, staggered. Iria approached her again.
“You don’t need to make the defense barrier anymore, right?”
“Wa-wait…… St-stop……”
When Iria approached, Amelia reflexively created a barrier. She squeezed out mana and wrapped a lightning barrier around her body.
Then Iria swung her sword.
The barrier shattered.
“Aaargh?!”
It was a repetition of that process.
Every time Amelia made a barrier, Iria shattered it.
Iria patiently waited until Amelia created a new barrier.
The lightning barrier offsets almost all physical attacks. It shatters when it receives a strong hit, but it prevents damage from being done to the flesh.
That much is certain. Even when hit by Iria’s sword, which might have killed her if hit directly, she was unharmed.
That’s why Amelia was called the bane of swordsmen, but for Iria, physical attack nullification was just a doll she could hit for a long time.
Even though there was no direct damage, the shock that shook her whole body was transmitted.
Amelia was hit and hit again by Iria for quite a long time.
This is because Iria found it quite interesting how the barrier shattered and offset the damage.
It was when Iria shattered the twentieth barrier.
“Kuh, khak…… Huu, huu……”
“You’re not putting up a barrier?”
“Haah, haaah…… S-spare me…… I, I can’t anymore……”
“Hm.”
Is it too much now?
She did torment her a bit, but honestly, it’s a tremendous ability in the sense that even after being hit like this, there was not a single wound on Amelia’s body.
But the mana consumption must be huge in proportion to that.
Amelia, who finally lost her balance and collapsed, looked extremely exhausted.
She was vomiting out the contents of her stomach due to the extreme dizziness that rushed in.
She no longer seemed to be in a state to resume the duel.
At that point, Iria opened her mouth towards Amelia.
“You may not believe me, but I don’t have any ill feelings. I’m not even curious about what you think of me.”
“Uugh! Huuu, uuuh……”
“But it would be troublesome if it interferes with my Academy life. It seems everyone is mistakenly thinking I won the duels by luck. I thought I had to clearly show them this time so there wouldn’t be a next time.”
Even though she had defeated many strong opponents, there were definitely those who still looked down on Iria.
Like Amelia, who became her opponent this time, if she held back her strength moderately in this duel, there was no guarantee that someone like Amelia wouldn’t appear again next time.
“If possible, um. I don’t want to duel anymore after today. Amelia is an example for that. I really don’t have any ill feelings.”
“Uuuh…… Kuhak!!”
Saying that, Iria kicked Amelia’s abdomen. It was Iria’s own consideration, as swinging with the wooden sword like when she shattered the barrier seemed like it would greatly injure her.
Amelia, who was kicked, rolled on the arena floor. She was no longer in a state to move her body.
Iria approached Amelia again and repeated kicking her.
She has no experience making an example of someone, so she doesn’t know how to give a clear impression to other people.
Today had to be the last duel at the Academy.
“Other people who dueled with me were also carried to the infirmary. Um, so wouldn’t it be fair for Amelia to go too?”
“Aaaaah!”
That day, Amelia had to feel the weight of fairness for the 67 people carried away first.
Translator’s Corner
Guess I’ll be editing all by lonesome for a bit.
Woe is me~
-Ruminas