/Komachi's Point of View/
We first-year students were watching the entrance ceremony event of this academy.
The event held the day after the entrance ceremony also had a meaning of performance to the academy, research institutions, and the government.
Several times a year, this academy provided a large-scale trial opportunity.
After the spring entrance ceremony, there was a mock battle for new students welcomed by the senior students.
Before the summer vacation, there was a mid-term examination battle involving all students of Mahoro Academy.
In the fall, there was a title match with magic academy students from various countries around the world.
In winter, there was a party battle to compete for the clear time of the low-level dungeon conquest, which was the only practical method, with broadcasting and airing on television by commercial networks.
All events in spring, summer, and fall were conducted using virtual simulators.
However, in this winter competition, it was the only one where life was at stake. Therefore, careful attention was necessary as there were rare cases of deaths.
No deaths have been reported in the past few decades.
The party battle to conquer the winter dungeon is where the academy's top performers are selected.
It is also a highly anticipated world battle to determine the top performers of the five parties.
Last year, the party led by the current student council president, Vanilla, set the record for the fastest time in history.
And now, right in front of us, was that man.
It was a sight of a man named Tom fighting.
I knew it at first glance. I was absentmindedly watching various mock battles on my smartphone when I happened to notice it.
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On a giant screen, attention-grabbing players who were the favorites to win in a simulated battle were projected. Facing them was a boy named Sakurai. Everyone was cheering as they watched.
I grew tired of watching that screen and started flipping through live broadcasts of various school battles on my phone.
I immediately noticed the abnormality of the man who was not attracting any attention.
There was a person dressed in a complex array of bright colors behind him. I think his back figure is very similar to that of Tom at that time.
I couldn't imagine two people with such distinct characteristics.
"That's Tom."
When I checked the person's information on my phone, all I found was:
Name: Amachi Suguru
Grade: 2nd year
No other information was available.
No one was paying attention to the man.
My phone showed that there were only four people watching, including me.
I could tell at a glance that something was strange.
His swordsmanship was too beautiful, with countless matchless techniques.
His agility allowed him to dodge attacks by a hair's breadth, moving as if he could see the future.
Every movement was free of any excess.
As someone who also practices swordsmanship, I know that it is abnormal.
I wonder how much training it takes to reach that level.
He gracefully parried flying wooden blocks with a slender sword held in one hand.
Nevertheless, the sword did not appear to be damaged at all and looked like an ordinary sword you could find anywhere.
There was no sign of him using magic.
There was no sign that he was using any special arts.
I'm not sure if he's using any skills, but I don't think he is.
It was simply a matter of technique.
He was only using martial arts and swordsmanship to fight.
In a magic battle, there is no way to win without using any magic, arts, or skills.
"Even a child can understand it. It's not even a competition. It's like a child with nothing fighting against an adult with a gun.
However, Amachi does something that defies that common sense.
"Tom...who exactly are you?"
The BGM at the spectator's venue was Vivaldi's "Winter," which heightened the flashy battle of the favored candidate projected on the giant screen.
Facing the man named Amachi was a third-year student who stood over two meters tall, a giant of a man.
He seemed to have a talent for wind attribute magic, unleashing an attack like a raging storm that engulfed everything in the surrounding area.
The great sword in both hands seemed to have wind attributes imbued in it, smoothly slicing through rocks and trees like butter. Additionally, sharp wind slashes cut through the trees.
He had an impeccable tactic with no openings from both close and far range.
Yet, without flinching, Amachi showcased his divine art.
He evaded wind blades that were hard to recognize as if he could predict the future.
He had the skill to parry even a sword that could easily cut through steel without a single nick.
His moves were elegant, like the epitome of martial arts.
With those techniques, Amachi was barely grazed by the giant man's fierce attacks.
"What on earth..."
It was certainly a more plain battle than the athletes projected on the giant screen.
I would have missed that match if it weren't for Tom, who was my benefactor.
Most people weren't paying attention, as it seemed like an ordinary situation where Amachi, a male student, was being pushed around with no abilities.
But that was just abnormal.
In the first place, only magical elites should be able to enroll in Mahoro Academy.
Yet Amachi never used any magic, even though he could use it.
Moreover, a skilled swordsman like him should be able to use arts as well, but he never did.
"I'm just not using it on purpose..." I inadvertently muttered.
Perhaps the giant man had had enough, as he displayed his ultimate technique, gathering the wind pressure that engulfed the surrounding area into his great sword.
He wasn't weak.
On the contrary, he was strong.
Moreover, I think he was one of the top-level senior students.
There shouldn't be many enchanters who could use wind attribute magic and wield it so skillfully.
I think my head is also getting sharper.
To use magic so skillfully, it requires a vast amount of knowledge and innate magical talent. As for swordsmanship, it still has a long way to go, but it can be said that I have honed my skills enough to withstand actual combat.
The difference in level is vast.
There is an incredible wall between Amachi and the big man.
It's not just talent, but a massive gap between someone who has reached the pinnacle of training and a mere prodigy.
Only four people, including myself who is likely watching this footage, have noticed it out of over 4,000 school officials and spectators.
This is an extraordinary existence beyond comprehension. Amachi, a transcendent being.
"Oh..."
Amachi's eyes changed.
It was a flash.
Without missing the timing, like a skilled hunter, with minimal effort and minimal force, a fatal blow pierced the prey at the perfect moment.
In that moment when the big man was gathering magical power to unleash a powerful technique, Amachi quickly determined the appropriate vital point and struck with a decisive blow in a time span of less than a second.
I even forgot to blink.
The battle was decided in an instant.
Amachi had skillfully thrust the tip of his sword into the big man's forehead with a speed that could only be described as divine.
It was over in a moment.
"Amazing..."
Words of admiration were the only ones that came out.
It was too much of a peculiar technique.
An incredible combat sense.
A peerless skill that no one can match.
All of these are top-notch.
A sword saint descending from a distant height.
Perhaps even surpassing that student council president who is touted as the best in history...
I have made up my mind.
"I want to become his disciple"