[Author's Note: The second last chapter and the second fight scene in the series! Let's go! Anyways, a bit of bad news, I'll be busy in January, so I might be only able to release the Epilogue of Vol 1 and the Prologue of Vol 2. Anyways I'll see you all in the next one!]
Two maidens stood face to face in a cleared out field devoid of all life.
It is hard to imagine that it was once covered in massive holes and craters a week ago.
But thanks to the power of magic, the field is now back to its original appearance and doesn't look as though several nukes have been dropped all over the place.
In the middle of said field, the two maidens both wore the traditional robes of Babylonia Academy. One had long-raven hair flowing past her waist and carried a longsword in her hands. The other, a drill-haired blonde carried only a fan.
They stared at each other intensely. Neither willing to back down.
An intense palpable silence was in the air.
However, it can't continue on like this forever, one of them had to break it in the end.
And the one to break first is the blonde drill-hair.
"Give it up Sharon, even if you and your lot are a filthy breed cursed by the gods, I have no wish to see a corpse. Surrender, you shall be spared of all unnecessary injuries, you may be dishonored for running away from this duel, but at least you'll still be alive."
Lilith let out a laugh and mocked her.
"Give up? Why are you suddenly so nice today Florence? Weren't you ready to tear out my throat a week ago?"
Florence displayed a displeased expression and hid it behind her frilly fan.
"Hmph! Unlike some others, I don't enjoy making a fuss over trampling the weak. It is beneath someone of my noble blood."
The raven-haired swordswoman decided to dig a bit deeper under her opponent's skin.
"Don't enjoy making a fuss? Just admit it! You're scared of me beating the crap out of you!"
The blond became enraged and a on her forehead was visibly bulging.
"How uncouth! Don't even have manners!? And how dare you accuse me of being a coward! Aren't you a delusional fool! How can you possibly beat me with just a sword! You'll be dead before you can even take a single step!"
Lilith retorted.
"I'll show you manners if others treat me with respect as well!"
"You insol-!"
"Be quite you drill-haired idiot. Stop being so sour, even if you beat me, that sh*thead Albert still won't look at you, he's too busy chasing other girls' skirts. Just yesterday I saw him entering an inn with some random girl he flirted with on the street."
...
Silence, again.
Unlike the previous silence filled with tension like a tug-of-war. This one is more ominous, the quiet before the storm.
A moment passed.
Then two.
And finally the storm was unleashed.
"YOU WENCH! THAT'S THE LAST STRAW! REFEREE! START THE MATCH!"
The referee, an average man wearing a black and white striped shirt, blew on his whistle and signaled the duel to commence.
"TAKE THIS!"
Florence waved her fan and a green-colored magic circle appeared, shooting blades of wind toward Lilith.
The swordswoman only raised her two-handed sword and got into a stance, remaining rooted to her spot. Her eyes intensely focusing on the approaching blades of wind.
Ten meters.
Five meters.
One meter.
*BOOM!*
The blades of wind hit Lilith dead-on and generated a large cloud of dust.
[Author's Note: It's wind magic after all, so there's bound to be dust.]
"Tch!"
Florence clicked her tongue.
"Looks like she was all talk. Can't believe she got me riled up like that! Referee, give the call."
The referee, momentarily stunned by one of the shortest matches he had seen in history, snapped out of his daze and ended the duel.
"The challenger, Lilith Sharon is out for the count! The win goes to-"
Out of the blue, a fist-sized rock hurled out of the dust cloud, it's flight path was on course to colliding with the referee's skull.
Luckily the referee is a veteran Fifth-Circle mage and dodged the unexpected projectile with relative ease.
The referee, rightfully mad at having his head nearly taken off and was about to lose his temper became stunned for the second time.
The dust clouds surrounding where Lilith is cleared and revealed the fate of the swordswoman.
Her clothes were slightly tattered in some places and her body was covered in dust and bits of dirt, but for the most part, she was in peak condition and able to fight.
At the sight of the relatively unharmed appearance of Lilith, the weakest in the Academy. The audience in the viewing seats couldn't help but express their astonishment.
"What!? How did she survive!?"
"We saw her get hit!"
"There's no way a girl who can't use magic brushed that off!"
"Is she cheating somehow!?"
Amongst the audience members, there was a well-dressed old man who smiled amusedly at their explosive reactions.
The old man thought to himself.
(The show is only getting started.)
True to his thoughts, what happened next made the audience's jaws drop.
Lilith's POV:
Damn! I thought I was going to bite the dust from that attack!
My uniform is in bad shape and my arms are slightly sore, otherwise I'm alright.
I still can't believe I managed to block her attacks earlier! It's just like Sir Charles said! I can feel it, I'm stronger than ever before!
But I can't let my guard down just yet, Florence probably hasn't even used her full power yet and I'm already looking rather battered.
I have to conserve my strength as much as possible and wait for the right opportunity.
Suddenly, several blades of wind were shot at me. Having had some practice with the first barrage, I imbued my sword and managed to block all of them without getting my uniform even more torn and dirty. Seriously, these things are expensive! With the money I have, I'd have to go hungry for three months if I wished to purchase another set!
"You! How are you blocking my attacks!? You can't even use magic!"
I didn't bother telling her I could technically strengthen my body and weapon using mana. I'd be an absolute idiot if I did.
However, I did throw out some insults, the old man said they're often useful in riling up your opponent and getting them to fall into your trap.
"Hey! Florence! It's not to late for you to surrender, you know? I'm sure Albert would gladly comfort you while he's in bed with some other girl!"
The Drill Head's face darkened and her expression contorted, resembling an angry demon.
"HOW DARE YOU MOCK ME! ME! THE DAUGHTER OF THE PRESTIGIOUS VENT-FLEUR FAMILY!!!
WIND BLADE!"
She angrily swung her fan several times, creating green magic circles which shot blades of wind that had greater power than the previous ones.
Damn! I didn't expect that last remark to trigger her this bad! Sure she's obsessed about Albert, but if she were to take a moment to think logically, Albert is still in custody and being monitored for the loss of Blood Drinker. Meaning there's no opportunity whatsoever for him to hook up with some random girl he seduced.
But I guess she's a bigger sucker for him than I thought.
Rather than blocking, I decided to use Reinforcement on my legs to dodge to the side.
It was a good call, as when the blades missed and hit the ground where I just stood, a two-meter radius hole formed.
"What!?! How did you dodge those!?!"
Again, I ignored her. The crazy stuck-up blonde sent forth several blades of wind, these ones were weaker than the previous attacks. It seems like she's nearly depleted her mana.
I think it's time for me to go on the offensive.
Cladding my entire body with mana, I dashed forward, slicing apart the spells she shot at me while rapidly advancing toward her.
Drill Head became faster and her attacks became more desperate.
"Just what the hell are you!?! You're a failure who can't use magic!!! How are you fighting like this!?!"
"Shut up."
In several moments, I closed in on her and with one strike, I slashed her vitals, creating a fatal wound.
The pompous blonde dropped to her knees, clutching her profusely bleeding stomach. Seeing the seriousness of the wound, the referee signaled an end to the match and declared my victory.
At least that's what I would have liked to happen, but reality is different. I became arrogant and complacent. There's a reason the phrase "a cat backed into the corner will become a fierce tiger" exists.
"Wind's Fury!"
One swing, just one swing away from victory. I found myself suddenly pulled backwards by some unknown force.
I soon found out the identity of this force, a goddamn tornado.
And this thing was no small man-made dust storm. No, it was the real deal, a kilometer-and-a-half tornado sucked me inside, spinning me around like one of those roulette wheels in casinos. Except much faster and more intense.
Damnit! There's no way this is a Second-Circle spell! Did the Drill Head make a breath-through and become a Third-Circle mage!?! Impossible! Not even a Fourth-Circle mage can replicate this!
I had no more time to think about how the tornado came to be as it flung me hundreds of meters into the air.
My body went up and up, until gravity slowed me down, leaving me suspended in the air for a split second before I dropped down.
I kept falling; with each second that passed, gravity accelerated the speed at which I was falling.
If the me from a week ago were currently in this situation. She'd be splattered like a tomato.
But that's the thing, if I were still my old self from a week ago.
However, thanks to Sir Charles, I learned a few tricks.
As the ground grew closer and closer. I Reinforced my entire body and braced myself for impact.
Let's hope I only break a few bones from this.
*CRASH!*
*COUGH!*
I spat out a mouthful of blood.
Well, I'm alive at least.
But man! My body is in shambles. I tried to get back on my feet.
"Yeowch!"
As soon as I tried to stand, I felt searing pain in my legs. I guess that's what happens when you choose to go into battle without wearing any armor.
And also, where did that cheap sword of mine go? Oh, right, the tornado.
I lift my head to see if the tornado is still active.
Thank Vera, the damn thing dissipated.
After I let out a sigh of relief, I felt a sharp pain in my ribs, sending me rolling on my side a few feet.
The culprit of the cowardly attack was none other than Drill Head, smiling at me mockingly.
"Well, well, well. What do we have here? I can't believe my eyes! It seems you somehow managed to survive the fall! I honestly expected you to have turned into a meat paste!
But still, I admit, I'm impressed, not many could escape the power of my family artifact intact."
"Artifact?"
"Indeed! Did you think my fan was just a mere accessory? Once a month, I can use it to perform a Fifth-Circle spell. Not very useful when you become a Fifth-Circle mage, but handy when you're still below it!"
Dang it! I thought her fan really was just for show!
"Isn't bringing an artifact technically cheating?"
The blonde sneered.
"Hmph! Unlike Albert, I've properly obtained permission from my family to take this with me, it was also registered and approved by the faculty as well! So don't think you can weasel out of this one!"
Damn! I really should have tried harder to convince the old man to lend me the mithril armor and adamantine sword!
So much for his ideas of chivalry and sportsmanship.
While I wallowed in regret. The Drill Head gave me another sharp kick in the side. I spat more blood in response.
Seeing my sorry state, Florence smiled, a smile much more wicked than usual.
"This is getting boring, let's wrap this up, shall we?"
Saying this, she raised her fan and prepared the finishing spell.
"Yeah, let's finish it."
In one swift movement, like a cobra striking at a mouse, I grabbed Florence's leg and pulled her down onto the ground.
Ignoring my protesting legs, I leaped onto the blonde's chest and held her in place.
Drill Head simply gawked at me in surprise.
"How!? You were coughing up blood!"
"Nah, I just bit my tongue."
Before she could cast a spell, I punched her in the mouth, breaking her concentration and the spell she was about to fire.
After that first blow, something took over me. I punched her again and again with metal gauntlets. I repeatedly beat her skull face to a pulp.
I don't know how long it went on for, it could have been less than a few moments or several minutes but I just kept punching.
I think I heard her surrendering and pleading for mercy, but I just kept punching.
By the time the referee pulled me off her and I snapped out of my trance. Florence's face was nearly unrecognizable. A swollen bloody mess with several teeth missing and a broken nose. Sometime during the beating, she fell unconscious and medics rushed in to take her to the infirmary.
I'm not sure how I feel. Happy about my first victory? Scared by the harm I can inflict on others? I'm not sure, but I definitely don't feel like apologizing for my actions anytime soon.
3rd Person POV:
The entire audience was shocked at the brutality they had just witnessed.
Gone was the girl whom everyone made fun of and trampled beneath their feet.
In her place was an avenger who will destroy everything in her path to obtain justice, and retribution for the wrongs of the past done upon her family.
The audience were unsure what to feel. Anger that an insignificant stray suddenly gained the claws of a lion? Fear that they would become targets of her wrath? Excitement of the underdog overcoming all odds?
They didn't know, but one person among them didn't have such conflicting thoughts.
A woman, dressed in black, whose head was constantly covered in a cloud of smoke, rose from her seat.
She snapped her fingers and a large projection of her was created on several large screens conjured out of nowhere. Each projection mimicked the original's actions and words.
The woman spoke. Her projections followed suit and spoke in voices loud enough for the entire audience to hear.
"Greetings! For those who don't know me, I am Headmaster Medea of Babylonia Academy!"
There wasn't a single soul who didn't know her name, especially after the massacre of several powerful and equally degenerate noble houses.
"Now, you may all be wondering what I'm doing out of my office, spectating a match between two first-year students."
Of course they did, but no one was bold enough to voice that out before the presence of this powerful madwoman who'd turn a man into a shish kebab just for looking at her wrong.
"Well, I am here to give you all a wonderful announcement!
As of today, we are welcoming a new staff member, Charles Integra!
He will act as a combat instructor and will provide invaluable knowledge of his original world to our blossoming students!
Now I know what many of you are thinking, what qualifications does this man have to be a teacher at one the world's greatest educational institutions?
Well look no further than this battle! In as little as one week, he transformed one of our weakest students, Lilith Sharon, into a fine warrior capable of defeating a peak Second-Circle Mage!
If anyone disagrees, I'd like you to step up and tell me how you can accomplish the same feat. If you can't give me an answer, expect yourself to find an icicle up your butt.
And so once again..."
After basically threatening to impale the audience, Headmaster Medea seemingly turned toward the direction of a certain mustachio-ed and well-dressed knight.
"I would like to welcome you, Charles Integra, to Lunara's most prestigious Babylonia Academy!"