"Hoh?"
Kurono Shinguuji's hand, holding the cigarette, paused mid-air as she let out a sound of surprise. Her narrow eyes squinted slightly.
"Are you looking down on me?"
The atmosphere in the office instantly froze.
Kurono Shinguuji's face showed no trace of emotion, but her sharp, pitch-black eyes bore into Eiji, exuding a faint pressure.
Even his senior sister beside him was momentarily stunned.
It wasn't that there were no students like that—students who, upon stepping into the world of Blazers and recognizing their own uniqueness, immediately became overconfident. They would look down on high-ranking Blazers who had been famous for years, thinking that their success might just be due to luck or exaggeration. They would dare to provoke anyone, no matter who they were.
Logically speaking, the possibility of this was minuscule, but not everyone had a sense of proportion.
"No, that's not what I meant."
Eiji shook his head, a nonchalant smile spreading across his face.
"After all, it's just a test. It doesn't require me to win. As long as I can catch the Director's eye, that's enough, right?"
The implication was that he had already acknowledged his defeat in advance.
After all, he was just an ordinary E-Rank knight, while the principal across from him was an internationally renowned A-Rank knight. The gap between them was immeasurable.
'King of Knights,' abbreviated as KOK.
It was a world-class Blazer martial arts tournament organized by the League of Mage-Knight Nations, open to all Blazers from member countries. The top-tier event within it was the『A-rank League Tournament.』
Four years ago, Kurono Shinguuji was already a top contender in the『KOK A-Rank League.』
At that time, she was ranked third in the world.
However, she later chose to retire due to marriage and childbirth, disappearing from the public eye.
It wasn't until this year that she was invited back as the Director of Hagun Academy. Even though she had retired, she was still the former world No.3, a powerhouse whose strength was rare even on a global scale.
"Junior Brother, are you really going to duel the Director?"
Touka, composed herself from the surprise, and asked Eiji seriously.
"Can your body really handle a duel of this intensity?"
Internationally, Blazers were generally treated as knights. Many countries even trained and educated Blazers as knights, guiding them down the path of chivalry. This was why Blazers were also called Mage-Knights.
Knights were, after all, a combat profession. Duels were the best way to resolve any issue, no matter the conflict.
Therefore, it wasn't uncommon for Blazers to propose duels.
Touka wasn't thinking about whether her junior brother would win or lose—the gap between them was indeed too vast. The first thought that came to her mind after Eiji proposed the duel was still concern for his physical condition.
"Senior Sister, you're worrying too much. Even if something goes wrong, there's always the IPS regeneration pod, right?"
Eiji looked at his senior sister, who was filled with unease, and reassured her, "Besides, I'm sure the principal won't go all out against an ordinary E-Rank knight like me. She'll definitely know how to hold back."
With this, Kurono Shinguuji naturally felt that it would be inappropriate to bully the weak, even though she hadn't planned to do so in the first place.
"So, Director, what do you think? Will you accept my duel request?"
Seeing that his senior sister was still hesitant but ultimately didn't say anything more, Eiji turned back to Kurono Shinguuji and asked again.
"Sure, why not? This sounds interesting. I could use some exercise anyway."
Kurono readily turned off her computer, stood up from her desk, and revealed a pleased smile, as if she had successfully found an excuse to slack off.
"You're the second student to challenge me to a duel. The first one proved his worth. I hope you won't disappoint me either."
Has another student done this before?
The thought flashed through Eiji's mind.
"Let's use the nearest third training ground. Touka, you'll be the referee."
Kurono stretched lazily and led the two out of the office.
***
Hagun Academy had nearly twenty dome-shaped arenas scattered across the campus, used for student training or resolving disputes.
The arenas featured circular battle rings about 100 meters in diameter, surrounded by tiered spectator stands that could accommodate thousands of people.
When the three arrived, only a handful of people were conducting independent training. Upon learning that the area would become a battlefield, they retreated to the spectator stands.
"Take your positions!"
Touka stood outside the battle ring and began issuing instructions to the two combatants.
"Both sides, summon your Devices and deploy your Illusionary Form!"
As soon as she finished speaking, Eiji and Kurono simultaneously stepped into the battle ring, standing about 20 meters apart, centered around the ring's midpoint.
The previously silent spectators suddenly erupted in whispers.
"Huh? One of the combatants is the new Director?"
"Who's the other guy? With such a handsome face, how come I've never heard of him?"
"Probably a new student."
"A new student is dueling the Director? How clueless is he? Or did he just come from the countryside? There's no way he can win!"
Although there were only a few people, not a single one favored Eiji. They either sighed or scoffed, shaking their heads.
Someone even excitedly took out a camera, focusing it on the two in the ring, planning to record the match.
***
In the ring.
Though separated by dozens of meters, Eiji seemed to hear their conversations. His gaze swept over the few people in the spectator stands before returning his attention to Kurono Shinguuji across from him.
This woman who appeared to be in her late twenties, was at the peak of a woman's maturity. Her figure, wrapped in a black suit, was strikingly curvaceous, with a slender waist that showed no signs of having given birth.
At this moment, she had extinguished her cigarette and stood with one hand on her hip, looking at Eiji with a composed expression.
"Summon your Device."
She spoke to Eiji in a clear and confident tone.
Though she said this, she showed no signs of summoning her own Device, clearly intending to go easy on him.
Blazers typically possessed a variety of special abilities, like a treasure chest. Until the chest was opened, you could never know what incredible abilities the other person might have.
However, most of these abilities required a『Device』as a medium to use. Without summoning a Device, a Blazer's abilities were basically unusable.
Kurono not summoning her Device meant she had no intention of using her abilities.
She made this choice not out of carelessness but because she had already seen through Eiji's level. Such a low-tier ability couldn't harm her in the slightest.
"Hum—!"
Ignoring Kurono's disdain, Eiji silently extended his hand.
In that instant, countless golden light particles gathered around him, condensing in his right hand.
As the light points dispersed, a dazzling long sword appeared in his palm, which he firmly grasped.