The Eye of the Storm

The idiot princess's mana raged wildly. The biting winter wind sliced through the silence like a blade. And this wasn't mere literary flourish. Razor-sharp fragments of wind were literally hurtling toward me.

A cascade of emerald chains erupted into the air, following the girl's incantation. I stared at the descending iron mace amid the clamor and braced myself for impact once more.

The tip of my blade moved smoothly, tracing a long arc through the empty space. Suppressing the tremor in my hand, I unfolded the form with fluid grace, as if painting a picture. Even as the attack closed in, my world remained utterly still, without the slightest ripple of disturbance.

-Kagagagak...!!

The magic hurtling toward my shoulder collided with steel, unleashing a piercing screech. It thrashed wildly, trying to pierce my defense, but soon slid harmlessly along the flat of my blade. The chain, having lost its trajectory, slammed into an innocent wall.

Watching the mana construct fail to even graze a hair on my head, I could only feel a pang of pity.

The announcer's excited voice echoed through the training grounds, making me furrow my brow. Can't he just stay quiet for a bit? It was actually making it harder to focus on the spar.

Muttering a few complaints to myself, I reset my stance. Across from me, a girl with crimson eyes glared in my direction. Every time fragments of mana flickered around her, her brilliant silver hair danced in the wind.

"......You're holding up better than I expected."

Margaret, who had been biting her lip, spat out the words. It seemed her pride had taken a hit now that her magic wasn't landing.

"Thank you for the compliment."

I replied simply and kicked off the ground. Margaret hesitated for a moment at my aggressive momentum, then stepped forward as if gladly accepting the challenge. In her hand was a green spear shaped from the wind itself. She clearly had no intention of keeping her distance like a typical mage and simply dodging.

A spellcaster who can fight up close... Not bad at all.

With a spark of interest, I swung my sword. It was a sudden strike, but Margaret calmly tilted her spear shaft to block the path. Even with the distance between us closed, she didn't panic. It was an impressive response for a mage. Perhaps being the top student of the Magic Department really did mean something.

Margaret's combat style differed from that of ordinary mages. Rather than the classic approach of focusing on long-range bombardment, she actively dove into close-quarters combat. Even while engaged in melee, she would occasionally unleash surprise attacks like arrows or chains to disrupt her opponent's rhythm.

She's like a battle mage, I suppose...

At any rate, it was an incredibly refined fighting style. With that assessment, I parried the continuous thrusts of her spear. Sparks flew between the fiercely clashing blades. A wind arrow formed from my blind spot aimed for the back of my head, but I simply tilted my head to evade it with ease.

"You're quite fierce."

"Don't say that while dodging everything...!"

Well... I had given her a compliment. But of course, it was from the perspective of an average Academy student. Her skill wasn't enough to reach me. At her current level, Margaret was probably around the same as Gold Tae-yang.

The announcer's voice continued to reach my ears. I focused to maintain my own rhythm and moved my sword.

-Clang! Scraaape...!

Only the heavy song of steel passed between us. The fiercer our exchange grew, the louder the cheers from the spectators became.

The ceaseless clash of sword and wind filled the training grounds with noise for a long while.

"Haa... Haa..."

Margaret stepped forward, trying to catch her ragged breath. Her legs kept buckling, likely because she had exhausted her stamina. As she struggled to steady her precarious balance, a familiar voice came from directly ahead.

"You seem tired."

Wiping away the sweat dripping down my face, I looked up to see a black-haired boy standing there. He remained perfectly composed, his breathing not even slightly disturbed.

At the sight of him, Margaret gritted her teeth and raised her arm.

"I'm not... tired at all...!"

With numb fingertips, she cast her magic. The emerald chains that formed in an instant writhed as they lunged to engulf the boy. However...

-Kagagak!!

Thududuk...

The attack was blocked with ridiculous ease. Margaret clicked her tongue softly. She was now facing her own limits.

So noisy...

Margaret muttered quietly to herself as she massaged her convulsing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hand. Raiden, who had been watching the girl, suddenly spoke in a low voice that only she could hear.

"Wouldn't it be better to stop now?"

"......Don't mock me."

"I'm not mocking you. I am simply concerned for you, Lady Filer..."

"What did you say...?"

Margaret reflexively frowned. Intense anger burned in her red pupils.

You, of all people, are worried about me? What kind of nonsense is that?

"Ha, how shameless..."

Margaret was about to let out a scoffing laugh when she suddenly fell silent. The memory of Raiden saving her during the school trip ambush had flashed through her mind.

"......."

"......Lady Filer?"

Recalling that moment, she found herself unable to spit out any barbed words.

"Just... I'll handle it myself."

In the end, the emotions caught in her throat simply hardened into nothing. To shake off her restless heart, Margaret drew mana from her entire body. Her tightly clenched fist made countless thoughts race through the girl's mind.

Right after the school trip ambush incident, the Academy had suspended classes for about two weeks to handle the aftermath. During that short period, the students each soothed their shaken hearts or spent their days in the dormitories studying. But Margaret had left the Academy for a while and headed to the Filer Duchy.

There was someone she needed to meet. During the school trip, she had come face to face with a truth she simply could not accept.

Margaret had sought out an old connection to hear the answer to that question. And that connection was...

"It's been a while, Amelda."

"......My lady."

She was her former personal maid, the one who had been with her for so long. At the same time, she was the close friend who had inflicted a terrible sense of betrayal upon her.

Amelda, whose affair with Margaret's fiancé had been discovered in secret, had quit working at the mansion and was now living on the outskirts of the Filer Duchy.

Seeing Margaret appear so suddenly, Amelda looked surprised. Then, with an inscrutable, subtle expression, she bowed her head.

"The esteemed daughter of the Filer family... What brings you to such a humble place?"

"I have something I want to ask you."

"Please, come inside first."

Amelda responded to the girl mechanically. The stiffness in her tone made a bitter pain bloom in Margaret's chest. But she forced herself to ignore it. Margaret focused on her purpose.

"So, what is it you wish to ask?"

Margaret had witnessed it. The sight of the unicorn acting cute and purring toward Raiden. After looking into it from every angle, that friendly attitude from a unicorn could only mean one thing.

It meant the target was pure.

Margaret couldn't understand it. She had clearly heard the sounds of Raiden and Amelda entangled in passion with her own ears. The moans that had rung so clearly in her ears had remained as trauma, tormenting her with nightmares every single night.

How could he possibly be pure?

Pressing a hand to her throbbing forehead, Margaret asked the question.

"What exactly happened between the two of you...?"

"......"

A moment of silence fell. Margaret waited for an answer, frozen like the dead. Amelda stared at the girl with complicated eyes before eventually bursting into laughter. It was a laugh filled with mockery.

"Pfft..."

"......What is so funny?"

"It's nothing, Lady Filer. I was simply surprised by your naivety."

A nasty smile crept across Amelda's lips. She tapped her own lips as if taunting her.

"Shall I tell you in great detail?"

"Amelda."

"I enjoyed the pleasure that Young Master Lisite gave me, and you, my lady, were simply betrayed like a fool."

"What are you saying...!"

"What kind of answer were you hoping to hear by coming to find me?"

Margaret, who had been about to raise her voice, froze ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at those words. What answer had she been hoping for? She had simply come to properly understand what happened in the past...

"Did you want to hear that it was all a misunderstanding?"

"No, I just...!"

"Even after being hurt like that, you haven't changed at all."

"What...?"

"It seems you still have feelings left for Young Master Lisite, don't you?"

Margaret felt as if a thorn had been driven into her heart. Boiling anger and sorrow clogged her throat. Amelda delivered the final blow to the completely frozen Margaret.

"Our kind, foolish lady."

"......"

"You've always been like this. Even after I caused your engagement with the man you loved to be broken, you never once punished me."

"......"

"And even after I left the mansion, you still send me living expenses through the mail every single month, don't you?"

Margaret's hand trembled once more. She had definitely asked the head butler to send it without anyone knowing. How had Amelda found out the money came from her?

With a bright, smiling gaze, Amelda whispered into Margaret's ear.

"You can't easily let go of your affection. That's why you get betrayed."

"......"

"Wake up, my lady."

With a deep sneer, Amelda turned her back. Margaret was so stunned she couldn't even offer a rebuttal. After sitting in the chair for a moment, she eventually left the place with unsteady steps.

Sadness, anger, hatred, betrayal, and exhaustion. A myriad of emotions tore at the girl's heart. Margaret barely maintained her sanity, which felt like it could snap at any moment, and walked forward.

Because she was so distracted, she failed to notice.

"......I'm sorry, my lady."

The sight of Amelda, alone behind the window, watching the silver-haired figure walk away and crying silently. And so, the misunderstanding only grew deeper.

The announcer's voice rang out clearly, piercing through her dizzying consciousness. The slightly irritating tone made Margaret bite her lip hard. As she manipulated her mana with labored breaths, Raiden, who had been watching her from across the arena, spoke.

"Are you going to continue?"

It was a single phrase meant to snap the disheveled Margaret back to her senses. The remnants of a miserable past overlaid themselves onto the boy's face.

"It would be best if you forfeited now..."

-You can't easily let go of your affection. That's why you get betrayed.

The girl's heart shook violently. Margaret's enchanting red eyes gleamed with venom as she screamed.

"I will never...! Lose to you...!!"

It was poison. It was a single, desperate flower blooming from the mixture of past resentment and present lingering attachment.

The girl exploded with mana from her entire body and chanted.

"O cruel heavenly punishment, come forth."

Margaret unleashed the most powerful magic she could cast. Following the mana she had squeezed out without reserve, a massive gust of wind surged, and emerald daggers of wind enveloped the entire arena.

As far as Margaret knew, Raiden's stock of Blink was exactly ten ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠uses. Since he had used it occasionally throughout the spar, he must have exhausted them all by now. Evasion would be impossible now. No matter how quickly he leaped, he couldn't possibly be faster than a spell that had already finished casting.

Margaret's calculations were perfect. The only problem was...

She had overlooked her own physical condition. Margaret was exhausted. Her stamina had long since passed its limit, and her mana was running on fumes. Forcing out her unique magic in that state made a malfunction almost inevitable.

A control miss caused by mana deficiency and declining mental strength. There was only one possible result.

The spell's rampage... Otherwise known as 'Mana Explosion'.

-Kugugugugu...!!

The incomplete magic flashed, spewing out light. Before the girl lay a mass of mana on the verge of exploding.

The announcer's panicked voice brushed past her ears. At the same time, a dazed sigh escaped Margaret's lips.

"Ah......"

She had messed up.

-KWAAAAAAAAANG!!!!

The explosion roared out like a wildfire. Margaret squeezed her eyes shut against the vision turning pure white.

"......"

But why? Even though a long time had passed since the deafening noise, no impact reached Margaret's body.

"U-ugh...?"

With a question in her mind, she slowly opened her eyelids...

"Are you alright?"

And saw a pair of black eyes looking down at her, holding her securely in his arms.