Chapter 125
Chapter 125
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 125
Chapter Title: Good Luck, Loser
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The barrier dissolved, and the winner's name echoed grandly across the entire training grounds, yet no one reacted.
It was that unbelievable.
Everyone knew it.
Mana was an absolute value.
Mana 19 could never beat 21.
Mana 21 could never topple 22, not ever.
It was a law. The world turned on laws.
Just as there was the obvious law of channeling mana, running it through circuits, applying auxiliary spells, and manifesting—just as that natural law existed,
there was the law that the low never surpassed the high.
Of course.
Mana 8 could overtake 9 sometimes. 10 might beat 11.
But those called the human limit at 17 could never surpass the genius at 18.
Genius couldn't defeat monsters, monsters couldn't surpass the grand archmages who wrote pages in history, and history itself couldn't exist without the myths that encompassed the entire world.
But she did it.
Aila Trista had succeeded in defying heaven itself.
As the audience held their breath before this great rebellion unfolding right before their eyes,
only one person was free from that silence.
Clap. Clap. Clap.
Everyone turned to look at him, then nodded in understanding.
Only he had the right to break that silence.
The one more qualified than anyone to be arrogant.
Probably the only one here who had been absolutely certain of Aila Trista's victory.
Wolfram von Loengrin alone smiled broadly and applauded the winner.
"Wolfram!"
Leaving Regina, who had collapsed and been carried off on a stretcher, Aila came running up to me.
Her whole body was caked in dirt, her once-lustrous hair full of dust, but that smile showed no cloudiness.
"Did you see it? Did you see my rebellion! Woo-hoo, woo-hoo-hoo!"
Seeing Aila covering her mouth with both hands and stomping her feet in laughter, I might normally think she was throwing another tantrum, but not this time.
This girl had shown me something I'd never seen.
Just as Millefeuille von Sabre had carved her own destiny, Aila Trista had smashed the fate laid before her with her own power.
She had accomplished her self-proclaimed rebellion.
An ending I'd never seen, not even once, despite my 20,000 hours of playtime—not even imagined.
Aila's smile, as she seized her own fate, was so radiant it made me grin back just the same.
That rebellion secretly prepared and soaring gorgeously.
"Say something."
"......"
"What! I can tell from that smile alone, even without words. For you to smile like that, it's shocking..."
"Well done, Aila. I'm proud of you."
"......Eh."
Aila's expression froze at my praise.
I know. I get it.
I know Wolfram von Loengrin's praise comes off blunt and emotionless, but what can I do when I just want to praise her purely?
"Sorry. My way with words is clumsy."
"Ah, no. Nooo... Th-thank you."
"Mm. Hearing that makes me grateful."
"H-hum. Even if I did well, for you to praise me... Wasn't this all part of your calculations too?"
"I did calculate. But the one who made it happen is you. Aila Trista."
That's right.
In my 20,000 hours of play, a future I'd never witnessed.
Different from Millefeuille.
She was a fading extra, so I couldn't fully immerse.
But.
The Aila Trista from the original story, with those cold eyes that reflected nothing—I'd seen her countless times.
【You dare say you'll destroy me? You lot!? Ha!】
【Regina Cieeeeraaa!!】
【Black Crystal: Final Strike: Annihilation: Death: Berserk: Barrage】
【I don't want to crumble. I just don't.】
【Someday, complete the rebellion......】
【That promise... with him.】
The gut-wrenching scream of Aila as she fell to Kelters, Regina, and Eve's alliance came to mind.
20,000 hours. How many times had I watched this girl perish during that long grind?
Every time, Aila cursed the world, lamented, and crumbled.
"Ehehe. Got praised..."
"......"
She could never smile so innocently like this.
Like Millefeuille, this girl had shown me something beyond what I thought I knew of this game.
"Thank you, Aila."
"......For what?"
"No. Nothing."
This is why I love this world.
Love it insanely.
Aila Trista headed to the infirmary with steps so light she seemed ready to fly.
Jefrin's medical system was outstanding enough to rival the empire's royal hospital reserved for imperial family.
Not enough to reattach severed limbs, but it could heal most wounds as if they'd never been.
Because 'healing skills' received countless buffs within this academy city.
Another arrangement by the founding emperor, huh. Truly a Loengrin. Aila nodded to herself. Impressive! And Wolfram, who has such a man's daughter as his big sister, is impressive too!
No idea why her thoughts flowed that way, but Aila just thought it and headed to her destination.
The infirmary where she lay collapsed.
"I'm coming in."
"......"
Opening the door, Regina Cielra lay staring blankly at the ceiling with a defeated expression.
Look at those hollow eyes. Oh my. Oh my. I want to capture them with a fixation skill right now, pwon't them with an image skill, and hang them on the wall.
"I never said you could come in, Trista."
"Oh? Isn't this the winner's natural right? Or are you, the loser, demanding rights?"
"......You're right. I lost."
"Yes. Victory for Aila Trista."
"So what happens to me? Expulsion?"
"......"
"It would be, right? I was rude to Prince Wolfram von Loengrin, and then I lost to you. Politically speaking, the Trista name's value has skyrocketed, and I'm just a replaceable pawn with mana 21. Congrats. Rebel Black Crystal. On your victory."
"......"
Aila nodded along as she listened.
Utterly calm expression.
That composure, looking like the winner's leisure, must have touched something inside Regina Cielra, as she kept talking.
"You're set, Trista. I heard about your family's rise. Taking over the west with unstoppable momentum? And marriage to imperial blood. Central advancement is no dream now. Me, on the other hand... Mana '21' is useful, but I lost to your '20'. How you raised it is a mystery, but that's your ace. If you claim my incompetence to the president and Prince Wolfram and demand my expulsion... Rudeness to imperial blood and my own failure. Those two factors would seal my expulsion. And my faction becomes yours. Heh... Congrats, new ruler."
"Wow. Impressive."
"Nothing impressive. Anyone could deduce that much. ...I'm a useless card now. I want to die like this. If possible, close my eyes smiling in a flower field while being strangled..."
"Wow. You talk so much. Truly impressive."
"......What?"
Only then did Regina Cielra, who had been staring blankly at the ceiling with a single tear trickling down, glare at Aila. Talks too much? Is that what you have to say right now?
But Aila truly looked amazed only at that, eyes wide as she tilted her head.
"Doesn't your throat hurt?"
"You really...!"
"Ahem. Listen quietly, loser. Winner's right."
"...Ugh, ughk. I'll... kill you..."
"Yes. Try it later if you get the skill. Ah... Well. I know the Cierra family is in a politically tricky spot. But so?"
"...Yes?"
"Do you have to live like that even at the academy? You live so harshly. Life should be enjoyed. Does everyone in the capital live like that? After graduation, I'll be out inspecting mines in sandstorms, so I'm trying not to worry about family stuff here as much as possible."
"......"
"If Wolfram hadn't handled that for me... I'd be stressing a ton, so maybe bravado? Yeah, probably bravado. Got it..."
"What are you trying to say, Aila Trista? Bragging about your freedom?"
"Ah... Talking to you chokes me up. Do you write swamps with your mouth...? Hmm. Is that the realm of mana 21?"
"Aila Trista!"
"Yes, loser Regina Cielra."
"Ugh."
"One firm declaration. You're not getting expelled."
"......Yes?"
"I'm officially first in the year now. But that first place shines because I surpassed you, who has higher mana than me. See? If you get expelled, my first place loses its shine."
"......For just that reason, you're not removing a political rival like me? ...For real?"
"Save the annoying politics for after graduation. No need or reason to do it now."
Aila's eyes sparkled brightly as she said that.
"...If I were you, I'd have taken you out, Aila Trista."
"But that 【ending】 wasn't born. Don't drag delusions into reality. The plain truth is just one thing. I beat you."
"......"
At those words, a faint spark returned to Regina's eyes. Followed by a deep sigh.
"I lost. Really, truly lost."
"Of course. You really lost to me."
"...No, not in that sense. Anyway... really."
"And it's not over after one loss."
"Yes?"
"There's the semester-end finals, right? Come smash the weakling at the top then."
"......Ha."
A smile crept onto Regina's lips unbidden.
Foolish.
Losers from the Cierra family shouldn't smile.
Yet...
Unaware of her own smile, unable to hide her mirth, Regina stared at Aila.
Aila met the smile, hands on hips, and shouted confidently.
"Bring it, number two. I'll be waiting at the peak."
"...Fine. If I win then, I'll take everything from you."
"Cocky."
"In return, I'll spare you expulsion."
"Oh, merciful."
Aila giggled behind her hand. Regina shrugged.
"Good. I'll count on your mercy then. No expulsion, got it."
"Don't get cocky. Not that merciful."
"......?"
"From tomorrow, you carry my bag, right? Buy my lunch, cover for me in lectures if I can't make it."
"......Yes?"
"Looking forward to it, loser?"
"......Someday, I'll strangle you with these hands."
Aila beamed, stood, and left the infirmary.
Right before going, she didn't forget to thumbs-up Regina and leave one last line.
"Good luck, loser."
"......I'll really kill you."
The next day.
Rudika stood in the same training grounds where Aila and Regina had fought.
Pits and craters dotted the ground here and there.
We two, who should have fought in the auditorium, had borrowed this grounds at my strong insistence.
"...Wolfram. You really going to fight?"
"Of course."
"But with your stats, you can't beat Rudika. You know that, right?"
"Did Aila think she could win yesterday and fight Regina?"
Rudika nodded at my words.
Glancing at the stands, I saw Aila, Millefeuille, Nefti, and Eve right up front. Plus Emily and... Zolf? Zolf, why are you there?
Anyway, everyone watched us expectantly.
Not just them—the stands were packed.
"The duel between Rudika Hassan Shadow and Wolfram von Loengrin begins now!"
Alright.
Aila showed a future beyond my predictions.
Now it's time for this veteran to show what I've got.