The 2v2 Duel (2)
The 2v2 duel began, just as my father had said. Unlike the other students, Sherry didn’t seem particularly surprised. She was deep in thought, carefully considering how she might defeat Luden. Yet at the same time, her gaze kept drifting not toward Luden, but toward me.
Who’s that guy going to pair up with?
Her opponent would obviously be Luden. Still, because I had shown myself to be far more capable than Luden, I was the one who weighed more heavily on her mind.
“That concludes today’s lecture.”
The major course had ended. In the next instant, every student scrambled to their feet and rushed off. They were probably all hurrying to secure the best possible partner.
But at that very moment—
Huh?
Unlike the others, I walked at a leisurely pace. Even though I would surely need an outstanding partner too, how could I remain so relaxed? Does he already know someone?
Just as Sherry was pondering this, a small scream reached her ears.
“Kyaaah!”
Hearing the cry, I turned and began walking toward the source of the sound.
Ugh. I guess I should follow him.
For some reason, it bothered her. Sherry tiptoed after me, moving as stealthily as she could.
A short while later—
What…?
An unexpected scene unfolded before her eyes. A young woman with round glasses and short brown hair was being bullied by a group of female students.
That person… isn’t that Kanya von Breed?
Yellow hair styled into distinctive drill-like curls. Even from a distance, it was unmistakably Kanya. But why was she tormenting that girl?
The question crossed her mind for a moment, but—
This isn’t the time for that.
She shook her head. She didn’t know the reason, but what mattered was that school violence was clearly taking place. Just as Sherry was about to step forward—
“Stop the school violence right now!!!!!”
I, who had been quietly watching, suddenly fired a barrage of magic arrows. The girls—including Kanya—jumped in shock at the unexpected attack.
“Kyaaah?! What the hell!”
“Who is that?!”
“What kind of crazy bastard is this?!”
While everyone was still reeling, I naturally appeared before them. A brief silence fell at my entrance. Then the girl who had been bullied, Risa, looked up at me with trembling eyes.
“B-Baran… sir?”
“Are you alright, Miss Risa?”
“Y-yes…”
At my concerned question, Risa slowly nodded.
At that moment—
“Are you insane?!”
Kanya, who had been harassing Risa, exploded in fury. Her followers immediately joined in, lashing out without hesitation.
“How dare you shoot arrows at Lady Kanya, the esteemed daughter of the Breed family?!”
“Do you even realize what you’ve done?!”
“And what about you? Can you take responsibility for what you’ve done?”
In an instant, I spoke in a serious tone I had never shown before. The students following Kanya flinched at my words.
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about bullying another student within the academy.”
“Excuse me?”
They reacted with dumbfounded expressions. Ignoring their confusion, I pressed on.
“Edin Academy is famous for treating everyone equally. If the professors found out that you were bullying this person, what do you think would happen? I guarantee you would receive at least a disciplinary punishment.”
“H-how would you even know that?!”
“Yeah! That’s just your own assumption!”
Assumption my ass, you idiots. It’s obvious to anyone that you’d get punished.
As I stood there in disbelief, Kanya crossed her arms and nodded as if in agreement.
“Hmm. Well, you’re probably right. If the professors learned we were bullying her, they might indeed issue punishment.”
Then, with a brazen look on her face, she continued.
“But is there any proof?”
So that’s how you’re playing it.
When she had nothing left to say, she resorted to shamelessness. Knowing her personality, I simply accepted it. After all, I had expected something like this from the start.
If I weren’t just a soul right now, I would have given her a good knock on the head.
Miroel swung her fists wildly at the girl in frustration. Of course, her fists simply passed through Kanya’s body.
Well, it doesn’t matter.
There might be no physical evidence, but there was a witness.
The next moment—
“There is a witness.”
Sherry, who had been hiding until now, stepped forward. Everyone except me and Miroel jumped in surprise. Unlike us, they had no idea she had been watching.
“S-Sherry… my lady?!”
Kanya was so shocked her eyes looked ready to pop out. Sherry stared at her with a cold expression.
“I saw everything. You were bullying this person. While there may be no physical evidence, wouldn’t my testimony be more than enough as a witness?”
“T-that’s…”
Strong against the weak, weak against the strong. How typical.
She had been so brazen when it was just me stepping in. But the moment Sherry—the daughter of one of the four great elemental families and a duke’s heir—appeared, they were left stammering. This was exactly why power mattered so much.
Being a commoner really is tough.
While I was thinking that, Sherry continued to press Kanya.
“Disappear from our sight before I actually report this to the professors.”
“Y-yes… understood…”
Kanya bit her lower lip hard as she answered. Then, with her followers in tow, she tried to leave as gracefully as possible.
I watched her for a moment before speaking.
“Miss Drill-Hair.”
“Excuse me? Drill-Hair?”
Her face twisted in clear displeasure. Ignoring her reaction, I continued.
“Let’s do our best in the duel two days from now.”
Her eyes widened in fury.
“Just you wait.”
With those final words, Kanya and her group departed like third-rate villains. That left only the three of us.
Disciple. Say something quickly! This is so awkward!
Miroel flailed her arms in distress at the uncomfortable silence. Even if she said that, what was I supposed to do? One of them kept glaring at me, and the other was someone I had just rescued from bullying. I had no idea what to say.
Ugh. Let’s at least help her up first.
I scratched my cheek and offered Risa my hand.
“Are you okay, Miss Risa?”
“Y-yes…”
“If there’s anything—”
“Shall we go to a café for a bit?”
Sherry cut off my words and suggested we head to a café. It seemed she thought it would be better not to talk here.
“I don’t mind.”
“I-I…”
Risa hesitated, glancing around. She probably felt uncomfortable talking in such a crowded place.
“It’s fine. I’ll cast Silence so no one can overhear us.”
Sherry seemed to have had the same thought and offered her consideration. However, Risa’s response was different from what either of us expected.
“It’s not that… I don’t have any money…”
““Ah…””
That’s right. Risa was just an ordinary citizen. I had earned some money from hunting monsters a month ago, but she didn’t have many ways to make money. Her reaction was perfectly understandable.
Understanding her situation, Sherry smiled gently.
“You don’t need to worry. I’ll pay for it.”
“Th-thank you!”
After Risa’s grateful reply, the three of us headed to a famous café in the royal capital. Incidentally, I ended up eating for free as well.
Once we arrived at the café and finished ordering, I asked directly.
“So, how did you end up getting bullied, Miss Risa?”
“W-well… my father used to work for the Breed family.”
“Really? Then why were you being bullied?”
Sherry looked genuinely puzzled. Risa lowered her head and answered.
“A long time ago, another employee stole the research paper for a potion my father created.”
“Ah… you don’t mean…?”
Sherry’s eyes widened as if she had realized something. She asked carefully.
“What was your father’s name?”
“Dillo.”
“Ah.”
Sherry nodded in understanding. Ignoring her reaction, Risa continued her explanation.
“Anyway, the daughter of that employee happened to be in the same class as me. She kept insulting my father, and I couldn’t hold back, so…”
“You don’t need to say any more, Miss Risa.”
The more she spoke, the darker the shadow on her face became. It seemed better not to make her relive the pain any further.
Well, even if she didn’t say it, I already knew the story anyway.
I had been worried it might differ from the original plot, but fortunately it was the same.
“I had heard the rumors, but I never imagined it was true…”
Sherry muttered in her usual tone, clearly shocked. I pretended not to notice and fell into thought.
Hmm. This is tricky.
Her situation was truly pitiful. Her father’s thesis had been stolen by a colleague, which allowed the Breed family to rise dramatically.
That alone would be enough to make anyone’s stomach churn.
To make matters worse, her father had passed away from illness. In the end, she had come to the academy to carry on his will.
And of all people, she ended up entangled with the daughter of the person who betrayed her father.
Just thinking about it brought tears to my eyes. Her father had only wanted to create potions to help the sick.
It’s heartbreaking, but should I really help her?
From what I had just heard, the situation didn’t seem any different from the original story. In that case, it might be fine to stay out of it. After all—
Even if I don’t step in, it will probably resolve itself eventually.
It was right then that a message appeared before me.
Pair with Risa and defeat Kanya in the duel!
📍 Objective: Team up with Risa for the upcoming duel and win against Kanya. Rewards will vary depending on the method of victory.
It was as if the system had been waiting for this exact moment. Normally, I wouldn’t yield to such a message. However, my growth had felt somewhat stagnant lately. With the demon race episode approaching soon, I needed to grow stronger as quickly as possible.
Therefore, what I needed to do right now was…
“Miss Risa.”
“Yes? H-hyaa?!”
Pretending I couldn’t see, I gently took her hand instead of reaching for my drink. Miroel, Sherry, and Risa all jumped in surprise. Ignoring their reactions, I spoke with sincere emotion.
“Let’s start dating from today.”
“…Pardon?”
In the next instant, the two of them stared at me with icy, frozen eyes.