Get Ready to Die, Senior
The day of the duel had finally arrived. The rumor of the fight between Kiesa and me had already spread like wildfire across the entire academy. As a result, students filled the spectator seats early, eager to watch this major matchup.
“Who do you think will win?”
“Obviously Kiesa, right? The guy’s personality is trash, but his skills are real.”
“Yeah, that makes sense. Still, that Baran kid looked pretty decent during the last spar.”
“Hey, hey. I heard he got beaten senseless by that blind archer last week. That alone should tell you everything.”
“True. Then betting on Kiesa is the safe choice, huh?”
Most of the students believed Kiesa would emerge victorious. After all, the last time they had witnessed my power was during that 2v2 spar. That was why everyone assumed Kiesa would win.
The Edin Academy student council was no different.
“Gazel. What’s your take? Who do you think will win?”
The undisputed peak of the academy—the flower atop the cliff, Elsa von Liones—brushed her silver hair behind her ear as she asked the question. Gazel adjusted his glasses before answering.
“According to the rumors, Kiesa has already beaten student Baran once.”
“Hmm. But rumors are only rumors, aren’t they?”
“There were quite a few first-years who witnessed it directly.”
Elsa fell into thoughtful silence at his words.
‘That blind archer lost?’
The only time she had seen me fight in person was during the 2v2 spar. Nothing more. Unlike the others, however, she had done some digging into me—possibly with the intention of recruiting me to the student council. The result was that she had grown genuinely interested in the student named Baran. After all, it wasn’t just anyone who had caught Dale’s eye.
‘If Professor Dale finds him interesting, he must be someone special.’
So far, not a single person who had piqued his interest had turned out ordinary. Herself, the current student council president, was a perfect example.
“There’s no way to know for sure from words alone. If Baran shows us something impressive, we can ask him to take on a request alongside Luden.”
With that, Elsa waited impatiently for the duel to begin.
At the same time, Sherry sat among the spectators just like everyone else. She had only just returned from an observation session with Luden when Canya rushed over with news of an emergency. The story she heard was that I had clashed with a senior named Kiesa. The moment she learned the full details, Sherry nearly lost her mind and seriously considered burning Kiesa to ash.
Unfortunately, both Risa and Canya held her back. They told her that Baran had a plan. As Sherry let out a quiet sigh—
“Haa… It’ll be fine… right.”
“It’ll be perfectly fine~”
A relaxed voice drifted into her ear. Sherry, along with Canya, Risa, Luden, and Shannon, turned their heads. There was Lillia, humming cheerfully as she approached.
“How can you be so sure? I heard Baran already lost.”
“Hmm. Did you now?”
Of course Lillia had heard the rumor. Even after learning it from Risa, she had been told countless times that Baran had been defeated.
‘Is that senior Kiesa really that strong?’
While Sherry wrestled with the question, Lillia settled gracefully into the seat beside her.
“Well, you’ll see soon enough. Then you’ll understand why I’m not worried at all.”
““?””
Question marks floated above the entire group’s heads, but Lillia simply smiled and offered no further explanation.
I made my way toward the training ground. The moment I stepped inside, every eye in the arena locked onto me.
-Whisper, whisper.
I slowly scanned the packed spectator seats.
‘There are a lot of people.’
It looked like the entire school had shown up to watch a neighborhood circus. A few faces stood out immediately. One group was my Class A companions. They must have all come to cheer me on; they were making encouraging gestures, urging me to fight well.
‘But why are Canya and Risa sitting there so naturally?’
Shifting my gaze elsewhere, I continued my scan.
‘The student council makes sense, but the professors are a surprise.’
Professors normally stayed out of matters like this. More accurately, they didn’t bother coming to watch. This wasn’t an official match—it was an unofficial duel. They would usually spend this time on work instead. Yet for some reason, the professors were staring at me with unusual intensity.
‘Why are they looking so hard? It’s burdensome.’
Just as that thought crossed my mind—
“You actually showed up without pissing yourself. Impressive.”
An irritated voice reached my ear. I turned to see Kiesa—the same one from before—picking at his ear as he sauntered over.
I lifted the corner of my mouth and answered politely.
“There is no reason for me to be afraid.”
“Huh? Oh, so you’re going with the ‘I let you hit me on purpose’ story?”
I allowed a slightly surprised expression to cross my face. I hadn’t expected him to know that detail.
While I was still processing, Kiesa continued without a care.
“Did you think I wouldn’t figure it out? Too bad. I wasn’t even being serious back then.”
He flashed a triumphant grin. From his tone alone, it was obvious he already believed the fight was over.
I was inwardly dumbfounded as I observed him with Mind’s Eye.
It was exactly the same as before. Well, I had already checked his strength with Mind’s Eye last time. I only looked again because he was acting so confident—I wondered if he had some hidden power. As expected, nothing had changed. In short, he was simply this arrogant because he hadn’t used magic during our previous encounter.
“Both of you, please calm down slightly.”
At that moment, Dale appeared between us. It seemed he would serve as the referee once again.
-That squinty-eyed professor always inserts himself into my disciple’s business.
I inwardly agreed with Miroel’s comment as Dale began explaining the rules.
“Since this match seems likely to become quite intense, I’ve decided to change the rules from a standard duel.”
““?””
We both tilted our heads in confusion. Instead of answering directly, Dale produced a single crystal orb.
-That’s…
Miroel narrowed her eyes at the sight. The next moment, Dale launched into an explanation.
“This crystal orb is an artifact that creates an illusionary world. Once you enter the realm it generates, you will fall under its illusion. Even if you die inside, you will simply wake up. Nothing more will happen.”
“Hmm. So the rule this time is that the first person to die inside the illusion world loses?”
Dale nodded at Kiesa’s question.
Soon, he lifted the corner of his mouth in a way that was distinctly annoying.
“Excellent. Much better than something half-hearted.”
It appeared he hadn’t even considered the possibility that he might lose.
“Then both of you, do not resist the mana flowing from the orb.”
Dale poured his own mana into the crystal orb. In the next instant—
-Whoosh!
Blue mana erupted from the orb. Both Kiesa and I accepted the surging energy without resistance.
At the same time, our surroundings completely transformed.
‘Hmm. Not bad.’
I looked around. An empty grassland stretched in every direction. A refreshing breeze blew past, so realistic it was hard to believe this was an illusion. If I hadn’t known better, most people would have assumed it was the real world. The sense of realism was that convincing.
‘To be able to craft an illusion this perfect, just how strong was the Grand Sage?’
Only someone like Lillia after reaching her final stage of growth could create a unique world like this. Yet the Grand Sage had managed to reproduce the effect through an item. That meant the Grand Sage clearly possessed talent not only in magic but in enchantment as well.
‘It feels like I’m realizing all over again just how powerful my master truly is.’
As I reevaluated Miroel, Kiesa drew his sword and stretched his lips into a villainous grin.
“Now I can finally beat you properly.”
I nodded as if in perfect agreement.
“I’ll return those exact words to you.”
“What?”
Kiesa’s eyes widened at my sudden reply. Once he understood the meaning, he let out a hollow laugh.
“This bastard really didn’t get hit enough last ti——”
His words died in his throat at the sight before him.
Because—
-Whoosh!
An overwhelming surge of mana, far beyond what any student should possess, erupted from my body.
Faced with the completely unexpected scene, Kiesa’s face filled with disbelief.
I looked at the message floating before my eyes and spoke.
The Bow of the Beginning's ability Possession has been activated!
The player's stats will temporarily increase!