Struggle (1)
Three days later, Monday. Right after all the academy classes had ended, I found myself sitting in a cafe, sipping coffee instead of heading straight to the training grounds.
‘About thirty minutes left.’
It was time for my spar with Shane. I took a slow sip and thought to myself.
‘It really is strange.’
This world was a bizarre blend of modern and medieval elements. There were no smartphones, yet a few modern conveniences existed. Science was present, but there weren’t many tall buildings like skyscrapers. I never imagined I’d be able to adapt to a world without smartphones.
‘If I lose this spar, is it over?’
It wouldn’t be the end. It would simply lead to an excruciating process that felt like the end. Still, it was worth doing. I’d managed to gather a decent amount of information.
Shane Krakt. Ranked 35th among the first-years. Born into the Krakt family, she had learned to fight from a young age. In terms of pure one-on-one combat ability, she was likely the strongest first-year. The reason she wasn’t ranked first was simple.
‘She said she kept fighting a doppelganger.’
She found it fun to battle a copy of herself and kept fighting until it revealed everything it had. This information was reliable. The source was none other than…
“Lord Adel, are you not heading to the training grounds?”
The noble sitting across from me was Daren Gawood.
“…Why are you even here?”
Ever since the last Understanding of Martial Arts class, he had been following me around. Strangely enough, our class schedules overlapped for the most part.
“Because I am also following you in order to create my own swordsmanship.”
“Do you really need to follow someone like me?”
Honestly, what was the point of tailing a guy like me? He’d be better off swinging his sword more instead.
“You are not that kind of person. At your age, have you not already created your own martial art? That alone is reason enough.”
“…I get it. But can’t you stop speaking so formally?”
“I cannot. This is my way of showing both rivalry and respect toward you.”
“…”
In the three days I’d known him, Daren was the very definition of nobility. As the son of a prestigious swordsmanship family in the west, he carried both pride in his heritage and a strong sense of duty to exterminate demons.
‘His senses are sharp too.’
I recalled a conversation I’d had with him before.
“Lord Adel, do you not feel it?”
“Feel what?”
“I believe this world is headed for destruction. And that it will happen in our generation.”
I knew about the continent’s impending doom because of the story’s plot, but he had sensed it purely through instinct.
‘He’ll definitely become important in the later parts of the story.’
With sharp senses, real strength, and plenty of knowledge, there was no reason to shake him off as he followed me.
“Daren, you said the Krakt family values struggle above all, right?”
“Indeed. I have heard that even if they are certain to win, if their opponent fights with true struggle, they will respond in kind.”
Struggle. A fight to win or to overcome.
‘I should make use of that.’
I wasn’t sure exactly how yet. Honestly, even though I had grown somewhat stronger over the past three days, it still wasn’t enough to reach Shane. That meant I had no choice but to create a variable.
I finished my coffee, set the cup down with a clack, and stood up.
“Lord Adel, are you leaving now?”
“Yeah. It’s about time.”
Daren looked at me as if I were heading into a final duel.
“I shall cheer for you.”
A small chuckle escaped me at his serious expression.
“Just watch me win from the stands.”
It was pure bravado. He probably knew it too. Still, I had to say it.
‘It’s doable.’
I left the cafe and headed for the training grounds.
The training grounds used for official matters were different from the simple sparring rooms inside the training halls. They were used for things like matches between Class S students and those from other classes.
‘This must be it.’
Out of dozens of arenas, Shane had apparently reserved the largest and best one. The arena with my name on it was the First Training Arena.
After confirming my name, I opened the door and stepped inside.
The moment I entered, I felt countless gazes lock onto me. It seemed like every first-year had shown up. Among them were familiar faces—Christina, Siris, Banya, Daren… It looked like almost everyone I knew had come.
The students began murmuring among themselves, but I couldn’t hear them. I could have focused and listened, but I had no desire to hear the insults I already knew were coming.
As I loosened up my body, Shane entered from the opposite side.
“Hey? It’s been three days, huh?”
She was smiling brightly, as if something made her incredibly happy.
“…Yeah, three days.”
I answered flatly. Shane held no hostility toward me. In fact, she had approached me out of curiosity. I felt no hostility either.
‘This is my chance to turn things around.’
This spar was the perfect stage to show everyone exactly what I was capable of. Today, I would reduce the number of sparring requests on me to ten or fewer.
‘…Instructor Cain?’
As I stood there lost in thought, Cain approached both Shane and me.
“I am Cain, the swordsmanship instructor, and I will be overseeing this spar as the referee.”
After a brief greeting, he began explaining the rules.
“This barrier was created by a transcendent, so you don’t need to worry about destroying it. Fight without holding back. The first to hear their opponent surrender is the winner. Any questions?”
Both Shane and I nodded.
“Then take your positions. The moment the barrier appears—which could happen at any time—the spar will begin.”
With those final words, Cain left the arena.
“…I hope you’re strong.”
I didn’t catch Shane’s quiet murmur as I moved into position.
A low hum filled the air. After waiting for several minutes, the ground where Shane and I stood was encircled by a semicircular barrier.
‘So this is the barrier…’
Crackle!
The instant I tried to think, a streak of Shane’s red lightning brushed past my cheek.
“…”
I reflexively dodged and stared at her.
“Adel. Show me everything you’ve got.”
Leaving those words behind, Shane charged at me wrapped in red lightning.
‘That’s a relief.’
She still wasn’t using her full power. From what Daren had told me, Shane was the strongest first-year. The fact that I could see her movements meant she wasn’t going all out yet.
I summoned the haze of flames.
BOOOOM!
Her spear slammed into the spot where I had just been standing. Red lightning crackled around the spearhead. If I hadn’t dodged, that strike would have been fatal.
Whoosh!
In the blink of an eye, she retrieved her spear and thrust it at me again.
BOOOOM!
I barely avoided it and threw a punch infused with fire at Shane.
Crackle!
Red lightning erupted from her hand, colliding with my fist and canceling it out. I took a step back, but there was no time to breathe. Shane—who had somehow already recovered her spear—was charging at me once more.
‘…She’s gotten faster.’
The difference wasn’t huge, but even that small gap felt enormous. The gap between her and me.
‘If she uses all her lightning…’
I’d be on the ground in less than ten seconds.
Whoosh!
The spear wrapped in red lightning flew toward me. I condensed explosively generated flames into my fist and punched forward.
CLAAAAANG!
A terrible metallic screech rang out. The power in her thrown spear and my condensed fiery fist were still locked in a contest of strength.
But with a casual flick of Shane’s hand, the clash was nullified.
Crackle-crackle!
An overwhelming surge of lightning erupted from her body as she retrieved her spear. She seemed to have raised her power to its limit.
“Adel. This isn’t the end, is it?”
I met her gaze.
“…”
“…”
There was no disappointment in her eyes. No fading curiosity. She simply stared straight at me.
Looking into her eyes, I thought:
‘I need to learn.’
Or more accurately, I needed to devour it all.
Up until now, I had devoured many things through fighting. But I had only swallowed them. I hadn’t digested them.
Whether it was Daren’s movements or Cain’s, they all remained undigested inside me.
Shane was a natural-born fighter from a family of fighters. In this battle against her, I would digest everything I had taken in.
‘How?’
Struggle. The one thing her family valued most. Even when I thought about it, growth always began with struggle.
‘Then what exactly is struggle?’
A fight to win or to overcome. Had I ever done that?
‘Yes, I have.’
From the doppelganger to Cain and now Shane. They had all been stronger than me. To defeat the doppelganger, I had devoured his physical techniques and flame control. To face Cain, I had devoured the abilities of others.
Then what was I doing to face Shane?
‘I’m trying to overcome her.’
Even after feeling the difference in power, the gap between us, I wasn’t running away. I was standing my ground.
‘This is…’
I had never once fought someone weaker than myself. Even in battles where defeat seemed certain, I had never given up.
‘…Ah.’
All this time, in every single moment, I had been engaged in struggle.
I withdrew the haze of flames that had been rising across my body. Then I threw a punch that carried no power at all—just pure will to win.
A deep smile bloomed on Shane’s lips as she watched me.