Duel Season (1)

The period known as Duel Season—or Ranking Matches—is a once-a-year festival at Arena Academy. For students, it is a stage of competition where rankings can be overturned. That was why the academy flung open its main gates, welcoming outsiders so they could watch the students' duels. Every student in the academy had gathered in the grand auditorium under their instructors' guidance, waiting for the opening of Duel Season.

"…Hoo, hoo."

Some took deep breaths to steady their bursting tension.

"This time, I swear I'm raising my rank."

"No, you can't. You're stuck with me forever."

"…Ah, please. Just leave me alone. How long are you going to keep me by your side?"

Others burned with the desire to improve and the competitive spirit to climb higher no matter what.

'Whoa, it's hot in here, way too hot.'

The air in the auditorium felt like it was heating up from the passion and fighting spirit of my peers and seniors. No, looking at the weakening chill pouring from the ceiling, the temperature really was rising. Just in case, I pulled out the mini fan I'd brought along, engraved with a heat-conversion spell. I switched it to cooling mode and flicked it on.

Whirrr.

The fan spun, blasting out cold air. I could feel the heat on my face and the sweltering warmth around me gradually dropping. Glad I brought this, I thought, then ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠opened the quest window that had been minimized and blinking in the corner of my vision.

Ding.

'Whoa, a main quest… It's been ages since I saw one of these.'

Maybe it was because I'd only been seeing event quests, feat quests, and achievement quests lately. Having 'Main' instead of 'Event' at the top of the quest window felt strangely unfamiliar. And perhaps because I'd grown so rapidly, the rewards felt… a little behind the times.

I scanned the rewards with a disinterested eye. 150,000 points—reasonable. The A-grade Talent and Item Random Tickets were fine. The B-grade Equipment Selection Tickets were unnecessary. 'Not like I need them now that I'm using nothing but S-grade and A-grade gear.'

The B-grade selection tickets were completely useless to me at this point. I let out a shallow sigh and moved on to the next reward. Equipment Grade-Up Ticket, limited to B-grade or below… I could just use that on one of the selection tickets. 'Still, one selection ticket will be left over.'

What to do with it? I pondered for a moment, then quickly decided. 'I'll draw a spear and give it to Im Da-hee.'

She'd lost two spears—one in the modern-themed zombie apocalypse world, another on the uninhabited island. This would make a perfect gift. 'I kept forgetting to buy her one. This works out nicely.'

I nodded slightly and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠looked at the final rewards. Random Cheat Use Tickets—always welcome. And now the very last one. The last reward was… '…Shop Draw Function Unlock?'

It wasn't an item. The final reward was the unlocking of a shop function. But wasn't the timing a little too convenient? 'Unlocking the draw function right when I have a ton of points saved up…'

It almost felt like the system was telling me to stop hoarding and spend. The moment the thought crossed my mind, I asked Terra. Or rather, a message appeared before I could even ask.

'Really?'

I nodded, my suspicions fading at Terra's firm message. While I was checking the failure penalty, another message appeared.

The next line carried a heavy seriousness.

Terra's messages kept coming, filled with a plea for trust. I was about to say 'Why are you suddenly like this? I already let go of my suspicions, so it's fine,' but swallowed the words. It didn't feel right to say that out loud.

'Yeah. I'll trust you. And thanks.'

With a slightly smiling emoticon, Terra's messages faded away. Watching them disappear from my vision, I felt like I'd crossed some kind of turning point. It was an indescribable, vague feeling, yet at the same time, it felt like the right thing to do.

With that strange sensation lingering, I closed the quest window. The heat seemed to have cooled down a bit, so I turned off the fan and was about to store it in my inventory when—

Flash!

The principal appeared on the podium. At the same moment, the once-noisy auditorium fell silent, as if a silence spell had been cast. Thud. The principal stepped onto the podium and looked around with a benevolent expression. Third-years, second-years, and first-years. Seeing the students lined up neatly behind their instructors, the principal smiled contentedly and nodded. Then he brought the wand in his hand to his throat and spoke.

"Everyone, today is a truly meaningful day."

"As you all know, this academy only holds a festival once a year."

"And that festival is a stage of competition where you can test and unleash all the power and skill you've built up until now."

"At the same time, it is the only period in which you can change the rank engraved in your name."

The moment the principal said this, the temperature in the auditorium began to rise. The students' fighting spirit, which had barely calmed down, was flaring up again.

'…Ah, I want to take out the fan.'

But I couldn't do that in the middle of the principal's speech. I suppressed the urge to pull out the fan immediately and listened to his increasingly long address. By the time the students' passionate energy had devoured all the cool air in the auditorium—

"…Oh dear. I seem to have talked ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠too much."

The principal's long, long speech finally ended. At the same time, the auditorium, which had been boiling with the superhumans' zeal, rapidly cooled. It was still lukewarm, but—

'This is good enough.'

As long as it wasn't hot wind anymore. Thinking that, I looked around.

"Ha, I'm alive."

"…I thought I was going to die of heat."

"His speech was way too long…"

Whispers from my classmates who had nearly roasted to death reached my ears.

'Seriously, tone down the fighting spirit a bit.'

I clicked my tongue inwardly. When I looked back at the principal—

"Everyone, fight with everything you have."

The principal swung his wand sharply through the air.

"Pour out every bit of power and skill you've accumulated."

Light began to emanate from the bodies of all the students in the auditorium.

"I, Yoo-baek, pray that the best outcome awaits you all."

With those words, the third-years vanished. The second-years followed. And finally, the first-years. As the light grew even stronger, the scenery in my vision began to change. Just before my view completely shifted—

—Lee Yoo-jin, I've made the preparations as you requested. So focus on the tournament without worry.

The principal's voice echoed in my ears. The moment I nodded—

Whoosh!

The scenery before me changed completely. At the same time—

—Waaaaaaaah—!

A tremendous cheer erupted.

& I looked around amid the cheers. Inside the spectator stands protected by a translucent mana barrier, I could see people packed densely. There were so many that the view kept shimmering like heat haze, blurring and sharpening repeatedly. Through the gaps, familiar faces appeared.

"Yoo-jin—!"

"Lee Yoo-jin! Arthur! Noah! We're here!"

"We came just like we promised!"

It was Commander Gray and the other ten members of the 9th Punitive Force. I waved back at Gray and the unit members who were waving enthusiastically. Then I turned my head toward a gaze I felt from somewhere. At the very top of the stands, in the special seats, several people were looking my way.

A man with a strong impression, short hair, and a white dobok. The guild master of Korea's large guild Mirinae, a Transcendent, and Lee Seo-yeon's father—the Sword Saint, Lee Jung-baek.

A woman with white hair ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and white eyes, possessing an abundant chest beyond anyone else, yet radiating a benevolent, sacred beauty. The Pope of America's Grand Temple, a Transcendent, and Noah's mother—the Great Saint, Gloria.

Seeing the two of them, I gave a small nod and lowered my head. Then I confirmed that only first-years were present in this massive colosseum.

'As expected, this isn't any different from the game.'

The arena I stood in—the colosseum. True to the name Arena Academy, the ranking matches were held in colosseums. These enormous structures were built within the academy grounds, and three of them had been constructed so that all grades could compete. Of course, given their size, they were hidden by the principal's magic to avoid public notice. But that concealment would be lifted today. During the matches, or near the end, the Fallen would launch their attack.

'I've already informed the director and the principal and prepared countermeasures, but…'

I really hoped those guys wouldn't attack. 'Since the story's already derailed, how nice would it be if the attack derailed too?'

But no matter how much the story had changed, if I thought about it normally, today was still the optimal day for the Fallen to strike. In that sense, there was no way Greed would miss today.

Thinking that, I looked at the vice-principal who had appeared on the arena. Just like last time, dressed in a white dress shirt and black suit pants, the vice-principal checked the smartwatch on his wrist with a somewhat tired face. After a few seconds, he lifted his gaze from the watch and addressed us.

"From this moment on."

The vice-principal raised his hand. He brought his middle finger and thumb together, preparing to snap. Seeing that, my classmates let out tense breaths.

"I declare the start of Duel Season."

Click!

A crisp snapping sound echoed. At the same time, an enormous light burst forth from the arena beneath our feet. Moments later, when the light faded—

Chirp, chirp-chirp.

I stood alone in a forest filled with trees. I calmly surveyed my surroundings. The moment I recalled what the first match was—

Ding.

An alarm sounded from my smartwatch, indicating a new message. When I checked it—

Just as I thought, it was 'Time Attack'.