The Tournament, Part 8
Something was wrong. If her goal was to show off her power, there was no need for her to play this game of cat and mouse with me.
Is she trying to lower our guard against dark magic? But to not even try to attack...!
Only then did it occur to me that my initial plan had succeeded far too easily.
There was no way she didn't know that separating Kellin and Olivia together would work to our advantage.
Don't tell me...
Katarin needed time. Because she was absolutely certain of her victory, she had no intention of ending this fight quickly.
But why?
Even that didn't make sense.
If her purpose was to display her overwhelming strength, there was no reason to choose such a roundabout method.
"Here they come again! I'll handle this attack!"
Of course, we weren't being pushed back.
The enemy's attacks were diverse. Spells shaped like massive whips lashed down at us, and blazing hellfire poured from their staves.
Even so, our raw firepower was superior.
"It's... surprisingly manageable?"
Claire, who had deployed a defensive barrier, looked at me with a puzzled expression. She had plenty of breathing room.
It wasn't a defense that Katarin could break without putting in real effort. Though Claire's control of dark mana was inefficient, her sheer output more than made up for it.
Yet, all of this was playing right into Katarin's hands.
...
Looking on the bright side, it was proof that she was still letting her guard down.
But why?
Thinking logically, there was no reason for her not to unleash her full power from the very beginning.
While our party's reputation wasn't low, I was someone who had already damaged Katarin's prestige once before.
She must have suffered significant political damage. Even among the dark mages, some would whisper that it might be wiser to fear the Imperial Princess rather than Katarin.
Considering that, it would have been far better for her to crush us instantly rather than stage a dramatic, hard-fought victory.
Am I not the target?
What could be more important than winning? Why did she need to drag this out?
She knew it was strategically disadvantageous, yet she still paired Olivia and Kellin together...
"No way."
I finally realized it.
Katarin's plan was already in motion.
She's trying to kill her right now!
"What did you say?"
Kellin's eyes wavered. Olivia could tell that her provocation was working perfectly.
"Lady Katarin told me everything."
"..."
"That you betrayed her, and that you were abandoned because of it. She said she gave you plenty of chances, but you never took them."
Deep down, Kellin knew it too.
Katarin torturing her with dark mana hadn't been out of mere spite. It had been her own desperate way of 'persuading' her.
She had wanted Kellin to return to her side. She wanted her to confess her sins and fear Katarin, not Wade.
But Kellin couldn't do that.
A mysterious entity who drew power from the Fragment of the Void, whose thoughts and goals were completely unknowable.
Someone who was neither a centuries-old lich nor an archdevil of the demon realm, yet could compel others to serve him and bestow power upon them without hesitation.
If she didn't fear that existence, she wouldn't have been able to protect Katarin.
"You don't know anything!"
"Is that so? But it seems Lady Katarin has completely washed her hands of you. Why don't you pray and see how well your new 'master' can protect you?"
A dark desire welled up inside Kellin's chest.
She wanted to go back. She wanted to kill.
Even though she knew it was an unrealistic delusion, she felt as if killing Olivia right here would allow her to return to her former place.
...She took the bait!
Olivia cheered inwardly.
She didn't think for a second that she would lose to Kellin.
During her knight training, she had faced quite a few Dark Knights.
While she hadn't won many fights against opponents of Kellin's caliber in the past, Olivia had grown far stronger after obtaining her new power.
With her current strength, there was absolutely no way she could lose.
"How do you think I know all this? Did I dig up dirt on you behind your back, like you used to do?"
"..."
"Katarin Erst told me herself. She told me... to take you down!"
She's emotional. She values relationships. If I bring up her situation, she will definitely waver.
Katarin's information was accurate. Having learned her former comrade's weakness, Olivia was even more determined not to lose.
If provoked, she would lose her composure. Once her emotions were shaken, her swordplay would falter.
This was common sense to Olivia, who used the power of light, and she had no doubt it would hold true.
She told me to kill her if possible.
There was a protective barrier, but it was merely a safety measure to prevent accidents.
If a swordsman of her caliber used the power of darkness to strike down an opponent in a single blow—especially while this barrier of dark mana isolated them—
Killing a single person was entirely possible. And it didn't matter if she did.
Even if it was a team tournament, it was still a duel. In the heat of combat, deaths were bound to happen.
It wasn't like killing someone in an unsanctioned street fight; this was a tournament equipped with numerous safety devices.
She could easily excuse herself by saying, "I didn't think she would die." There was no reason for her to take much responsibility.
Besides, Kellin was ultimately just a servant of the Erst family. She had only entered the Academy under their sponsorship; she wasn't of noble blood.
And there was no way Katarin Erst would hold a grudge over the elimination of a traitor. The incident would blow over without a fuss.
"Keep struggling!"
Olivia's sword rained down upon Kellin.
"Urgh!"
Kellin's stance broke. The sword in her hand began to fade.
Victory was within reach. All that was left was to sever her breath before the protective barrier could trigger—
"Is that all?"
Olivia knew a lot. She had plenty of real combat experience and had trained under excellent mentors.
"Really?"
"Huh?"
Yet, she could not comprehend why Kellin, who looked to be on the verge of collapse just a moment ago, was now staring back at her with burning eyes.
"This space is sealed off. I don't know the mechanics behind it, but it seems outside influences can't reach in here."
"What... does that matter?"
"Because if you were truly receiving Lady Katarin's power, you wouldn't be smiling right now."
Kellin grit her teeth.
A massive impulse dominated her mind. The sphere of dark mana surrounding them was half-filled with the dark energy of Katarin and Wade.
They were so focused on repelling each other that any external control was blocked from entering.
"I will kill you!"
Anger, emotion, and the desperate urge to throw everything away drew forth the power of darkness.
"Ah... what?"
Startled by the sudden change in Kellin's movements, Olivia was forced to take several steps back in panic.
In that moment, Olivia realized.
...Am I bound?
The dark mana hidden within Olivia's body seized her ankles and refused to let go.
She was afraid. Only when that terror gripped her ankles did Olivia recognize her own emotions.
She was wavering before evil. She was being overwhelmed by Kellin.
The atrocities Kellin had committed, the sacrifices she had offered, and the favor the devil had bestowed upon her were incomparably greater than Olivia's.
The attraction phenomenon...
She hadn't thought it was that big of a deal. She believed that even if the dark mana grabbed her ankles, she would still win in the end.
I knew about it, I knew, but still...!
In a battle between those who wielded dark mana, the one who was more corrupt held an overwhelming advantage.
The loser's dark mana would submit to the winner's. A terrifying dominance that could not be resisted by sheer will alone suppressed the loser.
Kellin's eyes looked down coldly at Olivia.
The devil within her whispered in a chattering voice, shaking Kellin's mind.
The purple-haired knight recalled her past.
She remembered the person who had reached out to her when she was trapped in despair and agony inside a house filled with corpses.
She remembered the one who had always stayed by her side when everyone else blamed and despised her, mocking her by saying, "Someone like you doesn't belong in the Erst family."
She knew. Kellin had personally disposed of countless disposable pawns whom Katarin had coaxed with sweet words—pawns who had foolishly believed they were the lady's most loyal servants.
She knew that she, too, might just be another ordinary pawn, and that it wouldn't be strange at all if Katarin had abandoned her.
Yet, understanding it did nothing to quench the rage burning fiercely inside her.
Swords clashed. Kellin's swordsmanship could not be called superior to Olivia's, but the power behind it was different. The killing intent infused within it was on another level.
"Urgh!"
Olivia's sword slipped from her grasp and rolled pathetically across the ground.
"Ugh..."
She couldn't escape. From the deep gash on her leg, dark traces of a curse were slowly creeping upward.
Kellin took a step forward.
One strike would be enough to kill Olivia. Perhaps, then, she could go back—
"Stop."
Wade, who had broken through the sphere of dark mana, grabbed Kellin by the shoulder and brought her to a halt.