The Tournament, Part 9
"Good job. I'll finish this."
I lightly waved my hand, casting a spell toward Olivia.
Dark mana touched her body. Her wounded frame trembled. What little remained of Olivia's consciousness vanished, like a doll with its strings cut.
At the same time, the artifact activated. A protective barrier formed around Olivia's body.
Phew...
I should have anticipated this from the beginning. It was a stroke of luck that I realized it before it was too late.
The situation was complicated.
Olivia was an orthodox knight who had walked an elite path, but now she was moving alongside Katarin.
Kellin was Katarin's loyal confidant who had shared life-and-death moments with her for a long time, but now she was fighting alongside me—someone publicly perceived as being on the Imperial Princess's side.
In ambiguous and complex situations like this, Katarin's political prowess truly shined.
No matter how things played out, she would have been able to sway public opinion in her favor.
"You worried for nothing. I would have won even without your help."
"I know."
There was no need for a long conversation. The battle wasn't over yet, and Claire was likely desperately holding out against Katarin's attacks.
"Think rationally. Don't give up."
I knew exactly what she wanted.
And I knew better than anyone that Katarin, who knew how to manipulate people's hearts, would have naturally exploited that fact.
"That..."
"Think for yourself. I won't order you. This sphere will probably last for quite a while... so if you haven't sorted out your thoughts, you can rest a bit longer."
With those final words, I easily stepped out of the sphere made of dark mana.
"I'll go finish this. Wait here."
Kellin stared at me with hollow eyes.
"..."
He knew. Wade's eyes spoke volumes, telling her that he knew everything.
Collapsing onto the ground, Kellin reevaluated the meaning of his words. She had no strength left to move.
"Think rationally..."
Her cooled head made her realize what she had been about to do.
If I had killed her...
Wade hadn't given Kellin any direct orders, but "Think rationally" was still an imperative. To someone ruled by fear, it was a command that carried significant weight.
Kellin had no choice but to think rationally.
I would have been... abandoned.
It would have been carrying out Katarin's orders, but Kellin already knew. She knew how ruthlessly Katarin trampled on those who had lost her favor.
The reason Katarin and Kazot wanted "someone's death" was to sow chaos.
In that process, what Katarin desired most desperately was to hide the fact that she was the mastermind. Or—
To play the victim...
Katarin could cry even if she wasn't sad. She could shamelessly boast about how deep her friendship had been with the deceased Olivia.
People wouldn't believe excuses like, "Kellin actually joined Wade's party under Katarin's orders."
Even if they did, if Katarin was the first to raise her voice and demand Kellin's punishment, they would ultimately never suspect Katarin.
She could cleanly escape suspicion...
Kellin had thought, Even so, it's fine.
She had already lost Katarin's trust anyway. Even if she was abandoned, even if she was used as a pawn for her lady's designs, Kellin was more than willing to sacrifice herself.
But Wade's next words had anchored her wavering heart.
"Don't give up"?
He, who had looked at her as if peering straight into her mind, wouldn't have said such a thing without a reason.
He knew...
He knew Kellin wasn't truly loyal to him. He knew her devotion was directed solely toward her mistress, Lady Katarin.
Even knowing that...
She couldn't understand it.
Perhaps it was all an illusion, and he never had the power to dominate her in the first place.
Drawing power from the Fragment of the Void might have just been the trick of a skilled magician.
Yet there were too many things that couldn't be explained by that alone.
Just why?!
Claire had suddenly become a Dark Priestess. The Behemoth had vanished without putting up any resistance.
He had chosen to fight Katarin without hesitation, and the very existence of a dark mage around his age who had achieved similar heights was unrealistic.
What on earth is he...
There was only one thing she could believe.
He hadn't ordered Kellin around. He had acted for her sake.
Countless questions piled up, endlessly tormenting Kellin.
It was an unfamiliar sensation. A painful feeling she had forgotten while serving Katarin dominated her brain.
For Kellin, "making a choice by her own judgment" was not something she was accustomed to.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
"It's fine, I could handle it!"
Stepping out of the sphere, I locked eyes with Katarin, who was watching from a distance with cold eyes.
"...So it failed," she murmured.
"Don't give me a heart attack. I really thought I was in big trouble, you know?"
As if she had been waiting for me to emerge, Katarin cast a massive spell.
A giant hand made of bone and blood manifested behind her back. It slammed down toward the ground at high speed, as if swatting a mosquito.
"Ha."
I unleashed a massive, umbrella-shaped shield of dark mana, blocking the skeletal hand from hitting the ground.
"Thanks! I'll... try to do something on my end too!"
Lilian fired arrows without rest, but none of them landed a clean hit.
Unless she prepared special arrows or infused them with an immense amount of mana, her current abilities couldn't pierce Katarin's defenses.
"This is... unpleasant," Katarin said.
Her lips were smiling, but her eyes were not.
"Why don't you just surrender? I'd rather we didn't shed blood."
"Isn't this just a spar? Why are you being so serious..."
I snorted and continued casting spells.
Countless Dark Arrows flew toward them. Though none dealt direct damage, the enemy's dark mana was steadily being chipped away.
"I've figured you out. I couldn't be sure of your identity, but I've learned how strong you are—and how foolish."
"Is that so?"
"You must have contracted with a powerful demon. What did they promise you? Power to destroy the world?"
"Who knows?"
Katarin lightly swept her hand from right to left. The earth shook, and the rising dust began to take the shape of skeletons.
"Groooaaan..."
The vengeful spirits of the countless people she had sacrificed and offered up in past battles were rising.
"Graaaahhh!!!"
Skeletons made of sand. While each individual was weak, resurrecting hundreds of undead like this without even needing corpses was undoubtedly a threat.
"I told you, it's pointless."
And I conjured an equal number of Dark Arrows, striking them down one by one.
Delicate control of dark mana wasn't necessary. I simply wiped out the monsters filling the arena with a sky full of Dark Arrows.
"You're strong. Definitely strong. But... you are foolish."
Katarin's patience had run out. She seemed to realize that further clashes of raw firepower were meaningless.
"If you were truly a wise dark mage, you would never have thought of fighting a dark mage stronger than yourself!"
Getting serious, Katarin began to unleash her dark mana without restraint.
She stopped attacking. She likely deemed it unnecessary.
"Submit. Realize how wretched and insignificant you are! Realize how lowly you and the demon you serve truly are!"
Like an animal puffing up its fur to look bigger, it was an act meant to pressure the opponent rather than serve a practical combat purpose.
However, to a dark mage, it was an act more threatening than one could imagine.
"W-What is this?!"
"Everyone, stay calm!"
Professor Leila quickly stood up and shielded the spectator stands.
Even in the game, it was rare for Katarin to reveal her power in such a public place.
Though she didn't show it, she must have been under a considerable amount of pressure.
"Don't be too sad. As you said, it's just a tournament, isn't it?"
Katarin wore a relaxed smile.
"To be able to keep your life and body intact after such a defeat is a great fortune, so please be grateful for my mercy..."
And then, she realized.
She realized that I was looking at her completely unfazed, without a shred of fear.
"Thank you!"
I waved my hand slightly, greeting her.
Instinctive terror etched itself into Katarin's eyes.
The physiological dread of someone facing something that should not exist took root in her mind.
"How... How are you..."
As if in fury, she spewed out even stronger dark mana.
The energy of Asmodeus, the Demon Archduke she served, erupted.
"...unaffected..."
Katarin's reason could not comprehend her own words, her own eyes, or her own senses.
"...by this?"
Her world—built on the belief that no one was stronger than her, and that she could suppress any opponent as long as they were a "dark mage"—was crumbling.
I simply stood before her, smiling.