Today, I Am the Protagonist of a Morning Drama (2)
Saintess. It has been a long time since this old man last put pen to paper. I was dispatched to the Academy as a heretic inquisitor and discovered traces of Raphael there. I encountered a boy who wields Raphael’s unique skill. He claimed an angel he met in his dreams had taught it to him. At first I did not believe him, but when he spoke the name Raphael and demonstrated the skill, I had no choice but to accept the truth.
As far as I know, no more angels are born into this world. Might I ask you to inquire of the Goddess whether Raphael has reincarnated as an angel? I realize how irreverent this request is. Please consider it nothing more than the wish of a lonely old man.
— Letter to the Saintess
Ian stood there in a daze, watching the two of them fight. He was utterly dumbfounded. On one side was the insane woman who had proposed marriage the moment she laid eyes on him. On the other was Eiron, who seemed determined not to let anyone steal Ian away. Ian had already thought Eiron was strange from the first time they met, but why was this woman spouting such nonsense the instant they were introduced? Was she one of those fujoshi types? Her hair wasn’t even pink… Maybe she had dyed it red?
The ridiculous love triangle drama raced toward its climax. The argument grew so heated that both of them drew their weapons. Ian panicked and shouted at the top of his lungs.
The moment Ian’s yell cut through the air, the pair finally snapped back to reality.
“Ian, what are you saying? You’re mine. We’re friends, aren’t we?”
“Husband. What do you mean? I’m clearly better than that thing, aren’t I?”
Ian clutched his forehead and groaned.
He abandoned the training session and headed back toward his own class. The instant Ian was out of sight, the two dropped their façades.
“Hmph. Things would have been perfectly fine if you weren’t here, Sein.”
“You insane bitch. Why are you even at the Academy? Shouldn’t you be with the World Tree right now?”
“I ran away. To see Ian.”
“…You crazy woman. Aren’t you in the same class as him? You don’t exactly look close.”
“Why don’t you just hand husband over to me?”
“Ha. I’ve only been friends with Ian for a single day. I couldn’t sense his unique mana for an entire month, but I finally detected it yesterday.”
“You couldn’t sense it either?”
“Hmph. Doesn’t matter now that I’ve found it. And don’t you dare think about approaching my husband.”
“It must be nice, living as a man like that.”
“My female form is currently wanted, so I don’t have much choice.”
“…? Did you actually commit a crime?”
“No. The World Tree simply issued a warrant because she’s searching for me. I’m fine with it, though…”
“You’re a High Elf. Of course they’d issue a warrant if you vanished…”
“Is that so? That’s not what’s important right now. It’s not just the two of us—those others might have lost their minds as well.”
“How about we at least keep things quiet while we’re at the Academy?”
“…I don’t like it, but if it’s for husband, I suppose I have no choice.”
Sein and Eiron stopped quarreling and went their separate ways. Ian had no idea he was being targeted like prey.
The instructor acting as referee for the sparring matches entered the arena and explained the rules to the students. The method was simple. The lowest-ranked student would initiate the first duel and could freely choose their opponent. If the lower-ranked fighter won, they would swap places in the rankings. In other words, if the 500th-ranked student defeated the 1st, they would instantly become the new top ranker.
Any method was permitted—even lethal force. If you used a killing blow but the opponent survived, you still won. If your opponent struck first with lethal intent, you were allowed to kill them in return. It was called a “duel” in name only; in reality it was a death game. Entire families with long-standing grudges used these matches to settle scores permanently. Because deaths during sparring were officially recorded as such, the identity of the killer was kept strictly confidential.
Some people even became heroes for the sole purpose of legally killing their enemies. For that reason, the Hero Academy was often called a living wilderness.
The student in last place was, of course, Ian. He stepped forward and declared his opponent.
“The opponent I choose is the current number one—Belinda Stardust. I request a spar.”
The moment Ian named his opponent, the entire arena erupted. He had just challenged the Empire’s First Princess, Belinda Stardust. Many saw it as a direct affront to imperial authority, and whispers of “He’s lost his mind” spread like wildfire.
Belinda flashed a cold smile and leaped into the arena. At 185 centimeters tall with flowing golden hair and matching golden eyes, her single bound shook the entire dueling ground. It was a clear display of just how powerful she was.
Once she landed, she looked at Ian and spoke.
“Ian… was it? Do you understand what it means to challenge me?”
“Challenging me is the same as challenging the Empire itself. Are you truly prepared to duel?”
Ian tilted his head, looking genuinely puzzled.
“I don’t really know anything about that. I just want to be number one, so I’m challenging the current number one.”
“And prove it with skill, not words.”
The princess burst out laughing.
“You’re right, Ian. Come at me!”
Aura Release
Golden aura erupted from Belinda’s entire body. It was the kind of energy only those who had reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship could emit—an aura that could slice through anything. The fact that it was radiating from her whole body rather than just her blade left the nobles, commoners, and even the instructor stunned.
Ian observed the spectacle with calm eyes, then slowly raised his sword and walked forward.
“Then I’ll make the first move, Belinda.”
Third Sword Technique
As Ian charged, he infused his blade with chakra—pure, unadulterated chakra with nothing else added. The instant chakra and aura collided—
Chichichit—clang—kwakakakang—!
The chakra completely annihilated the aura, sliced through Belinda’s sword, and pressed the edge of Ian’s blade against her throat. Blood began to drip down her neck.
All of it had happened in five seconds.
Nobles and commoners alike shot to their feet, unable to accept what they had just witnessed.
“With this… I win, right?”
“You… just who the hell are you…?”
Even as blood continued to flow from her wound, Belinda ignored it and pressed him.
“How did you pierce my aura? No—extinguish it?”
“I simply did exactly as my master taught me.”
“Who is your master? I have never seen a technique like this in my entire life!”
“It’s a secret, hehe.”
Ian smiled and turned to leave the arena. Just before he stepped down, he paused.
“Ah, let me heal the wound I gave you.”
Recovery Magic — Wound Recovery
The cut on Belinda’s neck closed smoothly before everyone’s eyes. Ian then calmly stepped down from the arena.
The instructor, who had been standing frozen, finally recovered and shouted.
The winner is Ian! The current first place is Ian!!
The entire arena exploded with shocked cheers at Ian’s unbelievable performance.
As Belinda left the arena after her defeat, she muttered to herself.
‘Third Sword Technique… I feel like I’ve heard that name somewhere before…’
‘Hmm… I’ll have to think about it later.’
‘More importantly, he used recovery magic… I thought the lineage of recovery mages had been severed…’
‘If it truly is recovery magic, I must bring him to the Empire. The only ones who can heal Father in his collapsed state are recovery mages.’
‘The one ability that does not rebel against the imperial bloodline… recovery magic…’
‘Ian… if you can truly heal Father, I will give you everything. Even the country itself…’
While the princess was lost in thought, one of her guards called out to her.
“Your Highness! Are you all right? Shall I educate that boy named Ian for you?”
“No. Investigate everything about that child. Leave no detail untouched!”
“Understood!”
The guard vanished to carry out her orders. Belinda continued thinking about Ian—the first opponent to ever defeat her, and the only person capable of healing her family. The unfamiliar taste of defeat stirred something strange inside her.
“So this is what defeat feels like… Heh. It’s not bad at all. It makes my blood burn.”
“I became too arrogant after reaching the pinnacle. I need to return to the basics and start over.”
Meanwhile, Ian had left the arena and was standing in front of the statue.
“Master, did you see? I went boom and bang and beat the number one!”
— Aish. Ian, can you please stop explaining things like that?
— I can see the arena from here too, so of course I watched.
— But Ian, why did you shout the skill names out loud during the duel?
“It looks way cooler that way, doesn’t it? I can at least say the skill names if it’s for the sake of looking cool!”
— …Didn’t you say last time that you had to hide your skills?
“Even if they know the skill name, what can they do about it? They’ll just get sliced up anyway.”
— Oh. That’s true, isn’t it?
“See? And it even looks cool. Hehe~”
— Ahem.
— Everything was fine until the end. Why did you use recovery magic? On the princess, no less?
“Huh? I hurt her, so of course I had to heal her, right?”
— …Do you say that knowing the history between recovery magic and the imperial bloodline?
“???”
— Sigh… Never mind. I’ll tell you later.
“What is it?? I can’t stand being left in the dark like this!”
— Who told you to use recovery magic on the princess? Haah… We’ll talk again tonight.
— !! Your friends are coming. …Wait a second. Are those things really your friends?
Ian and Raphael stared blankly as Eiron charged toward them on all fours like a wild beast, with Sein riding on his back.
“…No. I’m not friends with them.”