Arcade Sparks and Senior Showdown

Aquila Hotel's basement arcade on the first floor underground buzzed with a mix of kids in casual clothes and school uniforms milling about. Among them slouched the group led by NoName, wandering aimlessly. The dim lighting and the mirror ball spinning lazily from the ceiling gave off a strong vibe of an illicit game hall.

"Punch machine! Punch machine!"

"Highest score's 9570... Holy crap, how do you even beat that?"

"NoName's too short to reach it, huh? Lol."

"..."

"Hey, don't tease NoName! Come on, NoName, let's check out over there."

Yuna grabbed NoName's hand—her cheeks puffed out in a pout—and dragged her around from one spot to the next.

It was still ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠just the first day, so there wasn't much tension between the Seferon and Alteer students yet. Especially among the younger kids, awkwardness trumped any rivalry or hostility, creating an atmosphere where everyone tried to avoid bumping into each other.

"Too many people everywhere..."

Haru muttered glumly. The popular games like bowling, air hockey, and pocket billiards were all occupied, each spot claimed by someone.

Meanwhile, NoName had been licking at a soft-serve ice cream she'd gotten from a vending machine with her tiny tongue. She piped up with a suggestion.

"Wanna go watch the duels? My legs hurt from walking so much."

"Tired? Guys, NoName's tired!"

"Hey, a spot just opened up. Hurry before someone snags it!"

The wand rack was stocked with practice wands of various lengths. Elementary high-year students who had claimed the entrance early were grabbing wands and heading into the dueling area.

"Sixth graders, I think."

"From our academy? Can't tell without the uniform."

*Slurp.*

"Huh? NoName, can I have just one bite of your ice cream?"

"I already finished it."

"Aww...!"

Fearing it might get snatched away, NoName had hidden behind the crystal orb that provided particle and mana particle barriers, shoveling the rest into her mouth. Yuna pouted instantly, but NoName promised to buy her another one later, soothing her sulk.

Crackle-crackle—

The girl cast a lightning spell with her wand, firing it straight at the boy charging head-on. Like how majestic lightning never strikes in a perfect straight line, her magic branched out in dozens of forks.

"Whoa, isn't that dangerous?"

"If it hits dead-on, his barrier's gonna shatter quick."

"What spell is that, NoName?"

"Just some basic arc discharge magic, probably."

"Who do you think wins?"

NoName's head tilted downward. Without much deliberation, she spoke in a flat tone.

"No clue. Honestly, they're both meh."

No matter how impressive the kids' skills were, they didn't register much to NoName.

"They look pretty good to me..."

"Speed isn't everything. Movements gotta be clean, no wasted steps."

"NoName. Can you point out what's wasteful in their footwork over there?"

NoName smirked at Si-hu's sharp interjection. She scooted over next to him and added commentary.

"Watch closely. First off, footwork's the issue. Charging straight in like that bro while the lightning's casting is textbook solid. But as he gets closer to the magic circle, his strides shorten, and he adds all these little steps, right? Instinctively dodging the spell, but it's dumb. Puts him at a disadvantage."

"Ooh..."

"And once he's in close, he should disrupt it, grab her and slam her down, or scramble her mana up close. But he half-asses into a slugfest and just eats lightning damage for nothing."

"So according to you, sis wins easy?"

"Gotta see it through."

"Why?"

Just as NoName finished explaining, the girl couldn't weather the hits anymore. She dropped her guard and backpedaled until her back hit the soft cushion wall. The boy seized the opening and leaped without hesitation.

"Hyaah!"

His right fist and left foot erupted in red flames.

"Welp, match's decided. Bro wins."

Crash!

The barrier shattered with a sharp ring as his aura-packed fist smashed the girl's face dead-on. As she shook off the daze and tried to reform her barrier, the boy spun two full rotations in midair, extending his long leg.

720-degree roundhouse kick.

Boom!

The girl's body bounced two or three times as it flew back.

"Yahoo! Pikachu down! How's my fire fist taste? Spicier than spicy ramen? Hurts like hell, right?"

She groaned in frustration at the victorious boy's taunt.

"Just you wait. Next time, I'll roast you into fried chicken."

"Nah, doesn't work on me. Not even a sting?"

"Hey! Rematch!"

"Hold up. Shouldn't we teach rude little runts a lesson first? No apology?"

The sixth graders' duel seemed poised to end on a lame note.

"Alright, time for us to brush our teeth and—huh?"

As NoName started to stand, the winning boy vaulted up to the spectator seats, blocking her friends.

"Hey, second-year pals? Enjoy the show?"

The boy grinned with narrowed eyes.

"Yeah, you were awesome!"

NoName's innocent friends nodded and praised in unison.

"But I swear I heard someone say we were 'meh' and 'dumb'... You guys hear that? Huh?"

"Uh..."

"Who'd talk smack to their seniors like that? Not a hallucination. Come ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠confess quick. Drag it out, and bro gets mad for real."

"I said it."

NoName stepped forward. The boy looked down at her stiffly raised head. Despite the age where seniors scared kids, her brazen poise made him frown.

"Fine. What was so lacking in the genius ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of Seferon Academy's eyes?"

"Pick at everything from one to ten, it'd never end. No bad intent, so don't misunderstand."

"Yeah? Then school me too. Dying to know."

The boy tossed her a crystal orb key—an unspoken order to follow to the dueling ring.

"NoName, you... Been on TV a lot lately, acting all high and mighty. Born rude or what?"

"Heard that since forever."

"This morning in the auditorium too. Stared right past seniors, no greetings? Don't know our academy rules?"

"What're you talking about?"

NoName pulled the smallest wand and placed her hand on the crystal orb. Her head cocked sideways.

"First time seeing you here today, bro. You're from Alteer Academy, right?"

I quietly closed my eyes, attuning my body and mind. Golden mana surged from my oversized Aura Heart, sweeping through every corner of my frame.

Right now, my body was basically a glass cannon. Like Astera, the character I mained in LoL—fragile frame compensated by precise aura control. But even that had limits I couldn't quite gauge.

Am I anxious right now?

Maybe. A vague dread that someone might overpower me, slit my throat ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in my sleep. Could I resist someone with malice toward me? Even with erosion endlessly drawing in mana, how long would my body hold?

These doubts might be paranoid delusions in modern society. But trauma doesn't yield to reason alone. Until I shake this obsession to always be stronger than everyone, I'll chase the illusion of power.

I don't want to. But no one stops me, so I can't quit.

Neither I, nor the princess. Neither I, nor NoName—we're both cowards.

Arc discharge magic—easy to build if you know Kirchhoff's second law and Maxwell's equations. The boy on the other side ignited blue flames on both fists and stomped toward me.

"You can use the same electric magic as Ji-min? Impressive."

"Sometimes I scare myself. Wonder why I live like this, feel existential dread. What if I'd forgotten my past and lived normally?"

"What're you on about?"

An eight-year-old solving math puzzles and wielding thousands of spells can't live normally. Chasing answers leads to the impasse: Why was I reincarnated?

Dunno. Don't think too far ahead. Keep beating the guy in front of me, maybe sort my messy head. Finish quick, buy Yuna that ice cream later.