The Duel
In the quiet of the dormitory room, I let out a soft whistle of admiration.
The cause was the object clutched in my hand. It was a bottle. A glass bottle. While glass bottles themselves were common enough, this one was different. For starters, its appearance alone set it apart. Unlike the ordinary glass bottles one might imagine, this had a distinctly luxurious design from the very first glance. Its form was so delicate and artistic that it inspired an immediate sense of beauty. It possessed a sculptural quality that bordered on fine art, enough to draw the eye all on its own.
However, the true value of this glass bottle did not lie in the container itself. What mattered was what was inside.
The interior was filled to the brim with a liquid that sparkled like rubies. That’s right. It was a potion.
This potion had been sent to me by Charlotte through an intermediary. “She really knows how to make a statement,” I muttered. I couldn’t help but say it. I had only asked for a single bottle because I wasn’t feeling well, and she had gone and sent me a top-grade potion. I suppose that’s what you’d expect from a princess of an entire nation. Her generosity was no joke.
Before I knew it, a satisfied smile had crept across my lips. It was a natural reaction. With this, my plans would become much easier to carry out.
Of course, a single bottle wouldn’t be enough to fully restore my body. This was merely a high-quality potion, not some legendary elixir or mythical panacea. Still, there was no doubt it would be beneficial for my condition.
Pop!
I uncorked the potion and brought it to my lips. The sharp scent of medicinal herbs stung my nose, followed by a sweet, fruity aroma that seemed thoughtfully added to ease the drinker’s mood. Savoring every nuance, I finally drank it down.
A faint blend of bitterness and sweetness coated my tongue. I swallowed the entire contents of the bottle in one go.
Immediately, a warm energy bloomed inside me. I closed my eyes at once and turned my focus inward. Concentrating, I could sense the potion that had entered my body. Or more precisely, its medicinal effects.
The potion that had reached my stomach quickly seeped into my system, and its efficacy began spreading throughout my entire body. Like rain soaking into parched, cracked earth, my body absorbed the potion greedily.
Some time later—
“Cough!”
I spat out blood. Anyone watching would have been horrified, but I remained perfectly calm. I knew it wasn’t serious. In fact, it was a good sign.
What I had expelled wasn’t bright red blood, but pitch-black, dead blood. I had purged the accumulated impurities from within my body. In other words, it was proof that my condition was improving.
“…As expected, it’s excellent.”
Money truly was the best. Just one bottle had significantly improved my physical state. Naturally, full recovery was still about a million light-years away, but at this point, I had gone from a walking corpse to something closer to half a corpse. To the outside world, my condition would still seem dire, but to me, the difference was enormous.
This should be enough.
I decided it was time to begin training.
…I still have a long way to go.
Thinking about what lay ahead brought that realization to mind. I needed to train my body and accumulate mana as well. For some reason, the amount of mana stored within this Berwen fellow’s body was pathetically low. Given the family’s wealth, it wouldn’t have been strange if he had been fed all sorts of elixirs since childhood.
Of course, I had a few guesses as to why.
The lingering traces inside Kyle’s body. Whether it was a curse or poison, something whose true nature I couldn’t identify. Perhaps that was what had been interfering with his ability to accumulate mana. It wasn’t a baseless speculation. Even these faint remnants were enough to disrupt the flow and operation of mana.
I’ll have to remove it eventually.
The easiest method would be to identify its exact nature and apply the appropriate removal technique, but that didn’t seem likely to be simple. The traces were too faint, and within my knowledge, I couldn’t recall anything with similar characteristics. Showing it to an expert wasn’t feasible under the current circumstances either.
“Hmm.”
In the end, I would have to use another method.
Is there anything I can use right away?
I rummaged through my mind, searching my memories. Perhaps because too much time had passed, hidden pieces like that didn’t come to mind immediately.
I’ll need to organize this properly later.
Thinking about the future, I made a mental note to set aside time to organize everything I knew. For now, I focused on making full use of the potion’s remaining effects.
The next day.
I had expected it to be just another ordinary day like any other. But then—
“Today, we will conduct sparring sessions.”
During the martial arts lecture, the professor suddenly made the announcement. A murmur rippled through the students, but it quickly died down. It wasn’t anything special. Sparring during martial arts classes had happened quite frequently before.
“Those who wish to participate, choose your opponents.”
When it wasn’t for evaluation purposes, the rules for selecting partners were quite lenient. Since the goal was simply to gain experience, there was no need to be overly strict about it.
What a hassle.
That was my honest impression. Coldly speaking, I had no need for this. I was on a completely different level from these inexperienced academy students. On top of that, forcing my still-recovering body to move would only get in the way. I figured I’d just pick someone at random and get it over with.
That was what I was thinking when someone strode right up to me.
“You ready to get your ass kicked?”
At the mocking voice, I turned my head. The face that greeted me was one I had seen before. It was the guy from the dining hall. I still didn’t know his name. But judging by the murderous glint in his eyes, guessing his intentions wasn’t difficult. He must have been holding a grudge from that incident and was looking for revenge.
What should I do?
I pondered for a moment, but the hesitation didn’t last long.
“Are you sure you won’t regret this?” I asked, looking at him.
“The only one who’ll regret anything is you,” he sneered.
“Alright. Then we’re good.”
I nodded quietly while meeting his gaze.
Even for a simple sparring match, a supervisor was required. That was only natural. Without someone watching, there was no telling what might happen.
Under the professor’s supervision, several matches passed by. Then it was my turn.
The guy held a wooden sword in his hand, smiling with absolute confidence. I showed no particular reaction, but the people around us were different.
A low buzz of whispers spread through the crowd. Though quiet, I could hear them clearly.
“Kyle Berwen? His opponent is Victor Dilot?”
“How did those two end up paired together…?”
I was a well-known figure that practically everyone at the academy recognized, but it seemed this guy had quite a reputation as well.
“Did Kyle request the match?”
“No, I saw it. Victor approached him first.”
“What is he thinking? Isn’t he scared of Berwen?”
“Haven’t you heard? He was disowned.”
“Ah… that makes sense then.”
The whispers continued, and although many were talking, the conclusion was the same.
“Kyle’s going to get crushed.”
Everyone seemed certain that I would lose. This guy—Victor, was it?—apparently had a better reputation than I’d thought. The confidence on his face wasn’t just for show.
“Starting to regret it now?” he said with a smirk.
“Don’t think I’ll let you off easy. This match isn’t going to end quickly.”
I glanced at the professor after hearing his words. His eyes carried a rather meaningful look. It was hard to tell exactly what he was thinking from his expression alone, but it was clear he had some kind of scheme in mind.
Looking at those eyes, I understood. Victor had set this whole thing up. For whatever reason, the professor appeared to be on Victor’s side. I had no idea why. Maybe he had been bribed, or perhaps the professor simply disliked me personally. If I had to guess, the latter seemed more likely. That look in his eyes made it obvious he didn’t think much of me.
At that, I thought to myself, What gives him this kind of confidence?
Even if Kyle had been disowned by the Berwen family, he had still once been the legitimate eldest son. Even though the family head had personally declared the severance, people would still need to verify whether it was genuine and whether there would be any consequences for harming me. And yet this guy had immediately set up this little stage.
Did he have something to fall back on, or was he simply thoughtless?
No.
Since the professor was involved, it was probably safer to assume he had some kind of backing. There was no way the professor would arrange something like this based solely on one student’s word.
Then what was that backing?
My thoughts began to spiral, but I deliberately cut the chain of reasoning short. For now, I needed to focus on what was right in front of me.
I didn’t know the exact circumstances, but I had already been dragged onto this prepared stage.
Academy sparring matches were, by default, casual affairs. Since the participants were students, the atmosphere was quite relaxed. Inflicting serious injuries on an opponent was generally not allowed, and if one felt they were losing, they could simply admit defeat to end the match immediately.
However, looking at how things were unfolding, it didn’t seem like it would go that smoothly. It was only a vague suspicion, but I doubted the professor would graciously accept it if I tried to surrender. Or perhaps Victor had no intention of giving me any openings in the first place. And the professor didn’t look like he would allow me to avoid the match. In every way, I was cornered.
The original Kyle would have probably suffered quite a bit.
A chuckle slipped out before I could stop it. Victor’s little scheme was just so ridiculous and cute.
After facing him, I had gone through Kyle’s memories, but there wasn’t even a proper connection between them. And yet here he was, holding some kind of grudge and pulling something like this. Was he just trying to show off, or did he have another purpose? I couldn’t tell. But one thing was certain—I had no intention of dancing to his tune. Not even a little.
“Then, let the match begin.”
At the professor’s declaration, Victor slowly began walking toward me.
“I’m feeling generous today. If you apologize right now, I might let it slide. Of course, a simple apology won’t cut it. You’ll need to show proper sincerity.”
The smile on his face grew even wider.
“If you crawl on the floor and beg, I’ll consider going easy on you.”
Watching him, I smiled right back.
“I’ll return those words exactly as they are,” I said in a perfectly calm voice. “If you crawl on the floor and apologize right now, I’ll consider going easy on you.”
I was being sincere. If he went that far, I was willing to be merciful.
But Victor seemed to take my words as a provocation.
“…Looks like words won’t be enough.”
He scowled fiercely. His aura had turned vicious. I must have struck a nerve.
“Let’s talk after you take a few hits.”
With that, he swung his sword. It was a rather sharp strike. If I took it unguarded, it would probably break at least a few bones.
I lightly swatted his sword away.
Clack—
“Huh?”
Victor let out a dumbfounded sound. He clearly hadn’t expected this outcome. I had no intention of giving him time to process it. I immediately thrust out my right foot and kicked his ankle.
“Ugh…!”
His face twisted in pain as he reflexively pulled his foot back. I seized that moment, stepped forward, and pushed his chest with my left hand—infusing it with just a trace of mana.
Then—
Thud—
He toppled to the floor with surprising ease.
“What…?”
Victor wore a completely bewildered expression, as if he couldn’t understand what had just happened.
“What are you doing?” I asked, my voice dripping with mockery. “Did your legs give out on you?”
Only then did he seem to grasp the situation.
“You… son of a bitch…!”
His face flushed bright red as he tried to get up. Or rather, he tried.
Thwack!
“Ack!”
I kicked his legs out from under him again, sending him sprawling forward this time.
“What’s wrong? Don’t you feel like doing this properly?”
He tried to stand once more, but—
Crash!
My interference sent him tumbling again.
The pattern repeated itself after that. Over and over, he tried to get up, and over and over, he rolled across the floor.
“You… you…!”
At this point, he could barely even speak properly. His rage seemed to have reached its peak.
I looked at him and said, my voice laced with ridicule, “Why do you keep doing that? Are you not feeling well today or something?”
By now, the atmosphere among the spectators had grown tense. Their reactions were only natural. This was clearly far outside their expectations—an utterly bizarre situation. According to their common sense, I should have been getting thoroughly beaten by now. Instead, the exact opposite was happening. Far from being beaten, I was toying with him from start to finish.
I looked down at Victor, who was now sitting on the ground, and said, “I really don’t get it. Where does a guy this weak get the confidence to act so arrogantly…?”
Grind. Grit—
The sound of him grinding his teeth viciously reached my ears. You’re going to wear your teeth down at this rate, buddy.
Watching him seethe with resentment, I asked with a smile, “What should I do? Should I go easy on you?”
“……”
“Ah, never mind. I’m in a good mood. If you apologize now, I’ll let you off. Oh, but you’ll still have to crawl on the floor, right?”
I spoke in a voice full of laughter. Suddenly, his eyes turned ice-cold. And then I felt it—the surge of power he was drawing out.
An explosive rise in mana rapidly amplified his physical abilities. In an instant, he shot to his feet and thrust his wooden sword toward me. The blade, heavily infused with mana, was aimed straight at my lower abdomen.
At that moment…
“…Hah.”
I felt a chill settle deep in my chest.