The Day of the Decisive Battle

Cordelia looked at me with a worried expression. "Oppa, are you really okay with this?"

I nodded slightly. "Yeah. At this point, beating Sophia through normal means is impossible anyway."

Strength, agility, and magic power—every single stat was like the difference between a wolf and a puppy compared to the Arwen from the previous round, back when I cleared Sophia in the game. So to win against Sophia tomorrow and complete the quest, I needed a special plan. A strategy only I could come up with, one that made full use of the abilities I currently possessed.

And that plan had just been finalized in the meeting. It wasn't perfect, and the risk wasn't low, but it was a gamble worth taking.

Emilia gently patted Cordelia on the back. "Miss Cordelia, you have to stay strong."

"That's right. The success or failure of this plan rests entirely on you, Cordelia."

Unlike the previous operation where Emilia had been the key figure, this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠time the central players were me and Cordelia.

Even with our encouragement, Cordelia remained silent, lips pressed tightly together. If she made even a single mistake during the plan due to nerves, it would all be over. There would be no going back. In that case, it might be better to exclude her right now and come up with a different strategy.

"I'm sorry, Cordelia. Did we put too much pressure on you? If it's too much of a burden, we can still—"

But Cordelia shook her head vigorously, refusing my consideration. "It's fine. I don't want to just sit back and watch from behind like I've done until now, pretending I don't know anything. For oppa, and for our family, I'm going to take down Sophia unnie."

In her unwavering eyes, I could see a magnificent resolve without a trace of hesitation.

I stroked my admirable little sister's flowing hair and said, "Good. Then let's teach Sophia what family affection really means."

The surroundings felt as quiet as if I were lying on a still surface of water.

This was the finals of the martial arts spar—the highlight of the Academy's academic presentation event. The rumor that the two siblings from the renowned Reinhardt family, descendants of the Sword Saint, would be facing each other had packed the spectator seats to bursting.

I could feel the faint vibrations from the crowd's cheers through the stone floor beneath my feet. But none of it could break my calm state of mind. Not even the sight of Arwen's annoying face or the sound of his breathing, which reminded me of unwelcome memories from the mansion.

"It's been a while, Arwen. I missed you."

It was the first greeting he'd given me since enrolling at the Academy. The same went for him—this was his first time speaking to me as well.

I wondered how he would react. Would he look terrified like before? No. He lifted his chin like a noble scorning someone of far lower status and answered. At the same time, his eyes narrowed coldly as he looked down on me.

"Arwen? Little sister, you should be calling me brother."

"Why? You want me to call you oppa all of a sudden?"

"Whatever. I have no intention of forcing you." Arwen shrugged casually and gave me a faint smile.

The weak, fragile Arwen who had struggled just to maintain his position as the nominal heir was gone. The family member I'd known for nearly twenty years—though we hadn't exactly shared daily conversations or meals—now felt completely alien, as if only the shell remained the same. Even if we were family in name only.

Still, seeing him act so confidently didn't make me feel bad. If anything, it felt strangely good. It was far more pleasant than the sight of him trembling in front of Masha or his younger sisters, the ones he'd openly ignored.

"What a shame. If I'd known you had such an interesting personality, things between us probably wouldn't have gotten this bad."

This time, the greeting wasn't empty politeness like the first one. It was sincere.

Arwen rolled his eyes upward and scratched his chin with his index finger in a strange gesture. "Why are you talking like this is the last time? Wait, don't tell me..."

At that moment, the referee signaled for the competitors to exchange greetings. Arwen approached me. As he offered a handshake, he ignored the referee completely, leaned his head in close, and whispered into my ear.

"Did you think that because of the Academy's stupid mistake with the neutralized totem, this finals match would end in a tragic farewell between us, brother?"

"What?! H-how do you—"

His words, like the whisper of a devil tickling my ear, sent a chill racing down my spine all the way to my toes.

Arwen knew the totem had been neutralized. Who on earth had leaked it? Tania? No, that was impossible. Her loyalty toward me hadn't changed since the day we first met. I hadn't mentioned this plan to Jericho, whose whereabouts had been unknown since yesterday. Ever since he became obsessed with me, the last shred of intelligence in that violent personality of his had vanished.

Could Leopold have betrayed me? No way. The probability that the dog in heat who had been waiting desperately for me to visit his bedroom tonight would suddenly change his mind was extremely low. Or perhaps the idiot had accidentally let the secret slip to someone else without realizing it. Yeah, that had to be it.

With just one sentence from Arwen, my mind turned into complete chaos. The plan I'd been carefully preparing underwater for over two months had just gone up in smoke in a single instant.

But that wasn't the only problem. If Arwen exposed this conspiracy, I wouldn't get away with mere expulsion from the Academy. Everything I'd built—my power, my status—would all collapse.

Arwen watched my flustered reaction with an amused, oily smile. "Don't worry. No one else knows yet. Of course, that depends on how you behave, Sophia."

"Ugh..."

All I could do in response to Arwen's gentle smile and calm tone of blackmail was let out the groan of a loser.

Then he said something I never expected. "Still, don't worry. I won't let my cute little sister's hard work go to waste."

Not to waste? Did that mean the totem was still neutralized?

"W-why?"

"I agree with wanting to settle this once and for all. Let's end this tiresome fight today and decide it. Between you and me—who is more fit to be the master of Reinhardt."

When our handshake ended, something was left in my palm. It was a small, neatly folded piece of white paper. Before I could ask what it was, the referee signaled that greetings were over and we should return to our positions. Reluctantly, I took a few unwilling steps backward, slipped the note into my pocket, and returned to my spot. Arwen watched me closely the entire time.

The referee stretched his hand forward. There were less than thirty seconds left until the match began. Even among the spectators, whose chatter had felt like children's babbling earlier, tension began to spread. The cheers died down.

Good. This is actually better.

I tightened the belt holding my sheathed sword. Whether he knew my plan or not didn't matter. Arwen might have come here confident he could kill me, but that confidence would become the dagger that ended his own life. While he had been growing stronger, I hadn't just been sitting around at the Academy, flattering the president.

The small note Arwen had given me would become his pathetic last will.

"Begin!" The referee shouted, thrusting his arm upward.

'Ice Strike.'

As I chanted the spell inwardly, six ice spears formed that were cold enough ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to sting both cheeks even from a distance. Spears meant to pierce straight through Arwen's heart.

"Come at me, Arwen. Let's see if those fancy footwork that beat Jericho can dodge my attacks too."

The moment the match started, I provoked Arwen, who had shut his smug mouth. But he didn't make a single move.

Is he waiting for me to come to him?

Fine by me. If Arwen wasn't coming, I'd just go to him. The instant I took my first step toward him, Arwen did something neither I nor anyone else in the arena had expected.

Without even drawing his sword, he raised his left arm high into the air.

"S-stop the match!" Even the referee looked flustered by Arwen's sudden action.

But the words that came out of Arwen's mouth weren't something that could be dismissed as a mere impulsive act.

"I'm sorry, but I forfeit."

"...Arwen, what did you just say?"

Arwen repeated himself to the referee, who was staring at him in blank confusion. "I forfeit. I've been feeling unwell since this morning and I'm in no condition to fight. My apologies."

"Ahem, uh, well..." The poor referee looked completely lost on how to respond to this unprecedented situation—a student forfeiting the martial arts finals without swinging his sword even once. Of course students could forfeit whenever they wanted, but there had never been anyone who gave up the moment the match began.

The spectators, who still hadn't fully grasped the sudden turn of events, began murmuring among themselves and exchanging glances. In the end, the referee announced to the crowd, "I-I'm sorry. Arwen Reinhardt is not feeling well, so it seems we must end the match here."

At the referee's declaration, a wave of disappointed and angry boos erupted from the stands. The referee looked flustered by the crowd's harsh reaction, but all he could do was follow the rules.

He called both me and Arwen to the center. I screamed inside my head for him not to do it, but what came out of the referee's mouth was a victory declaration that felt more like mockery.

"Th-the winner of the martial arts finals is... Sophia Reinhardt! Please give a big round of applause to Miss Sophia, who has become the champion for two consecutive years..."

While the referee awkwardly tried to dress up my victory, Arwen, who had approached to exchange final greetings, whispered quietly into my ear.

"I said let's settle this. I never said we'd settle it in this match."

"You— you bastard!"

Arwen looked at me as I swallowed my rage, his face completely expressionless, then walked right past me. Without once looking back at the murmuring crowd, he left the arena.

Why would he go so far as to tarnish his own honor like this? Then I remembered the note he'd handed me. I immediately pulled the folded paper from my pocket and opened it. It read:

"Goddammit!"

I crumpled the note in my hand and burned it with a small flame. From the beginning, he had never intended to fight me. But that wasn't the end of the problem.

"That damn ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠bastard has Cordelia."

The reason I hadn't seen Cordelia's face during the entire presentation period was because she'd been kidnapped by Arwen.

Does he plan to deal with both me and Cordelia at the same time?

I still didn't fully understand Arwen's vile intentions, but I had no other choice. For now, I had no option but to move according to his threats.

Angel's Share tavern—the place Wolfgang used as his hideout. There was no one here except me and Emilia. I'd asked the master to rent out the entire place for the evening, and he'd gladly agreed. Not because of any personal connection with me, of course, but because of the fat pouch of gold I'd placed in his hand.

Emilia tapped her index finger on the table and asked me, "Do you think Sophia will really do what Arwen told her to?"

"Of course." I answered without hesitation. With both her weakness and a hostage in his grasp, there was no way she wouldn't come.

Still, the reaction was pretty intense.

Just thinking about the spectators' sharp boos when I forfeited still made my stomach churn. But it couldn't be helped. To hammer into Sophia's head that I held the initiative in this fight, I needed a powerful first strike. A blow that said, Too bad. Everything you did was pointless. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I decide the rules.

It was a strategy only possible for an Nth-round player who knew all of Sophia's schemes. Sure, my name would be the talk of the nobility for a while, but I didn't really care. Honor wasn't what kept me alive. Of course, I had no idea what the real Arwen would think, but as Byeon Tae-sung, that was my opinion.

And not long after, the door to Angel's Share creaked open. A visitor wearing a hooded robe appeared. Their face was hidden by shadows in just the right spot, but I could tell from the silver hair visible beneath the hood.

Sophia had arrived.