The One-on-One Finals

Nngh...

Maybe it was last night's hearty Korean home cooking, but I woke up feeling fantastic. Today was the one-on-one duel finals, so I needed to get ready fast.

I'd finished washing up and was pulling on my cadet uniform when Liliana emerged from the bedroom, rubbing her eyes.

"You're ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠leaving already...?"

"Yeah. The one-on-one finals are today. I need to head out early."

"Okay... Good luck."

"Mm-hmm. Hold down the fort."

After a brief goodbye with Liliana, I left the dorm.

"Hey there, Mr. Popular~!"

I turned around, confused, to find Kim Young-han jogging toward me.

"Man, you've been impossible to catch lately."

"You're the one who ditched me yesterday."

"Sorry. I was busy then too."

Well, I'd been too swamped to hang out myself. He was probably just as buried in academy life in his own way.

"Did you see today's one-on-one bracket?"

"No, I haven't. Why?"

I hadn't even known the bracket was out. Typical academy — completely useless. If they post a bracket, they should show it to the finalists first, not leave you to go hunting for it yourself.

"Looks like you and I meet in the semis."

"...For real?"

"Yep. Let's have a good one! Until this is over, we're rivals. You know that, right? Catch you later!"

Kim Young-han took off running again. He'd appeared out of nowhere and vanished just as fast, and I was still processing.

"Hmm. What was his ability again?"

The fact that I couldn't remember probably meant it hadn't been anything special. I recalled him swinging a sword in the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠game, but nothing that stood out. Ah, whatever. I headed for Class A to get ready for the duel.

I'd left earlier than usual, so the path to the first-year academic building was packed.

"Dude, I heard the crowd for the first-year matches is insane today. All the VIPs showed up."

"Well, yeah. Nam Da-eun, Elise, Lee Ho-yeon. Three all-time greats in one year."

"First place is still going to Nam Da-eun, though, right?"

"Elise has been on a tear lately. And Lee Ho-yeon set a new record in the live monster combat training. You can't sleep on either of them."

It was a strange feeling, hearing my own name tossed around on the street like that.

When I arrived at Class A, the first-year finalists were already gathered. My eyes met those of our homeroom professor, Kim Jin-hyeok, and he gave me a nod.

"That's everyone, now that Ho-yeon's here. As you all know, academy policy is to release the bracket immediately before the exam begins, so we're only unveiling it now."

As he spoke, Kim Jin-hyeok handed out papers to the eight Class A finalists.

Hold on. If they were only revealing it now, how did Kim Young-han already know we'd be facing each other? And sure enough, when I checked the bracket, if both of us won all our matches, we really would meet in the semifinals.

I shot Kim Young-han a suspicious look. He just grinned and pressed a finger to his lips. That smug little "keep it ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a secret" gesture was so annoying I flipped him off. Don't act cute with me.

"The reason I called you here first is to impress upon you how important today's matches are. For a first-year exhibition, the turnout is enormous."

Other cadets had been saying the same ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠thing on my way here, so it really must have been packed.

"Of course, people came to see a handful of exceptional cadets. I won't deny that. But this is also a genuine opportunity for all of you to show what you can do. Give it everything you've got, and don't you dare give up. Every bit of that attitude will be evaluated."

Kim Jin-hyeok genuinely seemed to want us to do well. He met each cadet's eyes as he spoke, pouring his sincerity into every word. He really was a good guy.

"Head to the arena and get ready. Finalists each have a private waiting room, so make yourselves comfortable there."

With that, Kim Jin-hyeok left the classroom, and the cadets began filing out one by one.

"Lee Ho-yeon!"

"Lucy. Did you see the bracket?"

Lucy, who'd gathered with the rest of us as a finalist, came over.

"Of course I did! The only way you and I meet is in the finals."

"Yeah. Your side of the bracket looks brutal. Hang in there — I'll see you in the finals."

"Yeah! You got it!"

I wasn't so sure about that. Both Elise and Nam Da-eun were on her side of the bracket. For Lucy to reach me, she'd have to beat both of them.

So she was thinking about it, at least.

"Let's go check out the waiting rooms. I bet the facilities are pretty nice."

"Okay! Can I come hang out later?"

"Obviously."

Lucy and I headed for the arena together.

Each of us got our own waiting room. The amenities weren't luxurious, but it was a clean, comfortable space to rest. There was even a screen linked to the arena so you could watch the other matches in real time, which was convenient.

"Might as well hit the bathroom."

I remembered seeing one in the hallway earlier.

I opened the door and stepped out. The hallway was empty — everyone else was probably steeling themselves for the finals. The waiting rooms were packed side by side along this long corridor, every finalist's name written on a door. The room right next to mine was Elise's.

Nam Da-eun will make the finals, right?

Looking at the bracket, the semis would be me versus Kim Young-han, and Elise versus Nam Da-eun. Lucy would face Elise before that. If things went as expected, Nam Da-eun would beat Elise and I'd meet her in the finals.

Click.

Just then, the waiting room next door opened, and a cascade of golden hair caught my eye. Elise stepped out, turned, and our eyes met.

"Uh... hey?"

"Mm. Good morning."

"...?"

I'd greeted her without expecting much, but Elise answered in a warm, gentle tone that was nothing like her usual self.

Why is her affection that high?

Just a few days ago it had been 35. Now it was all the way up to 62.

"Uh, r-right. Good luck in your match."

"You too. Let's meet in the finals."

Elise answered my encouragement with a kind smile and walked off down the hallway. The bright smile she sent my way felt incredibly out of place.

"...Okay, what the hell. That's weird."

What on earth had happened? Had her jealousy somehow turned into affection?

"I-I forfeit!"

"Good match."

"I've learned a great deal..."

My first-round opponent was a guy ranked third in Class C. He'd probably lucked his way through the preliminaries — he didn't look like he had the skill to be in the finals. Still, he was polite about it, so I gave him about a minute of actual fighting. At his level, even a minute of sparring with me would be a huge learning experience.

"Nah. I learned something too."

"I know you were drawing it out on purpose. I feel like my eyes have been opened."

"...Right. Good match."

When he put it like that, it was a little embarrassing.

A staff member guided me down from the arena. The moment I stepped past the mana barrier, a thunderous roar slammed into my ears.

"WAAAAAAAH—!"

"Lee Ho-yeon! Lee Ho-yeon!"

"He's so handsome—!"

When had they even seen me enough to chant my name like that? I glanced around. At least a few thousand people were packed into the stands, all staring at me.

The pressure is insane.

The thought that all those people had been watching my fight sent a strange thrill rising through me. Match over, I headed back to the waiting room.

"Might as well watch Lucy's match."

I grabbed a handful of the popcorn they'd stocked in the waiting room.

"She's definitely gotten a lot stronger..."

Lucy won her match easily. She'd fumbled her shield magic a little in the middle, but not enough to affect the outcome.

But she's not at Elise's level.

There was still a huge gap. Lucy and Rumi were originally meant to fight together — that was where their synergy kicked in. When each of them focused on their talent, one on offense and one on defense, the Lucy-Rumi twins didn't just double their effectiveness. They tripled it. Quadrupled it.

Knock knock knock.

"Who is it?"

"It's me, Lucy. Can I come in?"

Her match had just ended and she was already here, which meant she hadn't even stopped by her own waiting room. Why the rush?

"Of course. Come in."

Lucy slipped carefully into the waiting room and sat on the sofa. Why was she shrinking into herself after a win?

"Um. Ho-yeon, did you watch my match just now?"

"Yeah. You looked good."

She seemed strangely lacking in confidence.

"So, uh, what did you think? Do you think I can beat Elise?"

"..."

Ah. That explained it. Her next opponent was Elise.

Yeah, I could more or less tell what was bothering her. This was a one-on-one duel, so Lucy — who only had confidence in her offensive magic — had been practicing defense and gotten herself all tangled up.

"Lucy. If you're okay with it, want me to give you some advice?"

"Y-yeah. Please. You're good at magic."

"You know your defensive magic was a little shaky in that last match, right?"

"Yeah... I keep practicing, but I just can't get it to work."

Of course she couldn't. Lucy had a talent for offensive magic. That was a setting from the original game that wouldn't change even if she were reborn. She was thinking about this all wrong. It wasn't that she was unbalanced. She wasn't supposed to be balanced.

"Lucy, you'd be better off not using defensive magic at all."

"Not using it...?"

Lucy looked a little puzzled by how extreme that sounded.

"Don't take it the wrong way. You have a natural gift for offense. You're better off just attacking so the other person never gets an opening."

"You think so...?"

"Yeah. The best defense is a good offense — that saying exists for people like you."

There was no need to bother with defense. Never giving the opponent a chance to attack in the first place was the fighting style that suited Lucy.

"The best defense is a good offense..."

"Give it everything you've got and you'll get a good result. You've got this."

"...Thanks. The best defense is a good offense. I'll burn that into my heart."

Lucy seemed to have perked up a bit from my words, her expression brightening again. She and I watched the remaining matches together.

"Solaaa~. You really shouldn't just leave a talent like that sitting around, you know?"

"What exactly are you trying to do with Ho-yeon."

In the spectator stands, Lim Sol and Min Yeji were talking as they watched Lee Ho-yeon come down from the arena after his match.

"Nooo, he has the kind of face that makes money no matter what he does. Leaving him unused is a loss for all of humanity."

"I distinctly remember you trying to put me in a bikini. Absolutely no contacting him."

"Cadet Lee Ho-yeon was curious about my business too, you know~ I should at least be allowed to reply."

"No. Absolutely no contact until I say so."

Lim Sol knew exactly what dirty scheme Min Yeji had in mind, so she was working hard to protect her disciple from her. If he fell for those sweet-talking sales pitches, they might actually end up seeing Ho-yeon in a bikini.

"He's an adult. He can decide for himself, can't he?"

"I told you, once I finish my paper you can go ahead. That's the priority. This isn't about a few bucks — this is a research paper that's going to turn the world upside down."

"It's that big a deal? Then can I invest too?"

"...Just watch the matches quietly."

Lim Sol's irritation at Min Yeji's needling had climbed to the point where she was about to start swearing, and the sharp-witted woman picked up on it immediately.

"Okay, okay. Don't get mad."

"Haaah."

Did Ho-yeon even know she was working this hard to protect him? Lim Sol sighed and looked back at the arena.

"But Elise and Nam Da-eun? Those two are actually insane. Those three, including Ho-yeon, are on a completely different level from everyone else."

"That's just the kind of kids they are."

"How can you just sit there looking at talents like that? There's so much more to enjoy in this world than just magic."

"Can you be quiet for a second..."

Lim Sol just wanted to quietly watch Ho-yeon's matches.