Chapter 115
Chapter 115
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Sparring with Ivana Nordal
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...In the end, I ended up sparring with Ivana Nordal.
Even Grace, who had been making such a racket, couldn't stand up to the eldest daughter of the Nordal Ducal Family, and Ivana Nordal kept insisting on sparring with me...
I felt like the biggest victim here, but at least the situation had calmed down somewhat.
"...Sorry, Ella."
"...If you hadn't apologized, I would've been really mad. For real."
"Haha..."
I had no choice but to apologize to Ella.
Originally, Grace had been picking on me, but since she couldn't spar with me because of Nordal, she looked for another option.
That option was Ella. She requested a spar with Ella, who had been sitting next to me listening to the lecture... and that's how it happened.
Ella had been hanging out with Karen too, but the fact that she was sitting next to me as my friend probably played a bigger role.
That's why I was apologizing to her like this.
"But are you going to be okay?"
"With what?"
"Facing off against the Nordal Lady... won't that be tough?"
"Ah."
Hmm... it was certainly a valid concern.
In fact, the Nordal Lady was known as one of the strongest in the Northern Region—not just for her looks, but for her actual combat skills.
Honestly, I'd only heard rumors, nothing concrete.
But the rumors were plentiful, so her skills were probably pretty impressive.
At the very least, I didn't think she was weak.
"Well... I should be fine. It's not like I'm going to die."
"That's..."
"More importantly, what do you think about Ella? Grace... I don't know much about her either. But she seemed pretty confident in her abilities."
"Hmm... no idea."
We were both in the same boat, really clueless.
The point of these magic spars was probably to gauge each other's levels like this. The Academy didn't just teach literature or history; it covered magic and combat too.
It would definitely be good for Academy students to know each other's capabilities.
"...By the way, watching spars is kinda fun, isn't it?"
"Hmm... not really for me..."
"Really?"
I thought it was fun.
My spar with Nordal was way down the list anyway, so I was just enjoying the other students' matches without a care.
No need for analysis or anything. It was much better to just relax like this.
I was simply sitting there, watching.
"Hmm..."
Well, they were just kids using low-tier magic, so it wasn't that thrilling?
*
After watching the other students' spars, my turn regrettably arrived.
I really had no idea why this was happening to me.
"Haa..."
It wasn't much different from the Class Assignment Exam.
We'd spar using magic, but even in a magic duel, close combat was inevitable, so we each got a wooden weapon.
Greatswords, scythes, axes, hammers... plenty of options, but I picked a wooden sword of moderate length.
"It's come to this already. No backing out now."
I steeled myself while eyeing the wooden sword's length.
The situation was confusing, but a spar was a spar, and it was too late to refuse.
"Spar for up to ten minutes max. If it gets too tough midway, you can declare surrender. If anyone gets seriously hurt, the spar ends immediately."
"Yes."
"Got it."
"Then, since you're both ready, let's begin without delay."
Across from me stood Ivana Nordal, holding a wooden greatsword as tall as I was.
Her crimson eyes glared intensely at me—it was honestly a bit scary.
I had no clue why she kept coming after me like this, but for now, I focused on the spar.
"Begin!"
With the Academy instructor's call, my spar with Nordal began.
I had no idea what she was thinking or why she'd challenged me, but I had zero intention of going easy on her.
[Low-tier Magic: Mana Bullet]
I started with light probing shots.
I fired mana bullets at Nordal, who wielded her greatsword. Of course...
-Thud! Boom!!!
They were easily blocked by her greatsword, and right after deflecting my mana bullets, Nordal charged straight at me.
[Low-tier Magic: Fireball]
"I can see what you're trying!"
"Hup!"
I fired a larger fireball than before at the charging Ivana Nordal, then slammed my hand to the ground while thinking of my next spell.
...!
[Low-tier Magic: Earth Wall]
The moment I confirmed Nordal rolling to dodge my fireball, I activated my spell.
As soon as I channeled mana, a sturdy wall rose in front of my hand.
I ducked slightly behind the wall and prepared my next spell. Nordal was bigger than me, and her greatsword made pure close combat risky.
So, some preparation was essential.
"A whetstone spell might be too dangerous."
The whetstone spell from the Class Assignment Exam sharpened blades, and it'd sliced a mannequin clean, so yeah—definitely hazardous.
This time, my spell would be...
[Mid-tier Magic: Strength Reinforcement]
Not sharpening the wooden sword, but making it tougher and stronger.
I reinforced it to withstand the greatsword's weight and power as much as possible.
Nordal had dodged my fireball to the right and kept charging. I'd noted her veering left toward me just before the earth wall rose.
She probably figured I'd fire another probing spell after dodging right, so she switched to the left.
"...One more."
I needed another layer here.
Strength Reinforcement alone wouldn't cut it—I was sure of that.
With that certainty, I began preparing a low-tier spell with my free hand.
"Hup...!"
The moment the magic circle formed in my hand, Nordal appeared from the left side, a bit away from me and the wall.
She still gripped her greatsword one-handed, blade pointed down.
Confirming I was still hiding behind the wall, she pivoted and charged straight at me.
-Kwang...!
"Gh..."
I blocked her greatsword with my reinforced wooden sword... but it was tougher than expected.
I'd reinforced the sword, but my own strength hadn't changed.
"Urgh... Ngh..."
Nordal kept pushing, our blades locked in a test of strength.
Naturally, her superior power and the weapon's weight put me at a disadvantage... but that was fine.
[Low-tier Magic: Electric Current]
"Urk?!"
"Hehe... didn't see that coming, huh?"
With our swords still crossed, I unleashed the prepared low-tier spell—electric current—right into Nordal's lower abdomen, delivering a nice jolt of paralysis.
She gripped her greatsword two-handed, while I held mine one-handed.
"Gh..."
The moment I saw her body stiffen from the shock, I prepared my next spell.
In a straight close-quarters fight with no conditions, I'd be at too much of a loss. Considering how fast she'd closed the distance from afar... putting space between us now wouldn't stop her from closing it again.
She was fast—really fast. It honestly surprised me.
"A bit longer and..."
The stiffness would wear off soon.
It was just a low-tier electric current—not very strong.
[Mid-tier Magic: Binding Plants]
So, I cast my next spell immediately.
Vines sprouted from the ground, wrapping around the paralyzed Nordal's body.
"Urgh... what the—"
"Hmm... not too tight, right? Like, not cutting off circulation or anything...?"
"Urk... hup!"
"Hmm..."
I'd bound Ivana Nordal and asked, but she was struggling hard to break free from the binding plants.
Her bound body twisted, arms straining with grunts.
"That's not gonna work."
"...Release me."
"Why should I? You'll just charge at me with that greatsword again."
I'm not a pushover.
No way I'd fight a strong close-combat type head-on with just a wooden sword.
"But you're incredibly fast. Are all Northern Region folks as quick and strong as the Nordal Lady?"
"Hup...!"
"Not answering, huh."
"Hup! Urgh...!"
...She ignored me completely, focusing solely on escaping the vines.
Couldn't she at least answer while trying to break free?
"Excuse me?"
"Hup..."
"Nordal Lady?"
"Hup!"
"Hmm..."
...She'd begged for this spar, ignored my words, and now that I'd obliged, she still wouldn't respond?
I'd overlooked the stalking vibes before, gone along with her sudden spar request despite prior commitments—heck, I'd done everything.
Wasn't it time for some proper answers?
"Look... when are you going to start answering properly? You've ignored me this whole time, I even sparred with you—why won't you respond?"
"Urk..."
"...Nordal Lady."
I poked her cheek, bound by the plants, and called again.
I'd let it slide so far, but honestly, I was getting annoyed.
Her pretty face was no excuse anymore—this was too much hassle.
I might've overlooked a bit more, but still.
"If you don't answer, I won't spar with you ever again. And I'll start ignoring you from now on."
I said it flatly.
It felt kinda refreshing to say, but I couldn't actually ignore the Nordal Lady, so it was just talk.
"What...?"
But... she seemed to buy it completely...?
"Answer quickly. When someone asks a question, you should reply."
"...What was the question?"
"...Huh."
At least it was clear Ivana Nordal was the type who lived by her own rules.
Really.