Chapter 160
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Chelsea was a girl who had grown up wanting for nothing.
She was born into a good family, with wonderful parents and a fine environment.
And she possessed outstanding talent.
She was the apple of her family’s eye and truly lived doing everything she wanted.
It was an environment where one could have easily gone astray.
But the reason she could grow without straying was because she had someone worthy of respect right by her side.
Abad Llewellyn.
Chelsea’s older brother and the heir to the Llewellyn family.
Chelsea did her best to follow and support Abad.
At first, she pursued becoming an all-rounder mage like Abad, but after realizing she had more talent as a battle mage, she changed her path.
Everything was for the sake of helping her future family and her older brother.
Then one day.
She met a boy.
A white-haired boy who was with Celia Jerdinger, a rival she had competed with since childhood.
At first, she found him displeasing and annoying.
It was because, by associating with Celia, he seemed like an obstacle to Abad becoming the best.
But that thought soon changed.
That day.
The sight of his back as he challenged the impossible without hesitation was more than enough to captivate Chelsea’s eyes.
Like a hero from the fairytales she had read since she was a child.
Leo's image fiercely captured Chelsea's gaze.
Chelsea’s dream was not to become a great hero.
Aspiring to and aiming to be a hero was purely an effort for her respected older brother.
She had put in all her effort with a pure desire to help her brother.
That’s why, in a sense, the boy named Leo was the first time Chelsea’s gaze had ever strayed.
‘I still respect my brother.’
Chelsea tightened her grip on her staff.
‘I want to be of great help to my brother and my family.’
That thought hadn't changed.
‘But it’s okay to chase what I want to chase while doing that, right?’
At some point, the boy had settled into a corner of her heart.
The more she watched him.
The more she admired him.
The object of her admiration, which made her want to follow him even more, had soon come to occupy as large a part of Chelsea’s life as the object of her respect.
‘Leo is like a hero from a fairytale.’
The girl who had vaguely dreamed of being a hero was no more.
‘My heart pounds when I look at him.’
It felt like meeting a hero's tale, which she had only ever encountered in books, in real life.
‘I want to become one. Someone like Leo. A great person who can be an object of admiration for someone else.’
It wasn't concrete yet, but inside her heart, Chelsea was slowly.
And surely, painting a picture of the future self she wanted to be.
Watching her from a distance, Abad smiled warmly.
“Whoa. Your sister is no joke.”
The vice president of Class 8, Jureden, approached Abad, the president of their class, and clicked his tongue.
“She wasn't this good before, was she? I know she’s a battle mage, but to match Habideen in close combat.”
“I know. She’s changed so much it’s startling.”
*Craaaackle—*
Chelsea’s wind swirled violently.
*Whoooosh—!*
The wind, flying all the way to the edge of the training grounds, swept through Abad’s hair.
‘That’s right, Chelsea. The wind doesn’t just blow in one direction. It has to be free. You can be anything.’
Watching his sister who had begun to chase her dream, Abad smiled gently.
The female students nearby shrieked at the sight of his smile.
Abad glanced toward Class 5.
He saw Leo, chin in hand, watching Chelsea.
Abad knew that Leo was the reason his sister had changed.
‘I’m a little jealous.’
Chuckling, Abad looked back at Chelsea.
‘Show them your new self, Chelsea.’
***
*Fwoosh—!*
“Huk!”
Habideen’s eyes widened.
Readjusting his grip on his spear, Habideen swung the blade toward Chelsea.
*Crash—! Clang—!*
The wind aura scattered.
Simultaneously, Chelsea’s staff blocked Habideen’s attack.
“How arrogant! A mage imitating a knight?!”
Habideen let out a furious roar.
In response, Chelsea grinned.
“Imitating a knight? I never did anything of the sort.”
*Swish—*
The magic of the wind swirled around Chelsea.
“I told you, didn't I? That’s not how you handle the wind.”
Repeating the words someone had once said to her, Chelsea’s body moved swiftly.
*Craaack—!*
“Hah!”
The moment Chelsea vanished from his sight, Habideen gasped and deployed his Aura Armor.
Chelsea reappeared behind Habideen.
She jabbed Habideen’s back with her staff.
*Whoooosh! Pow—!*
The wind protecting Habideen instantly dispersed.
Chelsea’s eyes narrowed.
“Wind Break!”
*Craaaack—!*
“Keuk!”
Struck by magic at point-blank range, Habideen was sent flying along with his spirit.
*Skiiid—!*
“Ugh!”
Habideen’s eyes shot open.
‘She’s neutralizing my wind? How?’
His wind aura was ineffective against Chelsea.
It was proof that his ability to purely manipulate the wind was incomparable to hers, but Habideen couldn't accept it.
‘My aura output is insufficient!’
*Ruuuumble—!*
A gale of aura raged.
But Chelsea, as if such things posed no threat at all, used the wind to deflect Habideen’s attack.
“H-how.”
“I’m always up against someone who wields a much stronger wind aura than you, you know? An attack like this is just pathetic.”
Watching Chelsea look down on him with her chin held high, sparks flew from Habideen’s eyes.
“Then try and block this!”
*Woooooooom—!*
Aura gathered at the tip of Habideen’s spear.
Seeing this, Chelsea’s eyes moved quickly.
Armored in wind, Chelsea rode her wind spirit and relentlessly blocked Habideen’s charging attacks at close range.
The faces of the knight-course students began to harden.
“Hey, no matter how you look at it, does that even make sense?”
“With that level of close-combat skill, she’s practically at the knight-course level, isn’t she?”
It was a well-known fact that Chelsea was aspiring to be a battle mage.
And everyone knew she was training hard in close combat.
But Chelsea’s close-combat skills were enough to shock the knight-course students.
Her movements, blocking Habideen’s attacks head-on, were clearly extraordinary at a glance.
“Was she a magic swordsman?”
A knight-course student said with a bewildered face.
“Class President! What kind of magic did you cast on Chelsea?”
Iliana asked in surprise.
“I didn’t exactly cast any magic on her.”
“Then?”
“We just sparred hard every time we trained together.”
It was already a famous fact that Leo had been training with Chelsea since the beginning of the semester.
However, no one knew to what extent they had trained.
Until now, only Chelsea’s magical abilities had been highlighted; there had been no occasion to show her close-combat skills.
After all, between the midterm exams, the school trip, the departmental competitions, mission practicums, and internal department sparring sessions…
There had been nothing to fully showcase Chelsea's close-combat prowess.
But from the second semester onward, things were different.
It was a time to reveal all of one's capabilities, literally.
The results of her training with Leo over the past semester were now coming to light.
“Incredible.”
Iliana’s jaw dropped as she watched Chelsea.
Frankly, while it was surprising, no knight-course student thought they would lose to Chelsea in terms of martial arts.
The problem was that Chelsea was a mage.
‘Once she starts using magic in earnest, it’s a disaster for the knight-course kids!’
Especially with the sparring evaluations coming up, many knight-course students couldn't help but feel tense.
“N-no way.”
“No way, you say.”
Chelsea scoffed.
“You should learn how big the world is. You frog in a well.”
Chelsea slammed her staff into the ground.
*Ruuuumble—!*
A fierce whirlwind erupted.
*Shrieeek—! Shrieeeeeeeek!*
“Aaaaaaaargh!”
Caught in the whirlwind, Habideen began to be thrashed about, spinning like he was in a threshing machine.
*Fwoosh—!*
*Thud—!*
His magic dispelled, Habideen crashed to the ground and covered his mouth.
“Ugh! Blech!”
The world felt like it was spinning madly.
After scoffing at the miserably defeated Habideen, Chelsea descended from the training ground.
“Ooooh!”
“Chelsea! Chelsea!”
“You’re so cool, sis!”
“Small and strong!”
Cheers erupted from among the Lumerne students.
The reaction was particularly fervent among the male students.
Naturally, Chelsea was one of the most popular female students.
Responding to her classmates’ reactions, Chelsea smiled confidently, made a V-sign, and then ran over to Leo.
Sighs of lament erupted here and there from the male students.
“Leo Flove.”
“That lucky bastard!”
Regardless, Chelsea stood before Leo and asked with sparkling eyes.
“Leo! Leo! How was I? I did great, right? I was amazing, right? Praise me like you praise Karl.”
Leo burst out laughing at Chelsea, who was chattering away while thrusting her head towards him, and reached out to pat her head.
“Yes, yes. You did great. You’ve grown an astonishing amount.”
“Hehehehe.”
“Looks like you don’t even need to train with me anymore.”
“Huh?”
Leo chuckled.
“I say that because it feels like you’ve found your path.”
As a battle mage, Chelsea seemed to have perfectly completed her style.
She was at a level where she could be called a respectable mage in her own right.
Hearing Leo’s words, Chelsea became utterly flustered.
“I-I’m still lacking! And I still have a lot to learn from you! So… um… that… you know.”
“She wants to keep receiving Leo’s training.”
“Yes!”
When Karl helped her out from the side, Chelsea nodded her head.
“Ooh, Chelsea. Wanting to go through that tough training, you must have awakened to that sort of thing…”
“What nonsense is that! You wanna die!”
With a glare, Chelsea drove her fist into Karl’s side in a full swing.
“Keok!”
Clutching his side and rolling on the ground, Karl was kicked without hesitation by Chelsea.
Leo burst into laughter at the sight.
“Chelsea Llewellyn!”
Habideen wiped his mouth and staggered over.
From the way he glared and clenched his teeth, it was clear he was fighting off dizziness.
‘Humiliation!’
It was the first time he had been so miserably brought to his knees by a peer of the same age.
On top of that, he had thrown up in front of everyone.
As a prince of a nation.
And as a knight who had been hailed as a genius, it was the first humiliation he had ever experienced in his life.
Habideen’s body trembled.
Likid supported Habideen and let out a small sigh.
“What now? Haven't you had enough?”
As Chelsea spoke in an indifferent tone, Habideen’s eyes widened and he shouted.
“I admit my defeat! This is the first time I’ve experienced something like this!”
“Huh?”
“From this day forward, I will redouble my training to catch up to you!”
“That's ridiculous. I don’t even care about people like you.”
Chelsea said in an annoyed voice.
“Hmph… I suppose so. You were overwhelmingly strong. But I will strive to make you notice me!”
“Hey. *Kikik*— I think he’s fallen for you.”
Karl, who had been groaning while clutching his side, snickered.
Chelsea stomped on Karl with a ferocious expression.
“Yes. Perhaps I have fallen for you, as Sir Karl said.”
But seeing Habideen readily admit it, Chelsea scowled.
At the same time, jeers erupted from Class 5.
“Ooh~ Look at our youngest. Getting a confession in front of everyone.”
“The bloom of youth.”
“Kids are so cute.”
Hearing playful voices from all around, Chelsea gave a vicious smile.
“Are you all prepared to face the consequences?”
“Gasp!”
Everyone fled in terror.
Chelsea was about to chase them, but then she looked at Habideen and stuck out her tongue.
“If you want to confess to me, you’d better get at least as strong as Leo first!”
Then she chased after the classmates who had teased her, glaring daggers.
“You’re all dead!”
Along with Chelsea’s fierce voice, screams erupted from all over.
Habideen clenched his fist as he watched Leo’s back, who was approaching to stop it.
“If I can just catch up to that man…!”
Watching Habideen, Karl got up, clutching his side.
“This kid doesn’t get it.”
“What do you mean?”
“Telling you to get as strong as the Class President…”
Beside him, Iliana clicked her tongue and wagged her finger.
“Is the same as saying she’ll never listen to a confession from you in her life.”
Dade shrugged, picking up where Iliana left off with a grin.
“It means don’t even look at a tree you can’t climb, you know.”
At their words, Habideen wore a look of disbelief.
“No matter what, he’s still just a person…”
“Just a person?”
Karl, Iliana, and Dade shook their heads.
“He’s on a different level.”
Nella, with her characteristic languid smile, said as she watched Leo’s back.
“Sometimes, it feels like he’s from another world.”
Watching the Lumerne students speak in unison, Habideen wore a dazed expression.
‘Just how incredible is he?’