The Unrestricted Duel

That cheat-tier unique magic would be ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠difficult to use now, of course. Under any ordinary circumstances, there would have been no way to beat her — no matter what he tried.

But right now, it's possible.

X checked the objects he could feel in his pocket. He hadn't expected to have to use them this soon.

He was still locked in a war of nerves with Kirke when Amanda cut in between them.

"Student X, this is a warning. Stop. Anyone with eyes can see that you are acting on emotion."

True to her role as a professor, she moved to mediate the dispute. But both Kirke and X had already caught fire, and a professor's intervention was not going to snuff out a blaze like that.

"I don't care how this goes. I just need to see what you can do."

Kirke dismissed Amanda's mediation without a second thought. The further she stepped forward, the less X was willing to give ground. In the end, Amanda had no choice but to draw her own blade.

"Is this attitude a show of contempt for me and my class? Student X, are you aware that a disciplinary committee will be convened if your conduct in this lesson is judged unfavorably?"

There was real feeling in Amanda's voice now. Pressed that hard, even X wavered. This was, without question, something he could settle later. He knew that perfectly well.

Just as he was about to let the heat drain off—

"It would be a shame to let things end here, after all this."

Someone stepped out from the cluster of students with a gait so composed it bordered on arrogant. Breeding and authority lived in every stride. Golden hair spilled around her like water in motion, and her golden eyes shone with a lofty, untouchable light.

Everyone knew who she was.

They said status meant nothing at the Academy. Not in front of this person. Everyone sank to their knees as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Because it was. Because she was the kind of being for whom that was only right.

"Princess Beatrice."

Beatrice de Dritania. The Empire's only imperial princess, and the only 5th Circle mage among the first-years.

And now this villain had to show up too?

He lifted his eyes to the index finger of her right hand. The gold ring was there, just as he'd known it would be. Villain. Confirmed.

Beatrice addressed them all in a voice steeped in pride and authority.

"Please stand. I have no desire to have my authority acknowledged in this manner."

Everyone rose. Even Kirke, for the moment, followed without a word.

Beatrice looked from Kirke to X and back again, and a curious smile touched her mouth.

"A mere spar hardly looks sufficient to cool the two of you down, wouldn't you agree? The atmosphere has already gone this far. So why not make it a duel?"

X knew exactly why Beatrice had bothered to propose a duel. She wanted entertainment, nothing more.

Of all the people to get mixed up with.

He glanced around. The students had already formed a ring, crowding in to watch. Amanda's attempts to stop this were one thing; the fight unfolding in front of them was another, and they wanted a front-row seat.

Kirke, looking entirely unmoved by any of it, simply kept her eyes on X.

"Duel, spar, I don't care. Doesn't have to be now. You can even run. I'm not fighting to win. I just don't want to waste any more time."

In other words, it was all the same to her. But the moment Beatrice had put it that way, backing out of the fight had ceased to be an option. Refuse a duel here, and he might walk himself into something even more dangerous. Besides, he had no particular intention of running.

"...I am grateful for Your Highness Princess Beatrice's grace."

At that, Beatrice's smile turned strange. She turned to Amanda and declared, in a voice that left no room for argument:

"By my authority, I will recognize their duel. I shall serve as witness. Do you object?"

"...No, Your Highness. As you will."

Amanda had no intention of challenging a princess's authority. She was simply frustrated that she hadn't been able to stop this before it got this far.

"Very well. You there — the commoner? Will you call a proxy?"

"No. I will fight myself."

"Then those wounds will need healing. A duel should be fought at full strength, after all."

Something came flying toward X. He caught it and found a potion in his hand — high-grade, by the look of it. A high-grade potion was ordinarily worth six months of a commoner's wages.

She's just handing this out like it's nothing...

"Drink it where I can see you."

"...Yes, Your Highness."

Hesitation wasn't an option. He cracked the lid and drank. A clean, cool sensation slid down his throat, and the wound across his back began to itch. He felt the injury close over in an instant.

"You should be ready to duel now. The format: an unrestricted duel. Victory goes to whichever side breaks the opponent's will to fight, by any means. However, I forbid any act that would take a life."

This was an informal duel, not a sanctioned one, which meant the witness's word was as good as law. And the terms, at least, were ones he could live with.

It was neither fair nor sacred in the slightest. Even so, the duel was sealed. There was no path left to retreat.

Beatrice smiled and gave the word.

In that instant, arrows of blue light came screaming in. He'd expected as much — a light greeting, nothing more. His sword was already moving, batting the arrows aside.

Kirke watched him do it, and sounded almost disappointed.

"I can't even understand a mage picking up a sword."

"What does it matter what someone else carries around?"

"It's proof you aren't serious about magic."

Next came three arrows of ice. He cut down the chill crystals as they carved through the air, knocking two aside and raising a barrier to catch the last. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠They were still feeling each other out.

"And that's why you're taking it out on me?"

"Because you go around flaunting a half-baked smattering of knowledge as if it were your own. I just want to see how good you actually are."

This time five ice arrows came screaming in, faster now, as if her anger had been loaded into the spell. Blocking them all was impossible; he had to dodge. He threw himself sideways, cutting and shielding as they came, and only just managed to scrape the assault aside.

She looked ready to start fighting in earnest. So was he.

"And you think that's a reason to make kids bleed?"

"..."

"Must be nice. If someone rubs you the wrong way, just punch a hole in their face and show off how talented you are."

"...Shut up!"

Brought up short, Kirke shouted and began preparing a spell. Ice arrows again. He knew exactly what kind of combination she was lining up — and his own casting was faster.

Flame. A 1st Circle spell, nothing more than a burst of fire. X drew a line with his hand, and something went flying toward Kirke. The blue line traced across the floor flushed red a heartbeat later.

A cheap trick...

Kirke stepped back without fuss. She'd read his intent at once. Fire bloomed from the line on the floor — mana-forged flame that did nothing but heat empty air.

And in that same instant, something shot out from between the flames. Arrows of blue light, loosed straight at Kirke.

"Too obvious."

The arrows died against her barrier. Using a screen to hide a spell was the oldest trick in the book. The moment he'd used Flame, her shield had already been up. When the mana sustaining the fire ran out, the flames vanished with it.

"If you're going to parade around like you know everything, why don't you teach them yourself? What did you even come to the Academy for? To show off?"

From across the floor, X stood still and stared her down. Kirke loaded her answer with feeling as she prepared her next spell.

"I'm here to gain knowledge. The place doesn't matter. A pretentious little nobody like you wouldn't understand...!"

Ten ice arrows — the same volley she'd used when she attacked Lola. X lifted his sword and set himself to receive it. Before the ice could fly, his hand drew another line, this one horizontal, as if to cover his own body.

A wall of flame surged up an instant before the ice arrived. Fierce heat met the arrows, and that was all it did. A 1st Circle fire could not melt 2nd Circle ice.

A rapid, shattering barrage punched through.

All ten ice arrows held their shape and shot straight through the wall of fire. They had been aimed across a wide spread, anticipating a dodge; even if he got out of the way, it wouldn't have meant much.

Doesn't matter if he dodges or blocks.

She had his measure now, and precisely. His magic was 1st Circle at best. His swordsmanship was nothing special, and his physical ability was ordinary. She was starting to find this tedious. And she was sure of it: the boy had no dedication to the path of magic. He wasn't worth her time. On top of that, the things he kept saying were beginning to genuinely get under her skin.

Let's end this. There's no point anymore.

Kirke invoked the spell she had prepared to finish it. As the incantation left her, the ice arrows scattered across the floor answered.

A low, sliding hiss of frost.

A dozen or so ice arrows stirred of their own accord and took up positions across a wide area, arranging themselves into the shape of an enormous circle. The other students erupted at the sight.

"Is that a Grand Magic Circle?"

"Grand Magic at her age already...?"

"If this goes wrong, he's dead..."

Even Beatrice was somewhat taken aback. She was the highest-ranked mage here at 5th Circle, and even she had never seen anyone deploy a Grand Magic Circle like that.

She was setting up Grand Magic from the very beginning?

Looking closely at the ice arrows, Beatrice could see that they were hollow, packed with mana. After firing them, Kirke had used that stored mana to fuel further casting. That much was a technique any reasonably accomplished mage employed now and then. Using it to prepare a Grand Magic Circle of still greater power, however, was a realm beyond that. A single error in the calculations would have made it impossible.

And in the meantime, the Grand Magic Circle was complete — before the fire of his Flame had even gone out. Kirke's calculations had been that swift, and that exact.

"Hey, what's he eating...?"

"Is he even allowed to do that?"

"It's unrestricted, so..."

Just as she was about to unleash the Grand Magic, fragments of conversation from the students who could see X's side reached Kirke's ears.

Come to think of it... it's been quieter over there than I expected.

She'd assumed he would be stupid enough to throw up a wall of fire to block the ice arrows and take them full in the face. Even so, the complete lack of any reaction until now was a little strange.

...Whatever. It doesn't matter.

She had prepared Grand Magic specifically to end this cleanly. He was a 1st Circle mage who had only just awakened to mana. Whatever he had gotten ready, it would be useless.

She activated the Grand Magic.

Blue lines unfurled from the dozen ice arrows in geometric patterns, racing in every direction. In less than a breath, those lines had turned the interior of the great circle into a single vast magic array. And in the final moment, as Kirke triggered the Grand Magic—

"...Huh?"

It didn't fire.

And in the instant she realized that—

The wall of fire peeled away, and something came flying at her fast.

The same cheap trick again...

Kirke sensed the threat and threw up a barrier at once. She always kept a shield ready; a film of blue light sheathed her before the incoming magic could touch her. In the same span, she identified what she was actually looking at.

...Fireballs?

Three of them. A 3rd Circle spell — the signature offensive magic of the elemental school. The conclusion she reached the moment she saw them was simple.

Impossible.

First, he simply did not have the mana. She had heard that X had only just awakened to magic. Ten mana arrows would have been his limit, at best. He didn't even have a magic tool to assist his casting. Which left only one explanation for a low-Circle mage using a higher-Circle spell.

He braced himself for Rebound?

The thought had barely formed when all three fireballs slammed into Kirke's barrier.

A roaring blast.

"Kh—..."

The spell had been thrown together in haste, and the third fireball shattered her shield. She had stopped the force of the explosion, but fierce heat and crimson flame still filled her vision, turning the world into a red, reeling haze.

An ordinary mage would have panicked in that moment, stumbling back from the threat of fire and heat. Kirke was not an ordinary mage.

Where is he.

Her mind was still locked in focus. She stared through the fire and heat scrambling her sight, spreading her mana sense in every direction, hunting for anything out of place. A counter-spell was already prepared. Blue lightning crackled in both of her hands.

In that span, she revised her assessment of X's full strength.

He took Rebound. Three times. So he's not ordinary, then.

It was a combat style she had seen a handful of times even in her previous life — a fighting method that discarded one's own life to guarantee a single decisive blow. People who fought like that had been among the most dangerous things on the chaotic battlefields of the Demon Realm. And there was only one way to deal with them.

I should have crushed him with raw power from the start.

She had underestimated him, which was unlike her. A flicker of regret ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠passed through Kirke's thoughts. Separate from that, a sense of injustice boiled up as well.

He was angry enough to throw his life away over a fight like this? Fine, okay, maybe I went a little overboard, but...!

First she stared into the space that had been hidden behind the wall of fire — the one place she hadn't been able to check while her vision was blocked. And there, she found the reason the Grand Magic had failed.

The ice arrows are broken?

The arrows she had packed with mana lay in pieces ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠— broken with such precision that a Grand Magic Circle could no longer be formed.

But I definitely sensed a magic response...!

When she had moved the ice arrows into position to prepare the Grand Magic, she would have noticed if any of them had already been broken. She would have felt it the instant the spell failed to activate. There was only one possibility she would have missed.

He broke them after the magic had already activated...?

The assumption was absurd. It would have been impossible unless he had known the Grand Magic's activation and preparation sequence in advance. And her opponent was an ordinary person who had awakened to magic this very day.

Wait. Where is he...?

The shock had delayed her. She realized it too late. The mana sense she had spread from the start was catching nothing at all. Even after the flames scrambling her vision cleared, there was nothing in front of her but shards of broken ice.

If he's not in front, then behind—!

She wheeled to pour lightning into the space at her back—

"The losses here are no joke."

A sharp flash of silver light cut toward her face, faster than the lightning magic could form. If it landed, the match was over.

Kirke didn't care.

I still have my last insurance.

There was a spell she had used the instant the duel began. Kirke's final insurance was Physical Reflection Magic — a spell she always used when facing a warrior.

I didn't think I'd actually take a direct hit, though.

He had been holding a sword, so she had used it as a matter of course. It was a 5th Circle spell, which had meant spending a page of the Book of Eibon, and she had thought that a waste — but looking at it now, it had been the right call.

Only one thing remained. The instant his sword bounced off the Physical Reflection Magic, she would fry him with lightning. And that would be the end of this tiresome fight.

That was what she thought.

A sharp, fracturing crack.

"What?"

The moment the sword touched the Physical Reflection Magic, the spell shattered. For no reason she could name, it simply broke.

Why...?

She had no answer. There was only one thing she could know.

A soft rasp of steel.

The edge of X's sword came to rest against Kirke's cheek. The duel was decided.

"Don't you think this is a bit much? Having to burn through precious things in a single day."

The only thing in front of her was X, wearing a crooked smile.

"..."

"..."

"..."

In a silence so stunned that not even a breath dared to stir—

Beatrice declared a result she could scarcely believe.