Chapter 47
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: What Does It Matter?
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(1)
Chapter 14. What Does It Matter?
1.
March first week, Thursday.
A particularly chilly morning, thanks to the rain that had fallen at dawn.
About two hundred people had gathered in clusters on the Military Department's training grounds.
Boys and girls with youthful faces.
They were freshmen from Arsen Academy.
"As announced beforehand, today we'll be holding qualifying rounds for the right to participate in the mock battle!"
A voice boomed across the training grounds.
It was Ethan Arnop, a professor from the Military Department.
With his characteristically stern face, he methodically explained the day's schedule.
"First, we'll hold the preliminary rounds in the morning! Each class's volunteers will compete to select a set number of participants."
He paused for a moment.
Then glanced at the schedule.
"After lunch, the afternoon finals will determine the top 10 who will participate in the mock battle."
Top 10.
They would earn the right to join the mock battle and get a chance to attract investment from nobles of various countries.
"Finally, we'll select the strongest among the top 10 and appoint them as leader. Any questions so far?"
No questions came.
Instead, a murmur rippled through the crowd.
"The strongest among the top 10?"
"That basically decides the leader."
"Obviously it'll be that barbarian."
"Yeah. He's an Expert, right?"
The preliminaries hadn't even started, but people were already predicting the outcome.
And it was understandable.
A rumor had been circulating recently.
Ullan is an Expert.
No one knew where it started.
But it had spread across the entire academy in an instant and was now widely accepted as fact.
Actually, correction.
At least Ethan knew the source.
Because he had spread it himself.
To be precise, a false rumor.
He had done so on orders from above.
From the Military Department's dean, Berje Erkazan, and directly from the imperial military.
Hide Ullan's true power and spread fabricated information. The reason was obvious.
If the truth got out, there'd be chaos.
Not probably—definitely.
There were plenty of Experts in the empire.
Even officially tallied, there were as many as the freshmen gathered here.
But Masters are different.
If an Expert was a tactical weapon that could shift a battle's tide, a Master was a strategic weapon that could alter the course of a war.
Hence the saying:
The number of Masters equals national power.
And Masters, who transcended human limits, held even greater value than grand archmages in special cases.
In such a situation,
if it came out that Ullan was a Master?
A fierce competition would erupt.
A neutral force unbound to any nation.
And if they won him over, over 10,000 barbarians and frontier lands would follow.
The empire didn't want that.
So they struck first.
By spreading false info to keep rivals from easily uncovering the truth.
Of course, it'll be exposed eventually...
You can't cover the sky with a palm.
The truth would come out someday.
But it didn't matter. The empire planned to recruit Ullan before then, somehow.
"Quiet down. I'm not done yet."
Snapping out of his thoughts,
Ethan continued.
"Note that other departments can now apply for this qualifying round. So if you want to join, feel free."
"......"
But no one stepped up.
As expected. Qualifying and mock battles weren't about specialty fields—they were pure combat prowess.
The training grounds fell silent.
Ethan, having anticipated this, casually got to the point.
"Then let's start the preliminaries now."
It was exactly 10 a.m.
Once all eight classes finished, lunch would begin. Pulling out a box full of mana orbs, Ethan said,
"The battlefield is the entire training grounds. Fight until three or fewer remain per class. Those who've done the Grand Melee should get it."
Of course they did.
A few students grinned.
"The order's already set. The class advisors did a ladder draw yesterday. First up: Class 2."
As soon as Ethan finished,
Class 2 students rushed forward.
Ten in total. Only three would advance. Meanwhile, Ivela checked the order sheet and muttered,
"Hmm, we're dead last."
"Seems so."
"Professor Miel must've drawn well."
Ullan nodded silently.
The order didn't matter to him anyway.
As they watched Class 2 fight,
Ivela suddenly spoke up.
"Hey, Ullan."
"Hm?"
"Who do you think will pass from our class? Besides Class 2, I mean."
"You, me, and Noa."
An immediate, unwavering answer.
Filled with strong conviction.
"What? Noa?"
She tilted her head in doubt.
"But isn't she weak on stamina?"
"Battles aren't won with stamina."
"Coming from you, that sounds less convincing somehow..."
Ivela smiled awkwardly.
Ullan remained serious.
"Noa has talent as a shaman."
This was plain fact.
Among all shamans he'd met in his past life, few matched her skill.
Especially her casting speed, which he rated highest.
Shamans are disadvantaged in combat compared to mages.
For one reason.
Spells took far longer to cast than magic. He didn't know why, but it was so.
But Noa...
She completed spells faster than mages. He'd seen it multiple times on the journey from the plains.
So he stated with certainty,
"Plus, she has combat experience. She'll pass the prelims, no doubt."
"Really? She doesn't seem like it."
Her turquoise eyes turned to Noa,
brimming with curiosity.
Meanwhile, Noa, alone in the corner, scowled sullenly.
Ugh. I can hear you!
She was alone because seats were assigned by department.
Left isolated, she trembled with indignation.
After hearing that...
She couldn't fail.
She'd pass through sheer spite!
Renewing her resolve, she heard Ivela's voice again from afar.
"Anyway, I was really shocked."
"About what?"
"Your strength, Ullan."
Ivela leaned in close,
clenching her fist.
"I thought you were upper knight-level all this time, but an Expert? No way."
No wonder she'd fainted.
Expert realm was that impressive.
As her eyes sparkled with admiration,
Noa nodded in agreement.
Ullan should be hammering at the Expert wall around now in the original story.
Becoming one at eighteen.
Per the plot.
But now, he'd done it a year early. Not surprising, though—he had a hunch.
Probably thanks to Kazan.
The hero's mark, Kazan.
A cheat item called history's greatest. Skipping a year made sense.
As she finished speculating,
A shout shattered her thoughts.
"Next: Class 1!"
"Class 1 volunteers, assemble on the training grounds immediately!"
Ethan and the other professors called.
The area erupted in excitement.
"Huh? Class 1..."
"That's Dilia Arpen's class, right?"
"Yeah! Let's go watch!"
"Gotta see this."
The Star Witch, Dilia Arpen.
A chance to see a genius mage everyone expected great things from. No wonder the students buzzed.
Guess I'll check it out too.
First time seeing her in person.
With anticipation,
Noa jumped up.
2.
Meanwhile,
the training grounds felt tense, almost murderous.
The fight hadn't started, but formations were already set.
Nine students surrounded Dilia Arpen in a tight encirclement.
Seeing this,
Students from other departments jeered.
"Whoa, that's too much, isn't it?"
"Do they really wanna do that?"
"Boo! Cheaters!"
"Are all Class 1 kids cowards?"
Jeers and mockery poured in.
But Dilia's encircled classmates didn't flinch. They knew how monstrously strong Dilia Arpen was.
Then,
Ivela chuckled.
"Reminds me of the specialty exam."
He got it.
Probably recalling Ullan's Grand Melee. Similar scene back then.
"Oh, right. Ullan."
"...?"
"Not swallowing orbs again, right?"
"Not this time."
Firm denial.
Last time's mishap with expulsion was enough. He'd just hide them safely.
"Fight start!"
At that moment,
Class 1's Grand Melee began with the signal.
The encirclement charged without hesitation.
"Don't stop! Keep rushing!"
"No time for casting!"
Faces set with resolve.
They closed in on Dilia instantly, swinging weapons without pause.
"Kyaa!"
"I can't watch!"
Obvious outcome?
Short screams echoed. But needless worry.
Thud! Crack! Crunch!
With loud noises,
all weapons aimed at Dilia shattered at once.
"Wh-what?!"
"Already cast?!"
As shocked students gripped broken weapons, allies shouted from behind.
"Fall back!"
"Magic incoming!"
Friendly mages had finished chanting.
Students near Dilia retreated. Then a barrage of attack spells rained on her.
Boom! Kaboom! Burst!
The ground shook violently.
Dust settled. Dilia emerged unscathed.
"Th-this is insane..."
"How the hell?!"
Onlookers began stirring. Even magic-illiterate Ivela gaped.
Ullan stayed calm.
He'd seen this spell often in his past life.
Curtain of Starlight.
Layering star mana over the body for maximum protection.
A defensive spell.
But far superior to ordinary ones. It blocked grade-5 magic and mid-tier knight mana blades.
And now,
no one there could pierce it.
Dilia wins.
Just enduring would wear them out. As Ullan thought that, Noa stared at Dilia too.
With a hint of dismay.
Ugh, constellation magic is such a cheat.
This world's magic divided into two: attribute and constellation.
Attributes: water, fire, wind, earth, light, darkness—six total. Constellations: sun, stars, moon.
Shortened to 6 attributes, 3 constellations.
Attribute magic converted ambient mana to an element, maximizing power.
Anyone with basics could learn it, no genius required.
Thus, over 99% of mages specialized in it.
Constellation magic differs.
It drew mana directly from sun, moon, stars.
Denser, purer than ambient mana—like concentrate vs. dilution.
Same grade, but far stronger.
Take Curtain of Starlight: mana equivalent to grade-2 Mana Shield, but performance rivaled grade-6 defense.
So why learn attributes if constellations were better?
Simple.
You had to be born for it.
Predestined at birth—who could and couldn't.
And Dilia Arpen was—
the pinnacle among them.
Victory was decided from the start.
Then,
Dilia, unmoving till now, parted her lips slightly. Chaos followed.
Flash!
Lightning-like light engulfed the grounds.
When it faded,
every student's orb shattered.
"......!"
To powder in a blink.
No exceptions.
Silence blanketed the grounds.
No one could speak, not grasping what happened.
"Match over."
Dilia spoke flatly.
Professors finally snapped to.
"W-winner! Dilia Arpen!"
Plan was to end when three remained.
Impossible here.
All orbs broke simultaneously.
Overwhelming.
Under all eyes, Dilia turned. Expressionless, aloof. Then it cracked slightly.
Meeting Ullan's gaze.
Visibly flustered, she met it again. Her small lips mouthed,
Good luck.
Class 3 next.
Silent cheer.
Ullan grinned back.
Her face brightened a bit.
"Whew, our turn."
Ivela stretched as she stood.
After grounds reset,
professors called.
"Last: Class 3!"
"Assemble on the grounds!"
Time to go.
Ullan headed out.
Ivela joined, Noa hurried from afar.
At center,
overwhelmed by stares? Noa hid behind Ullan.
Ivela casually scanned around, muttering,
"Kinda expected this, but..."
Still happened.
Grounds split: Ullan, Ivela, Noa vs. seven others. Better than Dilia's, sure.
"Ullan, what's the plan?"
"Handle it yourselves."
Cool reply.
No need for plans here. Ivela laughed.
"Got it. I'll go wild then."
"M-me too, I'll do my best."
Noa unfurled talismans from hiding.
Clearly curse tools.
Could she curse opponents instead of orbs? As that thought hit,
"Fight start!"
The roar began it.
Clank! Shing!
Ivela drew sword swiftly. Noa floated all her talismans.
Then,
unexpected.
"We surrender."
Seven students knelt.
Faces devoid of fight. Unprecedented—grounds hushed.
"What?"
"Ridiculous."
"Giving up without fighting?"
"Kids these days lack grit..."
Professors criticized.
Surrenderers looked up.
"Obviously gonna lose."
"Wh-what?"
"Straight up, how do we beat a monster with that physique and Expert realm?"
"......"
Professors couldn't retort.
No chance logically. Better to lose untouched.
"Ivela Elead too."
"Rumor she held off Ullan a bit, reached low knight recently."
"St-still, try once..."
"Nah."
"We're out anyway."
Brushed off dirt,
they left. Professors sighed at the absurdity.
"......Class 3, match end."
"Winners: Ullan. Ivela. Noa."
Shortest prelim ever.
Ullan's group advanced.
3.
After prelims,
professors made the bracket. Finals afternoon—better now.
Then,
Noa knelt,
clasped hands, prayed devoutly.
God, Buddha, gods of cliché.
Every deity she recalled.
Desperately.
Please, no named matchups. Please!
Twenty advanced.
Three nameds besides her: Ullan, Ivela, Dilia.
All tough. So she prayed.
Avoid them!
Soon,
results time.
"Bracket done!"
"Advancers, check opponents here!"
Last prayer done,
she peeked.
Then,
"......!"
Eyes bulged.
There:
【Noa Darshen】 - 【Dilia Arpen】
God is dead.
Chapter 14. What Does It Matter?