The Academy's Strongest Tournament
The name said it all. It was a tournament to determine the strongest fighter. Since it was a contest based purely on 'strength' and had nothing to do with academic grades, it held more importance than exams for some students. In territories where battles and wars were frequent, there were even places that valued performance in this tournament higher than academy grades. Scouts from every territory would come in person just to watch it.
With such a tournament right in front of him, Kyle found himself in despair.
He couldn't enter because Gawain, who knew he was an Aura Master, refused to accept his application. Of course, Kyle understood why. This tournament was ultimately an event for the students. A monster like him barging in and wrecking everything would be completely out of line. His head knew that perfectly well.
But humans don't always move solely on reason.
I want to go out there.
At the very least, he wanted to win one of the prizes. Gawain had said the prizes were nothing special for a Master, but his curiosity wouldn't let him rest. Kyle clutched his head and groaned in frustration until a good idea suddenly struck him. He shot up from his seat.
Right. If I can't enter, then I'll just send a proxy.
And right on cue, there was a girl who had absorbed enough of his teachings. Kyle immediately went looking for her.
"……You want me to enter the tournament?"
"Yep."
"But I'm still just an Aura User, and my swordsmanship isn't even that good."
"Don't worry. I'll teach you."
Arthur scratched her cheek awkwardly as she stared at me. She probably couldn't make sense of my sudden offer to teach her or my demand that she enter the tournament. But after hearing what came next, her eyes showed that she finally understood why I was making this proposal.
"And we'll split the prize fifty-fifty."
"Ah…… so that was your goal from the start?"
"Obviously?"
"Ahaha, no, it's fine. Yeah. I'm in."
She didn't refuse my offer to train her. That was a relief. It wasn't easy to find someone with as much potential as her who was also determined to compete in the tournament. As a commoner, she needed to make a name for herself in events like this, and she had the ability to do it. Or more precisely, it wasn't so much ability as……
The Dragon's Heart.
The thing embedded in Arthur's chest. It was a power source that allowed the permanent maintenance of magic cast on someone who couldn't use magic at all. That was why I had chosen Arthur, who was only an Aura User. It was why I was confident she could crush every Expert-level student in the tournament and win.
"─Then let's start by learning how to infuse objects with Aura."
"What? But you just said that's impossible……."
"No, it's possible."
I looked at Arthur with sparkling eyes. From this moment on, the word 'impossible' did not exist in this place.
"Assemble! No objections! Don't even think about it! Just do exactly what I tell you to do!"
"K-Kyle?"
"Answers must be in the affirmative!"
"A-affirmative!"
"Good. Let's go."
My only thought was to make Arthur the champion.
Aura is an energy source similar in concept to a user's blood. It's perfectly natural for blood to flow through one's body. Anyone can do it easily. But what about injecting that blood into another object held in the hand, or drawing it completely outside the body? That is extremely difficult. Only a tiny fraction of people can do it, and almost everyone says it's impossible.
However, there are people here who have devoted their entire lives to drawing their Aura outside their bodies and have finally succeeded in that very act. People call them Aura Masters.
"That's exactly what people misunderstand. They believe that if you train your Aura, you'll eventually be able to release it outside your body."
"……Isn't that right?"
"It's not. Aura is a secondary element. It's not the main factor."
Of course, to properly handle Aura, the first and most important step is to recognize its existence. You must sense the Aura flowing inside your body and put in the effort to control it. But to reach a higher realm than that? Simply training Aura alone is not enough.
You must learn and train with the sword, the spear, the bow, and unarmed combat. Only then will you naturally become able to channel Aura beyond your body. That is the realm of Expert. And once you surpass even that, you can draw Aura completely outside your body. That stage is called Master.
"However, that's only the story for ordinary people. Arthur, you're different."
But that was the story for ordinary people. It wasn't the story of Arthur, who had a Dragon's Heart implanted in her chest. She was like a car equipped with an engine as massive as her own frame. A huge engine that could let her soar through the sky if you just gave her wings. There was no need to teach such a being the ordinary method of running on the ground like everyone else.
"You handle Aura itself. Swordsmanship? You don't need to learn any of that. You'll smash everything using nothing but Aura. Pure Aura."
"Wait…… is that really okay?"
"It's okay for you. Because you have this."
Kyle said this and poked Arthur right in the chest. Arthur flinched in surprise, then belatedly remembered she was currently in male form and glanced at Kyle. Kyle simply tilted his head as if asking what the problem was. Arthur shook her head vigorously, insisting it was nothing.
"S-so─ if I'm not learning swordsmanship, how exactly am I supposed to win?"
"Secret techniques."
"……Secret techniques?"
"That's right. Secret techniques."
"But I don't know any secret techniques."
Kyle grinned at Arthur. Seeing that smile, Arthur seemed to catch on and her eyes began to sparkle.
"─We can just make some."
A Master and a girl with a Dragon's Heart. With that combination, the word 'impossible' simply didn't exist.
While training Arthur and heading back to the dormitory, Kyle ran into Hundred blocking his path. Even when he tried to slip past to the side, Hundred stubbornly kept stepping in front of him.
"What do you want?"
"Kyle Meyer."
The one blocking his way glared down at Kyle with eyes burning like flames.
"This tournament. It's a showdown between us."
"I'm not entering the tournament this time."
"……What? Why not!?"
"Ah, it's because I'm too strong─ I shouldn't butt into the kids' fights, right?"
He was simply repeating what he'd heard from Gawain, but Hundred seemed to think Kyle was mocking him and suddenly raised his voice.
"H-haha─ I see. So you're scared? You're afraid to fight me, aren't you?"
"I'm serious."
"If you thought I'd fall for such a ridiculous excuse, you're dead wrong, you coward."
"Dude, why the hell would I be scared of you? ─You're weak."
"─You son of a bitch!"
Hundred reached out to grab him by the collar, but then froze as he remembered what had happened the last time he'd tried that. He stopped just short of the perfect range where Kyle could have subdued him. Kyle gave him a sly smile.
"Scared?"
"S-scared? Who the hell is……."
"I'm not entering the tournament─ but I do have someone entering in my place."
Kyle mentioned Arthur's name. Upon hearing it, Hundred looked at him with an expression of utter disbelief.
"……You're really not entering?"
"I told you. I'm too strong to enter."
"What kind of……."
"Anyway, that's how it is. If you beat Arthur, I'll consider it the same as beating me."
"─Hah, that Arthur guy? He's nothing but an Aura User. Do you seriously think he could beat me?"
Hundred believed that no matter how strong Kyle was, teaching others was an entirely different matter. The talent needed to become a strong knight and the talent needed to teach others were completely different. While he acknowledged Kyle as a genius, he refused to acknowledge that he was also an outstanding teacher. Hundred let out a scoffing laugh.
"Then─ if I beat that guy, I can go around saying I beat you, right?"
"Oh, if I win then the rumor will spread that you got defeated without even lifting a finger. You okay with that?"
"As if that could happen─ you think I'd lose to an Aura User?"
With those words, he quickly disappeared somewhere. Watching Hundred's retreating back, Kyle changed direction midway to the dormitory and returned to where Arthur was still training. He had just thought of another technique to teach her.
The day of the tournament. The day when countless spectators and scouts from every territory gathered. Whether it was good luck or bad, Arthur's very first match was against Hundred.
Hundred looked at Arthur with a smug grin.
"Today, there is no way I can lose."
"Huh?"
"Look over there. That's the mercenary band I belonged to before entering the academy. They came to celebrate my victory."
"Uh, uhh?"
"And more importantly, I even made a bet with Kyle Meyer himself. There's a zero percent chance I'll lose."
After listening to his story, Arthur scratched her cheek and asked back.
"……Um, by any chance─ are you trying to make me feel sorry for you so I'll throw the match?"
"What? What nonsense is that?"
"Oh, I guess not. Okay. I get it. You're the same type as Kyle."
Letting out a sigh of relief, Arthur immediately gripped her sword hilt and waited for the signal to begin the match. A moment later, the drum sounded, and Arthur faced Hundred as he charged toward her.
Arthur, don't move from your spot. The opponent will come to you anyway.
Kyle's teaching flashed through her mind. Her body moved according to the next lesson.
Meyer Style Modified Lightning Strike─!
Arthur's sword, swung like a bolt of lightning, shattered the arena floor and sent Hundred, who had been charging at her, flying out of bounds in a single blow.
For a moment, silence fell over the entire arena.
"W-winner─ Arthur!"
Only after the referee's declaration did the cheers completely engulf Arthur.