Chapter 17
Chapter 17
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: The Duel Wager
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"Ha, a new club member? Hmm...?"
Logan tilted his head arrogantly as if it were utterly ridiculous, and his eyes narrowed for a split second.
'Christa Warden...'
It was because of the genius girl who had walked in behind the boy. She was practically the public enemy of all the later-year students from the Eight Great Academies right now.
'So that's it...'
Black hair, red eyes.
Ah, so this is the esteemed young master of the great Ludwig family. A sneer curled at Logan's lips.
"Oh, who might this be? That trash... Oh dear, my mistake! Sorry about that. I have this bad habit of letting my thoughts slip right out of my mouth."
Anyone could see it wasn't a slip of the tongue—it was pure provocation. Logan smiled casually, pretending to show proper respect.
"As a student of the Eight Great Academies, I was thinking of paying a visit to pay my respects to a noble young master like yourself someday. Perfect timing. But a magic duel? Did I hear that wrong?"
Logan's massive frame strode forward, looming over Rain and casting an intimidating shadow.
Logan's build was a full head and a half taller than kids his age, enough to overwhelm even Rain—who was above average height—and look down on him oppressively.
"You heard right. He wants to fight, so I figured I'd humor him."
"Hahaha! So you're saying you have full confidence you can beat someone like me without breaking a sweat?"
A smirk lingered on Logan's lips as he chuckled, but any hint of amusement had long vanished from his eyes.
"If you're not confident, should I give you a handicap? Hmm, maybe I won't use any combat spells at all?"
"Rain, are you serious...?"
"That should do it. I'll only use the spells developed by this club. Exactly three spells. How's that?"
"You're serious about this?"
"Even then, I don't think I'll lose."
Logan blinked in disbelief before bursting into gut-wrenching laughter, clutching his stomach.
"This trash isn't just trash, he's completely... Oh, apologies, young master. Fine. But you know joining requires a three-day wait, right?"
"?"
"So this can only happen as a personal magic duel."
"Get to the point."
"If you win, young master, great. I'll disband this club. And if any other guys come picking fights, I'll chase them off for you."
Christa’s eyes narrowed. Offering such unusually favorable terms meant there had to be a matching price.
"But if I win... hmm, how about you submit your withdrawal notice to <Delaiten>? Reason: 'I hit a wall after seeing Chaihak's Logan.' Something like that?"
It was an absurd condition. That's why Christa stepped forward.
For heirs of magic houses, talent in magic wasn't the only requirement. Academic credentials were crucial too. Here, Rain was the direct heir to the Ludwig family.
If someone like him submitted a withdrawal from <Delaiten>, it wouldn't just tarnish the family's reputation—it could even prevent him from gaining recognition from other houses or vassal families later, even if he inherited.
"You're joking? You're risking at most giving up one club—"
"—It's fine, Christa."
"Do you even grasp the situation?"
"Do I need to? I'm going to win anyway."
At that moment, the cold glint in Rain's eyes was chilling enough to make Christa unconsciously shut her mouth without realizing it.
"Don't run away. Pick the date and time however you want."
"Hahaha! That's exactly what I was going to say. I'll secure a professor to referee. No need to delay—let's do it tonight at 6 PM in the Dragon Hole Field."
Logan then mockingly gave a sloppy noble bow to Rain before brushing past them and heading out the door.
'Jackpot. I hooked a big one.'
Dragging the heir of a prestigious house into a magic duel—no less the notoriously trash young master, Rain Ludwig.
'Still, he's undeniably from a magic house.'
Traditionally, heirs from magic houses never stepped into duels unless outright insulted.
They had far more to lose than gain.
Of course, outright mocking a magic house with a duel wouldn't fly either—getting expelled would leave you with no defense. The chancellor of this school was from a magic house, after all.
But this... they stepped up first.
'The dean and elders are gonna praise me to the skies.'
If he could take down other house heirs who came charging for revenge, he might even aim for the next dean position.
"What a fantastic day."
Meanwhile, back in the club room, Christa broke the silence with a sigh, pressing her temple.
"You... a magic duel? Do you even realize your position?"
"<Delaiten> first-year?"
"Don't joke around."
"I'm not. What is it, then?"
"You're a child of a magic house, just like me. How can you not know what our positions entail?"
Christa sighed again, but the boy just silently browsed the research books on the club shelf, which made her blood boil.
"Fine, do whatever you want. Shouldn't have worried seriously."
As Christa shook her head and walked out, Rain could only tilt his head in confusion.
"Why's she mad? What did I do?"
"You've done something utterly incomprehensible by common sense."
The one who spoke was a scrawny boy picking up his glasses from the floor.
The crest on his student ring was a 'dragon with spread wings,' not a 'sleeping dragon.' That meant second-year.
"Heirs from magic houses never enter magic duels."
"Why not?"
"There's little to gain and everything to lose."
When statuses differed—that is, with commoners—even seniors typically used honorifics with nobles.
There were rare nobles who used honorifics with commoner seniors out of courtesy, but they were few.
"So I'm more wary than grateful. Why... did you help? I can't figure out your reason."
Why did you help...
Unlike Rista, Rain had zero eloquence for this sort of thing. It was harder than any math problem.
"I didn't really help. I just remembered some overdue homework."
"Homework? For you, young master...?"
"If this place sticks around, that homework gets done a lot faster and easier. I was just acting in my own interest, so don't worry about it."
Rista might have said, "Do you need a reason to help someone?" while beaming brightly.
Rain didn't know how to smile like that. Or say things like that. Or have the personality to say them with a smile.
So he'd just live like before—as a calculating person.
"I'm grateful, but you seem to be underestimating Logan's skills..."
"How so?"
"Logan's a Wing Type mage. As you know, they have incredibly favorable matchups against regular mages."
According to club president Joën, Logan wasn't just skilled in magic—his physical abilities were so outstanding that he'd even studied martial arts at one of the Republic's Six Great Sects.
"And I hear his win rate in inter-academy magic duels is over 90%..."
Joën let out a hollow, self-deprecating laugh as he leaned against the wall.
"You're being way too reckless against a guy like that. I wasn't worth helping. Because of my weird words earlier..."
"......?"
"I talked big to Logan, but this isn't some grand club. Truth is, I'm from the countryside. The villagers pooled money to cover my tuition."
Joën said he'd joined the club after graduation to research magic and repay his hometown.
"Just personal reasons... pathetic, right? Sorry, young master. I'll handle this duel myself."
Joën touched his broken glasses with a bitter, teary smile.
Winning chances: zero.
But that win rate applied even harsher to the so-called trash young master, Rain. No need to burden a club that was done for anyway.
"That's weird. Why's that pathetic?"
Suddenly, that voice rippled through the room like a wave on calm water, resounding in his chest.
"Do you know why Lin started with magic?"
"The Great Mage Lin? I think... he loved magic since he was little."
"No, at first, it was just to survive. He'd finally learned to sleep and eat like a human, and he clung to it desperately so he wouldn't get abandoned. He grew to like it a bit later."
Rain's voice, as he absentmindedly flipped through the bookshelf, was somehow deep, as if recalling distant memories.
"Huh...? I never read any book with that backstory."
"He studied like that, and before he knew it, he was following Rista, and before he knew it, he was the Great Mage."
Rain flipped open a book with a rustle, then snapped it shut and turned to Joën with a smirk.
"You think just because I'm a underclassman, I can't do it? Nah."
"......?!"
"I'll borrow a few of these books. Need to get familiar if I'm using them in the duel."
Even after Rain picked a few books from the shelf and left, Joën sat there blankly, staring at the door.
His heart was pounding quietly.
His whole body was thrilling in silence.
What was this feeling? Less like chatting with a total underclassman and more like receiving advice from some legendary senior whose realm he couldn't even fathom...
* * *
"Rain!"
Rain froze at the voice, grinding teeth like grinding gears, instinctively feeling fear. Glancing back, sure enough...
"Auntie, it's been a while. Hope you've been well."
It was Elin Ludwig.
A sharp-featured beauty with a delinquent outfit, like a feral cat.
Her long black hair and red eyes matched Rain Ludwig's features exactly. She was a professor at <Delaiten>.
"You think I'd be well? Aaaang?"
She threw an arm around his neck, yanked him close, and pummeled his scalp with her fist.
"Fighting the Eight Great Academies... no, a magic duel? Huh? Word's spreading all over campus. I must've misheard."
"Surprisingly, it's true."
"Oh yeah? Totally hopeless. Our cute nephew stirred up such a mess—how about we grab some daytime drinks to celebrate?"
"Ah, ow, that hurts! Really hurts!"
"You'll hurt ten times worse against Logan. Quit whining, you idiot!"
Only then did Elin release Rain, letting out a massive sigh. Rubbing the bump on his head, Rain asked,
"You came because you're worried?"
"Worried? Who said worried! Do I look like some pathetic aunt chasing down kids to ask where you went and waiting around because she cares about trash like you? Don't flatter yourself, you trash nephew!"
Auntie.
You must've searched high and low.
As Elin spun on her heel to storm off angrily, Rain said,
"Sorry, Auntie. I didn't know it was something I shouldn't do. I won't let it shame the family."
Elin's footsteps halted for a moment as she rounded the corner.
"Whatever. I was getting annoyed at people calling you trash young master anyway. Just a tiny bit."
"......"
"Might as well do it right since you're in it. Make sure no one else even dreams of crawling up. The Ludwig name's on your back."
With a loud sniff, Elin Ludwig vanished from sight as if to make sure he heard.
The Ludwig name, huh...
So you're bad at being honest. You came because you were worried about the family. Gotta make sure I don't disappoint and get you nagged forever.