Qualifying Round (2)
Sector Z, Match 99 is about to begin. Will you participate?
“Accept.”
A man with a shady demeanor, his robes disheveled, tapped the system window floating before his eyes.
Fwoosh.
As his vision cleared from the veil of blue light, he realized he was standing in the arena at the center of the coliseum.
“Hmph…”
Across from him in the opposite camp stood an opponent shrouded entirely in a robe.
Every inch of their body was concealed, leaving the man clueless about their race or gender—but one thing was clear: this was his foe in the duel.
Sector A match will begin shortly.
5
4
“Pretty secretive, huh.”
Mana began swirling around the man’s body.
“Got some identity so amazing you have to hide it like that?”
The mana coalesced, summoning hundreds of mana arrows into the air.
3
2
Stepping into a duel cloaked head to toe in a robe. They must really look down on me.
“To dare face this Ralph…!”
1
The match begins.
“To dare!”
The moment the transparent barrier at the arena’s center vanished, the man unleashed a barrage of arrows at his opponent.
“……What the hell is that.”
“Ralph…? Oh! That genius Ralph! The tragic prodigy who became an archmage at 20 but got excommunicated from the Magic Tower for his destructive tendencies!”
The spectators’ eyes turned to Sector Z’s arena, drawn by the spectacular sight of hundreds of mana arrows raining down.
“Behold! This is the great Ralph Erhardt in the flesh!”
BOOM!
The explosive roar echoed as the mana arrows poured forth. He was certain his opponent had been pulverized.
“……!”
As the smoke from the mana explosion cleared, Ralph saw his opponent standing unscathed.
“Ah. My bad. Forgot to turn off Absolute Defense.”
His opponent muttered calmly to themselves, casually flicking their fingers in the air.
“……You’ve got some skill, it seems. But this time will be different.”
The man gathered mana in both hands and slowly rose into the air.
“This Ralph Erhardt has created firepower unmatched by anyone in this era.”
Hundreds of mana orbs floated into the sky, just like before, forming spheres.
“The cowards in the Magic Tower feared this power and cast me out, but I perfected its essence.”
The orbs coalesced again, this time infused with even greater mana, elongating into the shape of massive swords.
“The ultimate firepower that no defense magic can possibly withstand!”
The reason he’d entered the duel tournament.
To showcase his achievement to the world and earn recognition.
To make those foolish old fools in the Magic Tower who excommunicated him tremble in fear.
I hadn’t planned to use it this quickly.
He’d intended to unveil it spectacularly on a grander stage.
But this opponent had blocked his arrow barrage.
He had no intention of taking it easy against an unpredictable foe.
“Ooh. Cool.”
From within the robe, his opponent gazed up at Ralph in a daze.
“……!”
Ralph’s mana pattern faltered for a split second.
Cool, huh.
When was the last time he’d heard those words?
That simple phrase rippled through his heart. Ever since his excommunication from the Magic Tower long ago, he’d thirsted for others’ approval.
The reason he’d started walking the path of magic.
It was to use magic as cool as the mage he’d met as a child.
Ralph shook his head fiercely.
No. I can’t let myself get swayed.
This magic wasn’t born from a desire for coolness.
The pinnacle of firepower.
The ultimate crushing force no one could rival—he had reached it.
He had to show the truth he’d discovered to all who banished and mocked him.
As Ralph’s mana pattern stabilized, the giant swords in the air began spinning rapidly.
“Guess I’ll give it a try too.”
……?
His still fully robed opponent was suddenly enveloped in a mana vortex and floated into the sky just like him.
“Like this?”
Hundreds of mana orbs materialized behind the opponent, swiftly forming giant swords identical to Ralph’s—even faster than he had.
What the……Impossible…….
Ralph’s jaw dropped at the unbelievable sight before his very eyes.
This is the magic I devoted my life to creating. The ultimate firepower no one could replicate……! H-how…….
This unknown figure copies my magic just by seeing it? And more effortlessly than me?
It couldn’t be.
It mustn’t be.
“You said firepower earlier?”
The opponent asked Ralph.
“……Huh?”
“Wanna give it a shot? A firepower showdown.”
“…….”
“The ultimate firepower, right?”
Grind.
Ralph gritted his teeth at the question.
No. It’s a trick. This magic is mine—I devised it, I created it. No one can wield it better than me just from seeing it once!
Ralph and Albus locked eyes in silence.
And in the next instant, as if on cue, giant swords from both sides rained down on each other.
BOOM! BOOM! KABOOM!
The spectators watched the mythical clash of firepower in awestruck silence, mouths agape.
BOOM! BOOM!
“……Ngh!”
Ralph felt his mana core ache. Overload from excessive mana use.
“Not yet……”
He glanced at his opponent.
Though the robe hid their face, they seemed fine, firing swords without flinching.
“Not yet……!”
This was the stage to showcase the essence of his lifelong firepower.
He couldn’t fall here.
Ralph squeezed out more mana forcibly, creating even more giant swords.
“Raaaaagh!”
I have to prove my achievement somehow……!
Crack.
“……Huh?”
Something shattered in his mana core. All his mana cut off in that instant.
Whoosh.
Thud.
Unable to maintain Flight, he plummeted to the ground.
“I can still……I can still……”
Flat on his back, Ralph tried to rise, but couldn’t even twitch a finger.
Tap.
His robed opponent landed beside him, still fully covered.
The robe loomed over Ralph, but darkness shrouded the face within—like it blocked vision entirely. A rare artifact, no doubt.
“……Ha. Never thought it’d end like this.”
He had no choice but to accept it. All was over.
Ten years of research amid scorn and persecution—shattered pathetically.
“My life’s masterpiece. After the Tower exiled me, I poured everything into perfecting this one spell over a decade.”
A pinnacle interception spell: smelting destructive mana into giant swords, maximizing power via spin and descent.
Firepower rivaling—if not surpassing—the legendary dragon’s breath.
He’d planned to display it proudly here.
To declare to the Tower’s cowards: I succeeded. I was right.
“But it was just an unfinished product anyone could copy by watching—hell, use better than me……Haha. What was it all for……”
Ralph stared at the sky, letting out a hollow laugh.
Did I achieve nothing after all?
Were those Tower elders right to exile me?
Then what now……
Ralph gently closed his eyes.
“No.”
A voice came from within the robe.
“That’s not true.”
Ultimate Firepower Rain (S)
Albus spoke, eyeing the skill name in his avatar’s status window.
“It’s stronger than any magic I’ve ever seen.”
Limited to single-target spells, though.
“…….”
Ralph’s eyes widened.
“……Ha. What the hell is this.”
He felt his eyes burn red.
“No, it’s weird. Why.”
Just a bit of praise for his magic, and why?
Why was a grown man bawling like a child?
It felt like approval from a higher being.
Like……yes. From a god directly.
* * *
Victory! You will be moved to the winner's lounge shortly.
Fwoosh. Albus warped to the lounge prepared for his new avatar, Jean.
What kind of first opponent is this……
LV 193 Ralph Erhardt
He’d hastily created an avatar to squeeze into the preliminaries, only to face an insanely strong player beyond imagination.
When his opponent went all-out, Albus nearly panicked and added an indestructible trait to the avatar.
But it was more manageable than I thought.
No matter that it was a game, spamming cheats killed the fun.
Bringing his real-world specs directly would one-shot anyone who brushed him.
The most fun games were tense back-and-forths ending in a razor-thin victory.
So Albus decided to fight on equal terms: same level, copy their abilities exactly.
His new avatar, Jean, gained the ability to copy the opponent’s powers.
Thus, Ralph’s magic became Ultimate Firepower Rain (S) in Albus’s avatar skillset.
Albus countered Ralph’s magic by using it exactly the same way.
Equal conditions, he thought.
A firepower battle of magic intercepting magic—like a shooter game from his past life.
And the result: victory.
Do I actually have talent?
In truth, the magic skillizing made it easier for Albus to handle, overwhelming Ralph—but Albus didn’t know that.
⊳ That concludes the first round of the duel tournament preliminaries.
⊳ Next round starts immediately.
Albus returned to his main body as the Demon King’s voice echoed through the broadcast.
“Wooooah!”
“So cool!”
“That’s what I’m talking about!”
The crowd, tired of weaklings getting crushed or boring underdog matches, cheered the flashy firepower clash.
Finally, they’d seen the top-rankers they’d hoped for.
“Never seen that guy before……”
“Another one to watch out for.”
Participants advancing to the next round hardened their faces at Ralph and Albus’s overwhelming power.
* * *
“Daddy!”
Back in his main body, Duamutef greeted Albus with her mouth stuffed full of ice cream.
“Dua. Did you watch Daddy closely?”
“Yeah!”
“How was it? See Daddy fight?”
“Yeah! Daddy cool!”
Duamutef leaped into Albus’s arms. He spread them wide and scooped her up.
“Heehee.”
Albus stroked the head of the girl burying her face in his chest.
But now that the first round’s done……how long till this ends……?
Albus wondered if he should’ve just made it a battle royale.
* * *
⊳ Huh? Oh?
⊳ Great news, everyone. GM is treating you all to special snacks.
“Special snacks?”
“What is it?”
Blue light appeared before every participant and spectator in the arena, materializing ice cream and chocolate tailored for each.
“Stuff……to eat?”
“……Shall we try?”
“Mmm……Yum……Huh?”
“It melts in your mouth! How is this flavor even possible?!”
“Wait, I think I saw this in the Labyrinth Shop?”
“Food of the gods!”
“Damn, GM again. Starting my worship now.”
“Everyone seems to like it?”
Albus smiled faintly at the positive response.
Worried the long tournament might bore participants, he’d distributed ice cream and chocolate to all.
A simple thought: Ice cream fixes drowsiness.
That casual dessert drop would later spark a revolution in the continent’s dessert scene.