Chapter 546

“Hooouu…”

Kamikita Emika was meditating with her eyes closed in the locker room.

Each time she exhaled, a white plume of breath, visible only in winter, escaped her lips.

The current temperature was 18 degrees Celsius.

The reason why doping tests are unnecessary for competitors in the Magic Combat Tournament is paradoxically due to the superior realm of Stepping.

The perfectly filled Aura Heart emitted raw mana and aura, creating a mysterious and intricate aura around her skin.

She frowned slightly and grasped her sword tightly.

A tiny fly that had been flying around cautiously was split in two and fell to the floor.

“Don’t lose your energy already, Emika.”

“If I were to lose with this, then losing would be appropriate.”

She cut off her master Koizumi Yoshihiro’s words.

However, her master instead wore a satisfied expression.

With her sharpened senses leading her, she left the locker room.

Knowing Noname’s skills better than anyone, Emika was fully prepared.

“If I make a mistake, it’s over; if I’m perfect, we’re equal; I must exceed perfection to win.”

With a favorable physique, operating perfectly in the match, it would certainly be impossible to lose.

However, Noname is a genius swordsman who can turn even the slightest mistake from her opponent into an avalanche.

In the past year, Emika had asked herself thousands of times, ‘What would Name do?’ and now she would face Name in a formal duel.

She stepped lightly into the elevator.

Imagining the audacious scene of stabbing the six-year-younger master in the back.

* * *

The dark blue night sky pushed away the afterglow of the sunset beyond the stadium ceiling.

As it passed nine o’clock, it seemed like it was time to leave work.

Instead, the global pop star Freya Sky appeared, brilliantly illuminating the opening stage of the finals.

Around that time, the head of the Katsuhata School, Dangju Akitaro, also revealed himself in the stands.

The Japanese Minister of Defense rose from his seat and requested a handshake with him.

After exchanging standard greetings, they sat down side by side.

“Isn’t it truly fascinating?”

The Minister of Defense squinted his eyes and subtly asked Dangju.

“What do you mean?”

“It has already been 28 years since we held the International Exchange Tournament. Through friendly competition between countries, the field of combat magic has made remarkable progress every year.”

Dangju Akitaro nodded his head.

The significance of the international exchange tournament.

It was meant to be a platform for young magicians to interact, as well as to evolve magic to a higher dimension based on the strategies carefully devised by each country.

Competition can sometimes serve as a powerful motivator.

“However, I still believe there are inherent limits to humans. There are limits unique to a 15-year-old and limits unique to a 16-year-old. I thought humanity, albeit slowly, was gradually approaching those limits, but what do we have here.”

“Ha ha.”

“What should we do when a being emerges that wholly denies the knowledge humanity has built over decades, or perhaps thousands of years… I found it laughable last night.”

“I understand.”

Akitaro turned his gaze toward the training hall.

The deafening cheers were so overwhelming that his ears felt dull, and his heart pounded.

And a being that mocked humanity’s advancement finally appeared on stage.

“How did Valpurigis give birth to such a bizarre being…?”

The Minister of Defense commented, and Akitaro rested his chin on his hand and added a fact.

“Do you know that Noname is having a tougher fight than it appears?”

“Hmmm?”

“If you watch today’s match closely, you will see that even when Emika leaves an opening, she does not strike immediately. Sometimes it might be a bluff check, but most of the time, the one who strikes ends up suffering greater damage. Of course, the situation does not change much even with a sword in hand.”

Finally understanding the words of Akitaro, the Minister of Defense’s eyes widened.

“Then the Black Aurora…”

“Yes, that’s why Noname introduced the Black Aurora into the match. She can’t wait for the aura to be at its maximum range, so she increases her power in an instant. In other words, she is engaging in a battle that is exponentially more complex than others.”

“Ugh… I think I must give up trying to understand.”

In any case, it was clear that the situation was beyond the realm of comprehension.

The two girls in the arena began charging their barriers.

The grand drumbeat heightened the tension in the stadium.

“Excuse me.”

“Today’s stage was wonderful!”

“Oh, thank you! Thank you!”

After Freya Sky finished her opening performance, she strolled down the aisle in the front row to find her seat.

The audience who had arrived just in time for the match start was not as few as expected.

In the bustling atmosphere, Name’s family finally showed up.

Professor Cheon Kyujin, and a mysterious silver-haired girl.

‘The hair… I’ve never seen that face before.’

Curious, Akitaro subtly shifted his eyes to the side.

Wiiing—

A drone camera flew in from down below the training hall.

“Where’s my seat, seat, where could it be? Ah, here it is.”

As she hummed a tune, Saetbyeol confirmed her seat number with her fingers and made her way toward her spot.

She had just accompanied Name from the locker room on the basement floor and rushed up.

In her flustered state, the audience couldn’t help but chuckle at her frantic demeanor as she sat.

Then, discovering the drone maintaining its altitude steadily in front of her, she blinked in surprise.

The camera’s lens was precisely aimed between Saetbyeol and Freya Sky.

As Saetbyeol unconsciously turned her head to the right, her eyes met with a nearby audience member.

“Um, would the adorable young lady like to say hello to us?”

“Pardon?”

“Over there.”

The heavily made-up woman pointed at the display screen and waved her hand warmly.

““Wowwww!””

Saetbyeol followed suit and waved, causing the audience to react loudly.

In the meantime, the woman resumed her position and prepared to watch the match as if nothing had happened.

Saetbyeol gazed at the sky with a faint smile.

The drones were all retrieved to the ground, and the stadium ceiling opened wide.

The moon, appearing much larger than usual, seemed ready to fall right above her.

‘Wow, this is so thrilling…’

Saetbyeol placed her hand on her chest, feeling her heart racing uncontrollably.

If she felt this way just watching comfortably, then the pressure must be unimaginable for the participants in the match.

[Final Match 128]

[Noname (South Korea)] [100% / 100%]

[Kamikita Emika (Japan)] [100% / 100%]

<[En garde!]>

A tranquil silence fell over the stadium at the signal,

<[Prêts?]>

With the second signal, energy rose against the moonlight.

<[Allez!]>

At the last signal, the two girls clashed in the center.

“Noname”

[Inside the Horn of the Mini Demon Lord (Continued) – Horn of Projection – Korea]

[Classification: Other Magic of the 3rd Circle]

[Rank: B]

[Imperial Palace Sword Method 1 – Introduction Sword (序劍)]

“Kamikita Emika”

[Inside the Horn of the Mini Demon Lord (Continued) – Horn of Fairy Tale – Korea]

[Classification: Other Magic of the 3rd Circle]

[Rank: B]

[Katsuhata School High School Sword Technique – Hotsunotachi (發之太刀)]

* * *

Just before the match began, Saetbyeol’s face briefly passed across the display screen.

Even next to the extravagantly dressed pop star due to the stage, she showed a commanding presence.

No further distractions were necessary.

Emika’s aura spun around the sword like a chainsaw, consuming her own aura.

Wiiing—!

Could one believe that the sword roared like a chainsaw?

In 2053, Emika’s swordsmanship had changed far too much compared to 2052.

Equipping swordsmanship, which had been conceptualized over hundreds of years, with explosiveness produced a weapon of mass destruction.

Emika held her sword long and weaved complex motions.

She created dozens of spiderweb-like geometric lines with her ancestral sword.

With an aura following the sword path every second, the secondary blade formed alongside it, demanding unnecessary memorization from her.

Clang—!

Rather than trying to escape this, she opted for a straight breakthrough.

[Imperial Palace Sword Method 400 – Spinning Cut]

She concentrated the aura into the ligaments and muscles of her arms, deflecting all the swords.

To stop just one initial move, she intercepted 18, or rather 36, swords.

In return, she gained a mere 1.5 seconds of extra time.

“I’ll take what I can get!”

[Casting: Black Aurora]

Crackling—

Lightning darted through the gaps between the swords, finally allowing them to clash against one another.

At this point, the situation could finally be considered even for her.

The difference in output was truly a difficult hurdle to overcome.

Twitch—

‘…!’

Emika’s toes dug slightly into the ground.

A deadly kick executed with her aura at its limit flew in.

Boom—!

She barely evaded the attack, catching the subtle movement by a fingertip’s difference.

However, she was hit by the externalized aura, and her body was thrown backward.

If she flew away helplessly from here, she would lose.

She twisted her body and planted her left hand on the ground.

As the sword strike approached, she bent her elbow and leaped.

Thud—!

Soil and grass mixed together.

She landed with a half turn on her two legs.

She exchanged glares with Emika, who had approached, then struck her chin with her knee.

Even that, Emika forcibly dodged by twisting her upper body.

Though Emika was facing away, she couldn’t feel at ease.

Just as she had feared, as expected.

Without even looking back, Emika grabbed her sword in reverse and stabbed it into her side.

Clang—!

She deflected the incoming sword to the side.

Meanwhile, a pair of horns above Emika’s head shone red.

[Casting: Trap of the Hollow]

A magic circle was inscribed on the ground.

Two traps sprang up from the earth, wrapping around her ankles.

This required triple casting.

[General Casting: Ignis Flanum]

Flames spread within a 5m radius, melting the traps.

As soon as it was her turn, she deflected Emika’s sword and straightened her own sword.

From the lower left, she slashed upward toward the knee.

Clang—!

With a motion like a baton, the sword rushed toward her side.

Clank—!

She retrieved her sword and made a quick jab to her abdomen, as if pushing out her fist.

Kaboom—!

“Ugh…!”

“Phew, that was fun, right?”

Not a bad effective strike.

In return, Emika’s counterattacks began to gradually chip away at her barriers.

“Grrrr!”

When her Japanese sword soared into the sky, she made an advance toward her neck a beat too early from below.

Thud—

“No!”

Emika thickened the aura around her grip, catching her sword.

She had fallen for the bluff.

Emika’s icy gaze intensified as she increased her grip.

‘This girl can already handle the Horn of the Demon Lord to that extent?’

She could not lose her sword.

It was still unfamiliar to retrieve the aura from her grip.

Immediately manifesting spikes from her aura, she aimed for her foot.

In the distraction, she spun around and dove into Emika’s arms, elbowing her abdomen.

While the grip of the sword weakened, she attempted to kick Emika’s diaphragm, but—

Emika quickly regained her stance and unleashed her technique.

[Katsuhata School High School Sword Technique – Yotsunotachi]

A terrifying blade cut through head, neck, chest, and abdomen in a Z pattern.

She blocked the strike aimed at the head, neck, and chest, but the last part transformed the technique and passed by her thigh.

Swoosh—!

But she couldn’t just take it.

“I’ll return what I received.”

“…!”

[Casting: Friction Coefficient Adjustment]

[Imperial Palace Sword Method 163 – Valley Cut]

Emika executed a mad technique to maintain her balance despite the friction coefficient adjustment.

She had to settle for merely grazing the barrier on her shoulder.

She finally turned her aura through a single cycle and caught her breath.

Emika, too, was breathing heavily, keeping her lips tightly closed.

“Hah… Hah… Time is going by so slow.”

[Final Match 128]

[Time: 01:12]

[Noname (South Korea)] [96% / 95%]

[Kamikita Emika (Japan)] [96% / 97%]

She must not forget.

That she had unleashed 249 continuous strikes against Cecilia last year within just five minutes.