[Quarterfinals First Match: Irene vs Julia / Winner: Irene]
[Quarterfinals Second Match: Tarkan vs Kurok / Winner: Tarkan]
[Quarterfinals Third Match: Sagran vs Lagmar / Winner: Lagmar]
[Quarterfinals Fourth Match: Theo vs Abigail / Winner: ?]
Finally, only the last match of the quarterfinals remained.
Theo and Abigail stood in the arena, ready to face off.
Abigail's cheeks were flushed with excitement.
'I can't believe I've made it to the quarterfinals!'
She was the only student from the Order of Light who had managed to reach this stage.
Students from the Order weren't particularly strong in one-on-one combat, specializing instead in group battles with their array of buffs, most of which could be applied to others as well.
She had been lucky with her matchups, not having to face any students from the Hero Department on her way to the quarterfinals.
Still, her opponents were challenging enough to make her sweat profusely, almost completely ruining her makeup.
'My opponent is not bad either.'
Her current opponent, Theo from the Hero Department, had advanced to the quarterfinals without a single scratch, emerging as a top contender for the tournament victory.
But she preferred facing the handsome Theo over battling less aesthetically pleasing beings like orcs or lizardmen.
She might lose this match, but it didn't matter much to her.
The martial arts tournament was a perfect opportunity to showcase herself to a large audience.
Who knows?
She might even land some effective hits on him.
If she did, her value in the upcoming Aide recruitment would surely increase.
'That guy... he's unexpectedly been on my mind.'
Because of Theo, Abigail had failed to secure the top spot in the donations ranking during the [Night of Light] event.
The amount he donated to the clueless Alphs was more than what she had received from 23 others combined.
Furthermore, his question about Alphs' whereabouts at the event had embarrassingly exposed her to others.
'I'll make sure to land a solid hit on him!'
Abigail gazed at Theo standing before her.
As usual, he was expressionless.
In contrast, she greeted him with a bright smile.
"Hello, Theo. We've met before, haven't we?"
"......"
Theo did not respond.
Instead, he just calmly looked at her.
A slightly flustered Abigail continued.
"You asked me about Alphs' location during the [Night of Light] event... you remember, right?"
"......Hmm, I didn't recognize you."
As Theo nodded, Abigail's smile became noticeably brighter.
However, her smile vanished almost immediately.
It was because of a comment he added.
"Your makeup skills are quite impressive. Even Aisha would concede."
Makeup skills.
That was a sore point for Abigail.
The announcer burst into laughter at Theo's unexpected remark.
─Hahaha, ha ha ha! Ahahaha─!
"......"
Abigail's anger intensified because of the announcer's uncontrolled laughter.
As she glared at the announcer, he abruptly stopped laughing.
Appearing embarrassed, the announcer said,
─Ahahaha... I apologize, Miss Abigail. I'm just too prone to laughter... Ahem. Anyway, let's begin the last quarterfinal match of the Elinia Academy Martial Arts Tournament now!
As soon as the match started, Abigail charged straight at Theo.
She knew his pattern was to observe his opponent rather than attack first.
Whooooosh─!
Abigail swung her practice spear with full force.
But Theo effortlessly dodged it.
'Time for my second strategy!'
Tap, tap-tap, tap.
She stepped back swiftly, moving out of his range.
Then she watched him cautiously, planning to use a holy buff.
The holy buff she intended to use required about three seconds to cast, leaving her completely vulnerable during that time.
“......?”
However, Theo didn't advance.
He simply stood still, watching her intently.
Abigail smirked.
"Such arrogance will choke you, noble sir."
Immediately, she activated the holy buff.
The buff she used was the Third Commandment of Renimid, [Saint Punishing Darkness], a important buff for knights of the Order that enhances all stats for a certain duration.
Bright light burst forth from Abigail's body.
Unfazed, Theo watched her and smirked subtly.
He remained motionless, just standing there.
Even freshmen at the academy were aware of the terror of a holy buff.
But he just let her use it?
Understanding his intent, Abigail frowned.
"......Alright then, I'll do as you wish. Don't regret it later."
She then consecutively used several holy buffs.
Abigail activated all the holy buffs she could, even one with a ten-second casting time, almost impossible to use in a one-on-one duel.
On the continent, there's an almost manual-like approach to facing knights of the Order.
The most crucial rule is never to give the knight a chance to use their buffs, as their presence or absence makes a significant difference.
'I won’t let this slide. What do you take me for?'
A shimmering white light enveloped Abigail, empowering her with divine energy.
Engulfed in the surge of empowerment, Abigail lowered her eyes towards Theo.
"I don't know what you were thinking, giving a knight of the Order time to use buffs..."
She lunged at Theo with a speed more than double than before.
"It's too late for regrets now!"
Abigail was confident.
Even her primary weapon, a long spear, was quite distinct from the typical one-handed weapon and shield combination used by other knights in her order.
It was a two-handed weapon.
In other words, her attack power was among the highest in her class of first-year knights.
However.
"What, what... Uh?"
Suddenly, her legs wouldn't move.
A sharp pain surged up from her thigh.
It was his sword that had pierced her leg.
Swoosh, swoosh──!
His sword relentlessly continued its assault.
However, Abigail, bolstered by all her holy buffs, wasn't easily overcome.
Using only the strength of her upper body, she swung her spear, deflecting all his attacks.
"Hmm."
Theo, seemingly impressed, widened his eyes and increased the speed of his attacks.
Abigail focused entirely on defense.
'My strength is about twice its normal level right now. I'll finish this with one strike when he shows an opening!'
But Theo, as if he could read her mind, intensified his fierce onslaught.
His attacks were intense, but she could fend them off.
They were too simple.
'Wait?'
...It almost seemed like he was testing how long she could last, checking her endurance.
After about three minutes of continuous defense, Abigail started to sense something odd.
The Theo she had observed until now wasn't one to rely solely on physicality.
He was more known for his refined techniques.
Why would he then resort to such simplistic attacks?
"......Are you playing with me!"
Enraged, Abigail knocked his sword aside with her spear and thrust directly at his heart.
Although some buffs had expired, her attack still carried significant weight.
But it was easily blocked.
His sword roughly deflected her spear.
Her grip loosened, and her stance wavered.
"!"
It was the perfect moment for a counterattack.
However, Theo didn't launch a counter.
Instead, he gazed at Abigail with a calm expression.
"......The buff's effectiveness remains unchanged. That's good."
"......What?"
Her question went unanswered.
Instead, he simply raised his sword.
Then Theo swiftly struck down with his sword.
"Well done, Abigail."
Clang──!
Theo's practice longsword struck hard against Abigail's head.
"Ah...... Ah......"
And with that, her consciousness faded away.
In the last remaining contenders' waiting room, where Theo had been.
Alice, regaining consciousness, sat up and glanced around.
"Ugh, my head. That was one heck of a nightmare. But where am I...? Oh, right, my face, my face!"
She immediately remembered being pummeled by Theo and checked the wall mirror.
"What...? What's this? How is it like this?"
Her face was fine.
There were bloodstains, but they easily wiped off with her sleeve.
Her split lip and swollen eyes were also normal.
She rubbed the area near her left chest.
The artifact was still in place where she had worn it.
"......Was it all a dream?"
Of course, it couldn't be.
She couldn't be in such an unfamiliar place.
She stood up from the bench and moved around to check her body.
Everything worked well, with no apparent broken parts.
As she was stretching,
"Oh, what's this?"
She found something near her head.
It was a note.
"Let's see..."
She began to read immediately.
"......!"
Her face turned pale as she read the contents.
The note instructed her to stay put and wait in the current location if she woke up.
"Oh no."
Hoping it was all a dream, she slapped her cheeks.
Naturally, it hurt.
"What should I do?"
Creeeak─
Alice heard the sound of a door opening.
"......!"
Before she could think, her body reacted.
"......"
She quickly lay back down on the bench, pretending to be asleep.
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