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Chapter 47

“There’s no way she wouldn’t. She challenged him so openly.”

“Maybe she’s just creating a scene before being expelled. Since she was diagnosed with mana impairment, she can’t become a hero anyway.”

Although many were here because they were curious about the duel, only a few actually believed that Luize would show up. After all, the mere idea of overcoming mana impairment seemed far-fetched, and more importantly, Gerwin wasn’t the kind of opponent who could be overlooked.

“I told you, she’s just trying to bring the incident from six months ago back into the spotlight.”

“Some say that she already fled overseas.”

“If this is a bust, let’s just go grab some food.”

In the end, most of the students had come with light hearts, simply stopping by during a weekend stroll.

And watching all of their reactions was Se-Hoon, who was sitting on the benches.

“See? I told you they’re not expecting much from you,” he said, stuffing the last third of his triangular gimbap into his mouth.

“Shut up,” Luize responded gruffly.

Finishing a triangular gimbap, she readjusted her slightly askew hat and pushed up the sunglasses perched on her nose. To anyone looking, her bizarre disguise made her stand out suspiciously. Watching her, Se-Hoon simply sighed in disbelief.

“I wonder how the duel is going to go down...”

“Ah, shut it!”

“Alright, alright. Okay.”

Regardless of how it looked to others, if covering up like that made her feel more comfortable, what could he do? He just quietly sat next to her tense figure and unwrapped another triangular gimbap.

Thirty minutes until the duel...

She should have already been making her way to the waiting room, but Luize showed no sign of getting up from the bench.

That was when he realized that this was her first duel after six months of rehabilitation. Her opponent was the person who had defeated her before, and she would be in front of over a thousand spectators who had come to watch. It would be odd if she wasn’t nervous.

“As I said before, don’t shrink back in any situation.”

But instead of trying to empathize with her, he further pressured her.

“Incantation Magic loses its power if your confidence wanes. If you can’t even handle a duel like this, you won’t be able to use even a quarter of your real strength in actual combat.”

Before the regression, Luize often repeated that the true test for an incantation mage was how well they could fare against a stronger opponent. If they didn’t have the confidence to win, then they wouldn’t satisfy one of the most important aspects of Incantation Magic. After all, no matter how exceptional one’s skills may be during practice, it was all meaningless if it couldn’t be replicated during real combat.

“I know already. Enough with the lectures...”

She grumbled in dissatisfaction and stuffed the last triangular gimbap into her mouth, pulling up the mask she had lowered beneath her chin.

After chewing for a while, she asked with her head slightly bowed, “You said I would win, right?”

“Of course. There’s no reason you would lose.”

“...Right.”

There is no reason to lose. She repeated it quietly to herself and slowly stood up.

“I’m going, then.”

“Alright. I’ll head to the waiting room before it starts.”

“Don’t, you’ll just be a distraction,” she brusquely responded before heading inside.

Se-Hoon looked on with a vague expression.

“Hm...”

Judging from her skill level, her performance with Vargr, and how the magic she used was superior to her opponent’s, there should be no way she could lose.

Well, that’s if she can fully utilize her skills...

The Luize he knew before the regression had the temperament of a wild beast. Even if she was nervous, she would become more frenzied as the battle progressed.

However, compared to when she was the Blast Dog Luize, who had experienced many ups and downs in her life, the current Luize was only a little kid.

That meant that there was still a chance she would make mistakes even when everything seemed to be in her favor.

Hmm... maybe I should encourage her more.

He wouldn’t have bothered if she was still the Blast Dog, since she’d probably just tell him to get lost, but as she was right now, she might actually appreciate it, albeit grumpily. Although he felt a bit embarrassed, he resolved to help her turn over a new leaf.

“Fine. I’ll give it a try.”

Before the regression, he had been told not to praise others too liberally, but just this once, if he spoke sincerely, maybe she would understand.

His mind made up, he stood ready to leave. But suddenly, there was a strange ringing in his ears.

It was faint enough that one wouldn’t notice without focusing, but he felt all his senses sharpen.

What’s that noise?

His physical abilities were currently among the lowest in the academy, so if the students around him weren’t reacting, then it wasn’t a matter of hearing abilities. They would have far better hearing than him after all.

Pretending not to hear anything, he immediately began moving naturally. He had to find the source of the ringing that made him feel disconnected from everything he was seeing.

If it’s not a problem with my ears, then there has to be a certain reason why only I can hear it.

Normally, he wouldn’t react so sensitively, but it was the day of Luize’s duel. He had been wary of Dawn since he knew they didn’t want her to win and overcome her trauma.

Reaffirming his decision to locate the source of the sound, he immediately utilized his mana to enhance his hearing.

However, when the surrounding noises became clearer, the ringing grew fainter. He narrowed his eyes at the discovery.

Is this...

Having a rough idea of what the source of the ringing was, he quickly subdued his mana and employed Soul Honing, which unfolded a temporary channel within him.

The moment an unoccupied channel, one yet to be filled with mana, was established, the ringing he had been hearing grew louder. It was now incomparably clearer, and he could feel something burrowing through the empty channels.

He immediately realized what was causing the ringing.

It’s the mana corrosion!

The greenish mana that had taken root within him before was struggling inside him, causing the ringing. Realizing the truth, he wasted no time and rushed to find what was triggering the mana corrosion.

I don’t know what they’re aiming for, but I need to stop it right now.

Without Luize knowing, he had secretly used the mana corrosion device a few times, but he had always burnt it away after with Scarlet Lotus. So if the scant remnants were reacting this strongly, Luize, who had been subjected to long-term corrosion, would be overwhelmed.

He had to find and eliminate whatever was triggering the mana corrosion as quickly as possible and then check on Luize’s condition. The effect it had on himself didn’t matter.

In order for them to make sure that Luize is affected, they likely would have put it near the waiting room or the arena.

Remembering that Luize’s waiting room was on the third floor, he rushed up the stairs, forcing mana into the Inkstone bracelets wrapped around his limbs.

With less mana in his body, the mana corrosion moved more freely, causing the once faint ringing to now sound like a clear screech in his ears. With the new clarity, he was able to roughly determine where it was coming from.

Whoosh!

Quickly pulling out the Black Flame Hammer he received from Jake from his void pocket, he swung it with all his might toward the storage room door that was tucked away in the corner of the third-floor corridor.

Crash!

The locked doorknob shattered instantly, revealing the neatly organized storage room. Quickly scanning the items inside, his gaze finally landed on a large cardboard box.

That must be it.

He immediately recognized that whatever was in the box was his target.

He gripped the hammer and moved toward it, but at that moment—

“You’ve been dreaming a rather long dream, haven’t you?”

A woman’s voice came from behind, freezing his body in place. Although it was a familiar voice, he froze because of how improbable it was to hear in this timeline.

“How long do you intend to keep up these childish pranks? You’re embarrassing me.”

“...”

“Don’t you find it funny that you were sent back to the distant past by that worthless dagger?”

Hearing the woman’s question, which was clearly a taunt, Se-Hoon calmly responded, “Well, it’s not impossible.”

“No. It is. You always try to make sense out of unreasonable situations.”

The voice grew closer, and the surroundings blurred. Then, a familiar sound followed.

Swoosh-

A black wave surged from afar, slowly sweeping away the landscape there. His body, which had returned to its young days, also began to crumble, returning to the battered and blood-soaked aged body he once knew.

Looking ahead, the sight of three figures sitting powerlessly and the image of the world on the brink of destruction reappeared before his eyes.

“Dreams are like that. They feel endlessly long when you’re in them, but once you wake up, you realize how fleeting they are.”

“...”

“The wave is coming. Are you still willing to live on, so disgracefully?”

The voice behind him tickled his ears, manipulating him to softly grip the handle of the hammer in his hand. Right before being swallowed by the wave, he was urged to smash his head.

Hearing the woman’s words, Se-Hoon slowly raised his hand.

“There’s just one thing to correct.”

Without turning his head, he spoke to the illusion of his master behind him.

“My master wouldn’t make such a lengthy speech to tell me to drop dead.”

Whoosh!

The hammer, charged with all his mana, flew forward, tearing through the hallucination.

Crash!!

And with a loud noise, the cardboard box was crushed, causing everything to vanish. Having confirmed that it was now quiet, he slowly caught his breath.

“Phew...”

The Inkstone bracelets, filled with his mana, felt like they were dragging his limbs down. His body felt heavy, like a sponge soaked in water, but it firmly confirmed that this was reality and not some dream.

Of course, even that could be a falsehood, but he cut off the thought quickly.

It doesn’t matter. This is the reality I’m in right now.

There was no need or reason to worry any longer; he confirmed that fact every morning. Now full of certainty, the greenish mana lingering in his body completely dissolved and disappeared.

[Skill ‘Awakening Dream (C)’ has been acquired.]

He had suddenly acquired a new skill, one he had never seen, not even before the regression.

What is this...?

He puzzled over it, but he soon realized the situation he was in and shook his head.

I’ll deal with it later.

He ensured that there were no issues with his body, then quickly set aside the hammer that had crushed the cardboard box and looked inside.

Buzz-

Inside the box was a mechanical device so brutally destroyed that its original form was unrecognizable. As he reached out to it to examine it—

Fwoosh!

The device suddenly ignited, burning to ashes without leaving a trace. The evidence disappearing right before his eyes was disheartening, but his eyes sparkled because he had learned something more important.

This is Dawn’s doing.

It was Dawn’s classic method of cleaning up traces. Having seen it a few times before, he was able to recognize it immediately.

It’s a pity to lose the evidence... but it’s not the worst.

He had been able to confirm all of his suspicions of who was behind all of the schemes. Shaking off the disappointment, he checked the time.

There are still ten minutes left until the duel.

The ringing stimulated the trauma of those affected by mana corrosion, driving them to harm themselves. But even if he considered the fact that he had accelerated the corrosion, if he was affected this much, then Luize would have been affected quite dramatically.

No... she’ll be okay.

She might have been vulnerable before, but after two weeks of growth, he believed that she would be able to endure. Believing firmly in that faith, he once again pushed his tired body and ran toward Luize.

***

“Whew...”

Arriving in the waiting room, Luize sat down and looked at the mirror in front of her. Despite the turmoil inside her head, her face was calm, which surprised her. But thanks to how composed she looked, it slightly eased her tension.

It’s going to be okay.

Her physical condition was good, and her mind was clear. There was no reason that she would lose this time. Like a prayer, she murmured that to herself in the mirror.

“I can do this.”

Even if it seemed impossible, believing in oneself was the standard of being an Incantation Mage. Recalling Se-Hoon’s advice, she continued praising herself.

But amidst her session, a faint ringing started ringing in her ears. It wasn’t loud, but it was irritatingly noticeable. Luize furrowed her brow and looked around.

Is it coming from there?

She looked at a speaker attached to the ceiling, thinking that something might have gone wrong with the mic test before the duel.

Assuming it would be fixed soon, she covered her ears and tried to focus again.

However, the ringing didn’t stop, and as time passed, the sound only grew louder, making her feel nauseous.

“Ah, seriously...”

If it continued bothering her like this, she knew that nothing would go right, not the duel or anything else. Annoyed, she got up from her seat, intending to leave the waiting room, when suddenly—

“...Huh?”

The ringing disappeared.

She looked at the speaker with a strange expression; it had disappeared so suddenly that it was as if the silence had never been broken.

“What was that...?”

Even though the ringing was resolved, she felt uneasy.

Shaking her head to clear the distracting thoughts, she released the doorknob and turned around.

“...”

That was when her neck, wrapped in white bandages, came into view.

She had never once removed these bandages, not even when bathing or sleeping. They had become as familiar to her as her own skin, and yet, for some reason, she felt somewhat suffocated by her appearance.

Maybe it’s because I’m still wearing these even though I’ve already healed.

If she continued looking like this, she felt that no matter how much she insisted she was healed, no one would believe her. Thus after some brief contemplating, she made a decision.

It should be fine.

She was no longer the person who didn’t dare to change her own bandages. Slowly raising her hand, she began to peel off the tape and unwrap the several layers of bandages.

And then, her unusually pale skin was exposed.

Woosh-

A scar crossing half her neck was reflected in the mirror. Although she had seen the scar in photographs during check-ups and heard descriptions, this was her first time seeing it in person.

It’s okay...

It was a completely healed wound that wouldn’t hurt anymore. She continued reassuring herself of this obvious fact repeatedly, yet her body never stopped trembling.

“Huff... huff...”

Her breathing became rough, chills ran through her body, and her vision shook unstably. She tried to look away due to the discomfort that surged up, but no matter how hard she tried, her eyes wouldn’t leave the scar.

“Huff... cough...”

Her breathing refused to calm down, and the chills that covered her body quickly drenched her in sweat. She started to feel a headache so intense that it was as if her head were about to split, and at the same time, a nauseating sensation that twisted her stomach.

On the verge of losing consciousness, she reflexively tightened the bandages around her neck with her own hands.

“Cough...”

Though the tangled bandages dug into her neck, her hands didn’t stop tightening them. And when she completely used up the bandages, she slowly lifted her head to look at her reflection in the mirror.

“...”

Her hair was disheveled, and her face was covered in cold sweat. The bandages around her neck were wrapped tighter than ever before. Exposed to her pathetic state, her once-firm resolve wavered.

I haven’t...

She realized that she hadn’t changed at all.

Neither Incantation Magic nor Vargr had transformed her. It didn’t matter that she was able to use magic thanks to Se-Hoon or that Vargr significantly boosted her power.

Realizing this, a question bloomed in her heart.

Will I really be fine?

Could she really defeat Gerwin Kruger in this state?

If it were just him alone, perhaps, but behind him stood Vier Barmuth and her once-trusted mentor, Professor Charles.

“...”

Who knew what tricks could have been set up in the arena, or even within this very waiting room? The endless surge of doubt and fear gnawed at her heart, distorting the view of the waiting room reflected in the mirror.

And naturally, her gaze fell to her neck.

Drip-

Suddenly, the tightly wrapped bandages around her neck had been stained red.

“Cough...”

There was absolutely no reason for a healed wound to suddenly reopen. But, even though she knew that the vision before her was a hallucination caused by a panic attack, she reflexively gripped her neck tightly with both hands.

Yet, no matter how hard she pressed down on her neck to stop the bleeding, blood continued to seep through the gaps in her fingers.

“This is all hallucination. I’m not bleeding.”

Despite desperately murmuring this to herself, her face, reflected in the mirror, had already lost all its color.

No, not like this...

She had become unable to trust the scene before her eyes and even her own sensations.

If it were true that she had been ambushed and genuinely injured, then what? The thought made it impossible for her to deny the reality of the scene before her any longer.

I need to stop this bleeding.... I need something... anything...

Scanning her surroundings, she spotted a towel in front of the mirror and hurriedly reached out with her right hand.

Ripp-

Right before her eyes, beyond her shredded right hand, her neck which had been torn more than halfway through was reflected back at her.

She immediately spewed liquid out of her mouth, too disoriented to even determine whether it was blood or bile. Immediately losing her balance right after, she fell to the ground and curled up, closing her eyes and covering her ears.

I don’t like this.

She instinctively knew this was the trauma Se-Hoon said she must overcome.

But when faced with the obstacle she needed to surmount, she chose to turn away instead of confronting it.

I don’t want to fail again.

How could she, unchanged, overcome such a thing? She felt that she would surely fail and become miserable again.

I don’t want to disappoint him.

She questioned whether Se-Hoon would still help her if she failed again this time. She was certain that he only valued her talent.

She was terrified of what would happen if that talent proved to be insignificant. Her thoughts spiraled down and down, each one sinking her consciousness further and further. And just when she was about to sink into the depths—

Bang!

The door burst open, abruptly ending her spiraling thoughts and allowing her to breathe.