The battle between the genius noble girl and Gloom Vilefang has ended.
The result is a victory for the genius noble girl.
The content of her victory was overwhelming, without a doubt.
As expected of a genius.
On the other hand, Gloom’s idea of trying to bring the fight to close combat wasn’t bad, but… it was ultimately half-hearted, and his movements were lacking.
If he had trained in close combat beforehand, he might have fought better.
Or perhaps… there’s a chance that the genius noble girl can engage in close combat as well.
In that case, a little training would be futile.
Well, it’s best to move on from the first match… Next up is the second match, where my brother will compete.
He’ll probably win anyway.
(Third Person Perspective)
“Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for waiting! We will now move on to the second match!”
The announcer’s voice resonates through the noisy venue.
“In this second match, we have the embodiment of the storm, Rowen Raynostia, who blew away all competition in the preliminaries, against the King of Escape, Isirion Emilirance!”
In the battle arena, Rowen and Isirion face each other from a distance.
Rowen wears his usual calm expression, while Isirion sports a somewhat sinister grin.
Isirion, having watched Rowen’s match, must be aware of his abilities.
Additionally, Isirion’s performance in the preliminaries was hardly impressive.
He merely ran away.
Despite this, the sinister grin suggests he has some sort of plan.
“Rowen Raynostia, who dominated the preliminaries! And Isirion Emilirance, who won by fleeing! It’s clear that Rowen is at an advantage! Unlike the preliminaries, this match is one-on-one! You can’t just run away and expect victory to come to you; you must seize it with your own strength!”
In the preliminaries, with ten participants, running away allowed competitors to eliminate each other.
So even with lower skills, there was a chance to win.
However, the main event is different.
There’s almost no element of luck in a one-on-one match.
It’s a simple showdown to see who is stronger.
“Now, let’s begin the second match!”
The signal to start echoes.
One second, two seconds…
Neither moves.
“I don’t know what you’re thinking, but—’Dancer of Wigmalga'”
Calmly walking, Rowen activated his signature magic, Wigmalga.
Extremely thin, razor-sharp blades of air swirled around Rowen.
Dozens of them.
“Go.”
With just a word.
At Rowen’s command, the swirling blades of air flew toward Isirion, slicing through the air.
From the front, above, right, left, diagonally.
Blades of air attacked Isirion from every angle.
If all hit, his barrier would shatter.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa… uh, ah, th-this is bad! What!?”
Isirion panicked and managed to dodge all of them, losing his footing and collapsing face-first onto the ground.
“Isirion Emilirance! He dodged the attacking blades of air—impressive for the King of Escape! Avoiding magic is second nature to him!”
His posture may have been awkward, but dodging the blades from every direction without a scratch is remarkable.
He truly deserves the peculiar title of King of Escape.
“Starting off… pretty dangerous, huh, Rowen?”
Still on the ground, he lifted his head and addressed Rowen.
His face and tone seemed confident, but his awkward position and the cold sweat running down his face made it quite a strange sight.
“Ha ha… that’s funny…”
Rowen couldn’t help but chuckle at the odd scene.
But now was not the time to laugh.
It wasn’t appropriate, especially against an opponent he was fighting.
Thinking this, Rowen refocused and brought Isirion back into his sight.
“Buha!”
Rowen burst out laughing again.
He knew he shouldn’t be laughing.
He understood he needed to focus.
However… he couldn’t hold it back.
People are creatures that tend to laugh more the more they tell themselves not to.
Rowen was no exception.
“Haha… heehee… that face and… that outfit are just unfair!”
It wasn’t that it was particularly funny.
In fact, there were probably more people who wouldn’t find it amusing.
Yet for some reason, Rowen found it hilarious.
And this was a fatal opening.
“Hahaha! Fool! You’ve fallen into my trap! Feel the embarrassment of losing in such a silly way! Take this—Halhaira, a simple strike!”
A spell that has no attributes, merely condensing his magic power and sending it flying.
Under normal circumstances, one could easily defend against it as if swatting a fly.
However, Rowen was currently in a state of disarray.
This was not typical behavior for him.
“This match! I’ve got it!”
Isirion declared loudly.
Before the Halhaira that Isirion launched, Rowen was still unable to move.
He was just doubled over with laughter.
Thus, Isirion was certain of his victory.
“Isirion Emilirance’s Halhaira charges at Rowen Raynostia, who is laughing uncontrollably! Can this really be happening? Will the King of Escape actually win?!”
Both the announcer and the audience were excited by this unexpected situation.
But—
“Hahaha… haah, what a nuisance.”
Slap!
“Huh?”
With a strange sound, the Halhaira launched by Isirion changed its trajectory and collided with the barrier protecting the audience.
“Well, that was a good strategy, but Halhaira is just a lump of magic power. It’s bound to be easy to take control of.”
Rowen lectured as if it were obvious, leaving Isirion dumbfounded.
“You took control!? I understand what you’re saying! I know it’s theoretically possible! But that’s not a technique a twelve-year-old boy could pull off!”
To hijack someone else’s magic, precise magical control is necessary.
It’s like using a wire to pick a lock.
A skilled magician could do it, but it was not a technique that a twelve-year-old Rowen could manage.
“What the hell!? Damn it! You’re the one who’s cheating! …What if I just called you ‘you’? Am I gonna lose my head for that?”
Frustration overflowing, Isirion twitched at having addressed the first son of a marquis so casually.
Isirion’s family, the Emilirance family, held the title of count.
It was, in every sense, disrespectful.
“That’s fine. More importantly, let’s hurry up and continue. I won’t laugh like before.”
Rowen was generally laid-back about such things.
Moreover, Isirion’s way of speaking didn’t bother him, so he didn’t particularly mind.
What mattered now was continuing the fight.
Because he had been laughing and goofing off from the start, he wanted to reset and enjoy the match.
However, his opponent was the King of Escape, Isirion.
“I appreciate your generous heart… but! Since I can’t win in a head-on fight, I will run away! I will keep running to find an opportunity, so please bear with me!”
He made a pathetically bold declaration.
“Oh!? Isirion Emilirance has declared his retreat! How pathetic! How cowardly! But it’s part of his strategy! In a sense, it’s fitting behavior for the King of Escape!”
“Run away!”
“How pathetic!”
“Fight!”
Boos erupted from the commoners in the audience.
“Shut up! There’s no way I can win in a head-on fight!”
Isirion shouted back at the hecklers.
“Don’t you get angry when they say things like that?”
“Huh? Oh, those guys are friends from my childhood. It doesn’t bother me.”
“Really? That’s nice. Interesting.”
“Well then, could you go easy on me?”
“Yeah—no can do!”
“Figures!”
The standoff abruptly ended, and the battle between Rowen and Isirion began.
“Once again, the battle between Rowen Raynostia and Isirion Emilirance has commenced! But it’s not a fierce exchange of magic! The embodiment of the storm, Rowen Raynostia, launches attacks while the King of Escape, Isirion Emilirance, runs away! It’s like a hunt!”
Isirion was clearly not interested in attacking, focusing entirely on fleeing.
“Whoa!? Hah, whoa, close call!?”
Meanwhile, Rowen was relentlessly targeting him with his wind magic.
“You’re running pretty well… as expected of the King of Escape?”
The battle was clearly in Rowen’s favor.
However, in a duel, a momentary lapse could lead to a reversal.
Rowen maintained his concentration as he cast spells, while Isirion looked for even the slightest opening.
This situation seemed likely to continue for a while, but—
“Hmm… you’re pretty good. Time to get serious.”
“Eh?”
“Twist and swirl—Wighalito Saika, the Storm’s Blinding Disaster!”
The weak currents of air around them came to a halt.
In the next moment, the wind began to swirl around Rowen.
Two seconds later.
A fierce, swirling wind spread out, transforming the entire combat area into a storm zone.
“Whoa! Is this even allowed!?”
It was a range attack, leaving no escape.
Desperately, Isirion tried to defend by casting a spell, but he was blown away like a wooden structure in a tempest, reduced to splinters.
“Wh—what!?”
He was caught up in the storm, battered and bruised.
The sound of his magical barrier shattering echoed, and Rowen’s tempest finally ceased.
“Ugh…”
Isirion crashed to the ground.
“—Match over! The winner of the second main match is the embodiment of the storm, Rowen Raynostia! The early part of the match was confusing, but once the dust settled, it was overwhelming! Just like in the preliminaries, Rowen’s storm blew everything away!”
The venue erupted in applause.
From just the result, it was a decisive victory for Rowen, but the audience likely felt something more.
“Damn it… I lost…”
“You were refreshing and interesting to watch.”
“Is that a jab?!”
“No, no, I’m being sincere.”
Isirion sat on the ground, sulking.
“Oh, I slipped into casual speech again…”
“You don’t need to be formal. It gives me the creeps when you speak politely.”
“You’re a pretty awful guy, aren’t you?!”
“What are you talking about? I’m a kind person.”
“Sigh…”
The victor and the vanquished.
Yet there was no animosity between them.
It seemed like they had a good relationship.
