Chapter 246

Newt, the D-Ranker pyromancer. Baz, the man in the blue bandana with the underhanded tactics. I had assumed that Newt would make it a rather one-sided battle… I was wrong.

Surprisingly, Baz showed that he could fight one on one as well. He was discerning enough to read the movements of sorcerers and fight accordingly. Perhaps he was also lucky to have an opponent like Newt, who was a very traditional type of sorcerer and was not particularly high in rank. Baz had clearly done his homework.

However, while Baz made a good show at first, with the way he dodged the Fire Arrows, he was eventually taken down by a spell called ‘Ignition Road.’

“It is a subtype of fire magic. An original that had been created by someone a long time ago. You can see how it runs towards the target in a straight line there. It is quite unique.”

I nodded as Master Daniela explained.

“At higher levels, the power and number of lines will increase. A very effective attack.”

“I see… Newt’s was just one, but with enough training, it could be monstrous.”

“With enough training, yes.”

I sighed and watched as Newt returned to where we were sitting. He was thin and looked rather weak-willed. Like a flame that was about to be swallowed up by the waves… I bet he would have had more success as a researcher.

□ □ □ □

Next up was my very own Daniela.

“Daniela. Good luck.”

“Aye. I will not let my guard down.”

She stood up and we bumped fists. Then I watched as she headed for the stage.

Her opponent, Neyti Miniado, jogged behind her. Neyti had only happened to survive while Bandi was fighting. He was most likely a permanent B-Ranker. And yet it took a lot to reach that rank. You could never be too careful.

“I look forward to…battling you.”

“Aye.”

Daniela was holding her bow while Neyti faced her with a sword and shield.

“Begin!”

The referee shouted, and the battle began.

Daniela jumped back to create some distance between them. And she fired off two arrows while still airborne. Neyti adeptly blocked them with his shield. However, it seemed to me that Daniela had meant for him to do that.

“Hmm.”

“Ugghh…!”

Daniela stared at him. Neyti’s shield hand was opening and closing. It was clear that the impact had numbed his hands a little.

“He won’t last long.”

“Nothing but a lucky boy after all…”

Heinrich said as he sat next to me. Daniela’s arrows definitely packed a powerful punch. They were also of good quality. But she had held back quite a lot. And yet Neyti had barely been able to take it. There was too big a gap in their status, perhaps.

After that, Daniela continued to deliberately unleash arrows with just the right amount of force. Neyti either blocked them with his shield or rolled out of the way. It was quite awkward to watch.

He would occasionally leap forward and swing his sword, but Daniela always dodged it with ease. She could read his movements completely.

“It’s child’s play.”

Adlus muttered. I had to agree with him.

“Well, that is enough.”

“…Huh?”

After fifteen minutes, Daniela lowered her bow.

“I am sure you realize the difference between us now. You cannot beat me.”

“No, I… Are you saying you were holding back…!”

“Why, of course. Had I not done so, you would have been dead before you first raised your shield.”

Da-damn you…!”

“Yield.”

Once he learned that he had been toyed with all of this time, Neyti’s lips quivered as his knees shook.

“…AAARRGHHH!!!”

He roared. It seemed that he had submitted to her. Then he threw aside his shield. The audience watched in silence.

“Why! Why is it always like this! This time…this time I was going to rise to A-Rank!!”

He stomped on the ground as he fumed. I suppose he was wallowing in despair after realizing it was an unwinnable fight and he simply didn’t have what it takes. It was pretty pathetic, but many B-Rankers were ridiculed if they couldn’t reach the next level. I could understand the pain of a goal that was forever out of reach.

I had been angry myself. Back when I was a part-timer. No, perhaps even that emotion had left me. I was just in a deep hole with no future that I could see.

And so I saw myself in Neyti. He was the ‘lucky boy’ who had somehow made it through the preliminaries against the odds. Kind of like how I had somehow come to this world. I had lived without knowing anything back then. But I did live. And somehow, I was given power and people who supported me. That’s how I made it this far.

I was only here due to a series of coincidences. However, you also needed to put in the work for those coincidences to have good results. It was one of the tricks to survival. It didn’t matter if you were late to start. You just needed to do it.

Neyti was at that forked road now. A coincidence had brought him here. He could admit defeat, or…

“Damn, damn, damn! This was the chance I was waiting for!! I am here, perhaps by accident, but I am still here!! I won’t yield!!”

He shouted. And then he gripped his sword with both hands and charged towards Daniela. Up until that point, he had always seemed to be a little hesitant as he moved. But now, I could see that he had a will to do nothing but to reach his target and defeat her.

“Well, I have my reasons as well. Sorry, but this is as far as you go.”

“I can be strong tooo!!!”

Daniela threw her bow to the side and unsheathed her rapier before rushing forward to meet him. The distance shrank rapidly. Neyti raised his sword as Daniela pulled hers back.

“…!”

Neyti stopped. His arms were still up in the air. Daniela’s arm was outstretched. Her rapier had pierced straight into Neyti’s right lung.

“So…I can’t even swing my sword…”

“You tried. That is what is important.”

The decoy bracelet on Neyti began to shake. It was taking the damage that he should have received. Daniela quickly pulled the blade out of him, and the bracelet exploded into shards that fell to the ground. Neyti crumbled.

“The fight is over!!”

Then the audience erupted with applause. Neyti had been ridiculed as the ‘lucky boy,’ but they had been entertained. After all, he had faced an Adventurer with an alias. With such determination, maybe he would escape his B-Rank one day.

Daniela sheathed her sword and picked up her bow before offering her hand to Neyti. He looked at it for a moment before slowly accepting it and allowing her to pull him to his feet. Daniela slapped him on the back and whispered something to him with a smile. He nodded and raised his head to look at the audience. Then he and Daniela walked back towards us. There was no hesitation there. He seemed quite different from the person who had walked out right before the fight.