Editor : Amethyst00



[Ah! The three riders are simultaneously breaking into the lead! The one taking the very front is… Eiran! Seiren’s first-year 2nd-ranked! Eiran Ersar! And following right behind are Lumene’s Duran Moira and Eliza Hergin in hot pursuit!]

Eiran was running at the very front, her long silver hair fluttering.

Following behind the Eiran who was running like a gust of wind, Duran’s lips curved upward.

“A magic swordsman? Your footwork is quite fast.”

Crackle—

Sparks began bursting fiercely from Duran’s body.

Duran, cloaked in golden lightning, lowered his stance.

Bababababat—!

Duran overlapped the distance with Eiran at a tremendous speed.

“Why don’t you show me some skill? Seiren’s 2nd-ranked!”

Crash—!

Duran drew his sword like lightning and threatened Eiran.

Whoosh—!

“……!”

In that instant, Eiran lightly leapt and dodged Duran’s attack.

Thunk—!

And as if there were ground even in midair, she stepped and straightened her posture, widening the distance from Duran.

Seeing Eiran so effortlessly dodge his attack, Duran’s lips curled upward again.

“Interesting.”

It was obvious even at a glance.

The Seiren 2nd rank before his eyes was not a magic swordsman who mainly used magic, but one specialized in physical movement.

Babababat—!

A ferocious lightning aura swirled around Duran’s body.

Feeling a surge of competitiveness, Duran raised his sword.

Flash! Crackle—!

As if his sword were a lightning rod, a bolt of lightning from the sky struck his blade.

Babababat—!

Wrapped in an even fiercer lightning aura, Duran strengthened his legs.

Crash!

“Draw your sword! Eiran Ersar!”

Duran’s fearsome sword strike targeted Ersar’s back.

Ersar again lightly bounced her body, evading all the erratic sword strikes that poured from every direction.

Duran’s eyes twitched.

The first attack had only been a light probing, but this one was quite a complex pattern.

Yet Eiran dodged it like a ghost.

And even while displaying such near-supernatural movement, she didn’t spare Duran even a glance.

“Huhu. As expected of Seiren’s runner-up. Not someone to be underestimated!”

Sparks flickered in Duran’s eyes.

Whoosh—!

“You’re still only thinking of brute-forcing your way through, aren’t you?”

Just then, Eliza, who had been watching the situation slightly behind, followed up next to Duran on her Wind Wyvern.

The Wind Wyvern, wrapped in a storm, screeched sharply, “Kyee—!” as if mocking Duran alongside its master.

“An unpleasant master with an equally unpleasant mount.”

When Duran said coldly, Eliza’s Wind Wyvern tried to swat Duran’s head with its tail.

Thwack—!

Of course, Duran easily blocked the attack and said,

“Shall I flay your hide?”

Duran’s eyes flashed.

But the Wind Wyvern only snorted.

“I’d like to punish you for your rude words, but the Lumeiren Competition comes first, so I’ll let it slide for now.”

Eliza pulled a whip from her waist.

“Watch. I’ll show you how to catch your prey. Let’s go! Pipi!”

Eliza, sneering, yanked the Wind Wyvern’s reins.

As the Wind Wyvern charged toward Eiran at tremendous speed, Duran muttered while watching its retreating back.

“I’ll never get used to that beast’s name.”

Arrogant and proud Eliza owned nothing less than luxurious familiars.

Each one was powerful enough to shake the battlefield, yet their names were so cute it was hard to get used to.

Whether Duran clicked his tongue or not, Eliza quickly approached Eiran and said,

“Pipi, block that elf’s path with a storm.”

At her words, the Wind Wyvern shot high into the sky at incredible speed.

Then it descended with added momentum and cut across Eiran’s path.

A storm erupted before Eiran.

Gooooo—!

With the Wind Wyvern’s special ability, Atmospheric Manipulation, an invisible wall of air blocked Eiran’s way.

As Eiran’s speed began to drop, Eliza smiled and swung her whip.

Swish—! Snap—!

“Good, caught— kya?!”

Eliza, wearing a triumphant smile, almost lost her balance as Eiran burst through the storm, regaining her speed.

Barely regaining her posture, Eliza’s face twisted in shock.

“What? Why doesn’t Pipi’s storm work?”

“The Animus Armor.”

“Wait! Where do you think you’re riding!”

Eliza frowned as she saw Duran, who had somehow leapt up and landed behind her.

“This is the Lumeiren Competition. So isn’t this much cooperation obvious?”

“Kh!”

“If it’s the Animus Armor, it’s the powerful technique passed down through the Ersar family.”

Hearing Duran’s words, Eliza narrowed her eyes.

“High mobility and strong defense. Certainly, a skill well-suited for this obstacle race.”

“Right. So, though it’s distasteful, Eliza Hergin, I propose cooperation.”

“Understood.”

Eliza agreed without resistance.

She did want to take Eiran down alone, but this was the Lumeiren Competition—personal feelings had to be set aside.

Though the two were known rivals, just this once, as riders representing their year, they chose immediate cooperation.

Whoooosh!

Eliza channeled her spiritual power, and the Wind Wyvern’s speed increased even more.

Crackle—!

Duran raised his lightning aura.

In truth, the two could have overtaken Eiran anytime they wished.

But the current lead group—Eiran, Duran, and Eliza—was in a 2-to-1 situation.

If they could eliminate Seiren’s runner-up Eiran here, this race would certainly tilt in Lumene’s favor.

Whoosh—!

Eliza, who had sped far ahead of Eiran, ordered her Wyvern to charge toward her.

Meanwhile, Duran, who had raised his aura to its limit, unleashed a lightning sword strike at Eiran.

Thud—!

Seeing it, Eiran lowered her head.

‘Don’t tell me she’s already given up?’

As Duran and Eliza showed puzzled expressions—

Flash—!

An aura reminiscent of vegetation spread over Eiran’s entire body.

Eiran covered her face with both arms and accelerated straight ahead.

Crackle—!

Crash—!

Lightning and storm swallowed Eiran’s body.

But Eiran broke through the attack and dashed straight past the two.

A refreshingly bold frontal breakthrough.

At that, Duran and Eliza’s faces stiffened.

“She didn’t counter our attacks…”

“She just ignored us and kept going?”

They both stared at Eiran’s retreating figure as she ran swiftly ahead.

Her entire body was tattered from their fierce attack.

Yet she didn’t look back even once, continuing forward.

The two, known for their nasty tempers, were the type who could never rest easy without retaliating when attacked.

Thus, Eiran’s act of charging ahead without looking back felt like open contempt.

“Huhu, as expected of Seiren’s 2nd rank. I heard you had quite a gentle personality, but you’re arrogant indeed.”

Duran rolled his neck as he dismounted the Wind Wyvern.

Eliza habitually brushed her fingertips and muttered,

“If she won’t look this way, I’ll make her turn around by force.”

“Eliza Hergin. I don’t need your help anymore. I’ll be the one to take her down.”

“That’s my line, Duran Moira.”

The two, nearly snapping, glared sharply at each other.

Then they shot off at tremendous speed.

“Stop right there! Eiran Ersar!”

“Fight me for your school’s honor! Seiren’s runner-up!”

As the two radiated killing intent and chased after her, Eiran screamed, “Eek!”

The reason she hadn’t retaliated at all was very simple.

‘Scary! Scary! Scary! The Lumene people are so scary!’

She had poured all her strength into the Animus Armor, focusing her family’s secret ability, Evergreen, entirely on defense because she was terrified.

In truth, she hadn’t wanted to be a rider at all.

She hated being the center of attention, and being targeted by the Lumene students scared her.

It was too heavy a responsibility for her timid nature.

But…

‘Eiran! There’s no one more suited to be a rider than you!’

‘N-no! President! I’ll just run away because I’m scared!’

‘Exactly! I’ve never seen anyone run away as well as you!’

Student council president Raynia had given her a thumbs-up and forced her to register.

So Eiran had resolved to run as much as possible without fighting other students during the race.

But that timid plan was perfectly misunderstood and successfully provoked two of the most aggressive first-years in Lumene.

“Stop right there!”

“Stop right there!”

“Eeeeeeek!”

Eiran ran frantically with a face on the verge of tears.

Empowered by Evergreen’s vitality, which granted limitless stamina, Eiran ran and ran like a herbivore chased by predators, without worrying about conserving energy.

Seeing Eiran, who seemed uncatchable and dodged every attack with insane agility, Duran and Eliza’s eyes burned hotter.

“I’ll erase you!”

“If I catch you, you’re done for!”

“Eeeek! I’m sorryyyyyyy!”

Eiran screamed apologies close to sobbing, but the two didn’t hear her.

Rumbleeeeee—!

Then the ground before them suddenly rose.

The leading trio halted.

Gwooooooo—!

Seeing the monster burst through the earth, all three stiffened.

“A cyclops?”

bl

Gwooooo!

The cyclops attack wasn’t limited to the lead group.

The second group, where many students were gathered, was also assaulted by cyclopes.

Seeing that, Leo muttered,

“Are these cyclops captured by Seiren?”

He spotted the control devices on the cyclopes’ necks.

Apparently, they were monsters Seiren had captured for research.

And fitting for an obstacle race, they had been used as literal obstacles.

At the appearance of such high-class monsters, the students fell into temporary panic.

Then Leo moved.

Rumble—! Boom—!

A fierce blaze engulfed the spot where Leo had been.

“Hey! Bastard! I said fight me!”

Seeing Lunia’s blazing red eyes, Leo smirked.

“Sorry, but I’ll pass.”

“Whether you pass or not doesn’t matter!”

Leo pointed behind her.

“Watch out.”

“Hah?”

A giant cyclops’s palm came down on Lunia.

Her eyes gleamed.

Fwoosh—! Crash—!

Gwoooooo—!

With a single spell, the cyclops’s arm turned to ash.

Without even glancing at the writhing cyclops, Lunia said coldly,

“You think these things can get in my way?”

Though a high-class monster, the cyclops—restricted by bindings and lacking a summoner—posed no threat to Lunia.

Watching her snort, Leo said calmly,

“No, that’s not what I meant.”

“Huh?”

Fwoosh—! Crash—!

An aura flame struck Lunia.

The clash of aura flame and magical fire sent fierce heat waves everywhere.

Standing before Leo, Celia brushed her hair aside.

“Your opponent is me, Lunia El Lunda.”

Looking into those red eyes identical to her own, Lunia narrowed her eyes.

‘Celia Zerdinger. Lumene’s 1st rank student in the knight course.’

In some ways, she was like a rival—both direct descendants of families that handled phoenix power.

‘I wanted to target the rider Leo first, but…’

Lunia glanced at Leo.

This wouldn’t be easy.

Moreover, the obstacles were now fully activating.

Though she’d first charged recklessly at Leo, Lunia quickly regained her composure.

‘If I let Celia Zerdinger rampage freely, our side will take heavy losses. It’s best to hold her here.’

Fwoosh—!

Lunia ignited her flames.

“Lunda, Zerdinger. Let’s settle which one stands above.”

At her provocation, Celia’s lips curved up.

“That’s fine by me. Of course, I’ll be the one to win.”

As the two clashed, Leo withdrew his steps.

He scanned the surroundings.

With the obstacles triggered and students fighting each other, chaos reigned.

‘The Seiren students aren’t pushovers either.’

In this second group, he could clearly see Seiren’s Advanced Class 1 students. The ones he’d seen on the school trip.

They had all grown far stronger than they’d been in the first semester.

Gooooo—!

Then, bursting from the ground, another cyclops appeared.

But unlike the others, it was far larger.

Though still bound, its sheer size was overwhelming.

The students nearby flinched and backed away.

Thud—! Thud—! Thud—!

Spotting Leo, the cyclops charged at him.

Leo smirked.

“Perfect. I wanted to try this.”

He extended his hand.

A pocket dimension opened, revealing a longsword.

At first glance, an ordinary longsword.

But it was a magic sword forged from dragon bone.

Hum—!

A magic formula appeared on Leo’s sword.

The engraved magic circuit began to glow brightly.

The surrounding elf students flinched.

Leo, activating the spell formula, thrust his sword forward.

Crash—!

A massive beam of light reminiscent of a comet extended from the blade, tracing a tail as it soared skyward.

The Seiren students watching widened their eyes in shock.

“No way… Lampas…?”

“That’s the star sorcery spell you learn in third year!”

Leaving the frozen Seiren students behind, Leo stepped forward.

Thud—!

The cyclops’s massive body fell to the ground.

Step— step—!

Leo looked down at his sword.

Vrrrrr—!

The sword trembled finely.

It was overloaded from enduring such a complex magic formula.

Looking at it, Leo smirked.

“Hm. Not bad.”