Chapter 32: Second Test (2)
Meanwhile, the swordsman had vanished, unable to withstand the flames. The mage, however, ignored him, focusing solely on Mikael. When he saw Mikael rushing at him, he took it as an insult. "You think you can take me on, commoner? You'll see!" he sneered. "Flame Arrows!" he shouted, summoning multiple flaming arrows that floated around him. With a hand sign, he sent them all hurtling toward Mikael.
Mikael dodged the first arrow by shifting left, cut through the second, and leaped over the third. At that moment, the mage smirked. "Got you!" he said, as a hidden fourth arrow shot toward Mikael.
Realizing he couldn't dodge in mid-air and that his sword wasn't positioned to block, Mikael quickly focused his aura into his fist and punched the arrow, shattering it with the force of the impact.
Now above the mage, he grasped his sword with both hands and slashed downward with all his strength. The mage desperately raised his staff to block, but the combined force of Mikael's strike, the momentum of the fall, and his aura shattered the wooden staff. Mikael's blade grazed the mage's hair before a protective barrier appeared with a loud "Clank!"
Mikael used the recoil from the barrier to flip and land on his feet.
The mage, stunned, muttered, "I... lost?" before disappearing in a flash of light.
At that moment, Mikael's bracelet emitted an artificial voice, "12 Points acquired."
Seeing his haul, Mikael whistled, thinking, 'Nice! With this, I'm at 28. I'm pretty sure that's enough to pass, combined with my double talent type from the first test.'
In that brief moment of calm, he reflected on the girl who had set him up. 'Hmm, that was Amelia Mournsky. Honestly, we're about the same strength, but next time we fight, she won't escape!'
He acknowledged the risk of challenging a high-ranking noble like Amelia, especially if she decided to take offense and have her family send assassins after him. But he wasn't interested in keeping a low profile and trying to avoid offending everyone—eventually, that would fail anyway. He'd earn far more LP by making a name for himself.
'Besides, the idea that a noble could send assassins into the Central Academy under the nose of Principal Silvius Carius—The Mystoria guardian and an SSS+ mage—is practically impossible. And if I win the second test I'll be in the spotlight, it'll go from nearly impossible to completely impossible.'