Demon King of the Royal Class

The match ended with a 3-0 scoreline, a complete victory for Harriet.

Aisa Shelkin looked as if she had been tricked by some foul play.

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She had been utterly defeated by a magic major.

However, it was inevitable.

The main drawback of magic was casting time. However, Harriet’s casting speed was abnormally fast, and so Aisa Shelkin was always a step behind.

Harriet didn’t have the ability to cast spells without any casting time, but her casting speed had become so fast that she could toy with a seasoned close-combat specialist.

That was why Rudina’s No-Casting talent was so absurd.

Even someone like Harriet, given sufficient mana and increased casting speed, could completely overwhelm a combat specialist. If there was no casting time at all, she could pummel her opponent without giving them a moment to breathe.

While the audience cheered, those of us watching from the Royal Class seats were dumbfounded.

It was strange that Harriet could do that.

Even Sabioleen Tana, who had been providing commentary on the matches, was taken aback.

“Magic requires casting,” Sabioleen Tana said.

“That’s right. It’s common sense,” Charlotte responded.

Sabioleen Tana tilted her head. She seemed to find the situation quite odd. “But high-level battle mages can use magic almost instantaneously without the casting process.”

“Yes, that’s true as well,” replied Charlotte.

“Harriet de Saint-Ouen appears to have casting speeds on par with a seasoned battle mage.”

It was clear from Sabioleen Tana’s expression that she believed with near certainty that such a thing shouldn’t be possible.

From Sabioleen Tana’s perspective, a seasoned battle mage was not someone with a little bit of experience, but someone who had been hardened by real combat.

A casting speed on par with a battle mage with at least ten years of experience... Was that even possible?

“Among mages, only battle mages focus on increasing their casting speed to achieve multi-casting or chain casting. Other types of mages have no reason to prioritize casting speed. They pursue precision over speed, which is the correct path. But why would she spend time on that technique...?”

While having a fast casting speed was impressive, such a pursuit was ultimately limited to battle mages. Mages who made combat their profession were often looked down upon by other mages, as I had heard before.

Quick casting time was ultimately a skill necessary only for battle mages who earned a living through combat. Sabioleen Tana found it hard to understand why the young lady of the Saint-Ouen family would be so proficient in a skill typically only mastered by battle mages.

I knew that Harriet wanted to increase her practical combat prowess, which was why she had spent time working on a skill that had little relation to her noble birth.

Of course, just how she had managed to achieve such a level of proficiency just by dedicating time to it was something neither I nor Sabioleen Tana could fully comprehend.

‘What exactly has been happening in the Magic Research Club?’

I shot Adelia a questioning look, and she gave me a sheepish smile in reply.

‘Is it a secret?’

“It seems like Harriet de Saint-Ouen will perform quite well,” said Sabioleen Tana.

In the end, it was clear that Harriet had gained significant combat prowess, contrary to my expectations.

Ellen had also said Harriet would do well, and she didn’t seem particularly surprised by the outcome. Whether she had expected it to turn out quite this way, I couldn’t say.

***

As the Round of 32 matches progressed, I realized that, contrary to my worries, Harriet possessed substantial skill. After all, she had managed to make it through the preliminary rounds of the Open Tournament and secure a spot in the final rounds.

The Group C matches continued, and the moment everyone had been waiting for arrived.

Royal Class, fifth-year, Olivia Lanche...

A huge cheer went around the stadium from those who recognized Olivia, since she was a well-known figure, and the reaction from the Royal Class seats was equally enthusiastic.

The announcer gave her a lengthy introduction. Although some of the remarks were embarrassing, Olivia stood there with a faint smile.

There was one problem: she had renounced her faith, yet she could still use Divine Power, and at a very high level.

However, if she used Divine Power in the tournament despite having renounced her faith, it would cause issues. The religious community could raise objections just because she used Divine Power after renouncing her faith.

There was nothing truly stopping her from using it, but to avoid any controversy, she would have to fight without Divine Power.

Her opponent was a fifth-year male student.

He had been introduced as a student from the general cohort, but he seemed to be a former member of the Orbis Class. Olivia appeared to recognize him. It wasn’t unusual for the students of the Royal Class and Orbis Class to have interactions, so it wasn’t surprising that they knew each other.

Olivia didn’t look in my direction.

Everyone was curious about Olivia’s skill, and even Sabioleen Tana was seeing her abilities firsthand for the first time.

—Now, let’s begin the final match of Group C!

The announcer began the match, and I was curious to see how Olivia Lanche would fight without using Divine Power.

Her opponent’s weapon wielded a spear, while Olivia was unarmed.

Her opponent’s body was enveloped in blue mana.

Olivia smiled at her opponent, and she began to speak.

—Sorry to disappoint the audience. My match might be a bit boring.

Whoosh...

Olivia’s body was enveloped in blue flames of mana.

I had already suspected that Olivia could use Mana Reinforcement. Olivia dashed forward barehanded without using any Divine Power.

Or rather, I could only tell that she moved; it was impossible to follow her movements with my eyes.

Thud!

—Ugh!

In the blink of an eye, Olivia had closed the distance and landed a punch on her opponent’s abdomen.

The immense force of that single blow sent her opponent flying through the air, far across the floor of the arena.

The destructive power of her bare fists was unbelievable, even accounting for Mana Reinforcement.

The first bout ended in an instant.

—Oh, was that too much?

She was a strong contender for the championship. No—at this rate, she seemed like the only contender.

Ellen and I stared blankly at Olivia, who had effortlessly sent her Mana-Reinforced opponent flying.

She had to fight without using Divine Power, but was that really a penalty at all?

It seemed like no one could stand against her, even in this state.

‘To think that someone like her was nicknamed the Saintes of Eredian... Shouldn’t she have been hailed as the strongest person in the Temple instead?’

***

When all the Round of 32 matches concluded, there would be a short break before the Round of 16 matches began.

Just as in the first-year tournament, the four winners from each group would face off in the semifinals and finals the next day.

If Harriet won her next Round of 16 match and then her quarterfinal match, the final match of the group stage, she would have a shot at the finals.

But Harriet’s goal wasn’t the finals.

Harriet sat quietly on a sofa in the participants' waiting room. She wanted to go to her private room and gather her thoughts, but she figured it would be better to observe her potential future opponents.

“You’re Harriet, right? You were amazing. We’ll be facing each other in the next match, so let’s do our best.”

“Oh... yes.”

Some participants were on edge, but her next opponent was a cheerful-looking senior. She was from the Royal Class and was someone with a supernatural power and not a close combat specialist.

Her ability allowed her to control the wind.

She had easily defeated her opponents by blowing them out of the ring with wind pressure and causing them to lose because of that.

Harriet was contemplating how to counter that.

“Want some? It’s tasty.”

“O-Oh, no... I’m fine.”

The senior sat next to her, mumbling about various things. “If your protective spells can block my wind, then I don’t really have a way to counter that. I’m not really good at fighting.”

It seemed to Harriet that her opponent was already resigned to losing. She seemed to rely solely on blowing her opponents out of the ring, but Harriet could use protective spells to nullify that.

The senior, who was a fourth-year student, seemed somewhat cute despite her complaints about the bad matchup.

Harriet wondered if she was pretending to be weak only to suddenly reveal her hidden skills in the arena, but she doubted that a fellow Royal Class member would go that far.

It didn’t seem like she was aiming to win the tournament. Although Harriet found the constant chatter a bit annoying, she didn’t really mind it.

“You... don’t seem very nervous,” Harriet said.

“Nervous? Hmm. Well, there’s no reason to be, right?”

The senior munched on a macaron and took a sip of tea, then smiled bashfully.

“After all, senior Olivia is going to win Group C anyway.”

It seemed she had already given up on winning, given Olivia’s participation. Harriet couldn’t help but agree with that assessment.

She hadn’t even fully grasped what had happened during Olivia’s match.

Most participants could use Mana Reinforcement, but among them all, Olivia stood out.

She hadn’t even used her primary strength, Divine Power, and yet she was that formidable. The other participants had seen Olivia’s overwhelming prowess and seemed half-defeated already.

‘How would I have faced her?’

Harriet pondered but couldn’t come up with a proper answer.

Olivia Lanche... The Open Tournament was a chance to challenge her.

However, after witnessing Olivia’s skills, Harriet didn’t think she could win.

Despite that, she still wanted to have the chance to go up against her.

To face Olivia, Harriet needed to reach the quarterfinals, the last match in Group C. She knew she couldn’t win, but she wanted to at least face her.

She didn’t fully understand why.

Olivia Lanche was undoubtedly stronger than Ellen.

Harriet had never had a competitive spirit, especially not when it came to fighting. But somewhere along the way, it had developed on its own.

The desire to become stronger naturally turned into the desire not to lose.

Harriet watched Olivia Lanche approach her from afar, chatting with other participants along the way. Having been at the Temple for a long time, Olivia seemed to know many of the competitors, and held casual conversations with them.

Ellen had said she disliked Olivia, and Harriet felt the same way.

Olivia walked closer and made eye contact with Harriet.

“Hello?”

“... Hello,” replied Harriet.

Olivia smiled shyly. “You’re Reinhart’s friend too, right? Nice to meet you.”

The word “too.” implied there was someone else ahead of her.

Harriet found it infuriating.

She had often seen Olivia picking fights with Ellen and knew where that desire to provoke came from.

Olivia disliked Ellen, and Ellen disliked Olivia.

However, Olivia didn’t dislike Harriet.

“You’re amazing. Only a first-year student, yet already at that level. Are we going to face each other in the Group C finals today?”

Her kind expression and tone were devoid of any hostility.

“Are you feeling okay? Need some healing magic?”

The casual compliments and the unnecessary concern...

Harriet knew that Olivia didn’t see her as a threat. She didn’t even see the need to show hostility to someone like her. It wasn’t even condescension, which made it feel even more dismissive.

“Let’s both do our best.”

‘I dislike you, But you don’t dislike me,’ Harriet thought.

Harriet hated this situation because of the emotional gap between them.

And so, Harriet abruptly poured cold water on the whole interaction.

“I don’t like you, senior,” she said.

“... Huh?”

Olivia looked at Harriet quietly and scratched her cheek.

“Oh... really?”

Olivia seemed to read something from Harriet’s expression and gave a subtle, almost mocking smile.

It was the same expression she sometimes wore when she looked at Ellen. That faintly mocking smile.

“So what?” Olivia asked.

Harriet stared at Olivia.

Ellen was annoyed and angry about being disliked for no reason.

But she wouldn’t understand the sorrow of not even being worthy of such dislike, of having someone who considered you beneath their notice show you kindness.

So, Harriet decided to make Olivia dislike her.

She would make it so Olivia couldn’t ignore her.

“I just don’t like you.”

“Is that so? That’s too bad.” Olivia smiled brightly. “I’m not particularly interested in you.”

“...”

The phrase “not particularly interested in you” implied that while she might care about others, she had no significant interest in Harriet.

As expected, Olivia was deliberately ignoring her.

Harriet gritted her teeth as she watched Olivia walk away.

Even if she couldn’t win, she would make it so Olivia couldn’t ignore her anymore.

***

Harriet had made remarkable progress.

She easily advanced to the quarterfinals, the Group C finals.

Her Round of 16 opponent was a fourth-year Royal Class student, a wind-type supernatural power user, but Harriet easily defeated her. After blocking her wind attacks and aiming five firebolts at her opponent, her opponent simply forfeited, as if there was no point in continuing.

It was the same senior who had told her to go see her if she ever needed help after the Mayaton incident. Harriet hadn’t gone to her, but she remembered her face.

In the end, it was a matter of compatibility. The opponent’s strategy hinged on blowing close-combat specialists away with gusts of wind, and she was no match for a magic major.

Naturally, Olivia also easily defeated her Round of 16 opponent and advanced as well.

With that, the stage for the final match of Group C was set.

Harriet de Saint-Ouen and Olivia Lanche...

Whichever of them emerged victorious would advance to the semifinals and have a shot at the championship tomorrow.

Despite successfully making it through two matches, both me and the Duke of Saint-Ouen found our anxiety resurfacing.

Tremble, tremble.

“... Stop shaking already,” Ellen rebuked me.

There was a sigh from the stands above me.

—Honey, what’s wrong now?

—Her opponent is just too strong...

The Duke of Saint-Ouen was also getting scolded by his wife.

No matter how much Harriet had grown, Olivia Lanche was clearly not an opponent she could handle at this point.

The only hope was that Olivia couldn’t use her Divine Power.

That slight advantage was the only glimmer of hope for Harriet’s victory.

Everyone in the Royal Class, regardless of grade, held their breath.

Despite being a first-year and a magic major, Harriet was performing admirably in the Open Tournament.

However, Olivia Lanche was someone who deserved the title of the strongest person in the Temple.

The two of them stood facing each other in the arena.