"Alright, let’s begin the sparring. Everyone, get ready. Watching the earlier matches and sharing your thoughts afterward would be good too."
[It’s finally starting! Wow!]
"We’ll proceed in the predetermined order."
I looked at the paper in my hand.
It had the number 10 written on it. The last slot.
[Hehe, as expected, the protagonist always makes his grand entrance last! Is that okay?]
"It’s fine."
The sparring order was decided by drawing lots, but for the Author and me, that meant nothing.
Probability doesn’t apply to us.
If the Author wills it, we can do anything within the bounds of plausibility.
Delaying the protagonist’s turn to the very end for maximum impact? Easy.
"What do you think?"
"Huh?! W-What do you mean…?"
What’s with the shock?
She even sounds a little out of breath.
Did I tease her too hard? She didn’t actually fall for me, did she?
"I meant the students sparring right now. Do you think they’re doing well?"
"…Hmm. That spear guy is strong, but his opponent’s just too weak. It’ll be over soon."
She keeps switching between formal and casual speech. Weird.
Well, setting that aside, I agree—it does look like it’ll end quickly.
The blonde girl with the spear was pressing her advantage with its long reach, and her opponent couldn’t counter at all.
It’ll be over in no time.
She couldn’t even keep up with the girl’s speed, let alone get her in sight.
"Ah, it’s over."
"…She didn’t even put up a fight. What’s her Ability?"
"I’m not sure exactly, but I can guess what kind it is."
Wrapping oneself in mana does boost physical stats, but that was on another level.
No doubt about it—it had to be an Ability.
Probably physical enhancement.
[They’re both heroine candidates! Aren’t they pretty?]
"Hmm…"
I get the spear-wielding blonde, but the other one too?
Well, late-bloomer heroines who start off weak but grow stronger later are pretty common.
That must be the case here.
Maybe Yu Siwoo will uncover her hidden potential and save her or something.
"…Any other candidates?"
[Hmm, not at this point. Having too many from the same class might be a bit much… Maybe during swordsmanship lessons?]
Huh.
Then I don’t need to pay much attention.
I watched the second match begin with a bored expression.
Okay, this one’s definitely a step up from the last.
Still not enough.
No one here looked stronger than that heroine candidate from earlier.
Third, fourth, fifth…
Before I knew it, the eighth match had started, and still, no one seemed as strong as that first girl.
…If it had been someone else, she might’ve lasted a little longer.
She’d been radiating this gloomy vibe. It was kind of worrying.
"Next up, the final match! Once this is done, class is over, so the rest of you can take it easy!"
"Ah, it’s our turn. Shall we go up?"
"…Yeah."
[Eek, eek! The protagonist’s cool fight scene! Hurry up!]
No need to rush. You’ll see it soon enough.
We stepped onto the platform and took our positions.
Yu Siwoo, the protagonist, gripped his sword, his face tense.
"Ready? …Begin!"
What if I lose right at the start?
I’ve never heard how strong the protagonist is.
If I lose immediately, it’d be too embarrassing, so I hope I can at least put up a decent fight.
I was nervously waiting for Yu Siwoo to strike, but he didn’t come after a long time.
…What’s going on?
"What’s with you two? Is there a problem?"
"No. There’s no problem at all."
"…I see."
Even the homeroom teacher seemed to find it odd that we weren’t moving for so long.
He seemed to let it slide, but I should probably start moving soon.
"Aren’t you coming?"
"…."
Yu Siwoo didn’t answer, just kept his sword raised in concentration.
Looks like he has no intention of coming to me.
[Uuu, you said we were starting!]
"Well, I guess I have no choice… I’ll go first."
I had to consider the teacher’s gaze, and the author was whining about when we’d start.
Since Yu Siwoo didn’t seem like he’d move, I had to make the first move.
The threads from the half-gloves I wore under my gym clothes surged toward him.
"…!"
"Not a bad decision. I’ll praise you for that."
I admired how Yu Siwoo dodged the threads at high speed.
He didn’t try to cut them—he just evaded?
If his weapon had touched the threads, they would’ve coiled around it and snatched it away instantly.
As I was slightly surprised, he spoke for the first time during the sparring.
"I saw you bind a beast with those threads. No way I’d try to cut them."
"Hmm… Then how about this!"
I unleashed another thread attack. Let’s see how he reacts this time.
Ting!
A metallic clash rang out as the thread fell to the ground.
"…You didn’t dodge—you deflected it?"
"I also saw you cut through concrete."
"Huh. You’re sharper than I thought."
He noticed that?
I like that.
As expected of the protagonist? His information-gathering skills are impressive.
[Ahem, our protagonist’s ability is intuition! He’s exceptional at sensing physical threats!]
"Intuition, huh…"
That’s a useful ability.
Even if an invisible person attacked, he could counter. And the fact that he could distinguish my threads—even though they all look the same—was even more impressive.
His physical potential might not be outstanding, but that’s something he can improve as the protagonist grows.
"H-How do you know about my—!"
"Well, here I come! Can you block this?"
If that’s the case, maybe I should launch an attack he can’t dodge.
I consumed all the threads from one half-glove, attacking not Yu Siwoo himself but the surrounding space indiscriminately.
If he can’t dodge, intuition won’t help him.
"Hah, hah… That was a close one."
"…You’re more impressive than I expected. I’m starting to like you."
Whoa, how is that possible?
I thought if I hit him with an undodgeable attack, that’d be it. But no.
He deflected the threads that could be deflected, made them collide with others, and slipped through the gaps.
Is he even human? Does he have another ability?
If someone with overwhelming base stats has an ability like that, it’s total bullshit!
"Good, then next—"
[I don’t like this.]
Just as I was about to attack with my remaining half-glove, the Author’s gloomy voice rang out.
"You don’t like it…?"
"…?"
Suddenly?
I have no idea why the Author is in such a bad mood.
As the protagonist, confused by the lack of an attack, caught his breath, I listened to the Author’s words.
Her voice was heavier than usual. She sounded genuinely disappointed—if I messed around now, who knew what might happen.
[I didn’t even get to see the protagonist’s first appearance scene. It’s his first duel, and yet…! What is this?! The protagonist doesn’t look strong at all—he’s being pushed back by the reader!]
"A-ah, oops…"
Oh no.
I’d forgotten the most important thing!
I’d been so focused on pairing up that I’d wanted to see how strong the protagonist was.
He didn’t even seem interested in coming my way, and since I was using my Thread Extraction Ability for the first time, I’d gotten too excited.
I was supposed to let Yu Siwoo win…!
[I’m angry…! Hmph!]
"This is… this is really a problem…"
What do I do?
The Author was furious.
This time, it was my mistake, so I had no excuse to give her.
"I forfeit."
"…What? You’re serious, Arte?"
"Yes, of course I’m serious."
[The reader ruined the protagonist’s first duel! Waaaaaaah!]
The bewildered students and the teacher’s incredulous stares poured in, but I had no time to care.
I had to soothe the crying Author.
Besides, if I just declared the protagonist the winner, it’d be easier to adjust the narrative later.
"This is going to be hard to fix…"
[Waaaaaaaaah!]
"That girl uses threads, huh."
I’d wanted to duel the guy who’d defeated the beast, but I’d tripped over something and fallen.
By the time I got back up, he’d already formed a team.
With no choice, I tried to find another group, but it was too late—I ended up paired with the only remaining student.
…When I fell, I thought I’d glimpsed a black thread, but I’d dismissed it as a trick of the light.
No way…?
"And what was that about? She was winning, then she forfeits?"
She’d been dominating that boy the entire time.
If she’d just kept draining his stamina, she would’ve won.
Then suddenly she says she doesn’t like it, that it’s a problem.
She mutters something strange, then declares a forfeit.
It’s not even a game to her.
Everyone looked stunned, but I was furious.
She couldn’t even show her strength fairly—she toyed with her opponent, then threw away the victory!
"Arte Isis… She was one of the people who handled the beast attack, right?"
I’d heard that while the other students were evacuating, two people had taken down the beast. I’d wanted to get to know her.
But who knew she’d be such a shameless person?
Had she not defeated the beast to save the students?
Her skills were undeniable.
But that suspicious behavior of hers left a bad taste in my mouth.
I couldn’t believe she was an Academy student.
"I, Amelia, will be watching you…!"
I’ll see if she’s truly worthy of the Academy!
Amelia resolved as much.