Chapter 36

【36】35

“Lucky you, being first.”

Leo laughed softly as he stepped forward.

The practical exam for the Department of Knights was simple.

It was to win five matches in duels.

The moment five victories were achieved, the exam was passed.

Of course, detailed scores were assessed based on the opponent and the contents of the duel, so winning or losing was not an absolute requirement for scoring.

But anyway, it was important to win and pass the exam quickly.

Naturally, Leo’s goal was to achieve a perfect victory without losses.

“Is it lucky to be first? Am I not even in your thoughts?”

Howl, Leo’s first opponent, said with a smile.

Howl Sneff.

He was from a heroic family in the Tool Kingdom in the southern continent.

Compared to Zerdinger, his fame was lower, but he still bore the title of a heroic family.

He utilized the versatile spear technique known as Sneff Spear.

In fact, he was regarded as the third strongest among the first-year students in the Department of Knights, following Celia and Duran.

With his tongue flicking, Howl pulled a spear from his space bracelet.

It was a long spear, 1.5 times longer than an ordinary spear.

Seeing this, Leo also drew his sword from his waist.

“As discussed beforehand, the one who incapacitated their opponent wins. Treat this duel as if it’s a real battle.”

With a brief explanation concluded, Ain stepped back.

There were no outside interventions.

The entire training ground was the venue for the duel.

Facing each other, Howl flicked his tongue.

“I’m looking forward to this. Ever since I lost to your class in the early combat class this semester, I’ve been wanting to pay you back.”

“Were you still holding onto that?”

When Leo asked with a soft laugh, Howl smiled coldly.

“The Sneff family never forgets humiliation.”

“How much did you hate cleaning the bathroom!”

“Cough! Do you know how much the other kids teased me!”

Howl clenched his fist.

“I will repay that humiliation! Leo Flove!”

Swish-!

Howl adjusted his grip on the spear and lowered his stance.

It was a ready position reminiscent of a snake ready to strike.

Seeing Howl, Leo loosened his sword.

“Leo. I’ve heard about your impressive performance during the entrance exam.”

Howl curled his lips in a smirk.

“But compared to other students, you’re definitely at a disadvantage from the starting line! I heard you couldn’t even awaken your aura during the entrance exam! Can you really block this attack?”

Boom-! Whoosh-!

The tip of Howl’s spear targeted Leo’s chest.

Incredible speed!

Usually, the thrust of a spear follows a straight line.

Therefore, no matter how fast it is, as long as you can predict it, avoiding it is easy.

‘But the Sneff Spear begins from there!’

The thrusts of the Sneff family move like a living snake.

So to carelessly dodge it could lead to a disaster.

‘The moment you dodge, you’ll be cornered!’

Ordinary students would undoubtedly lose to Howl the moment they let their guard down.

But Leo was a student who transcended the ordinary.

Thud-!

“……!”

Howl’s eyes widened.

Leo had gripped the spear just before it reached him.

“Did you hear from the others but not from Celia, who is in the same class?”

Leo smiled coldly.

Swish-!

“Huh?”

Leo lifted Howl straight upward with the spear.

Howl, who was tensed for an aura defense, widened his eyes as Leo effortlessly lifted him with pure strength.

“Strong, huh?”

Swish-! Crash-!

Leo slammed Howl down onto the ground.

Of course, right before hitting the ground, Howl minimized the damage by using aura armor.

Regaining his posture, Howl chuckled.

“I knew. I was just a bit surprised that your strength was stronger than I expected.”

Buzzing-!

The spear glowed green.

“But just because your strength is strong doesn’t mean your fundamental weaknesses are resolved!”

Howl’s green eyes gleamed.

Leo quickly withdrew his hand from the spear.

Sizzle-!

Small smoke began to rise from the ground where Howl stood.

‘Poison aura? A unique characteristic.’

Leo wore an amused expression.

It was a decisive advantage in a long battle.

It was understandable that he was so confident.

‘But it’s still far from over.’

“You talk about my weaknesses.”

Leo smiled slightly.

“A weakness is there to be overcome, right?”

Whoosh-!

The flame aura that erupted from Leo pushed back Howl’s poison aura.

Seeing this, Howl grinned.

‘Certainly, a flame-affiliated aura is a weakness for me! But unless they are as strong as Celia, I can turn the tables!’

Whoosh-!

A more potent venom surged from Howl.

In response, Leo also increased his firepower.

‘It’s useless! Unless they are as skilled as Celia!’

Whoosh-!

Sizzling!

As the poisonous aura intensified, the flames flared up even stronger.

As time passed, Howl’s expression became increasingly tense.

‘Not at Celia’s level……’

Howl’s face had turned pale, and his gaze met Leo’s red eyes.

‘Impossible! The firepower of someone at Celia’s level?!’

Leo’s rise had been a topic from the beginning of the semester.

Moreover, he had never shown his true abilities during the duels that measured overall combat power.

Thus, during this exam duel, most were betting on Howl’s victory.

But mocking that prediction, Leo pressured Howl with his powerful flame aura.

Celia, watching the situation with her arms crossed from outside, wore a shocked expression.

‘Since when did he get this strong?’

Celia was one of the few who predicted Leo’s victory.

But she had never anticipated that he would amplify his flame aura to this extent.

Duran, watching this scene, chuckled.

“Howl seems inadequate.”

“Isn’t it premature to conclude that Howl has lost?”

A student from Class 1 reprimanded, prompting Duran to scoff.

“Is your vision just for show? He’s already at a disadvantage in terms of elemental affinity and is being completely overpowered in strength. Do you think Howl has a chance?”

“Even so, Howl still has the Snake Spear left. The element of aura doesn’t solely determine victory or defeat.”

“Hmph! Do you really think Howl can outmatch Leo Flove with technique?”

“He’s Number 4 in our class, after all.”

“Whether he’s the fourth strongest in our class or not, that’s irrelevant.”

Sparks crackled from Duran’s body.

“I will defeat him.”

“You? I don’t think so.”

Celia, standing next to him, laughed mockingly.

“Are you siding with him just because you hang out with him? Celia Zerdinger.”

“I’m not siding with him. I will defeat Leo. You can’t even beat me, can you?”

“You’re talking nonsense. I’ll show you who has the upper hand right now.”

“Fine. I’ll smash you.”

Crackle!

Flame!

Duran, who sought to crush anyone above him, and Celia, who was fiercely proud of being the best, had an extremely poor relationship.

“Hey! If you two fight, it’ll just escalate! We should be cheering for Howl, right?! Huh? Hey! Don’t stir up your aura!”

A student from Class 1 was flustered, trying to stop the two, but there was no sign of calm in sight.

“You two. If you fight now, it won’t just end with a written apology, you know?”

At that moment, Chen Sia laughed while intervening between the two.

With that comment, Duran snorted and walked away, while Celia elegantly tucked her hair behind her ear.

“Class 1 is full of fighting spirit.”

“It’s not really about fighting spirit. I just want to smash that annoying guy’s face.”

“Isn’t that fighting spirit?”

Professor Sedgen had prohibited duels among students in the same class, so Celia and Duran had no way to settle their rivalry.

“By the way, Sia. You also want to fight Leo but are saying such things.”

“I do want to fight Lord Leo. But he’s not my only target.”

“Then?”

“I want to fight Celia as well, and Duran too. And my goal is to defeat all three of you.”

“In the end, you’re the one with the strongest fighting spirit.”

Seeing Chen Sia’s shining black eyes, Celia sighed.

The surrounding students, who had been watching the nerve-wracking standoff between the top-tier students of the Department of Knights with tense expressions, breathed a sigh of relief as nothing happened.

“Leo is quite popular.”

Nella said with her characteristic languid voice, but Iliana beside her shook her head.

“I would decline that kind of popularity.”

*

“Haap!”

Howl urgently stepped back using his aura as Leo swung his flaming aura.

He needed to create some distance.

But Leo wouldn’t allow Howl to create space.

‘I have to stop him!’

Swinging the spear infused with poison aura towards Leo, Howl shouted.

Whoosh-!

But Leo’s aura burned through Howl’s poison completely.

Not only was he at a disadvantage in elemental affinity, but he was also overpowered in power.

It was clear that he was in a disadvantageous position.

“Cough!”

The embarrassment stemming from a complete misjudgment of his opponent pressured Howl.

But he soon regained his composure and lowered his stance.

‘It’s unexpected, but I can’t just keep being defensive!’

Howl’s eyes turned like a snake hunting its prey.

‘I already have a plan in place!’

Howl, who had been called a genius from a young age, couldn’t secure the top spot during the entrance exams.

But while he felt disappointed, he didn’t feel any resentment.

‘Warden Tyden! That monster was there!’

Everyone from the southern region knew about Warden.

His terrifying strength was enough to be called a monster, surpassing even genius status.

However, among the students in the Department of Knights, he believed he was the best.

In fact, he was one of the top students among this year’s first-year knights.

But he couldn’t claim to be the strongest.

‘Celia Zerdinger! Chen Sia! Duran Moria!’

These three were said to be the best of their class.

From the moment he saw them, Howl knew they were a step above him.

For someone who had always excelled in martial arts, this was a tremendous shock.

Especially in the case of Celia, it was a level of despair he couldn’t comprehend.

Not only was he inferior in skill, but he was also overwhelmed by elemental affinity.

‘Against Chen Sia or Duran, I could at least devise a strategy! But against Celia, I only felt powerlessness!’

In the early part of the semester, she had been an unbreachable wall for him.

But after months of relentless effort, he finally devised a countermeasure against Celia.

‘I intended to keep it hidden for a duel against Celia! But this works out perfectly!’

Howl’s eyes gleamed.

‘It’s a good opportunity to test my new technique! And Leo Flove! I cannot lose to you!’

Swish-!

He elegantly pivoted the spear.

‘Not to someone who is close to Celia!

He had already discarded the notion that Leo was weaker than him in his mind.

Instead, he regarded him as an equal to those he sought to surpass.

‘I thought he was just a gloomy kid, but he seems to have pretty good eyes, huh?’

Carefully, and with certainty, Howl gathered his strength to strike Leo down.

‘It seems you’ve put in an enormous effort to overcome the disadvantage of elemental affinity.’

Though Howl’s eyes were fixed on Leo, he was also gazing at something else behind him.

‘Is it Celia?’

Easily discerning this fact, Leo smiled slyly.

The boy in front of him was burning with a spirit of challenge.

‘I’ll accept that challenge.’