"That was a great fight. I didn't know mages could fight like that."
"They can't."
"That was a great fight. I didn't know mages could fight like that."
"They usually can't."
The three nobles and Colt were heading toward the third-longest tower, where the physical training classes were held.
When Hei and Myrin, who hadn't been with Colt earlier, saw the flash of light in the distance, they weren't sure what it was at first.
But after asking some older students nearby, they learned there was going to be a duel.
Naturally, they immediately guessed it was between Colt and Kael. So they followed the crowd to the arena.
What they saw wasn't anything like what they'd expected.
They had been worried Colt might get hurt—maybe even seriously.
But the opposite happened. Kael ended up hospitalized.
He'd be discharged tomorrow, of course, but the rumors had already started to spread.
What Colt had done was, according to some, borderline villainous.
He beat Kael and somehow stopped the referee from ending the match by hiding how injured Kael was.
At first, Hei and Myrin were disturbed by what they heard. But then they learned that Colt had been attacked in the schoolyard, without warning.
Seila had been attacked too. So they figured it was justified.
Or at least, that's what they wanted to believe.
No one really knew what Seila thought about it, though.
In the meantime, Kael would be punished for starting a fight on school grounds without a formal duel, and for damaging academy property.
The damage was easy enough to repair, but rules were still rules.
"Still," Hei said, "we should spar sometime too."
"Is that a challenge for my top spot?" Colt asked, half-joking.
"Nah, I just want to test myself. I couldn't beat 21 if we fought, but I still don't know whether I could win against you."
They arrived at the classroom while still talking.
It was already crowded, since they were sharing this class with the second-year S-Class.
Of course, that was only for today.
The instructor, Cecilia, wanted them to see the difference in strength between years.
She couldn't bring in third or fourth years—there would have been too wide a gap.
Her goal was to show the students what just one year at the academy could do.
That was before Colt's fight earlier today, though.
Now that Colt had won, her plan had changed. She wanted to show that Colt was the exception, not the rule.
Normally, it was rare for a lower-year student to beat someone in a higher year.
So now, the lesson would work even better—but in a different way.
When the four of them entered, everyone looked at them.
No, they were looking at Colt. Even though the first-years had already seen him in a theory class, the second-years were seeing him for the first time.
He had beaten their top-ranked student, which meant most of them didn't stand a chance.
Of course, not everyone shared that thought. The top ten of the second year felt different.
They were excited to test their strength against him. They knew Colt had turned Kael's rage against him and believed that in a rematch, Kael might win.
That was why the second and third ranks were already thinking about challenging him next.
But the person most eager to fight Colt wasn't a second-year.
It was Antoine, the second prince.
He had watched the match and thought he could easily defeat Colt.
But after hearing what had happened in the infirmary, even he was a little surprised.
Still, he was itching for a duel.
Unfortunately for him, the academy rules didn't allow students to accept more than one challenge per day.
They also didn't have to accept more than five matches in a month—otherwise, students could end up spending more time in the infirmary than in class.
So Antoine would have to wait until tomorrow to issue his challenge.
The four of them walked ahead and found an empty spot to wait for the instructor.
They didn't have to wait long. Cecilia arrived right on time.
"As you all know, I am Cecilia Rutherford. I'll be in charge of this class."
For some instructors, like Seraf, household names didn't matter at the academy.
All the instructors were nobles anyway, and the most basic teacher-student relationship was usually enough.
But others, like Cecilia, took pride in their family names.
It wasn't out of arrogance—she understood that here, she was just a teacher. Still, her name was something she carried with quiet pride.
Thankfully, Cecilia wasn't an elitist. To her, strength was what truly mattered.
Colt liked her for that. In his past life, he had seen her give her all in every battle.
They had even fought side by side once.
When she reached level 200, she had become genuinely strong.
Maybe I'll help her a little this time, he thought.
"Today, you'll be sparring with second-year students," Cecilia continued. "Remember, this is just a practice match. Injuring your opponent is strictly forbidden."
Unlike official duels, even medium-risk injuries were off-limits. It was impossible to prevent all injuries.
Of course, there were three priests standing behind her just in case.
The first-years lined up, and across from them, the second-years took their places.
Since Kael was still in the infirmary, no one was lined up across from Colt.
"Uh, Miss Cecilia…" Student 16 raised her hand. "My opponent's a priest."
"So?" Cecilia asked flatly.
"Well… I'm a warrior. Isn't that a little unfair?"
She clearly meant the priest had no chance against her.
"Then try not to injure her," Cecilia replied, then turned to Colt.
"And since you don't have an opponent, how about sparring with me?"
Colt smirked. "I'd be honored."
Cecilia, also a mage, figured the match could be a valuable experience for Colt.
She chanted briefly, and a glowing ring formed in the open space on the tower's first floor.
She called for students 150 and 250 to enter the ring first.
And with that, the matches began.