NOVEL NEXT Chapter 546
“Hoo~”
In the locker room, Katsuhata Emika closed her eyes and meditated.
Every time she exhaled, a white breath visible only in winter escaped her lips.
The current temperature was 18 degrees Celsius.
The reason why doping tests were unnecessary in the magic battle was paradoxically due to the stepping that was a class above.
The perfectly filled Aura Heart released raw mana and aura, exuding a mysterious and subtle energy around her skin.
She frowned for a moment and grabbed her sword tightly.
A tiny flying bug that had been buzzing around was sliced in half and fell to the ground.
“Don’t lose your strength this early, Emika.”
“If I’m going to lose, it’s right to lose.”
She cut off her master Koizumi Yoshihiro’s words sharply.
However, her master instead showed a satisfied expression.
Harnessing her sharpened senses, she exited the locker room.
Emika, who knew Noname’s skill better than anyone, was fully prepared.
‘If I make a mistake, it’s over. If I’m perfect, it’s even. I have to exceed perfection to win.’
With her advantageous physique and perfectly executed match, there was no way she could lose.
But Noname was a genius who could turn even the tiniest mistake of the opponent into an avalanche.
Having asked herself “What would Name do?” thousands of times over the past year, Emika was now set to officially compete against Name.
With a fresh step, she stepped into the elevator.
Imagining the audacious scenario of stabbing her six-year-younger master in the back.
*
The deep blue night sky had expelled the remnants of sunset beyond the stadium ceiling.
It was past 9 PM, so it felt like it was time to leave work.
Instead, the world-renowned pop star Freya Sky appeared, brightly illuminating the opening stage of the finals.
It was around this time that Katsuhata Akitako, the head of Katsuhata Sect, made an appearance in the audience seats.
The Japanese Minister of Defense rose from his seat and requested a handshake with him.
After exchanging polite greetings, they sat down side by side.
“Isn’t it fascinating?”
The Minister of Defense said, narrowing his eyes, subtly addressing the head.
“What do you mean?”
“It has already been 28 years since we held the National Exchange Tournament. Through friendly competition between nations, the field of combat magic has made remarkable progress every year.”
Akitako nodded.
The significance of the National Exchange Tournament was not only to provide a platform for young wizards but also to evolve magic to a higher level based on carefully considered strategies from each nation.
Competition can sometimes serve as a powerful motivation.
“Nevertheless, I believe there are inherent limitations within humanity. A 15-year-old has limitations only a 15-year-old can have; a 16-year-old has limitations only a 16-year-old can have. I thought humanity was slowly, but steadily approaching those limits, but imagine my surprise.”
“Ha ha.”
“What are we to do when an entity emerges that outright denies the knowledge humanity has built over decades, or perhaps thousands of years…? I found it amusing last night.”
“I understand.”
Akitako turned his gaze to the training arena.
The overwhelming cheer was deafening, making his ears buzz and his heart pound intensely.
And the being that mocked humanity’s progress had finally appeared on stage.
“How did Valpurgis manage to birth such an unusual existence…”
The Minister of Defense murmured, to which Akitako added thoughtfully.
“Did you know that Noname is having a tougher fight than it appears?”
“Hmm?”
“If you watch the match carefully today, you’ll see that even if a gap forms for Emika, Noname doesn’t attack directly. Sometimes it might be a bluff check, but mostly, the one who strikes first ends up suffering greater losses. Of course, holding a sword doesn’t change much about the situation.”
The Minister of Defense finally understood, his eyes widening.
“Then the Black Aurora is…”
“Yes, it’s the reason Noname introduced Black Aurora in the matches. She can’t wait for her aura to settle within its limit, so she must increase her power momentarily. In other words, she’s dealing with a far more complicated battle than others.”
“Ugh… I think I’ll surrender understanding at this point.”
Either way, it was all beyond understanding.
The two girls in the arena began charging their barriers.
Booming drums heightened the tension in the stadium.
“Excuse me.”
“Your stage was amazing today!”
“Oh, thank you! Thank you!”
Freya Sky, having finished her opening performance, walked down the aisle of the front row, searching for her seat.
Surprising a decent crowd had gathered just in time for the match to begin.
In the bustling atmosphere, Name’s family finally revealed themselves.
Professor Cheon Kyu-jin and the mysterious silver-haired girl.
‘Her hair… I’ve never seen that face before.’
Curiosity welled up as Akitako subtly glanced to the side.
Vwee-ing-
A drone camera flew up from below the training arena.
“I wonder where my seat is. Oh, here it is!”
Sae Byeol, humming a tune, checked her seat number with her finger as she found her way to her spot.
She had just dashed up from the locker room in the basement after seeing off Name.
Caught up in her own chaos, she fumbled even while sitting, making the audience chuckle.
Then, she spotted a drone hovering steadily in front of her and blinked in surprise.
The camera’s lens was directly aiming between Sae Byeol and Freya Sky.
When Sae Byeol accidentally turned her head to the right, she locked eyes with a nearby audience member.
“Hmm, shall we say hi, cute lady?”
“Uh?”
“Over there.”
The heavily made-up woman pointed to the big screen and waved her hand warmly.
“Whoa!”
As Sae Byeol followed suit and waved, the audience erupted with excitement.
The woman then calmly sat back in her seat, seemingly having finished preparing to watch the match.
Sae Byeol gazed sweetly at the sky with a faint smile.
The drones returned to the ground as the stadium ceiling opened wide.
The moon, appearing larger than usual, seemed like it could fall at any moment.
‘Wow, I’m so nervous…’
Sae Byeol placed a hand on her chest, feeling her racing heartbeat uncontrollably.
If she felt this way, one could only imagine the immense pressure on the actual competitors.
[Final Match 128]
[Noname (Republic of Korea)] [100% / 100%]
[Katsuhata Emika (Japan)] [100% / 100%]
“<[En garde!]>”
With a single signal, silence enveloped the stadium.
“<[Prêts?]>”
With the second signal, the energy opposing the moonlight surged upward.
“<[Allez!]>”
With the final signal, the two girls clashed in the center.
“Noname”
[Inside the Demon King’s Horn (Continuation) – Projectile Horn – Korea]
[Category: Miscellaneous Magic of Circle 3]
[Rank: B]
[Imperial Palace Swordsmanship 1st Form – Beginning Sword]
“Katsuhata Emika”
[Inside the Demon King’s Horn (Continuation) – Fairy Tale Horn – Korea]
[Category: Miscellaneous Magic of Circle 3]
[Rank: B]
[Katsuhata Style High School Sword Techniques – Hotsunotachi (Sword of Origin)]
*
Just before the match, Sae Byeol’s face briefly passed across the big screen.
Even next to a pop star all decked out for the stage, she showed no signs of being overshadowed.
No more distractions were necessary.
Emika’s aura spun around her sword like an electric saw, gnawing at her own aura.
Wuiiiiiing-!
Would you believe it if I said the sword cried like a chainsaw?
In 2053, Emika’s swordsmanship had changed drastically from 2052.
Equipping explosive power to the swordsmanship that had been conceptualized over hundreds of years created a weapon of mass destruction like no other.
Emika gripped her sword tightly, weaving together complex techniques.
The Inherited Sword created dozens of spiderweb-like geometric lines.
With every second, a wave of aura followed the sword path, forming a secondary blade that demanded unnecessary memorization from me.
Ching-chan-chan-chan-!
Rather than escaping this, I chose a frontal assault.
[Imperial Palace Swordsmanship 400th Style – Spinning Cut]
Concentrating aura on my muscles and ligaments, I deflected all of the swords.
To block a single technique, I had to handle 18, no, 36 swords.
The reward for which was merely 1.5 seconds of grace period.
‘At least I should be grateful for this!’
[Cast: Black Aurora]
Crackle-crackle-!
Lightning pierced through the gaps between the blades, finally allowing us to clash.
Only by reaching this point do I finally have an equal situation.
The gap in output is so difficult to overcome.
Squirm-
‘…!’
Emika’s toes slightly sank into the ground.
A lethal kick, wielded with extreme precision, was launched at me.
Boom-!
I narrowly dodged it by a finger’s length, capturing its subtle movement.
However, I was knocked backward from the exteriorly manifested aura.
If I flew away from here, it would be an instant loss.
I twisted my body and planted my left hand on the ground.
As the incoming sword attack came, I bent and straightened my elbow to launch myself.
Thud-!
Dirt and grass mixed together.
I spun halfway and landed on my feet.
After a brief eye matchup with the Emika rushing at me, I launched a knee strike into her chin.
Even so, Emika forcibly twisted her upper body to evade.
Even though Emika was looking away, I couldn’t feel safe.
Just in case, but as expected.
Without even looking back, she gripped her sword in reverse and stabbed toward my side.
Clang-!
I deflected the incoming sword.
Meanwhile, the pair of horns above Emika’s head began glowing red.
[Cast: Hokuros’ Lariat]
A magic circle imprinted on the ground.
From the earth sprang two lariats that twisted around my ankles.
Here, a triple casting was needed.
[Full Casting: Ignus Flanum]
Flames spread over a 5-meter radius, melting the lariats.
As soon as my turn arrived, I knocked away Emika’s sword and steadied my Cheonghwa Sword.
I slashed upward diagonally from the lower left, targeting her knee.
Ping-!
The blade curved like a guiding rod towards her side.
Clang-!
Recalling the sword, I delivered a short jab to her abdomen.
Kaboom-!
“Cough…!”
“Hah, did you have some fun in the meantime?”
A decent effective hit.
But in return, Emika’s desperate strikes gradually chipped away at my arm and leg barriers.
“Hrap!”
As her katana soared high into the air, I shot forward to target her neck a fraction too early.
Thud-
“No!”
She had thickened her aura around her grip, catching my sword.
I had been caught in a bluff.
Emika’s cold gaze deepened as she increased the grip’s strength.
‘This girl is already wielding the Demon King’s Horn to such an extent?’
I couldn’t afford to lose my sword.
Recovering the aura around my grip was still unfamiliar to me.
Creating spikes with the exterior manifestation, I pierced her foot.
Taking advantage of her moment of distraction, I spun and dove into Emika’s space to jab her abdomen with my elbow.
As my grip on her sword weakened, I attempted to kick her solar plexus to push her away.
Yet.
Emika quickly regained her stance and launched techniques.
[Katsuhata Style High School Sword Techniques – Yotsunotachi]
A terrifying blade that slashed through head, neck, chest, and belly in a zigzag.
I managed to block the head, neck, and chest, but the last slash mutated and passed through my thigh.
Slash-!
But I wouldn’t go down just like that.
“I’ll return the favor.”
“…!”
[Cast: Friction Coefficient Adjustment]
[Imperial Palace Swordsmanship 163rd Style – Valley Slash]
Emika executed a crazy maneuver to maintain balance even with the friction coefficient adjustment.
I had to settle for merely slicing through her shoulder barrier.
I just barely completed one cycle of aura and took a breather.
Emika also kept her lips tight, inhaling and exhaling.
“Hah… Hah… Time is crawling by.”
[Final Match 128]
[Time: 01:12]
[Noname (Republic of Korea)] [96% / 95%]
[Katsuhata Emika (Japan)] [96% / 97%]
One must not forget.
She had unleashed 249 consecutive strikes in just 5 minutes against Cecilia last year.