The Villain Purchased the Heroine

Caw!

Through her Familiar, Erica was surveying the area presumed to be the base of Class 2, led by Arterion.

Suddenly, she could hear the cries of monsters and the sounds of buildings collapsing, creating a massive racket, and her Familiar was circling above the vicinity of the Class 2 base.

"Is this really happening…?"

From a considerable distance at the Class 4 base, Erica, borrowing the eyes of her Familiar, grimaced as she inspected the devastated castle.

Vargan had expended vast amounts of mana to control the monsters, turning Class 2 into a complete mess.

Although Arterion was absent, Vargan had effectively wiped out an entire class all on his own.

While Erica hadn't directly witnessed the scene, she could grasp the situation through the remnants of swirling mana.

Vargan had consumed mana at a level that was beyond comprehension.

Recent observations had revealed, to her distaste, that he was changing, but she never expected him to grow this much in such a short time.

Even if he was a genius, could the gap really be bridged just because a runner suddenly woke up after stopping?

"Tsk."

Feeling a peculiar sense of defeat, Erica clicked her tongue and pondered.

Right now, she couldn't directly assess Vargan's situation.

If possible, she wanted to send her Familiar near Vargan to check his condition, but that would likely lead to its recall.

However, given the circumstances, it could be assumed that Vargan had overextended himself.

Even a celebrated genius would have felt this curse—his full body's mana was probably overheating and overwhelmed.

For Erica, who could gauge Vargan's level just a year ago, the current situation was extremely bewildering, yet it also spurred her on.

This is an opportunity.

An opportunity to eliminate the most obstructive figure. If Vargan were to drop out, everything else would fall into place.

Wasn't the Allied Forces also trying to keep Vargan in check?

The very culprit was alone and in a weakened state.

It might seem like a trap at first glance, but the complete absence of traces of other mana around suggested a low likelihood of ambush.

Then, now is the time to weigh the pros and cons and make a quick decision.

"Diphelia, I think it'll be hard to contact you for a bit. I have a place I need to go."

Through the little bird on her shoulder, Erica conveyed her intentions to Diphelia, the leader of Class 5.

She could hear Diphelia's panicked voice, but Erica had already made up her mind.

"I've found our target. I'll just need about five elite members for support."

"I've found it. I just need a special force of about five."

⎯"Erica, are you really okay with this?"

A voice filled with concern echoed. In response, Erica smiled faintly and replied.

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

Erica drew upon her unique magical power. That power materialized, enveloping her entire body.

Eventually, the completed magic was activated.

The condensed mana energy began to disperse.

⎯"Hoo… will it really be okay?"

From the viewpoint of the little bird left alone, Erica's figure was nowhere to be found.

Among the current students of the Academia, only Erica could use this dimension magic. The ability to manipulate space.

It was Warp Magic.

*

⎯"Caw! Caw!"

The crow familiar that had been hovering near Erica flapped its wings vigorously, welcoming me.

Like a pet joyfully reuniting with its owner after a long time.

"I see the one I gifted you back then is still cherished. It's heartwarming to see its feathers glistening."

"Let's get it straight. It's not you; it's the Schugenhartz Family that adopted it."

"Same difference!"

Erica activated Warp Magic through the familiar's line of sight.

It was natural, as she could only move to what she visually perceived.

Goosebumps began to rise.

Even from a considerable distance, I could feel the ambient temperature drop slightly.

The environmental factor of temperature was shifting in response to Erica's mana.

Should I really call her Erica?

She had honed her magic to a level that made it hard to recall the past that Vargan remembered.

"That's quite a high-level freezing magic. Though it's late, I must congratulate you."

I already knew this through the original work, but I casually said it, wanting to gauge her reaction.

"Shut up. You didn't come here just to chat with me, did you?"

"I just struck up a conversation to talk, after all."

"Sorry, but I'm not interested in that."

The flow of mana around Erica began to reverse and surged like waves.

The intensity and density were certainly not to be ignored.

Teasing her playfully due to the bouncing reactions felt nice, but looking at it objectively, she was strong.

Ranked 4th in the entrance exam.

Entrance scores don't define everything, but at least in the early stages of a story like this, they hold significant weight.

"Well, just so you know in advance, you'll soon be preparing to flee."

"Schugenhartz. I've been watching you through this twisted fate for too long to not know?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"You've already consumed quite a bit of mana. What you're showing now is just a bluff. And that means an opportunity for me."

As Erica raised her hand.

Six ice spears, each about a meter long, materialized around her and floated.

They were too flashy to be used just once, a trait of transformed elemental magic.

The higher one's level in handling elements, the more intricate and stunning the transformed shapes become. Thus, even that alone hints at Erica's prowess. She could likely manipulate them as she wished.

In martial arts novels, there are techniques called 'Air Sword' where one controls a sword in mid-air freely; it felt akin to such a scenario if those pointed objects were swords instead of ice.

"Are you intending to pierce my body with those? Well, it seems feasible now."

Erica frowned slightly, seemingly trying to ignore my words.

"That dark thing lurking in your shadow is going to jump out anyway."

"If you think that, bringing out physical means just means you want to see how much your abilities have improved, right?"

Erica forced a somewhat nervous smile.

"Let's just say that's the case."

"Alright, give it a try."

I spread my arms wide, showing off my showmanship as if I wanted to take her magic head-on.

Ice spears filled with coldness spun rapidly.

Did she add more rotational force to increase accuracy and power? It certainly seems like she has made some improvements.

Thud.

Those ice spears would soon come buzzing towards me like a swarm of bees, unaware that my form in her view was an illusion.

The success rate of illusion curse magic increases significantly when there is a larger gap in skill between the caster and the opponent, or when the caster has a higher understanding of the opponent.

In Erica's case, it is more influenced by the latter rather than the former.

Having cast the illusion as soon as I saw her, I was buying time while leading the conversation.

I was already sneaking up close to Erica now. Her youthful face was right in front of me.

Her gaze was still aimed straight ahead.

I slowly reached out my hand to touch her.

Her power and tricks seem to have improved, but she's still got a long way to go, Erica.

Failing to assess the situation properly during combat is a huge leap away from her past level—

—There!

In an instant, Erica turned sharply and locked onto 'me.'

I didn't even have time to be surprised by her unexpected reaction.

The ice spears plunged straight for me.

This is quite dangerous.

With a sound that pierced the air, the ice spears came raining down.

Shwing.

The ice spears that reached their target pierced through and instantly froze it.

Coldness flowed from my mouth.

The temperature around me dropped sharply because of this attack. My body temperature lowered, making me shiver in the cold.

"…What are you doing, Schugenharz?"

Erica seemed somewhat dissatisfied.

I couldn't understand why she was making that face. Normally, she would be expected to look pleased.

Erica's arms trembled slightly. It wasn't because of the cold. I could see a flash of shame in her sharp eyes.

"Are you saying you no longer need to summon a familiar? Am I really… am I really that ridiculous…?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"If not, how would you explain the current situation…?"

Erica pointed out my current state.

With her ice spear aimed right at me, I managed to dodge the spears with a reflex that even surprised myself.

However, even with a remarkable physique, it is impossible to avoid without a single scratch.

Ice flowers blossomed on my left shoulder and right thigh. There was no bleeding. The wound areas had frozen over thanks to Erica's magic.

Put simply, you could say her attack was somewhat effective.

"The rapid drop in surrounding temperature wasn't a waste; it was a countermeasure against me. Honestly, I was surprised. I didn't expect you to use the tiny ice particles floating in the air to pinpoint my location."

What I had cast on her was indeed a solid illusion, but it was merely a projection (映像) of me from afar, not controlling all her senses.

She knew I would cast an illusion on her. Therefore, she used changes in the atmosphere as a countermeasure.

She was able to identify my position by noticing the abnormal melting caused by my body heat.

I figured out the melted anomaly's location.

It was a method never mentioned in the novel, yet this time Erica actually used her brains.

"I'm not looking for that kind of praise right now. Just give me a proper answer!"

"What in the world are you talking about?"

"Why didn't you bring out that shadow guy? He's not the type to spill blood over something this trivial!"

Something this trivial, huh?

What kind of mindset is it to undermine yourself after receiving a compliment?

"I'm delighted by your firm trust in your fiancé, but didn't you mention that it might be possible to pierce through at this point?"

"Don't skip over the important bits when explaining. I'm not feeling great right now."

Right.

It's obvious enough to tell she's really angry. I don't think she was this upset when I asked her out to lunch last time.

The situation at Class 1's base has already been resolved, so saying anything now won't change anything.

"I left it with another guy for a bit. In the Class Battle, he was someone even more necessary than me, so I had to let him go with tears in my eyes."

With Finn's abilities, there's no way he could face Fallon, and it was impossible to stop Fallon's familiar either.

So, I entrusted my precious familiar to Finn, who ended up swallowing Fallon's familiar. I ordered him to protect me from getting eliminated right away.

Protection… well, I ordered him to manifest only when Finn's position was under attack, but surprisingly, he never revealed himself again except for that initial moment.

"You lent out your familiar to someone else…?"

Erica shook her head in disbelief, as if feeling utterly dejected.

It's not a strange reaction. Especially when it comes to shadow-type familiars, they despise the act of renting themselves out to others.

Not to mention that Vargan, who knows only himself and is obsessed with his familiar, lending it to others for his own benefit must seem more unreal to Erica than an illusion spell.

"If it weren't for that, I wouldn't be feeling this spear graze my body like you said."

Having provided clear evidence, Erica fell silent.

There might be a way to issue commands to familiars not to come out, but that's a nonsensical and irrational action, so it was excluded.

"...."

"Seems you finally calmed down a bit."

Although Erica acted as if the situation was absurd, I felt the same way.

While everyone else is in a bloody brawl, we're stuck here in a verbal spat. Is this a quarrel or a fight?

It made me happy to see Erica evolving, but I wanted to confirm her current situation further.

However, the flow of the conversation was completely broken. It would be weird to continue fighting under these circumstances.

As I pondered how to react next, Erica started moving.

She conjured up another spear.

This time, the spear didn't spin.

Instead, as if unaware of the cold, she gripped the spear with her snow-white delicate hands.

Something feels off.

"…I see. …Yeah."

Erica, with her head bowed, murmured softly. Her slender body began to close in. The power emanating from such a small frame was excessively immense and dark.

With a grim smile reminiscent of Vargan, the villainess was approaching.

"It really was a challenge."

With no hesitation, she thrust the spear forward.