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nChapter 294

n“Wow!”

nThere were cheers from the audience, but among those who had been watching the tournament since yesterday, some were perplexed.

n“What! Why did Reinhardt lose?”

nOlivia Lanze seemed unable to understand and blurted out loudly.

nMost of the Royal Class shared the same reaction. Even the B-Class was no exception.

nReinhardt, who had been on an undefeated march, repeatedly backed off while struggling against Scarlett, eventually losing the first set after being pushed back.

nHe couldn’t use his Magic Body Strengthening, and he was simply forced to retreat helplessly. Of course, Scarlett’s swordsmanship was dazzling, swift, and precise at finding openings.

nBut Reinhardt was unusually powerless.

nEveryone present knew that something was off with the situation, but they didn’t know exactly what was wrong.

n“He can’t use his Supernatural abilities.”

nEveryone except Ellen.

n“What?”

n“He can’t use his Supernatural abilities.”

nIf there was someone who knew, it was Ellen.

nHaving crossed swords with Reinhardt to the point of exhaustion, Ellen knew everything about his swordsmanship. The times when he used Supernatural abilities, when he didn’t, and even when he used temporary enhancements while employing Supernatural abilities – Ellen had a detailed grasp of it all.

nSo she could tell that Reinhardt, for some reason, wasn’t able to use his power of Self-Suggestion.

n“Why can’t he?”

n“I don’t know.”

nIt was Harriet who responded to Ellen’s words.

n“Well… From what I know, her ability is immunity. Could that be related?”

nEllen didn’t care much about B-Class affairs, but Harriet was aware of them because of her involvement in the magic research club. Immunity – a very unique, yet potentially very powerful talent, depending on the situation.

nAt the mention that it might be in effect, Ellen nodded.

n“So, Reinhardt could be prevented from using his Supernatural abilities…?”

n“What’s that? Reinhardt’s Supernatural abilities are his specialty! If he can’t use them, that’s cheating!”

nOlivia snapped, and everyone else refrained from discussing whether Supernatural abilities were already unfair or not.

nThey knew by now that the senior who was extremely biased towards Reinhardt would defend him no matter what, attaching some reason to justify it.

nIt was best to just let her rant and leave her be, as arguing would only be exhausting.

nThe conclusion was clear.

nThe bizarre talent named Immunity.

nIt was having an absolute influence on Reinhardt.

nUpon hearing this, Saviolin Turner watched Reinhardt, who was summoned back to the arena for the second set.

nCharlotte observed Scarlett and Reinhardt.

nScarlett, Reinhardt.

nBoth were precious to her, albeit in different ways.

nTheir hearts inclined towards one or the other, feeling sorry for the side not favored.

nBut this time, the opponent was not so innocent.

n“What do you think will happen?”

nAt Charlotte’s question, Saviolin Turner shook his head.

n“Reinhardt is in a difficult situation.”

nAlthough Saviolin Turner didn’t know much about Reinhardt’s Supernatural abilities, it was clear who would win or lose if he couldn’t use his power enhancement.

n‘If he could summon Tiamata, it might be different.’

nHowever, that was something he couldn’t easily reveal.

nSaviolin Turner predicted Reinhardt’s defeat.

nIf he had faced Scarlett in the finals, he might have achieved the runner-up or even won the championship if Scarlett had been eliminated in another bracket of the semi-finals.

nIn the end, Reinhardt was just unlucky with his matchups.

n——

nHe had no choice but to concede the next set as well, just like the first one.

n“The current set score is 2:0! If Scarlett takes one more set, her place in the finals will be confirmed!”

nThe announcer’s voice rang sharply in everyone’s ears.

nThe screen alternated between a composed Scarlett and my tense expression. Scarlett had promised to give her best, and she was doing just that.

nI had done my best in our practice duels, using my full strength.

nScarlett had faced me without using her own power up until now.

nIn order to show her respect or admiration for me, she was giving her all in this match.

nI wanted to ask her to go easy on me, but I didn’t say it out loud. I had my abilities, and Scarlett had hers.

nWe were just using them against each other.

nScarlett neither laughed at my miserable defeat nor worried about me.

nYou said I’m your idol?

nHow can I be your idol when I become so weak in front of you?

nOf course, I knew she wasn’t talking about my skills, but in front of Scarlett’s emotionless expression, I couldn’t find a way to break through.

nI had been using Supernatural abilities as a tool to overcome the glaring skill gap between us.

nNow that those tools were unavailable, I had no chance of overpowering Scarlett.

nI hadn’t anticipated being stopped by Scarlett.

nI never considered the possibility that her talent could block my Supernatural abilities. I thought it was impossible because it was impossible in the original story.

nFor example, in the original story, when Liana’s lightning struck Scarlett, it wouldn’t harm her.

nNow, Liana wouldn’t even be able to use her lightning in front of Scarlett.

nI had to admit it.

nI was arrogant.

nI was thinking about the finals after Scarlett, not about Scarlett herself.

nHowever, reality demanded that I struggle here, conceding two sets and now accepting defeat.

nThere was no way to win.

nIn the end, Supernatural powers were the majority of my strength. I had a bad matchup against Scarlett.

nThe only consolation was that there was only one person in the world with such a level of immunity ability, and that was Scarlett.

nShould I accept defeat as the price of my arrogance? While pondering, a voice spoke up.

n“Have you given up?”

nThe start of the third set had already been announced, but Scarlett did not approach, instead asking a question.

n“…”

n“Is this all there is to it? Relying solely on the chance awakening of your Supernatural powers? Without them, are you just a powerless, pathetic person incapable of Magic Body Strengthening or doing anything else?”

nScarlett calmly uttered those words. Were they meant to criticize me?

nDid they imply that I was pathetic, that my credibility had vanished, and that I was nothing more than a dog running away with its tail between its legs?

nIt didn’t quite sound like that.

nIn a way, I was a student who had only learned how to solve problems. I learned the answers rather than the underlying theories.

nOn the other hand, Scarlett, having perfectly understood the theories, could comprehend all the problems derived from those theories.

nThe issue stemmed from the difference in the absolute time invested in swordsmanship. Therefore, I shouldn’t have been standing in this position.

nIf it hadn’t been for Ellen, my Supernatural abilities, or my Magic Body Strengthening, I wouldn’t have been able to be in this place.

nBut in the end, I was standing here, and I had to face Scarlett, who held an overwhelming advantage over me in terms of actual skills.

nScarlett, one of the main heroines in the original story and a victim of ostracism due to her ominous reputation, had lost much of her earlier lack of confidence.

nIn the original story, it was Ludwig who guided Scarlett, while in the present, it was Charlotte.

nThe red-haired girl looked at me.

n“Reinhardt.”

n“…Huh?”

nBefore launching her attack, Scarlett spoke first.

nThe audience couldn’t hear our conversation.

n“You’re my idol.”

n“…What?”

nI couldn’t help but be surprised by her unexpected words.

nBut it wasn’t incomprehensible.

nBoth Scarlett and I shared the background of coming from humble beginnings.

n“I was afraid of being kicked out of the Temple, but you always seemed so confident, as if that didn’t bother you at all.”

nScarlett had also been present during my duel with the third-year, Meiatun.

nAt that time, she and I had no connections or relationship whatsoever.

nMoreover, that duel took place in the A-class dormitory. Even when she was still being bullied, Scarlett had watched my duel until the end, despite Erhi’s hint.

nAfter that, there were no significant connections between Scarlett and me, but I was aware that she harbored some sort of goodwill towards me.

nWhen I was injured, she would come to visit and briefly chat about various things.

nIt was a different feeling than her liking me. We would occasionally encounter each other in different places and exchange trivial stories.

nI had an intuition that Scarlett placed some sort of meaning on me.

nThat meaning, it seems, was the title of “idol.”

n“I watched you,” she said. “I am weak, not because my origins are weak, but simply because I am weak.”

n“It’s possible to live that way, to be allowed to live that way, to not be driven away even when living that way, and even being driven away isn’t important.”

n“Not everyone will like you. But not everyone will hate you either.”

n“If one leads a life of self-confidence, they can gain something, and even if they incur the hatred of many, it’s acceptable to live while doing things worth being hated for. After all, not everyone will hate you, and someone will like you.”

n“Just as it is impossible to make everyone like me, it’s also impossible to make everyone hate me. I realized this by looking at you.”

n“After seeing you, I’ve tried to change. I can’t change completely, but I’m trying to change little by little. Because you can do it, I thought I could too, that I had to.”

nScarlett thought it was Charlotte who changed her.

nBut it wasn’t.

nThough Scarlett and I had nothing in common, she realized that it was acceptable to live like me.

nSo, she was in the process of changing. Scarlett, who had once gone to Miss Temple, was now participating in the first-year tournament.

nIn the end, both were trying to prove themselves in some way.

nScarlett sought to prove something.

n“I apologize. This wasn’t the place for a conversation. But I really wanted to tell you.”

nIt occurred to me that the reason Scarlett had entered the tournament was to face me in this very arena.

n“It’s an honor to be your opponent in this place.”

nUnbeknownst to me, I had become Scarlett’s idol.

nScarlett pointed her sword at me.

nHer eyes, once gentle, now darkened, and her expression hardened.

n“I’ll do my best.”

nAs the inaudible prologue dragged on, the murmuring audience fell silent again as Scarlett took a step forward.

nHer determination to do her best was different from before. Different from what I had seen during practice matches.

nThis was the main stadium.

nA place where one could attack with the intent to kill their opponent.

nSoon, it would be a place where one could unleash everything they had to overpower their opponent.

n“That would be a sign of respect towards you.”

nScarlett, the crimson girl, charged at me.

nAs she rushed towards me, I felt her red eyes seemingly carving a trajectory through the air.

n-Clang!

n“Ugh!”

nWith an immense pressure on my wrist, I felt an intense sense of dissonance.

nMy Self-Suggestion wasn’t working.

n“Your Supernatural abilities are useless against me.”

nScarlett was not a Supernatural.

nHowever, it couldn’t be said that she wasn’t one either.

nHer talent was undoubtedly related to Supernatural abilities.

nThe crimson swordsman, Scarlett.

nHer talent was immunity.

nIn the original work, her title was Spellbreaker.

nMagic and Supernatural powers alike were rendered useless against her.

n——

nScarlett’s nickname as a witch was, from the very beginning, an absurdity.

nScarlett was essentially immune to all kinds of mental and offensive magic, capable of withstanding them with her bare body.

nEven Supernatural powers were completely nullified.

nCalling Scarlett a witch, with her extreme resistance to magic, was nonsense from the start.

nOf course, her body was not completely impervious to magic. If it were, she would be able to neutralize the barrier magic of this stadium. She possessed a controllable magic resistance, which, when pushed to the limit, became immunity.

nMagic resistance indeed existed and could be trained.

nHowever, in this world, there were only two people with Supernatural resistance.

nOne was Ellen Artorius, who possessed Supernatural resistance, and the other was Scarlett, whose resistance was overwhelmingly greater.

nHence, Scarlett’s ability did not grow. There was no room for growth in immunity-level magic resistance and Supernatural resistance.

nDespite that, she had definitely grown.

nI kept a stern expression while maintaining distance from Scarlett.

nSelf-Suggestion was a power that influenced not others but myself.

nThe fact that Self-Suggestion, which strengthens me rather than attacking Scarlett, wasn’t working meant that Scarlett’s Supernatural resistance was affecting the surroundings.

nNo matter how high the magic resistance, it could only resist magic used on oneself.

nA mage could not prevent magic cast on the bare ground.

nScarlett was now able to exert influence on Supernatural powers happening around her. Whether it applied to magic as well was uncertain, but it definitely blocked the activation of my Self-Suggestion.

nScarlett’s ability had evolved beyond the original work.

nPerhaps the reason was me.

nThough I could not determine how I had influenced her, Scarlett had undoubtedly changed.

nShe was not practicing with me as usual but was trying to beat me using her abilities.

nSo this was what she meant by giving her best.

nHad she refrained from using this power during practice with me out of respect?

n-Clang! Clang! Clank!

nMy Supernatural powers were sealed.

n“Without the assistance of Supernatural powers, I can’t use my Magic Body Strengthening either.”

n-Clang!

n“Ugh!”

nSoon, my Magic Body Strengthening, which could only be used with the support of Self-Suggestion, was also blocked.

nIt was neither Grayden Amorel nor Ludwig.

nScarlett was my true nemesis.

nIn this place, Scarlett’s ability was useless to anyone else.

nScarlett’s ability was only effective against me.

nScarlett might lose to Grayden Amorel, and I might beat Grayden Amorel, but…

nAgainst me, Scarlett held an overwhelming advantage.

n-Clang! Clang! Clank!

nThe only reason I could barely deflect Scarlett’s relentless sword attacks as I retreated was because my body remembered the fundamentals I had accumulated thus far, as well as the errors I had made along the way, which could be called an “answer sheet of mistakes.”

nI must defeat Scarlett with pure skill alone.

nBut is that even possible?

nWhile the quality of the time we spent honing our skills may differ, Scarlett’s experience far surpasses mine quantitatively.

nSelf-Suggestion had become a part of me without my realizing it. Now that it was gone in this battle situation, I felt as though I had lost an arm and a leg.

nI hadn’t noticed when it was as natural as my own body, but now that it was blocked, I felt an intense sense of powerlessness and emptiness.

nSelf-Suggestion accounted for the majority of my strength.

nWithout Supernatural powers, was I truly this helpless?

n-Clang!

nScarlett struck my sword upwards and twisted it, directing the blade towards my neck.

n“Ugh!”

n-Poof!

nCounter-summon.

n-Royal-class Scarlett takes the first set!

nI had lost the first set.

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