Chapter 2: The Tournament
(POV change to the first-person: Kirihara Ayato)
As we were entering the waiting room for the tournament, I made sure to note down the people in the room. The first thing I noticed is that there was a girl with purple hair that was wearing what I imagined would be an academy uniform. This girl had an extremely strong aura of magic power coming from her. None of the other students could compare to her aura. Another thing that intrigued me about this girl was that, while everyone else was wearing gold and diamond badges, the girl did not have any badge on her.
'Interesting…'
…
(POV shift to Shion)
'The tournament is starting soon. I need to see the black-haired boy before it starts so I can see whether he found the center building by skill or luck.'
While I was thinking that, the new applicants walked in. I looked around for the black-haired boy, and saw him doing what seems to be assessing the competition. I looked at his badge. It seems that he's a bronze. A bronze?!? If he's just a bronze then no matter how skilled he is he wouldn't be able to find the center building unless by luck!
'So it really was just a fluke.'
He then turned his head and looked at me. At first, I didn't make much of it. I'm beautiful, so people, usually the boys, stare at me a lot. I did feel insulted that a bronze looked at me, though.
'Observe me all you want! It won't help you in the end! How arrogant. If we meet in the tournament, I will not hesitate to end your life. After all, it's not against the rules to do so, and no one cares for a bronze!'
But after 10 seconds or so of staring, I started to feel light-headed.
'What's this?'
An incomprehensible pressure filled the room.
I started to feel sick, and my muscles were getting weaker. My heart started beating extremely fast and hard. I couldn't help but lean back on the chair. My breathing started to become softer, and I felt like I needed more air. I couldn't think properly; my brain seemed foggy. My vision started to cloud, and my body was getting weaker.
*THUMP*
'Huh? What was that? And why am I suddenly on the floor?'
Before I knew it, I slipped out of the chair. My head hit the floor hard, and my vision started darkening. I couldn't feel a thing; my entire body felt numb, and I started to struggle with breathing. A strange fear filled my heart, strangling it.
And then, once my vision went fully dark, I heard an unfamiliar voice inside my head.
"Arrogance is a sin, you know?"
I could barely make out the words, and I immediately forgot the voice.
I then fainted.
…
(POV shift to Kirihara)
'Arrogance is a sin, you know?'
No one noticed that the purple-haired girl fell off her chair. The room itself was quite big, and there was a lot of noise. Since I couldn't just leave the girl like that, I decided to shout.
"Someone help! This girl just fainted!"
As soon as I shouted, a teacher came rushing over, and the surroundings went quiet.
"What happened here?"
"I don't know. The girl suddenly fell off the chair. When I checked her, she was unconscious."
That is, as you might know, a lie.
"Come, let's take her to the medical office! Do you know her name?"
"No, I don't."
"Forget that then. Let's go! We can't take time here!"
I then helped take her to the nurse's office. I was the one who had to carry her because the teacher had an impaired arm.
"Alright, here is the nurse's office. Excuse me? Anyone here?"
"Ah yes, I'm coming!"
Once we arrived, the teacher shouted out to the nurse. The nurse seemed busy with something, and quickly replied with a touch of annoyance in her voice. She seemed to be in a bad mood.
"We have an unconscious student here! She needs medical attention!"
When the nurse heard those words, the annoyance in her voice immediately disappeared and was replaced by a worried tone.
"An injured student already? The tournament hasn't even started yet! How could…"
Her words gradually stopped as she saw the purple-haired girl's condition.
"What the…?! What happened to her?!? Quickly lay her down on the table!"
I did as told, and the nurse started examining the girl.
"Oh my god! What happened?! Her breathing is extremely shallow, and her heartbeat is slowing down. She has head trauma, and will most likely have muscle weakness after she regains consciousness. Is she in the tournament?"
"Yes, I was in the waiting room when she fainted."
"Is she participating as a student or an applicant?"
"I'm not sure, but I think she's a student. I did not see her before we entered the waiting room."
"Alright, I'm going to go ask the secretary about the student. If she really is in the tournament, she will have to withdraw. You two can go back to the waiting room. If not for your immediate action, the injuries may have been more serious."
…
'That girl was a lot weaker than I thought, wasn't she?'
[Had you just asked me, master, I could have judged the girl's strength accurately using [Supercomputer - V. Analysis]]
'Perhaps. But, it doesn't matter now.'
While I was conversing with [Supercomputer], an announcement came on. It was recited by a mechanical, feminine voice.
"Attention applicants and student fighters. The tournament will now begin. You may look towards the wall to see your match-ups."
After the mechanical voice said that, the wall started to change as if it was a screen. It showed the matchups of the tournament and where it was going to be held.
'So these are the matchups, huh? Hmm, where is my matchup?'
[Alert. [Supercomputer - V. Analysis] has already identified your matchup. Your opponent is a 16-year-old boy named Reynold Ken. He is 5' 11, has blonde hair, green eyes, and has a magic rank of Gold - 498. He is an applicant from a noble family. He specializes in curse and virus magic and also uses mental attack magic to an intermediate degree. He has unique skills but they are no cause to worry.]
'Seems like I'll have to be careful, huh? Well, not really, considering that I have you. Can you show me where he is?'
[Activating [Supercomputer - VIII. Augmentation]. Showing path to individual Reynold Ken.]
'There he is. Quite tall isn't he? Well, I myself am 6'0. Above-average if I say so myself.'
While humans were implementing and getting proficient with magic, the average build of a human became somewhat stronger and taller. The average height for a woman became 5'6 while for a man it became 5'9. That being said, I am still above average in terms of height.
'Let's go do some meeting and greeting, shall we?'
"Excuse me, are you Reynold Ken?"
"Yes, that's me. Do you have some business with me?"
'He is a little arrogant, but it seems that he is not looking down on others. It's less arrogance and more of a high-class attitude. It suits him, unlike that purple-haired girl. I like him.'
"Yes, actually, I am your opponent in the first round of the tournament. I came here to see who my opponent is."
"Alright, but I do have a question. How did you identify me?"
'Wait, now what do I say?'
[Tell him that a friend of yours pointed him out when you were asking around. There are not too many people, so he will believe it.]
"Well, I saw our matchup and went asking around for you. While I was doing that, a friend of mine noticed and pointed you out to me."
It's not a lie. Although I wasn't asking around, [Supercomputer] is a friend of mine.
I mean, he is technically a skill, but skills can't do what he can. He's so far above other skills that it doesn't matter that he is one.
I guess it would be more appropriate to use it instead of he, but in my mind, he seems like a man and even sounds like one, so I won't demean him with the word "it".
"I guess that is rather plausible. So, you came to scout out the competition. I would have done the same. Well, I won't give you any information on me if that's what you want, but I can tell you that I use my mind more than brute force."
"I wouldn't have expected you to tell me anything. And it is pretty refreshing to see someone who isn't just going to throw some half-decent fire magic and try to burn their opponent to death."
"Agreed. You seem like a rather pleasant person. It's a shame that one of us will be left behind after the following match."
"That isn't necessarily true."
"What do you mean?"
"Our entrance will be decided by a group of judges who will evaluate our overall performance and fighting skills. The final outcome does matter, however, the overall performance matters more."
"That's good. That means that both of us can move on. There is one thing I would like to ask. I haven't asked for your name yet. What is your name? Since you know my name, it is only natural that I know your name. "
"That is fair. My name is Kirihara Ayato."
"Kirihara Ayato… So your name is Kirihara?"
"Yep."
"Can I make a nickname for you?"
"Let's hear it first."
"I was thinking of "Rey"
"It's very simple. It's just the first 3 letters of my name. I like it."
"Then, I'll see you in the arena."
"Farewell."
…
"Attention everyone. You will now be transported to your respective arenas."
'So this is a tournament where all of the matches in each round are held at once?'
[Yes, master. According to the data that [V. Analysis] has collected, up until the 3rd round, all of the matches will be held at the same time. The 3rd round will be held like a free-for-all where all 5 of the remaining people are released into one big arena, somewhat like a colosseum. After that, the sole remaining person will be the victor.]
'I see. Thank you.'
[No need to thank me. You are my master.]
'I know. But I should still show proper manners, should I not?'
[Do what you want, master.]
'Not that I planned to do anything I didn't want.'
The transportation then took place. The room that I was teleported to seemed like a waiting room.
The mechanical announcer came on again.
"The rooms you are now in are the rooms connected to the entrances of the arena. You all should see one door. That door is the door to the arena. You have 5 minutes before the first round starts. After that, the doors will open and you must fight your enemy. Keep in mind that you may surrender at any time. Should you fall unconscious or are otherwise deemed unable to fight, you will have lost. You may do anything you want. You may not kill the opponent. Your time starts now. You have 5 minutes to prepare."
"So I'm here for 5 minutes, and then my match will start? I don't have much to do, So I guess I'll just wait."
…
(POV shift to Shion)
"Ugh.. my head hurts… where am I?"
"Ah, Shion, you are finally awake."
The school nurse? What is she doing here? Am I in the nurse's office?
"You had fallen unconscious in the tournament waiting room. A somewhat tall boy with black hair brought you here and said that you fell off your chair. What happened to you? I didn't realize it was you at first because of how pale you were."
"To be honest, I don't know myself. I remember the applicants walking in and then fainting. Has the tournament started yet? I shouldn't have been out that long."
"The matches in round one start in 5 minutes. The applicants and students have already been transported to the arena waiting rooms."
"Seriously?!? I need to see the black-haired boy's match! Can I go now?"
"Usually I wouldn't let you go, but it's you, so I guess it's fine for you to go now."
"Thank you for taking care of me! See ya!"
"Remember to thank that boy too!"
"Will do!"
After a few minutes of running, I found a TV with the matchups and arena numbers.
'Let's see… If I remember correctly, his name was Kirihara Ayato?'
"There he is! The picture matches him too! He is in.... Arena 7?!? I've gotta run!"
As I was running to Arena 7, I had a few thoughts.
'There is no way that that boy is just a bronze. There has to be more to him.'
'I wonder if his opponent will be able to keep up with him?'
'I'm kinda hungry.'
'Wow, that floor tile is a little cracked.'
'Why are things moved in cars called shipments while things moved by ship are called cargo?'
My thoughts were a bit… random
"Ah! I'm here! Now I can see his match!"
I sat down among the audience and waited for the match to begin.
…
(POV shift to Kirihara)
"Attention contestants. You may now move into the ring."
The door in front of me opened. At the other side of the fairly massive arena, I saw my newly-made friend, Rey. We both walked toward the center.
"Hello, Kirihara. I did not expect us to meet so soon."
"Hello, Rey. I have something to say before our match."
"Go ahead. I also have a sentiment I would like to share."
"Let's not hold any hard feelings toward each other because of this match. I think that we should let whatever happens in the ring stay in the ring."
"That is exactly what I wanted to say. I agree."
"Attention. The match starts in 10 seconds."
"Alright, I wish you the best of luck, Rey."
"Same to you."
We then moved to our starting positions. They were marked by a red circle on our respective sides.
"5"
"4"
"3"
"2"
"1"
"The match begins now."
…
(POV shift to Rey)
I had just made a friend in my new school, and I was already forced to fight him. Although he looks quite simple on the surface, I understand that there is far more to him than first meets the eye.
'I must be cautious.'
Suddenly, he started running towards me. I quickly shot some basic fire magic at him. He dodged as if he had been in millions of battles. I was right to assume that he is hiding his strength.
He then started rushing at me again. I quickly shot more basic fire magic. While he was busy dealing with the fire, I was gathering my energy and was getting ready to let loose my strongest virus spell. Hopefully, that will be enough for the judges to accept me. I already understood that he is far stronger than me from the moment our eyes first met. I had always been able to tell how strong a person was, ever since I could think. However, I couldn't feel anything from him when I saw him. That's when I understood that he is most likely the strongest person I have ever met. I cannot hold back.
Finally, my virus spell was ready. It was a debuff-type dark virus that paralyzes the opponent and forces them unconscious. I quickly shot the virus towards him. It successfully made contact.
…
(POV shift to Shion)
The match started. It was intense straight from the get-go. Kirihara's opponent seemed to be extremely cautious. He was doing everything he could to slow down Kirihara and kept shooting fire magic.
'He must have a lot of magic capacity. He is probably near diamond in capacity and mid-diamond in quality! I wonder how long Kirihara will last.'
'Wait, what's that behind his back? That is... A level 7 virus dark virus spell?!? Even I would have to be cautious around that! Kirihara is in danger! I thought killing was against the rules!'
Kirihara was then hit.
…
(POV shift to Kirihara)
I was hit by a spell.
[ALERT: a level 7 debuff-type virus spell has been detected by [Supercomputer - I. Diagnostics]. It has the following attributes: Paralyzation, Forced unconsciousness. [Supercomputer - II. Safeguard] has activated. [Supercomputer - IX. Quantum Computer] has activated thought acceleration x1,000,000 to speed up the process. [Supercomputer - II. Safeguard] has located the threat. The threat has been successfully neutralized. Operation successful. Threat: level 7 debuff-type dark virus has been averted.]
'I knew I could depend on you.'
[Of course, master. Though, had you been at your full power, nothing would have needed to happen.]
'I know. Alright, you can end the thought acceleration now.'
[[Supercomputer - IX. Quantum Computer ] has deactivated x1,000,000 thought acceleration.]
Now, back to business.
'A quick-fire spell should do it.'
Just before I gather the magic energy in my hand, I hear Rey's voice.
"I give up.'
"Just like that?"
"I put all of my magic into that. Even if I wanted to continue, I wouldn't be able to. And, that was my strongest spell. The fact that you recovered so easily and so fast is a pretty big discouragement."
'Oh, right. The thought acceleration was on. That made it seem like I simply slouched down and stood back up straight in less than a second. It must be pretty demoralizing to see that, huh?'
One of the judges started speaking.
"Contestant Reynold Ken, are you sure that you want to admit your loss?"
"Yes."
"With that, this match has been decided. Contestant Kirihara Ayato has beaten contestant Reynold Ken. Now it is time for the judgement. Reynold Ken, for your use of extremely powerful virus magic and ability to see through your opponent, you have passed. You will not be offered the opportunity to get a position in the student council due to your loss. However, you are now an official student of the Magic Academy. You may collect your badge from the waiting room from which you have entered this arena. Kirihara Ayato, for your incredible agility and tyrannical recovery speed, you have passed. Because you have won, you may choose to continue on in this tournament to get a higher position or you may drop out now and receive your badge."
"I choose to continue."
"Alright. This match has been decided. All of you may leave. You 2 contestants should go back to your waiting rooms so that you may be transported to the next destination."
"Alright Rey, I'll see you in a while. You'll watch my matches, won't you?"
"Of course. I look forward to seeing how someone as strong as you will fare in this tournament."
The two of us extended our hands in a firm handshake.
"Stay safe."
"I should be telling that to you, considering that you are moving on in the tournament, but seeing your strength, I guess I don't have to. Until we meet again."
We then went our respective ways.
…
(POV change to third-person)
"..."
"..."
"............."
"...what was that?"
Shion was having trouble believing what she had just seen. Completely contrary to her expectation, Kirihara won with an overwhelming victory.
"...he's pretty strong, isn't he? You never know until the fight starts! Now I wanna fight him."
Shion was going to pay the secretary a second visit.
…
"You want me to match you up with Kirihara Ayato? Weren't you disqualified?"
"Yeah, but that wasn't fair! It wasn't my fault!"
"It's not impossible, but… aren't you getting a little too free? Don't you have anything better to do than bully the poor kid? If you join back in, then all of the school's top powerhouses will be in the tournament. Who will be able to win the tournament then?"
"Just put us together. You'll see why once we fight."
"Fine. But you owe me. Big time."
"Thanks!"
Shion was now going to fight Kirihara in the second round.
…
(POV change to first-person, Kirihara)
"Time to check my 2nd round opponent! Let's see...oh?"
'It's purple hair. I don't think this is fair. Maybe I'll hold back a little.'
"ATTENTION: The second round will be starting in 5 minutes. You will now be transported to your second-round arena. The procedure will be the same as last time."
I was then teleported to the arena waiting room.
"Time to see how strong she is. Supercomputer, give me an analysis."
[Yes, master. [V. Analysis] activated. Analysis complete. Displaying report:
NAME: Shion Satou
HP:100/100
Mana: 900/900
AGE: 16
Magic Specialization: Fire [LVL 9], water [LVL 8] , earth [LVL 8], air, [LVL 8] physical [LVL 10 (MAX)], mental [LVL 7].
Magic Rank: Expert - 900
Unique Skills:
Ultra Recovery:
Allows mana to regenerate at a rate of 100 units per half-second.
Status: Always On
Growing Scholar:
Magic is learned and mastered very quickly.
Mana Cost: 0
Status: Always On
Special Ammunition:
Spells cast with the user's mana are 10 times more powerful than normal.
Mana Cost: 0
Status: On
Magical Bombardment:
Mana units are converted directly to high-power energy bullets which rain down on the opponent(s).
Mana Cost: Variable
Status: Not currently being used
One-Shot:
All mana units are converted into energy which is focused into a single instant-kill attack. Opponents cannot resist unless they have tyrannically high defense or a defense-type skill that relies on mana to nullify attacks.
Mana Cost: All
Status: Not currently being used
Revelation:
A skill that shows you the statistics of others.
Mana Cost: 100
Status: Passive (Name and Danger level shown above everyone looked at)
[EXAMPLE:
[Name]
[Mana Rank]
[Unique Skills:]
[Unique Skill 1]
[Unique Skill 2]
[Unique Skill 3]
[Danger Level (1-10)]
[Power Level (1-10)]
END EXAMPLE]
Ability Management:
Allows attacks, magics, and skills to become more powerful by consuming more mana. Each 10 mana consumed makes the attack more powerful with levels from 2x through infinity. The amplification lasts for the duration of the attack it is used with. Otherwise, it can enhance all abilities in general with a cost of {10 times the amount of amplification} per second. Mana cannot regenerate while this ability is in use. You can also decrease the power of your attacks, skills, and magics, as well as decrease your power in general. Decreasing power does not require mana.
Mana Cost: Variable
Status: Active (General power decreased by 10)
As you requested master, that is the analysis of the individual Shion Satou]
'She's quite powerful, isn't she? To think she was restricting her power… I want her to unleash that hidden power. I won't go easy on her.'
"ATTENTION: Round 2 starting now."
"Heh. It's time to see how strong student council president Shion really is."