Chapter 7: The Vanguard Battle
The Crawford Magic Academy and the Alvarez Knight Academy’s head-to-head tournament would be decided when one side secured three victories first.
While every match was important in securing a win, the vanguard battle—the first match—was especially crucial, as its outcome could dictate the momentum of the following battles.
For students with little real combat experience, the atmosphere of the arena heavily influenced their mentality and performance.
In a serious match, a charged atmosphere of “We can do this!” or “We can win!” fostered aggressive offense and elevated performance.
Conversely, in a losing atmosphere, fighters often succumbed to pressure, tensing up and shrinking back. When that happened, they fought passively, failed to perform at their best, or made uncharacteristic mistakes—all of which negatively impacted their performance.
Thus, winning the vanguard battle was absolutely critical.
A victory here became a psychological pillar, inspiring those who followed. On the other hand, losing the vanguard battle could demoralize the subsequent fighters.
Even from the audience’s perspective, if their side won the first match, they could remain optimistic even if they lost later: “There’s still a chance!” or “We can turn this around!” But if the losses piled up from the start, they’d likely grow pessimistic: “This might be hopeless…” or “We might lose this time…”
Experienced professional knights and mages could maintain stable performance under any circumstances.
But in student tournaments like this, even the audience’s morale could sway the match’s outcome.
Understanding this, both academies aimed for a victory in the vanguard battle—
…To put it another way, what they seek is a more overwhelming and memorable victory.
one that would leave a deep impression and carry through the remaining matches.
To achieve such a victory, the Knight Academy selected as their vanguard Tyson Estrada, ranked third in Alvarez Knight Academy.
Now, on the arena field, the two representatives stood facing each other.
Opposite Yufia Queensroad, the Magic Academy’s representative, stood a mountain of a man—over 190 cm tall, weighing 130 kg,
clad in the heaviest full-body armor, and wielding a massive greatsword planted firmly into the ground.
His very presence embodied the word “indomitable.”
And Tyson Estrada—this man’s defensive capabilities were not just in line with his appearance but exceeded them.
Tyson specialized in body-enhancement magic, increasing his physical durability, and enchantment magic, reinforcing his armor’s endurance. In both aspects, he stood unmatched in the Knight Academy’s history over the past few decades.
The destructive power of his sword swings, backed by monstrous strength, earned him an A-rank overall.
But in defense, he far surpassed mere excellence—his rating in that category was S-rank.
……In the Knight Academy’s training, students typically learned to deflect cannon-fired iron balls with their weapons or block them with shields.
Yet Tyson once stood completely naked, taking every iron ball head-on without resistance, earning him a legendary reprimand from the instructors.
—”Avoiding an attack is the same as admitting defeat.” This was Tyson Estrada’s unyielding creed.
In the past two inter-academy tournaments (where he participated as a second-year and then again as a third-year), he displayed bizarre combat methods:
“Endure every attack without resistance until the enemy mage exhausts their mana.”
For Tyson, victory meant tanking everything the opponent threw at him.
Dodging was defeat.
His abnormal pride in his defense led to his abnormal fighting style.
In both previous tournaments, he crushed the morale of the Magic Academy’s representatives, forcing their surrender each time.
Though unintended, his methods obliterated his opponent’s—and their entire faction’s—will to fight.
That was precisely why he was chosen for the vanguard battle.
Tyson Estrada was the only man worthy of leading the charge. —And for the Magic Academy, his selection was expected.
If they could defeat Tyson Estrada here… if they could avenge their losses from the past two years by winning the vanguard battle, it would undoubtedly shift the momentum in their favor.
That was why Yufia Queensroad was deployed now.
Since her enrollment, she had been hailed as the strongest in the academy’s history. The Magic Academy had desperately hoped to field her against Tyson, but she had consistently refused—until two weeks ago, when she suddenly announced her participation.
The reason was unknown, but for the academy, it was a welcome surprise.
The faculty believed that she alone could defeat Tyson Estrada.
……Normally, someone of her caliber would be reserved for the final match.
But she was still only a second-year.
The curriculum for second-years lacked practical combat training,
and since she hadn’t participated in last year’s tournament, her anti-knight combat skills were a complete unknown.
There was a risk that inexperience could lead to her defeat.
Unless the opponent was Tyson Estrada.
Against a madman who never dodged, Yufia Queensroad’s overwhelming offensive power could be unleashed to its fullest.
That was why she was deployed now—specifically to counter Tyson.
And so, the stage was set: The Magic Academy’s strongest offense vs. the Knight Academy’s strongest defense.
The ultimate spear against the ultimate shield.
The students understood this.
They wanted to see their academy’s strongest, Yufia Queensroad, crush that infuriating Tyson Estrada!
They wanted to see Tyson Estrada, as always, completely withstand the attacks of the so-called strongest mage in history!
These were the desires of both sides.
As the two vanguards faced off, the crowd’s excitement reached a fever pitch.
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Clad in thick silver armor, gripping his greatsword—Tyson Estrada.
Dressed in a black skirt-style reinforced combat suit—Yufia Queensroad. Inside the 50-meter-square arena, enclosed by a barrier, the two stood 30 meters apart.
And then—
“—Let the vanguard battle of the inter-academy tournament… BEGIN!”
The announcer’s voice echoed through the coliseum.
The moment the match started, Yufia spread her gloved hands to deploy a magic circle— Meanwhile, Tyson planted his greatsword into the ground and bellowed:
“Strongest maiden of the Magic Academy!! I shall not evade your attacks!! Come—strike me with all your might!!”
As expected, Tyson had zero intention of dodging.
His bold declaration reached the stands, and the Knight Academy students erupted in roaring cheers for his unshakable resolve.
Not to be outdone, the Magic Academy students shouted their support for Yufia.
The competing cheers from both sides grew louder, shaking the very air with their intensity.
—But then, instantly…
Silence. The uproar cut off abruptly.
“……Huh?”
The students who had been fixated on the arena field were all left speechless.
They had witnessed the bizarre sight that had appeared on the field…….
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