The instant the signal sounded, Lloyd activated his acceleration magic— “Dragon Speed Liberation: Drag-Accel!” In a blur too fast for the eye to follow, he closed the twenty-meter gap in an instant.
He knew Alphonse could attack with long-range magic—but Lloyd was certain that hitting him at this speed would be impossible.
If, by chance, Alphonse had deployed a magic circle and launched an offensive spell, Lloyd would have been able to evade it instantly. However, since Alphonse remained still with his sword at the ready, there was no need for any evasive action. As a result, Lloyd closed the distance between them in a straight dash.
Once he stepped into striking range, Lloyd suddenly shifted to Alphonse’s left, only to instantly boost his speed and pivot around to the right. Moving in a clockwise arc, he circled behind Alphonse.
During all this, what remained in Lloyd’s vision was Alphonse, staring dead ahead, never once turning his gaze to follow Lloyd’s movement.
“(Hah! He hasn’t even noticed the feint, huh!? Seriously, you’re so slow, Alphonse!!)” Lloyd smirked inwardly.
“(So what if you defeated the Black Dragon of Destruction!? So what if you’re the descendant of a hero!? I’ll make you understand, Alphonse!! You too, Freed!! This is the full extent of my true speed!!)”
Alphonse still hadn’t noticed Lloyd’s movement and continued to face forward with his sword at the ready.
From directly behind, Lloyd swung his sword down toward Alphonse’s shoulder.
The moment he was sure his blade would cut into Alphonse’s battle uniform—
Clang! A sharp metallic sound rang out. Alphonse had blocked Lloyd’s sword with his own.
“—What!?”
Lloyd’s eyes widened in shock. Just before his blade touched Alphonse, the latter, who should’ve been facing forward, had turned to meet him in an instant.
Though shaken and momentarily frozen, Lloyd quickly recovered and attempted another feint. Once again, he circled to Alphonse’s back.
…However.
“…!!”
This time, Alphonse rotated his body perfectly in sync with Lloyd’s trajectory, tracking him without delay.
“(T-This guy…!!)”
Lloyd glared bitterly at Alphonse.
“(He’s catching up to my movements…!!)”
Lloyd pushed his speed even further, slipping to Alphonse’s right and slashing upward at his flank from below. But the strike was easily deflected.
“(Damn it, no way!! Just two weeks ago, he couldn’t even come close to following my moves!!)”
As he grimaced at the unacceptable reality, something about Alphonse’s appearance caught Lloyd’s attention.
“(Wh-What is that? That golden… fire, coming off Alphonse’s body…?)”
Without Lloyd realizing, Alphonse’s entire form had begun to shimmer with golden light, like blazing flames.
Two weeks before the academy competition. When Lloyd visited the Magic Academy, he had mocked Alphonse:
“Two weeks before the match, and you’re holding a study session? With a bunch of C-ranks, no less? Feeling pretty confident, huh?”
But in truth, Alphonse was neither being overconfident nor slacking in his preparations. The spell written in the old magic tome Alphonse had at that time was part of his meticulous preparation.
The magic inscribed in that aged tome was called “Golden Dragon Flame-Clad – Aur-Dragnis.” It was said to be used by the Dragonoid tribe—descendants of the Golden Dragon—to enhance their unique magical power. The magic dated back over a thousand years.
When Alphonse fought the Black Dragon of Destruction, Schwarzwaldius, golden light had suddenly burst forth from his entire body.
While enveloped in that light, Alphonse had felt an overwhelming surge of magical energy and strength, to an extent he could scarcely believe.
…However, no matter how many times he tried afterward, Alphonse couldn’t will that golden light to appear again.
That’s when he recalled the “Golden Dragon Flame-Clad – Aur-Dragnis” spell he had discovered in the main house’s archive. He suspected that this ancient magic held the key to reclaiming that power.
So, Alphonse sought the vast knowledge of Shion, who seemed to possess an endless well of insight. Together, they began deciphering the missing portions of the spell’s incantation, aiming to complete it before the competition.
After extensive study, Shion narrowed down the possibilities of the missing components to thirteen potential formulas. Following their research meetings, Alphonse tested each of the thirteen variations by inserting them into the missing portion of the magic circle. Twelve of them yielded no reaction.
But the thirteenth caused the circle to faintly glow—a sign of potential.
Though incomplete, Alphonse used this clue to try hundreds of modifications, day and night, sacrificing sleep in pursuit of success.
After roughly a week of experimentation, he finally managed to manifest the golden light by his own will.
It was a fainter glow than what had appeared during his fight with the Black Dragon of Destruction, but even so, Alphonse could feel a dramatic increase in all of his physical and magical abilities.
During the final week leading up to the competition, he refined the technique until he could use it in actual combat.
And now, in the match against Lloyd, Alphonse had activated “Golden Dragon Flame-Clad – Aur-Dragnis,” cloaking himself in golden light.
The intensity of the light directly correlated with the amplification of his abilities. Though it had fluctuated during practice, today’s brilliance rivaled the glow he emitted during the battle with the Black Dragon of Destruction. It was the brightest it had ever been.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.GITHUB.IO
“(Damn it…!! If it’s come to this…!!)”
To distance himself from the now-speed-matching Alphonse, Lloyd consumed more mana and activated: “Dragon Speed Release – Drag-Accel: Second Gear.”
This accelerated his fatigue and mana depletion, but in a prolonged battle, Alphonse, who had far greater reserves, would hold the advantage.
That’s why Lloyd pushed for an early conclusion.
Alphonse might surpass him in technique, but in raw sword speed, Lloyd believed he still held the edge. And so, he relied on sheer number of strikes.
But—
“(T-This can’t be happening…!!?)”
Alphonse blocked every one of Lloyd’s lightning-fast strikes.
“(No way someone like slowpoke Alphonse could read my sword…!! I can’t— I won’t lose like this…!!)”
The more they clashed, the deeper Lloyd’s sense of desperation became.
“(Then how about this…!!)”
“Dragon Speed Release – Drag-Accel: Top Gear!!”
Lloyd unleashed his ultimate acceleration spell.
Its mana cost was tremendous—so great it couldn’t be maintained for even twenty seconds.
But in exchange, its boost was several magnitudes above Second Gear.
Since Second Gear was already being matched, Lloyd had no choice but to bet everything on a few decisive seconds of Top Gear.
He felt his body lurch forward, as if pushed by an unseen force—his movements accelerating to a level beyond comprehension.
“(I can do this… I can do this!!)”
In the blink of an eye, Lloyd exchanged countless strikes. For the first time, he felt his sword outpacing Alphonse.
—And then.
“(Now!!)”
Spotting a brief opening in Alphonse’s upper body during their clash, Lloyd drove forward with his fastest thrust yet.
It was perfect.
A thrust so precise and timed that it seemed as though the entire world had paused around it.
As his sword tip surged toward Alphonse—
—Alphonse vanished from right before his eyes.
“………!?”
Whoosh! Lloyd’s sword pierced nothing but air.
“—Over here, Lloyd.”
“…!!”
Alphonse’s voice rang out from behind him. Instinctively, Lloyd twisted his body and swung in a wide arc behind him—
—but again, there was nothing there.
It was like payback for all the times Lloyd had done the same.
“(Wh-Why…!? How can Alphonse… be faster than me!?)”
Just as Lloyd realized he had once again cut through air—
Step. He heard a footstep behind him. Whipping around, he saw—
“…!!”
Alphonse, crouched low, sword drawn back. A radiant, blinding golden light swirled around his blade.
“(Sorry, Lloyd. Right now, while I’ve activated Golden Dragon Flame-Clad – Aur-Dragnis… I can also use Drag-Accel—!!)”
[Do your best. Win no matter what. I’m rooting for you.]
“(…Thank you, Shion-kun…! Without you, I never could have beaten Lloyd…!!)”
Eyes wide, Lloyd watched as Alphonse swung his blade with all his might—aimed squarely at his torso.
“(This is the strength you gave me…!!)”
“Glorious Radiance – Sparkle-Ehre!!”
The golden blade of light unleashed from Alphonse’s sword exploded into Lloyd’s torso.
Lloyd was blown far back, crashing into the barrier wall with a thunderous BOOM.
“Gah… Huff…”
Even with the barrier’s protective dampening, the force of the strike far exceeded its limits. Lloyd collapsed unconscious, eyes rolled back.
The crystal embedded in the left side of his armor shifted from green to red—signaling the end of the match.
Once verified by the staff, the result was announced, and the scoreboard updated.
“Match decided!! Victory goes to… Magic Academy!!”
[WINNER: Alphonse = Freed]
As the announcement echoed through the arena, the crowd erupted in cheers.
“Th-That was incredible!!”
“It was so amazing, I have no idea what even happened…”
“I couldn’t see a thing either of them did…!”
“YEAHHHHHH!!”
“You did it, Alphonseeeeee!!”
“Lloyd was amazing toooooo!!”
“Alphonseeeeee!! You’re the best in the worlddddd!!”
Both the Magic Academy, whose representative had won, and the Knight Academy, whose contender fought a battle on another level, applauded and cheered in unison.
Amidst the thunderous applause, Alphonse imagined his best friend somewhere in the crowd.
“(…Shion-kun. When you’re behind me, I feel like I can never lose. No matter who I’m up against.)”
After the match, Alphonse raised his fist toward the audience—and the cheers intensified once more.
“(Because you’re my greatest friend, and—my hero.)”
Thus, the Crawford Magic Academy claimed another win following their vanguard match.
Only one victory remained to secure their overall triumph in the Academy Competition.
Visit the request page If there’s a Japanese Light Novel (LN) or Web Novel (WN) you’d like me to translate
When the donation goal progress bar above hit 100% one novel will be chosen for translation
| Table of Contents | Next* |
Support the Author by Buying the Original Books!
