Game Opportunities Become Reality Episode 68
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Game Opportunities Become Reality Episode 68
20. Only I Feel at Peace (3)
A 'Vanguard' refers to a Knight armed with Force Equipment.
Force Equipment is armament that converts a Knight's Aura into a release-type energy called Force, and it typically consists of a two-piece set: a Force Sword and Force Armor.
The Force Sword uses the released energy for offense, while the Force Armor uses it for defense.
The Force Sword's maximum release range is 1.2 km, and its power is similar to Laser Cannon, a 6th-circle attack spell.
Force Armor is known to have defense at the 6th-circle level, but since Force itself is highly effective against magical defense, it's hard to call it an ordinary 6th-circle level it's rated around quasi-7th-circle.
Force Equipment has one limitation: no matter how much Aura you pour into it, it can only produce a fixed output.
Whether you're an Aura Master, Aura Expert, or Aura User, the power of the released Force is the same.
But that doesn't mean an Aura Master Vanguard and an Aura User Vanguard have equal combat ability.
That's because when you release Force while layering an Aura Blade over the Force Sword, the two energies merge and create a far more powerful strike.
'Sort of like Aura Force, huh?'
Although an Aura Blade mixed with Force rapidly discharges once its release range exceeds 30 meters, leaving only ordinary Force behind, within 30 meters it displays power comparable to a 7th-circle Grand Magic completed through a long casting.
An Aura Master Vanguard is someone who unleashes such attacks without casting.
So my confident actions could only look reckless to the experts and the cast.
"Wouldn't it be better to remove the Force Equipment and fight? Right now, it's practically a Knight slathered in magical gear facing a Mage in bare skin."
National MC Baron Jimmy asked if I was really sure.
It was their own plan, but if I went along and lost despite disrupting the schedule, things would look ridiculous enough that they'd have a hard time covering for me so they were worried.
"Well, I don't mind. If the Marquis wishes, I'll face him with ordinary armaments."
In response to Baron Jimmy's question, Count Felix was already acting as if he'd won, giving off a patronizing vibe.
At that, I let out a small chuckle and waved my hand.
"I can't afford to lose to a rookie Aura Master."
"And aren't you a rookie Grand Mage yourself?"
"Is Count Felix comparable to me?"
"Arrogance that fuels one's fighting spirit. Very well."
And so I and Count Felix moved to the center of the dueling ground.
At that, the stands stirred as everyone's attention poured in.
"Kyaaaaah! Sir Adrian!"
The most striking of all were the fans shouting my name in cheer.
I waved at them, looking relaxed, and shortly after, one of the invited experts a tactical commander from the Jordy Defense Force serving as today's referee approached.
"I thought a lot about how to conduct the spar. Considering a typical battlefield environment, I should cast Spatial Teleportation Interference Magic, but I wondered whether it was necessary to restrict the Mage even in a spar."
A Knight is boosted by Vanguard equipment, but a Mage would have even teleportation blocked and their combat power nerfed from an ordinary viewpoint, it would just look unfair.
But if you think in terms of a battlefield, you have to accept all of this.
On a real war front, no one would go easy on a Mage.
After all, isn't a spar also meant to keep actual combat in mind?
"So I plan to hold the first round with spatial teleportation magic usable, and if Marquis Lawrence wins there, I'll cast Spatial Teleportation Interference Magic like on a real battlefield."
They were trying to accommodate me in their own way.
Count Felix showed no sign of displeasure at this policy, only letting out a hearty laugh.
"There won't be any need for a second round anyway."
A man with too much confidence.
Well, since he's an Aura Master, I understand him overestimating his strength, but he didn't seem to know how much a Mage's ability to use Blink (short-range teleportation) matters.
These days, Knights might fare better if they had the kind of experience with Blink that the Knights of old did, but that's hardly the case.
"Let's begin shortly."
"Are both of you ready?"
"Yes."
"I am."
"Understood. Then I will begin the countdown."
The referee quickly exited the Duel arena and headed to the safe zone.
And then the countdown began, with the time ticking down from 30 seconds.
"Go, Sir Adrian!"
"Big brother, win this!"
For the first 10 seconds, the audience cheered loudly and noisily.
But that didn't last long everyone had enough sense to gradually quiet down, and once half the time, 15 seconds, had passed, the Duel arena fell as silent as a graveyard.
With 10 seconds left, Count Felix equipped his Vanguard gear.
I too stretched my neck and, with 5 seconds remaining, pulled my Magic Staff out from subspace.
[3]
[2]
[1]
[0]
And soon, the countdown number hit 0, signaling the start of the Spar.
-Thwack!
Everyone knows that a Mage is weak in close-quarters combat.
Is that why?
Count Felix lunged at me the moment it began, wearing a smug expression.
A speed truly like a flash of lightning.
I could feel a spirit like that of a tiger.
"Die!"
"This is a Spar. You're not supposed to kill."
But no matter how fast he was, he could never be faster than teleportation.
As I used Blink, the 5th-circle short-range teleportation spell that requires no casting, the scenery around me instantly shifted, and Count Felix appeared at my feet.
I casually used a 5th-circle Explosion spell.
-Booom!
It was a spell aimed at Count Felix's head, but as expected, it couldn't pierce the defense of his Force Armor.
Still, just because it wasn't a critical hit doesn't mean there was no impact.
A 5th-circle spell detonating at nearly point-blank range was not like an ordinary 5th-circle spell.
"Guh!"
-Swoosh!
Count Felix, his head snapped back as if struck by a fist, swung his Force Sword at me in fury.
An Aura Blade carrying terrifying destructive power, combined with the fearsome physical capabilities of an Aura Master, was swung at a speed nearly indistinguishable from a bullet.
'If you wait to react after seeing the attack, it's too late. You idiot.'
But since I clearly knew the enemy was about to attack, I had no obligation to wait patiently for it.
I had already relocated via Blink the moment after his attack began, and Count Felix's strike only cut through empty air.
-BOOOOM!
And I used Explosion once more, aimed at Count Felix's now fully exposed back of the head.
I kept repeating the same actions until Count Felix changed his approach.
"You coward, hopping around like that!"
"You know something? If not for your Force Armor, you'd have died several times by now."
"Don't make me laugh!"
Blink, Explosion, Blink, Explosion.
Since a 5th-circle spell requiring no casting was unleashed with only a trigger word, the prejudice that Mages are slow simply didn't apply.
Count Felix, flustered by a pace too fast even for cameras to capture, screamed and counterattacked but nothing could reach me, so he only ended up flailing around.
He had zero experience in real combat against a Mage.
So not knowing the terror of Blink was his fatal mistake.
-Swoosh!
But he wasn't completely stupid after a dozen or so repetitions of the same pattern, his attack style changed.
Instead of chasing me with his eyes, he began tracking the path of my mana with an Aura Master's keen sense.
So an Aura Master really is an Aura Master, huh?
'Laser Cannon'
But since I'm not exactly a nice person by nature, I toyed with him to my heart's content, and just as Count Felix was starting to adapt to the fight,
I immediately appeared behind his back and used Laser Cannon, a 6th-circle spell I hadn't used even once until now.
A spell's power diminishes the farther it travels from its caster.
But when a spell detonates at nearly point-blank range, it creates a strike far more powerful than commonly known.
-BOOOOOM!
With an ordinary Vanguard, his head would have been blown off here, but an Aura Master's further-reinforced Force Armor protected its user even from this without a scratch.
"Nngh."
But as I've already shown, it can't completely absorb the impact either.
If a 5th-circle Explosion delivers an impact like being punched, a 6th-circle Laser Cannon delivers an impact on the level of a car crash.
An Aura Master might be able to withstand a car crash with his bare body, but what happens when that impact hits the back of your head?
-Thud.
Count Felix let out a single groan and collapsed to the floor, unconscious.
I placed my foot on his back and struck a victory pose toward the cast and cameras, who had yet to recover from the shock.
"You should declare the victory."
"Ah, the First Round goes to Lord Marquis Lawrence."
I snatched the Force Sword from Count Felix's hand and tossed it far away.
Then the cast members approached one by one, showering me with questions and compliments.
"You never used a 7th Circle spell, right?"
"Yes. Even spamming 5th Circle spells with no casting is extremely threatening. 7th Circle spells are impressive too, but being able to use 5th Circle spells without casting is, I think, the Grand Mage's greatest strength."
"Being able to use Blink freely makes your combat look spectacular. The assessment that mages are slow looks like nothing but a rumor now."
"But on a real battlefield, fighting like this is difficult. Spatial Teleportation Interference Magic is standard there."
"That last spell was a 6th Circle Laser Cannon, wasn't it? Did you have it Memorized in advance?"
"No, I just cast it during the fight."
"So you're saying you were spamming 5th Circle spells while also casting a 6th Circle spell?"
"Double casting is a basic skill."
"You're truly incredible."
"That was so cool!"
The female celebrity who had been sending me especially friendly looks from earlier was now staring at me even more clingily, but I cleanly ignored her and pointed at the half-dead, neglected Count Felix, shouting.
"Miss Ibril! Please treat this man!"
"Yes!"
Only then did a member of the medical staff come rushing over.
But since that medical staff member was Ibril, who to anyone looked like nothing more than a young girl, everyone expressed doubt.
In fact, in exchange for my appearance here, I had arranged through consultation with the production team to have Ibril included in the medical staff.
If it were a serious injury, other professional personnel would have rushed out, but since Count Felix's injury wasn't that severe, Ibril came out instead.
Everyone showed doubt, and numerous cameras turned toward Ibril as she examined Count Felix.
"Heal."
And she used the divine magic she had been personally taught by Archbishop Fred.
The spell was just the basic healing spell, Heal.
-Flash!
But the Heal, amplified by her saintly qualities and top-grade Divine power, produced effects beyond common sense.
"What is this?"
"Angel's Feathers?"
As the healing spell unfolded from her fingertips, snow-white feathers scattered around like cherry blossom petals.
That was the enhanced divine magic effect known as 'Angel's Feathers,' which could normally only be seen from priests of Archbishop rank or higher.
Naturally, surprise filled everyone's faces, and the MCs, Baron Jimmy and Baron Park, made a huge fuss.
"Come to think of it, I heard that today's medical staff was personally brought in by Lord Marquis Lawrence himself. But I never imagined it would be a girl that young."
"I thought it best to use someone I could trust."
"At that young age, she's a priest of Archbishop rank? Amazing."
"No, she's only received baptism and hasn't formally joined the church yet. So she's only registered as a retainer of our Marquis household."
"What? But I've heard that kind of divine magic and the Angel's Feathers effect can only be seen from priests of Archbishop rank in the church."
"She personally studied divine magic under Archbishop Fred, who resides in our Kingdom of Rhinehearts. As for the Angel's Feathers effect, he said it's because her natural talent is simply extraordinary."
"Talent?"
"Yes, Miss Ibril is planning to participate in the upcoming Saintess contest."
"What?"
"Wow, incredible."
This was all arranged in advance.
These were the lines and reactions we'd settled on the moment my appearance was confirmed.
Thanks to that, before long the audience's attention had shifted to Ibril, away from the show's intended direction, and I called her over and had her greet the camera.
"N-nice to meet you. I'm Ibril Barnet, in charge of medical support today. I'll do my best. But please don't get too hurt."
She wasn't just pretty she also had an incredibly kind impression and a gentle voice.
She was like the very image of a Saintess you'd picture in your imagination, wasn't she?
Even with such a brief appearance on air, the impact would be considerable.
"Ughhhh! God damn it!"
Ibril's advertisement time came to an end as Count Felix woke up.
The cast members also stumbled backward in shock, as if they'd been burned.
"I was gradually getting used to the fight. If just a little more time had passed, I probably would have won."
He'd apparently already forgotten his polite speech the moment he passed out.
I answered calmly, facing the thoroughly enraged Count Felix.
"Looks like I'll be hearing that line again."
On the battlefield, Spatial Teleportation Magic becomes useless.
So for a spar meant to mimic real combat, it's only right not to use spatial teleportation.
That's probably why the referee split the round into two parts from the start.
But even the organizers probably never expected the First Round to end this anticlimactically.
I picked up the Force Sword he'd dropped and tossed it back to him.
Gripping it, he gritted his teeth and spoke to the referee.
"Start the countdown."
"Ah, yes sir."
As angry as he is, did he forget the cameras are rolling right now?
I shook my head at his threatening attitude toward the referee.
I don't think I need to worry about my image on the broadcast.
After all, someone's kindly volunteering to play the villain.
And so, the countdown for the spar began once more.
The distance between me and that guy was about ten meters.
In the First Round, the starting distance was about twenty meters, but somehow it had already shrunk to half that.
For an Aura Master, it was a distance they could close in a single step.
But I, unconcerned, calmly watched the holographic countdown displayed before me.
[3]
[2]
[1]
[0]
Then, a signal tone announcing the start of the spar rang out.
"I'll kill you!"
"I told you, you're not allowed to kill me."
The guy lunged at me like a bolt of lightning.
With a faster and more threatening momentum than in the First Round.
His resolve not to let his guard down again was visible.
So I pointed my index finger at him.
'Flame Blast. Flame Blast. Flame Blast... Flame Blast.'
I fired off all ten 7th Circle spells I had memorized at once.
"Wha !?"
Count Felix hastily swung his Aura Blade to try to cancel out the magic.
But canceling out all the 7th Circle grand spells flying at him almost as a single spell was no easy feat.
"Aaaargh!"
-BOOOOOOM!
A tremor shook the world with an explosion incomparable to anything before, and Count Felix's pitiful scream, swept up in the blast, faded away into the dazzling light.