Chapter 16

Rank 1 and Rank 2. The gap between them is vast.

As soon as the match began, senpai charged at me. He must have thought very little of me, swinging his sword in a large arc as he rushed forward.

It was a simple movement, but fast. Even if I discarded my weapon and ran with all my might, I wouldn't reach half his speed.

I relaxed my entire body.

It was too early. The distance was 2 meters. The moment I closed that gap, I placed my spear on the predicted path of senpai's movement without any preparatory motion.

Senpai didn't react to this completely natural movement. Even if his physical abilities improved with a higher rank, his reflexes and dynamic vision remained unchanged.

If it were a counter from outside his awareness, it would be impossible to react, no matter the speed difference.

"Ugh"

Senpai's face showed shock, but it was too late.

Unable to stop his momentum, he impaled himself on the spear. By making minor adjustments with my right hand, the point of impact was his throat.

The spear hit his throat as if it were being sucked in.

Normally, such a forceful thrust into the soft throat would easily penetrate and cause a fatal wound.

But, a hard, metallic sound echoed. The tip of the spear only made a tiny scratch, like a needle prick. Senpai took almost no damage. Yet, I felt a dull pain in my wrist, and blue particles shimmered as the healing process began, depleting my protection.

"Hah, sad, Rank 1."

Senpai, with the spear still at his throat, continued to advance.

It was no good. If this continued, my wrist would break, and I would consume a large amount of protection. I released the tension in my wrist. At that moment, my upper body was swept away with tremendous force.

Senpai, taking advantage of my off-balance position, swung his sword down.

I didn't try to forcibly regain my balance but used the momentum of being pushed back.

Spinning rapidly on my left foot, I circled behind him and, using centrifugal force, swung the spear to strike his medulla oblongata.

I evaded his downward swing and successfully struck his medulla oblongata with the centrifugal force of the spear. This would normally be a lethal blow.

But, I only felt a dull sensation in my hand, and senpai didn't flinch.

I took two backsteps to create some distance.

While I was on full alert, senpai slowly turned around with a confident smile.

"You must be frustrated. If you were at my rank, you could have killed me twice. No, I'm impressed. To do this much, you have terrifying spear skills. It boosts my confidence."

"Thank you."

"But, you should understand now. You can't kill me. You don't have the means to do so."

"I scratched the surface. If I repeat this ten thousand times, your protection will run out, won't it?"

Senpai's counter, taking advantage of his superior speed, only caused a superficial scratch on his throat with the concentrated force of the spear's tip. It was heartbreaking.

This is the difference between Rank 2 and Rank 1.

"Try if you can. But, now you understand. I won't underestimate you. I'll steadily corner you."

Senpai held his sword in a ready stance.

A magical glow enveloped his entire body, enhancing his physical abilities with magic.

"Let's go, Rank 1 scum."

He charged at me as before.

But, he didn't take large strides; instead, he moved quickly with small steps, maintaining his stance.

There were no openings. It was impossible to counter as easily as before.

I resolved myself.

"【Extreme Physical Enhancement】"

It wasn't just a matter of channeling magic power into my body. I activated the most optimal physical enhancement magic from the game era.

A phosphorescent glow of magic overflowed, strengthening my entire body.

Even the blue phosphorescence of my protection, which activates upon injury, was released.

This was because the magic enhanced my physical abilities beyond my limits, causing injury to my body.

My protection was depleted every second. But, if I didn't do this, I would be instantly killed.

"Huff"

Taking advantage of the spear's reach, I thrust it forward.

The attack, without any preparatory motion, hit before the opponent could react.

Senpai's speed had decreased compared to before, but the power was compensated for by the 【Extreme Physical Enhancement】. Still, it was just a scratch.

He was deflected, and I allowed him to close the distance.

Senpai swung his sword. The backswing was small, and there were no openings. It was a minimal movement, like striking a kendo mask.

The speed difference was too great. Even if he took a large swing, it would be impossible to evade.

I angled the spear to deflect the blow.

Despite trying to redirect the force, my hand went numb. The difference in strength was too much.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

He attacked in rapid succession. A series of attacks with minimal openings.

I could counter with my skill, but it would be meaningless.

I took small steps to evade as much as possible, and when I couldn't, I deflected the blows.

Even a glancing blow would ensure my defeat.

"Hey! Just defending, huh!"

I continued to defend silently. I had no time to speak.

Even doing this, the slight impact when deflecting caused cracks in my bones. The backlash from the 【Extreme Physical Enhancement】 was eroding my body, and my protection was being depleted with each healing.

The match began to show a one-sided nature.

But, senpai's expression lost its composure, and doubt began to appear.

"Why can you block everything? Despite being Rank 1, using such extreme physical enhancement, why isn't your magic power exhausted!?"

Senpai's face showed shock. A hint of anxiety began to emerge. Normally, even if I focused on defense, a Rank 1 couldn't withstand continuous attacks from a Rank 2.

It was thanks to the 【Extreme Physical Enhancement】. This wasn't just a matter of removing limits; it was a high-speed calculation that concentrated magic power only where needed. Unlike ordinary enhancements that strengthened the entire body, this was a different level of magic.

The problem was that, despite all this, my physical abilities were still overwhelmingly inferior.

And the reason my magic power didn't run out was due to my secret technique. I had pre-stored magic power in the mithril on my thighs, using it as a reserve magic power source. If it were just my own magic power, it would have been depleted long ago. The 【Extreme Physical Enhancement】 was not a fuel-efficient magic.

Senpai, losing patience, changed his target and aimed to break my spear first, attacking it directly.

If I took that hit, my spear would break, my arm would go numb, and an opening would be created.

But, senpai forgot that I was not a warrior but a mage.

"What!?"

At the moment of impact, the spear melted, and the sword passed through.

"【Mithril Refinement: Form 6 - Dual Swords】"

The spear split into two short swords, which I held in both hands.

Now, the distance was too close for a spear, but perfect for a sword. I decided to close the distance further, to the range of a dagger.

With the right and left short swords, I aimed to cut the arteries in his neck and wrist.

... The crowd erupted in cheers at this series of attacks and defenses.

But, it was just a scratch. Senpai, feeling humiliated, increased his speed. However, the pattern became predictable, and now it was within my range, making it easier to handle than before.

"Enough, you're annoying me!!"

Frustrated by my persistent attacks, he swung a wide horizontal slash. He didn't aim to hit but to create distance.

I saw through his preparatory motion and stepped back just outside the range of his sword.

"【Mithril Refinement: Form 1 - Spear Thrust】"

And once again, the spear. As I followed the path of senpai's horizontal slash with my eyes, I thrust the spear upward with all my might, like a golf swing.

The target was senpai's groin.

The spear passed between his legs and struck his testicles. I used all my strength to thrust upward.

It was impossible to brace against an attack from below. My mid-level Rank 1 strength was not for nothing; senpai's body was blown away dramatically.

He flew about 5 meters and landed headfirst on the stone floor of the Colosseum.

"Good thing your testicles were hard, senpai of Rank 2."

I caught my breath and made a light remark. My back was drenched in cold sweat, and my heart was pounding from the long period of breath-holding. If the attack had continued for five more seconds, I would have been finished.

Despite hitting with enough force to make his body fly 5 meters, I couldn't crush his testicles. He had clearly transcended being human.

"Good job, Rank 1!"

"You can do it, Rank 1. This is a major upset."

"Damn, I should have bet on the guy. It was a long shot."

Cheers came from the audience. They were captivated by my fight.

The attack did almost no damage.

In fact, none of my attacks since the start had been effective.

On the contrary, every time I deflected senpai's sword, cracks appeared in my bones, and I continued to suffer the backlash from the 【Extreme Physical Enhancement】. My protection was down to about 45%.

If it dropped below 30%, the power of my protection would weaken drastically, and both my defense and physical abilities would decline. At that point, there would be no hope.

My magic power was also running out, with my reserve magic power source depleted and my own magic power below half.

It was a truly desperate situation.

"You, you're mocking me. I'll kill you. I'll definitely kill you."

"Senpai, after being toyed with and beaten up, you can still say that? At least hit me once before you say that. ... No, you don't even need to hit me. If you strike me properly, you can cut through the spear and me in one go. But, after all this, you still can't even do that."

I said this loudly enough for the audience to hear.

Laughter echoed through the crowd.

I was the one being cornered, but from the audience's perspective, it didn't look that way.

It seemed like senpai was being hit and deflected, and I was mocking him.

This was important.

"I'll kill you!"

"Is that all you can say? Your vocabulary is so limited. That's why your sword skills are so simple. It's easy to deflect. To miss a cut when the spear is in range shows a lack of sword talent."

The audience's laughter grew louder.

I was pouring fuel on senpai's anger.

I secretly closed the distance to 2.3 meters, the range of my decisive attack.

"Be prepared, I'll show you my true strength."

The intensity of senpai's physical enhancement increased.

But, it was distorted.

He couldn't handle the increased magic power.

He had completely lost himself. ... This was enough.

I decided to play my trump card.

"Senpai, there."

I pointed to a small stone behind senpai and simultaneously caused a small explosion with fire magic.

It had no power, just a sound to distract. Normally, he wouldn't fall for it.

But, having lost his composure, senpai flinched and looked at the stone, drawn by the finger and the explosion.

In the midst of the fight, he took me out of his field of vision and consciousness. This was fatal.

"【Divine Spear】"

This was my trump card for the fight.

I activated the fastest and strongest magic using a spear.

This magic was theoretically the fastest thrust using the full power of my body.

I aimed to land this one decisive blow. I had built my strategy around this. It was the only effective attack I could make now, a desperate gamble that used everything in one strike.

Eliminating all waste, the goal was to deliver the fastest spear over the shortest distance. This was the strongest magic and spear technique I had created, the most trusted partner I had.

Taking a step forward and thrusting the spear was all it took. But, the force traveled from my foot to my waist, from my waist to my arm, from my arm to my hand, and from my hand to the spear, creating a spiral of artistic force.

Furthermore, 【Divine Spear】 went beyond 【Extreme Physical Enhancement】.

While 【Extreme Physical Enhancement】 concentrated magic power only where needed, 【Divine Spear】 poured all magic power into the movement of my body, focusing on the muscles in use at the precise moment.

Naturally, the backlash of such extreme magic would erode and destroy my body. But, 【Divine Spear】 used its divine speed to reach the target before my body could be destroyed.

To use this, I had to be prepared to lose about 10% of my protection.

As I released the 【Divine Spear】, a phosphorescent glow of magic and protection spread from my entire body, and it struck senpai's eyes, which had just returned to me.

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH