The surrounding ice began to gather around irin. At the thrust of her hand, the shards coalesced into a massive awl and shot forward.
The projectile, the size of a large carriage, tore through the air with a great rush of wind.
In response, White did only one thing. He held out his palm, on which no magic circle was drawn.
Just before reaching White’s hand, irin’s spell was unraveled, dissolving into nothing. Only a fine mist of ice crystals remained, dusting his clothes.
"He blocked it!" Kamibarez exclaid, hopping in frustration.
’What was that?’
Simon’s gaze sharpened. For an attack of that magnitude, strangely few fragnts had scattered upon impact.
"Then how about this!" irin shouted.
She activated the magic circle on her left hand.
’Dark Flare’
The sa black magic that had taken her considerable ti to prepare in her first year now flowed from her with ease. A jet-black fla, belching noxious smoke, streaked toward White. Once again, he simply held out his palm.
The Dark Flare was extinguished, as if it were a re candle fla.
"Hmm." A thoughtful expression crossed irin’s face as she lowered her stance. Ice ford beneath her heels, supporting her weight. "I’m not sure what your trick is yet, but I’ll just have to keep hamring away!"
Ice Road
irin’s signature technique appeared with a sharp scraping sound. She began to glide across the arena at high speed on a path of ice that ford beneath her feet. Simultaneously, she thrust a palm forward, a new magic circle glowing upon it.
’Ice Bolt-irin Remake’
A relentless barrage of small, sharp ice shards poured from her hand.
Watching from the sidelines, Simon nodded vigorously. ’She’s doing great. Her situational judgnt is sharp!’
When her heavy-hitting spells failed, she imdiately switched her style to a combination of high-speed movent and rapid-fire magic. She circled White, unleashing a storm of ice shards.
Finally, White moved. He created a transparent, glass-like shield centered on his palm. As he slowly rotated his arm, the shield moved with it, deflecting the barrage.
Kamibarez’s expression hardened. "irin’s Jet-Black Ice Boundary... it’s not being destroyed, it’s just disappearing."
"Yeah," Simon agreed. "I think it’s an extension of the sa technique he used on the Dark Flare."
At the end of his first year, White had defeated Moiran’s third-year Student Council President. While the presidents of the other great schools might be considered second-tier compared to Kizen’s, they were still formidable necromancers who had honed their skills for three years. It was almost impossible for a newly transferred first-year to defeat one.
Almost. There was one way it was possible.
’An innate ability.’
With black magic alone, he would stand no chance against a third-year. Therefore, White must have won by combining his jet-black with a powerful innate ability. If he was a user on the level of Lorraine or Serne, victory wouldn’t have been out of the question.
The key to this match, Simon realized, was whether irin could figure out what that ability was.
"Haaaaah!"
irin, still circling and firing, changed her tactics. While keeping White’s attention fixed on her, she erected a massive ice wall behind him. The wall then began to topple forward.
’A physical attack using the weight of the ice!’
White simply reached his right hand behind his back. The mont the collapsing wall touched his palm, its center vanished as if it had never been there.
’Paralyze’
Not missing the opening, irin launched a curse. It struck White squarely in the back, but he rely brushed the spot as if dusting off his uniform.
Simon’s expression grew serious. ’He countered that entire sequence so easily.’
Jet-Black ice, jet-black fire, high-speed volleys, physical attacks, curses—irin had tried every trick in her arsenal, but nothing had worked.
With no other option, she resud circling him, firing a continuous stream of ice. The match fell into a stalemate. Spectators began to turn away, sighing.
"She doesn’t stand a chance."
"I guess even Kizen’s Vice President is no match for him."
It was the sa pattern that had played out with every necromancer White had defeated. Believing the match was over, people began to leave their seats. Kamibarez watched them, her hands clenched in frustration.
"irin...!"
Just then, a single ice shard struck White’s body with a dull ’thud’.
White glanced down. The transparent shield was still intact.
A second and third shard got through. Then...
More and more attacks began to penetrate the shield. White was being hit.
A murmur rippled through the crowd. The spectators who had been leaving excitedly returned to their seats. Simon quickly checked the barrier gauge on the mana screen.
[irin Villenne: 100%]
[White: 95%]
There was no doubt. Her attacks were landing.
"White got hit!"
"YAYYYYY!"
A trendous roar erupted from the crowd. irin brought her Ice Road to a halt.
"I’ve never heard of anything like it, but that power you’re using..." Her finger pointed directly at White. "It’s an innate ability that absorbs jet-black, isn’t it?"
White gave no reaction. As if she hadn’t expected one, irin stood tall, hands on her hips. "Hit the nail on the head, did I? What I just mixed in with my jet-black elental spells was..."
The magic circle on her hand flared to life. It was a clear, brilliant blue, without a single trace of black energy.
"Pure elental magic, created using only mana."
Simon grabbed the fence, his expression ecstatic. ’That’s it, irin!’
Mana and mages were considered inferior versions of jet-black and necromancers. Even the Ivory Tower—the hallowed cradle of all mages, which once boasted a prestige that surpassed even modern-day Kizen—had acknowledged this truth and converted its system to necromancy.
But during the club season, irin had joined the Pure Magic Research Society. She had done so believing that learning the formulas of pure magic would help her understand jet-black elental magic later on. Many had scoffed, telling her she’d be better off reading her textbook than wasting ti in such a club. But here and now, that unique repertoire she had cultivated was finally paying off.
"Here I go!" irin shouted, stomping on the magic circle she’d drawn on the ground.
A deep rumble shook the arena.
The ice in the canals shot into the sky. She ticulously carved intricate magic circles of pure mana onto each shard. Then, activating her prepared Jet-Black Ice Barrier, she launched the pure ice shards first, followed imdiately by a wave of jet-black ice magic in a thunderous barrage.
Pure ice alone was a weak projectile; the standard tactic was to reinforce it with Jet-Black. But knowing White’s true nature, irin abandoned the standard. Weaving between her attacks, White moved deftly. She had him trapped. If he used his unique ability, her pure magic would pierce it; if he deployed a Jet-Black shield, her own Jet-Black ice would tear it apart.
His barrier flickered under the relentless assault.
[irin Villenne: 100%]
[White: 87%]
"Not yet!" irin declared, forming Jet-Black fla magic in her right hand. "Not even close!"
In her left, she conjured pure elental magic—her specialty, multi-casting. She began to bombard him, unleashing different types of black magic from both hands. White’s barrier was gradually being chipped away.
Her gaze hardened. ’I will win, no matter what!’
---
Three days ago.
"I was wondering why a Kizen junior would co all the way out to my post in Shahed for a mission evaluation," the woman remarked, pushing up her glasses. She let out a dry laugh as she looked down at irin, who was bowing deeply.’
"You want to teach you the duties and tips of being the Kizen Vice President?"
"Please, senior!" irin bowed even lower, her voice earnest. "I heard you were the true force behind the golden age of last year’s Phantastus Student Council! I ca here because I want to learn your thods!"
"That’s your problem," the senior replied coolly. "Why should I sacrifice my ti off for that? I’m new at this job, too, and I’m exhausted."
"I’ll wake up early and handle your morning schedule for you tomorrow!"
"Don’t be ridiculous!"
In truth, irin had co to Shahed from the very beginning with the sole purpose of eting last year’s Kizen Vice President. Kamibarez had gladly accompanied her.
"Senior! I’ve finished all the cleaning!"
"I told you not to."
"You must be hungry. I left so fruit on your desk!"
While completing her own mission evaluation, irin had shadowed the forr vice president relentlessly. Her persistence was such that the woman finally spoke out of sheer disbelief.
"Why are you going this far?"
"Um..."
irin clenched her fists.
"I want to be of use to the one person who acknowledged ."
Simon had appointed her vice president. She was well aware of the rumors swirling among the students. ’She got lucky with her friends. She’s just riding Simon’s coattails. How fortunate that her first group project partner was Kizen’s top student.’ Of course, it was standard practice in Kizen for an elected student council president to fill the council with their most trusted associates, and she knew the criticism was just childish jealousy.
But irin couldn’t be satisfied with that. After all, Kizen was a ritocracy.
"I only thought of you from the start."
"You’re more qualified to be the vice president than anyone else in this school."
Her face still burned at the mory, but that’s what Simon had told her. It was one thing for people to insult her, but she refused to let them discredit the person who had chosen her. If she was going to be the vice president, she had to prove she possessed the skills to match the title.
"Professor Jane! Could I ask you to look over this report?"
Day after day since entering Kizen, she worked relentlessly, sacrificing sleep. It didn’t matter that it was a temporary student council until Aizel, a third-year, returned. It didn’t matter that it was a fleeting midsumr night’s dream. It was fine if everyone only paid attention to Simon.
She just wanted to prove—purely with her skills—why he had chosen her. In addition to striving to defeat Serne, irin studied tirelessly to fulfill her duties as vice president.
"Senior! Where should I clean next?"
This mission evaluation was part of that sa effort. In the end, irin’s sincerity won over the forr vice president.
"This is a notebook I used when I was vice president... ’Sigh’, what am I even doing?"
"Thank you, senior!"
She had to work harder. Even harder. The four-day mission was far too short to learn everything, but the mont she heard from Jane that Simon was fighting as the student council president in the transfer evaluations, she had co straight to Moiran.
"I—!" irin extended both arms, activating her black magic. "—absolutely cannot lose!"
A low rumble echoed as pillars of glossy black ice shot up from the floor, engulfing White. He tried to use his ability to lt the ice, but irin had used more than just Jet-Black ice magic.
His arms were frozen solid, trapped by ice made of pure magic. With a flick of her feet, she vaulted off the ice, launching herself above him. With Jet-Black, she created a handle, and with pure magic, she ford the head of a hamr.
’irin Remake -Frozen Hamr’
With a deep, grinding groan, the handle activated, and the ice hamr plunged downward. White’s body buckled and collapsed as a shower of frost and ice crystals scattered in all directions. An explosive roar erupted from the crowd.
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