NOVEL WEB Chapter 189
<189 - The Confrontation with the Warrior>
The final week before the Midterm Exam.
Unlike other lectures, Professor Weird’s [Fundamentals and Understanding of Mana Usage] and Professor Raeb’s [Fundamentals and Understanding of Imperial Magic Studies] had their schedules set a week in advance.
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[Lecture Announcement]
This is Professor Weird.
The Midterm Exam has been moved up to this Wednesday.
That is all.
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No reason or explanation given.
He just felt like it.
The students couldn’t even muster the will to object to such an arrogant and unilateral decision.
“Expectations gone means no disappointments. He’s the type to just scribble his notes and erase them anyway, so this is nothing…”
“Damn it… Who cares when the test is for the class I’ve already given up on?”
Most students quickly gave in.
Let’s ditch this lecture.
Sandkooker, Rosgini, and Dorothy were still holding on to some hope, but out of a hundred students, only 3% were really a minority.
“Excuse me. I’m just looking for someone.”
“Gasp. Warrior?”
“Who are you looking for…?”
Suddenly, the students’ expressions, gazes, and voices all turned soft and polite, like model students.
Instead of reprimanding them for their fake behavior, the Warrior pretended not to notice and played along so as not to embarrass anyone.
“I heard Oknodie is taking this lecture.”
“Over there. Next to that weird kid who smells like grass, sitting in the front.”
The grass-smelling weird kid was named Dorothy.
Among those from the Border Region who were looked down upon by the Empire, she was a subject of ridicule, especially for coming to the academy without any decent backing, despite being in an Upper Class.
“Uncomfortable.”
Ishtar found those clear, innocent eyes bothersome.
Why is she being mocked like an idiot?
Zzzzzt
“Ouch!”
“Eep! What was that? I spilled all my writing tools…”
“Ugh, I broke my pencil too!”
As the sparks from her [Remote Spark] spell flew off, the students who were insulting Dorothy scrambled to pick up their scattered items, becoming the target of others’ laughter.
Seeing their faces turn red with embarrassment and their hands move frantically didn’t give Ishtar any satisfaction.
Their lack of skill, unavoidable low scores, and a petty urge to pull others down to deal with their inferiority complex was just pitiful.
Even she felt this way.
It’s natural to get angry when faced with fire.
What about Oknodie?
If she felt even this much towards someone like Dorothy, Oknodie and Isabel, who were said to be closer than real sisters, would surely feel a lot worse knowing about the accident.
“Oknodie and Isabel? They’re always together. I’ve seen them singing near Isabel at least three times during the weekend!”
“Even if they don’t cook for her, Oknodie will just be seen next to Isabel, right? I saw Isabel braiding her hair once.”
How much anger would swell up upon hearing about an unexpected accident during a fight with Imperial students when they shared such a deep bond?
Even if it was said to have happened during the fight, the fact that Oknodie used spell assassination technique casually meant she’d probably received some severe injuries.
Even if magic stitched up her arm, there’s no guaranteeing the nerves would fully recover.
“Oknodie.”
“Warrior?”
“I want to ask you a few things. Can I borrow some time?”
Oknodie smiled at the concern on Dorothy’s face, reassuring her that it was fine.
“Dorothy, I’ll see you later!”
“Yeah. Let’s meet in the next class.”
Waving energetically, Oknodie let her arm swing.
Behind her innocent wave, her clear eyes locked onto the Warrior’s gaze.
“What a good friend.”
“Weak friend though!”
“The class ends early, so should we go somewhere a bit far?”
“I don’t mind!”
No hesitation showed on her face.
Her response was that of someone who had been waiting for an invitation.
The Warrior led her to a place where the presence of others seemed to fade.
What would someone usually feel?
Excited that the Warrior is asking them a secret favor?
Or fearful, sensing something amiss?
“?”
No sign of shyness or ceasing to meet their eyes whenever looking back at her.
It reminded Ishtar of swimming classes when she thought about it; this child was remarkably fearless.
As if she had experienced everything.
As if everything was familiar.
No signs of strangeness or hesitation were present.
Even in the way she treated the Warrior, there was no hint of respect or awe.
The absence of illusions about people was consistent and glaring.
“Oknodie. What do you think about helping someone in trouble?”
“I think it’s a wonderful thing!”
“Then what if someone doing wonderful things takes away your time and enjoyment?”
“I’d hit them!”
“…You really don’t hesitate, do you? I feel like I’m the fool for asking.”
“I support those doing wonderful things, but if that interferes with me, it’s annoying.”
“No matter how right the action might be?”
“Right and wrong don’t matter to me. I don’t usually care about disposition. If I had to, I’d be more of a performance-character enthusiast, I’d say.”
Her views on good and evil were quite alarming.
“That kind of thinking isn’t good. Everyone gets angry when their freedom is infringed, but there are laws and morals among people. It’s a line that must be upheld to be human.”
“Did I do something wrong?”
Oknodie asked, feigning ignorance.
If she had the capacity to think that way, it would be nice.
The Warrior’s truth-detecting power spoke.
[Truth]
This child is genuinely considering it.
She’s asking me what she did wrong.
She believes she did nothing wrong.
“I actually figured out that you’re the one who hurt the students in the [Fundamentals and Understanding of Imperial Magic Studies] class by luring them into a trap.”
“Wow. Really?”
“…Is that all?”
“Ah, don’t get me wrong. I’m just weak against exclamations, but I’m truly very shocked!”
[Truth]
“Do you feel any guilt?”
“Why should I?”
[Truth]
“You hurt those students! Even if you’re feeling heartbroken over a loved one suffering from an accidental injury during a fight, that doesn’t give you a right to retaliate. Shouldn’t you at least feel some guilt?”
“Guilt requires committing a wrongdoing. If I let them live, shouldn’t they be grateful for my mercy?”
She doesn’t even think of denying her actions.
She has no sense of guilt where she should feel remorse.
Even having reached this point, she still smiles.
With not a single wrinkle on that face.
Seeing that face makes you realize.
This child is broken.
Deep down to her core.
She mimics being human but doesn’t fully understand human emotions.
She understands how to exploit her cuteness, acting like a doll mimicking a person.
“Oknodie. You’re wrong. As a Warrior, I can’t let you continue like this.”
“Are you going to fight me? With me?”
Oknodie’s expression was still one of not understanding why she was being confronted.
I’d already given up trying to explain it to her.
“If you don’t understand, I’ll make you. I’ll show you what right and wrong are. What responsibilities and consequences attach to your actions. The fact that you’re a bad person.”
At that moment, Ishtar genuinely believed that.
If taught through force, she could be corrected.
After all, she is a Warrior.
This child is not a Warrior.
The hierarchy of strength is clear.
Her conscious thought shattered completely fifteen seconds later.
Ishtar suddenly going into overdrive doesn’t make sense.
There shouldn’t be any unfair events like this.
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[Warrior’s Rage Event]
The Warrior Ishtar is inexplicably very angry at you.
Will you endure the fury of the enraged Warrior?
If you survive, many will be surprised by your strength. Even ‘I’ will be shocked!
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The text was distinctly different from events faced before.
Yeah, confession time—I’ve experienced new things even as a veteran player.
I had never seen an event like this.
Naturally, it’s also my first time seeing such event text.
But the Warrior didn’t give me the time to process this, charging right at me.
Clack!
The sound of heels hitting the ground.
A prelude to a rush motion.
The movement of her right hand covering the hilt.
A prelude to an attack motion.
Yet, her thumb remained stationary.
She wasn’t drawing her sword; it was a non-lethal motion.
‘Ah, I see. She wants to test my skills!’
She should have just said so earlier!
Clang!
She started low.
Her powerful stride took three steps forward.
Without taking a single step back, she pressed into near-close combat.
In this round, Ishtar was a C-type combat pattern, dealing with both strength and agility.
Commanding a flow of attack combos to pin me down and strike at vital points, or they might knock me unconscious with the hilt.
The response is simple.
Parry and build shock against the Warrior’s hand as the continuous attacks keep coming.
Pang!
Parrying.
Deflecting.
Counter technique.
If successful, this technique would force a certain amount of shock on the opponent.
The smaller the frame, the less shock they can absorb, so with my height of 2m30cm… oh?
Oh no.
I’m not 2m30cm; I’m only 133cm!!
Clang!
In an instant, during the crossing of twenty attacks, from my fingers to my wrists, my bones jiggle painfully.
Zing!
I was trying to be lenient, but all I got was a setback.
‘Maybe I was a bit careless, but still, it’s your fault for hurting a veteran player’s pride.’
At this rate, I couldn’t afford to hold back even for the sake of my pride and dignity.
Incantation – Dark Magic
Activation – Body Reinforcement
Specialization – Acceleration
Additional Techniques – Protection, Illusion
In that moment, my body moved explosively, like I was on fast forward, moving continuously.
Sliding around, I gripped my sword, bent my knees, and released strikes in a trail until… I activated veteran player technique.
[Accelerating Illusion Sword - Cloaked Trajectory]
Through consecutive motions, I struck from an angle completely different from where I predicted she would defend, hitting before expected.
This connected.
With a strong impact, an unmistakable yellow shield pushed against my attack, simultaneously leading my blade to shred her protective barrier.
Boom!
The sound of shattering glass accompanied the scattering fragments of mana protection.
An expression of disbelief appeared in the Warrior’s eyes.
Hehehe.
Did you see that, Warrior?
This is the power of a Magic Swordsman!