Miko’s two short blades were pinned down by the hilt of Luji’s sword, rendering her completely immobile.

  "Huh——? "

  Miko froze rigid, staring at Luji in disbelief. For some inexplicable reason, a sudden chill ran down her spine—as if she’d provoked something she should never have crossed......

  "My master... is the greatest being in this world. You are unworthy to defame him."

  These were the first words Luji Sloan had spoken to an opponent since joining the tournament.

  "I-I-I......"

  Overwhelmed by his imposing aura, Miko couldn’t move a muscle.

  "And my school of swordsmanship... is the strongest under heaven!"

  Thud!

  The long scabbard tapped Miko lightly on the head.

  Luji then sheathed his sword and turned to leave.

  "Do not utter such words again."

  Thump!

  Behind him, Miko collapsed stiffly to the ground.

  ......

  "......What did Miko do?"

  Inside the waiting room, Hulim frowned slightly.

  Luji Sloan’s sudden outburst couldn’t have been a whim. Miko must have said or done something to provoke such a reaction.

  It felt a little unfair to Miko, but......

  "Well done, Miko!"

  Even though the moment was fleeting, that brief glimpse of Luji’s true strength had given Hulim a clear assessment.

  If all went as expected, he would be one of the finalists in this tournament......

  ......

  "Water Cannon——!"

  A massive column of water shot straight toward Hulim.

  Instead of dodging, Hulim raised her wand calmly.

  "Great Fireball."

  The fireball materialized instantly, hurtling toward the water cannon at breakneck speed.

  Boom——!

  After a violent explosion, thick white mist shrouded the entire arena, obscuring both contestants’ vision.

  Hulim’s opponent panicked.

  He knew Hulim also wielded non-attribute magic and was extremely skilled in close combat. The fog around them was the perfect opportunity for her to close in!

  You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

  Desperate to stop her, he unleashed a flurry of wide-range water magic.

  Walls of water surged outward from his position. Anyone attempting to approach would inevitably be swept away by the towering waves.

  Just as he thought he was safe, countless glowing red orbs came crashing down from the foggy sky—aimed directly at him, at the center of the water walls.

  "No good!"

  He reacted quickly, summoning a Water Barrier to block the incoming attack.

  Boom! Boom! Boom......

  The first few fireballs were indeed blocked, but more and more followed, raining down like a fiery storm.

  "This can’t be real?! How are there so many!!?"

  In the Water Mage’s desperate eyes, his barrier shattered. Moments later, a barrage of fireballs slammed into the area around him......

  Ding——!

  The bell signaling the end of the match rang out.

  "The winner—Hulim Hayelar!!!"

  Hulim sheathed her wand and turned to leave the arena, amid thunderous cheers from the audience.

  ......

  "Ah——! This is so embarrassing! I wish I could dig a hole and bury myself in it!"

  Inside the White Cat Clan’s exclusive VIP box, Miko covered her face and wriggled frantically on the sofa.

  Thankfully, no outsiders were allowed in without permission, so her humiliating tantrum remained private.

  Even though she’d already made a fool of herself on the arena......

  "Miko......"

  "Leave her be. Let her get it out of her system for now."

  Hulim was about to comfort Miko when Bars cut her off.

  "......"

  On second thought, if Miko still had the energy to squirm around on the sofa, she couldn’t have been that devastated.

  Hulim decided to abandon her attempt to console her.

  As for the faint, resentful gaze she felt lingering on her from the sofa......

  She chose to ignore it.

  "Mr. Bars, did you find any information?"

  "Actually, I was just about to tell you."

  Bars pulled out a stack of documents.

  "I had someone look into the backgrounds of several contestants. You can take a look. However......"

  Bars wore a troubled expression.

  "There’s no information on Luji Sloan here."

  "He seems to have appeared out of thin air. His origins are completely unknown, and there aren’t even any credible rumors about him. Someone with his strength shouldn’t be this obscure......"

  Hulim flipped through the documents. The records were far from complete. Since contestants had come from all over the world, little was known about many of them. But very few were as completely mysterious as Luji Sloan.

  The most detailed files belonged to contestants representing members of the Federal Council. For example, Boguna Sind—the tournament favorite—had several pages dedicated to him alone, including even his dietary preferences!

  Wait a minute......

  Does that mean I’m also——?

  "......"

  Hulim set the documents down.

  "Well? Is this useful?"

  Hulim nodded silently.

  It was definitely useful. Knowing her opponents’ backgrounds would prevent her from being caught off guard. For ordinary contestants, she might even study their weaknesses and formulate strategies. But......

  It didn’t matter much to Hulim.

  The biggest benefit of these documents was ensuring she didn’t accidentally "disrespect" an opponent when they introduced themselves.

  After all, there were always those types of people.

  If they realized their opponent had never heard of them, they’d fly into a rage, claiming to have been insulted......

  Hulim couldn’t understand it. Why was not knowing someone considered an insult?

  Unfortunately, there were plenty of such people—especially in a major tournament like this.

  Hulim had no choice but to compromise. Even if she didn’t recognize an opponent, she’d pretend she did.

  Somehow, though, this pretense always seemed to make them even angrier......

  Could it be that she wasn’t very good at pretending?

  "Huuuuliiim——"

  A resentful voice echoed in her ear.

  Hulim turned to see Miko, who’d climbed off the sofa at some point, staring at her with a look of utter resentment.

  "Good morning, Miko."

  "......It’s not morning! Ugh! Hulim, don’t actually ignore me!"

  For the next while, the room was filled with Miko’s non-stop complaints. Of every ten remarks, two were directed at Hulim, three at Bars, and the remaining five at Luji.

  After a long while, her voice grew hoarse, and she finally fell silent.

  At that moment, Bars—who’d been ignoring her the entire time—turned around.

  "You’re wasting your energy here. Do you not plan to participate in the repechage match tomorrow?"

  "Huh? Of course I’m participating! That’s right! I still have a chance!"

  Miko raised her fist triumphantly toward the ceiling.

  "Just you wait! I won’t lose again tomorrow! I’ll defeat all my opponents and make it to the Round of 32, mark my words!!!"

  Everyone in the room stared at her in silence.

  "......"

  "......It’s good that you’re confident," Bars said slowly. "But didn’t you say something similar before......?"

  "Huh——? "

  Miko froze on the spot, dumbfounded.