There was no room for debate. Everyone nodded silently in agreement. Simon, feeling a little awkward, scratched the side of his head while Hector remained impassive. "And as for the weakest team..." Dick began, shooting a quick glance at Meirin. "I’d say it’s probably Team 1, the one you and I are on."
"Hey! Why are we the weakest?!" Meirin shot back, her face flushing. "Meirin, do you know any enhancement-type black magic?"
"Uh, well, a few minor ones..."
"Unless you plan on incinerating the entire Class C team with your black flames, you’re going to have a hard time shining in a game like this."
A few stifled chuckles rippled through the group, and Meirin’s face turned beet red. Ignoring her, Dick continued. "While Team 1 is built around Meirin, Team 3 has incredible depth."
Cindy Vivace, Class A’s Spirit Studies ace. Jamie Victoria, the Cursing ace. Pierre Buckler, the Summoning ace. Claudia Mendes, the Venomology ace. The students who had scored in the ninetieth percentile on their major entrance exams were all on Team 3.
If not for the overwhelming performances Simon and Hector had consistently displayed, some might have even considered Team 3 the strongest. In contrast, Meirin, who had to carry Team 1, lacked any black magic particularly suited for a ball game. "So, our lineup is weak, strong, and a solid middle. We have to do whatever it takes to match Meirin’s team against Serne’s."
"You’re dead later," Meirin muttered, shooting Dick a glare before crossing her arms and turning away, a fiery determination igniting in her eyes. Dick watched her, a sly smile playing on his lips. He knew that pitting her against Serne would push her to fight with everything she had. "Thinks he’s so damn smart, running his mouth."
The cold voice sliced through the lively atmosphere. Hector stepped forward, his eyes flashing with menace. "Stop dragging this out and get to the damn point." "Whoa, impatient, are we? Just hold on a second," Dick said coolly, his hands stuffed in his pockets. ‘He’s only this cocky because he has Simon Polentia to back him up,’ Hector thought with a sneer. But he didn’t press the issue. He couldn’t afford to waste his energy on small fry.
He needed all his focus for one person. "I’ve got it."
Suddenly, a boy’s voice echoed from thin air. As everyone looked around in confusion, the space next to Dick seemed to ripple and melt away, revealing a student in glasses. He had been using Camouflage, a concealment technique. "So, what’s the news?" Dick asked with a grin.
"Alright, students, prepare for the match," Brad, the referee, announced with a grumble. The students swarmed toward the court. ‘God, this is so annoying.’
Professor Hongfeng and the other TAs had conveniently disappeared to "prepare the meal," leaving him and one senior TA to babysit the first-years. And, of course, that senior had dumped all the work on him and vanished. ‘Seriously? Am I really at a rank where I should be putting up with this?’
Brad raked his hands through his hair in frustration. ‘Ever since that fight with Simon, I can feel Professor Hongfeng giving me the cold shoulder. The other TAs are ignoring me, too! Damn it! They all know! Did that bastard Simon spread rumors?’
It was, of course, all in his head. ‘Simon Polentia...!’
To make things worse, something even more infuriating had happened just a little while ago. Simon had brought that girl, Kamibarez, to him. ‘TA, Kamibarez seems to be anemic. She needs some medicine.’
Brad had curtly told him there was none and to just deal with it. But then Simon had smiled that cold, infuriating smile of his. ‘A student is sick, and your response is that there’s nothing you can do? I guess that’s the extent of your duties as a TA?’
His heart had plummeted. It was an unspoken threat: I’ll tell Professor Hongfeng everything, and you’ll be out of a job. His weakness exposed, Brad had no choice but to sprint to Hongfeng’s cabin to fetch the medicine. ‘Aaargh! This is so damn annoying! That bastard is walking all over me!’
His leg began to tremble with rage. He felt pathetic, unable to stand up to Simon. How was he supposed to survive three years of this? Maybe Simon wouldn’t take combat magic next semester? Fat chance. Professor Hongfeng was investing heavily in him, and it was a field where he showed immense talent. Most unnervingly, when Simon had successfully performed the Internal Jet-Black Eruption, he had seen the look on Professor Hongfeng’s face from across the field. It was a look of pure, unadulterated bliss, as if she’d just been handed the world. In five years of serving her, he’d never seen her look so happy. ‘Ugh!’
Jealousy, anger, and self-pity churned inside him until he felt like his head would explode. He tore at his hair. He was only in his mid-twenties, but stress was already making his hair fall out. At this rate, he’d end up just like his father...
"TA."
A voice snapped him out of it. Jamie was standing at attention before him. "Class A and Class C are assembled."
"Ahem."
Brad slowly pushed himself to his feet. "Then let the match begin. First teams from Class A and Class C, step forward."
From Class A, Team 1, led by Meirin and Dick, walked onto the court. And from Class C...
"It’s Serne! Serne’s up!"
"Serne’s playing first!"
"Yeah!"
The Class A students erupted in cheers. In contrast, the Class C students, who had been watching Simon and Hector, let out a collective sigh of disappointment when they realized their aces weren’t playing. From Class A’s perspective, the gambit had paid off perfectly. They had successfully pitted their weakest card against their opponent’s strongest. "Sacrificing that team to take out Serne is a huge win for us."
"The other teams will take care of the rest."
The Class A students were already writing off the first round as a loss. "Stop celebrating, you idiots!" Meirin shrieked, whirling on her classmates. "We’re going to win!"
They responded with a half-hearted, patronizing round of applause, their eyes betraying their complete lack of faith. Meirin, feeling her stomach churn for what felt like the hundredth time that day, spun back around. Across the court stood Serne, a white coat worn over her uniform, waving and smiling sweetly at her. Meirin’s expression hardened into a venomous glare. ‘You are so dead today.’
Twenty students from each class filed onto the court, surrounded by the roaring cheers of their classmates. As the players took their positions, their faces burning with competitive fire, Brad let out a long, bored yawn and lazily blew the whistle hanging from his neck. "Quiet! Team representatives, forward."
Meirin and Serne stepped up. Brad fished a 1-Silver coin from his pocket. "Heads or tails?"
"Heads! Definitely heads!" Meirin declared hotly. "Then I’ll take tails," Serne replied in her soft, melodic voice. Brad gave the coin a careless flick, then slapped it onto the back of his hand. "Heads. Class A gets the first attack."
"Yes!" Meirin pumped her fists. Serne turned away, her hair whipping around her. "How cute. Desperate to win at least one thing, are we?"
"I’m just happy thinking about smashing your face in with this ball!"
Like fire and water, the two girls returned to their sides. All the while, Serne couldn’t stop herself from chuckling. Brad tossed the ball to Class A.
"Begin."
He blew the whistle. Meirin immediately passed the ball to Dick. "Hey, enchantment-bot. Get on it."
"Yes, ma’am. Whatever you say," he drawled. While Dick enchanted the ball, Meirin began forming a magic circle. He watched her out of the corner of his eye. "You know you’ll be disqualified if you use attack magic on an opponent, right?"
"I know that!"
After completing the circle, she took a few steps back, spurred on by the cheers from her classmates. "Give ‘em a good first hit!"
"Take one out and do ‘that pose’!"
She flushed and shot them a glare. "Ugh, shut up, all of you!"
Having silenced her annoying classmates, Meirin’s expression turned serious again. Dick finished his enchantment and gave her a nod and a shrug. "All yours."
Dick tossed the enchanted ball high into the air, like a volleyball serve. Meirin, who had backed up, activated her Internal Jet-Black Circulation and charged forward, launching herself into the air. Soaring like a butterfly, she swung her arm with all her might. Just before her palm made contact, the magic circle on the back of her hand flared to life, unleashing a Jet-Black flame spell. An explosion of fire erupted as she slammed her hand into the ball. The ball shot across the court and hit a male student from Class C square in the face. He didn’t even have time to react. ‘Thud.’
The ball dropped from his face and rolled away. Meirin landed lightly, exhaling the breath she’d been holding. "Hah!"
"WOOOOAH!"
"NICE ONE, MEIRIN!"
Cheers exploded from the sidelines. "See that?" Meirin said, straightening up and looking back at Dick. "I told you I could win without any enhancement magic!"
"Oh, of course, you’re the absolute best," he said with a smirk. She kicked him in the butt before turning her head. She saw Simon watching from the sidelines, a wide grin on his face as he clapped. Finally, her mood lifted, and she felt a surge of pride. From his referee stand, Brad propped his chin on his hand and waved dismissively. "Move it, move it. Next, Class C’s attack."
A girl with pigtails stepped forward for Class C. Meirin issued an order. "Tanks, to the front!"
Meirin and the other main attackers fell back while the larger students, mostly combat magic majors and those with defensive spells, moved forward to form a wall. The girl with pigtails glanced at their formation, then awkwardly threw the ball. It was heading out of bounds. "Haha! Where do you think you’re—"
Suddenly, the ball swerved back into the court and slammed into the chest of a student in the middle of their formation. Now it was Class C’s turn to cheer. "You idiot!" Meirin yelled. "You saw the professor’s demonstration! You saw how it curves! Don’t let your guard down!"
The student who’d been hit scratched his head sheepishly and walked off the court. "Dick! Enchant it again and toss it up!"
Meirin became Class A’s cannon. Whenever they got the ball, they fed it to her. Her offensive power was undeniable, with a hundred percent success rate. Not a single student had managed to withstand her throws. Class C, on the other hand, rotated their attackers. Serne remained in the corner of the court, looking bored and idly examining her nails. None of the other Class C students dared to ask her to participate. A Class A student fumbled a catch, the ball smacking his arm, and was eliminated. Watching from the sidelines, Simon gave a wry smile. It seems like attacks are almost guaranteed to succeed.’
The offense had a massive advantage in this game. That, combined with the general tendency of first-year Kizen students to neglect defense, made blocking almost impossible. In the first year, a single curse could decide a duel, so the "first strike wins" mentality was deeply ingrained. They could always rely on their protective suits or uniforms in a real fight, which only reinforced their offensive focus. Of course, as students advanced, the importance of defense would become painfully clear. "Ooooh!"
A roar went up from both sides. In a game where offense was king, a successful defense was the ultimate super play. For the first time, a Class A combat magic student had blocked an attack from Class C. Jet-Black energy pulsed from his body. ‘He used Internal Jet-Black Eruption.’
A combat magic major who had clearly studied ahead. He immediately launched a counterattack, catching a Class C student off guard. It was doubly valuable, as he had nullified an attack and scored one of his own. His teammates mobbed him, slapping him on the back. The key to this game was having students with either defensive black magic or overwhelming combat magic prowess. ‘Defense,’ Simon mused, his eyes gleaming. With a simple game of dodgeball, Professor Hongfeng had given her students a whole new concept to ponder.

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