The Disparity

I’d been caught off guard by Allen, but my mission hadn't changed.

Because this tournament skipped the qualifiers, the number of matches was staggering. The reason was simple: the more matches there were, the longer the audience stayed entertained. Betting pools thrived on it, and as fatigue set in among the contestants, upsets became more frequent. The more the odds skewed, the wilder the crowd got. It was a brutal system, but that was part of the charm of the Bruno Adventurer Tournament.

Except for one thing.

"W-Winner, Weiss Fancent!"

I was the outlier.

While everyone else was locked in desperate, grueling struggles that dragged on forever, I was playing a different game. I tore through the second and third rounds, stacking up victories with instant kills and overwhelming force.

I’m not sure if it was bad luck or good, but my opponents were apparently regulars at the top of the rankings. One guy named Bond used earth magic to sprout seeds he’d scattered across the arena, attempting to bind my limbs with plants. It was similar to magic I’d seen back at Nobless Academy, though his mana was clearly superior.

Unfortunately for him, he didn't have enough to stop me. I put him to sleep with a single blow.

Another guy tried to gather ambient mana from the air to fire off a big shot, but he was too slow. Not enough, I thought as I ended it.

Then came the fourth round, where I ran into a rather interesting woman. She was someone I didn't recognize from the Original Story.

"Nell's attacks aren't working!?"

She looked about my age. She had snow-white hair, long, pointed ears, and wore a pristine white outfit. She was a beauty—the kind of girl anyone would call a "bishoujo" without a second thought. The way she referred to herself in the third person was a bit weird, though.

Beyond her looks, her swordsmanship was solid and her magic was incredibly refined. She manipulated the water attribute with ease, maintaining a perfect balance between offense and defense. She used defensive magic to coat parts of her body in water to absorb impact, but it wasn't ordinary water—it was squishy and resilient, like jelly.

She was the first person to actually block one of my attacks.

"Hoh, not bad," I noted.

"Hmph! Keep that smug attitude while you can! Nell is going to show you her special move!"

But what I really wanted—what I was dying to see—was the spell she cast next.

"Rain from the Heavens!"

She fired magic into the sky, where it burst like a firework and came drizzling back down. However, every single droplet was encased in mana. It was a wide-range bombardment that restricted the opponent's movement even if they tried to dodge.

"No one has ever blocked this tech—"

"—Is that what you were going to say?"

I activated Flash (Time Lapse), slowing my perception of time to a crawl. In the next instant, I wove through the downpour using nothing but pure physical movement. I was actually impressed; each drop had enough force to punch a hole in the dirt.

To think someone this strong was still flying under the radar. Noblesse really was a goldmine of talent.

I could hear the crowd buzzing. From their perspective, I must have looked like a blur of impossible speed. But I had a question for her.

"Nell, where did you learn that magic?"

Nell smirked at me, but then her face suddenly turned bright red.

"Wh-wh-wh-wha?! Hitting on me in the middle of a match?!"

"…Huh?"

She stopped dead in her tracks and started fidgeting and squirming, completely ignoring the fact that we were supposed to be fighting. What is wrong with this girl?

"J-Just because you're a little handsome and strong, don't think Nell is just going to follow you home!"

"What are you even talking about…?"

I didn't get it, but whatever. I’d already memorized the spell formula. I could have let the fight go on to see what else she had, but I didn't want the audience to think I was actually struggling.

"But... if you manage to beat me, I guess I could consider—"

"Yeah, whatever. See ya."

The match ended right there. As a thank-you for showing me such a cool spell, I made sure to hold back enough not to break her. She’d probably wake up by the end of the day.

I was a little concerned that she muttered, "Guh… kill me…" as she passed out, though. More importantly, I noticed that right before my strike landed, her water defense had moved instinctively to protect her neck. Yeah, the world was a big place.

"Winner, Weiss Fancent! He advances to the finals!"

"That kid is a monster! Who the hell is he?"

"He's a noble, right? Since when can nobles move like that?"

"Holy crap… I think I’m a fan."

The crowd was screaming. Apparently, I was the youngest finalist in history, but I couldn't have cared less about the record.

"Weiss-sama, you were incredible," Lilith praised me afterward. "If I had to face you, I’d lose all my confidence and move back to the countryside."

"Haha, that might not be such a bad life."

I appreciated the compliment, but my mind was already on the next match. There was one other man winning his way through the bracket with the same overwhelming dominance I was.

"He really made it through, didn't he?"

Cynthia was looking toward the arena, where the announcer was declaring Allen the winner of his bracket. He was my next opponent.

Just thinking about our history made my heart race. I was dying to know—just how big was the gap between us now?

Before the final match began, I turned to the two girls.

"Cynthia, Lilith. Tell me—am I strong?"

"Eh? Of course you are!"

"Naturally. I have never once doubted your strength," Lilith added firmly.

There was no hesitation in their eyes. No lies. And yet…

"But you think Allen is strong too, don't you?"

"Th-that’s…"

"Yes…"

...Ah, I really am the villainous Weiss, aren't I? I realized. I was so obsessed with power that I wanted to make the disparity between us undeniable. I’d never said anything like this to them before, but I couldn't help it.

"Watch my fight. I’m going to show you both that I am the strongest."

Sorry, Allen. I’m not going to be nice today.

"Thank you all for waiting! It is no exaggeration to say this entire tournament was held for this final match—for this winner! First, to the North! The boy who crushed everyone in his path with absolute power! The eldest son of the prestigious House Fanscent! WEISS FANCEEEEEEEENT!"

The hype for the finals was unreal. The cheers were so deafening I thought my eardrums might actually burst. The scale of this was nothing like the Sword-Magic Cup. My main goal was my father’s wish: to etch the name of House Fanscent into the minds of everyone here.

"And to the South! The shock of the season! The second youngest finalist in history! ALLEEEEEEEEEEN!"

Allen walked onto the stage with a bashful smile, but the moment our eyes met, his expression shifted into one of total focus. We stood face-to-face.

"It’s been since the entrance ceremony," he said. "Finally."

"Come to clear the humiliation of that day?" I asked.

"Exactly. But more than that, I want to test my own strength. Because I’ve been… chasing you this whole time."

He delivered that cheesy line with total sincerity. Normally, I’d have a quip ready, but not today. I acknowledged him as a threat. If I couldn't beat him here, I’d never be able to Clear this world.

To me, Allen was the protagonist. Back in my old life, he was the hero I admired. But now, he was just a benchmark.

"Match, START!!"

I took the initiative.

Activating healing, protection, and destructive impulses through chantless casting, I lunged. In the world of Noblesse, you didn't have to chant, but the mana cost for skipping it was astronomical. It didn't matter. This was the final round. I was pouring everything into this.

Scale Up, Dark Eye, Time Lapse, Dark Heal, and Dual Sword—I even brought out the whip I’d kept hidden until today. I’d released Debi the second the match started, pumping mana into him to make him move at speeds the human eye couldn't track.

I opened with a full-power overhead swing at Allen.

"—Guh!"

He blocked it. As expected, he wasn't going down that easily. For swordsmen like us, the real fight starts when the blades lock. In the past, we would have just stayed there, testing each other's strength.

But I wasn't the same person anymore.

"Are you really okay with this?" I asked.

"What do you mean by—"

I sent a silent command to Debi. Much like magic, I could give him orders without speaking.

A Mana Cannon fired directly at Allen's back. He wasn't great at defensive magic. Now, what are you going to do?

"Ice Frost!"

To my shock, Allen used Cynthia’s signature magic to launch himself high into the air. As I looked up, his sword began to glow with a brilliant light.

Is that the same as mine? No, a holy sword of light? I see. I couldn't quite wrap my head around the logic of the magic he was using.

—I get it now.

Haha, you’ve gone and broken the Original Story too, haven't you, hero?!

"Weiss! I! Won't! LOSE!"

He dove at me from the sky, intentionally keeping the sun at his back to blind me. A shrewd move. But that was what made this worthwhile.

I dodged at the last possible millisecond. His sword slammed into the dirt, and I swung to take his head while he was recovered. If it hit, it would be fatal, but I figured I’d worry about that after the fact.

It was a guaranteed hit. But then, Allen yelled.

"Unnatural Wall!"

He used my magic to block me.

I see. So your Gift is... Copy!

"Interesting! This is getting interesting, Allen!"

"Haha! I feel the same way, Weiss!"

From there, the fight became a high-speed game of counters. Even so, not a single one of Allen's attacks touched me. He was desperately clinging on, cycling through Carta’s Flight Magic, Shari’s Magic Enchantment, and Duke’s Power Up.

A "copycat" cheat skill isn't exactly rare in fiction, but seeing it in person was almost hilarious. My Time Lapse was a result of understanding spell formulas and modifying them; it wasn't a perfect copy. I couldn't replicate rare magic like Cynthia’s or Shari’s.

But he could. It was impossible, though I’m sure it came with a heavy cost. He was betting his life on this match.

But I had a promise to keep. My declaration to Cynthia and Lilith was my vow.

I knew then, with absolute certainty:

Allen, you’re still weak.

He would catch up to me eventually, I was sure of it. I’d be waiting. It was a bitter pill to swallow, but I knew I couldn't defeat the Demon King alone.

If his power was "Copying," then mine was "Learning."

I raised my hand to the sky. I instantaneously reconstructed the formula for the dark rain I had seen Nell use only minutes ago.

Dark droplets began to fall. Simultaneously, I commanded plants to erupt from the ground, entangling Allen's limbs. He was pinned, but I wasn't done. I gathered every scrap of elemental mana lingering in the air and manifested Unnatural Walls in all four directions.

They weren't just walls. I modified the formula to turn them into magic turrets.

Cannons of fire, water, wind, and earth opened fire simultaneously.

And for the finishing touch—

"Debibih!"

Debi lunged in for a direct physical restraint. He might have been small, but he had the strength of three grown men. At the same time, I coated my blade in more mana than I’d ever used before.

My version of the magic was still a work in progress—my dark rain wasn't quite as potent as Nell’s—but for Allen, it was more than enough.

Was I overdoing it? Maybe. But if he was going to show off "protagonist perks," then this much was only fair.

"—See ya, Allen."

---

"The winner is Weiss Fancent! Allen put up a spectacular fight, but in the end, he couldn't land a single scratch on his opponent! It ended with a ruthless, one-sided barrage! Therefore, I declare the winner of the 30th Bruno Adventurer Tournament to be Weiss Fancent! The youngest champion, the fastest match, and... UNSCATHED! I declare here and now that this record will never be broken!"

"WEISSSSSSSSS!"

"That was insane! He's so cool!"

"Weiss! Weiss! Weiss!"

"Was that monster a Subjugation familiar?!"

The cheers were the loudest they’d been all day. Duke and Shari rushed to the fallen Allen's side. Since we were technically enemies today, I didn't go over.

Cynthia and Lilith were waiting for me at the edge of the ring.

"…You’re too much, Weiss-sama. I don't even have words," Cynthia whispered.

"As expected of my fiancé. I am so proud of you, Weiss," Lilith said.

"Yeah. I’m glad you think so. This should spread my name everywhere. It’ll make my father's job a lot easier."

Allen, you aren't weak. Honestly, you're way stronger than you were in the Original Story. A Copy Gift is basically a cheat code.

But I’d been grinding, too. Ever since I arrived in this world, I hadn't missed a single day of training. I won today because I knew what I had to become.

Hurry up and catch up, Allen.

"Anyway, we’re free now. Want to go get some fruit?"

"Weiss-sama, are you actually human? Aren't you tired at all?"

"Fufufu, I expected as much, so I already found a specialty fruit cafe here in Bruno," Lilith said with a smile.

"Cynthia... are you a genius?"