085 Settlement

In the world of Noblesse Oblige, mana capacity was absolute justice.

Sierra boasted some of the highest mana reserves in the game, even compared to the top-tier characters in the Original Story. She had clearly put in an absurd amount of training, despite looking like a child.

Then there were her invisible scythe attacks. By combining High-speed Mana Movement with her raw physical strength and dumping massive amounts of mana into her swings, she became a blur. By the time you realized you were being targeted, you were already unconscious—or worse, sent to the afterlife. That was the legend behind the Death Scythe.

Thanks to Time Lapse, I was barely managing to track her, but she was darting through the snow at high speeds as if the terrain didn't even exist. If I tried to mimic those movements, I’d bottom out my mana in seconds.

Teacher Milk had mentioned this before, but there was no shortcut to increasing mana capacity; it just took time and steady growth.

But it’s not like I’ve been sitting on my hands all this time—.

I chanted Scale Up, predicting Sierra’s trajectory and moving to intercept her. But I didn't cast it just for the mobility. I was setting the stage, positioning my magic ahead of her to prepare for a follow-up.

"Unnatural!"

"Wha—!?"

Sierra, mid-dash, slammed face-first into my invisible wall. Gotcha. As I suspected, making sharp turns at that speed was next to impossible.

Without wasting a heartbeat, I swung my sword at her with everything I had. Despite her awkward, tumbling posture, Sierra managed to block the strike using just the scythe in her hand. My sword isn't light. I didn't think those slender arms could catch a blow with that much weight behind it, but she’s even tougher than I thought.

"That was close... Wait, what!?"

"Debi, now!"

I wasn't done yet. From behind her, Debi unleashed a Magic Cannon. If she tried to dodge, I’d capitalize on the opening to land a decisive hit. Now—what’s your move, Sierra?

"I see. That’s some impressive Coordination."

Sierra actually gave a little smirk as she spun around. Using a back leg surging with mana, she kicked Debi’s spell away without even looking at it.

No way. I mean, technically it’s possible, but parrying magic like that requires insane precision. She did that with her foot? Without even looking?

Man, she really is a monster.

"De-Debi!?"

"Hehe, what a naughty little devil."

Before I could even register her movement, Sierra had vanished and reappeared behind Debi. In the next instant, she slashed my minion without a second thought.

"De-debibibibi..."

I instinctively gripped my sword tighter.

"Let’s play again later."

She probably knew Debi was Immortal. Still, resurrecting him would cost me a massive amount of mana. I suppose since she had a sister who controlled Darkness, she was already familiar with Debi’s nature. Even so, the sheer lack of hesitation in her attack was worthy of praise.

"Dark Rain!"

I called down a shower of darkness from the sky and broke into a sprint. For Sierra, these droplets dealt damage; for me, they acted as Recovery Magic. It was originally a spell meant for fighting groups, but it was just as effective in a duel.

"Hmm, you’re quite used to real combat, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I’ve had my fair share!"

Sierra raised her scythe toward the sky, twirling it like a propeller to swat away the rain. Then, in the very next moment, she actually threw the scythe at me.

Even with Time Lapse slowing my perception, it was still—fast. I managed to parry it with my blade, but the weapon snapped back to Sierra’s hand as if it were on a leash. She must have applied something similar to Shari’s Magic Thread to the handle.

"...I’m impressed. You’re the first person to dodge that on the first encounter, Weiss Fansent. I’m usually pretty forgetful, but I’ve made sure to burn your name into my memory."

In the Original Story, the Witch Sisters rarely stood in the spotlight. Since they weren't in the same school year as Allen, they didn't get much screen time, though they were indispensable in a few key scenes. But even I had never seen that throwing attack before.

This is great. As expected, the upperclassmen are on a completely different level.

"Big sister, stop it already! What if that had actually hit him!?"

"Who knows? But honestly, this is the first time I've had fun in ages!"

From there, Sierra and I traded blows repeatedly. Neither of us could land a clean hit. Perhaps it was because of our "first hit wins" rule; we were both being incredibly cautious.

However, I was still hiding my ace in the hole. Actually, it was more that I couldn't use it yet. If I fired it off while Sierra was zig-zagging around at high speeds, I’d likely miss and waste the opportunity.

—Blessing of Healing and Impulse of Destruction.

I usually used it as an opening move, but its true value shone in the endgame when everyone was exhausted. The snow piled on the ground began to dye itself black. Seeing the change, Sierra let out a smile.

In the next moment, her vast mana began flowing into my own body. I knew she had a lot of mana to sustain that high-speed movement, but this was beyond my expectations. Eleanor, sensing the shift in the atmosphere, had already retreated to the roof of a nearby building.

"Round two starts now."

"Hehe. At this rate, I might actually lose."

I lunged forward at high speed, closing the gap to land the finishing blow. In my left hand, I equipped the whip I had been keeping sealed lately. I’d been refraining from using it to force myself to get used to my Dual Sword style, but now wasn't the time for self-imposed handicaps.

The moment the tip of the whip grazed Sierra, I sent a jolt of mana through it to disrupt her flow. Her magic sputtered out, and her balance crumbled as she gasped in shock.

"What!?"

"Checkmate—"

But then—.

"That’s enough. As a teacher, I can’t let this go any further."

Teacher Milk dropped down between us, effectively ending the fight. When did she get here? I was so focused I didn't even notice her presence.

"...How long were you watching?"

"A while. It was quite a show, but I’ve judged that it’s getting too dangerous. Sierra, you’re an upperclassman. You know better than to duel a lowerclassman outside of an official competition."

"Ehehe, sorry. I got a little carried away."

"Weiss, you too. Show some respect to your seniors. Besides—lunch break ended five minutes ago."

"...My apologies."

I deactivated my magic circles. Behind us, I could hear Eleanor letting out a long sigh of relief. She was right; we had probably strayed past the point of "training" a long time ago.

Teacher Milk offered a faint, almost proud smile, which she immediately followed up with a loud thwack.

"Ow! What was that for!?"

"It didn't hurt."

She’d punched me right in the top of the head with a mana-infused fist. Liar, that hurt like hell! My physical resistance should have gone up, but she must have calculated the exact amount of mana needed to bypass it and cause maximum pain.

Ugh, why am I the only one— I started to complain, but then Milk turned around and gave Senior Sierra a thwack on the head too. I guess she really is an equal-opportunity disciplinarian.

"W-Why!? That hurts...!"

"Both of you are to blame."

Eleanor watched the scene from a distance, but she clearly had no intention of crossing Teacher Milk. I guess she has some common sense after all. As Eleanor approached, Sierra immediately dove into her sister's bouncy softness.

"I'm so tired~"

"There, there. You did your best, Big Sister."

The sisterly roles were reversed as usual. Is Sierra really the older one?

Strictly speaking, I would have won if that last hit had connected. I was just starting to feel a surge of confidence when Sierra looked at me with a playful grin.

"Too bad. You were this close."

"...You're a bold one. My attack definitely would have landed."

"Hmm? You really think so?"

What’s with that composed smile? Does she mean she actually had a hidden trump card that could have saved her from that position?

"What do you mean by that?"

"A special move is something you keep secret, you know."

A technique she could use from that posture? Is there some kind of story deviation I don't know about?

But Sierra didn't say another word. She and Eleanor simply turned and walked away. What was it? What could she have possibly done?

"Don't let it get to you. Good grief, if anything happens to you, I'm the one who gets chewed out. Be more careful."

"Er, right..."

I guess she had a point. But if you really look at the root of the problem, isn't Sierra the one at fault for standing me up twice? Then again, maybe I was a bit too cheeky for a freshman...

"Still, you've grown, Weiss. That was some good movement."

I blinked as Teacher Milk muttered those surprising words while looking straight ahead. Am I... actually getting stronger?

"But you've relied on magic so much that your swordsmanship has become sloppy. We're going straight to the training room. I'm going to drill you until sunrise."

"...Huh? What about my other classes?"

"I'll use my authority to let you skip."

Her logic is completely backward! I was already running on fumes, but I knew Teacher Milk wouldn't let me off the hook. Man, I want to pull a 'Sierra' and say I'll be there in thirty minutes while I dive into my bed. But she'd literally kill me, so I’d better not.

Still, Sierra’s high-speed magic was a great learning experience. The formula was complex, but I felt like I could master it eventually. If she really could have blocked my final attack, then I was still too weak.

Next time, for sure—I’ll win so decisively she won't be able to make excuses.

---

Upperclassmen Building, the Witch Sisters' room.

That night, Sierra was buried in Eleanor’s bouncy softness, weeping bitter tears.

"There, there. Everyone has days like this."

"He totally had me... A freshman... had me dead to rights..."

Sierra was an extreme sore loser. Losing to a junior had left her pride in absolute tatters.

Naturally, there was no such thing as a hidden special move.

"Sniff... Weiss, just you wait. Next time, I’m definitely going to win."

"Big Sister, maybe you should try acting a bit more like a proper senior..."

"I did! I acted totally cool at the end!"

"That was just a blatant lie..."

"But... Weiss was actually kind of cool at the very end there..."

"Wait, Big Sister, does that mean you—?"

"N-No! Not like that! Only a little bit!"

"Your face is really red, you know?"

Without even realizing it, Weiss had achieved a total victory in more ways than one.