"Ha... ha... ha...!"
The time was precisely noon.
Exactly six hours had passed since the start, meaning we were halfway through the exam, yet I had only four roses remaining.
Ray’s strategy was simple, and because of that, it was devastating.
He relied on hit-and-away tactics as his core, closing in to scatter my roses with his blade whenever an opening appeared. Yet, he never overextended. Once a rose was gone, he didn't let greed take over; he refused to follow up with more attacks and immediately withdrew.
There was nothing dramatic about this battle. Ray simply went about his work with detached efficiency, as if slowly whittling away at my spirit, bit by bit. Meanwhile, I had to keep enduring. In the face of that overwhelming presence, I wasn't even permitted to flee; I had to stand my ground against him all alone.
Thinking back, this exam was brilliantly designed. If he scattered all my roses, it would end right there. It could very well finish long before the time limit. But for me to pass, enduring for the full twelve hours was a mandatory requirement. If I couldn't hold out for the duration... it was over.
Ray’s concentration likely wouldn't break even over twelve hours. He must have already mastered the layout of this forest; to him, it was surely nothing more than his own backyard. I had set Delay Magic traps in every conceivable spot among the trees and brush, but he hadn't triggered a single one.
Ray didn't have a scratch on him. In contrast, I was a wreck. I had lost count of how many times I had been thrown or slammed into the earth.
I was simply focused on protecting the roses with everything I had, desperate to find a way to repel him.
But I knew for certain that if this had been before I began my training with Ray, I would have reached my limit long ago. My basic physical stamina, the duration I could manifest magic—my foundation had been raised. Without that growth, I have no doubt that every single one of my roses would have been scattered by now.
I could see it as proof of my progress... but I refused to be satisfied with just that.
"Ha... ha... ha...!"
I no longer remembered how many times we had engaged.
There wasn't even time to feel relieved when Ray withdrew or to count my remaining roses... I was being cornered so relentlessly that I couldn't afford a single moment's slack.
Stay calm, stay calm... every time I told myself that, my body failed to move correctly. My movements grew sluggish, as if I were bound by chains.
"..."
"...Guh!"
Ray carried out every engagement with total detachment. There was no light dwelling in those eyes. The usual brightness and the smile he wore when doing something outrageous had all vanished.
I realized once again that this was a glimpse of his true nature as the Ice Sword Sorcerer.
"Ugh... waah!"
A cry escaped my lips despite myself.
Just when I thought Ray was going for a rose with his sword, he closed the distance instantly, seized my arm, and threw me with a one-arm shoulder throw. Thanks to the techniques he had taught me, I managed to break my fall, but in the next instant, Ray’s hand was already reaching for my roses.
But...!
"I won't let you!"
I shouted.
I could no longer afford to care about how I looked. I just had to defend these roses—these final roses—with my life. Driven by that desperation, I managed to knock Ray’s arm aside, and this time I attempted to use martial arts against him.
At this distance, this is faster than using magic!
If not for my training with Ray, I would never have done such a thing. I surely would have relied solely on magic. But even this body can be a weapon. I could do this because he was the one who taught me.
That's why I'll do anything—I'll use every tool at my disposal!
I tried to lure him toward the location of a Delay Magic trap... but Ray effortlessly evaded it without even looking. Among the various types of magic, Delay Magic requires some of the most intricate Code Construction.
For that reason, I had avoided it until now, but Ray had thoroughly drilled the technique into me. Yet, it seemed it wouldn't work against him, as he knew me all too well.
I had already constructed a barrier-like structure around myself using multiple layers of Delay Magic. And yet, Ray seemed to perceive every bit of it. Facing him as he evaded them without effort, I realized he was truly a monster.
This was what it meant to face even a fragment of one of the Seven Grand Sorcerers.
"..."
Then, he vanished from the spot once again.
"Ha... ha... ha... I did it..."
For the first time, I had held him off without taking any damage. Four roses still remained on my chest. There were five and a half hours left. If things continued at the pace of the first half, I certainly wouldn't be able to pass this exam.
But... I wouldn't give up until the very end. I wanted to prove that I could do it if I tried. Not for anyone else, but for myself.
Until now, I had only been chasing after Rebecca-senpai and Ariane.
I had imitated them and behaved like a proper noble. But somewhere inside, I had already given up on myself.
After all, I was inferior to those two.
After all, I was powerless.
After all, I was nothing but a fraud.
I had arbitrarily decided that and narrowed my own possibilities. Without truly seeing the effort or suffering of others, I had convinced myself I understood the shallow, polished surface of their success and fell into despair.
That was the essence of Amelia Rose.
But... I know that's wrong now.
Both of them live freely. They accept the weight of being a noble, and rather than letting it make them arrogant, they take pride in it and forge their own paths.
Last year, I watched Rebecca-senpai's final match in the Magics Chevalier with my own eyes, and seeing her victory, I thought that her brilliance was the only way a member of the Three Great Noble Families should be.
But when I looked into it later, I found that Rebecca-senpai had lost in the second round of her Newcomers' Tournament.
She must have worked so hard. Without giving up on herself, believing she could still move forward, she seized that summit one year later.
And then there was Ariane, who was the same age as me. I had convinced myself that I could only ever lose to her in the Magics Chevalier. I had been plagued by an inferiority complex toward her for a long time.
We used to be close. We were best friends. But as I began to feel that sense of inadequacy, I started to distance myself. I couldn't help but feel jealous of her.
Because I knew that I was inferior to Ariane, both in how I carried myself as a noble and in my abilities as a sorcerer.
I admired her confidence. There were times I yearned to be like her. But I could never become her.
Then, I wished to be like Ray.
But... I am only myself, and I cannot become anyone else.
The current me finally understood why that was.
And the confidence that I could do it too—that I had actually defended against an attack from that Ray White—was beginning to awaken within me.
Five and a half hours remaining.
I can do this. I can do it.
With that thought, I tied my disheveled hair back up with a hair tie and lightly brushed the mud off my face.
At this point, I didn't care about my appearance. I would simply protect these roses to the end. That was it. That was the only thing I had to do.
And so, I continued to face Ray in the depths of this forest.
Until the moment the time limit reached its end—
◇
"Ha... ha... ha...! Ugh... guh... ha... ha!"
How much magic had I used? How much willpower had I wrung out?
The sun was already setting, and the world was bathed in the light of twilight.
My body was a mess of sweat. My hair was matted with mud, and I was covered in scratches. I was managing to suppress the bleeding, but the pain was constant. The ache from Ray’s throws remained as a dull, throbbing weight. I likely had internal bruising. Ray had shown no mercy. We were facing each other with everything we had.
And he... simply repeated his actions with detachment, as if whittling away at my heart.
He surely knew the weakness of my spirit.
His fighting style was based on having seen right through me.
But I managed to hang on. By now, I was frequently finishing our engagements without losing a rose. If this were a no-holds-barred fight to the death, it would have ended in a heartbeat. But I only needed to protect these roses. I just had to be absolute in my defense.
I attacked too, but those were mere feints. My true goal was to reach the time limit safely.
I could even see a slight hint of impatience in Ray’s eyes now.
But I was at my absolute limit. No one would complain if I gave up now. Even if I quietly let the remaining roses be scattered here, I probably would have been satisfied.
I've done enough by coming this far. The old me... would have thought that.
"..."
"Ha... ha... I won't give up... I definitely won't give up!"
—Steel yourself!
—Embolden yourself!
My body hasn't reached its limit yet. I can still move. But if my heart admits defeat, it's over. That's why I squeeze out every drop of strength. I rouse my own heart.
I no longer knew how much time was left. From the moment we entered the final hour, Ray’s attacks had never ceased.
I had two roses left. If I protected these, I could finish this training successfully.
Give up after coming this far?
There was no way I could do something so stupid.
I... I don't want to give up on myself anymore.
I wished to change.
Coming to this academy, I met irreplaceable friends, and I wished to become the real thing.
So that's what I'll become. Because I am living in this very moment, not in some distant "someday."
"────!"
"...It's over."
In an instant, his hand reached for my chest. This was truly the final exchange. It wasn't that I was dazed. But even at this hour, Ray’s speed remained unchanged. To ensure he finished it, he tried to pluck my roses with his right hand.
What do I do? What should I do? Quick Magic? No, I won't make it in time. Besides, I have almost no willpower left to even manifest magic.
Martial arts? No, at this distance... it's impossible.
What should I do, what can I do... am I going to lose? Am I going to give in to myself here, just like always?
Those thoughts crossed my mind, but in that split second... something strange happened.
"Hm..."
"Eh..."
Suddenly, a butterfly... a single butterfly was fluttering there. No such thing had been there before. Yet, between me and Ray, there was undoubtedly a single butterfly, burning red. It was a presence that appeared abruptly, as if stitching its way through the gaps in our awareness.
It felt as though time had stopped.
In that frozen moment, Ray and I simply stared at it.