Rising Against Fate

9th February 3068 (Tuesday)

The art of shadow magic was hard to classify into a school of magic. And not just shadow magic, there were several arts that varied depending on the user.

Even though a whole branch of MRS was assigned for the task, the result never seemed to be concrete. There was always something new popping out here and there in every generation of magicians.

This wasn't all bad since it prevented researchers from being bored after figuring out the existing disciplines. But there was also the fact that magic was becoming more complicated with every new generation. And at this point, the encyclopedia of magic was almost as big as the one for animals.

Tadashi, who had been researching magic for over two decades, couldn't help but feel frustrated to see how different the practical use of magic was from theory.

It was intriguing at the start, but it started being frustrating after he was proved wrong several times.

Unlike other judges, who were basing their opinion on instinct and experience, he was speaking logic. But somehow, in this stage, instinct was proving to be more accurate than logic.

Yesterday, on the seventh match, Hyousuke won by just using his steel defense. And in the last match, Raiden defeated his opponent in just sixteen seconds.

The seventh one was within expectation, but the last match was absolute defiance of logic. Who in the right mind could even imagine a match between two top tens would end that way?

That being said, today, he came prepared. He analyzed the magic of all the participants and compared all the possible scenarios.

This he did, not just because he was frustrated. But because he wanted to prove that his life long research wasn't in vain. At this point, he felt like his pride as a researcher was on the line.

"Oh-ho, it's the boy's match. I can barely contain my excitement."

It was odd to see a veteran magician like Kin Ongaku get this excited, but that was understandable since he also found the boy intriguing.

However, the man seated between them wasn't a regular magic geek like the two. He was a normal man wearing an invisible hat of responsibility in his head.

Even though the hat was invisible, the worried look on his face made it evident that he was concerned. He had a perfect reason to be — people would seek answers from MRS about the sudden appearance of a shadow mage of that caliber.

"Sir, I know our views are different on several matters. And that is especially true in case of politics. But this is a matter of concern to the magical societies throughout the nation."

Naoki was trying to make it as polite as possible. He knew the consequences of getting on the old man's bad side. In fact, he wanted to avoid talking about this directly in the first place. However, when he realized the information that MRS had on the boy was vague, he had no choices left.

"Hou! Would you mind getting to the point, Naoki?"

"You know what I am talking about. An appearance of someone who can use a clan's ability to that level is bound to cause unrest."

"Hmm… The issue isn't as big as you are making it seem. We can't claim that our abilities should be limited to just us. So, instead of throwing a tantrum over it, it's wise to simply accept the fact."

It wasn't like Naoki couldn't debate on the matter, but he knew that an argument here was pointless. Anything he says wouldn't change the old man's opinion on the subject. So, instead of trying to convince him, he just focused on the match that was about to start.

"Ladies and gents, welcome to the second day of the first round of this tournament. The matches up to now have been stunning, and I am sure today will also be the same."

The crowd that was patiently waiting until now started cheering as the announcement began.

"You guys have waited long enough; now it's time for some action. And by action, I mean, we are directly moving towards our next match — Razak Grace vs. Junpei Tanaka."

After the announcement, the two participants slowly walked up to the stage.

Junpei looked a bit chubby, but not to the point where it would hamper his movement. He was from a branch family of the Monku clan, the same one as Kenji, the student council president.

This clan practiced a unique art of magic mainly focused on offense, and their physical enhancement, along with their sensory ability, was on a different level.

Tadashi was carefully observing the two. As far as he could tell, this was the match between equals.

Shadow magic was excellent when it came to defense. Even though Shadow devil was only a general class defensive spell, it could also be used as a potent tool.

The magician could cast other spells through the devil, though that would require a lot more mana and concentration.

"Looks like the participants are ready. Let the countdown begin."

"Three!"

"Two!"

"One!"

"Let the battle begin!"

As soon as the match started, Junpei created a barrier around him and rushed towards Razak. It was a predictable move since barrage attacks were the specialty of the Monku clan, not to mention the fact that their enhancement magic was far superior to others.

"What!"

Tadashi stood from his chair in surprise.

Instead of waiting for his opponent and preparing a countermeasure, Razak was charging forward without using any defensive spells. The exact opposite of what one should do while fighting an opponent who was far superior in enhancement.

The match started going off track from how he predicted it would go right from the start.

He realized that his reaction was catching people's attention, so he quickly suppressed his surprise and returned to his initial position. But instead of apologizing to his fellow judges, he focused on the match as the two of them were about to clash.

Both were using Grade 4 physical enhancement, but Junpei clearly looked physically superior.

"Shadow Magic, Advanced Art 3: Dark Slash."

Right before they were about to meet at the center, Razak fired two dark slashes using his left hand and broke Junpei's barrier. And when their right fist clashed, the pressure developed in between sent both of them flying backward.

When he saw that happen, Tadashi could no longer suppress his surprise.

"How in the world is that possible?!"