"Damn it!!"Enraged, Malcolm continued to squeeze out Jet Black, creating Doppelgängers.Simon struck the staff embedded in the ground, but the magic circle remained, and there was no problem with the Doppelgängers' creation.'The staff wasn't the medium for the magic after all.'Simon gave a regretful smile. Malcolm, on the other hand, fueled his fighting spirit even further.'It's just one attack blocked! Nothing has changed!'Malcolm's Doppelgängers charged at Simon again. This time, it wasn't a pincer attack but a staggered assault.Simon calmly swept his gaze around and moved his arm. Subspaces opened again, and four tentacle blades moved with a soft rustling sound.The blades moved in different directions and at different speeds.At the same time, they complemented each other.Any object moving in a line inevitably creates gaps, but these gaps were seamlessly covered and intertwined by the other blades, forming an organic flow.It was control that transcended practicality and reached the realm of beauty.The four blades crossed in different directions, flawlessly protecting their master, and in that state, Simon moved forward.Ziiiiiik-Advancing with his left foot planted on the ground. The magic circle formed on his left foot remained, and Simon could freely move the Overlord's blades.Meanwhile, Malcolm, who had spread his magic circle on the ground, couldn't escape. He had to keep his feet on the magic circle to channel Jet Black and create Doppelgängers.In other words, Malcolm's maximum movement range was the edge of the magic circle.Chwa-rururururuk!Chwa-ruruk!Blades swung, and Doppelgängers exploded and vanished like scattering coal dust, a scene that repeated itself.Now, the Doppelgängers were being destroyed as soon as they appeared. Malcolm bit his lip, watching his summons, 100% identical to himself, being massacred."Waaah!""Go, Number 1!"The stands were a cauldron of excitement.Of course, Malcolm's Doppelgängers were impressive, but Simon was showcasing a unique and unparalleled combat style, unlike anything seen from other Necromancers. It was natural that he garnered more attention.High-ranking officials watching from the VIP seats in the stands continuously exclaimed in admiration."Excellent. He truly deserves the title of Kizen's top student.""What kind of dark magic is that?""It's not dark magic. It's a combat style that involves pulling something out of and retracting it into a subspace. What's in the subspace must be a summon!"The one who answered was Princess Molly of the Dresden Kingdom, not the Necromancer-born nobles. The surrounding nobles nodded with knowing smiles.Everyone knew that she, who never missed Kizen's Duel Evaluations for important events, was an expert on Necromancers.'Amazing!'The princess turned her head back to the stands, biting her thumb slightly with an excited expression.'Even if a Necromancer's summon is just an Undead, such precise control is possible!'Jane's words about having high expectations were not empty promises. She didn't want to miss a single moment of Simon's battle. She craned her neck and even slightly lifted herself from her seat.'His name is worth remembering! Simon Pollentia!'And, in the stands a little further from the VIP section, silence continuously hung in the air."Professor Bahil. Control your expression. Ex. Pres. Sion."Chehekl, the chief assistant of Curse Studies, snapped her fingers, reminding Bahil.Bahil had been in a foul mood for a month. Nothing had gone his way recently.Simon hadn't joined the Curse Research Society, and in this Duel Evaluation, he was fighting with Summoning Studies in front of so many people.But.'......?'Chehekl was surprised by Bahil's expression. It wasn't his usual demonic look, but a melting smile, as if watching his grandchild's antics."Talent and potential have their limits."Bahil licked his lips and continued."But this has far exceeded those limits! Isn't it astonishing?""......."Chehekl looked surprised."Aren't you angry that Simon isn't fighting with curses?""Of course, I'm angry. It's frustrating too! But!"Bahil couldn't hide his excitement and adjusted his posture."When I think of such a genius coming under my wing, yes. I can gladly endure this!""......Everyone knows Professor Aaron of Summoning Studies is currently leading the race for Simon.""There's no need to rush. He's a talent who will eventually fall into my hands anyway."Bahil propped his knees up and rested his chin on them, smiling."At least for this moment, while watching his match, I want to be a pure Necromancer myself."The match was increasingly dominated by Simon. Malcolm's twenty hard-earned Doppelgängers were wiped out by a single swing of the Overlord's blade.'Damn it!'Even when Malcolm directly controlled two or three Doppelgängers to feint, Simon wasn't fooled.Simon wasn't predicting the Doppelgängers' movements; he was literally watching their movements to the very end and then operating his blades accordingly.It was a luxury afforded by the overwhelming speed difference, and thus, the stability that resulted. 'My Jet Black is running low. And he keeps closing the distance.'Malcolm stepped backward.He was now at the very edge of his Doppelgänger magic circle. If he was pushed back any further, he wouldn't be able to use Doppelgängers. 'Now I have to make my move!'He felt it was no time to be picky about means or methods.Malcolm reached behind his back. He opened a subspace, and a fist-sized blue potion bottle dropped into his palm.A special product of the great Randolph Gang.Its true identity was a liquid bomb that caused a massive explosion when infused with Jet Black. It was made from the byproducts of the explosion monster Longer, and the Randolph Gang had earned astronomical sums of money by distributing this item, bringing down countless organizations.Normally, it was only used in absolutely necessary moments because of the high probability of the caster being caught in the blast, but for Malcolm, who used Doppelgängers, it was a different story.He squeezed out Jet Black, creating ten Doppelgängers at once.Cha-cha-cha-chak!The Doppelgängers moved busily, shuffling and swapping positions. It seemed like a simple movement for confusion, but Malcolm had already handed bombs to three of them.'I'll end it with this attack! Go!'Ten Doppelgängers carrying bombs charged at Simon from different directions. Simon left only one blade for defense and sent the remaining three blades to attack the Doppelgängers.Chwaruk!Chwa-ruruk!The blades passed through, destroying the Doppelgängers like writhing snakes.Then, as one Doppelgänger was destroyed, a potion bottle clattered to the ground. A trailing Doppelgänger quickly picked it up, but Simon didn't miss the sight.'Explosive potion...!' 'It's too late even if you noticed!'Malcolm smiled triumphantly.The Doppelgängers ignited the potions with Jet Black and simultaneously rushed at Simon.A black light flashed and flowed from the potion bottle.'I won!'Malcolm's lips twisted in certainty of victory.Kwaaaaaaaang!A gray explosion erupted in the center of the arena.The spectators screamed and ducked. A large-scale barrier had been deployed in the stands, but everyone could feel the impact and power of the blast.Malcolm laughed maniacally, taking the full force of the explosive headwind.It was worth secretly bringing it out from his father. He might get an earful from his father later, but the merit of defeating Special Admission Student No. 1 and joining Noble would be far greater.Kugugugugu-The explosion cloud and thick dust settled over the entire arena. A heavy silence also fell over the stands.While everyone held their breath, watching the next development."......There!"Someone shouted."I see him!""He's fine after all!""Waaaaaaah!"Malcolm's eyes darted around in confusion at the outpouring of cheers.How could this be? Could he withstand that firepower?But now, Malcolm could see it too.Chwaruk.Chwa-ruruk.Six of the Overlord's blades were tightly coiled around Simon's body, like snakes, leaving no gaps.The blades slowly parted, and from the darkness between them, Simon's eyes glowed.Malcolm felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up, and goosebumps spread across his arms.'Am I feeling fear?'It couldn't be. He had always been the object of fear, the one who instilled it.Just as Malcolm bit his lip until it bled, one of the Overlord's blades shot out with a 'shook!' sound.Thwack!It accurately pierced the Doppelgänger in front of Malcolm. Cold sweat ran down Malcolm's back, but fortunately, the blade didn't extend further and simply retreated after dispatching the Doppelgänger."Ha!"Malcolm opened his mouth."Hahahahaha! It's useless! It's useless! I've already calculated the range of your attack!"Chwa-rurururururuk!Another blade extended towards Malcolm."I said it was useless......!"Just then, the segments forming the tentacle blade slowly unfolded, revealing a mithril skeleton. Its length increased by 1.5 times.Simon smiled.'Interesting!'The pleasure of trapping an opponent within patterns and common sense, then breaking free from them, was unique.Malcolm's face twisted beautifully.Kwaaaang!The tentacle struck Malcolm's chest directly. His body flew several meters and slammed into the wall.Listening to the excited cheers of the crowd, Simon exhaled slowly.'It's reaching its limit.'The finger wearing the ring was incredibly hot. Simon retracted all the blades and walked towards Malcolm.For now, everything had gone according to plan.The explosion earlier was unexpected, but he had dealt with it safely, and he had successfully pushed Malcolm out of the magic circle before the ring overheated.Malcolm had overused his Jet Black by constantly using Doppelgängers, but Simon had primarily operated the Overlord.Simon had far more Jet Black remaining than Malcolm.If both the Overlord and Doppelgängers were sealed, Simon would be overwhelmingly advantageous from this point on."Heheheh......!"Malcolm staggered to his feet and glared directly at Simon."Do you think you've won with this?"He clutched the artifact around his neck."The real fight starts now."Woo-woo-woong!His artifact emitted a fierce flash of light. Soon, refined Jet Black flowed from within it, beginning to cover Malcolm's body.It took the form of armor. Princess Molly, watching from the stands, shot to her feet.'W-why? Why is that treasure in the hands of a gang leader's son?'It was a completely different structure from the 'Jet Black Robe' of martial arts, which covered the body with internal Jet Black. The Jet Black solidified into a complete suit of armor, and Malcolm's face was hidden by the helmet.Commonly known as the 'Black Knight's' armor. It was an artifact defense worn by the Black Knights of the Dresden Kingdom."Hahaha!"Malcolm let out a maniacal laugh, making an 'R' sign with his hand as he chuckled.Seeing that, Princess Molly's expression hardened coldly.'This idiotic brother of mine......!'"Simon Pollentia."Malcolm, clad in the Black Knight's armor, approached with a sneer."This is a gift from someone who holds a grudge against you.""......."Simon scratched the side of his head.No matter how he thought about it, he didn't recall doing anything that would earn someone's grudge."This is what you call karma, isn't it? Think of it as your actions coming back to you like a boomerang.""Interesting."Simon grinned and pulled an imaginary lever. Two skeletons appeared from the subspace."Then I'll put mine on too.""What?"Chwa-rurururuk!The two skeletons scattered and began to attach themselves to Simon's body. The Necromancer-born nobles who saw this were utterly astonished."It's Bone Armor!""A first-year is using Bone Armor?"Chajak.Chak.Cha-cha-cha-chak.As skeleton bones covered his entire body, Simon opened his mouth."Wanna bet?""What?"Simon touched the newly equipped Bone Armor, smiling with satisfaction."Which suit is better?"
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