It was an overwhelming victory… utterly one-sided.
No one could call it a 'duel.' The result was utterly unexpected.
"T-This can't be..."
Jeremy Skalven.
On his knees, trembling in disbelief, he stared blankly at the ground. The teaching assistant, acting as mediator and judge for the student duel, could only gape at Flame, his eyes wide with confusion.
"Hmph."
Flame stood tall, unscathed. With a casual flick of her wrist, she pushed her short hair back and raised her staff, its tip still glowing faintly. She pointed it at Jeremy, her expression calm and unyielding.
But Jeremy couldn't rise. His body refused to obey.
With a reluctant sigh, the teaching assistant declared the verdict, his voice faltering.
"V-Victor... First-year Class S, Flame..."
Around them, the gathered students froze in shock. Jeremy's followers, as well as the cadets of Stella Academy, looked on in stunned silence, mouths agape.
"How did this happen...?"
"This is ridiculous."
"She's... that strong?"
Both Jeremy and Flame had long been heralded as prodigies, rising stars of the academy.
To achieve the rank of Class 3 mage as first-year students was no small feat; it was proof of their extraordinary talents. None had doubted their titles as geniuses.
Everyone had expected their duel to be a clash of titans, an evenly matched contest that would leave all in awe.
Yet, Flame had crushed Jeremy without mercy.
The Skalven imperial family's magic was famous for its mastery of the 'Golden Magic.'
Often regarded as the most opulent form of magic, Golden Magic was an all-purpose art equally proficient in both offense and defense. Especially in duels against human mages, it demonstrated 100% effectiveness...
But it was useless before Flame's Light Magic.
Without even resorting to plant-based or alchemical tricks, Flame completely dominated Jeremy with her pure magical skill.
Jeremy's golden barriers were pierced by beams of light, and his golden fortress was torn apart by radiant blades.
It wasn't because Flame was inherently stronger.
It was because she had one year more experience than Jeremy.
It may seem like just one year, but for a genius like Flame, that year was enough to completely master five magic classes.
For prodigies, a difference of one year's experience could create an overwhelming gap. Flame crushed Jeremy by controlling Class 3 magic with the finesse of a Class 6 mage.
"Incredible skill..."
"It's hard to believe she's only seventeen..."
At that moment, Flame realized something.
She finally understood why Baek Yu-Seol had displayed such unparalleled strength from the very first day of school.
'... Baek Yu-Seol was never a genius.'
His body was born without any natural mana, rendering him the weakest in the magical society.
Yet, armed with nothing but a sword, he had dared to slash through magic itself, standing steadfast as a knight. Now, for the first time, Flame felt as though she understood the reason behind his defiance.
'That must have been the only way an ordinary person could ever reach the level of a genius.'
Flame was no stranger to her own talent. In her past life, she had been ordinary, but now, reincarnated in a body blessed with genius, she saw the world through new eyes.
But because of that, she could also grasp just how vast the gap between an ordinary person and a genius truly was.
A genius could make overwhelming strides in just a single year, but an ordinary person could not.
If Baek Yu-Seol had been given only ordinary talent and a mere one-year advantage in time, it would have made no difference. He would have remained insignificant.
But he had repeated that process thousands of times.
To overcome his lackluster talent - no, talent that was below average - he had trained endlessly, enduring countless hours that geniuses, who grew simply by existing, could never even fathom.
A single chance to time-travel.
And yet... Flame felt as though she was gradually drawing closer to Baek Yu-Seol.
She couldn't claim to fully understand everything about him. After all, she had only experienced it once, while he had lived through it thousands of times.
But still... 0 and 1 are different.
Though it was only a brief experience, Flame felt she had come to understand Baek Yu-Seol just a little more.
"Hey."
Flame's curt voice cut through the silence, and Jeremy reluctantly raised his head. His face was twisted with frustration, his composure shattered beyond recognition.
To lose to a commoner - a girl at that - was a humiliation too great for Jeremy Skalven, who had ascended to crown prince by eliminating all his siblings.
"Keep your promise."
Jeremy gritted his teeth and nodded reluctantly as he stared at Flame.
The contract was ironclad, every loophole meticulously sealed. It ensured that not even Jeremy's followers could harass Eisel in his stead. From this moment forward, he was completely barred from going near her.
"Hah..."
Flame exhaled heavily, securing her staff at her waist. Her eyes drifted to Eisel, who stood silently nearby, staring blankly at the scene with an expression that was... off.
"Hey."
"Eisel, are you okay?"
"Ah, y-yeah..."
"What's wrong with you?"
"N-Nothing..."
Eisel hesitated as she looked at Flame. She felt strange.
She was clearly looking at a girl, yet for some reason, an image of a boy kept overlapping with Flame in her mind.
Black hair and dark eyes.
Not particularly tall.
He used a unique form of magic. He was free-spirited and unrestrained by rules or morals, and always surprised those around him...
'Ah... What am I thinking...?'
Eisel shook her head sharply, trying to clear her thoughts.
Now wasn't the time to be thinking about such things.
"Th-Thank you..."
"What's there to thank me for? Anyway, you're a member of the Gourmet Club now, right?"
"That's... Fine, but..."
Eisel fidgeted, unable to finish her sentence.
She knew all too well what sacrifices Flame had made to pull her out of the Skalven club.
"You'll definitely be disciplined for this..."
"So what?"
Flame shrugged, brushing off the concern. But then, almost instinctively, she remembered Baek Yu-Seol's casual way of speaking and added with a grin,
"It's not like I'm going to die."
The words carried a strange, comforting confidence. Flame turned away with a nonchalant wave, leaving Eisel staring after her, wide-eyed and lost in thought once more.
'It's working. I'm sure of it!'
Flame clenched her fist in triumph, but her excitement was short-lived as waves of worry came crashing down.
After causing such a major incident, expulsion was practically guaranteed. This might be her first and last chance to help Eisel regain her memories.
She had to make Eisel remember… but memories couldn't simply be forced out by willpower. If she pushed too hard, it could have the opposite effect.
"Cadet Flame."
Just as she was about to leave the gym, an instructor called out to her.
"... Instructor Lee Han-Wol wants to see you."
'Here we go.'
Flame nodded calmly.
***
"You've caused quite a mess. This isn't something we can just overlook."
The disciplinary committee had convened once again.
The professors wore uncomfortable expressions, and Instructor Lee Han-Wol let out heavy sighs, as if asking why she had done it.
"You must have had a reason."
"Nope. I just felt like beating him up."
"Is that so."
Lee Han-Wol's fingers drummed rhythmically against the desk. A moment later, a faint shimmer of magic enveloped the room.
The professors' voices vanished, sealed behind a soundproof barrier. Though Flame couldn't hear them, she could see their serious expressions as they debated heatedly.
Minutes passed before Lee Han-Wol waved a hand, dispelling the barrier. The voices returned.
"... Even though Stella Academy promotes equality between nobles and commoners, the fact remains that an incident involving the crown prince of the Skalven Empire being assaulted could cause significant political issues. Are you aware of that?"
"Of course."
Entrusting the crown prince to Stella, only for him to get beaten up by a commoner?
The Skalven imperial family could easily accuse the school of negligence and push for severe repercussions. There would be no valid defense against such claims.
"We have our own position to consider, so don't think we're being too harsh if the punishment is severe."
"Of course."
At this point, Flame didn't care anymore.
If she was going to be expelled, so be it. She had decided not to overthink it.
"I will now deliver the verdict."
With a heavy heart, Lee Han-Wol began to announce the conclusion reached after lengthy discussions with the professors. But just then, a commotion erupted outside the room.
Because a soundproof spell had been cast, they couldn't hear what was being said. Still, Flame already had a good idea of what was going on.
"Sigh... Let them in."
Lee Han-Wol let out a long sigh and gestured to the assistant waiting outside. The assistant quickly opened the door, and Eisel, who had been banging on it, stumbled forward and fell flat on her face.
"Ack!"
Her unceremonious entrance might have been laughable under different circumstances, but she quickly scrambled to her feet, her eyes darting around the room.
The professors were already intimidating under normal circumstances. Now, they were seated high above with stern expressions, giving the room the air of a courtroom.
Eisel felt her throat tighten as if she were the one on trial. She swallowed hard and stepped forward.
"I... I have something to say!"
"If you're here to give a pointless defense for your friend, then leave."
"S-She's not my friend!"
Eisel shouted impulsively, but then clamped her mouth shut, wide-eyed, and turned to look at Flame.
Flame grinned and spoke cheerfully.
"What? Aren't we friends? I thought we were."
"W-Wait, what?"
"Of course, we're not complete friends—about 38%, maybe?"
"What even is a 38% friend...?"
"Never mind. I'll make it 41% since it's my birthday."
This was strange. Somehow, this odd flow of conversation felt familiar, as if it had happened before.
"Enough with the pointless chatter!"
Lee Han-Wol's sharp voice cut through the room, making Eisel gulp nervously. She took a step closer to him and spoke.
"A-Actually, Flame was trying to save me. Please... reduce her punishment."
"... Save you? What do you mean?"
"Well, the truth is..."
'Ugh.'
Flame sighed internally.
What was Eisel doing? Explaining the situation wouldn't help her at all… it might even make things worse.
Despite the potential fallout, Eisel stood firm and calmly recounted everything to Lee Han-Wol. She detailed Jeremy's obsessive behavior… how he had forced her into his club, ordered his followers to stalk her, and disrupted her daily life to an unbearable extent.
… But it wasn't enough.
Jeremy Skalven hadn't acted so brazenly within Stella Academy without reason. His power and influence were vast enough to quash any scandal before it gained traction.
Even if Eisel's claims were true, it was unlikely that Jeremy would face any real punishment.
Worse still, some of the professors seated before them might even be supporters of the Skalven imperial family. If so, Eisel's testimony could backfire, putting her at greater risk instead of offering protection.
Defending Flame was more likely to hurt her than help, yet Eisel had chosen to speak up anyway.
'She's starting to come back...'
Flame closed her eyes and waited quietly.
Lee Han-Wol, as head of the disciplinary committee, was known for his strict neutrality. He had no affiliations with the academy's various factions… or so it was said.
He leaned slightly toward Flame, in a way that might be called skewed neutrality.
However, as much as Lee Han-Wol wanted to side with Flame, the severity of her actions made it difficult for him to let her off without punishment. But with Eisel's honest testimony, the situation had shifted.
Eisel's words gave Lee Han-Wol a valid justification to reconsider the punishment.
"I see... So that's what happened..."
At first glance, the idea of discussing self-defense and stalking in a student conflict might have seemed absurd. Yet, given the context, the claims held weight.
"We'll postpone the punishment for now. I need to verify the facts."
"W-Wait a moment, Instructor Lee Han-Wol! Are you seriously considering listening to these students?"
"... What do you mean by that?"
One of the professors quickly stepped forward to stop Lee Han-Wol.
"Think about it! We're talking about a commoner, the child of a traitor, and the crown prince of Skalven!"
"I'm aware of that."
"Then surely you know what kind of decision you're supposed to make here!"
"Interesting."
A faint smirk appeared on Lee Han-Wol's scarred face, making the professor gulp nervously.
"W-What's so interesting?"
"A commoner, a traitor's child, and the crown prince of Skalven... Is that what's been on your mind this whole time?"
"I'm simply handling a dispute between students… Flame, Jeremy, and Eisel. If you're planning to bring irrelevant issues into this, you may as well leave the disciplinary committee right now."
"W-Wait!"
"I was wondering why there were so many Skalven supporters in this disciplinary committee... Now it all makes sense. I'll need to clean this up."
Lee Han-Wol shook his head and stood up, prompting the professors to scramble after him in a panic.
Given Lee Han-Wol's reputation as one of the most trusted figures of Elthman, even the professors knew better than to openly oppose him.
As the professors rushed out like a flock of chicks following their mother hen, Eisel slumped to the floor.
Flame approached her and extended a hand.
"You did well."
"... What?"
Eisel frowned at Flame's carefree tone.
"Do you even realize? If I hadn't come in to defend you, you might have actually been expelled!"
"Yeah. I know."
"Then why are you acting so relaxed...?"
"Because I knew you'd come."
"... What?"
Of course, it was a lie.
But lines like that? Those were the kind of things Baek Yu-Seol would say without hesitation. Flame had been carefully studying his style, and this was the perfect opportunity to channel it. With a casual confidence that mimicked his tone, she added,
"Anyway, let's go get something to eat. I'm starving."
Flame smiled confidently and walked ahead, leaving Eisel staring blankly at her back.
'Baek Yu-Seol...'
A name surfaced in Eisel's mind.
***
Not far from Stella Academy...
A silver-haired boy, Silver Autumn Moon, was watching the scene unfold.
"Oh, things are going a bit smoother this time."
He stroked his chin, observing Flame with a concerned expression.
"But she'll need to hurry."
There had been many versions of 'Flame' who had made it this far.
However, all of them had ultimately failed in the next stage. This Flame might not be any different.
"Still... I always place my hopes on you, Flame… for my world, for our world."