Emma didn’t even have time to react before the perfectly condensed [Spear of Light] struck precisely at her chest.
“Ugh—!”
With a muffled groan, Emma felt a powerful shock surge through her body, instantly shattering the already chaotic flow of mana within her.
The staff in her hand flew loose, and her entire body collapsed backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily onto the hard surface of the Dueling Ground.
She struggled desperately a few times, trying to crawl back up and fight, but eventually, she went limp, losing the strength to continue battling.
The entire arena fell into silence.
A deathly stillness enveloped the Dueling Ground, lasting several seconds.
Only after the Referee hurried forward to check did he loudly announce, “Winner: Kefi!”
The audience erupted like boiling water suddenly bursting forth.
“Oh my god! What just happened?!”
“I clearly saw the formation of the [Spear of Light]’s array. Why didn’t the spell release immediately?!”
“Yeah! It was delayed by at least five or six seconds! How is that possible?!”
“Did the spell fail? Or… is this some new technique?!”
“I’ve never heard of magic being released with a delay! That defies all logic!”
“How did Kefi do that?! It’s incredible!”
Shouts of astonishment, doubt, and discussion echoed one after another, all the students’ faces filled with disbelief and intense curiosity.
Everyone had assumed the match would be one-sided, but unexpectedly, the two ended in a tense, hard-fought battle, concluding in such a bizarre manner.
It completely overturned their understanding. For a moment, all eyes focused on the breathless but smiling brown-haired girl in the arena, and on the small teacher sitting expressionless in the east stands.
To the south, Clyde’s face had darkened to the point of dripping water.
He stared fixedly at Kefi below, then suddenly raised his head to glare at the calm, composed Sefina on the opposite side, clenching his fists involuntarily.
That strange casting method…
It’s definitely Sefina’s doing! What exactly has she taught?!
In the west stands, the tall red-haired woman wearing glasses remained seated with her legs crossed, calmly observing everything below.
She was Rofilia, the principal of Oselenka Magic Academy, a Seventh-Rank Archmage whose eight-rank strength allowed her to effortlessly perceive the deeper secrets behind Kefi’s technique.
She pushed up her glasses, her gaze behind the lenses deep and filled with interest.
“Oh? Quite interesting… Segmenting the construction of the formation, using specific patterns to achieve delayed mana output? A very novel idea. This little Sefina is far more intriguing than the report suggested,” she murmured softly.
In the east stands, Mia jumped up excitedly, pumping her fists with more joy than if she had won herself.
Ellaria frowned slightly, tapping her chin with her finger, the green light in her eyes flickering with contemplation.
Delayed Spellcasting… how does one stabilize a completed formation without immediately triggering the mana? That requires extremely delicate mana control…
It seems this new teacher’s methods are far more varied than I imagined. Ellaria couldn’t help but glance again at Sefina beside her, her gaze carrying a hint of inquiry.
Sefina, the center of attention, lazily let out a small yawn, as if the recently finished duel was nothing more than a boring lesson.
Everything was under control, naturally.
As for the principle? To Sefina, it was as simple as could be.
The formation’s pattern was code, and in scripting languages, adding a “delay function” was one of the simplest basic operations.
She had simply taught Kefi to add a few auxiliary patterns for “energy storage” and “delayed triggering” when constructing the [Spear of Light] formation.
This move was risky in real combat, requiring precise mana control and timing, but it was surprisingly effective in deceiving inexperienced opponents’ defensive skills.
Kefi’s use of it was pretty good.
During the break, Sefina approached Kefi, who was surrounded by classmates congratulating her, and gently patted her shoulder.
“Well done.”
Those four simple words made Kefi’s smile even brighter, as if all fatigue had vanished.
This was Kefi’s first time defeating a strong opponent head-on, and using her teacher’s peculiar technique made the sense of achievement indescribable.
Soon, the break ended, and the Referee’s voice sounded again, signaling the start of the next duel.
“Please, Teacher Sefina and Teacher Clyde, enter the arena and prepare!”
The atmosphere in the stands immediately reignited, even more fervent than before!
Students excitedly whispered to one another, their eyes filled with anticipation.
“They’re here! The teachers’ duel!”
“A duel between two Sixth-Rank Mages! It’s bound to be amazing!”
“I wonder if Teacher Sefina will use any more weird magic?”
“Teacher Clyde is the Count’s son; he must have lots of powerful magical gear!”
“Can’t wait! This is going to be even more thrilling than the last match!”
Almost everyone expected a fierce, evenly matched battle.
However, they didn’t know that what followed would shock their perceptions again in a way they could never have imagined.
On the arena floor, Clyde’s expression was grave, tightly gripping a magnificent staff embedded with a large blue Magic Crystal that clearly held great value.
He stared intently at the petite, seemingly harmless Sefina opposite him, alarm bells ringing in his mind.
He had asked around recently—Sefina could use [Advanced Levitation], meaning she was at least a Sixth-Rank Mage!
If she was sixth-rank, the same level as him, he mustn’t underestimate her!
But relying on his family background and resources, Clyde still believed he had a good chance of winning.
In the west stands, Principal Rofilia sat elegantly with her legs crossed, a knowing smile on her lips.
She gently swirled the cup of red tea that had somehow appeared in her hand and whispered:
“The outcome has long been decided. Poor Clyde… he has no idea he’s not facing just a Sixth-Rank Mage, but a true… Seventh-Rank Archmage.”
Only a very few knew this secret for now, but after today, the whole of Oselenka would be shaken by it.
Below, Sefina lazily rubbed her eyes and couldn’t help yawning again.
“Ahh—”
“Let’s get this over with quickly so I can go back and take a nap,” she murmured quietly, completely unfazed by the formidable-looking Clyde opposite her.
The Referee glanced at both sides, confirmed they were ready, then sharply swung his arm down.
“Duel, begin!”