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After finishing an earlier-than-usual breakfast in the dining hall, we headed to the training grounds designated for Mecha Soldier exercises.

“ “Lili-Lulu knew this moment would come when comrades of the Elf Alliance would gather. Let us fight together, Alfe!” ”
“Ha! You didn’t chicken out, huh? Even a little shrimp like you is better than nothing!”

At the training grounds, Vannabelle, Numelin, and Lili-Lulu were already present, welcoming us in their own ways. I figured even Vannabelle preferred having a full roster.

Before long, everyone was gathered, and shortly before the scheduled start at nine, Mr. Tanutanu conducted a weapons check.

“Alright, looks like we’re all here. Let’s start with the weapon inspection.”

Each classmate had their own weapons or magical tools in hand. Lili-Lulu and Alfe held their magical staves above their heads, aligning their tips as they began twirling in a strange dance around them. According to Lili-Lulu, it was a ‘sacred dance to boost the morale of the Elf Alliance.’ Alfe, now fully accustomed to this routine, skillfully matched her steps to Lili-Lulu’s, creating an adorably synchronized performance.

“…I’m back, Leafa,” Alfe said as she finished her dance and returned to me.

The strategy meeting had already concluded the day before, and both Alfe and Farah had been granted free rein for the day. Alfe seemed to be thoroughly enjoying herself.

“Welcome back, Alfe. That staff is the one you got to celebrate your enrollment, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. It boosts my magic power, and I thought this was a good opportunity to use it. I really want to win with you, Leafa.”

Alfe spoke as she held her pristine new magic staff carefully, almost reverently. The new staff, adorned with a purple synthetic magic stone called Blood Grail at the handle, suited Alfe perfectly. It was likely a high-quality item chosen by her elf father, steeped in tradition. The same could be said for Lili-Lulu. The staves wielded by them and the other dark elves were larger and longer than typical ones, hefty enough to double as blunt weapons if necessary.

The other magic students also brought their best magic staves. Unlike the ones they typically used in class, these seemed to have been either specially prepared for the day or kept in reserve. Even a slight boost in magic power could help put Class A in their place.

“Alright, final check. None of you forgot anything, right?” Once everyone had finished inspecting their weapons, Mr. Tanutanu called out in his usual commanding tone.

“Of course not! Who’d be dumb enough to forget their weapon at a mock battle?” Vannabelle, ever the class representative, laughed loudly, but then she suddenly shifted her gaze toward me as though remembering something. “Then again, maybe someone did!”

Ah, fair enough. I hadn’t brought anything that could obviously be identified as a weapon. Hom was equipped with gloves for her weapon, so the misunderstanding was clearly about me.

“I’ve got it right here,” I said, raising Ars Magna I had been carrying under my arm.
“Huh…?”

Vannabelle blinked, momentarily caught off guard. She walked over and stared intently at the book in my hands.

“So… a magic tome is your weapon, huh? Figures for a brainiac like you.”

As she spoke, she drew her sword from its sheath with a flourish. The blade gleamed a brilliant crimson—a magic sword she seemed eager to flaunt.

“Well, against my magic sword—”

Vannabelle’s boast was abruptly drowned out by the swelling commotion from Class A.

“Now, proud inheritors of noble blood! On this day, let us show Class F the undeniable gap in skill, proving once and for all what makes Class A worthy of its name!”
“Yeeaahhh!”

Rizel’s rallying speech for Class A was met with thunderous cheers and applause, not only from his classmates but also from other classes, excluding Class F. The enthusiasm was overwhelming, leaving Isaac and Romeo from Class F visibly intimidated.

“Hah, showing off, huh? Well, we’re not going to be outdone!” Vannabelle stomped the ground in irritation, her eyes blazing with determination as she scanned Class F.

“Listen up, and listen well! This crimson sword will protect every one of you. Follow it, and I’ll make sure we win!”
“Yeah!”
“ “Lili-Lulu will follow the plan, alongside the long-eared Bunny person.” ”

Numelin hefted her battle axe high, with Lili-Lulu chiming in their agreement.

“Guess we’ll just do our thing, huh, Alfe?”
“Yeah. Let’s do our best, Farah.”

Farah and Alfe exchanged a nod of mutual resolve before Alfe turned her gaze back to me.

“Leafa, you—”
“Don’t worry about me,” I said, cutting her off. “I’ve got this, and I’m not so fragile as to go down easily.”

When I held up Ars Magna, Alfe looked slightly relieved. She’d seen me use it before in the battle against the Geist Armor, so she knew its potential. That memory seemed to reassure her.

“I will be here by your side,” Hom spoke.
“Right. I’m counting on you to watch over Leafa, Hom,” Alfe replied.
“And you too, Lady Alfe. Please be careful. If the need arises, I will come to your aid immediately,” Hom placed a hand on her chest, her words filled with a reassuring tone.
“I’ll do the same,” Alfe replied, mimicking the gesture. She nodded, though her expression was tinged with a bit of nervousness.

“Alright, the mock battle is about to start! Everyone, get to your positions!”
“Hurry along now~.”

The mock battle was moments away from beginning. As Vannabelle hurried everyone along, Numelin gently guided her classmates to their positions with her usual unhurried demeanor.

Although the arrangement appeared to be a simple formation, those familiar with the strategy knew better. The setup allowed Class F to shift into a triangular formation led by Vannabelle, Numelin, and Lili-Lulu at the front, ready to spearhead the attack.

Meanwhile, Class A had also taken their positions, but their formation lacked any notable structure. Rizel, for his part, stood at the very back of their group.

“Ohhh? What’s this? The big-shot noble leader is just going to sit in the back and watch the show, huh?”

Vannabelle’s long rabbit ears twitched with irritation as she raised her voice in frustration. It was clear that she found Rizel’s choice of position, especially as a fellow class representative, utterly unacceptable. To her, a leader who didn’t lead from the front was an affront to their role¹.

But why—

Before I could delve deeper into my thoughts, a gust of wind swept through the field, and Ms. Matilda zipped between Class A and Class F on her broomstick.

“Alrighty, everyone! Time’s up~!”

Her unusually high-energy voice rang out. Amplified by a sound projection spell, her words carried effortlessly even to me, standing far behind Class F’s formation.

“Intentional attacks to the head or vital points are prohibited. Any injured individuals will be forcibly removed and treated by our medical team, so keep that in mi—”
“Yeah, yeah, we get it! Skip the lecture and let’s start already, Teacher²!”

Vannabelle, gripping her magic sword, cut her off, impatiently urging for the match to begin.

“For the honored opening remark of a class representative, that was disappointingly crude.” Rizel, employing his own amplification spell, reprimanded Vannabelle with a scornful tone.

Vannabelle glared at him, bristling with annoyance. “Look who’s talking! Your first words were an insult!” Vannabelle’s retort was loud enough to be heard without any magical aid.

“Weak dogs bark the loudest. It’ll be clear soon enough who’s stronger.”
“Oh, so I’m a dog now, huh?!”
“Belle~ it’s just a figure of speech~” Numelin chimed in, trying to mediate as the tension between the two escalated.

“Alright, alright! Enough chit-chat! Now—begin!” Ms. Matilda abruptly signaled the start, cutting through the mounting argument.

And just like that, the battle between Class F and Class A began.

1. Silva: Actually, a wise commander would never position themselves on the frontline. If the commander goes down, the battle is lost.
   Robinxen: On the topics case there is an argument to be said about the differentiation between the leader and the commander, but it doesn’t apply here.
2. Robinxen: Wow, imagine cutting off the person judging your match, and not only that… doing it in a context where you could lose by default because you violated a rule you didn’t even know existed that they might have just been about to say.

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