Overpowered Archmage Doesn’t Hide His Talent

Chapter 50 What a Magician Doesn’t Learn

“Now, call it magic.”

As soon as Yvonne heard Flan’s words, she took two steps back.

…Call it magic?

It was an absurd statement. It was neither understandable nor acceptable.

Having been born with a knight’s destiny, having received a knight’s duty, she had trained solely with the sword from the moment she could grasp anything.

Swordsmanship (劍術)

This was swordsmanship. It always would be, and she had never once doubted this near-absolute truth.

Shhh—!

Yvonne swung her sword once more.

Her blade, augmented by her inherent ability, rushed towards Flan’s head like a beam of light.

But again, the doll swiftly intervened.

Boom!

As the swords collided, a tremendous explosion echoed.

“…”

Yvonne’s eyes twitched slightly. The doll’s solid defense was unnerving.

No, it was more than just solid.

The doll was perfectly mirroring Yvonne’s swordsmanship, protecting its master by copying her every move. Literally, an exact copy.

“…It blocked?”

There was no response. The opponent was a doll, after all.

Yvonne slowly rolled her eyes, eventually settling them on Flan, who stood calmly.

Before she knew it, she blurted out in frustration.

“You dare to play such tricks against a knight… Are you not afraid of my sword?”

“Why would I be?”

The response came quickly, in a tone as cold as ice.

“I’ll ask you, Yvonne, would you be afraid of such a pitiful opponent?”

“Pitiful…”

Snap—.

It felt as if a nerve bundle had snapped somewhere in her head.

“Pitiful…”

She repeated Flan’s words. The boiling rage in her head suddenly cooled.

No, perhaps it had already burned out completely.

Flan’s words weren’t wrong.

Right now, she was nothing more than a “pitiful” opponent, and she might very well suffer a humiliating defeat.

But.

‘A knight doesn’t become strong through training alone.’

Yvonne knew this well.

Failing to fully display your skills in actual combat makes you third-rate.

Displaying all your skills in combat makes you second-rate.

And… the one who overcomes their limits in combat can truly be called a first-rate knight.

Yvonne raised her head. Steadying her breath, she surveyed the many cadets seated in the stands.

Many of the knight cadets were fixated on just one person, and Yvonne knew that person was her.

With a nod, Yvonne readjusted her grip on her sword.

‘Watch carefully, all of you.’

To see whether your choice to believe in me as your representative was right or wrong.

To Yvonne, this battle was no longer just about winning or losing.

It was about proving that knights possessed their unique swordsmanship and spirit, something magic could never replicate.

What she held in her hand was not just a sword. It was also the pride of the knights.

“Hoo…”

Yvonne slowly raised her sword.

High stance.

She abandoned the middle stance, which also incorporated defense. Today, she would pierce through something no matter what.

She repeated her deep breathing. Her breath became increasingly shallow, and the surrounding air began to feel heavy.

‘Sharper than ever.’

If the doll had imitated her, she would simply surpass herself.

Like a bird in flight, she would not look back.

Clang!

The doll blocked Yvonne’s sword once more. But this time, it was different.

Yvonne suddenly felt her field of vision widen.

She began to notice the doll’s staggered movements. To her now, those openings were visible.

“…What’s this?”

Eric, the scout from the Mysterious Valley, murmured to himself.

Flan.

It was a name he had first heard from Colin. Even when he assessed the boy’s appearance, he hadn’t felt anything particularly remarkable.

A person with self-assurance. That was all he had thought.

“To summon Yvonne herself and fight… How could he even think of that? No, even if he did, how is it possible to achieve something like that after just a few minutes of observation?”

“That’s only half correct and half wrong.”

Colin dismissed Eric’s words.

“What do you mean?”

“I’m not sure about the inherent ability… but the swordsmanship, that’s definitely Yvonne’s.”

“Even if it’s only half correct… it’s still beyond comprehension.”

Eric couldn’t help but stick out his tongue in disbelief.

In the end, Flan had managed to perfectly replicate Yvonne’s swordsmanship after just a few minutes of observation.

“Senior, look at the atmosphere in the Knight Department’s section.”

The two scouts looked around at the knight cadets in the stands.

Normally, the students would have been cheering enthusiastically, but now they sat in a daze, and the silence felt empty.

“Of course, it’s like this. The swordsmanship they’ve spent years honing was copied in an instant. For the Knight Department, it’s an event that shakes their very foundation.”

Eric shuddered and rubbed his arms as if he had goosebumps.

“Look at the way they’re glaring at Flan. Ugh, it’s terrifying…”

There were no looks of resentment or blame directed at Yvonne. Instead, all the gazes were hostile towards Flan.

And very much so.

“There’s no way their gazes could be friendly. From their perspective, Flan is nothing more than a thief.”

“A thief…? Can you really call him that? It’s magic.”

“Which is why the magicians acknowledge it. Knights and magicians never truly understand each other.”

“Either way, at this rate, the Magic Department is going to win. What’s happening in front of us… is unbelievable.”

“Don’t question it.”

Colin’s cold voice dismissed Eric once more.

“Don’t question it, just accept what’s happening as it is. That’s what a scout is supposed to do.”

But even Colin’s forehead was dotted with sweat.

“…Even if something you’ve never seen before is happening right in front of you.”

“Is there no chance Yvonne can make a comeback?”

“I don’t know.”

Eric quickly turned his head towards Colin. Without taking her eyes off Flan and Yvonne, she continued speaking.

“If she awakens… who knows? Have you ever seen someone awaken?”

Eric quietly shook his head at Colin’s question. He had been a scout for less than a year.

“Do you know what an awakening is?”

“Senior, of course I do. Whether it’s a magician or a knight, when they awaken, their level rises drastically.”

“Sigh… You only know the basics.”

Colin sighed deeply.

“It’s true that a magician’s level increases drastically, but the process is a bit different for knights.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, for knights, their abilities become even more unique. I don’t need to explain how much their power increases, do I?”

“Oh… So, they go beyond that to reach a transcendent level.”

Eric nodded quietly.

“For now, just remember one thing. Awakening requires a trigger.”

“A trigger… Right, it wouldn’t make sense for someone to awaken without a trigger.”

“Exactly. So from now on, watch closely with all your attention.”

Colin paused before continuing.

“Whether it’s to overturn the situation or maintain it… it could all serve as a trigger for awakening.”

◈

Yvonne suddenly felt her body igniting.

However, she didn’t feel rushed at all.

The sword had already become a part of her body. She could feel the energy surrounding the sword more vividly than ever.

Had there ever been a moment where she was this focused?

Had there ever been a moment where she was this desperate?

And.

Had there ever been a moment where she was this furious?

In such a moment, words were unnecessary. She simply maintained her sharpest high stance and fixed her gaze on her opponent.

In that tense moment, everyone held their breath.

“Hut!”

Swallowing her breath, Yvonne charged at the doll.

Her sword slashed through the air multiple times. The sound of the air being torn came a beat later.

Boom!

‘Faster.’

Yvonne’s speed was different from that of other knights.

No, it had to be. Otherwise, her inherent ability would be meaningless.

‘Faster!’

She sought the ultimate speed.

With each swing, the sensation at the tip of her sword became clearer.

‘Faster, even faster!’

Her body, pushed to its limits, moved with unprecedented speed. She reached a level she had never been able to reach before.

The countless trajectories she carved in an instant rained down on the doll.

Slash!

One of the doll’s arms was severed.

She surpassed herself.

She shattered her limits.

That desperate resolve triggered the ‘awakening’ of the knight.

Slash! Slash! Slash!

The doll’s hand, arm, and shoulder were cut off in sequence.

Her lower body firmly supported her, while her upper body moved gracefully, making her sword dance.

The Yvonne of just moments ago… could never have been a match for the current Yvonne.

The dismembered doll scattered into blue energy.

Finally, Yvonne’s eyes, now facing Flan alone

, sank as low as they could go.

“I am a knight.”

She began to speak in a low voice.

“We dream the impossible, fight the unbeatable, and welcome the unbearable pain. That is how we’ve lived.”

Yvonne placed her palm on the flat of her sword. Then she slowly ran her hand along the blade, all the way to the tip.

“But when we achieve the impossible, when we defeat the undefeatable, when we endure the unbearable…”

As she did, the entire blade began to emit a radiant light.

It was an intense golden aura, incomparable to the previous white aura.

“…We finally gain something unique. Something that no one else can ever obtain.”

Yvonne slowly took her stance.

There was no need for complexity. Speed alone would suffice.

And this, too, was something that could never be imitated or replicated.

“Flan.”

The awakened knight quietly uttered her opponent’s name.

“A knight learns to never break, even in the face of defeat. That is the indomitable spirit engraved deep in our bones.”

Yvonne slowly inhaled. The elation heated her body to a fever pitch.

She would swing, thrust, and advance without end.

She would prove that knights had a unique domain all their own.

This, to Yvonne, was the essence of knighthood.

“…This is something that can never be replicated.”

The golden aura began to surge around her.

There was no need for a grand name to describe this manifestation.

A flash (一閃).

A single, brilliant strike. That was all that was needed.

Yvonne drew her sword close to her body. The path toward Flan was clear.

Her body felt lighter than ever.

She would definitely win.

No, she couldn’t lose.

“Never breaking in the face of defeat… Knights sure learn a lot. I’m surprised.”

At that moment, Flan spoke.

“There are a few things a magician doesn’t learn.”

He continued in his nonchalant manner.

“I never learned how to lose, nor do I know how.”

The magician’s crimson eyes fixed on the knight.

“Come.”

At the same time, a golden streak extended in a straight line.

◈

“Huff, huff…”

Yvonne checked the tip of her sword.

Fresh blood was dripping from the blue blade.

This meant that her strike had landed. As she shook off the drops of blood that trickled down the blade, Yvonne nodded.

“…I’ve won.”

Flan must have been cleanly bisected. By now, he would have been teleported to the medical ward.

The tension that had been coiled within her finally began to unravel. A sense of accomplishment washed over her, knowing she had elevated herself.

But then, she heard a voice.

“You did well.”

“…!”

Startled by the sudden voice, Yvonne quickly turned her head.

“Indeed, there’s something unique about it. It’s also commendable that you managed to surpass your own limits.”

Yvonne’s shoulders trembled as she stared at Flan, who was standing there nonchalantly.

A part of Flan’s uniform around his shoulder had been torn. That area was lightly tinged with red.

‘How…?’

Yvonne’s strike had been at the speed of light, and there had been no error in its trajectory. It shouldn’t have missed.

…Yet Flan had somehow managed to evade it.

“But Yvonne, I found your ability quite intriguing.”

Flan continued, rubbing his chin as he spoke.

His crimson eyes, filled not with fear but with pure curiosity, settled on Yvonne.

“I was hoping you could show me a few more times. What do you think?”

The hazy distortions that rose from Flan’s body began to dominate the space.

The waves of illusory mana soon began to form three figures.

“W-what…?”

Yvonne’s jaw trembled.

With a snap of his fingers, three swords, brimming with energy, appeared before him.

Flan calmly brought his hands together.

As if gears were rotating in different directions, he slowly interlocked his palms.

Then, each of the swords transformed into the image of Yvonne.

This time, there were not just one, but three.

“It would be nice if you could show me about three more times.”

“….”

Yvonne was so dumbfounded that she couldn’t close her mouth.

Nor could she utter any words.

The sword slipped from Yvonne’s hand.

Clang—!

Finally, as the sword struck the ground, a thunderous roar erupted from the Magic Department’s side.