The Sparring Match Test (2)

“Meeoooowww.”

Ma Hana confidently stepped onto the training ground, twisting her body here and there to loosen her tense muscles.

<Sparring Test> was a test based on common sparring rules.

In other words, it was just like what Cha Yeo-ju asked us to do.

Hitting the same area repeatedly, targeting vital points, attacks with clear intent to kill, attacking a surrendering opponent, and fake attacks using surrender as a pretext were all prohibited.

“Meow, meow!”

Ma Hana stretched cutely.

The equipment she was wearing was not her usual shield and armor, but a training shield strapped to her back.

It was also one of the rules to spar with the equipment provided by the <Academy>.

Soon, Professor Sarang-mi mentioned a cadet with the rather unique name of Beok Geun-yeok.

Ma Hana initially thought it was an unusual name, but seeing the woman who appeared next, she felt it couldn’t be more fitting.

At least 180 cm tall, she appeared to be a towering figure.
A woman with bold features walked confidently, her muscles seemingly ready to burst.

Though she had the intimidating presence of a warrior, surprisingly, her attire was that of a typical <Mage>.

The thick training staff in her hand looked as light as a dumbbell.

The mid-level muscular first-year in the Magic Department—Abs Muscles—had arrived.

The murmurs around them were filled with disbelief.

“Is she really a woman…?”

But Ma Hana wasn’t particularly shocked.

‘Meow~’

She had seen a woman with even more muscles a long time ago.

Wasn’t her name something like Pyo Dok-ju?

Anyway, she was once a member of the now-defunct <Class Hunters>.

The woman undoubtedly had more muscles.

‘This much is nothing…’

To Ma Hana, she just looked ordinary.

Meanwhile, the muscular opponent stared at Ma Hana.

She chuckled and sneered at the short, furry woman’s gaze at waist level.

“Hey, little lady. If you don’t want to get hurt, surrender now. My [Fireball] hurts, you know?”
“Meow! Nice to meet you!”

Ma Hana smiled brightly despite the friendly warning.

The muscular opponent was slightly annoyed, but soon closed her mouth at the professor’s words.

“Everyone’s here~”

Professor Sarang-mi continued in a gentle tone.

With a gesture, a dense <Barrier> enveloped the training ground.

“Then let’s start the spar~”

“Hoo!”

The muscular opponent borrowed the power of her muscles(?) and shouted a powerful spirit.

Magic formulas flowed through her body as she thought.

This soon summoned hot heat…?

“Meow! An opening!”
“What?!”

Beok Geun-yeok was startled.

Even though there was a certain distance, Ma Hana closed it in an instant.

This was due to the ability coursing through her legs.

It was the combination of [Mighty Agility] and the recently increased [Speed] stat, though Abs Muscles had no way of knowing this.

“[Bash Shield]!”
“Argh!”

Bang!

Beok Geun-yeok’s body was pushed back by the strong impact to the abdomen.

“…This is insane.”
“Meow!”

It was almost a disaster.

If the force had been slightly stronger, she would have fainted and lost.

Cold sweat trickled down Beok Geun-yeok’s forehead.
She realized painfully from the recent strike.
That the stout, furry opponent in front of her was no ordinary foe.

“…Ugh!”

Though it hurt Beok Geun-yeok’s pride to have to go all out, she tried hard to ignore this fact.

She couldn’t lose to such an inexperienced rookie.

Beok Geun-yeok crafted a spell even faster than before.

Her developed muscles twitched ever so slightly.

A Rare grade skill, [Muscle Melody].

It was a high-efficiency buff that increased all action speeds through the subtle tremors of muscles.

This also affected her chanting speed.

As she rapidly recited her spell, she never let her guard down against Ma Hana.

Thanks to getting hit once, she was well aware of how fast and powerful the opponent’s teeth were.

But she had to understand one thing.

‘That happened because I was careless!’

The advantage of Beok Geun-yeok was that while being a <Mage>, she possessed a high [Combat] level.

Naturally, she also had various close-combat <Derivative Skills>.

To cover the weakness of a <Mage> in close combat, she trained herself to compensate with the power of muscles that were magic in name, but pure physics in reality.

A true hybrid type.

She hadn’t enrolled in the prestigious academy, 《Gonis Hunter Academy》, for nothing.

However, unfortunately, such Beok Geun-yeok’s calculations were immediately rendered useless by Ma Hana’s following <Skill>.

“Meeoow! [Unstoppable Shout]!”
“…?!”

The power of provocation spread from Ma Hana’s center.

With a Rare-grade wide-area taunt, Abs Muscles unwittingly lowered her hands, staggering forward.

And the follow-up ability that flowed seamlessly from it drained her strength.

“Meow! [Playful Cat]!”

A cat-shaped aura spread from Ma Hana’s back.

Meeooow!

Annoyingly, she placed her hand on the top of her head with a thud!

The problem was, it didn’t just end at being annoying.

Beok Geun-yeok was shocked by the 30% decrease in <Attack Power>.

“Wh-what kind of ridiculous debuff is this?!”

“Meow!”

In fact, if it had been Ma Hana from a few months ago, she wouldn’t have handled the match so easily.

Her potential had been unlocked after meeting Choi Mari.

She had gained rapid stat growth thanks to the blessing she received as repayment from her benefactor, Yu Seha.

Lastly, her rank had risen by defeating the powerful opponent known as <Sea Dragon>, making any comparison to her past self impossible.

This ultimately led to Beok Geun-yeok’s downfall.

“Kuh!”

About five seconds.

Being a <Mage> with high [Mental] stats, Beok Geun-yeok quickly dispelled the provocation, but it was already too late.

Whoosh!

“…F-fire?!”

Even before she could launch her much-boasted [Fireball], a fiercer blaze had already ignited.

Ma Hana’s shield was engulfed in flames. It was the manifestation of [Burning Flames], a power she had inherited from Yu Seha.

Here, her trademark move, the attack she was most confident in, exploded once more.

“Meow! [Push Shield]!”
“Keuk!”

The shockwave wrapped in fire directly hit Beok Geun-yeok.

Beok Geun-yeok, eyes turned over, rolled out of the arena.

Sarang-mi, watching, leisurely raised her hand to announce the result.

“Match over~ Cadet Ma Hana wins~”
“Meoow, thank you.”

Sounds of astonished murmurs filled the surroundings.

Regardless, Ma Hana smiled brightly, looking at Yu Seha shouting “Meowi!” from the arena.

“Next~ Participant number 81~ Cadet Moon Bora~ Please come out.”

“It’s my turn.”

Moon Bora, sitting next to Sarang-mi, rose gracefully at her call.

She elegantly swept her long, flowing hair aside.

“I’ll be back.”
“Well… take it easy, okay?”

I uttered to her, just in case.

Moon Bora, looking at me curiously, soon gave a bright smile like a blooming flower.

I meant for her to go easy on them…

Yet, the scene that soon unfolded was nothing short of brutal.

Crack!!!

In the center of the training ground.
An icy chill, sharp enough to freeze on contact, rose like an iceberg.

It was the manifestation of [Icicle], unbelievably powerful considering it had only been a few weeks.

“What? Seha, was Bora always this strong?”
“What’s going on, Moon Bora? Did you eat some magical elixir recently? This isn’t ordinary power.”
“…Hmm.”

The two were rightfully astounded by this unbelievable display.

Moon Bora’s [Icicle] had its output increased by approximately 30%.

What was impressive here was the structure of the spell that pervaded the magic.

‘Fewer.’

The structure of the spell required for magic manifestation was actually fewer than before.

Normally, if made that roughly, it would self-destruct, or the magic wouldn’t activate…

Moon Bora compensated for the lack by cramming in a large amount of mana.

‘A method possible due to its instantaneous explosiveness.’

It resembled the method commonly called Qi Building, where mana would be gathered internally and explosively ignited when needed to gain power.

It was similar to how I wield the [Overlord Sword Technique] to unleash power.

This was a structure frequently used by <Martial Artists>, not <Mages>.

It was unmistakable evidence that she was actively following the teachings of <Snow Ice Lady> Cheon Mira.

“Ni-ni-nin… I-I surrender…”

The masked woman trapped in ice wore a distressed expression.
Moon Bora’s opponent was a female student from the <Assassin> class, specifically the <Ninja> subclass.
Despite the favorable matchup, unfortunately, Moon Bora’s firepower was strong enough to overwhelm even the type advantage.

“Meow, as expected, Bora is amazing!”
“……”
“Meow? Seha?”
“Hmm? Uh-huh…”

I gently patted the top of Meowi’s head, who looked puzzled.

“Meow~” Meowi purred with a cat-like sound.

While smiling at her, my gaze was fixed on Moon Bora, who was catching her breath in the sparring arena.

“…Haa.”

A dense, visible cold mist escaped from Moon Bora’s lips.

It was a sight I had often seen after she uses <Ice> magic… but I felt an inexplicable unease.

‘…This feeling is strange.’

As if, how should I put it…?

It felt like she was forcing herself to exert energy.

As evidence, the tips of Moon Bora’s fingers were slightly frozen, tinged with a blue hue.

It was proof that she had suffered internal injuries from using her ability.

‘…Could it be that the ability doesn’t suit her?’

There was no doubt that [Snow Ice Lady] Cheon Mira was the key figure leading Moon Bora’s [Awakening].

And in GAL, Moon Bora had fully inherited her teachings, becoming the second Snow Ice Lady known for her overwhelming power.

Like Ju Na-young, I had been one of her Supervisors, overseeing her entire growth.

In fact, I knew all the ways she would ultimately reach her power, and thus, without the need for trial and error, I recommended the best mentor for Moon Bora.

That was [Snow Ice Lady] Cheon Mira.

However, the current situation was something even I was unfamiliar with.

‘…Did Cheon Mira pass on something more than just an ordinary ability?’

Perhaps she taught something akin to her own [Poison Martial Arts].

Cheon Mira occasionally passed down extremely advanced techniques to those she recognized for their talent and determination.

If that was the case, Moon Bora was in for a long struggle.

‘Of course, if she overcomes it, her growth potential will skyrocket…’

In the worst case, some part of her body might get damaged.

As I was lost in various thoughts, my contemplation was interrupted by a voice soon heard.

“Next~ Participant number 100~”

Cadet Yu Seha~
Please come out~

“Meow! It’s Seha’s turn!”
“Yong-aah! Go and come back!”

I smiled warmly and ruffled the crowns of the two who were cheering me on simultaneously.

‘Yes, for now…’

I should finish the <Sparring Test> first and then slowly ask about it.