Leon was feeling especially good before the exhibition match.

"Huu... Huu..."

Taking deep and steady breaths, he stretched his body in the corridor that led to the main arena grounds.

Swoosh, swoosh

Casually swinging his sword, he could feel that he was in top-notch conditions.

His mind was clear.

'.....I've more or less recovered from the injuries that I sustained from the fight with Julien.'

Most of them had been superficial, but he had also fractured his ribs in his fight. That took a little longer to heal.

"Alright."

Leon jumped up lightly in the corridor.

By his side, he could see a small projection that showed him what was going on in the middle of the arena.

Currently, Evelyn's name was called up.

The gates on her side opened and she entered.

"....."

Taking a look at her, Leon could see the serious look on her face. They had already talked beforehand, and thus he knew just how seriously she was taking this fight.

".....Ha."

Thinking about the conversation, Leon laughed.

She had been very serious in that conversation. Something about him not going easy on her just because they knew each other and that she was going to go all out against him.

'Not like I didn't plan on that.'

Swoosh, swoosh

Swinging his sword again and loosening his joints, he stretched his shoulders.

Then,

On our right side, please welcome Leon Rowan Ellert!

His name was called up.

"I guess I've got to take this fight seriously too."

He had already learned his lesson before.

There was no way he was going to take it easy on Evelyn. He wasn't going to give her any breathing room.

"Wooooo"

The roar of the crowd entered his ears the moment he passed by the tunnel and entered the arena grounds.

Having been there for the mid-terms, he was already used to such an atmosphere. Rather, he thrived in it.

Basking in the cheers of the crowd, he eventually stopped.

Evelyn stood on the opposite end. With a grim look, the mana around her body started to visibly move.

At any second, Leon felt like she could unleash a spell against him.

Contestants, please get into positions.

The announcer's voice echoed and Leon pressed his hand against the hilt of his sword. At the same time, he got into the optimal position.

His calfs tensed and silence reigned over the surroundings.

At this moment, Evelyn was the only person that was standing before him.

And then,

Start!

The match began.

Kracka! Kracka!

The first one to move was Evelyn who summoned two spells in rapid succession. She was so fast that Leon didn't even have time to move.

Before he knew it, the spells were already upon him.

"...."

He didn't panic.

Drawing his sword, the lightning bolts coiled around his sword, which he then directed towards the ground.

Tzzzz~

Two scorch marks appeared on the floor.

Although they didn't look like much, Leon knew that if he had been hit by them, he wouldn't have been able to keep himself from remaining standing.

Not that it mattered since he had handled it already.

Bang!

Like a spring, Leon released all the tension within his calves and his body lunged forward.

Within seconds, he was already upon her.

"....Ehp!"

Evelyn let out a yelp of surprise.

Taking a look at the flustered look on his face, Leon cleaved down from above.

Swoosh!

Just narrowly, she was able to avoid his attack.

Not that it mattered.

Swoosh, swoosh!

Leon didn't plan on leaving any breathing room for Evelyn.

Kracka! Kracka!

Despite her best attempts at trying to fight back, Leon was relentless. Whenever she tried to gain some distance, he'd always shorten it and swing his sword at her.

It had to be said.

Evelyn was really good and agile.

Despite being so relentless in his attacks, she was still able to dodge most of his attacks. For a mage, she knew how to move her body well.

For the ones that she wasn't able to avoid, she'd use her hands which were covered in miniature bolts of lightning.

Tzzzz~

Each time his sword came into contact with her hand, it'd sizzle, leaving scorch marks on it.

Swoosh!

Leon didn't mind it and continued to fight.

He didn't know how much time had passed. He had long lost count.

Not that it mattered.

Currently, he only had one goal.

That was,

Defeat Evelyn.

Swoosh!

"....Ukh!"

An opening finally revealed itself. Stumbling back, Evelyn's left side was left wide open for Leon to exploit.

He had just taken a step forward when,

His left leg suddenly felt heavy.

"....!"

It completely shattered his momentum, and Evelyn was able to gain some distance.

"....."

Leon stood in silence for a moment.

'What the hell was that...'

Gritting his teeth, Leon looked at Evelyn and pursued.

Swoosh!

His sword once again came cleaving down on her.

He had thought she'd dodge the attack, but rather, she didn't. With bolts of lightning gathering around the palm of her hand, she reached out to touch his sword.

A glow formed on Leon's sword the moment she did that.

The two sides were just about to make contact when,

Ba.... Thump! Ba.... Thump!

Leon felt the beat of his heart in his head and he pressed his foot against the ground, pushing himself back in the process and distancing himself from Evelyn who cleaved at the air.

"...."

Standing on the opposite end, Leon's mouth opened but no words came out.

"Haa... Haa..."

Suddenly, he felt his breath grow heavy.

It was almost as though he was tired.

.....And yet, he knew that was impossible.

How could he get tired from this much?

"What's going on?"

"Why did he move back?"

He could also hear the voices of confusion coming from the crowd. Unfortunately, he had no time to think about them.

'Something's wrong.'

There was something clearly wrong with him.

He just didn't know what it was.

Kracka! Kracka!

Two bolts of lightning shot in his direction. Leon's pupils dilated the moment he caught a glimpse of them, and just as he prepared to raise his sword to block them, he found himself unable to.

"Uh?"

His hands.

They were both shaking.

"What theUkh!"

The lighting hit him squarely in the chest and he skidded back several meters back.

"Ukh."

His entire body started to spasm as a result of her attack.

The pain was almost unbearable.

Fortunately, it didn't last for long and he was able to recover from it.

"Haaa... Haaa...!"

Looking up, he could see Evelyn gathering up another spell at a rapid speed, and instead of lunging at her, he distanced himself from her.

"What are you doing!?"

"What's going on!?"

"Why are you running away...!?"

The insults of the crowd started to reach him from above.

"I..."

Leon didn't know how to react.

He agreed with them.

And yet,

Currently, his body wasn't listening to him.

"W-what..."

Staring at Evelyn, he suddenly felt her image overlap with another and his entire body shuddered.

He stood tall in the middle of the arena. Where Evelyn once had been.

With two hazel eyes looking down on him, he stared at him indifferently.

Just standing before him felt suffocating.

"Huuu... huu... W-why?"

Why was he here?

He unknowingly took a step back.

Something sinister seemed to have taken control of his mind. It made it hard for him to think clearly.

Unknowingly, his eyes started to dart around the space.

Almost in desperation.

But why...?

Kracka!

Two bolts of lightning headed his way.

Leon tried his best to avoid the attacks, but his mind wasn't there. He could hardly think properly, and he pathetically jumped to the side, losing hold of the sword.

Clank, clank

Bouncing against the ground, the sword eventually stooped.

"Ah, t-this..."

Leon tried to get to his feet, but he never had the chance.

Evelyn had appeared before him.

She had a strange look on her face. Still, reaching out with her hand, she pressed her hand against his back, and Leon screamed.

"Akh...!"

His entire body trembled and he eventually fell flat on the ground.

Winner of the duel, Evelyn Jannet Verlyce.

The winner was announced, and the entire arena fell deathly silent.

To the shock of everyone present.

He had lost.

***

"Fear?"

I turned to look at Delilah. It wasn't as though I didn't understand what her words implied, it was more like I just couldn't understand how it was possible.

A couple of days had passed since we had our fight.

How was it possible that he was still influenced by it? And to the point where he'd lose?

".....Not many can see it, but I can."

Delilah started to speak while staring at Leon who was getting helped by Evelyn who looked just as confused as everyone around.

She seemed to be saying something to him.

Unfortunately, we couldn't hear exactly what the two were saying.

"At one point, he started to breathe heavier, his face turned pale, and his pupils dilated. That's a clear indication of fear. Since Evelyn is not an Emotive mage, there's only one possible explanation."

Delilah looked at me.

She didn't need to say anything else but I understood.

"This..."

I sat back down in my seat and stared at my hands.

In all honesty, I didn't know how to feel.

I didn't feel bad about Leon losing. It shouldn't really affect him too. He was clearly strong, and while he might encounter some mockery, that was all there was to it.

He also didn't really need to care about the Guilds since he was my knight.

What I was surprised about was the extent to which my emotive magic had affected him.

'....Is this the true power of Emotive Magic?'

I had always been hesitant to use such power.

The main reason for this was that I was clearly not good enough at it.

'No, it's not just that.'

I also didn't know how to properly utilize it.

My main focus had been elsewhere and I had somewhat neglected it.

The reason why Leon was in this state was because of the first leaf which was a concentration of the emotion that I had gone through.

Still, at this very moment, I finally had a better idea of the extent to which Emotive Magic could affect someone.

While I wasn't there yet, I knew that I would be able to reach a similar level to what was currently being displayed.

"It's a pity."

Delilah murmured from the side

When I turned to look at her, she had already stood up from the seat. The same was true for the other cadets. Since the match had ended there was nothing else to see.

Passing by me, Delilah quietly said,

"....I also want to be good at Emotive Magic."