LHAHS Chapter 553
"Then we will begin the second-year Combat Studies class Bastera match."
The professor in charge of Combat Studies, Riphen, placed the specialized Bastera ball in the center of the field. To seize the first attack, the students had to claim that ball.
"One, two. One, two." Chelsea bent and straightened her knees, warming up her body.
She was the fastest person on her team.
On their side, it's Duran. And Eliana will likely be the one supporting him.
She watched the fastest members of the opposing team with wary eyes.
Duran Moira, the master of lightning aura.
Excluding Leo, he vied for first place in speed among his classmates alongside Chelsea and Eliza.
In Eliza's case, using her spirit beast would make her an easy target, so she was excluded from the scramble for the first attack.
Anyway, I have to get the ball faster than Duran. Get it quickly and…
Chelsea's eyes darted around before fixing onto Eliana.
I'm going to throw it right in Eliana's face.
Chelsea, wearing the expression of a fierce beast, recalled Eliana's earlier words.
But surely the class president isn't planning to stay out overnight too, right?
Ever since hearing that Leo had skipped class for a date with Elena, it had been constantly bothering her.
Of course, I heard the story that it was the condition for Elena Zeron accepting the Vice President position.
Still, bothersome things were bothersome. It reminded her of when she watched the noble young ladies of the Lordren Empire send love letters to Abad day after day when she was younger.
No, it bothers me even more than back then!
Leo being popular was nothing new since first year, but this time, for some reason, it bothered her immensely.
She had been trying hard not to pay attention, but still, Eliana had succeeded brilliantly in provoking her.
Only because she's annoying. Just one hit, Smack! Just one!
Chelsea ground her teeth fiercely.
Professor Riphen put the whistle to his lips.
Seeing that, Chelsea tensed muscles all over her body.
TWEET! FWOOSH!
Kicking up a massive gust of wind, Chelsea sprinted towards the ball.
CRACKLE CRACKLE!
Duran also shot towards the ball, emitting flashes of lightning.
Just as the two, neck and neck in speed, were about to reach for the ball.
FLASH!
Along with a bright light, someone snatched the ball away.
Both Chelsea and Duran stared wide-eyed at the person who had snatched the ball.
Even the culprit who had gotten the ball first, Eliana, looked back and forth between the ball and the other two with a "Huh?" expression.
"Why are you guys so slow?"
TWITCH! TWICH!
Eliana, without any malice, succeeded once again in provoking not only Chelsea but also her own teammate Duran.
"What? Did Eliana just grab the ball before Chelsea and Duran?"
"Eliana's fast, sure, but she was no match for Chelsea and Duran, right?"
Chelsea and Duran's speed was well-established not just among second-years but throughout all of Lumene. For Eliana to overwhelm those two with speed, the entire second year couldn't help but fall into confusion.
"Maybe Chelsea and Duran weren't running seriously?"
"Those incarnations of competitiveness? No way!"
"They've been competing for the title of fastest in our year since first year."
"Yeah, they're rivals who grind their teeth determined not to lose to each other. They wouldn't possibly go easy, would they?"
The murmuring second-years soon began to reach a conclusion.
"Hey, when was the last all-year speed race?"
"Mid-first semester."
"Hasn't Eliana been practicing something like acceleration magic recently?"
"If that's the case…"
Everyone stared at Eliana with surprised eyes.
"You mean Eliana got faster than those two in the meantime?"
"So that's it!" Eliana grinned triumphantly, looking thoroughly pleased with herself. "The results of the new magic I started learning a while ago are showing now!"
"Must be because of Lady Luna's magic. She's gotten incredibly fast."
"Hmph. Indeed. Does this mean she's become slightly useful?"
"Hohohohohoho!" Hearing their conversation, Eliana covered her mouth and burst out laughing. "The era of the Lightspeed Swift Sword, Lady Eliana, has arrived!"
"Lame…" Chelsea narrowed her eyes.
Excited, Eliana pointed dramatically towards Chelsea and Duran. "So this means you two are slowpokes compared to me now? Hohoho!"
"……"
"……"
Chelsea and Duran glared at Eliana with terrifying eyes.
Carl clicked his tongue. She's completely ecstatic, unaware she might get killed acting like that.
"This means Eliza is slower than me too!" Eliana exclaimed.
FWIP!
Eliza, veins popping on her forehead, pulled her whip taut. "Now I understand your words. I want to go beat her up right now."
She looked ready to charge at Eliana at any moment.
"Hey hey hey. Restrain yourself. Protect the formation," Carl said, breaking out in a cold sweat.
Chelsea lunged at Eliana. "Gimme the ball!"
"No way! With such slow movements, you can't catch m…"
CRACKLE CRACKLE!
"Hand over the ball! Eliana Raden!"
"W-Wait! We're on the same team… Kyaaaaaaaaah?!" Eliana fled, terrified, upon seeing Duran lunging at her with terrifying force.
"Why are you running away! Hurry up and give me the ball!"
"You're attacking like you're going to beat me to death!" Eliana screamed.
"Those idiots, what are they doing right now?" Celia frowned, using aura steps to move towards Eliana. "Eliana! Pass!"
"Ah, okay! Pass!"
"I don't think so?"
"Ah?!"
Chen Xia, who had approached right under Eliana's nose before she knew it, smiled softly. They were close enough for their breaths to mingle.
"Xia, how did you!"
"No matter how fast you are, if I read your movements, I can predict your path. Hup!"
Smiling sweetly, Chen Xia swung her foot.
WHAM!
"Ack! The ball?"
Chen Xia performed an acrobatic feat, placing a hand on the crown of Eliana's head and pushing up into a handstand. Then, with a fluid movement, she kicked the ball from Eliana's hand.
However, the ball didn't leave Chen Xia's foot, as if glued there.
CRACKLE! FWOOSH!
"Eek!"
As Chelsea and Duran closed the distance, just as Eliana reached out to snatch the ball from Chen Xia, Chen Xia pressed down on Eliana's head as if pushing, using the rebound to create distance between them.
WHAM!
And before it could reach Duran's hand, she kicked the ball high into the air with all her might.
THUMP!
At that moment, Eiran caught the ball in mid-air.
"Walden!" Abad shouted towards the goalkeeper.
Walden stirred his spiritual energy, and simultaneously, Eiran threw the ball, imbuing it with tremendous power.
"Whoa?!"
The ball shot straight down towards Eliana, who screamed and threw herself aside.
KA-BOOM! KR-R-R-RUMBLE!
The ball dug into the ground, creating a huge pit.
Eliana, having narrowly avoided the ball, gaped her mouth open and shut. "Why'd you do that! You should have aimed for the goal!"
Tade shouted urgently, "S-Sorry! I didn't even realize… I just thought I should send Miss Eliana flying…!"
"S-Send me flying?!"
"It's a good tactic, since Walden is firmly guarding the goal," Chen Xia said with a gentle smile after digging out the ball stuck in the pit. "It's difficult to break through Walden and score a goal, so I think it's better to go with a strategy of reducing the opponent's strength first."
"Yes, yes! That's right! That was the strategy! It definitely wasn't because Miss Eliana was annoying or anything!" Eiran clenched her fist tightly, then smiled brightly. "So, Miss Eliana. Prepare yourself."
Her face was smiling, but for some reason, one could feel goosebumps rising.
Watching this, the students in the spectator seats shivered.
"S-Scary."
"I thought only Lunia El Lunda was scary, but Eiran is terrifying too, isn't she?"
Afterwards, it was Chelsea's team that continuously held the offensive initiative, while Chelsea, Chen Xia, and Eiran focused on Eliana as their target.
Eliana's movements, using acceleration to narrowly dodge attacks, bordered on the divine. Most importantly, for some reason, her movements continuously provoked the three.
"She's really good at dodging," Carl let out a dry laugh.
Tade approached Carl. "Carl! Will this be okay? Offense isn't our specialty, right? If we get caught up in Eliana's plan like this and lose the ball, it'll be big trouble!"
"Doesn't look much like a plan, does it?"
"That's true."
Carl and Tade shook their heads watching Eliana, who was busy running away screaming, "Help! Save me!"
"Well, it's certainly advantageous for our team to defend."
"Right? If we concede the first point like this, it'll get difficult!"
"Yeah. But it won't be easy for them either."
"What?"
"Why? Getting smacked with a shield hurts like hell, doesn't it?"
Carl grinned widely. "If those three run wild like that, the other side will be too busy defending to turn to offense. And we have the best goalkeeper, right?"
Carl gave a thumbs-up towards the rear.
Chloe smiled softly. "Carl, I'll go to the front line too."
"Hold back at times like this! Seriously!"
FWOOSH!
"Stop the idle chatter." Eliza, who had been providing support from the air riding a Wind Wyvern, approached. "Possession of the ball has changed."
Celia, having succeeded in snatching the ball before they knew it, was swinging the ball in her hand while generating an aura of flame.
Seeing that, Chloe stirred her mana.
CRACKLE…
Ice World activated around the goal area.
CRUNCH!
But it was dispelled using elemental magic as Earth elementals covered the ice.
"…!" Chloe looked at Walden coldly.
"Chloe, will you be okay?"
"No problem."
"Tade! Help Chloe! Eliza, keep Abad in check from the air!"
"Got it!"
"Hmph! Don't order me around."
Tade headed to the very rear, and Eliza flew into the air after Abad.
Celia's attack power is fatal enough to break through Chloe's defense in one go.
Specialized in offense as she was, Celia's attack was capable of turning the game around in a single blow.
We absolutely must not hand the ball over to the opposing team.
Being specialized in defense also meant their side was superior at keeping possession of the ball.
In reality, snatching the ball from Chelsea, Chen Xia, and Eiran, the pillars of their offense, was not easy.
And if possible, we need to score the first point too!
Just because our side specializes in defense doesn't mean we can't attack, and likewise, if the opponents commit fully to defense, it will be hard for us to break through too. If we get hit by a counterattack then, it'll be even more troublesome. Anyway, blocking their attack is the priority for now.
Carl narrowed his eyes.
Using Eliana for provocation, no matter how I look at it, wasn't Celia's, Abad's, or Duran's idea.
All three were from prestigious families among the prestigious. Because of that, although smart, they were weak at these kinds of surprise tactics.
Well, they didn't need surprise tactics. The three had the ability to break through everything head-on.
…Was it Walden?
Carl's gaze shifted to Walden positioned at the rear.
The man who boasted the largest physique among the second-years, and frequently brought opponents to their knees with overwhelming power.
Because of that, most students thought of Walden as the silent martial combat type, but…
He's a total sly fox too. That guy.
Carl clicked his tongue as he observed the movements of allies and enemies.
If Leo wasn't around, that guy would have been the strongest in our year.
Walden's brains, not just his strength, were not to be underestimated.
First, I need to read the flow of battle. Read it and find an opening…
"Carl!" Tade yelled urgently.
"Huh?" Instantly, Carl realized the ball Celia had thrown was right in front of his face.
What? They waste one attack right to target me first?
Carl was utterly confused.
Why?
KR-R-R-RUMBLE—!
Watching the opposing formation swept by flames, Walden muttered, "Checkmate, Carl Thomas."