Luna couldn't originally participate in the war.
Unlike Astina or Rie, she had no responsibilities to bear.
She was merely an apprentice wizard, the heir to a very small territory, and a student at the academy.
With such status, she couldn't take part in the war.
Moreover, the Magic Tower recognized her as a great talent.
If Luna were to be seriously injured in the war, it would be a significant loss for the Magic Tower.
So, from the Empire's standpoint, it wasn't beneficial either. So the Magic Tower prevented Luna from going to the battlefield.
A few days before the war started,
Franz, the Empire's head wizard, summoned Luna.
"…You called for me?"
"Luna, you look down."
"How could I not be when all my friends are fighting?"
Luna appeared unusually dispirited.
Part of the reason for her semi-imprisonment was the fear that she might flee to the battlefield.
Though confining her might seem excessive, she had repeatedly caused a commotion by asking to be sent to the battlefield, so everyone considered it a justified measure.
Tap tap.
Franz tapped his fingers on the desk, observing Luna, then spoke quietly.
"Do you want to go there that badly?"
"…?"
Franz sighed and handed her a piece of paper.
"This is…"
"A request for assistance from the Empire. They want us to supply equipment to the Northern Army."
Luna was puzzled by his statement.
"To supply that equipment, someone from the Magic Tower must go, right? Do you understand what I'm implying?"
Luna brightened at that.
"Can I, can I go?"
"What's so joyful about going to a battlefield…"
"I can protect my friends."
Luna smiled brightly.
Seeing her smile, Franz also smiled.
"Should I go right away then?"
"No, promise me one thing before you leave."
Franz's expression turned serious as he spoke.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})"Stay at the back at all times. I know your strength well. Your magic is meant to protect, not to kill.
So, absolutely, absolutely stay at the back!"
"…Understood."
Luna agreed, but she intended to assess the situation and go to the battlefield to assist Rudy.
However.
"Red alert!"
"…What? What's that?"
"An intruder seems to have breached the academy…. Luna, you should run…"
While Luna was addressing some faculty matters at the academy, Aryandor attacked.
Hearing this, Luna had a flash of insight.
'Did Franz predict this…!'
"Where are you going, Luna!"
"Heinz, please run away quickly! I have somewhere I need to be!"
Leaving the faculty member behind, Luna stood up and immediately started walking.
"I heard Yuni was at the academy…"
Luna intended to go help Yuni.
Since Yuni is the Student Council President, she wouldn't have run away immediately.
'Should I head to the Student Council Office first?'
While Luna was on her way,
Boom!
A loud noise echoed through the academy.
Luna reacted to the sound.
"That's…"
It was the main building where the Student Council Office was located.
Luna felt her heart sink.
And she ran.
Worried that Yuni might be there, she arrived at the building.
Upon reaching the floor with the Student Council Office, she heard a voice.
"Go ahead, try it."
It was Aryandor.
Luna widened her eyes and took out Levian's Spellbook from her bag.
"Stop right there!!!!!!"
She shouted to stop the opponent.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})Aryandor turned his head at Luna's voice.
Seeing Aryandor covered in blood made her realize others might have already been seriously harmed.
Luna cautiously spoke up.
"Am I too late? Or not?"
Luna said with a lack of confidence.
As various thoughts crossed her mind.
"Huh?"
"Oh! Yuni! Are you okay?"
Yuni appeared.
Seeing Yuni unharmed, Luna sighed in relief.
It seemed Yuni hadn't fought with Aryandor yet.
'If I had been a bit later, it could have been disastrous.'
But it's okay.
I wasn't too late.
Luna glared sharply at Aryandor.
"Stop bothering them, and fight me instead."
Luna said this and glanced behind Aryandor.
She saw a person wearing a hood.
The person was wearing a large robe, so their physique wasn't clear, but from their height and the faint outline of their body, they appeared to be female.
'Who is that person…?'
But there was no time to figure it out.
"Are you Luna Railer?"
Aryandor rushed towards Luna at a fast pace.
Luna infused mana into the spellbook.
"Barrier."
Ping─
The barrier clashed with the sword, and Aryandor's sword was blocked by Luna's barrier.
Aryandor furrowed his brows.
"Blocked?"
The magic Luna used was a standard barrier spell.
It usually wasn't the strongest.
Yet, it blocked Aryandor's sword.
Aryandor then looked at the spellbook in Luna's hand.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})Levian's Spellbook.
The spellbook he had created at the cost of his life.
"Royal swordsmanship."
Upon seeing the spellbook, Aryandor immediately enveloped his sword with sword energy.
'This was originally a spellbook I had given up on.'
Initially, he planned to use that spellbook, but after finding another method, he had given up on it.
Despite this, the spellbook in front of him wasn't something to be discarded lightly.
"Full Moon,"
'I'll snatch it first.'
Aryandor's sword cut through the surroundings in a circular motion, accompanied by a golden wave.
───!
The barrier and the sword clashed violently.
Waves spread around, causing a strong wind.
After the wind subsided, Aryandor looked at the barrier.
"Interesting, it still blocks?"
Aryandor was amazed that the barrier, uncracked by his attack, held up.
He had planned to pierce the barrier with his swordsmanship, but Luna's barrier didn't budge.
The spellbook could engrave magic circles and use them at will.
The barrier Luna created was the result of her research, the most fortified barrier she could make.
That's why it could withstand Aryandor's sword.
Although Luna could protect herself this way, staying passive wasn't the answer.
Aryandor turned his head, looking back.
"Do you think staying still like a turtle will work?"
Behind Aryandor were Yuni and Haruna.
"Uh…."
Luna flipped the pages of the spellbook and infused it with mana again.
"Grow!"
At Luna's shout, plants grew out of the building.
Giant vines rapidly approached Aryandor.
"Do you think this will work?"
Aryandor, seeing the vines, effortlessly swung his sword.
As Aryandor swung his sword,
Luna quickly ran towards Yuni.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Aryandor wasn't one to let that slip by.
He swung his sword at Luna, who was running towards him.
The sword aimed precisely at Luna's heart, speeding towards it to pierce…
"…?"
Surely, he had thrust the sword at Luna, but there was no contact.
Then, that form lightly passed by the sword towards Yuni.
"Illusion magic?"
Aryandor quickly turned his head.
Luna hadn't moved from her original spot.
It had only appeared like she moved due to the illusion.
By the time Aryandor was delayed by this twice,
Luna was preparing a spell.
"The guilty shall receive their deserved punishment."
Luna was filling the spellbook with mana.
The movement of mana caused her hair to flutter.
Aryandor found this ridiculous.
'Not just surviving… she intends to win?'
The professors in front of the academy were only trying to hold out, not thinking of winning.
But here was this girl, not even graduated from the academy, believing she could beat him.
"Divine Punishment!"
Then, a huge lightning bolt fell from the sky.
──!
The lightning bolt that pierced through the building struck Aryandor squarely.
"Kuh! Time Back."
Aryandor immediately used time magic.
He was unharmed and had moved behind Luna.
"But to think you only plan to win against me..."
Aryandor said this as he attempted to swing his sword at Luna.
However, he couldn't move his sword.
It was because Luna's magic had been activated instantly.
"…!"
Aryandor's eyes widened.
He wasn't using magic at that moment.
This meant he had been lured here after Luna had already prepared her magic.
Aryandor muttered in a low voice.
"Unbelievable…"
Luna smirked and looked behind her.
In her hand was a square box.
This box was a magical device used in past individual assessment practices.
It was a device designed to focus Astina's telekinesis magic, specifically gravity magic, to a single point.
"I already know your abilities."
Luna had anticipated this.
She expected Aryandor to use time magic after being hit by her magic.
And that he would definitely move to the best position to kill her.
That's why she had set the coordinates of the magical device to behind her and used the magic as soon as Aryandor moved.
Aryandor was pressed down by the force and collapsed on the spot.
"Time... Kuh!"
He tried to use time magic, but his body was pressed down.
It was a pressure he had never felt from Astina or Cromwell.
He knew there was a difference in power between using magic normally and using magic with magic circles, but it was surprising to experience pressure strong enough to prevent the use of magic.
Luna flipped the page of the spellbook again and infused it with mana.
As she was about to use magic again.
"Luna senior! It's dangerous!"
"Eh?"
The person behind Aryandor.
The person wearing the hood, holding a dagger, charged at Luna.
Yuni noticed and immediately used magic.
"Lightning Chain!"
Strong electricity engulfed the person in the hood.
The person was struck by the electricity and flung away.
"Ah."
As the person was sent flying by the magic, the hood came off.
Yuni, Luna, and Haruna all recognized the person's face.
It was Aryandor's sister, known to be a key figure, so they had all seen her face at least once.
"…Beatrice?"
The person's face was that of Saint Beatrice.
"Kuh…!"
At that moment, Aryandor moved.
He took advantage of the moment Luna was distracted.
"Quick Blade."
He moved quickly and escaped from the spot where Luna had set the magic.
Luna widened her eyes at this.
"Finger of the Demon!"
She used the spellbook to cast magic as quickly as possible.
"It's useless."
Aryandor said, seeing the black pillars rising towards him.
"Time Back."
Luna reacted quickly.
If he reverses time...!
She saw Yuni and Haruna behind her.
These two were in danger.
But to cast a barrier...
Crash!
"…?"
A sound came from Aryandor's direction.
Aryandor, struck by the black pillars Luna had summoned, rolled back and fell.
"Huh???"
He had definitely used time magic.
Yet, he neither moved locations nor healed his body, and simply rolled away, hit by Luna's attack.
"Did I make a mistake?"
It was unlikely for Aryandor to err, but there was no other reason he couldn't use time magic unless he made a mistake.
Luna looked on, puzzled.
Tap.
As she watched Aryandor, a warm sensation hovered over Luna's head.
"How can you get distracted during battle? No matter what happens, you must focus on your opponent."
"…Ah."
Luna turned around.
And she saw the face of the person behind her.
"Ugh…."
"Don't worry. You can be distracted now."
What caught Luna's eyes was.
"I'm here now."
The smiling face of Rudy.
