Kevin Aldeherm had always been the best.
The word "genius" that he'd heard since birth grew tiresome once childhood passed.
He'd lost all interest in the syrupy flattery from those around him.
Because everyone loved him, he no longer craved love.
"Maybe... I'm chosen or something?"
The legendary hero who defeated the Demon King was said to have been a prodigy with the sword from childhood.
Kevin was the same. From the moment he first picked up a sword, he knew he was different from the others.
Kevin thought to himself.
Maybe he would be the next hero.
It was a truly delightful notion...
It was a delusion.
The first evaluation he received after entering the academy.
It was a duel within the Knight Department, overseen by Professor Cecil.
Kevin placed third.
Third place.
There were two people above him. And the gap between him and second place was considerable.
Kevin despaired. The talent he thought marked him as chosen was merely mediocre.
He couldn't accept it.
Unable to accept it, he trained even harder.
He blamed laziness as the cause and grew stronger as a result.
And he lost.
"Ah... This is annoying. Can't you just stop already? This is the third time I've humored you."
This time, he was certain he'd win. That certainty repeated three times... and was overturned each time.
Kevin had no choice but to admit it.
That he wasn't chosen.
That it had all been a foolish delusion.
That admission was the problem.
Acknowledging his own ignorance and weakness led to a sharp drop in his self-esteem. As a result, Kevin—who had always suffered from narcissism—began to twist in a profoundly warped direction.
All those weaker than me are trash.
The classic strong prey on the weak mentality. He became a petty, pathetic human being.
He told himself he couldn't endure otherwise, crafting excuses only he would ever care about.
That's when one particular guy caught his eye.
A loser from the Magic Engineering Department. Perfect prey.
His self-esteem was already a bottomless pit, but he still sought meaningless satisfaction.
He humiliated the man in front of everyone.
"Hey, isn't that guy from Magic Engineering?"
"He looks like the type who'd tinker with machines. Right?"
"The school's a joke. Why even include those losers in the duel exam?"
He hurled venomous insults at the man, but got no response in return.
He felt victory. Ecstasy. Fulfillment.
He smirked vilely to elevate himself and pointed cruelly to demean others.
And yet, Kevin rationalized it again.
"Anyone who takes contempt lying down without fighting back might as well be trash."
He was just making a fair point.
It was that guy's fault for not getting angry.
"Haha!"
Kevin laughed like that.
His antics continued even in the waiting room, souring the atmosphere until his turn was called.
He was first.
"Huh?"
He stepped onto the arena... No, the stage. He decided to think of it as a stage.
His opponent was insignificant, after all.
"You're that guy from before?"
The man who had endured his contempt without a word.
Kevin was certain of victory.
"Huh?"
The man recognized him too.
"That's the voice from back then."
At that moment, the man grinned.
"Perfect timing."
Kevin felt an odd sensation.
Something indescribable, but deeply uncomfortable.
He'd soon learn what it was.
Why?
"No need for apologies, then."
...Why the anxiety?
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Let's say you have a presentation assignment.
You have three options.
1. Go first.
2. Go in the middle.
3. Go last.
What would you pick?
I'd choose 2. Most people probably would too.
But what if the professor assigns the order?
In the worst case, you might end up first.
That's what happened now.
"At least it's you as my opponent. Lucky me."
⚙ ANNOUNCEMENT ⚙First match! Knight Department's Kevin Aldeherm versus Magic Engineering's Rain Ortiz!
The pressure of going first is indescribable.
Everyone's focused because it's the start, so no mistakes are tolerated.
But.
What if you'd gritted your teeth and prepared specifically for this one presentation?
Things change a bit.
The pressure remains, and going first still sucks.
But with the thrill of "going public" added in, your feelings shift dramatically.
"...What are you doing?"
"Taking out my gear. Can't you tell?"
I set my bag down and pulled out my equipment one by one.
In typical duel assignments, you're limited to one piece of gear per person. But Magic Engineering gets a pass.
As long as you made it yourself, you can bring multiple items.
That's the only way to balance things.
"All set."
⚙ ANNOUNCEMENT ⚙Both sides seem ready! Rain Ortiz has some mysterious gear, but... whatever!
The gear I'd prepared was three items.
A magic sword optimized for mana output, a subspace pouch that could hold anything. And...
⚙ ANNOUNCEMENT ⚙First match—begins now!
The big, beautiful Magic Engineering Double-Barrel Shotgun.
I fired both barrels the instant the match started.
The recoil wasn't bad. Just enough to lift the muzzle a bit?
I'd tuned it that way myself.
Bang! Boom!
Of course, the rounds were non-lethal.
"Gahhk!!"
Still, it'd hurt like hell.
Blue smoke hissed from the barrel. Too bad. Kevin wouldn't get to appreciate the gorgeous sight.
He'd been blasted far away the moment the rounds hit.
I rested the magic sword on my shoulder and said,
"First time seeing something like this, huh?"
This world had no guns.
Only cold weapons and bows. Magic had stifled gunpowder development entirely.
I saw the potential there.
I'll make your hearts race with this unseen invention.
Watch closely, you hidden geniuses!
*Click.*
The shotgun broke open at a right angle, exposing the loading chamber. I pulled rounds from my subspace pouch right away.
*Clack.*
*Click.*
Ahh.
Such a satisfying sound.
"You should get up."
Boom!
Another shot.
Blue pellets sprayed forward in a puff of smoke.
Boom!
Followed by one more.
Kevin's prone body was shoved even farther away.
"..."
What was this?
Why...
Was it so fun?
"I didn't come here to have fun..."
I didn't come to win, either.
But how to put it?
All the built-up stress was melting away.
"Haha..."
*Click.*
*Clack.*
*Click.*
"Not getting up?"
"Urk..."
Kevin, drenched in blood, barely struggled to his feet. I considered shooting him down again but decided against it—ten minutes was too precious to waste.
Come on, do something.
"Haaah!!"
Idiotically, Kevin just charged straight in.
Was he panicking?
Didn't matter.
I fired anyway.
"Ugh."
Kevin deflected one round with his sword but took the rest. This time, though, he didn't get knocked back or fall.
One more shot, and he rolled aside to dodge.
Impressive grit.
"At this range, even your fancy weapon's useless!"
Kevin closed the distance in a flash and shouted. The crowd let out impressed "oohs."
"You forgetting something?"
I had another weapon.
I gripped the magic sword on my shoulder tightly. No swordsmanship needed for this blade.
Just swing it.
I pressed the button, feeling the circuits accelerate. The blade glowed blue, humming faintly.
A bit of heat. And light.
...
I'm not usually like this.
Couldn't stop grinning, though.
Exam periods are dangerous for a reason.
Vreeee!!
"This is technology, you barbaric sword-swinging hack!!"
I swung, unleashing a massive blade beam that shoved Kevin back.
"Gaaahhh!!!"
"Hahahahahaha!!!"
I didn't cleave him because 'safety mode' was on. Turn that off, and I could do so much more—but the lethality would be too high for a simple duel.
Anyway.
"What now? You just lost to a Magic Engineering loser."
⚙ ANNOUNCEMENT ⚙Th, the winner is...
Kevin had passed out cold; he wasn't even twitching anymore.
⚙ ANNOUNCEMENT ⚙Rain Ortiz of Magic Engineering!!
This is bad.
That demonstration just changed everything for me.
Magic Engineering... invention...
Got interesting...
I forced down my rising smirk.
"What if, just what if..."
The firepower went even higher?
"Ah."
What was I thinking...?
Snap out of it.
Anyway, my presentation went off without a hitch.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Countless people must have been shocked.
No one knew Magic Engineering could do that.
Rain had achieved his goal. He'd drawn massive interest, including from so-called "geniuses."
Ironically, the most excited was Rachel.
"I-I've never seen anything like that...!"
"...Professor Rachel. Could you please sit down?"
"A magic sword wasn't enough—he pulls out a weapon I've never even heard of!!"
She was so worked up that even Meriel Gardner, sitting beside her, got fed up in moments.
Beyond expectations. Nothing else described it.
Rachel felt her heart race again.
Me too.
I could make that too, right?
Such a beautiful machine!
"I have to..."
She steeled her resolve.
Her resolve for Magic Engineering... and for Rain.
I'll raise him no matter what!
She'd lost count of how many times she'd vowed that.
One thing was certain.
Thanks to Rain Ortiz's performance today, Magic Engineering would receive unprecedented attention from now on.
The problem was...
"That guy's useful, huh?"
Interest in Rain Ortiz himself had spiked too.
Including some rather inappropriate kinds.
Let's take him for ourselves too.