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If it was impossible to break through her defense without sustaining injuries, then there was only one option left.
A desperate struggle for survival!
Ryoji had indeed exhausted all the Magic Power within him to alter the deformation speed of his body, and the injuries he bore were real— he was truly spent, not just in name but in reality.
Yet reaching such a critical point was merely the situation he had anticipated from the very beginning.
The true decisive strike was still hidden behind this!
Drawing on a technique he learned from Kurogane Ikki, Ryoji actively stimulated his potential by harnessing the pain coursing through his body, shattering his survival instinct, and digging deeper for more physical strength and Magic Power from within.
The limitations he faced were tied to his combat style, as he had poured all his innate skills into sword techniques. However, the act of destroying his survival instinct was not part of his usual combat repertoire.
Under normal circumstances, a person could only exert about half of their maximum power due to the constraints of their survival instinct.
But if one could muster an incredibly resilient will to ignore the cries of their body and mind, and employ exceptional body control to dismantle that instinct, they could push their usual power to its limit— essentially doubling it!
Ryoji shifted his grip to a push, driving the long blade into the transparent shield.
Then, he infused all the Magic Power he had drawn from the depths of his soul into his Spiritual Item, setting its speed to surpass Kanata's reaction limit, achieving the maximum velocity he could muster at that moment!
"Boom——!!!"
An unexpected roar reverberated throughout the arena.
The massive sound wave generated by the point-blank sonic boom sent Ryoji flying backward.
On the other side, Totokubara Kanata was equally unprepared.
Believing the battle was already over, she never expected Ryoji to unleash such a trump card at the last moment!
The sonic boom from the Vrring blade shattered the transparent shield before her in an instant.
The terrifying sound wave swept through the arena, causing countless spectators to stop talking, their eyes widening in shock as they focused on the battle ring, tense and afraid to miss any detail.
In the ring, Ryoji rolled on the ground more than ten times before finally coming to a halt.
He instinctively tried to push himself up, but the moment his right hand touched the ground, a searing pain shot through him, causing his complexion to pale.
It felt like a compound fracture, and his palm might have even split open.
But he couldn't afford to care about the pain; he stared intently in the opposite direction, so tense that he even forgot to breathe.
'Did he win?'
This was truly his last trump card, and he had given it his all. If this didn't work, he would have no choice but to raise his hands in surrender.
Opposite him, as the dust settled, Totokubara Kanata came into view.
She was half-kneeling on the ground, still dazed, her face reflecting lingering shock.
And embedded in the center of her chest was a dazzling katana.
"I... lost?"
The thought flickered through her mind, utterly unbelievable.
Yet in that moment, she felt a strange sense of relief.
Then, her consciousness began to fade, and her vision darkened.
"Plop."
Totokubara Kanata collapsed sideways onto the ground.
In the moment before she lost consciousness, the last thing she saw was the satisfied smile of the boy across from her.
"—That's it! The winner is Nangou Ryoji!"
Shinguuji Kurono quickly stepped forward, checking on Totokubara Kanata's condition. He glanced at Ryoji with surprise before promptly announcing the outcome of the match.
"I finally won..."
Ryoji couldn't help but drop to the ground with an exhausted yet satisfied smile on his face.
'What a thrill!'
This was the kind of battle he had always wanted to fight! This was the kind of victory he had longed to achieve! He wanted to win a thrilling, come-from-behind battle like this!
'—Only this could lead to his true growth.'
As he relaxed, the intense pain that surged through his body and the fatigue from shattering his survival instinct hit him all at once.
Ryoji's vision blurred, and he soon collapsed to the ground, passing out in a spectacular fashion.
Shortly after, two stretchers were brought in, carrying both the winner and the loser away.
"In the blink of an eye, the outcome was reversed! The winner of this match is Year 1, Class 1, E-Rank Knight Nangou Ryoji! Like a dark horse, he defeated the B-Rank knight who had been a formidable opponent under extremely unfavorable circumstances, and she was the second strongest in the academy! Let's give him a cheer!"
"Not bad~"
The legal loli's voice returned to a lighthearted tone.
In the audience, disbelief reigned.
"I can't believe Kanata actually lost."
Misogi and the others were still struggling to comprehend it.
They had all thought Kanata had an overwhelming advantage, with a gap so vast that it seemed impossible for her to lose. They were certain she would win.
The thing about gaps is that they are formidable precisely because they cannot be easily crossed.
If anyone could easily bridge them, there would be no distinction between geniuses and ordinary people in this world.
But Touka's Junior Brother had ultimately forced his way across the mountain of blades, shattering their delusions with an impossible stance.
"I never thought Junior Brother would lose from the start!"
Only Toudou Touka wore a proud smile.
"...That's just your simple bias, isn't it?"
The others exchanged glances, only able to smile wryly.
......
In the infirmary.
Ryoji groggily awoke from his deep slumber, staring at the familiar ceiling.
"So tired..."
This was the first thought that crossed his mind upon waking.
His entire body felt as if it had been run over by a truck, aching everywhere, with his muscles seemingly devoid of any strength.
This was the aftereffect of shattering his survival instinct and forcibly squeezing his body's potential. His physical strength had been overexerted, leaving him in a state of fatigue that would require at least a day of rest to recover.
Ryoji struggled to sit up in bed, leaning against the headboard, and looked down at his body.
His clothes had been replaced with a hospital gown, and the uniform he had worn earlier had been reduced to rags... No, it would be more accurate to say it had been shredded. By the end of the battle, he had been almost completely exposed while fighting Kanata.
The compound fracture in his right hand had completely healed, and the honeycomb-like scars from the blade wounds had vanished, leaving his skin exceptionally fair and smooth.
"Healing capsules are GOAT!" Ryoji couldn't help but praise.
Just a trip through the healing capsule could restore any injury, even bringing someone back from the brink of death, making it nearly impossible to die.
However, while the healing capsule could mend injuries, it had no effect on physical fatigue, which still required self-care to recover.
Ryoji glanced at the digital clock on the wall.
"3 PM, so I was unconscious for about two hours."
The thought of having defeated Totokubara Kanata filled him with indescribable satisfaction.
He hadn't felt this happy even when he defeated Shinguuji Kurono.
Because the nature of the two victories was completely different for him.
"Junior Brother, I'm coming in." His Senior Sister's voice called from outside the door.
Shortly afterward, the door opened, and the chestnut-haired girl walked into the infirmary, carrying a plastic bag filled with fruits.
"Looks like you've recovered pretty well."
She looked him up and down, noting his normal complexion, and couldn't help but smile lightly.
"Um... Senior Sister, aren't you mad?"
Seeing that she wasn't scolding him, Ryoji felt a bit uncomfortable and cautiously asked.
"Compared to the injuries you've had before, this one is relatively light."
Toudou Touka felt a twinge of displeasure.
She should have scolded her Junior Brother for recklessly damaging his body again, but the fact that he had only suffered minor injuries this time made her unable to contain her happiness.
She was quite displeased with herself for starting to compromise like this.
(End of Chapter)