Chapter 466: Bad Luck

Sonya was in the middle of her competition.

This time, the tournament was held under the Star Palace Calamity category. It followed a five-person team battle format, with universities competing head-to-head. The teams were divided into five distinct positions, namely Vanguard, Forward, Center, Vice, and Chief. Each participant could only enter the arena once, and the lineup order had to be submitted before the tournament began and could not be altered once the matches were underway.

To prevent situations where a top-tier player simply bullied a bottom-tier rookie, which would damage both the competitive spirit and, more importantly, the entertainment value, the Star Palace Calamity did not judge matches purely by wins and losses. Instead, each position was awarded different point values of one, two, three, four, and five respectively. Therefore, even if a team lost the first three matches, the Vice and Chief could still stage a massive comeback with a combined total of 4 + 5 = 9 points. This meant universities were forced to arrange their participants from weakest to strongest. Otherwise, they were just waiting to be overturned.

Because it was a series of one-on-one duels, the matchups and counters between sorcery classes became exceptionally important. If your luck was bad, a Fire Class sorcerer could end up being completely crushed by one that specialized in water. That was why, despite Sonya acting as the Chief during the previous friendly matches, she was placed in the Center position for the official competition.

The Vice position went to Senior Leona, whom Sonya knew well, while the Chief was a fourth-year student once recognized as the Sword of his batch[1], Nagus Belford. Like Sonya and Leona, Nagus was apprenticed to the Sacred Realm sorcerer Valentin, otherwise known as the Rainstorm Singer. Since he had spent most of his time adventuring through the third and fourth layers of the Abyss, he had not garnered much attention over the past year at Sword and Roses University. If not for the intercollegiate league, he probably never would have returned to the surface.

He was a pure combat sorcerer. It was only natural that Nagus became the chief representative for the Sword and Roses University team. Having already entered the Continent of Time during his third year, he had completely condensed his Gold Wing in just a year and a half, while also gaining invaluable Abyss exploration experience.

In terms of raw experience and combat strength, Sonya could not compare to him at all. There were even rumors that the royal family's Starshot Guard had already reserved him. Upon graduation, he would claim the title of Sword Baron. It was the lowest rank within the Noble Council, but it was also the baseline of the Starry Kingdom's ruling class, charting a boundless future ahead of him.

As for who should take the Vice position between Sonya and Leona, Professor Trosan mentioned that the university administration had debated the matter heavily. The two were Two-Winged sorcerers, and Sonya had even defeated Leona head-on before.

In the end, the university chose the safer option: Leona.

The Star Palace Calamity did not allow mid-match changes to the battle order. Once a participant encountered an opponent who countered their specific sorcery class, they would have absolutely no chance to turn the tide. Sonya was undeniably stronger in a vacuum, but Leona had three additional years of experience. Her battlefield instincts were far richer, and her spirit system was much more versatile than Sonya's. Consequently, the chances of her being completely hard-countered by an opponent were far lower.

Furthermore, as a sword practitioner, Sonya still lacked a reliable method for dealing with Firearm Class sorcerers. Leona, on the other hand, was the exception to the rule. Known as the Orange Dancer, she could completely evade a marksman's lock-on purely through her speed. In fact, her swiftness alone allowed her to contend against the vast majority of sorcerers.

Sonya had simply been a sorcerer for too short a time, and she had lived far too comfortably in the Virtual World. After all, she only ever needed to focus on maximizing her explosive damage output while the Watcher and the Witch handled everything else. Developing blind spots under those conditions was inevitable.

In the chaotic, free-for-all battles of the Meteor Calamity, she could still rely on her sharp instincts and raw talent to find openings. But in formal, one-on-one duels, those weaknesses would be magnified infinitely. Sword and Roses University's decision not to name her Vice was perfectly reasonable.

This year's Star Palace Calamity lineup was actually Sword and Roses' strongest formation in nearly five years. Aside from their Vanguard, who was only a Silver Rank sorcerer, the rest of the roster consisted entirely of Gold Ranks.

However, this strength also exposed an underlying flaw. While Sword and Roses University possessed a respectable faculty and maintained a top-tier ranking, its rate of producing elite talent was far inferior to that of other institutions of the same caliber. The most glaring proof lay in the fact that they could not even field five Two-Winged sorcerers for the Star Palace Calamity.

The reason for this mediocrity was simple. Sword and Roses University was ultimately just a consolation prize, the default fallback for the children of wealthy merchants and noble families who had failed to get into Truth University.

To put it simply, the quality of their student intake was too poor.

That did not mean their students lacked raw talent. Rather, their university life was so consumed by sports, social events, and entertainment that they were left with little time or motivation to actually study sorcery. Back when Sonya lived in the dorms, students like Angelica, who devoted themselves entirely to swordsmanship training, were considered anomalies.

Sonya had originally chosen Sword and Roses University purely for its tactical advantage. It was simply the easiest place for her to cross paths with noble heirs..

Over the past five years, Sword and Roses had failed to even reach the top sixteen of the Star Palace Calamity. Their breakthrough into the quarterfinals this year was entirely due to the meteoric rise of Sonya and Leona. Sonya’s anomalous case aside, Leona had rapidly upgraded her spirit system to the Two-Winged stage immediately upon entering the Continent of Time. Combined with her Rhythm Swordsmanship, which entered its most potent phase at the Gold Rank, her combat power instantly eclipsed that of fourth-year students from rival universities.

With this specific lineup, Sword and Roses University could finally contend with any university in the league. Even if their Vanguard and Forward lost, they could almost certainly recover the points in the remaining three matches. Securing a top-four position and fighting for second place was no longer just a pipe dream.

However, when the draw results were announced, the entirety of Sword and Roses University fell dead silent.

***

Boom!

A crescent-shaped, crimson sword light descended, instantly shattering a thick concrete wall into dust.

The green-haired young man hiding behind the debris immediately threw up his hands. "I surrender."

He sighed heavily. "Ah, my luck is absolutely terrible. If I had faced the Orange Dancer or the Water Walker, I definitely would have won. But I just had to encounter the Scarlet Swordswoman... I'm actually the only one on my team who lost. I'm going to get mocked for a long time when I go back..."

His words bordered on rude, but Sonya knew he was telling the truth.

As a sorcerer who cultivated both the Earth and Wood Classes, he possessed the defensive Earth Class Miracle, Concrete, which was durable enough to withstand even heavy Firearm Class attacks. He also wielded an extremely relentless Verdant Miracle, Mana-Stealing Vines.

In fact, the entire arena was currently choked by them. Their effect was straightforward. They leeched an opponent's mana and fed it directly back to him. In his previous battles, he had relied on this grueling combination of Concrete and Mana-Stealing Vines to slowly grind his opponents down until they collapsed from exhaustion.

The most absurd part was that the Mana-Stealing Vines were not weak against fire. Instead, they were vulnerable only to sorcery classes with corrosive traits, like Poison and Darkness. Because of this, he rarely encountered a true counter. Had he fought Leona or Nagus, they very well might have been suffocated and defeated by his strategy. The defensive threshold of his walls, formed of the Miracle Concrete, was simply terrifying.

Unfortunately for him, his opponent was Sonya, the sorceress with the most devastating burst damage in the tournament. After Sonya unleashed three consecutive strikes of Blood Moon Shattered Lake to cleanly obliterate his defenses, surrender was his only dignified option.

Cheers erupted from the stadium, though they were noticeably subdued.

When Sonya stepped back into the contestant area, there was no celebration. The air remained heavy, and only Professor Trosan and Leona offered her a grim nod.

She walked over and patted Leona on the shoulder. “Senior, how about we go back and have a drink later?”

“No,” Leona stood up, a small smile playing on her lips. “You always rejected my invitations because you were rushing off to the Virtual World. Tonight, I’ll use that exact same excuse to reject yours.”

She stretched her aching muscles and continued, “After this match, I’ll definitely be filled with the motivation to dive back into the Virtual World. Sonya... thank you. At least you made our defeat look a little less embarrassing.”

The village girl watched her senior's retreating figure as Leona walked out onto the grand arena.

The announcer’s voice soon echoed through the stadium. “Next up is the Vice Battle! Representing Sword and Roses University: Leona Vikt! Facing... Truth University's Aisha Maltz!”

Sword and Roses University’s opponent in the Star Palace Calamity’s quarterfinals was none other than Truth University. The pinnacle of all academic institutions, and the absolute nightmare that had dominated the university league for decades. No matter how bitterly Sword and Roses resented this draw, there was nothing they could do. Someone had to be crushed by Truth University eventually, and they were simply the next sacrificial lambs on the chopping block.

Their Vanguard and Forward matches had essentially ended in instant, brutal defeats. Although Sonya had managed to claw one point back, no one in the stands believed Sword and Roses had a shred of hope left. Truth University’s Vice and Chief were overwhelmingly powerful, possessing a magnitude of strength that drove their opponents to utter despair.

***

Inside the arena, Aisha looked at Leona from across the distance. “A pleasure to meet you. I’ve long wanted to witness the famed technique of the Rhythm Sword Saint, the Rhythm Melodies. I heard it requires three distinct strikes before it can unleash its full power?”

“That’s right.”

“Then I’ll allow you three strikes. I hope you won’t disappoint.”

Faced with Aisha’s casual arrogance, Leona merely nodded with grim seriousness. “I won’t.”

Aisha smiled faintly. “Very good.”

She raised a heavy shield with her left hand and drew a revolver with her right.

The referee shouted, “Begin!”

In that exact instant, Leona vanished from sight, leaving only a faint streak of orange flashing wildly across the arena.

In response, Aisha remained standing calmly in place. She didn’t activate a single defensive Miracle. In fact, she seemed entirely distracted, casually looking up at the night sky.

Clang!

Aisha suddenly slammed her shield backward, perfectly blocking Leona’s blind-spot strike.

Her first blow had failed, but Leona didn't retreat. She immediately shifted her angles and launched a ferocious side slash.

Slash!

Aisha had no time to swing her shield. She simply tilted her body and cleanly evaded the blade. The sword only managed to clip a few stray strands from the ends of her hair.

Leona vanished once more.

After a split-second adjustment, the third strike of the Rhythm Melodies plunged from the heavens in the form of golden sword light, like a blazing meteor!

Clang!

This time, the sound of Aisha’s block was so crisp and sharp it was piercing to the ears. Not only was Aisha completely unscathed, but Leona herself was sent flying backward by the sheer force of the impact. The Orange Dancer rolled violently across the ground several times. She attempted to push herself up, but her legs instantly gave out.

Falling back to her knees, she coughed twice, spitting a mouthful of blood onto the stone.

When Leona forced her head up, she found the cold barrel of Aisha's revolver pressed flush against her forehead.

She offered a bitter, exhausted smile. “I surrender.”

The audience sections didn't erupt into cheers, nor did they rain down boos. There was only a heavy, ringing silence, as if the result had been entirely expected from the very beginning.

Aisha Maltz was a master of both the Prophecy and Shield Classes.

Shields were actually quite common among sorcerers. During the early stages in the Virtual World, practically everyone learned to condense a basic shield that could at least block a few attacks from Fish-Slaying Dragons. However, the Shield Class itself was extremely unpopular. The reason was pretty straightforward. It specialized entirely in defense, a level of utility other classes could easily match through standard Miracles. Because of that, there simply wasn't much of a market for pure shield specialists.

The core advantage of the Shield Class lay in its two Miracles: Perfect Block and Perfect Counter.

By grasping the exact millisecond of timing, a sorcerer could completely nullify an enemy’s attack and reflect its kinetic energy straight back at them. However, the mechanical timing required was brutal. The opening was a microscopic window that vanished in the blink of an eye, and real-world enemies didn't follow fixed patterns. Every strike was a fluid, unpredictable variation. A normal Shield class sorcerer could, at best, perform an ordinary block or counter, which was often far inferior to the specialized defensive Miracles of other classes. Thus, the decline of the Shield Class had been inevitable.

That was until Aisha. The Undefeated Star showed the world just how terrifying the Shield Class could become when paired with a Prophecy Class sorcerer's foresight. Fire, water, wind, earth, swords, cannons, fists, or kicks. She could perfectly block absolutely anything. Since her debut, she had not only never lost a match, but she had never even suffered a single scratch. Whenever an opponent unleashed a truly devastating high-tier attack, she would execute a Perfect Counter, returning the full weight of the strike exactly as it was given, while leaving the attacker completely stunned in the process.

Leona’s defeat came precisely because her Rhythm Melodies had been perfectly countered. She had absorbed one hundred percent of her own maximum damage output. Even if Aisha hadn't aimed her weapon at her head, Leona no longer possessed the strength to stand, let alone fight.

Of course, Aisha wasn't entirely invincible. For instance, Sonya’s previous opponent, a defensive specialist utilizing a combination of concrete walls and wide-range attacks from mana-stealing vines, seemed theoretically capable of slowly wearing Aisha down. But that was where her revolver came into play.

It wasn't a standard-issue weapon, but the Astral Forging Type-85 Artifact Spirit Revolver. It required pure mana to activate, and its destructive force scaled directly with the amount of mana injected into it. Because it didn't contain any pre-sealed Miracles and relied solely on the sorcerer's own pool of energy, the league permitted its use.

While it couldn't match the catastrophic output of a dedicated Firearm Class sorcerer, if Aisha poured the entirety of her Gold Mana into a single, concentrated shot, she could easily blast a crater right through the wall formed of the Miracle Concrete. Even if that wall could regenerate, or if an opponent managed to dodge... the ultimate problem remained. Who could guarantee they could dodge a targeted strike from a Prophecy Class sorcerer?

If you didn't attack her, she would systematically execute you with heavy blasts. If you did attack her, she would counter the strike and beat you with your own strength. Fortunately, Aisha still lacked effective tools when it came to managing multiple targets at once. Otherwise, she would have single-handedly slaughtered her way through the entire Meteor Calamity tournament long ago.

As Leona was carried away to the medical ward, Sonya shifted her intense gaze back to the stadium floor. Compared to the Prophecy Class sorcerer, the upcoming bout was the one Sonya cared about above all else. Both sorcerers participating in this next duel were ranked among the absolute top eight of the entire Meteor Calamity. If Sonya wanted to seize the ultimate championship, she would inevitably have to cross blades with them.

“Next up is the highly anticipated Chief Battle!” the announcer bellowed, his voice cutting through the tension. “Representing Sword and Roses University: Nagus Belford! Facing... Truth University's Damien Vlozrada!”

1. In the original text, the term appears as 剑草 (jiàn cǎo), which directly translates to “Sword Grass.” It is meant to convey that he is one of the most handsome students in his batch, much like how Sonya is one of the most beautiful students in hers. Since we have gone with “Rose” for Sonya, I decided to use “Sword” for him instead. When paired together, they form “Sword and Roses,” which is the name of their university. ☜