Mistaken for a Masked Munchkin

I Can't Even Imagine Caitlin Losing

Ranking Match.

Viktor and Caitlin's Servitude Bet.

For the past few days, a certain narrative had taken hold among the top-ranked students.

-"Viktor? Yeah, that guy's pretty cocky..."

-"He definitely acts like he's all that."

It was an opinion war that started from Class B.

That wave went past Class A and Class B and even swallowed up Class D.

Class C was the only exception. They still remembered getting their souls beaten out of them by Viktor, so they did not join in.

-"He's out of his mind... He's just an E-class top seat. How great could he be?"

-"I heard his overall stats are E-rank too. Where is that confidence coming from?"

-"Apparently he knows a few tricks. Heard he beat Class C's top seat in a really weird way last time."

-"I mean... honestly, I was impressed then. Still, that doesn't mean he's on Class B top seat level!"

Of course.

The masked boy was satisfied with that narrative.

'Good... I told those Class C kids not to go around saying I trashed them in practical. Looks like they kept their word.'

To their credit, the Class C students cooperated.

Viktor had no intention of stopping the wave crashing down on him.

He planned to drift through those rough waters and let the current carry him.

-"Nah... if an upper class gives you hell, you should take it quietly. If you're weak, know your place."

-"Yeah, he was annoying. I mean, if he got first in practical, it's obvious. Young Lady Kihano on his team must've carried him."

-"And I heard the gap wasn't even that big. Then it's obvious. He just piggybacked on Young Lady Kihano's score."

-"And after that, he still walked around with his chin up?"

The narrative kept spreading.

Viktor did nothing.

At the same time, he told the students he was close with to do nothing as well.

Just let Class B keep doing whatever they wanted.

-"I hope Caitlin crushes him flat this time."

-"Exactly. People like that need to get stomped so hard they never act up again."

-"I have to go watch this Ranking Match."

All eyes were on the stage.

At first glance, it looked like a board Class B had set up, but in truth, it was rolling around in someone else's palm.

And it did not take long for the students to realize that.

***

Bzzzt-!

Sparks lashed through the air with vicious force.

Like cracks splitting open the sky, visual distortions flooded the sparring arena.

High-voltage current washed my vision white, then condensed into bright yellow light and exploded.

Light burst.

KWA-BOOM-!

A bronze fist shot forward like lightning.

It was so fast it was hard to track with the naked eye.

The next instant, the girl had already closed the gap right in front of me.

"Got you, you bastard!"

"Oh dear."

Without panicking, I pressed the button on my pocket watch.

With the ticking hands, the world slowed down.

Click-.

The world moved like slow motion.

Even with her speed cut once, that fist was still visibly fast.

I slipped past her attack at a razor-thin angle.

"Ugh...!"

Bzzzt-!

A light snap of static crawled up my cheek.

A black scorch mark formed, then a small explosion followed.

KWA-BOOM-!

"Hngh."

"What the hell? You're still fine after that?"

Even inside the rolling smoke, the mask did not have a single scratch.

Caitlin frowned and pulled her fist back.

Ding-!

[Item 'Evil God's Mask' has been activated.]

-Remaining charges: 2/3

-Time until next charge: 47 hours 59 minutes 59 seconds

A blue window floated up before my eyes.

I swung the jet-black scythe wide.

"Activate. Thorns."

Slaaash-!

Thorns spread in every direction, and Caitlin stepped back.

That stinging pressure pulled away. Briefly, I had room to breathe.

I reshaped Wiggles back into a scythe.

"You're tougher than I thought. I figured you'd drop in one hit."

Bzzzt-!

Current wrapped around her bronze skin again.

With a yellow flash, the girl leaped forward.

"This is actually fun...!"

Swaaaash-!

Static lashed out in chains.

I had to keep pressing the watch without rest.

Each time, three seconds slowed down, then sped up again, replaying the same scene over and over.

Click-.

Click-.

Click-.

I barely slipped past her fists again and again.

The air around us had turned hot from the crackling current.

In front of that swarming lightning, I spread Wiggles in my hand into a broad shape.

"Activate. Umbrella."

Clack-.

It opened into an umbrella as large as a parasol.

Wiggles was made from non-conductive material, so this kind of attack was easy enough to block.

'What I need to watch out for is... her speed.'

Caitlin was fast.

In pure speed, she was easily among the top three first-years.

If I did not have the Slowdown Bug, I would have been beaten down and forced to retire long ago.

Click-.

"Fuck! You little rat, you sure dodge well!"

"Thanks for the compliment. On the other hand, Ms. Gay Dentures, you are really bad at catching me."

"Don't call my name like that...!"

KWA-BOOM-!

Blinding flashes flooded my vision again and again.

I sounded relaxed, but the strain was building on my body too.

The bug let me keep up mentally, sure, but reacting in time was another matter.

"Fucking bastard! I'm gonna burn you alive...!"

"Not 'fucking bastard.' Wouldn't 'a bastard with a dick' be more accurate?"

"Shut up!"

I was not the only one getting tired, either.

Ten minutes had already passed since the duel began.

The whole thing had turned into a game of tag.

By then, Caitlin was breathing hard too.

"Haa, haa...!"

"Huh? You seem strangely tired."

"I told you to shut up."

Caitlin's weakness.

Her burst power was overwhelming, but she ran out of charge fast.

That was also the key reason she had stayed Class B top seat instead of making it into Class A.

"So what now? I don't even have one drop of sweat yet."

"You fucking... bastard...!"

KWA-BOOM-!

Her bronze fist and my scythe collided.

Maybe because the fight was much fiercer than expected, even the cadets in the stands were unusually fired up.

-"What is this... It's way more intense than I expected."

-"They're insanely fast! And he's dodging all that by a hair every time!"

-"No way. He's fighting Class B top seat on even ground? He's not dropping in one hit...?"

-"How is he twisting only the exact angle he needs and dodging like that from that posture?"

Voices of awe.

A high-level duel.

Caitlin's flashy lightning, and me slipping past every strike.

It was a scene that grabbed everyone, upper and lower classes alike.

-"What are you doing? Caitlin can't even beat one E-class top seat?"

-"Idiot, does that look like a normal E-class to you? How is that movement E-class top seat?"

-"And he's smart with his weapon too. Is he spreading it as wide as possible to block electrocution...?"

The crowd's murmurs reached us clearly on the sparring stage.

Awe, praise, curiosity, excitement aimed at me.

Questions, doubt, disappointment, contempt aimed at Caitlin.

All those voices sank and settled into one heavy atmosphere.

"Kh...!"

The crowd's gaze kept tightening.

Maybe she got impatient without realizing it.

Caitlin kept pushing her speed higher.

The color of her current deepened, like she was overloading.

KWA-JI-JIK-!

"Just take a hit already...!"

"Ah."

KWA-BOOM-!

My step tangled for a split second, and her bronze fist landed clean.

The light was nothing like before. A flash detonated across the arena.

I brushed off the black scorch marks with a short motion.

Ding-!

[Item 'Evil God's Mask' has been activated.]

-Remaining charges: 1/3

-Time until next charge: 47 hours 59 minutes 59 seconds

Two charges gone already.

I could only click my tongue.

'I knew she was good, but still, this much...'

She was undeniably skilled.

Solid fundamentals.

Well-honed sense.

Reach that worked at both close and long range.

And speed that flashed like lightning itself.

'...But only that much.'

Not enough to call her the best.

Hard to call her a genius.

That was why she stayed in Class B instead of Class A.

She was not complete to begin with, and had dragged herself up through sheer effort.

"This bastard... why does nothing happen even when I land hits?! What trick are you pulling?!"

"Who knows."

I shrugged.

A razor-thin balance, stretched tight like a tug-of-war rope.

Caitlin kept pressing like mad, but had little to show for it.

Instead, her mana kept draining, and even that savage current was slowly losing momentum.

"A trick, huh."

Tag.

It was about time the tagger switched.

"I haven't even shown you a real trick yet."

Wriggle-.

I honed Wiggles and returned it to its original scythe form.

Maybe it was because my stance had changed.

Caitlin flinched for a moment.

Until now I had focused only on defense, but this was clearly a stance for attacking.

"..."

"Come on."

I tossed the words out lightly.

Maybe that alone scraped her pride raw.

Caitlin clenched her teeth and wrapped lightning around her fingertips.

"Fuck... this bastard and that bastard, all of you keep looking down on people."

Her golden eyes flashed.

"Now even an E-class piece of trash...!"

KWAAAA-!

Voltage painted the arena air with heat.

Caitlin planted her foot, then kicked off the ground.

Bzz-.

A weak flicker. Her silhouette vanished.

A moment later, bronze appeared right in front of me.

A speed you could mistake for teleportation.

"Uaaaaah!!"

She threw her fist with a rough battle cry.

My vision flashed white.

But I did not step back.

Click-.

I only smiled.

As if I had been waiting for exactly this.

"..."

Caitlin's magic, Electricity.

Its most basic application was high-speed movement.

She accelerated her body by wrapping current around her whole body.

'And.'

That counted as applying a buff to herself.

In other words, it was treated like a status effect.

"Got you."

Swaaaash-!

I swung my scythe at the incoming bronze fist.

Its path curved as if it were shaving the attack away.

At the same time, a status window rose before my eyes.

Ding-!

[Windfall 'Status Ailment Parrying' is activated.]

Right after that.

The light flickering around Caitlin went out.

As if someone had flipped a switch, the writhing current died instantly.

"...?!"

Caitlin froze in place.

Not understanding what had happened, she stood there blankly.

In front of that stunned face, I threw out a line I could not hold back.

"Huh?"

Caitlin Lettuce.

A battle mage who fought with martial arts powered by self-buffs.

Against me, her matchup was...

"Caitlin's current... disappeared?"

Simply put, the worst possible.

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