On My First Day Undercover, the Organization Collapsed - Chapter 241

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Organization Collapsed on My First Day of Infiltration Episode 241

 

Special Semifinals (2)

 

The next match was between Delev and Kus.

 

The two had been friends since before entering the Academy.

 

Naturally, Kus was at a significant disadvantage, but quite an intense battle unfolded.

 

There were even situations where Delev was being pushed back.

 

“Boss, this seems a bit strange. Do they know each other well since they were originally friends?”

 

Gilbert’s question received a clear answer from Ziel.

 

“No, he’s doing that on purpose.”

 

“What?”

 

“He’s conserving his strength. More precisely, he’s conserving his mana.”

 

“Ah…”

 

Gilbert nodded as if he understood.

 

Kelvin, who was beside them, also chimed in.

 

“A, a foolish choice.”

 

“Kelvin’s right. It is foolish. Actually, doing that drains more energy.”

 

It was a choice Delev could reasonably make, but in the eyes of experienced fighters, it wasn’t at all.

 

Delev was probably considering the finals.

 

With the ‘Special Semifinals’ rules still unrevealed, he was trying to pace his stamina.

 

But conversely, Kus was giving his all from the start, knowing who his opponent was.

 

“Delev isn’t showing proper respect for his opponent.”

 

“Respect doesn’t matter. It’s just that the strategy he’s using to win is wrong.”

 

“Hmm.”

 

Delev was gradually becoming flustered.

 

Kus, who was actually gaining the upper hand, pressed even more aggressively!

 

‘Am I really going to beat Delev?’

 

In this strangely developing situation, Kus thought ‘no way,’ but didn’t doubt it and pressed forward.

 

“Why is Delev acting like that?”

 

“It’s fear stemming from inexperience in mana usage. Even at Walker Rank, mana usage in real combat is clumsy. All Second Years are like that.”

 

Delev didn’t want to exhaust all his mana here and lose in the next semifinal.

 

If he pressed forward all at once, he would naturally win, but if he used more mana than necessary in the process…

 

“It must be a trial for Delev.”

 

“If he overcomes it, he’ll grow a step further, and if he fails, he’ll remain stagnant for a while longer.”

 

Delev continued to be pushed back.

 

The Head of Kundel, Amos, couldn’t bear to watch and frowned in panic.

 

“If it’s strategy, it’s stupid, and if it’s skill… then I misjudged my son.”

 

Kus was certainly strong.

 

He was among the top 20 and had always been a child with decent talent.

 

But he wasn’t strong enough to surpass his son in just one year.

 

Amos roughly guessed what Delev was thinking.

 

But he couldn’t shout from here to enlighten him about something.

 

He could only hope his son would realize it himself.

 

Clang!

 

Meanwhile, Delev was pushed to the edge of the arena.

 

Just as he glanced back.

 

“Here I come!”

 

Kus rushed in and delivered a strike.

 

He barely managed to block it, but if the next strike came, it would be a ring-out defeat.

 

‘What should I do?’

 

He could beat Kus.

 

But if he used up all his mana here, the semifinals…

 

That’s when it happened.

 

Not far away.

 

There was the Contestant Waiting Area.

 

He could see the expression of Celia, who was sitting there waiting for the next match.

 

That expression that seemed to be mocking him.

 

‘Ha, what am I doing?’

 

Delev made his decision.

 

Kus wouldn’t give him an opening.

 

This was a golden opportunity for him.

 

So he wouldn’t give Delev the gap he needed to win with minimal effort going forward.

 

But what if he conserved his strength here and lost?

 

‘It would be utterly humiliating.’

 

He wouldn’t be able to hold his head up.

 

He had to win.

 

Because he was a Kundel.

 

Clang!

 

Delev’s counterattack began.

 

“Oh!”

 

“Finally!”

 

Kus was flustered by the powerful force that suddenly came charging in.

 

Just a single upward strike.

 

But the moment he blocked that upward strike, Kus realized.

 

‘Ah shit, I can’t win this.’

 

It wasn’t that he gave up quickly, it was just instinct.

 

The power behind it was incomparable to the attacks Kus had been delivering, and the sharpness was so tremendous that the blade of his blocking sword was chipped!

 

They were both swords infused with mana, yet there was such a difference.

 

And when Kundel’s heavy sword technique was added to that-

 

Clang!

 

Crack, a fissure appeared in Kus’s sword.

 

At the same time, mana drained from Delev’s body, but the sword didn’t stop.

 

And the third strike.

 

Clatter!

 

Kus’s sword broke.

 

And Delev, breathing heavily, pointed his sword at Kus.

 

“Surrender.”

 

“…I lost. Damn, you’re disgustingly strong. Should’ve done this from the start.”

 

“Right.”

 

Kus raised his hands to signal surrender, and the winner was immediately declared.

 

“Winner, Delev Kundel!”

 

Cheers erupted from the spectator seats.

 

Delev sighed.

 

“Sorry. Should’ve done this from the beginning.”

 

“Talking like you were going easy on me?”

 

“Well, I was thinking wrong.”

 

“Forget it. When have I ever pushed you this hard? This is probably the first time, right?”

 

“Is it?”

 

Delev grinned and bumped fists with Kus.

 

“Student Delev Kundel’s victory.”

 

“But he looks really exhausted, Boss.”

 

“He’ll have to endure it. From now on, recovering until the next semifinal will be key.”

 

Ziel didn’t know the semifinal format either.

 

With 5 people remaining, he predicted that either someone would advance with a bye, or they’d play multiple matches.

 

The next match was between Celia and Karen.

 

“The outcome is decided.”

 

“Right. Student Karen Aswan will lose.”

 

Ziel made the prediction calmly while adding a caveat.

 

“But it won’t be an easy victory.”

 

It was as Ziel expected.

 

Karen was similar in nature to Yurio.

 

She didn’t have Yurio’s level of talent, but her approach to swordsmanship was similar.

 

Drawing maximum efficiency in the way she could do best.

 

That was defense.

 

‘Shit, this isn’t easy.’

 

Celia became impatient seeing Karen hold out better than expected.

 

Meanwhile, Karen was clearly being pushed back but steadily blocked each sword strike.

 

She didn’t launch any offensive.

 

Karen didn’t have many places to retreat to.

 

While other students might get second or third chances, Karen lived in an environment where one mistake would send her tumbling off a cliff.

 

If Ziel hadn’t helped her, she would have had to return to her family by now and endure a life without dreams or anything else.

 

Of course, that was no longer the case, but the habits born from that environment didn’t change easily…

 

And that fact was now giving Celia a hard time.

 

“She’s been defending for over 10 minutes. Different from Delev.”

 

“Actually, Student Karen Aswan is the calmer one.”

 

“As expected of Karen.”

 

Kelvin cheered for Karen inwardly.

 

Because he’d heard a bit about her background from Gilbert.

 

He felt a connection to her impoverished upbringing, unusually poor for a noble!

 

Of course, Kelvin wasn’t a noble.

 

He’d just been so desperately poor that he started mercenary work early.

 

“Karen, just lose already!”

 

Celia couldn’t help but shout in frustration while attacking, but each time Karen calmly deflected the attacks.

 

Clang!

 

‘If it weren’t for the lessons I received from Teacher, I would have lost long ago, right?’

 

Senses training.

 

That lesson was helping more than ever before.

 

Swish!

 

In the lessons, she had to defend in darkness, listening only to bell sounds.

 

Even after the mana suppression bracelet was removed, there were no bells.

 

She had to rely solely on sound and the tactile sensation of air currents when something approached.

 

Now it was much easier than back then.

 

‘How on earth do I block this!’

 

Celia’s was Swift Swordsmanship.

 

In other words, fast attacks.

 

While a single strike’s destructive power might be less than Heavy Sword Technique, its speed was incomparably faster.

 

Yet Karen was blocking it.

 

There was also one fact that Karen had realized.

 

‘The movement when attacking.’

 

Celia’s Swift Swordsmanship had distinctive preparatory movements.

 

Perhaps from watching it so often, she could predict the attacks that would follow from those movements!

 

“That child has precisely identified the weakness of our family’s swordsmanship.”

 

Even Daren, the head of Rihart, acknowledged it.

 

Of course, beyond a certain level, Rihart-style Swift Swordsmanship could attack without even those preparatory movements.

 

Celia simply hadn’t reached that level yet.

 

Celia’s Two Elder Brothers, who were scheduled to compete in the Youth Division, also nodded.

 

“Our youngest is struggling.”

 

“At this rate, she might actually lose.”

 

One side was all offense.

 

One side was all defense.

 

It was clearly a similar structure to the match right before, but the content was flowing in completely opposite directions.

 

But Celia was strong.

 

Talent that rivaled Delev!

 

‘Why does it keep getting blocked? Continuously?’

 

Even while continuing her attacks, Celia pondered.

 

The presence or absence of talent was revealed right here.

 

One’s attitude when facing crisis and walls.

 

Celia possessed that attitude.

 

When attacking, Celia observed everything about Karen.

 

Footwork.

 

Hand movements.

 

And the timing of defensive movements.

 

‘Could it be.’

 

Celia tried to attack as a test.

 

At that moment, even before her attack had properly begun, Karen raised her sword precisely to the point Celia was about to attack, as if she had seen the future.

 

Only then did Celia realize.

 

‘So this was it.’

 

Clang!

 

Another attack blocked without fail!

 

But Celia was no longer impatient.

 

Instead, she decided to use this to her advantage.

 

‘Pretending to aim for the upper stance while…’

 

If she changed direction to Lower Stance at the moment of extension-

 

Swish!

 

“Ugh!”

 

She finally succeeded.

 

It was Celia’s first successful attack.

 

“Student Celia Rihart will soon achieve victory.”

 

Using that as a turning point, Celia pressed Karen relentlessly without pause.

 

What had been Celia’s weakness just moments before had now become Karen’s weakness instead.

 

Watching Celia’s attack movements and predicting defense points in advance had become poison!

 

Swish! Slash!

 

Celia’s sword grazed past shoulders and arms in an instant.

 

Karen intuited it.

 

With variability added to attacks fast enough that she needed to predict them to block, she couldn’t defend against them.

 

She tried, but only wounds remained.

 

‘I’ve lost.’

 

Karen finally raised her hand.

 

It was surrender.

 

“Winner, Celia Rihart!”

 

Cheers erupted from the Spectator Seats!

 

Daren stood up and applauded.

 

‘She excellently retraced her own problems.’

 

Recognizing problems during battle and adapting was a virtue that Knights must possess.

 

Talent, current skill, current swordsmanship.

 

Relying only on those would eventually halt development.

 

His Daughter had broken through that barrier magnificently.

 

But homework remained as well.

 

‘She can’t rely solely on variability.’

 

Celia couldn’t feel much joy even after winning.

 

Drastically changing the direction of an attack.

 

It might have worked this time, but she couldn’t guarantee it would work next time.

 

Each attack method in Swift Swordsmanship has its own proper stance.

 

Changing the direction of a sword strike that extends from that proper stance means it becomes that much slower.

 

In the end, it created the challenge of needing to use even faster swordsmanship that would be difficult for opponents to handle!

 

“Celia, you really are fast.”

 

“Ah, well. I’m a bit.”

 

But she didn’t forget the bluffing she had learned from watching Ziel.

 

At the same time, she didn’t forget to express her gratitude.

 

“Thank you.”

 

“For what?”

 

“Thanks to you, I learned about the problems with my swordsmanship.”

 

“Ah.”

 

Karen nodded as if she understood.

 

At the same time, she was impressed.

 

“You realized that during the fight?”

 

“That’s what Rihart must do.”

 

Celia looked toward somewhere in the spectator seats where her father and brothers would be.

 

An expression full of pressure that she had never seen before.

 

“Since it’s come to this, win the championship.”

 

“Of course.”

 

Still, she finished the match with the corners of her mouth turned up.

 

Following that, the fourth and fifth matches also determined their winners.

 

“Winner, Yurio Harmatan!”

 

“Winner, Maris Sopen!”

 

Compared to the previous matches, these concluded after proceeding quite one-sidedly.

 

Thus, the five top-tier students gathered.

 

Delev.

 

Celia.

 

Ann.

 

Maris.

 

And Yurio.

 

“Our son is in the top five…!”

 

Rangl Harmatan wanted to shout loudly, not caring about his position.

 

That child is my son!

 

Ann’s, Maris’s, Delev’s, and Celia’s parents felt the same way.

 

Everyone shared the same feelings.

 

At this moment, they were parents barely maintaining their dignity.

 

‘Thank you, Teacher Ziel.’

 

Rangl Harmatan went beyond that and offered a silent bow of gratitude toward Ziel, who was sitting far away.

 

But why was it?

 

It seemed like their eyes met.

 

‘So that’s the head of the Harmatan family.’

 

In fact, Ziel already knew.

 

And he began thinking about when to pass on the family sword he had once received from Rangl to Yurio.

 

“In 30 minutes, we will hold the special semifinals. Additionally, we will announce the special semifinal rules!”

 

Finally, the special semifinal rules were announced.

 

“The special semifinals will proceed as a ‘five-person chaotic battle’!”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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