Chapter 57: There’s No Such Thing as a Cowardly Victory

Thud!

“Ugh…!”

Jolted awake by a sharp pain in my backside, I lifted my head and looked around.

Where…

I was in a room shrouded in darkness.

I opened my eyes in an empty space.

Was this the place for Lumine’s trial?

As I thought that, I heard the sound of someone approaching from the darkness.

A shadow slowly drew closer and finally stopped in front of me.

And the shadow’s true identity was-

“…Louis?”

Me.

Or rather, someone who looked exactly like me.

Hair color, eye color.

With a face identical to mine, ‘Louis’ smirked.

“Hello.”

I stared at ‘Louis’ with a bewildered look.

He was exactly the same as me.

Face, height, even the scar on my face from the recent sparring match.

Everything was identical.

How was this possible?

There was only one answer I could think of.

A question I had never considered before.

What happened to the original Louis when I possessed his body?

And the answer was.

“You were alive?”

“Hmm…. Not in that sense, but I suppose it’s similar.”

‘Louis’ neither confirmed nor denied my question.

Not in that “sense”?

Hearing his answer, something clicked in my mind.

“Then are you a Doppelganger?”

“Oh? How did you know?”

A setting that appeared in the comic.

Doppelgangers existed in this world.

They perfectly copied their target’s appearance.

And could use the same abilities.

Not considered living beings.

A kind of spiritual entity.

A Doppelganger, looking exactly like me, was staring at me.

Was this Lumine’s trial?

A Doppelganger would certainly be a tricky opponent.

But there was no helping it.

If this was the trial she prepared.

I had to overcome it.

I took out the Orb of Dreams and created a sword.

The Doppelganger watched me closely.

“Hmm…. Like this?”

“…What?”

And then it effortlessly created a sword out of thin air.

It could copy that too?

I was taken aback by its ability to replicate not just my abilities, but even items.

I hadn’t anticipated this.

Contrary to my expectation that it would only copy my swordsmanship, the Doppelganger’s abilities were overwhelmingly powerful.

Crackle

And now it was even summoning electricity.

I stared at the Doppelganger with a tense expression.

This wasn’t just a simple trial.

If I made even the slightest mistake.

I would die.

“Let’s have some fun!!”

“…!”

As the Doppelganger swung its sword, a massive electrical storm rushed towards me.

I couldn’t block this.

Discarding the idea of creating a shield to block it.

I threw myself to the side with all my might.

Boom!!!

“Ugh…!”

Sparks grazed past me.

I broke out in a cold sweat as the floor exploded where the attack landed.

Was Lightning Strike this powerful?

I hadn’t realized it when I used it.

But now, being the target, I could truly appreciate its power.

If I got hit by that, I would be seriously injured.

Seeing the Doppelganger preparing to use Lightning Strike again.

I quickly activated Stealth.

“Ha! Hiding like a rat?”

The Doppelganger clicked its tongue, seeing me disappear in an instant.

I could win if I quietly approached it and attacked from behind.

That’s what I thought, until I heard its next words.

“Then I’ll just burn everything around me.”

…What?

A sense of foreboding welled up inside me.

Burn everything around? What did that even mean?

I didn’t have such a technique….

But my question was quickly answered.

“Die!!!”

The Doppelganger gathered its mana and shot electricity into the sky.

Lightning bolts rained down from the sky.

I frantically dodged the indiscriminate bombardment, with no specific target.

The Doppelganger wasn’t just copying the techniques I used.

But the essence of my abilities itself.

The Doppelganger started using abilities I hadn’t even created.

Boom!

Boom!

Too much time had passed without me being able to get close to the Doppelganger.

My Stealth finally wore off.

“...”

“There you are…!!”

I quickly shot Lightning Strike at the Doppelganger.

But it dodged effortlessly and started closing in.

“Haaaa!!”

The Doppelganger roared and swung its sword at me.

I blocked it with my sword and then swung upwards from below.

“Ugh…!”

It managed to dodge by turning its head.

But a small wound appeared on the Doppelganger’s cheek.

However.

Perhaps because I put too much strength into my body.

I stumbled slightly.

And the Doppelganger, seizing the opportunity, slammed the hilt of its sword into my face.

“Gah…!”

I collapsed onto the floor.

“I win!!”

The Doppelganger shouted, its face flushed with excitement.

But the fight wasn’t over yet.

I glared at the approaching Doppelganger and spat the blood pooling in my mouth at its eyes.

“Ugh…! What the…!”

The Doppelganger, its eyes covered in blood, clutched its face in pain and started swinging its sword wildly.

“You…coward!!”

Calling me a coward?

There was no such thing in a life-or-death battle.

What I learned from several battles was.

The one who survives is the strongest.

So it didn’t matter how.

I just had to win.

The Doppelganger stumbled.

I seized the chance, got up, and quickly rushed towards it.

And.

Stab

With the sensation of the sword piercing flesh.

I thrust my sword into the Doppelganger’s heart.

“…….”

The sword entered too easily.

The Doppelganger stared at the sword piercing its heart for a moment and then spoke.

“…It doesn’t hurt as much as I thought.”

Blinking its eyes, the Doppelganger slowly disintegrated into small particles.

The victor was decided.

And the Doppelganger was dying.

But it wasn’t a pleasant feeling to watch my own face die.

Even as it turned into sand, the Doppelganger looked at me and smiled faintly.

“Congratulations.”

A relieved face with no regrets.

“You won.”

The Doppelganger smiled brightly at me.

Then it completely crumbled.

At the same time, an intangible energy surged into my body.

She said I would become stronger if I overcame the trial.

Was this what she meant?

The energy that entered my body as the Doppelganger disappeared.

It was a mysterious energy I had never felt before.

I closed my eyes and savored the energy.

Then, feeling a white light enveloping me.

I surrendered myself to the light.

.
.
.
.
.

The light faded, and I was back in the middle of the classroom.

“Oh? Louis!”

Lisa, spotting me, widened her eyes.

“Where were you? I was worried…!”

“…Where was I indeed.”

“…Huh?”

It seemed they were quite flustered when I disappeared after we entered the pillar of light together.

Exhausted from the battle with the Doppelganger, I stumbled and sat down on my chair.

Seeing the bewildered faces of my classmates, looking disheveled, brought a sense of reality.

I was back.

I finally relaxed my tense body.

Although my mana was depleted.

The mysterious energy still lingering within me asserted its presence.

The classroom buzzed with chatter.

The atmosphere instantly quieted down as Lumine opened the door and entered.

Lumine, standing at the podium, looked down at us and spoke.

“Good work, everyone.”

Everyone in Class C looked at her.

“To think you all overcame the trial within three days without a single casualty. You’re much more capable than I thought.”

There was still a day left.

Yet everyone in Class C was back in the classroom.

It meant they had all completed the trials Lumine had set.

“Some of you were quite interesting.”

I met Lumine’s gaze, which was blatantly directed at me, and thought.

Why was she so interested in me?

I couldn’t understand.

I hadn’t had any interaction with Lumine before….

“You may all rest now.”

Her nonchalant words relieved the tension from the students who had been holding their breath.

“Sigh…”

Starting with someone’s sigh, everyone collapsed onto the floor, exhausted.

Lumine, passing by the students, approached me.

“Congratulations. You overcame the trial.”

Lumine wore a playful smile.

“Chuckle. I look forward to working with you.”

Staring at the white hand extended towards me, I raised my trembling hand and took hers.

“…I look forward to working with you too.”

I had a feeling that my academy life wouldn’t be easy from now on.