Merida, who had been quiet until then, suddenly spoke in a completely serious tone.
"By the way... should I curse Rick with my sleep curse?"
There was a brief pause.
Then Cindy burst out laughing.
Knox let out a quiet chuckle and shook his head.
"Haha, no need. At the very least, Rick probably won't sell our information."
He paused for a second, then added with a faintly amused smile, "And if someone actually tracks him down and finds out he's Rick, I think he'd start scolding them on the spot before any deal could even happen."
Cindy laughed again.
"Hm. You might be right."
Merida gave a small nod, apparently accepting that reasoning.
Knox rested one hand against his cheek and continued, his tone becoming a little more thoughtful.
"Still, Rick aside, there's a good chance some students will share information beyond Kizen for the sake of networking, favors, or connections. So we should prepare under the assumption that our opponents may already know more about us than we'd like."
"In that case," Claudia said softly, as though summarizing the discussion, "we need to widen the gap so much that even if they know our information, they still can't deal with it properly."
Cindy immediately followed up, leaning forward a little.
"Or we gather information on them too and counterattack first."
Finally, Merida added in her usual calm, flat voice, "There's a lot to do."
"There is," Knox agreed.
For a brief moment, the four of them fell silent, each sorting through the implications in their own way.
If duel evaluations were really going to work the way Jane described, then this was not something they could afford to approach casually. It was not just about being strong. It was about being difficult to read, difficult to prepare against, and dangerous enough that even known information would not be enough to stop them.
Claudia let out a small sigh, then straightened slightly.
"Then let's start refining things one by one."
Knox gave a small nod.
"Yeah. We'll adjust as needed."
And so, amidst the noise of the training hall, Group 8 quietly began refining their approach for the duel evaluations.
Not far from them, other students were already busy testing spells, checking calculations, or challenging one another to short mock bouts. Protective vests were being passed around, black magic flashed on and off across several practice zones, and the assistant professors moved from place to place, answering questions and occasionally stepping in whenever someone got a little too excited.
For a while, Group 8 stayed focused on their own discussion.
After wrapping up their discussion, the members of Group 8 decided to move on to some light sparring.
Rather than jumping straight into anything too serious, they kept it simple at first, using the time to get a better feel for how each of them moved in a duel setting. Claudia focused on maintaining stable casting under pressure, Cindy experimented with timing and angle changes in her attacks, and Merida, despite looking as sleepy as ever, proved annoyingly difficult to approach once the mock exchanges actually began.
Knox rotated between them naturally, stepping in whenever needed.
Sometimes he sparred with them directly. Other times, he stood to the side and pointed out habits they did not notice themselves.
"Your casting rhythm is a little too honest," he told Claudia at one point. "It's smooth, but that also makes it easier to read. Try breaking the tempo once in a while."
To Cindy, he said, "You move fast, but your intention shows in your shoulders before you commit. If someone sharp notices that, they'll react before the spell even leaves your hand."
And when Merida lazily sent a sleep curse with almost no warning at all, Knox only smiled and said, "That one's good. Keep that exact lack of kindness."
Cindy nearly laughed herself out of her stance after hearing that, while Merida simply nodded as if receiving perfectly normal praise.
The sparring remained light, but useful.
Compared to monster battles, mock duels forced them to think in a completely different way. Distance felt different. Pressure felt different. Even timing a spell against a moving human target required a separate kind of judgment.
Knox helped where he could, occasionally stepping in to demonstrate, occasionally stopping them midway to point out something small but important, and occasionally making things worse on purpose just to see how they adapted.
Somewhere along the way, the original story also continued steadily around them.
Students kept moving from place to place. Some were still reviewing damage calculations, others practiced spells repeatedly, and several had already begun conducting mock duels with surprising enthusiasm.
It was during one of those quieter intervals that Knox's attention drifted elsewhere.
Not too far away, Simon appeared to be in the middle of his own problem.
From the look on his face, he seemed to be seriously reconsidering whether summoning would even be worth using in a duel. The expression was subtle, but after Jane's explanation earlier—and Hector's pointed comment in class—it was not especially difficult to guess what Simon was struggling with.
One of the assistant professors noticed it too.
After watching him for a bit, she seemed to make up her mind and approached him, likely intending to help by running a light spar.
From where he stood, Knox could not hear every word exchanged between them, but the intent was obvious enough. It was meant to be guidance.
What happened next, however, was much more entertaining than expected.
The light spar began.
And ended almost immediately with Simon delivering a kick sharp enough to make the assistant professor recoil in very genuine alarm.
Cindy, who had also noticed the commotion, leaned slightly to look past him.
"...Did Simon just scare an assistant professor?"
"Looks like it," Knox said.
The aftermath was even better.
The senior assistant professor hurried straight toward one of the senior assistants with the unmistakable energy of someone about to file a deeply personal complaint. The whole thing felt kind of ridiculous. She was just trying to help, and somehow ended up getting kicked for it.
Unfortunately for her, the senior assistant did not seem particularly sympathetic.
Even from a distance, it was easy to tell she was getting scolded instead. Judging by the reaction and gestures alone, the senior assistant appeared to be blaming her for carelessly initiating a light spar in the first place.
And to make matters worse, that little incident had produced an unintended side effect.
Once other students saw that assistant professors were willing to spar directly, more and more of them began gravitating toward the senior assistant as well, clearly hoping to get similar help.
Knox watched the chain reaction unfold with visible amusement.
"Well," he murmured, "that escalated in a very educational direction."
Cindy snorted.
"That poor assistant professor."
Merida, who did not sound especially sympathetic, added, "She walked into that herself."
After the brief commotion surrounding the assistant professor finally settled down, the flow of the training hall gradually returned to normal.
Not long after that, the other members of Group 7—excluding Simon himself—naturally drifted back toward him.
Meilyn arrived first, still looking faintly displeased for reasons that were probably split between concern and irritation. Rick followed soon after, scratching the back of his head as if he still was not entirely sure whether to laugh about what had just happened or take it seriously. Cami came last, quiet as usual, though her eyes moved between Simon and the nearby assistant professors with visible curiosity.
Before long, the four of them were standing together, exchanging a few low words among themselves.
From where he was, Knox did not try to listen in too closely, but he could guess the general topic well enough. Simon had already been under some pressure after the discussion about duels and summoning, and what had just happened with the assistant professor had probably only made the whole thing stranger.
At the same time, Knox's attention shifted elsewhere.
Not because of anything loud.
But because of movement.
From the opposite side of the training hall, a small group was approaching with a very particular kind of energy—the sort that did not belong to students coming over for casual conversation or training advice.
Hector.
And, of course, his faction was with him.
Knox's eyes narrowed just slightly.
Even from a distance, it was easy to read the atmosphere around them. Hector's expression already carried that familiar edge, while the people trailing behind him wore looks that hovered somewhere between smug anticipation and secondhand confidence. They were not walking over because something had happened by chance.
They had come with a purpose.
Cindy noticed the shift in his gaze and followed it.
"Oh."
Merida, after a second, also looked in the same direction.
"Troublesome."
Claudia said nothing, but her expression grew more focused almost immediately.
Knox let out the faintest breath through his nose, not quite a sigh, not quite a laugh.
"Well," he murmured, "looks like a free and wild talking sandbag really did appear~."
A moment later, the reason for Hector's approach became painfully obvious.
His group stopped not far from Simon and the others.
Then, without a word of warning, something flew through the air.
Simon's eyes sharpened at once.
His right hand snapped up beside his head, and in the next instant—
Thud.
A protective vest slammed into his palm.
Rick jolted.
"Wagh—!"
A small cloud of dust puffed out from the impact, and several nearby students immediately turned their heads toward the noise.
Simon lowered his eyes and looked at the vest in his hand.
Step. Step.
Hector continued walking forward until he stood directly before Group 7. Behind him, the members of his faction lingered with the same smug, entertained expressions as before, as if they had already decided this would be amusing no matter how it ended.
"Simon Polentia."
His voice was loud enough to carry.
"Put it on. Let's fight."
For a brief moment, Simon said nothing. Then he let out a quiet sigh and looked down at the protective vest again.
It almost seemed as though he might accept.
Instead, he hurled it back.
The vest flew fast enough that Hector had to properly brace himself to catch it, and even then, the force behind it was enough to make his hand jerk slightly on impact.
"Get lost," Simon said coolly. "I'm not in the mood to deal with you right now."
The expression on Hector's face twisted instantly.
Color rose into it all at once.
"You bastard—"
He took a step forward, Darkness already beginning to gather around his clenched fist, the black mana wrapping over his hand in a dense, ugly swell.
Simon did not retreat.
If anything, he lifted his chin a little higher.
"Don't do it, Hector."
Meilyn stepped in at once, placing herself between them before things could worsen further.
Her voice was sharp and cold, leaving no room for argument.
Hector's gaze shifted to her, and his expression darkened even more.
"Don't butt in, Ivory Tower."
"You're not a child," Meilyn shot back immediately. "So why are you acting like one? If you keep pulling this thug nonsense, I'm calling a professor."
The air around them tightened.
Even the students who had only been casually glancing over at first now began paying full attention.
Hector's lips trembled with anger.
Then, with deliberate malice, he spat out, "Serene's little lackey."
The effect was immediate.
The atmosphere turned cold enough to cut.
Rick's eyes widened.
Cami stiffened.
Even a few of Hector's own followers looked uncomfortable for a second and glanced at him as if to ask whether he had really just said that out loud.
And Meilyn—
snapped.
A Dark Flare magic circle unfolded across her palm almost instantly, black-red light spinning into shape with dangerous speed.
From where he stood, Knox's eyes sharpened.
This was bad.
Hector was not wearing any protective gear, the student protection period had already ended, and if Meilyn actually launched an attack spell at another unguarded student in the middle of class, the consequences would go well beyond a simple warning.
Simon moved immediately, clearly intending to stop her.
Hector, meanwhile, stood where he was with that ugly, taunting curl at the corner of his mouth, as if he were waiting to see whether she would really go through with it.
The situation was on the verge of crossing a line.
Meilyn's palm burned with the half-formed Dark Flare magic circle, black-red light turning sharply over her fingers as the tension between the two sides reached its breaking point.
And then Knox moved.
He stepped forward just as Simon was about to intercept, slipping neatly into the center of the scene with such casual timing that, for a second, it almost felt absurd. There was no urgency in his expression, no visible irritation, and no sign that he regarded the situation as especially serious.
He simply looked between Hector and Meilyn, then let out a quiet hum.
"Wow, looks like you're having fun here~"
The lightness in his tone was enough to make several nearby students blink.
"Knox," Meilyn said sharply.
He raised one hand a little without taking his eyes off Hector.
"Easy, easy. Don't throw your future away over something this cheap."
That made Meilyn's jaw tighten, but the words still hit where they needed to. The magic circle over her palm flickered once.
Knox's gaze shifted to Hector next, and the faint smile on his lips sharpened by just a trace.
"If you wanted a spar that badly, you could've just said so," he said. "Going after Simon, provoking Meilyn, making the whole thing louder than necessary... that's a lot of effort just to ask for attention."
A few students nearby had to look away.
Cindy nearly made a noise.
Hector's face darkened.
"What did you just say?"
Knox tilted his head.
"I said," he replied pleasantly, "if you're this desperate to fight someone, pick a better target."
For a moment, even the air seemed to stop.
And Hector's faction, which had been enjoying the scene a second ago, now looked uncertain whether they should feel excited or worried.
Hector let out a short, humorless laugh.
"You?"
Knox smiled.
"Hmm. Was that surprising?"
The edge in Hector's expression twisted into something uglier.
"You want to stand in for them?"
"More like I'd rather stop this before Meilyn burns your face off and turns the whole period into a disciplinary case."
That made Meilyn's still-active magic circle flicker again.
"Knox," she said through her teeth.
He finally glanced at her.
"What? I'm helping."
"I did not ask for your help."
"And I didn't want it either~."
That was enough to crack the tension just slightly. Cindy had to bite down on her laugh, while even Claudia, from farther back, looked torn between concern and helpless amusement.
Hector clenched the protective vest in his hand.
"Fine," he said. "If you want to step in that badly, then put this on."
He tossed the vest toward Knox.
Knox caught it easily.
The training hall had grown noticeably quieter by now. Too many students had started paying attention for this to remain a small incident, and even a few assistant professors had begun glancing in their direction, though none had intervened yet. As long as it stayed within the bounds of a proper spar, there was still room for the situation to pass as training rather than trouble.
Knox looked at the vest once, then at Hector.
"Sure," he said lightly. "A mock duel sounds healthier than whatever this was turning into."
He slipped the protective vest on without complaint, adjusted it once, then rolled his shoulders as if he were merely getting comfortable.
Hector, already wearing his own, let Darkness gather faintly around one hand before forcing it down again.
"Pick your weapon," he said coldly.
Knox blinked. Then he looked around for a second as though genuinely considering the idea.
A practice rack stood nearby, holding several wooden training weapons for light sparring. Swords, spears, staves.
Knox's eyes drifted over them.
"Hm?" he said. "A weapon?"
He looked back at Hector with a mild, almost puzzled expression.
"I don't think I'll need one against you."
Silence.
Then Hector's face changed so violently it was almost impressive.
The provocation landed even harder than if Knox had shouted at him. Because he had not. He had said it with the same easy, almost polite tone one might use when declining something trivial.
"You arrogant bastard," Hector spat.
Knox only smiled a little more.
"It's fine," he added. "My hands should be enough."
Then, as if something had only just occurred to him, Knox tilted his head slightly and let out a soft little laugh.
"Hehe... this is kind of nostalgic."
Hector's brow twitched.
"What?"
Knox's smile remained infuriatingly light.
"First in curse class, then in the bathhouse... and now again?" he said. "What is this, round three~?"
That did it.
Hector's expression twisted completely, whatever was left of his restraint shattering on the spot.
The veins on his neck stood out, and the black mana around him surged again in a way that made it obvious he was no longer thinking about this as a simple spar.
Even the students around them reacted at once.
Cindy nearly folded over right there.
Claudia looked genuinely alarmed now, while Merida stared at Knox for a second as if silently acknowledging that he had, in fact, chosen violence in the most conversational way possible.
Meilyn, meanwhile, closed her eyes for half a second.
"Oh, he did that on purpose."
Rick swallowed.
"...Round three?"
Knox, of course, looked perfectly innocent.