*
[The final day of the grade exam preliminaries has finally arrived!]
Kainel and Ariel have smoothly advanced to the finals. Finally, the preliminaries have come to an end, and according to the match schedule, Licht is set to compete.
“Hello, juniors!”
“Nex hyung..?”
“Nex oppa! Hello!”
The man with purple hair approached the Hero’s party, watching the match from one side of the audience where a junior in a Black Knight helmet was competing.
“How did you get here?”
“I came to cheer on Licht’s match since he’s my junior! Mardol!”
“What about the others…?”
With a fox-like smile, Nex tried to make small talk with Mardol.
“Actually, Shar is also taking her exam, so I came here because she asked me not to see her in a rough state! I think she looks beautiful no matter what… heh…”
“Uh..? Do you know Mardol?”
“Yeah, we’ve been kind of close since childhood.”
Seeing this, the red-haired elf noticed something strange and shot a questioning glance at the knight beside her.
“Oh, it’s starting! Juniors!”
But soon, she couldn’t help but put those suspicions aside. The announcer’s voice signaling the start of the exam heated up the crowd.
*
[This match is between Licht, the new student wearing the Black Knight helmet, and the son of Lord Reinhardt, the Imperial Knight Commander!]
[It’s a duel with Saint Knight Leon!]
I’ve met the Imperial Knight Commander several times in the game, but I didn’t know he had a son. The blond man walking towards me.
He wore armor similar to Mardol’s but with a lighter feel, featuring a lion emblem carved into it.
“Hm, you’re the top scorer in practical skills, Licht?”
“Nice to meet you, Leon.”
Having a lion’s heart nickname, Leon is the son of Reinhardt. I reached out to shake hands, looking forward to how strong he might be.
But that anticipation collapsed quickly. The blond knight just stared blankly at my hand.
“Sorry, but can we skip this introduction and get on with it?”
“What? Why?”
He looked at me with a disdainful expression and waved at the audience.
“There are Madonna ladies waiting for me. Hahaha!”
Madonnas? Why the plural? I looked up to see where he was waving. A strange sight caught my eye at the end of my gaze.
“Lord Reinhardt!!”
Women with various colored hair were seated together in the audience, cheering for one man.
“Gyaah!! You’re so cool!!”
A sky-blue-haired female mage shouted, a girl in rogue-like attire waving her hands wildly, and a noble lady holding a fan, with drill-style hair.
“This guy’s popularity… urgh..”
Looking at them, I shook my head at the arrogant knight in front of me. No way could he be romantically involved with one of them, right?
“W-wait. Do you have a girlfriend among them?”
“Yeah, several actually. I need to finish this quickly and go on a date.”
I tried giving him a pass, thinking it might just be a misunderstanding. At first, I prayed it wouldn’t be what I feared.
“My harem members love me so much!”
“…”
“They really dislike when I spend time with other guys!”
What a lunatic. Then again, in [Black Heart], a harem route was introduced, so I should’ve expected a character like this.
“So, I’ll fight without holding back, so don’t hold any grudges.”
“Hahaha..”
Swish. I pulled out my Pure Love Injector #2 from my waist. I didn’t need a belief to take him down. Even with the fierce steel in sight, he didn’t blink.
“Jealous, are we?”
“Hahahaha!!”
I could only let out a hollow laugh. He seemed well-versed in combat, being the knight commander’s son and all, but this was crossing the line for a provocation meant to fluster the opponent.
“Love seems light to you, huh? Leon.”
“..What are you talking about? If you’re jealous, just say so openly.”
[Match Start!!]
At that moment, a horn sounded throughout the arena as the match began.
「Drake Style Move 4, Void Slash.」
As I prepared the stance for Void Slash aimed at my opponent, I unleashed the pressure I had gathered in my right hand. A tremendous gust of wind surged toward him.
[That’s the Void Slash of the Dragon Slayer!! A technique focused on the slicing power to cut the opponent, said to reinterpret the figure of His Majesty the Emperor!]
Bam bam bam!! The sound engulfed Leon, and the arena floor was scarred, raising a cloud of dust.
“…Was that too rough?”
“Shut it.”
From within that cloud, Leon walked out. If he could use magic or divine power, then defeating him with mere swordsmanship would be tough.
“…I didn’t expect your Mana Shield wouldn’t block it, so I ended up using the Saint Knight skill. You really are strong.”
In his hand was a large shield with a cross that hadn’t been visible before. He must have used that to block my Void Slash.
[That’s the shield used by the Knight Commander before! Its grandeur still remains!]
His gaze shifted from a breezy womanizer’s to a piercing one like a beast. That lion heart nickname didn’t come from nowhere.
“I need to go on a date, and now my hair’s all messed up.”
He showed an annoyed look while fixing his hair. Drawing his sword, he readied for an attack. Was he planning to attack using divine power? I prepared my Wing Spread.
「Sacred Lion.」
In an instant, particles of white divine power gathered around his sword, forming the shape of a beast as it charged at me. A lion barreling forward to devour its foe.
But the opponent was in for a surprise. I had also used the Saint Knight skill before, and now I knew its weaknesses.
“I told you, love is light.”
With that, I countered the divine – powered lion with my Wing Spread. The third technique exploiting the opponent’s strengths. He probably hadn’t expected that.
“…Huh?”
He quickly raised his shield to block the reflected attack. This created an opening, and I charged at him with Wolf Fang. I rushed in, barely a foot away, and he started to show signs of agitation.
「Reverse Scale Stab.」
Clang! Clang! The sound echoed as metal clashed with metal. His balance began to falter from the attack aimed at the gaps in his armor.
“Grrr..”
He began to fall on the back foot. The mana-based armor started to chip away. If this continued, victory would be mine.
「La, Lion Pride!!」
Suddenly, mana erupted from his body, crashing into mine. Another lion-themed technique, I suppose. Definitely a knight commander’s son.
The distance between us widened once more.
“I need to get serious too. Licht.”
He spat out dirt that had gotten in his mouth and reignited his fighting spirit.
Right, a harem protagonist should show this kind of side at least.
“Where did that initial confidence go, Leon?”
“…You shouldn’t get complacent in a fight.”
「Howling Wind.」
He gripped his sword and manipulated mana around his body. He took a stance I had seen somewhere before, preparing to attack me.
Was this the Empire’s swordsmanship? If I hadn’t learned Wolf Fang from Mardol, it would’ve been wise to learn through the Knight Commander or join a swordsmanship club.
“I’ll finish you off with this attack.”
[This time, Leon will showcase Grancia-style swordsmanship! How will Licht overcome this situation?]
Similar to Mardol, a roar of a lion echoed in place of a wolf, aiming to inflict fainting effects on me.
They say magic reflects the mind. At this point, it wasn’t even surprising anymore. Some used glass magic, while others used alcohol to cast spells.
“Sorry but, I’ve seen this technique before.”
I briefly closed my eyes. Thought about why I held a sword, clench my jaw tight. I forced all my strength into my legs, trying not to fall.
Crack. The sound echoed as cracks formed in the arena floor. I suppressed his magic with my will.
“W-what? It didn’t faint?!”
“…Unlike someone, my love is heavy.”
“Doesn’t matter! Licht!”
「King of Heart.」
After he finished chanting, enormous golden lions rushed toward me, much larger than before. One of the techniques from the Knight Commander Reinhardt. Who knew I would get to experience it firsthand.
Seeing a technique I only knew from the game come to life is always nostalgic.
“…But it’s slower than the original. You’ve shown off too much.”
Unlike the original technique, this line of lions appeared messy and chaotic. I dashed toward the gaps, wedging in with Wolf Fang. I closed the distance between us once again.
If the real Reinhardt were here, there wouldn’t even be these flaws.
“W-what?! You dodged all of them?!”
“It felt like you learned the technique just to brag to girls, didn’t you?”
While running, I prepared to mix Shadow Slash and Void Slash. I pushed off the ground and set my blood flow racing.
“If you block it with a shield…!”
I took a downward slash. He raised his shield, trying to block my blade’s course.
“Too late.”
But I had aimed not for his real body but for the shadow. The ground was scraped, and the shadow was slashed. A technique delivering damage to the real face through an illusion.
With a loud bang!, the mana armor shattered.
[Match End!!]
[The winner!! Licht!!]
The horn sounded again as Laplace announced the victor.
“…I lost?”
From the start, thinking a Saint Knight could defeat me was a mistake. A harem king being a Saint Knight is the silliest thing ever.
The weakness of divine power is the implementation of rationality. Hence, if the battle dragged on…
“Why… why didn’t it work?! That shield should’ve withstood such an attack!”
“You were flustered, thinking you would lose to me.”
“…Ugh.”
If one becomes flustered against an opponent, their power decreases.
This was something Beatrice, my professor from the class [Understanding Divine Power], had mentioned before, and it was also the reason why the Saintess couldn’t even perform a healing prayer after seeing my character die.
“Listen well, Leon.”
I approached him as he expressed confusion and opened my mouth.
If he had wielded his sword loving just one person, he wouldn’t have let the King of Hearts slip through nor would the shield powered by divine strength have malfunctioned.
‘…Maybe I should’ve used Lily Sword Technique or Mind Sword to win.’
In the finals, I needed to deliberately lose without anyone catching wind of it. If I did, it might raise questions from someone. It was best to hide any moves I could make.
“‘Harem Pure Love’ doesn’t exist. Choose a single partner and lead a wholesome life.”
“What…?”
As I watched Leon, unable to accept his defeat, I couldn’t help but say it.
If you love someone, wanting to monopolize them is only natural. Sharing that feeling with someone else or seeing another lover with them would feel like…
“…Then it means ‘love was light from the start.’”
It’s not a relationship of equality; it’s one between superior and inferior. Such a contradiction shouldn’t be lightly remarked upon with the word ‘pure love.’
‘The nameless saintess once said pure love is invincible.’
The Nameless Saintess was a character who preached her own interpretation of pure love like this, and though I had never experienced love in reality, she had saved me spiritually.
Therefore, I wanted to say something to him, who left such flaws while dealing with a harem.
What kind of harem pure love is this? A harem pure love?
If you’re going to do it, then stick to just one.
