This was undoubtedly the coldest line of the new century.
It couldn't compare—truly ruthless to the point of heartlessness.
Someone had brought their friends along to help, and he—he just asked, "Who are you?"
If it had been someone with a shorter temper, a fight might have broken out on the spot—people just can't be this shameless!
Yet, you couldn't entirely blame Allen. Sure, he had collected information on classmate, but no photos existed. Even giving ten lives, he wouldn't have dared to conjure a picture.
Later, the only other time he saw Kaoru was when she came looking for Marshall. He had glanced at her curiously, but obviously couldn't stare—he wasn't a pervert.
And Miss Kaoru now was in a completely different state from the time she'd come searching for Marshall—her outfit, her demeanor, even her expression had all changed.
In this situation, it would've been strange if Allen recognized her.
But that excuse didn't hold water.
Because she was helping the girl—I don't want to hear it! I don't want to hear it!
Exactly. That was the kind of move they pulled.
Allen, of course, had no intention of explaining.
His counter-question, flouting the usual script, left the other party speechless—their rehearsed interrogation and accusations were all choked off. The whole scene became extremely awkward.
Fortunately, numbers and collective strength mattered. Though Allen stalled briefly, a feisty little girl soon stepped forward, pointing at him and scolding:
"You, you, you shameless fiend! How dare you slander our senior!"
"Don't worry, little lady. Speak slowly—" Allen said with utmost politeness.
It wasn't because he enjoyed seeing her falter; the girl was just too young—around seven, probably a new student. At that age, unless the child was exceptionally bold, Allen couldn't bear to scold her loudly. Any loud reprimand would've felt like bullying.
So Allen cheerfully dug into his pocket, pulling out some candy and handing it over.
"Here, sweetie. Adults are talking—let the kids eat candy."
And that's when he got into trouble.
The little girl instinctively took the candy, then realized something was off—she ran off crying.
At the same time, the girls' helper squad's anger skyrocketed. Each of them could barely restrain themselves from pummeling Allen. He was utterly baffled—what had he done?
Nothing, really. The child had merely accepted candy without thinking, breaking her "obedient, sensible little adult" image she'd maintained since enrollment. For a seven-year-old, a crying episode was completely normal. But because this little "adult" was popular among girls, making her cry incited collective outrage.
See? Simple enough. Allen had instantly drawn everyone's hatred. Originally, most were just bystanders; now, naturally, they wanted to see this scoundrel get beaten.
Although Allen had forgotten the girl's identity, obviously remembered him. But now, she had no intention of greeting him.
She didn't even speak. She simply raised her wand, tip pointed directly at Allen. That gesture alone was enough for any wizard to take it as an act of aggression—no different from pointing a gun at a Muggle.
Moreover, with so many cheering supporters around, the moment Kaoru raised her wand naturally, they were shouting to "hit him!"—and sprinkled among them were a few less polite words.
Trouble had come knocking, and Allen wasn't about to hide. Beautiful or not, if she dared point a wand at him, she would get a beating—anyone who came to fight must be prepared to be fought.
Seeing Allen casually lift his wand, her expression hardened. His stance looked loose, like he wasn't taking the duel seriously—but she wouldn't hold back. If a fight is to be fought, give it your all. This was the education she'd received before even becoming a wizard.
A solid fighting philosophy: strike with all you've got.
Too bad she wasn't a lion—just a rabbit.
Three spells, executed with lightning speed and without any incantation, flew straight at Allen, almost creating sonic booms. Any normal wizard might have fallen under such a relentless triple attack.
But Allen's spell easily blocked the assaults, and the rebounding magic even struck some onlookers, one boy getting knocked out cold instantly.
Pretty impressive—Allen thought, watching the unlucky student fall. That boy was probably an average third-year in skill. Not even a third of the attack had been blocked, and that wasn't even the big spell—it was just a test. She truly lived up to her reputation.
Allen had no intention of letting her gain fame. He didn't know why she'd come to stir trouble, but there was no need to ask—he just needed to subdue her.
The only consideration was whether to slow down, to avoid frightening everyone too much.
Allen estimated her reputation was no small matter. Handling the fight too quickly would be unreasonable, so he decided to hold back a little, fight for ten minutes, and pretend to find a flaw before bringing her down. Then he'd compliment her strength, ensuring she wouldn't cause more trouble.
He didn't know much yet—he assumed she'd come to confront him for his morning-class fame. He even prepared to smooth things over—after taking so many benefits, one had to maintain appearances.
Even if he could have used a vine for a sneaky strike or created a bizarre scene, he didn't—he wasn't about to ruin everything by going too far.
So Allen acted like he was giving it his all, counterattacking, deliberately slowing his movements so she could dodge.
They fought back and forth for ten minutes, letting the onlookers enjoy the spectacle, before Allen pretended to find a flaw and scored a "victory"—a near-perfect script.
Yet—he had underestimated her.
Though invisible to others, she could clearly feel he was holding back—not just holding back, but teasing. He easily blocked her attacks, deliberately responding with barely-avoidable spells, like a cat toying with a mouse.
Having never fought such a frustrating battle, Kaoru felt mocked with every attack and dodge. Combined with last night's grievances and today's gossip, her eyes began to sting—an unfamiliar, sour feeling.
Finally, after another of Allen's probing attacks, Kaoru didn't dodge. She lowered her wand, and her eyes welled up uncontrollably.
Unprepared for this, Allen quickly used another spell to dissipate the slower one, preventing direct harm.
Yet—he realized he might as well have hit her.
His action confirmed Kaoru's suspicion: he had indeed been playing cat-and-mouse all along.
Under the eyes of the crowd, the girl crouched down, arms crossed, burying her face—and cried.
••┈┈┈┈┈༓┈┈┈┈┈•••
100 Power Stones = Bonus Chapter
170+ Advance Chapters on P@treon(.)com/Veltoria