Everything was proceeding as Astrid had envisioned. There was a gap between peak tier Sorcerers, and Lyra ultimately defeated her opponent with overwhelming strength, garnering the attention and cheers of everyone present.

Monica, dressed in an elegant white dress, sat in the audience, leaning back in her seat. Her slender legs, encased in white stockings, were elegantly crossed, and her orange eyes gazed at the beautiful figure bathed in holy light on the field. Her gaze was deep and calm.

Although Third Princess Astrid was the most likely person to change the fate of the two countries, Lyra Beckett, as a chosen one watched by the gods, must possess something crucial.

Especially that semi-transparent knight sword, which shared the same origin as the holy artifact. Although Lyra did not activate its power excessively during the battle, as the Saintess closest to the holy artifact, Monica could naturally see that the power displayed by the Sword of Light was merely a tip of the iceberg.

Perhaps only when Lyra faced an enemy stronger than the current one would she truly glimpse the sword's unleashed full potential.

"Of all the Sorcerers I have seen in my life, Lyra is in a league of her own."

Following Monica's suggestion, Iris, who had watched the entire match seriously, gave her judgment.

"A peak tier Sorcerer and a peak tier Great Knight, combining efficient magic with mature combat techniques, plus that sword of unknown origin. I'm afraid no one below the rank of Magnus would be her match."

"However... there is still a considerable gap compared to a Master Knight..."

Iris also roughly understood why Monica had specifically asked her to watch Lyra's match.

The combat power displayed by the other party was indeed astonishing, and judging by the speed and scale of her manipulation of elemental particles, her affinity was definitely not low. With such potential, if she were given a few more years, this pink-haired girl should grow into someone that most people in the audience would have to look up to.

"If Your Highness Iris were to face her, what are your chances of winning?"

In response to Monica's question, Iris frowned, her gaze swept over the person on the sparring stage, and she quickly replied.

"Eight parts."

"So low?"

"I mean, I can achieve victory within eight minutes."

Lyra was very strong, but compared to her, who was a whole major rank higher, she was still a bit lacking.

Judging from the specific of her moves and the strength of the magic she cast, Iris gave a conservative estimate. If she went all out, she was confident she could defeat her opponent in five minutes.

"Miss Monica, why did you suddenly ask such a strange question?" Iris asked Monica.

Could it be that she thought Lyra could challenge opponents of a higher rank?

Even a chosen one would find it difficult to overcome the gap in raw strength. At least, Iris believed that the possibility of her losing was extremely slim.

Monica was silent for a moment before replying.

"It's nothing, I just wanted to ask."

"After all, Lyra is very close to that princess. Who knows if the latter has any way to help her improve her strength quickly."

This was a mysterious feeling Monica had after several interactions with Astrid.

There seemed to be something very special about her, different from the common people Monica had seen in the imperial capital before. Although it was the first time they met, Monica didn't know why she felt a sense of incongruity.

It was as if Astrid Calliste should not have been this kind of person.

"Astrid..."

Iris did not have the same feeling as Monica. She subconsciously connected Astrid's words to the Valeria Empire itself.

As a princess, Astrid should have vast resources. However, magic is key to oneself. Forcing external factors to elevate one's rank would only make it difficult to match one's rank with combat power, and one would not be able to exert their full strength.

"If I have the chance to face Lyra, I will go all out," Iris said.

She also wanted to see what was different about this destined woman.

.................

Returning to the audience, Lyra accepted the hot black tea prepared by Astrid. Her blue eyes sparkled as she looked at Astrid and said softly,

"Astrid... I performed well today, right..."

This was probably Lyra's best performance in her recent matches. Even she felt she had surpassed her usual self.

Looking at the pink-haired girl who had shed her serious and calm demeanor during the sparring and had become soft and cute, Astrid raised her lips and slowly said,

"You did very well, Lyra."

Upon hearing this, Lyra narrowed her eyes, leaned back in her seat with her back relaxed, her slender and straight white-stockinged legs together. She looked like a pink-haired dog whose fur had been stroked by an invisible hand.

"Does Astrid want to continue watching the matches?"

"Yes, there's a match I'm also paying attention to later."

"It's the princess of the Kingdom of Velys, um... the contestant named Iris?"

"That's her."

Looking at the corner of Lyra's lips, which was slightly stained with tea from drinking, Astrid took out a handkerchief and gently wiped it clean with the back of her finger.

Feeling the smooth touch of the silk handkerchief on her lips, Lyra, who had been tense both physically and mentally, completely relaxed. Her ears turned slightly red, and her fingers tapped lightly on the glass bottle.

"If you get it dirty again, I'll have you clean it yourself."

"...Okay."

Taking the silk handkerchief that Astrid carried with her, Lyra placed her study notes on the seat on her lap and wrote diligently during the intermission.

"What are you writing?" Astrid asked her.

Hearing this, Lyra glanced at Astrid, who was sitting elegantly beside her. Today, the princess had changed into a white shirt and black skirt that were not as aristocratic, and she wore her usual thin black stockings.

"It's a post-match review of the match just now," Lyra replied softly.

"Although I feel I performed quite well, I think there is still room for improvement, so I'm recording it first."

"I might forget it after a while, but now that I have time and have just finished the match, my hands are still warm, and my memory is the best."

Besides winning or losing, review is also an equally important part. Only by understanding the impact of each of her actions on the game can one truly understand which defeats were unnecessary and which victories were purely coincidental.

Looking at the casting sequence and battle changes recorded on Lyra's notebook, which resembled a timeline, Astrid blinked her eyelashes and didn't know what to say for a moment.

In terms of effort, even she, a transmigrator, was inferior to this destined heroine.

"Lyra..."

"Hmm? What's wrong, Astrid?"

"To achieve victory, besides training yourself and finding your strengths, you also need to study your opponent's moves appropriately."

Since Lyra wanted to win so badly, Astrid might as well give her some more hints, even if it only slightly increased her chances of winning.

Hearing Astrid say this, Lyra nodded thoughtfully.

"Does Astrid mean I should watch more matches?"

Understanding the opponent is sometimes more important than understanding oneself.

"More or less," Astrid replied ambiguously.

"I've been watching the matches these past two days and can basically judge who are the favorites to win this magic exchange competition."

Of course, Astrid's judgment was based on the original novel, at least it clearly listed the participants in the top eight and top four.

"That senior who fought you before, 'Flame Dancer' Nosse, has at least the level of the top eight among the many contestants. You can pay more attention to her matches."

"Next is Sentos Apulios, a contestant from the Pan-Human Alliance, who has one-quarter mermaid blood and excellent affinity with water elements. His strength should not be underestimated."

"..."

"Finally, there is Iris Kroyd, a genius mage with royal blood. If nothing unexpected happens, she will be the favorite to win this magic exchange competition."

In the original novel, the winner was a senior from Elizabeth Academy of Magic, who had the level of an early tier Magnus. However, with Iris joining the competition, everything became less certain.

In the match Astrid watched yesterday, Iris already possessed almost dimension-breaking strength against an early tier Magnus, vaguely giving the impression that she was only one step away from becoming a middle-tier Magnus.

"These people... I've noted them down..." Lyra said.

Originally, Lyra didn't have that much time to watch every match. However, with Astrid's list of contestants, which was almost as good as a predetermined one, she could selectively watch some matches.

Astrid nodded slightly upon hearing this and stopped speaking, her peripheral vision falling on Lyra, who was lowering her head and diligently organizing her notes.

Perhaps... her little maid really had a chance to win the championship?

After all, since she transmigrated here, Lyra had been in a state of constant frustration, lacking any sense of the transcendent presence of a protagonist. Her most significant highlight was perhaps defeating the professor, whose mental power was almost depleted, during the entrance test.

If she hadn't changed the story from the beginning, and Lyra Beckett was still a key figure in her sister's writing, then this Holy Light Knight had been too quiet for too long, and it was time for a resounding victory in the imperial capital.

For example, representing the Elizabeth Academy of Magic of the Valeria Empire, defeating the enemy princess whose paper strength was far superior to hers.

After a long period of thought, Astrid returned to reality, the heel of her black leather boots lightly tapping the ground with a clear but not jarring sound.

No one could predict the future outcome. At this point, Astrid was also unsure how far the protagonist's halo would help Lyra.

She just had to do her best. Even if she failed in the end, crying heartily in her arms would not be a big deal. She believed Lyra could adjust her mindset.

Completely unaware of Astrid's extensive thoughts in the past ten minutes, Lyra handed the recorded notes to Elise, who was sitting beside Astrid, and quietly asked if her annotations were correct.

Even though it had been a long time since she had sparred with the head maid, Lyra still regarded her as a teacher from the bottom of her heart. Especially as her strength grew and she understood the gap between each small rank above Magnus, she understood even more how much restraint Elise had shown when sparring with her back then.

A peak tier Master Knight against a Knight. Let alone fighting with all her might, just a stern glare from the other party would likely make her limbs weak and unable to lift her sword.

Master Knight powerhouses were terrifyingly powerful!

................

Twenty minutes later, Iris, dressed similarly to yesterday, walked onto the sparring stage to face another early tier Magnus.

Feeling the sunlight falling from above and the unreserved aura of a strong opponent in front of her, the princess showed no emotional fluctuation. She simply stood still, waiting for the match to begin.

"Your Highness Iris... also uses a sword..."

Seeing the slender knight sword in the girl's hand, which was different from the wand of other mages, Lyra's eyes sparkled slightly.

Students of Elizabeth Academy of Magic were mostly composed of noble elites. They generally believed that mages holding wands were nobler than knights fighting in close combat with swords, and studying magic was a symbol of status and identity, so they were not keen on researching combat techniques.

Lyra had not dueled with a contestant holding the same weapon for a long time, so she was eager to make friends through swordsmanship.

"Iris is not only a Magnus but also a Master Knight. Using a sword is just her personal habit," Astrid said.

Clearly, in the mind of this experienced princess, a sword suitable for bearing mental power and casting combat techniques was more handy than a staff that could better sense elements and activate magic.

As the two spoke, the battle officially began. Almost as soon as the host's voice fell, Iris disappeared from her original position like a projectile launched instantaneously, then reappeared in front of Magnus like a flash.

Lyra also liked to use this move, utilizing the physical strength brought by her peak tier great knight rank to approach the physically fragile mage with explosive speed, catching the opponent off guard.

The opponent of Iris, a petite female mage, had also anticipated that she might do so. The spells 'Mud Pit' and 'Arcane Stasis' were cast almost instantly, one after the other. The former was aimed at the ground beneath her feet, and the latter was directed at Iris and her sword.

As the arcane particles approached Iris, a faint white light flashed on the princess, and a moment of astonishment appeared in the mage's heart.

This was the mark of the arcane magic [Magic Counter].

How could that magic be cast so quickly?