The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　Supporters of the "Magic Academy" roared with excitement, cheering Saraswati on with all their might.

　Saraswati's start was not smooth.

　With his age advantage, Snake Harriman has more experience in starting, and his magic card reserves also support him in completing the deck he wants.

　However, the good times didn't last long. After a difficult initial period, Sarah quickly launched a counterattack.

　Even Snake had never witnessed such bizarre and mysterious rituals, their unfathomable and secretive magic instantly shattering Snake's offensive and plunging him into a predicament.

　Sarah then grew stronger with each battle, completely taking control of the battlefield and utterly crushing Snake Harriman, a fifth-year student, causing his defense to collapse and leaving him like a candle in the wind.

　He drew the hidden magic card at the last moment, but it didn't turn the tide. Instead, Sara's foresight led to his crushing defeat!

　Snake Harriman, defeated!

　The challenger wins after six attempts.

　Saraswati won two consecutive challenges, earning 20,000 points for the "Magic Academy"!

　The Magic Academy's total score has officially surpassed that of the Noble Academy, making it the number one among the four academies!

　Saraswati's victory not only caught the House of Nobles off guard, but also plunged the House of Fools' long-awaited counterattack into a quagmire.

　Before the Duel Challenge, the total points of "Fool's House" and "Magic Academy" were only 5,000 points apart, meaning they could overtake each other with just one win.

　After the grade-level competition in the Duel Challenge, the gap widened to 15,000 points, requiring two wins to overtake.

　However, since the start of the cross-level challenge, the Magic Academy has successfully crossed levels three times in a row, scoring two 10,000 points and one 20,000 points, while the Fool's Academy has only scored 10,000 points. The gap between the two sides has widened to a full 30,000 points, and it will take 50,000 points to overtake them.

　This gap is truly despairing.

　As a sixth-grader, Gina Grant could only defend her title and could not challenge others in the higher-level challenge, making the outcome almost certain.

　The contestants of "Fool's House" immediately became anxious and desperately searched for a possibility of winning.

　But the House of Nobles immediately sent out another challenger after that.

　Anna Claris, a second-year student in the "Noble Academy"!

　The princess's grand finale appearance brought new hope to the "House of Nobles," and the audience outside the venue became increasingly restless.

　But at this point, Anna has very few goals left to challenge and overcome.

　Her first target was the sixth-year student from the "Magic Academy." But Eluri covered her mouth and held her hands down.

　Now that all the sixth-year students from the "Magic Academy" and "Knight Academy" have been challenged, and with Gina Grant from the "Fool's Academy" possessing strength far beyond her reach, she has no choice but to set her sights on the fifth-year students.

　But Marscarei, a fifth-year student from the Knights Academy, had already been defeated by senior Mary, and she couldn't possibly challenge Winiscatti from the Magic Academy. So, her only remaining target was... the Fools' Academy.

　The fifth-year player for "Fool's House" was originally slated to be Polly Bruno. Polly Bruno had played in the previous Academy Cup and was considered a close opponent to Snake Harriman.

　She has also made considerable progress this year.

　Just before the competition began, she received news of a "miraculous encounter." So she decisively abandoned the Academy Cup and went on an adventure, and has not returned since.

　Unexpectedly, the new player brought in by "Fool's House" was also very strong. In the fifth-year competition, he actually defeated Marscare and Snake Harriman and won two games.

　Although Anna felt that she and he were not very compatible, how could she be afraid of the hero who had stepped forward in the midst of danger and was about to save the Sorting House from its predicament?

　"I... Waaah!" Anna's mouth was covered again.

　Elurly said in a deep voice, "The only remaining contestant in the Magic Academy who hasn't made a move is a fourth-year student. Although he achieved a record of two wins and one loss in his own year, there are no fifth- or sixth-year students he can defeat now. The Magic Academy's points are already fixed, and there's no way he can gain any more points."

　Anna brushed her hand away and said, "But the fourth-year students from the Knights Academy, the Magic Academy, and the Fool's Academy have all been challenged. If I don't challenge the fifth-year student from the Fool's Academy, I can only challenge the third-year student..." Eluri said without hesitation, "Third-year Klein. You can defeat him."

　Anna said, "But he just defeated a fourth-year student from the Magic Academy, a student of a much higher level!"

　Eluri said, "So, you defeated Klein, who defeated a fourth-year student from the Magic Academy, so haven't you surpassed the fourth-year level?"

　"Ah! You're right!" Anna's face hardened, and she immediately became serious. "Third-year Klein is a respectable and strong fighter, and I will do everything in my power to defeat him!"

　After saying that, she stepped forward to challenge Klein.

　But before that, the fourth-year students from the Magic Academy made their move and challenged the fifth-year students from the Fools' Academy!

　The Magic Academy's Triple Challenge!

　The audience erupted in cheers.

　The host exclaimed, "The 'Magic Academy' contestant has once again launched a challenge against a team of higher rank! Can he widen the already significant lead in total points and completely extinguish the 'Noble Academy's' hopes? Let's wait and see!"

　Anna opened her mouth wide, unable to speak for a long time.

　But Eluri remained calm.

　By challenging opponents of a higher level that one cannot defeat but whose competitors might be able to defeat, thus reducing the number of wins the opponent might gain, is a common tactic in cross-level challenge matches.

　This year's challenge against a higher level was only briefly overlooked because the challenger won all six previous challenges.

　However, the Magic Academy contestants clearly hadn't forgotten this tactic. Although the fourth-year Magic Academy contestants won two matches against their own year's opponents, that was only because all the fourth-year students except for Marie were "useless".

　—Ailuri's assessment of it was ruthless.

　And as it turns out, fourth graders were indeed treated as "easy targets," with lower grades vying to challenge them.

　All the fourth-year students except for Mary Bond from the "Noble Academy" were pinched hard.

　Marie lost a match in the fourth-grade competition. But that was only because her tactics were too simplistic, and her opponent exploited her weaknesses and countered them. Her actual skill level was higher than her opponent's.

　If there were another duel, the probability of winning would be even higher.

　Therefore, Elurly was not worried that the fourth-year student from the "Magic Academy" would be able to win the challenge against someone of a higher level.

　Because the probability is extremely low.

　As expected, the result was as predicted.

　Although the challenge sparked a frenzy among the audience, it turned out to be the first defeat of the night in the cross-level challenge.

　The fifth-year contestant from "Fool's House" successfully defended his title, and it didn't take much time.

　This was a crushing victory. And it was exactly what Eluri had predicted.

　She discovered this player's hidden strength during the grade-level competition, but only managed two wins because she was no match for Winiscat.

　If Anna chooses to challenge him, the only outcome will be defeat.

　As for now.

　Klein Moretti is a strong player, but he is only a third-year student.

　Theoretically, the third-year and second-year students should be the group with the smallest skill gap.

　Anna and Angie have both received intensive training from the court mages, and their strength far surpasses that of their peers. They have a chance to defeat Klein.

　Moreover, although Klein's deck is "variable", it is actually quite formulaic.

　Anna happens to have a magic card that can counter him!

Chapter 1696 Darkdemon, the Dancer, and the Descent of the Gods (1/4k)

　Younger students often lack sufficient magical card reserves, resulting in inadequate on-the-spot response capabilities.

　They are better at "being prepared for battle".

　This allows them to often unleash their full potential when initiating a challenge, but when challenged themselves, they often find themselves struggling to perform at their best.

　Based on this, Eluri arranged for Anna to challenge Klein. The two were only one grade apart, and even if Anna won, she would only receive 10,000 points.

　But 10,000 points is enough.

　Elurly had initially worried that a fourth-year student from the "Magic Academy" might have a sudden breakthrough. However, his preemptive challenge eliminated that possibility. Now, if Anna successfully defeats Klein, they can win the Academy Cup for the "Noble Academy"!

　She wasn't concerned about the outcome of the current duel challenge. Even if she lost to the "Magic Academy" by a margin of 10,000 points in the duel challenge.

　Even if a "noble academy" has a higher total score than a "magic academy," it can still win the Academy Cup.

　That is the greatest honor that students of St. Marian Academy strive for!

　However, Ana's duel with Klein is not a guaranteed victory. The "Tarot" deck has an extremely high ceiling and depth.

　Gina Grand, whose current strength surpasses all others in the academy, is proof of the potential of the "Tarot" deck.

　This deck is difficult to master, which limits Klein's strength.

　However, if Anna is not careful enough and gives Klein an opportunity to perform, it is not impossible for them to be overturned and suppressed.

　While Eluri had considerable confidence in Anna's abilities, she also had a good understanding of the twin princesses' personalities.

　She gave Anna repeated instructions before finally leading her to the dueling ring. This duel was of paramount importance.

　If Anna fails to defeat Klein, the "House of Nobles" will only have Snake Harriman, a fifth-year student, left.

　However, this player, who was originally quite strong, is now clearly in a state of mental collapse and cannot be trusted at all.

　Moreover, the only opponent available for sixth graders is Gina Grant from "Fool's House".

　Snake Harriman has no chance of defeating Gina Grant unless he pulls off a miracle.

　This is almost impossible in today's duels.

　Therefore, the supporters of the "House of Nobles" could only place their hopes on the princess of the kingdom.

　—Anna Clarissa!

　Anna had never been so excited as she stepped onto the dueling ring.

　Although she was born into nobility, the age gap between her and the eldest prince and princess was too great. Therefore, like Angie, she was never expected to achieve anything from birth.

　All the responsibilities and obligations were borne by the eldest prince and princess, while she and Angie seemed to only need to live as they pleased, which was enough.

　It was only with the arrival of the "revival of the gods" and the commencement of the "divine rituals" that the old king noticed them and brought them into the palace cram school.

　It was a difficult experience that she would never want to recall. But thinking about it afterwards, she couldn't help but hum softly.

　Now, standing on the dueling platform, bearing the expectations of the entire "House of Nobles," that pressure did not make her nervous. On the contrary, it made her even happier, and her mental state and magical power reached their peak.

　In today's battle, victory is our only option!

　……

　After a fierce battle.

　Anna won a very close victory.

　Because of her prior preparations and the advantage of her deck counters, she was able to put pressure on Klein from the very beginning of the duel.

　But her opponent, though only a third-year student, was indeed very difficult to deal with. Despite maintaining the upper hand for a long time, she was unable to completely defeat her opponent.

　In the protracted tug-of-war, the gap between the two sides gradually narrowed, and the opponent even showed signs of launching a counterattack.

　If she hadn't honed that "trump card" in the royal cram school, she probably would have been completely overturned by her opponent in the end.

　It can only be said that, relatively speaking, she does have an advantage in terms of resources. Her identity as a "princess of the kingdom" played a role behind the scenes.

　She ultimately used her hidden "trump card" to deliver a surprise blow to Klein, preventing him from turning the tide.

　That became the key to her victory and the Academy Cup win for the "Noble Academy"!

　Throughout the entire duel, Anna showed no sign of letting her guard down or taking any chances.

　Her performance was near perfect.

　This was undoubtedly her best performance to date.

　That's why she was able to defeat Klein Moretti in such a thrilling way.

　A formidable and terrifying opponent!

　She could sense that Klein's journey had only just begun. But she wasn't immune either!

　From that moment on, Anna made up her mind to study hard.

　Of course, only heaven knows how long this determination will last.

　There are always some people in this world who are born lacking in self-control and need their parents' supervision and a little bit of forced correction.

　This is the significance of education.

　Moreover, Anna is about to have a three-month vacation.

　—Perhaps the royal tutoring center will reopen, but who knows?

　The king is probably too busy to care about anything else, and it's hard to say whether he has the time or inclination to raise his two young daughters.

　But in any case, Anna did achieve her first major victory. This victory allowed her to taste the sweetness of hard work, which may change her outlook on life.