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* AdaptationDeviation: The TournamentArc was one of the first things to happen in volume 2 of the novels, beginning before the class on FlyingBroomsticks, which was moved to "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E07Reversi Reversi]]".
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* AdaptationDeviation: The TournamentArc was one of the first things to happen in volume 2 of the novels, beginning before the class on FlyingBroomsticks, {{Flying Broomstick}}s, which was moved to "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E07Reversi Reversi]]".
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'''First Aired:''' 25 August 2023
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'''First Aired:''' 25 August 2023
2023\\
'''Adapts:''' Volume 2, Chapters 1-2
'''Adapts:''' Volume 2, Chapters 1-2
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* AdaptationDeviation: The TournamentArc was one of the first things to happen in volume 2 of the novels, beginning before the class on FlyingBroomsticks, which was moved to "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E07Reversi Reversi]]".
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Oliver and his friends are on their way to school when they catch sight of a broomsports team practicing, which interests Nanao. The explanation of the FictionalSport is interrupted by the appearance of the boy we saw in last episode's [[TheStinger stinger]], Tullio Rossi, who already knows who they all are: the group is [[FamedInStory starting to become quite well-known in the school]]. He reappears in Sword Arts class, where he humiliates Pete in a practice match. This prompts him to ask his friends to tutor him in the sword, which sparks [[FandomRivalry a brief argument over the relative merits of the Lanoff and Rizett sword schools between Oliver and Chela]], which Guy has to mediate.
to:
Oliver and his friends are on their way to school when they catch sight of a broomsports team practicing, which interests Nanao. The explanation of the FictionalSport is interrupted by the appearance of the boy we saw in last episode's [[TheStinger stinger]], Tullio Rossi, who already knows who they all are: the group is [[FamedInStory starting to become quite well-known in the school]]. He reappears in Sword Arts class, where he humiliates Pete in a practice match. This prompts him to ask his friends to tutor him in the sword, which sparks [[FandomRivalry a brief argument over the relative merits of the Lanoff and Rizett sword schools between Oliver and Chela]], which Guy has and Katie have to mediate.
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* SeriousBusiness: Sword arts would be quite important enough since it's mages' primary means of close-in defense, but this episode reveals there's quite a bit of jockeying between practitioners of the three main {{Fantastic Fighting Style}}s: Oliver gets into it with Chela over whether Pete should stick with Lanoff (Oliver) or try switching to the more offensively-oriented Rizett (Chela). Nanao is shouted down when she offers to teach him Hibiya Style instead, and Guy suggests Oliver and Chela teach him together, with Oliver focusing on defense and Chela on offense.
to:
* SeriousBusiness: Sword arts would be quite important enough since it's mages' primary means of close-in defense, but this episode reveals there's quite a bit of fandom jockeying between practitioners of the three main {{Fantastic Fighting Style}}s: Oliver gets into it with Chela over whether Pete should stick with Lanoff (Oliver) or try switching to the more offensively-oriented Rizett (Chela). Nanao is shouted down when she offers to teach him Hibiya Style instead, and Guy suggests and Katie suggest Oliver and Chela teach him together, with Oliver focusing on defense and Chela on offense.
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* ShesAManInJapan: A brief moment of this regarding Carlos Whitrow ''in absentia''. In the original novels, Carlos was assigned male at birth, but typically uses the feminine first-person pronoun ''atashi'', which tends to denote queerness or effeminateness when used by males. The English translation of the novels treats Carlos as non-binary with they/them pronouns, but in this episode, Oliver refers to Carlos in the masculine in both the English subtitles and dub.
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Oliver and his friends are on their way to school when they catch sight of a broomsports team practicing, which interests Nanao. The explanation of the FictionalSport is interrupted by the appearance of the boy we saw in last episode's [[TheStinger stinger]], Tullio Rossi, who already knows who they all are: the group is [[FamedInStory starting to become quite well-known in the school]]. Tullio reappears in Sword Arts, where he humiliates Pete. This prompts him to ask his friends to tutor him in the sword, which sparks [[FandomRivalry a brief argument over the relative merits of the Lanoff and Rizett sword schools between Oliver and Chela]], which Guy has to mediate.
to:
Oliver and his friends are on their way to school when they catch sight of a broomsports team practicing, which interests Nanao. The explanation of the FictionalSport is interrupted by the appearance of the boy we saw in last episode's [[TheStinger stinger]], Tullio Rossi, who already knows who they all are: the group is [[FamedInStory starting to become quite well-known in the school]]. Tullio He reappears in Sword Arts, Arts class, where he humiliates Pete.Pete in a practice match. This prompts him to ask his friends to tutor him in the sword, which sparks [[FandomRivalry a brief argument over the relative merits of the Lanoff and Rizett sword schools between Oliver and Chela]], which Guy has to mediate.
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** In the novel's version of the Sword Arts class, Pete sparred with a one-off student named Hughes. The episode replaces him with Tullio Rossi. Also, Guy fought the preceding match (against another one-off named Martin), not Oliver.
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** In the novel's version of the Sword Arts class, Pete sparred with a one-off student named Hughes. The episode replaces him with Tullio Rossi. Also, Guy fought the preceding match (against match, against another one-off named Martin), not Oliver.Martin, rather than Oliver fighting an extra.
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** Oliver and Nanao's conversation with Hans Liesegang, captain of the Wild Geese broomsports team, about the FictionalSport is left out entirely.
** In the novel, Pete sparred with a one-off student named Hughes. The episode replaces him with Tullio Rossi.
** In the novel, Pete sparred with a one-off student named Hughes. The episode replaces him with Tullio Rossi.
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** Oliver and Nanao's conversation with Hans Liesegang, captain of the Wild Geese broomsports team, about the FictionalSport is FictionalSport, and his recruitment of them onto his team, are left out entirely.
entirely. Instead there's just a suggestion from Chela that Nanao would be good at broomsports.
** In thenovel, novel's version of the Sword Arts class, Pete sparred with a one-off student named Hughes. The episode replaces him with Tullio Rossi. Also, Guy fought the preceding match (against another one-off named Martin), not Oliver.
** In the
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* BadassBoast: Oliver gives one to Rossi right before his comeback.
-->'''Oliver:''' I thank you, Mr. Rossi. I've realized how inexperienced I truly am. To be embarrassed like this by someone as weak as you...\\
'''Rossi:''' Go on, run yer mouth. There's a lot more where that came from!\\
'''Oliver:''' No, there isn't. You're going to lose in the next eight moves!
-->'''Oliver:''' I thank you, Mr. Rossi. I've realized how inexperienced I truly am. To be embarrassed like this by someone as weak as you...\\
'''Rossi:''' Go on, run yer mouth. There's a lot more where that came from!\\
'''Oliver:''' No, there isn't. You're going to lose in the next eight moves!
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* TechnicianVersusPerformer: Oliver is a rigorously trained traditionalist MasterSwordsman who uses the defense-oriented Lanoff Style based on endless hours of practice. Rossi is a flamboyant but completely self-taught duelist who jumps around the battlefield and throws his whole body into the fight. Oliver wins, because being the Technician means he actually knows why some moves work and others don't.
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* TechnicianVersusPerformer: Oliver is a rigorously trained traditionalist MasterSwordsman who uses the defense-oriented Lanoff Style based on endless hours of practice. Rossi is a flamboyant but completely self-taught duelist who jumps around the battlefield and throws his whole body into the fight. Oliver wins, because being the Technician means he actually knows why some moves work and others don't.don't, but then laments that he's a little jealous of Rossi's unique fighting style, because everything he has, he learned from somebody else.
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* NeverBringAKnifeToAFistfight: {{Deconstructed}}. Rossi incorporates brawling techniques into his sword style, but Oliver demonstrates precisely why trying to punch your opponent during a swordfight [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome really isn't some genius life-hack]]: a trained opponent will just grab the undefended arm and use it to throw the opponent off-balance.
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* NeverBringAKnifeToAFistfight: {{Deconstructed}}. Rossi incorporates brawling techniques into his sword style, but Oliver demonstrates precisely why trying to punch your opponent during a swordfight [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome really isn't some genius life-hack]]: a trained opponent will just grab the undefended arm and use it to throw the opponent attacker off-balance.
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* TaughtByExperience: Nanao has been practically glued to Oliver's side for the past four months, and he's fought alongside her several times. He knows much more about her real abilities than the rest of the freshman class, leading him to predict, correctly, that her weakness with spells won't be a handicap against Evelynn Odets.
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* UnderestimatingBadassery: Odets mistakenly thinks that Nanao's weakness with spellcasting will make her an easy target, planning to hold the range open and defeat her with spells. Oliver recognizes the strategy and, having made the exact same mistake back in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E02SwordArts Sword Arts]]" and having seen Nanao parry spells in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E06Arise Arise]]", [[CurbStompBattle correctly predicts it won't work]].
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* UnderestimatingBadassery: Odets mistakenly thinks that Nanao's weakness with spellcasting will make her an easy target, planning to hold the range open and defeat her with spells. Oliver recognizes the strategy and, having made the exact same mistake back in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E02SwordArts Sword Arts]]" and having seen Nanao parry spells in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E06Arise Arise]]", [[CurbStompBattle [[TaughtByExperience correctly predicts it won't work]].
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* TheGrappler: After getting used to Rossi's unarmed attacks, Oliver shows him why those aren't as bright of an idea as he thinks: he catches Rossi's next punch and throws him into a standing armlock.
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* NeverBringAKnifeToAFistfight: {{Deconstructed}}. Rossi incorporates brawling techniques into his sword style, but Oliver demonstrates precisely why trying to punch your opponent during a swordfight [[SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome really isn't some genius life-hack]]: a trained opponent will just grab the undefended arm and use it to throw the opponent off-balance.
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* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: Oliver shows that it really ''is'' important to learn the fundamentals before you try to innovate, and why [[NeverBringAKnifeToAFistfight trying to turn an armed duel into a fistfight]] against an opponent you know is well-trained is foolhardy: because Rossi never learned the basics, he doesn't realize that punching with his offhand gives a prepared opponent the opportunity to grab that arm and immobilize him. Even discounting sport fencing where such moves aren't allowed anyway, this is why real-life swordsmen keep either keep both hands on the weapon, or the undefended arm held back out of the way.
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* LifeOrLimbDecision: Rossi dislocates his own shoulder to break Oliver's grapple, but it doesn't help him much: with only one working arm, he's wide open for Oliver's FinishingMove.
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* HeroicSecondWind: For the first time in the series, Oliver is actually injured by a human opponent, but Rossi only succeeds in bloodying his nose and {{Trash Talk}}ing his sword style. In reply, Oliver sardonically thanks Rossi for reminding him of his own inexperience, then tells Rossi [[BadassBoast he's losing in the next eight moves]] before counterattacking and defeating him in seconds.
* LifeOrLimbDecision: Rossi dislocates his own shoulder to break Oliver's grapple, but it doesn't help him much: with only one working arm,he's wide he has no way to stop Oliver from parrying his sword wide, leaving him open for Oliver's FinishingMove.
* LifeOrLimbDecision: Rossi dislocates his own shoulder to break Oliver's grapple, but it doesn't help him much: with only one working arm,
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* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: We're finally shown the purpose of the metal plates all the students wear on their off-hands: they're gauntlets for blocking incoming sword strokes. Though Rossi [[NotTheIntendedUse puts his to another use]] as a [[PowerFist makeshift knuckle-duster]].
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* ThemeMusicPowerUp: One of Oliver's {{Leitmotif}}s, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3eed6Uk-c0 "Oliver Seigi"]], plays when he gets his HeroicSecondWind and defeats Rossi.
* TournamentArc: Tullio Rossi starts a WizardDuel tournament that's going to run for the next few episodes.
* TournamentArc: Tullio Rossi starts a WizardDuel tournament that's going to run for the next few episodes.
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* WizardDuel:
** Evelynn Odets challenges Nanao to a formal duel as part of Rossi's tournament. Nanao wins.
** {{Subverted}} by Rossi himself, who challenges Oliver to a swords-only duel with the dulling spells at half-strength. Oliver shows he's no slouch even in pure swordplay, schooling Rossi once he gets used to the other man's tricks.
** Evelynn Odets challenges Nanao to a formal duel as part of Rossi's tournament. Nanao wins.
** {{Subverted}} by Rossi himself, who challenges Oliver to a swords-only duel with the dulling spells at half-strength. Oliver shows he's no slouch even in pure swordplay, schooling Rossi once he gets used to the other man's tricks.
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looked at the picture again and it's more brown than red
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* NamedByTheAdaptation: Nanao's duel opponent wasn't named or described in the novel. The episode depicts her as a redhead named Evelynn Odets.
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* NamedByTheAdaptation: Nanao's duel opponent wasn't named or described in the novel. The episode depicts her as a redhead brunette named Evelynn Odets.
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* FirstNameBasis: Ophelia tells Oliver to call her by her given name, [[{{Foreshadowing}} though we're not told exactly why]].
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** Stacy and Fay say they were present for the garuda fight in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E04Colosseum Colosseum]]". [[RememberTheNewGuy We just didn't see them because they were hiding for the entire fight.]]
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** Stacy and Fay say they were present for the garuda fight in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E04Colosseum Colosseum]]". [[RememberTheNewGuy We just didn't see them because they were hiding for the entire fight.]]]] Ophelia similarly asks what it was like fighting the garuda, which [[NotSoDifferentRemark reminds her of her past adventures with Godfrey and Whitrow]].
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* AdaptedOut: In the novel, Pete sparred with a one-off student named Hughes. The episode replaces him with Tullio Rossi.
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* AdaptedOut: AdaptedOut:
** Oliver and Nanao's conversation with Hans Liesegang, captain of the Wild Geese broomsports team, about the FictionalSport is left out entirely.
** In the novel, Pete sparred with a one-off student named Hughes. The episode replaces him with Tullio Rossi.
** Oliver and Nanao's conversation with Hans Liesegang, captain of the Wild Geese broomsports team, about the FictionalSport is left out entirely.
** In the novel, Pete sparred with a one-off student named Hughes. The episode replaces him with Tullio Rossi.
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* SmallNameBigEgo: Evelynn Odets hopes for an [[RedBaron intimidating nickname]] like "Cold-Blooded Evelynn" or "Galewind Evelynn", and congratulates herself for her duel strategy against Nanao. The other students call her "Speed-Talker" behind her back instead, since her only ''real'' talent is that she's marginally faster at casting--and [[InformedAbility we don't even get to see whether this is true]] because [[UnderestimatingBadassery Nanao disarms her before she can get a second spell off]].
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* SmallNameBigEgo: PlayedForLaughs. Evelynn Odets hopes for an [[RedBaron intimidating nickname]] like "Cold-Blooded Evelynn" or "Galewind Evelynn", and congratulates herself for her duel strategy against Nanao. The other students call her "Speed-Talker" behind her back instead, since her only ''real'' talent is that she's marginally faster at casting--and [[InformedAbility we don't even get to see whether this is true]] because [[UnderestimatingBadassery Nanao disarms her before she can get a second spell off]]. To cap off the gag, Nanao fails to even follow Evelynn's spiel about her desired nickname and asks her to start over.
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* MaleGaze: The camera lingers rather pointedly over Ophelia's cleavage while she's talking to Oliver.
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* SmallNameBigEgo: Evelynn Odets hopes for an [[RedBaron intimidating nickname]] like "Cold-Blooded Evelynn" or "Galewind Evelynn", and congratulates herself for her duel strategy against Nanao. The other students call her "Speed-Talker" behind her back instead, since her only ''real'' talent is that she's marginally faster at casting--and [[InformedAbility we don't even get to see whether this is true]] because [[UnderestimatingBadassery Nanao disarms her before she can get a second spell off]].
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* CompressedAdaptation: In the novel, student club recruitment was going on and Oliver and Nanao actually joined the Wild Geese broomsports team. The episode cuts this down to just a quick overview of the FictionalSport while the cast observes them practicing the team battle round.
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[[quoteright:1000:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tullio_duels_oliver.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:1000:"I don't like that you're getting more attention than me."]]
->'''Japanese Title:''' 挑戦者 [-[[ForeignLanguageTitle ライバルズ]]-][[labelnote:Trans.]]''Chōsen-sha'', lit. "challenger", pron. "raibaruzu"[[/labelnote]]\\
'''Director:''' Kyōsuke Takada\\
'''Writer:''' Shinsuke Ōnishi\\
'''First Aired:''' 25 August 2023
Oliver and his friends are on their way to school when they catch sight of a broomsports team practicing, which interests Nanao. The explanation of the FictionalSport is interrupted by the appearance of the boy we saw in last episode's [[TheStinger stinger]], Tullio Rossi, who already knows who they all are: the group is [[FamedInStory starting to become quite well-known in the school]]. Tullio reappears in Sword Arts, where he humiliates Pete. This prompts him to ask his friends to tutor him in the sword, which sparks [[FandomRivalry a brief argument over the relative merits of the Lanoff and Rizett sword schools between Oliver and Chela]], which Guy has to mediate.
Pete is mulling over Oliver's lesson on determining range at lunchtime, when Rossi inserts himself into the conversation and proposes [[TournamentArc a dueling tournament to decide the strongest first-year]]: they'll compete for medallions in an elimination round, then meet at the end of the week for a playoff. Chela's cousin Stacy jumps in, forcing her manservant Fay to join to keep her company. Nanao and Chela volunteer next, and after a bit of pestering, so does Oliver.
The first duel follows shortly when Nanao is challenged by Evelynn Odets before the group even finishes lunch. Odets thinks to take advantage of the samurai girl's weakness with spellcasting by keeping the range open, but Oliver knows better: Nanao deflects Odets's opening shot and disarms her in under ten seconds.
That afternoon, Oliver gets an invitation via Teresa Carste to meet his foster siblings in the labyrinth for tea. On his way, he encounters Ophelia Salvadori, but she's in a much more amicable mood than [[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E02SwordArts last time]] and just asks him to sit and chat with her for a bit.
Somewhat unnerved by that experience, he arrives at Gwyn and Shannon's laboratory and discusses the events of the past several months with them [[BritsLoveTea over tea and biscuits]]. He reveals that Nanao has used a spellblade, and at Shannon's prompting, admits aloud for the first time that [[LoveConfessor Nanao's obvious feelings for him aren't one-sided]]. Gwyn counsels Oliver that he doesn't need to try to categorize his emotions: just allow himself to feel them and do what seems right.
On his way back, Oliver stops in a passage and announces that he knows Rossi has been tailing him. After a brief back-and-forth, they agree to get the fight over with. Oliver is taken by surprise by the self-taught Rossi, who [[CombatPragmatist fights dirty]] and dismisses Oliver's textbook Lanoff Style. Oliver takes a shoulder-charge, several punches and a kick--and then forces Rossi back with a slash.
->'''Oliver:''' I thank you, Mr. Rossi. I've realized how inexperienced I truly am. To be embarrassed like this by someone as weak as you...\\
'''Rossi:''' Go on, run yer mouth. There's a lot more where that came from!\\
'''Oliver:''' No, there isn't. You're going to lose in the next eight moves!
[[HeroicSecondWind Oliver counterattacks]], and quickly gets Rossi in an armlock the next time he tries to punch him, explaining that ''this'' is why sword arts schools don't have many unarmed moves. Rossi dislocates his own arm to try to escape, only for Oliver to parry his next blow with the guard on the back of his offhand and deliver a FinishingMove. Before leaving, Oliver tells Rossi that he has something special, but unless he starts over and actually learns the fundamentals he's skipped in his self-taught style, he's going to hit a wall soon--and Oliver would hate to see that happen to somebody as unique as him.
While Oliver returns to the school, and has another encounter with Teresa Carste, who was secretly watching the fight, Rossi is accosted by another student with red streaks in his hair, who wonders if the Ytallian still has a medallion for him after losing to Oliver.
----
!!This episode provides examples of the following tropes:
* AccentAdaptation: Rossi is voiced in Japanese with a Kansai dialect. The novels establish him to be from [[FantasyCounterpartCulture "Ytalli"]], so in the English dub, his voice actor Creator/NickMarchetti plays him with an Italian accent.
* AdaptedOut: In the novel, Pete sparred with a one-off student named Hughes. The episode replaces him with Tullio Rossi.
* AttractivenessDiscrimination: Played for laughs. Rossi says he's targeting Oliver because he's jealous of him for hogging the spotlight. Oliver asks why him and not Nanao, and Rossi replies that Nanao is cuter.
* BritsLoveTea: Yelgland is [[FantasyCounterpartCulture Fantasy England]], so of course Oliver and his cousins take tea together when they meet up.
* CallBack:
** Stacy and Fay say they were present for the garuda fight in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E04Colosseum Colosseum]]". [[RememberTheNewGuy We just didn't see them because they were hiding for the entire fight.]]
** Oliver is immediately on guard when he runs into Ophelia, considering what happened back in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E02SwordArts Sword Arts]]", but this time she's not in "one of those moods".
** Oliver [[InternalReveal reveals to his cousins]] that Nanao had used a spellblade in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E06Arise Arise]]".
* CombatPragmatist: Rossi is self-taught and pulls out all the stops against Oliver, using not just his sword but his whole body: stomping his foot, shoulder slams, and punching with the adamant guard on his offhand.
* CurbStompBattle: Nanao's duel with Evelynn is over in about ten seconds. The other girl never stood a chance.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: Ophelia tells Oliver how [[WeUsedToBeFriends she used to be friends with Carlos and Godfrey]], and leaves him with a rather cryptic warning to stay in the school building "like a good student should" for the next few months...
* LifeOrLimbDecision: Rossi dislocates his own shoulder to break Oliver's grapple, but it doesn't help him much: with only one working arm, he's wide open for Oliver's FinishingMove.
* LoveConfessor: {{Downplayed}}. Oliver admits to Shannon and Gwyn that he's attracted to Nanao, often finding himself looking at her when they're together, but he doesn't say the "L" word. Gwyn counsels him that the feeling of attraction means something to mages, and to just hold the feelings he can't name in his heart and allow events to happen.
* NamedByTheAdaptation: Nanao's duel opponent wasn't named or described in the novel. The episode depicts her as a redhead named Evelynn Odets.
* NotSoStoic: Oliver notices that Teresa is blushing when she compliments his duel with Rossi, and intuits that this isn't how she normally talks, startling her into breaking character from her "loyal retainer" image. She then gets so embarrassed when he tells her he values her that she runs away altogether.
* ParryingBullets: Nanao repeats her feat from "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E06Arise Arise]]", deflecting a wind spell from Evelynn so that it harmlessly flies right past her.
* PetTheDog: Oliver happens to catch TheVamp Ophelia in a good mood and she just asks him to sit and chat with her for a bit, remembering that he can resist [[SmellsSexy her Perfume]]. Turns out, she has a sweet tooth and comes up to the cafeteria for pumpkin pie sometimes, and she used to be friends with Godfrey and Whitrow from the student council. She also leaves him with a cryptic warning to stay out of the labyrinth for the next while. When he meets his cousins, Shannon mentions that they're acquainted and Ophelia sometimes gets lonely living a solitary existence in the labyrinth.
* RedBaron: {{Parodied}} with Evelynn Odets, who ''wants'' to be called "Cold-Blooded Evelynn" or "Galewind Evelynn", but is stuck with the much less threatening moniker "Speed-Talker" for being faster than usual at speaking spell incantations, [[InformedAbility or so we're told]].
* RememberTheNewGuy: Stacy and Fay were apparently present during the garuda incident in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E04Colosseum Colosseum]]", but were hiding the whole time, explaining why we didn't see them.
* SelfParody: The {{omake}} for this episode had Katie walk in on Oliver and Chela seemingly having resumed their argument over the sword arts schools, only for it to turn out they're debating breakfast breads now.
* SeriousBusiness: Sword arts would be quite important enough since it's mages' primary means of close-in defense, but this episode reveals there's quite a bit of jockeying between practitioners of the three main {{Fantastic Fighting Style}}s: Oliver gets into it with Chela over whether Pete should stick with Lanoff (Oliver) or try switching to the more offensively-oriented Rizett (Chela). Nanao is shouted down when she offers to teach him Hibiya Style instead, and Guy suggests Oliver and Chela teach him together, with Oliver focusing on defense and Chela on offense.
* SetSwordsToStun: Nanao and Evelynn both cast '''Securus''' on their swords as usual, per the school dueling rules explained back in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E02SwordArts Sword Arts]]". Oliver and Rossi, however, bend the rules: they set their spells to only half-strength so that they can still draw blood without being able to inflict lethal injuries. (The episode leaves out Oliver's InternalMonologue from the novel explaining that normally only upperclassmen are allowed to do this, but [[ScrewTheRulesTheyreNotReal they're alone in the labyrinth so there's no one to enforce it]].)
* TheStinger: Rossi is challenged to a second duel, this time by Joseph Albright, to whom he complains that he's not some medallion dispenser and has no intention of losing a second time.
* TechnicianVersusPerformer: Oliver is a rigorously trained traditionalist MasterSwordsman who uses the defense-oriented Lanoff Style based on endless hours of practice. Rossi is a flamboyant but completely self-taught duelist who jumps around the battlefield and throws his whole body into the fight. Oliver wins, because being the Technician means he actually knows why some moves work and others don't.
* UnderestimatingBadassery: Odets mistakenly thinks that Nanao's weakness with spellcasting will make her an easy target, planning to hold the range open and defeat her with spells. Oliver recognizes the strategy and, having made the exact same mistake back in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E02SwordArts Sword Arts]]" and having seen Nanao parry spells in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E06Arise Arise]]", [[CurbStompBattle correctly predicts it won't work]].
* UnskilledButStrong: {{Deconstructed}}. Rossi is entirely self-taught and is good enough to land some hits on Oliver and bloody his nose. Oliver counters with pure, ''perfect'' Lanoff Style: after he gets his HeroicSecondWind out of sheer irritation at Rossi, he demonstrates that because Rossi never learned the basics before trying to innovate, it never occurred to him that there might actually be a good reason a ''sword'' school would include few ''unarmed'' moves. Case in point: reaching out to punch somebody with your off hand opens you up to [[TheGrappler grappling]].
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[[caption-width-right:1000:"I don't like that you're getting more attention than me."]]
->'''Japanese Title:''' 挑戦者 [-[[ForeignLanguageTitle ライバルズ]]-][[labelnote:Trans.]]''Chōsen-sha'', lit. "challenger", pron. "raibaruzu"[[/labelnote]]\\
'''Director:''' Kyōsuke Takada\\
'''Writer:''' Shinsuke Ōnishi\\
'''First Aired:''' 25 August 2023
Oliver and his friends are on their way to school when they catch sight of a broomsports team practicing, which interests Nanao. The explanation of the FictionalSport is interrupted by the appearance of the boy we saw in last episode's [[TheStinger stinger]], Tullio Rossi, who already knows who they all are: the group is [[FamedInStory starting to become quite well-known in the school]]. Tullio reappears in Sword Arts, where he humiliates Pete. This prompts him to ask his friends to tutor him in the sword, which sparks [[FandomRivalry a brief argument over the relative merits of the Lanoff and Rizett sword schools between Oliver and Chela]], which Guy has to mediate.
Pete is mulling over Oliver's lesson on determining range at lunchtime, when Rossi inserts himself into the conversation and proposes [[TournamentArc a dueling tournament to decide the strongest first-year]]: they'll compete for medallions in an elimination round, then meet at the end of the week for a playoff. Chela's cousin Stacy jumps in, forcing her manservant Fay to join to keep her company. Nanao and Chela volunteer next, and after a bit of pestering, so does Oliver.
The first duel follows shortly when Nanao is challenged by Evelynn Odets before the group even finishes lunch. Odets thinks to take advantage of the samurai girl's weakness with spellcasting by keeping the range open, but Oliver knows better: Nanao deflects Odets's opening shot and disarms her in under ten seconds.
That afternoon, Oliver gets an invitation via Teresa Carste to meet his foster siblings in the labyrinth for tea. On his way, he encounters Ophelia Salvadori, but she's in a much more amicable mood than [[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E02SwordArts last time]] and just asks him to sit and chat with her for a bit.
Somewhat unnerved by that experience, he arrives at Gwyn and Shannon's laboratory and discusses the events of the past several months with them [[BritsLoveTea over tea and biscuits]]. He reveals that Nanao has used a spellblade, and at Shannon's prompting, admits aloud for the first time that [[LoveConfessor Nanao's obvious feelings for him aren't one-sided]]. Gwyn counsels Oliver that he doesn't need to try to categorize his emotions: just allow himself to feel them and do what seems right.
On his way back, Oliver stops in a passage and announces that he knows Rossi has been tailing him. After a brief back-and-forth, they agree to get the fight over with. Oliver is taken by surprise by the self-taught Rossi, who [[CombatPragmatist fights dirty]] and dismisses Oliver's textbook Lanoff Style. Oliver takes a shoulder-charge, several punches and a kick--and then forces Rossi back with a slash.
->'''Oliver:''' I thank you, Mr. Rossi. I've realized how inexperienced I truly am. To be embarrassed like this by someone as weak as you...\\
'''Rossi:''' Go on, run yer mouth. There's a lot more where that came from!\\
'''Oliver:''' No, there isn't. You're going to lose in the next eight moves!
[[HeroicSecondWind Oliver counterattacks]], and quickly gets Rossi in an armlock the next time he tries to punch him, explaining that ''this'' is why sword arts schools don't have many unarmed moves. Rossi dislocates his own arm to try to escape, only for Oliver to parry his next blow with the guard on the back of his offhand and deliver a FinishingMove. Before leaving, Oliver tells Rossi that he has something special, but unless he starts over and actually learns the fundamentals he's skipped in his self-taught style, he's going to hit a wall soon--and Oliver would hate to see that happen to somebody as unique as him.
While Oliver returns to the school, and has another encounter with Teresa Carste, who was secretly watching the fight, Rossi is accosted by another student with red streaks in his hair, who wonders if the Ytallian still has a medallion for him after losing to Oliver.
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!!This episode provides examples of the following tropes:
* AccentAdaptation: Rossi is voiced in Japanese with a Kansai dialect. The novels establish him to be from [[FantasyCounterpartCulture "Ytalli"]], so in the English dub, his voice actor Creator/NickMarchetti plays him with an Italian accent.
* AdaptedOut: In the novel, Pete sparred with a one-off student named Hughes. The episode replaces him with Tullio Rossi.
* AttractivenessDiscrimination: Played for laughs. Rossi says he's targeting Oliver because he's jealous of him for hogging the spotlight. Oliver asks why him and not Nanao, and Rossi replies that Nanao is cuter.
* BritsLoveTea: Yelgland is [[FantasyCounterpartCulture Fantasy England]], so of course Oliver and his cousins take tea together when they meet up.
* CallBack:
** Stacy and Fay say they were present for the garuda fight in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E04Colosseum Colosseum]]". [[RememberTheNewGuy We just didn't see them because they were hiding for the entire fight.]]
** Oliver is immediately on guard when he runs into Ophelia, considering what happened back in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E02SwordArts Sword Arts]]", but this time she's not in "one of those moods".
** Oliver [[InternalReveal reveals to his cousins]] that Nanao had used a spellblade in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E06Arise Arise]]".
* CombatPragmatist: Rossi is self-taught and pulls out all the stops against Oliver, using not just his sword but his whole body: stomping his foot, shoulder slams, and punching with the adamant guard on his offhand.
* CurbStompBattle: Nanao's duel with Evelynn is over in about ten seconds. The other girl never stood a chance.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: Ophelia tells Oliver how [[WeUsedToBeFriends she used to be friends with Carlos and Godfrey]], and leaves him with a rather cryptic warning to stay in the school building "like a good student should" for the next few months...
* LifeOrLimbDecision: Rossi dislocates his own shoulder to break Oliver's grapple, but it doesn't help him much: with only one working arm, he's wide open for Oliver's FinishingMove.
* LoveConfessor: {{Downplayed}}. Oliver admits to Shannon and Gwyn that he's attracted to Nanao, often finding himself looking at her when they're together, but he doesn't say the "L" word. Gwyn counsels him that the feeling of attraction means something to mages, and to just hold the feelings he can't name in his heart and allow events to happen.
* NamedByTheAdaptation: Nanao's duel opponent wasn't named or described in the novel. The episode depicts her as a redhead named Evelynn Odets.
* NotSoStoic: Oliver notices that Teresa is blushing when she compliments his duel with Rossi, and intuits that this isn't how she normally talks, startling her into breaking character from her "loyal retainer" image. She then gets so embarrassed when he tells her he values her that she runs away altogether.
* ParryingBullets: Nanao repeats her feat from "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E06Arise Arise]]", deflecting a wind spell from Evelynn so that it harmlessly flies right past her.
* PetTheDog: Oliver happens to catch TheVamp Ophelia in a good mood and she just asks him to sit and chat with her for a bit, remembering that he can resist [[SmellsSexy her Perfume]]. Turns out, she has a sweet tooth and comes up to the cafeteria for pumpkin pie sometimes, and she used to be friends with Godfrey and Whitrow from the student council. She also leaves him with a cryptic warning to stay out of the labyrinth for the next while. When he meets his cousins, Shannon mentions that they're acquainted and Ophelia sometimes gets lonely living a solitary existence in the labyrinth.
* RedBaron: {{Parodied}} with Evelynn Odets, who ''wants'' to be called "Cold-Blooded Evelynn" or "Galewind Evelynn", but is stuck with the much less threatening moniker "Speed-Talker" for being faster than usual at speaking spell incantations, [[InformedAbility or so we're told]].
* RememberTheNewGuy: Stacy and Fay were apparently present during the garuda incident in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E04Colosseum Colosseum]]", but were hiding the whole time, explaining why we didn't see them.
* SelfParody: The {{omake}} for this episode had Katie walk in on Oliver and Chela seemingly having resumed their argument over the sword arts schools, only for it to turn out they're debating breakfast breads now.
* SeriousBusiness: Sword arts would be quite important enough since it's mages' primary means of close-in defense, but this episode reveals there's quite a bit of jockeying between practitioners of the three main {{Fantastic Fighting Style}}s: Oliver gets into it with Chela over whether Pete should stick with Lanoff (Oliver) or try switching to the more offensively-oriented Rizett (Chela). Nanao is shouted down when she offers to teach him Hibiya Style instead, and Guy suggests Oliver and Chela teach him together, with Oliver focusing on defense and Chela on offense.
* SetSwordsToStun: Nanao and Evelynn both cast '''Securus''' on their swords as usual, per the school dueling rules explained back in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E02SwordArts Sword Arts]]". Oliver and Rossi, however, bend the rules: they set their spells to only half-strength so that they can still draw blood without being able to inflict lethal injuries. (The episode leaves out Oliver's InternalMonologue from the novel explaining that normally only upperclassmen are allowed to do this, but [[ScrewTheRulesTheyreNotReal they're alone in the labyrinth so there's no one to enforce it]].)
* TheStinger: Rossi is challenged to a second duel, this time by Joseph Albright, to whom he complains that he's not some medallion dispenser and has no intention of losing a second time.
* TechnicianVersusPerformer: Oliver is a rigorously trained traditionalist MasterSwordsman who uses the defense-oriented Lanoff Style based on endless hours of practice. Rossi is a flamboyant but completely self-taught duelist who jumps around the battlefield and throws his whole body into the fight. Oliver wins, because being the Technician means he actually knows why some moves work and others don't.
* UnderestimatingBadassery: Odets mistakenly thinks that Nanao's weakness with spellcasting will make her an easy target, planning to hold the range open and defeat her with spells. Oliver recognizes the strategy and, having made the exact same mistake back in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E02SwordArts Sword Arts]]" and having seen Nanao parry spells in "[[Recap/ReignOfTheSevenSpellbladesS1E06Arise Arise]]", [[CurbStompBattle correctly predicts it won't work]].
* UnskilledButStrong: {{Deconstructed}}. Rossi is entirely self-taught and is good enough to land some hits on Oliver and bloody his nose. Oliver counters with pure, ''perfect'' Lanoff Style: after he gets his HeroicSecondWind out of sheer irritation at Rossi, he demonstrates that because Rossi never learned the basics before trying to innovate, it never occurred to him that there might actually be a good reason a ''sword'' school would include few ''unarmed'' moves. Case in point: reaching out to punch somebody with your off hand opens you up to [[TheGrappler grappling]].
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