"Angelina and Luke."
A white light shone beneath Catheryn's body, and then she disappeared. She had been teleported to the infirmary. Ruth stepped out of the arena still panting lightly, though he showed no signs of real damage. The crowd remained quiet, still processing the battle they had just witnessed.
Then Luke's voice broke through their thoughts.
"Xavier."
Xavier looked at Luke's back as he made his way toward the stage.
"There's a reason I'm not in the top ten."
Xavier raised an eyebrow.
"Excuse or not, I was simply too slow."
Luke kept walking.
"No one here can pierce my defences."
He glanced back slightly.
"This is a good learning opportunity for you, Xavier, my brother."
Anyone could tell what Xavier was thinking just by looking at his face.
Since when were they brothers?
Scarlett was already bent over, struggling to hold back her laughter. She pointed toward Angelina, and Xavier turned to look.
She wore a murderous expression while mouthing the words, I'm going to kill him.
Xavier shook his head. His smile threatened to break into laughter, but all he said was,
"Good luck."
Then, in a small voice only Scarlett heard,
"Brother."
Aeron stared blankly.
'Yeah. He's going to need it.'
The two of them stepped into the arena, Luke completely oblivious to the killing intent aimed at his back.
Aeron's gaze settled fully on Angelina.
There was beauty, and then there was her.
Even now, she stood above the others. Her black wavy hair, dark as a starless sky, framed a face that could draw attention without effort. But it was her eyes that held people captive. Ice-green and always glowing with life, they were far from normal. If one looked closely, her pupils bore a jagged symmetry, a slightly lighter shade within the green, as though a star had shattered and frozen inside them.
And yet Aeron knew this version of her was incomplete.
This was before everything changed.Before that beauty sharpened into something almost divine. Before, those same eyes would hold the splendour of a goddess looking down on mortals.
Like a goddess had borrowed the shape of a girl.
A faint shiver crawled up Aeron's spine.
Beautiful, yes.Someday, though, she would become the sort of beautiful that made people forget to breathe—
and then remember to kneel.
Unfortunately, only her looks stood out.
Her personality was a different matter entirely.
'A yandere through and through. Good luck, Xavier.'
Neither of them chose a weapon. They stood across from each other in silence.
Once again, the mana dome rose and turned transparent.
"When you're ready."
Luke gave Xavier a sidelong glance from the stage, flashed a grin, pointed toward himself, then gave a thumbs-up.
'Completely unnecessary.'
Luke rolled his neck and muttered one word.
"Impervious."
A thick blue barrier spread across every inch of Luke's body before turning transparent, just like the dome.
Only much thicker.
'Lucky bastard. Impervious. I'd sleep like a baby with that trait. Why am I so unbelievably nerfed?'
Aeron could only lament his fate. Still, his fondness for Luke's future growth outweighed any jealousy.
'Wish I had popcorn right now. Wait, is there popcorn here too?'
And, naturally, his fondness for delicacies remained undefeated.
Angelina simply stood there with one eyebrow raised and her arms crossed.
She looked entirely unimpressed.
Luke's smug voice echoed through the arena.
"Come at me, princess."
"You won't be leaving until I've put you down."
A few frowns appeared among the spectators, especially from the girls. Even Eliza raised an eyebrow. Scarlett's eyes bulged as she fought for her life trying not to laugh. Xavier blushed, cleared his throat, and looked away as though he didn't know Luke.
Aeron was already laughing silently.
'Yes. Put her down, Luke.'
Angelina's eyes glowed brighter.
Luke showed no reaction.
Another effect of his trait.
Mind Guard.
She gritted her teeth, raised a hand, and pointed a finger at him.
Several small water snakes materialised and shot toward Luke, but he didn't move.
A dozen slammed into him, forcing him to slide backward. Then dozens more followed, turning into a relentless barrage that crashed against his body one after another.
Luke remained unaffected.
Eventually, the assault stopped. Vapour and mist spread through the arena, surrounding him.
Then a silhouette waved through the haze.
Luke casually fanned the mist away with one hand.
"Careful. The way you keep coming at me is starting to feel personal."
Angelina's face darkened.
The water scattered across the arena rose at once. With a sharp compressing motion of her hand, it collapsed inward into a single sphere. Then she compressed it again.
Her hands trembled.
Smaller.Smaller.
Until it was no larger than a pellet.
She pointed at it.
Then pointed at Luke.
The pellet vanished.
Luke scratched the back of his neck.
The pellet reappeared directly above his head.
A deafening explosion reverberated throughout the arena.
That compressed pellet could have crippled most C-ranks.
Yet when the mist cleared, Luke stood there completely unharmed.
"Hey," he said, sounding mildly offended. "I felt that."
He glanced at Xavier and mouthed,
Watch this.
Then he moved.
He launched himself forward and kicked off a rock he had formed beneath his feet. White flames gathered around his leg as he spun through the air in a front somersault before driving downwards, his right leg fully extended.
"Final Descent."
Angelina grinned.
Just before the kick landed, a massive blue hand shot upward from below. Connected to Angelina's own, it clasped tightly around Luke's ankle and stopped him mid-air.
"Hm," Luke muttered slowly, hanging upside down. "That doesn't look like surrender to me."
It was a ridiculous sight.
He dangled helplessly in the air, caught by a giant hand of water.
Then Angelina swung.
Left.Right.
The giant hand followed, slamming Luke into the arena floor hard enough to shake it.
Still unharmed.
But she did not stop.
Again.And again.
Then she spun him overhead and hurled him straight toward the barrier before the spectators.
He struck it headfirst.
His face slowly slid down the transparent wall.
His eyes were white.Foam dribbled from his mouth.
For a moment, the entire arena fell silent.
Luke's body remained slumped against the barrier, midair and unmoving.
The transparent blue layer over his skin had long since faded, but strangely enough, there was not a single visible injury on him. No blood. No broken bones jutting at odd angles. Not even a bruise that the crowd could make out from this distance.
He simply looked...
Thoroughly defeated.
Aeron stared.
Amazing.
'Not a scratch on him. His pride, though? Yeah, that's gone'
'And Angelina too—what even are her mana reserves? Damn.'
Scarlett was the first to break.
A snort escaped her. Then another. Then she doubled over completely, one hand clutching her stomach while the other smacked uselessly against Xavier's shoulder.
"H-he really—" she choked, unable to finish.
Xavier had already turned away, one hand covering his face.
"I don't know him," he said at once.
"You called him brother five minutes ago," Scarlett managed between laughs.
"That", Xavier said, "was a mistake."
Angelina stood in the centre of the arena with one hand on her hip, still unperturbed after that display. Her glowing eyes remained fixed on Luke's dangling figure.
Then, with a small flick of her fingers, the giant water hand dissolved.
Luke dropped face-first onto the arena floor with a dull thud.
He lay there for two seconds.
Three.
Then one hand slowly rose.
Aeron's eyes widened.
'Whew. How can he still be called a human?'
Luke pushed himself upright, wobbling as if he were drunk.
His expression was dazed and absent, like someone dragged awake from a dream.
There was still foam at the corner of his mouth.
But when he stood fully, his posture remained stable.
Not a limp.
Not a wince.
Not even a tremor in his legs.
The only thing that looked truly broken was his soul.
Another dangerous silence filled the arena.
Then Luke raised a hand and pointed vaguely toward Angelina.
"I underestimated," he said hoarsely, pausing as if even speaking required effort, "...your enthusiasm."
That did it.
Scarlett collapsed to her knees laughing.
Even several students in the crowd burst out, whatever fear or tension they had been holding onto finally shattering. A few tried to hide it behind coughs. Others failed miserably.
Eliza shut her eyes.
"Unbelievable."
Xavier's eyes turned hollow. Second-hand embarrassment.
Aeron was nearly shaking from the effort of not laughing out loud. His face shrivelled like he had eaten a lemon.
'Why's this guy still talking?'
Angelina's eyelid twitched.
For the first time, she looked less murderous and more tired.
"Please", she said, voice ice-cold, "stop speaking."
Luke blinked at her.
Then, somehow, he managed to straighten a little more, as if recovering just enough to return to being insufferable.
"You hit quite hard," he admitted.
A pause.
"But my defence remains peerless."
Aeron lowered his head and rubbed at his eyes.
'He learned nothing.'
Aeron paused.
'No, that's unfair. He probably already started thinking of a counter.'
'His ego is terrifying.'
The professor finally stepped in before Angelina could test how far she could torture him.
"That is enough."
The arena quieted at once.
The professor's gaze swept over both students, lingering on Luke for a fraction longer than necessary.
"Winner," she said, "Angelina."
A small round of applause rose from the crowd, though several students were still trying not to laugh.
Angelina turned without a word and stepped off the stage, her expression returning to its usual aloof calm.
As she passed Xavier, she gave him a single look.
A look that said:
Don't talk to me ever again.
Xavier immediately looked elsewhere.
Luke, meanwhile, remained standing in the middle of the arena, chest inflated.
Aeron watched him in fascination.
It was honestly absurd.
Anyone else would have been carried out already.
Luke just looked mildly inconvenienced.
Then the idiot gave a thumbs-up.
"To be clear," he announced to no one in particular, "I could continue."
The professor stared at him.
"No."
Luke lowered his hand.
"Understood."
He stepped off the arena with all the solemn dignity of a war hero returning from defeat, passed Xavier, and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"You saw it," Luke said. "Her offence is respectable."
Xavier slowly removed the hand from his shoulder.
"I'm begging you," he said quietly. "Please shut up."
Aeron had to bite the inside of his cheek to stop himself from folding in half.
'Respectable?'
'Bro became a handbag.'
As Luke continued walking, only slightly less steady than before, Aeron's gaze drifted toward Angelina for a second time.
Still beautiful.
Still terrifying.
And, apparently, more than capable of using Luke as a public lesson.
'That's only rank three,' Aeron sighed.
'We got a long way, buddy,' he thought while staring at his hand.
Then he glanced back at Luke.
'Still, though... not even a bruise. Where's my super cheat?'
The bell rang, signalling the end of class.
...
Eliza POV
The doors opened for her at once.
Inside, the office was almost disappointingly ordinary. A polished wooden table stood at its centre, a golden nameplate resting atop it.
Principal Caelum Voss.
Books were arranged neatly along the shelves. A fire crackled in the hearth. The room felt warm, lived in, almost homely.
Which only made the absence more noticeable.
The man in charge of the academy was not there.
Eliza made herself a tea and sat down casually, processing her first day.
It had been… eventful.
Every student had shown strengths. More flaws.
A few had stood out.
No. More than a few.
Names drifted through her mind, and with each came the impression they had left behind.
Inefficient mana usage. Wasteful movement. Emotions too close to the surface. Catheryn's mask. Lyra's hidden disgust toward the boys. Angelina's lack of drive. Scarlett's interest in Xavier. Kyle's glances toward Angelina and Lyra. Xavier's toward nearly every woman present.
Including herself.
Eliza exhaled slowly.
She had seen every little detail.
With time, everyone's true selves would reveal themselves.
No, there was one. An annoying one. He was... different. The thought of him made Eliza frown.
With that thought, she felt mana hum through the room. The scent of burnt wood followed.
A scent only her grandfather carried.
"So, Eliza. How was your first day as a professor?"
His voice arrived before he did. Mana shifted and swirled, gathering at the sofa opposite her until his figure emerged from the air itself.
His white hair was tied neatly in a ponytail. Faint lines coloured his face, giving him a rustic charm mothers could vouch for. He was clean-shaven and dressed in a formal suit traced with red velvet lines.
'A military meeting.'
"A military meeting?"
"So now you don't even greet the principal or your grandpa. But yes, you already know we are surrounded." He paused, expression casual.
"The demons have grown restless. The golden generation, the rumours of a Light Bearer… you understand how that sounds from the outside. Nothing you need to be concerned about. What you do need to bear in mind are the chances of dungeon merges, mutations, and monster outbreaks. Especially when you go on an excursion next week."
"We are going out?"
"Yes. Nothing new. Sprouts need to build a good foundation, and what's better than life-and-death experiences?"
He said it in a jolly tone, but Eliza could tell something was wrong. Previous Spade classes had not done this, but she wouldn't ask for now.
She nodded in affirmation.
"I will send you the details, but enough, you needy granddaughter. Answer my first question. How were they? How were the SS+? Anything exciting?"
He already knew what happened, but he would still ask. Her grandpa cared for her the most and left her with a guard even she couldn't detect. The guard reported everything, of course, except her thoughts.
She recounted everything while her grandpa listened to every word, laughing, berating, and smiling. Just like her grandpa cared for her, she, too, cared for him.
"How about the Will boy?"
"Nothing special yet."
"Hmm, funny, isn't it?"
She raised her eyebrow.
"The bearer of Caelis's will is called Will," he muttered with a serious expression. Eliza stared at him flatly, not bothering to reply.
"Your test?"
"They fell at lust."
"Everyone, even the light bearer?"
"Why ask if you already know?"
He smirked.
"So, that boy, Aeron. Your thoughts?"
"I don't know." She paused.
"He is weak. Beyond weak. It is as if this is his first time using mana. Unremarkable to the point of insult. And yet he keeps—"
"Fading in and out of your senses? You keep forgetting about him? Times you feel there should be forty-nine students in your class, not fifty?"
Her eyebrows scrunched together.
"Yes."
There was silence in the office. The fire seemed to dim slightly, crackling less. The principal leaned back into the sofa, in thought.
"I am SS+, Eliza. Possibly. No. I am the strongest human and I stand near the top, even amongst other races. I can even cross ranks and fight SSS beings. But we have a boy who is E+ hitting D as we speak who is able to escape my senses."
She opened her mouth.
"No, not because he's weak. His presence is even smaller than a baby in its womb."
"But the reason he isn't gone," Caelum said quietly, "is simple."
He looked into the fire.
"He has no intent."
"No intent to fight. No intent to interfere. No intent to even be visible."
'No intent? How can a being have no intent?'
"He has desires but no intent. I could possibly leave Yggdrasil's Icar in front of him. He would have the desire to consume it but no intent to take it."
"So I can't be sure he is on our side. Or if he is even on a side. But he will not harm anyone here."
His watch vibrated against the desk.
Eliza glanced at it. "An email? For you?"
No one sent the principal emails. If they had business with him, it went through faculty first.
Caelum looked down at the screen. Then he smiled.
"Speak of the devil—"
...
Aeron POV
Aeron wasn't stupid. There was a reason he had been placed in Spades.
He just didn't know what it was.
What he did know was this:
The principal had done it.
Something had happened during his appraisal.
The thought bothered him, but the principal was far beyond him. Worrying about it changed nothing. For now, his mind drifted back to the appraisal itself.
Lightning and fire.
Yet he had felt no connection to either of them. No connection to any element at all.
No one on Caelis had zero elemental affinity.
'I'm strange.'
'Well... I did transmigrate. But this is still Aeron's body. So why doesn't he have an affinity?'
'Questions and more questions.'
He shook his head.
Then there was that moment during the test—when he had seen the threads connected to Eliza.
That was not an ability he recognised.
Nor was it a trait he should have had.
Aeron exhaled slowly.
One problem at a time.
He lowered his gaze and checked his updated status.
D-
He stared at it in silence for a moment.
Reaching it had cost him everything he had earned so far. Every last credit, poured into a single training potion and the pain that followed.
But he had made it.
The process itself had not been difficult. The potion simply made it easier to draw mana into his body and guide it toward his core. At least, that was how it was supposed to work. The show had never really explained what a core was beyond people absorbing mana into it.
Aeron's did not feel like a core at all.
Whenever mana entered through his pores, it transformed into fibres almost immediately. And where his core should have been, there was only a perfect circle with an empty centre. The fibres wrapped themselves around that hollow ring again and again, layering over each other until the structure finally thickened enough for him to reach D-rank.
It had not felt wrong.
Just utterly unlike anything the show had taught him to expect.
Still, hitting D-rank brought an undeniable change. His threads were easier to manipulate now, and he could control ten at once. His precision still needed work, and he had yet to properly test their strength, but he could already tell they were far stronger than before.
Then his eyes shifted to the reply waiting in his inbox.
Permission granted.
Aeron's expression tightened.
That should not have been possible.
He was not in the top hundred.
So this only confirmed what he had already begun to suspect.
Someone had interfered.
And Aeron had a very good idea who.
Aeron looked out toward the distant academy gates.
It was time to see the world beyond them.