The two continued sparring two more times.
Blades clashed repeatedly as they tested different strategies and techniques.
It was interesting to watch.
However…
The result never changed.
Leon Ardent still won both bouts.
Liam Veridian pushed him further each time, but Leon's overwhelming speed always allowed him to seize the final advantage.
Eventually, Professor Nox called an end to their sparring.
But before the murmurs of the students could settle…
Another matchup quickly drew everyone's attention.
Two names were announced.
Vayne Desmond
vs
Lia Heartly
Rank #2 against Rank #6.
The crowd stirred again as the two cadets stepped forward.
I shifted my gaze toward the arena.
A girl with long white hair walked calmly onto the field.
Vayne Desmond.
Her silver eyes looked almost ghostlike beneath the sunlight.
Pale skin.
Sharp features.
And an expression completely devoid of emotion.
She truly is beautiful…
But the emptiness in her gaze made her feel distant.
Almost inhuman.
Across from her, Lia Heartly stepped into the arena as well.
Unlike Vayne, Lia looked tense.
In her hand was not a sword—
but a slender wand.
She gripped it tightly as she took her stance.
Her shoulders were stiff, and nervousness was clear on her face.
Several students began whispering.
"A mage against Vayne?"
"That's rough…"
"She needs distance or she's done for…"
Lia swallowed nervously.
If she allowed Vayne to close the distance, the fight would be over instantly.
So she decided to do the only thing she could.
Overwhelm her from the start.
At the front of the field, Professor Nox Valen raised his hand.
"…Begin."
The moment the word left his mouth—
Mana exploded around Lia.
"Wind Lance!"
Three sharp spears of wind shot forward.
"Flame Burst!"
A wave of fire roared across the arena.
"Stone Cage!"
Pillars of rock erupted from the ground, attempting to trap Vayne.
Lia unleashed everything she had within seconds.
Spells flew across the arena one after another.
Students gasped.
"That's rank #6 for you!"
"She's going all out!"
But through all of it—
Vayne Desmond never moved.
She simply stood there.
Silent.
Watching.
The spells rushed toward her—
Wind.
Fire.
Stone.
Then—
The arena suddenly went quiet.
The spells vanished.
Like they had never existed.
For a moment no one understood what had happened.
Then—
Thud.
Lia collapsed onto the ground.
Her wand rolled across the arena floor.
Unconscious.
Silence spread across the training grounds.
The entire crowd stared in confusion.
"What…?"
"What just happened?"
"Did anyone see that?!"
Even some of the instructors narrowed their eyes.
Meanwhile, Vayne simply turned around and began walking away from the arena.
Like the match had already been decided from the start.
From the sidelines, I blinked.
…What?
The arena had gone completely silent.
Lia Heartly lay unconscious on the ground, her wand rolling slowly across the floor.
And Vayne Desmond…
Hadn't even moved.
At least—
That's what it looked like.
Whispers spread among the cadets.
"What just happened?"
"I didn't see anything!"
"Did she even attack?"
I narrowed my eyes.
Something definitely happened.
Inside my mind, I spoke.
"Paradox… what the hell was that?"
Silence.
No response.
"…Paradox?"
Still nothing.
I clicked my tongue slightly.
Useless system.
My gaze shifted back toward Vayne as she calmly walked away from the arena.
For a moment, a memory surfaced.
Vayne Desmond…
In the novel Leon's Odyssey, she never played a major role.
In fact…
She disappeared not long after the academy arc.
Around chapter ten…
After that, she was never mentioned again.
Readers had speculated a lot about it in the comments.
Some believed she had simply dropped out of the academy.
Others thought something worse had happened.
Maybe she died.
But the story never confirmed it.
What was certain, however…
Was the fate of House Desmond.
Years later in the story, Leon Ardent personally led an operation to destroy the entire house.
Their crimes had eventually been exposed.
Illegal dark magic experimentation.
And slave trafficking.
The entire noble house was wiped out.
No survivors.
My eyes lingered on Vayne's back as she disappeared into the crowd.
…Interesting.
The silence in the arena didn't last long.
Professor Nox Valen quickly stepped forward and signaled the medics.
Two staff members rushed in and carefully lifted the unconscious Lia Heartly onto a stretcher before carrying her toward the medical wing.
Murmurs spread across the training grounds as students continued discussing what had just happened.
Meanwhile, Leon Ardent had already left for the medical room as well after hearing about the incident.
Several more matches continued afterward.
One that drew a fair amount of attention was:
Nia Veridian
vs
Rina Emberheart
Rank #5 against Rank #4.
Unlike the previous match, this one was far more balanced.
Their duel was intense, with both fighters exchanging blows and techniques repeatedly.
In the end, they completed their three sparring rounds.
Rina managed to win two matches, while Nia secured one victory.
The difference between them was small.
Very small.
Still…
A win was a win.
After their match ended, I casually glanced down at the academy watch on my wrist.
A faint notification appeared across the screen.
[Next Sparring Match Assigned]
I tapped the display.
A name appeared.
Opponent: Rank #1920 — Alex
I raised an eyebrow.
"…Rank 1920, huh."
Not too strong.
Not too weak either.
Just about perfect.
I slowly stepped toward the arena.
I stepped into the arena and glanced at my opponent.
A boy with messy green hair walked in from the other side.
He looked… ordinary.
Nothing about him stood out.
Just another background character.
I checked his uniform.
No family crest.
No noble insignia.
Just one name displayed on his academy badge.
Alex — Rank #1920
A commoner.
No last name either.
Just another extra.
"Well… whatever."
I rolled my shoulders slightly.
"Let's get this over with."
Across the arena, Alex stood still.
Too still.
Then I noticed something strange.
He was trembling.
His shoulders were shaking slightly.
"…What?"
Before I could think further—
He vanished.
My eyes widened.
What the hell—
Alex suddenly appeared right in front of me.
His sword came crashing down.
CLANG!
I raised my blade and barely managed to parry the strike.
The force of it pushed me half a step back.
Strong…
But something felt off.
His stance was sloppy.
His movements were wild.
Like someone swinging without control.
Then I heard it.
A low…
Animalistic growl.
"…?"
It came from Alex.
His breathing had become erratic.
His eyes looked unfocused.
At that moment, a notification appeared in my vision.
[Paradox Notification]
[Foreign substance detected.]
[Chaos Stone ingestion confirmed.]
My eyes narrowed.
Chaos Stone…?
The system continued.
[Effect: Temporarily enhances physical strength and speed.]
[Duration: 10 minutes.]
[Side effect: Severe mental instability and loss of sanity.]
I clicked my tongue.
"…You've got to be kidding me."
Chaos Stones were incredibly rare.
Extremely difficult to obtain.
No way a random commoner like Alex could get one.
Which meant—
Someone gave it to him.
Alex roared and charged again.
His sword came crashing down wildly.
I sidestepped.
His attack slammed into the ground.
Too reckless.
I stepped in and struck.
THUD!
My blade hit his side and sent him stumbling backward several meters.
As Alex struggled to regain his footing…
A memory surfaced in my mind.
Ah…
Now it made sense.
My thoughts drifted back to the cafeteria incident earlier.
The arrogant noble who tried to bully me.
I hadn't bothered checking his name at the time.
But now I remembered.
Jake Umbra.
So this was his doing.
He probably fed Alex the Chaos Stone and told him to deal with me.
I exhaled slowly.
"…Pathetic."
Using a commoner like a disposable pawn.
Typical noble behavior.
Across the arena, Alex lifted his head again.
His eyes were bloodshot.
The growling sound returned.
The Chaos Stone had completely taken over.
I tightened my grip on my sword.
"…Fine."
If he wanted to fight like a beast—
I'd put him down quickly.