The day of the semi-finals arrived.
Countless people surged into the academy, occupying more seats than were presented.
It seemed they had brought their own seats to watch the tournament, considered one of the most popular events in the world.
Countless reporters, journalists, and spectators rushed to get in, yearning for a glance at one of the Faction Heads.
Many were denied, while some were allowed due to their relations with the guards.
The participants, of which four were remaining, descended down the flight of stairs for the ceremony.
"We celebrate the Semi-Finals of the 94th Inter-Academy Tournament here with the students of countless academies and the Heads of not two, but three Factions."
Felix began his speech, which continued for countless hours as most of the listeners fell asleep, woke up, and then fell asleep again.
"Now, we shall begin the first match of the Semi-Finals… Ace Ambrosia will fight Lily Yearning!"
As he said those words, the crowd broke into countless cheers.
Most of them were for Lily, but Ace also heard some directed towards him.
As the two walked towards the arena, the latter heard the cheers of his parents.
He waved at them, causing all the spectators to look towards the people Ace had waved at.
The three smiled awkwardly, embarrassed by all the stares directed towards them of people who were confused about their relationship with the King of Indifference.
Lily and Ace entered the arena, standing opposite to each while locking eyes.
"Remember last time?"
Ace asked, a mocking smile blossoming on his previously indifferent face.
Hearing his blatant act of criticism to lower her guard, she groaned.
"Yes, it's still vivid in my mind. Anything else you wanna say?"
"Indeed. How do you feel about utilizing blatant nepotism to prove that you're the best?"
Lily's eyes turned cold as her mana surged throughout the arena, almost like paint splashing over a blank canvas.
"Nepotism… That's a pretty strong word for what actually happened, isn't it?"
"Not really. It describes what happened perfectly."
Now, both of them wore smirks.
Lily was certain about her imminent and inevitable loss. However, she wanted to wear him out as much as she could.
Also, she was sure that Ace would not be able to win against Luna, since she had personally seen the latter's skill level.
"Fine, let's call it nepotism. What about your relationship with principal Felix? Is he your relative, or are you… let's say, Uranian?"
Several snickers were heard from the ground, accurately describing the current atmosphere.
Yes, it was an easy-going atmosphere with not even a hint of tension.
Not paying any mind to the severity of the situation, the two competitors who were said to be competing for a spot in the finals were readily joking around.
"Shall we begin the battle?"
"Your call, King of Indifference."
Nodding slightly, he released a meager amount of mana towards Lily, who immediately slashed it in half using [Sword Master].
Despite having clearly cut the mana, she still felt shivers run down her spine.
She shuddered at the sensation of his mana coming into contact with her body, which made her feel the sensation of death all over again.
Her eyes were clearly filled with fright, visible to every single spectator who could even use a little bit of mana.
Even Ace's parents were surprised, seeing the blonde-hared girl frozen up.
Somehow regaining her composure, she used [Intellect] to try to find out ways to defeat her opponent, or at least some weak spots.
However, she found none.
Even with her skill, with her strength, she could not find find any way of defeating the monstrosity that stood before her, eyeing her with a face that made her body shiver uncontrollably.
She used a tiny bit of mana to send out a wisp of flame, which extinguished as soon as it came into contact with Ace's body.
"Is that it, King of Wisdom? I thought you would show me your… [Intellect]?"
Her eyes widened as she realized he was not unbeknownst to her skill, and that he had been aware of it even when they fought last time.
"I see. You knew about it all along. However, did you have to tell everyone here about the skill?"
She had no reason to deny it anymore since the knuckleheaded boy in front of her had already blabbed it to everyone.
"Yeah, I did."
Not bothering to ask why, and taking his response as a challenge, she charged at him using near all of her mana, circulating it into an orb.
The orb made of pure mana levitated, floating higher and higher every second.
Eventually, the orb began to enlarge, becoming larger than a truck in a matter of seconds.
"An attack based on destructive power from a person who specializes in strategies… that's kind of sad."
Ace raised an eyebrow while commenting on Lily's behavior, directing a sympathetic gaze towards her sunken expression.
Whoosh!
Slash!
In a single slash, the entire orb was taken down, fragments of mana descending towards the ground.
As Ace cushioned his landing using [Body Augmentation], he directed a smug grin at the blonde-haired girl, who had given up.
"That was underwhelming…"
Those were the last words he uttered before moving in for the elimination.
Kang!
Several things happened at once, an explosion occurring near the two competitors.
Ace and Lily's eyes widened as they stared at the spectacle that had just occurred.
Noah Williams and Genro Govel, the former using a blade and the latter using pure mana, blocking each other's attacks.
No, Genro was blocking Noah's attack.
'Why are they here in the first place? When did they even get here?'
Despite being on-guard, Ace hadn't noticed the two until they had deliberately revealed themselves.
As the smoke from the explosion subsided, the spectators also received the chance of witnessing such a spectacle.
"Genro, why are you protecting that boy?"
Noah asked. His tone was filled with curiosity, but his cold eyes suggested otherwise.
"You tried to hurt a participant, Noah."
Genro retorted, flicking his long, crimson hair out his field of vision.
Ace finally realized what had happened.
When he closed in for the elimination, Noah, not wanting Lily to get hurt, approached him.
It was probably a request from Harold Yearning, but he had devoted his dignity towards it.
Noticing the intrusion of an unknown variable, Genro also made a move, blocking his blade before it made contact with Ace's body.
The problem was… why?
Did Genro do it out of his own self interest?
Was it because he found Ace amusing?
Or was it to protect his dignity from Noah?
Either way, this time, Genro had helped Ace survive a near-death encounter.
However, the latter wasn't thankful for it.
"And you saved a participant, Genro."
"That's because you tried to hurt him first. Do not understand the meaning of 'rules?'"
"Since when do rules apply to delinquents and punks such as you?"
"Since we made them. Our ancestors spent three Royal Banquets trying to establish the tournament. You cannot interfere."
"He tried to hurt Lily, the daughter of my closest friend."
"And you tried to hurt him, the son of his parents."
Gritting his teeth in exasperation, his sword disintegrating into particles that floated towards his scabbard.
His sword materialized once again. However, it was now inside his scabbard, that hung on his waist.
Genro and Noah suddenly disappeared, and even though Ace was shocked, he didn't waste any time in making Lily unable to battle anymore.
He won the match, causing the crowd to burst into cheers and boos.
As he walked towards the VIP Room, he stuck his tongue out at Noah Williams, who displayed his indignation with a singular cold stare.
As he entered the room, he witnessed the crumpled expression of his lanky-armed friend, who, even with his newfound powers, was hesitant in his chances against Luna Govel.
'I guess this is how fear works.'
Luna had instilled fear into the hearts of everyone.
Due to her skill, background, and appearance, her mere presence had been regarded as a catastrophe by the students, who didn't dare to even approach her.
She was a loner.
However, she was strong, very strong.
Unlike the others, who preferred strength in numbers, connections, or that kind of bullshit, she believed in sole strength.
She was like a carbon-copy of her father. Only, her presence was far more oppressive than her father's, who was considered to be evil by some, and just by some.
Unlike her father, she was plain evil.
No sad backstory, no hidden desire that might be considered just.
Only pure evil, like villains in cliche stories.
That was what Ace believed Luna to be.
"Good luck. You're going to need it."
Nodding his head, Leo put on a confident expression before walking out of the room and towards the arena.
Ace desperately wanted to watch the match. However, he had other plans to occupy him for the entire night.
'I'll be back by the time the finals begin.'
Wearing a white undershirt and a black leather jacket, Ace headed towards his destination, which was principal Felix's office.
Knock Knock!
"Come in, Ace."
A raspy voice entered Ace's ears, prompting him to open the door, only to reveal the principal's sunken cheeks and droopy eyes.
"What happened to you?"
"Mediating Noah and Genro's conflict about you."
"I see. Now, let's get straight to the point. I would like to buy a skill."
"A skill? You know, I don't sell sk–"
Before he could finish his sentence, Felix was rudely interrupted by Ace, who had different thoughts about the matter.
"I would like to buy a skill from the OTF. From the Dark Market."
Felix's eyes suddenly turned cold.
"It seems you really know everything."
"Indeed, I do."
Felix turned on his laptop on the bottom-right side of his desk, opening the website Dark Market.
It was a website dedicated to serving members of the OTF, whether they be low-ranked or high-ranked.
Despite the millions or even billions of people affiliated with the OTF, information about the website had never been leaked.
Then, how did a boy who was barely sixteen years old know about the said website?
Several pages appeared on the laptop, which was then handled by Ace, who quickly searched for something.
[Concealment - SS]
[C150,000,000]
[Buy/Add to cart]
Smiling brightly, he promptly clicked 'buy', initiating an order.
"150 Million? How are you going to pay for that? No, why are you even buying such a high-ranked skill?"
"Firstly, I have my means. Secondly, as I told you yesterday, I'm going to create mayhem and chaos."
Perplexed by Ace's words, which could be considered vague, Felix sighed in defeat.
Immediately, a drone appeared from the window, delivering a manual of the said skill.
Learning it at quickly as he could, he checked his status window.
There it was, on the translucent blue screen.
[Concealment - SS]
Revealing a smug grin, he said goodbye to Felix while heading towards his destination. This place would cause mayhem and chaos across the academy and the entire world.
*
*
*
"The second matchup for the Semi-Finals, Leo Kadz is going to fight Luna Govel."
The entire crowd broke into cheers as two figures appeared from the shadows.
One revealed a nervous expression, while the other was utterly expressionless, without a hint of a reaction.
Luna's silver hair fluttered due to the wind that blew across the arena, causing it to block her field of vision.
As the two stared at each other, one swallowed his saliva while the other did zilch.
"3."
The two gathered mana, causing the surrounding atmosphere to become dreadful after being sucked dry of the substance.
They used their own mana while simultaneously using [Mana Cultivation] to gather more.
"2."
Leo's eyes turned dark, eventually turning pitch-black.
Luna unsheathed a rapier while igniting her aura, causing the blade to glow silver.
"1."
Mana encompassed their bodies, causing their figures to become blurry to the audience spectating the match.
"Begin!"
Bam!
The two struck each other immediately, causing enormous winds and shockwaves flying in every direction.
As the atmosphere changed drastically, the two backed away, planning their next move.
Technically, Luna was at an advantage due to only using aura and a tiny bit of mana to fight on par with Leo.
However, the latter wasn't using most of his skills, solely depending on the property of darkness.
"The property of darkness? I thought you were a brawler or a berserker, King of Bravery."
"I thought you were a magic swordsman, Monarch of the Cold. Where's your magic?"
Not minding the other's words, the two kept striking each other at inhumane speeds, causing the shockwaves to grow exponentially.
Bam!
Bam!
Doing a flip, Leo waved his hand slightly, causing darkness to ooze out of his body, seemingly crawling towards his opponent.
Incinerating everything beneath it, the darkness slowly approached the Monarch of Cold, who only stared at it.
Soon, despite her not moving an inch, the darkness suddenly froze.
Yes, ice engulfed the entire property of darkness, immobilizing it.
However, the petty trick did not last long, as the ice soon shattered, revealing a seemingly angry property of darkness.
'Is it alive?'
Luna questioned, her gaze turning complicated.
The property of darkness apparently chased after her, making it look like it possessed a consciousness.
As she backed away, her eyes narrowed as she formed another block of ice–only ten times bigger this time.
Freeze!
This time, the darkness could not escape from the binds of the Monarch of the Cold, who restrained it like there was no tomorrow.
Now that the property of darkness had been taken care of, she could continue with the seemingly one-sided battle.
Bam!
Before she could react, a punch struck her body, causing her to wince in pain.
As her burnt torso bled, she gripped onto it tightly, attempting desperately to stop the bleeding.
'Do I have no choice?'
Despite the gravity of the situation she had been placed in, her thoughts were as clear as day, not clouded at all.
Leo had just been too strong, and she shouldn't have underestimated him.
That's what she believed had happened.
Leo, seemingly proud of his deed, revealed a triumphant smile while flexing his skinny biceps.
Now, he truly felt grateful for Ace, who had helped him achieve the newfound power.
'I'm gonna have to do it, aren't I?'
Luna thought, shutting her eyes tightly.
Her face contorted in pain as she froze the part of her torso that was bleeding.
Despite having avoided losing too much stamina, she had allowed excruciating pain upon herself.
Leo watched in shock as Luna summoned an enormous amount of ice, which engulfed her body whole.
Her body, now contaminated with ice until her neck, approached Leo at horrifying speeds, threatening to cut off his throat.
Slash!
*
*
*
In a hallway dimly lit by two candles stood a boy, invisible to the naked eye.
After having bought [Concealment], he had headed to the room occupied by the assistant of Genro Govel.
Natalie Adams.
Ace believed that she would be the catalyst to the chaos he was trying to ensue.
'The real catalyst is her room, not her.'
If she returned to her room before Ace could complete his work and leave, he would have to face an Iniquitous Ranker at the S+ Rank.
However, despite not being a High-Ranker, she could contend with people at the SS- Rank.
That is why Ace desperately wanted to avoid a confrontation with the woman.
Step!
Step!
His footsteps were hidden by the skill, and could only be heard by him.
His entire body had camouflaged to the walls, and was even harder to spot in the dim hallway.
As he approached the door that was created using one of the most finest materials in all of the Conscientious Faction, he revealed a [Seal Key].
It was widely regarded as an item able to open even the most safest of safes.
Of course, although that was purely an exaggerated story, it was still very helpful while opening doors that had already been sabotaged by Felix Edwards.
Despite not knowing Ace's plan, he now 'trusted' him enough to help with meager tasks.
Click!
The door suddenly opened due to Ace's tinkering, moving inwards.
Ace desperately reached into prevent it from making a creaking noise, but was unable to do so due to the door's sheer weight.
Creak!
Thump!
The door smashed into the wall behind, causing a low-pitched sound to reverberate across the room.
Even though it wasn't loud, an S Rank could easily hear it from miles away.
'Genro might have heard it.'
Immediately, he shut the door behind him, trying to prevent any tracks or evidence of him entering the room.
'If it goes like this, I might get found out.'
*
*
*
In a VIP Room decorated with countless jewels sat a crimson red-haired man.
He was topless, showcasing his well-toned muscles to absolute no one except the person that sat next to him, Natalie Adams.
His legs were crossed above each other, and he sat like it was his living room.
"Natalie…"
"Yes, master Genro?"
He had heard a noise come from his assistant's room, which was right next to his.
"Would you check your room? I thought I heard a noise come from their."
Not hesitating one bit, she immediately nodded with her eyes closed, heading towards her room with an expressionless face.
'My room? Has master Genro become a pervert?'
She immediately shook her head with a smile, not even considering that thought.
Her master had rescued her from practically the depths of Tartarus, and would not do anything malicious to her.
Moreover, she had served him with sincerity, even going as far as to train for countless years, becoming an S+ Ranked Individual as well as a Ranker in the Iniquitous Faction.
"Has someone infiltrated our room? But, didn't that damned geezer promise us it would be safe?"
Confusion and anger piled up, urging her to hurry to her room.