"Oh! It's the underdog!!" a student yelled, igniting an uproar
"F*** shit" Orpheus cursed "Aster, teleport!"
Aster nodded and immediately cast lightning teleport, taking them away from that place
"Where's he?"
"He teleported out of here. But, when did he have the lightning element?"
"That was his bodyguard, you fool!"
"Quickly, tell everyone that the underdog has returned"
"Heh, I finally have the chance to make it into the top 30"
The news of Orpheus' return went around the academy quickly. It spread even faster than the news of the demi-god ascending.
Meanwhile, Orpheus, unaware of the upcoming danger appeared at the entrance of the dormitory with three cloaked figures. They quickly ran into his dorm room and closed the door
"Why couldn't you just teleport me right into the room" Orpheus said
"Sure, I could. If you wanted to blow a hole through the roof of the dorm, that is" Aster said
"What am I going to do now? I'll have to accept their challenges sooner or later. Why is my fate like this?" Orpheus lamented
[It's simple. Accept a duel from the weakest challenger and finish him or her in an overwhelming style]
"That way can dissuade others from challenging you any further" Aella nodded
"That'll work" Orpheus' eyes lit up
[Can I come out now?] Andrian asked
"Oh yeah. I suppose so" Orpheus said and black mist emerged from his body before gradually condensing into Andrian
"Down to the main question?" Andrian said "How did you get the space element?"
"My thoughts exactly" Tana and the others stared intently at Orpheus while waiting for an answer
"Woah! Don't stare at me like that" Orpheus said "In truth, I do not know how I got the space element"
"What do you mean 'you don't know'?" Aster asked
"I really do not know. After the trial, it was just like I felt a bunch of things enter my head" Orpheus scratched his cheek in confusion
[If my theory is correct, you should have about ten elements in your body right now]
"The hell!" Orpheus yelled in shock "Te… te… ten… ele… what?!"
[Yep, ten elements. Your speed, agility, endurance, perception, intelligence and strength must have also increased drastically. I'm not so sure about the intelligence part though]
"F*** you"
"How did all these happen?" Tana asked
[Just after Orpheus finished his trial, I saw two strange energies enter his body. And fortunately, the energies turned out to be that of the lightning bolts he challenged earlier. The headache he got earlier was as a result of his mental strength increasing]
"That explains the space element" Orpheus nodded and his eyes immediately lit up in excitement "Does this mean I have the gravity element?"
[I suppose so]
"Whoopie! I'm now a mid-level advanced magus" Orpheus jumped up and down in excitement
[That is not all. The strength of all your elements jumped from the advanced level to the demi-god level]
"That means… he can fight toe-to-toe with demi-gods?" Aster asked
[Precisely. I also have more good news]
"Woah, there's more?" Orpheus gasped
[The four guardian beasts can fight most of the Olympians and win with style]
"Damn, man. Are the three Olympian brothers among this group?" Aster asked
[No. You can only fight them to a draw, at most]
"Which means, if we want to get stronger…" Tana said
"We'll have to stick with him to get stronger" Andrian completed the sentence
"Yup. That goes without a saying" Aella nodded
"Wait, wait, wait. Stick with who?" Aster asked
"Who else, you idiot. With Orpheus, of course" Andrian answered
"No! There's no way in hell I'll continue to say with this brat" Aster said
"It's not like you've got much of a choice" Tana shrugged
"Hmmm, for you to get stronger, I have to get stronger. And for me to get stronger, I've got to train" Orpheus muttered
[Exactly. And I think you're now up to the task]
"Up to which task?" Orpheus asked
"Don't tell me…" Tana gasped
"Yup" Aella nodded "But, isn't it too early? I mean, just finished his trial"
[I don't think it's too early. Actually, I think it's pretty late. He should've learnt it a while ago]
"Up to which task?" Orpheus asked again
[Oh that, to activate your domain]
…
"Who do you think that demi-god was?" Raya, a blonde-haired girl asked her friend while they were walking to the combat room for training
"I don't know. It's none of my business anyway" Rhea, a white-haired girl answered before stopping "Why does the combat room seem so empty today?"
"I thought you'd already known about it" Raya said
"About what?" Rhea tilted her head
"The underdog, or should I say Orpheus, has already returned. All the students itching for a challenge have gone to his dormitory to challenge him" Raya explained
"Why didn't you tell me this?!" Rhea yelled in exasperation before disappearing on the spot
"I thought you already knew!" Rhea yelled back at the empty air and disappeared
…
"…What's a domain skill?" Orpheus asked in confusion
"Still dumb" Aster muttered
"Shut up" Aella hushed him
[A domain is when we combine the elemental energy of the atmosphere with our own and create a kinda world that only us can control]
"If I learn a domain skill or have a domain, it means I can conjure anything from anywhere as long as it is within the domain?" Orpheus asked
[Exactly. Also, you don't need to release any energy from any part of your body. As long as you have a domain, you can cast a spell from anywhere within your domain as you're using the elemental energy of the atmosphere rather than that of your body]
"Damn. How come I'm hearing of this for the first time?" Orpheus asked
[You're only meant to be told this once you become a senior. In addition, the tournament for your graduation is coming soon]
"Which tournament?" Orpheus blinked his eyes in confusion
"The annual tournament" Tana said
"I thought the tournament was just meant for examination purposes" Orpheus said
[Exactly. The 'examination purpose' there is like a promotional exam. Those who pass will be eligible to become seniors]
"And I'm still this weak? Where do I get to learn how to activate my domain?"
[Now. Take us to secluded place and put on your masks]
"Which place in particular?" Orpheus asked
"Just wear it. We'll figure it out on the way" the four demi human brought out their masks to put it on, but were immediately stopped by Orpheus.
"I suggest we don't put it on now. We'll wear it on the way" he said and walked out of the room with the four of them in tow.
The five of them walked out of the room and out of the dormitory. As soon as they got to the exit of the dormitory, they received a fright.
"Look! He's out!"
"He's finally out? Where is he?"
"Hey, Underdog! I challenge you to a duel. You dare accept it?!"
"What the hell is going on?" Orpheus eyes twitched when he saw the crowd huddled up by the exit of the dormitory. The crowd was split into two factions; those that came to challenge and those that were just there to see whose challenge he'll accept. That is, the Challenged and the Spectators.
"Can we all calm down?" Aella stepped forward "Orpheus is in quite a hurry right now and is therefore not in the condition to accept any challenges from anyone right now. Maybe when he returns, you can challenge him"
"And who are you to tell us that? His parents?" someone in the crowd shouted, instantly gaining the support of everyone else
"What did you just say?" Orpheus muttered "I dare you to say it again"
"I said, who is she to tell us that? Your parents?" the student shouted again while thinking ~What is it? Do you want to beat me? Unfortunately for you, I'm a high-level advanced magus with all maxed out elements while you're just a recent intermediate mag- What?! ~
Before the student could finish the sentence in his mind, Orpheus had already appeared before him and held his head in his hand before smashing it into the ground with so much force that the student was buried upside-down, up to his neck.
"Now listen and listen good. I don't want to hear you mention my parents in my presence. If you do, you'll be in for a worse fate then this guy." Orpheus stood up and walked back to his position.
"Did I just see correctly? Orpheus just buried that guy's head into the ground with just physical strength"
"I thought he is just a low-level intermediate magus that just advanced"
"I thought so too"
"Uh, now that is settled, how about I come up with a suggestion." Andrian spoke up "It's not really a suggestion though. Just a condition"
"Andrian, what are you doing?" Aella asked him in a hushed tone
"The person that wishes to challenge him should be worthy of it" Andrian gave Aella an assuring smile "By the time we return, he will only consider the challenges from the first three people ranked below him. Fair, right?"
"Imagine the audacity!" someone yelled from the crowd "You're basically telling us to fight against ourselves"
"Yeah. It's not fair. We'll be worn out by the time you return"
"They seem to have forgotten how he just buried that guy's head in the floor" Raya whispered to Rhea while they were watching the scene unfold
"That doesn't concern us in anyway." Aster said "Let's go"
Orpheus and the other four jumped into the air and disappeared, leaving behind students that were stunned to the core
"I guess we don't have a choice" someone spoke up
"I'm not opting for this suicide mission. The only three people behind Orpheus are Emilios, who has held his position for too long that no one has the liver to challenge him anymore. Then, Rhea and Raya. That one's is a no-go area for me"
"Yeah, we'll lose without a doubt"
"I'm off. Maybe today is not my day at all"
The students began to leave the dorm entrance with dejected looks on their faces until only two students remained.
"Very soon, you'll be mine" Rhea said with an obsessed look on her face
"She's too obsessed" Raya shook her head
"Come on, let's go train" Rhea said with a smile on her face
"NO! Please!!" Raya begged
"Relax. It's just your punishment for not telling me earlier about the news" Rhea stretched out her hand. Raya that was trying to run immediately felt a force pulling her towards rhea and she flew towards her like a nail flying towards a magnet
"No! I'm sorry! It wasn't my fault" Raya begged as both of them faded away into nothingness