The explosion was devastating, engulfing Rowan in a wave of flames, and for a moment, silence reigned. Yet, from the furious, dancing fire, a shadow emerged. Rowan stood firm, his clothes in tatters, and even his once-mighty scales bore marks of damage, but he remained on his feet.
With a cruel smile, he mocked Davi, a cold, bloody chuckle escaping his lips. Then, fixing his gaze on the boy who had pushed him to the brink, he declared furiously:
"Now you will witness the true power of pure blood."
At that moment, the defeated and exhausted boy heard a notification resonate in his mind: [The skill
Barely able to hold on to his consciousness, he had no idea what this newfound power entailed. Yet, he stood up. In his eyes burned the bloodlust of a true beast.
With a final effort, he activated
At the same time, his mind began to spin, his muscles screamed in agony, and he realized a brutal truth: his body was nearing its limit. In fact, he wasn't even sure he could manage one more strike.
But then, in a twist of fate, he noticed the broken remains of Ember's sword lying beneath his foot. He had fallen right beside it.
A faint laugh escaped his lips as he recognized this stroke of irony. He gripped the shattered saber and began channeling his magic into it. Once again, he activated
He roared in pain, the act of staying conscious becoming an impossible task. He was pushing far beyond what his body and mind were ever meant to endure. But none of that mattered.
Davi summoned every ounce of strength left in his battered frame, his muscles trembling and the pain tearing through every fiber of his being. His vision blurred, but one thing remained clear: his sole target ahead, Rowan.
He channeled even more mana into the sword, its blade trembling violently as if on the brink of shattering under the overwhelming power. Yet it resisted valiantly, as if determined to prove its own worth.
Once again, a savage roar echoed through the arena, and Davi charged forward with the speed and intensity of a flaming hurricane. Each step was a struggle against imminent collapse, but he ignored the pain and exhaustion, focusing solely on reaching his opponent.
Rowan, too, sharpened his resolve and rushed toward his adversary. His dragon transformation advanced further, his face resembling the beast itself. His claws glowed with powerful magic, and he roared furiously in return.
Pouring his soul into the strike, Davi confronted the man. Flames danced wildly in a terrifying explosion.
The dragon's proud claws were shattered, and his chest was slashed, causing blood to spill across the arena.
Then Rowan fell to the ground, unable to fight.
Seeing this, Davi finally allowed himself to relax, and all strength left his body. Yet, before he could hit the ground, his body vanished, reappearing on a bed in the infirmary.
"You always impress me," Amelia said with a very satisfied smile, amused by the scene Davi had shown her.
Ember had also collapsed from exhaustion after everything that had happened, and the principal sent her and the other girl to the infirmary as well.
That left only one certain idiot in the arena, whose ability allowed his body to regenerate quickly on its own. As expected, he stood up in no time.
Seeing the woman before him, he asked about the outcome of the match, and she told him he had been defeated. Upon hearing this, he protested in a voice full of indignation:
"Wait, that's not fair! How was I eliminated? That guy clearly passed out too!"
"Yes, but it doesn't mean anything," Amelia silenced him with her imposing presence. "Sight! I don't know if you can read, but attacking someone who has already forfeited is illegal. You were disqualified a long time ago."
"You're making this up now. If that were the case, why didn't you show up before?"
"Because the fight was fun," she replied lightly, with a playful smile.
"No, no, no!" The boy continued to deny reality, unable to deal with the frustration of having been defeated. "This is unfair! I clearly deserve to be in rank S. I'm much more talented."
After yelling, he attempted to launch a burst of fire at the woman in front of him. However, the attack vanished with a snap and, upon reappearing, ended up directed at the boy himself.
Rowan collapsed after receiving his own attack. Seeing this, Amelia let out a deep sigh, then teleported the boy with her to an isolated training room. Finally, she admitted:
"Despite everything, Rowan, you really do have talent. That's why I'm going to teach you a lesson."
She walked over to him and, with a simple snap of her fingers, summoned the academy's head nurse. After being ordered to heal the boy, the nurse didn't argue and turned to the young man, who was at his limit.
The redhead was enveloped in a golden light, and his wounds began to close rapidly. In an instant, the nurse had healed him. After that, her expression looked a bit pale and exhausted, and she was sent back to her office, leaving them alone.
"Very well. I'll give you a chance to join rank S," Amelia said, her voice firm and commanding, silencing any response Rowan might have had. "I won't use any abilities and will limit my stats to match yours."
Rowan gritted his teeth, incredulous, and retorted:
"You think you can defeat me without abilities and with stats equal to mine?"
"Definitely, it wouldn't even be a challenge," Amelia replied with a slight smile. "Under these conditions, your chances of victory are zero. But don't worry, I won't ask for the impossible."
The principal wasn't one to impose impossible tests on her students; she simply found it unfair to do so. With the exception of Davi, she had grown too fond of that boy and couldn't resist the temptation of a little bit of torture.
Then she leaned slightly toward the fool and added, with an air of absolute confidence that only she could muster:
"If you are able to hurt me even a little, I will let you in."
Unlike Davi, the principal wasn't reckless, nor would she attempt something as risky as he had. Even so, she undeniably had more combat experience than Rowan or Davi. And thanks to that, she knew she could defeat him effortlessly.
She wanted him to understand that talent alone wasn't enough.
That was the problem with the new generation, Amelia reflected. Many of them were raised during peaceful times, sheltered and spoiled. They rarely faced real challenges. Because of that, many had become complacent, unaware of the true terror of facing someone stronger.
The truth was, the monsters in the rifts were far more powerful than any human could dream of being. Those who believed themselves too powerful to bother training inevitably met pathetic ends.
The battle began, and for nearly an hour, Rowan struggled to keep up with the woman's precise and experienced movements. Despite having equal stats, he found himself constantly outmatched. Every mistake, every hesitation was exploited, forcing him to confront his own lack of skill.
The combat lessons and martial arts training he had neglected now weighed heavily on him. Every moment spent partying or scoffing at training now exacted its toll, as Amelia, with her refined skills and calculated movements, kept him under relentless pressure.
Little by little, Rowan began to understand: brute strength alone wasn't enough to survive real battles.
But it was already too late to learn that lesson. After failing to pass the test imposed on him, he lost any chance of joining rank S, for now, at least. There would be another test midway through the year.