Mael leaned back on the bench, arms crossed, a faint smirk tugging at his lips. "Tch. Freaks, huh? Guess I should take that as a complint."
Aurora just shrugged, uninterested. Joshua, still stretching his arms behind his head, chuckled. "I an… she's not wrong. You're strong, but against us? You'd have to pull off a miracle."
Mael scoffed, but before he could fire back, a loud chi rang through the arena.
DING! DING! DING!
The giant screen above them flickered, shifting to a new ssage.
[NEXT ROUND: THE CHALLENGE MATCHES BEGIN!]
The crowd roared in excitent. The announcer's voice bood across the arena, hyping up the next stage.
"Alright, folks! Now that our Elite Rankings are settled, it's ti for the real action! Challenge matches are OPEN! If anyone thinks they deserve a higher spot, step up and fight for it! Who's got the guts?! Who's got the SKILLS?! Let's see so carnage!"
A wicked grin spread across Mael's face. He cracked his knuckles. "Well, well… this is perfect."
Aurora arched an eyebrow. "Oh?"
Mael shot to his feet, pointing a thumb at himself. "Since I'm 'so weak' compared to you guys, how about I prove you wrong?"
Aurora rolled her eyes. "What, you're challenging ?"
"Nope." Mael's grin widened as he turned to Adam. "I'm challenging him."
The air around them seed to shift.
Joshua blinked. Aurora's casual expression finally cracked into sothing close to… amusent?
And Adam? He didn't even react.
He just sighed. "Not interested."
Mael frowned. "What?"
Adam leaned back, arms still crossed, eyes still half-lidded like he couldn't care less. "You're not worth fighting."
The words hit like a slap. The energy around Mael flared in an instant. His fists clenched, his jaw tightening. "What'd you just say?"
Adam still didn't look at him. "You heard ."
A dangerous silence settled between them. The crowd was still cheering for the other fights starting in the arena, but over here? Everything felt still. Tense.
Aurora smirked. "Told you."
Joshua exhaled, rubbing his temple. "Welp, this is about to be a disaster."
Mael took a step forward, his aura flickering around him like fire. "I don't care if you think I'm weak, but at least have the guts to fight , Adam."
Adam finally, finally turned his gaze toward him. Cold. Unreadable.
"You wouldn't last three seconds."
Mael gritted his teeth. "You talk big, but you're just—"
BOOM!
The ground beneath Mael cracked.
A pressure—crushing, suffocating—slamd down on him like a mountain. His knees nearly buckled.
His breath hitched. His eyes widened.
Adam hadn't moved.
But his presence alone? It was monstrous.
Aurora and Joshua barely reacted, like they'd seen this a hundred tis before.
Mael, though? He felt like he was standing in the middle of a raging storm, drowning in sothing far beyond his comprehension.
For the first ti since entering the Elite Rankings…
He understood.
Adam wasn't on their level.
Not even close.
Mael clenched his fists, forcing himself to stand tall against the invisible weight pressing down on him. "Tch… Fine."
He turned away, but the fire in his eyes hadn't dimd.
"One day, Adam," Mael muttered. "One day, you're gonna fight for real."
Adam said nothing.
And just like that, the mont passed. The pressure vanished.
Aurora smirked. "Well, that was fun to watch."
Joshua whistled. "I'll give him credit. He actually stayed standing."
Mael just scoffed, plopping back onto the bench. "Whatever."
Up on the big screen, new challenge matches were being announced.
Aurora leaned forward, stretching her arms. "Alright, who's up next? I'm in the mood to break soone's bones."
Joshua cracked his neck. "Let's see if anyone's dumb enough to challenge ."
Adam, still leaning back, closed his eyes.
He didn't care about the rankings.
He didn't care about the challenges.
All he cared about was finding soone worthy of his ti. A loot.
And so far?
No one was.
Adam's Personal Dinsion
Krozak narrowed his eyes, watching the massive clones move across the training grounds. Each one was executing techniques that sent shockwaves through the air, their power making the ground tremble. His fists clenched.
"This many clones… How the hell is he doing it? It's like he's got infinite mana or sothing," he muttered.
Beside him, Wraith let out a small chuckle. "Mana? In their world, that concept doesn't even exist."
Krozak turned to him, frowning. "What do you an?"
"They don't use energy the way we do," Wraith said, his gaze distant, as if rembering sothing. "They just… awaken their abilities and use them. No fuel. No limit. It was strange when I first arrived. I felt weaker there, like the world itself was suppressing ."
Krozak's expression hardened. "So you're saying Adam beat you while you were weakened?"
Wraith shook his head. "No. Adam fought at my full strength. If I had let my guard down, even his father could've beaten back then. But I didn't… So Adam had to step in."
Krozak's eyes flickered with sothing unreadable as he looked back at the clones. He exhaled sharply, his four arms folding across his chest.
"Tch. Freaks."
Wraith scoffed. "Yeah, freaks." His gaze lingered on the clones, their sheer presence making the air feel heavy.
Wraith smirked. "And it won't stop there. His father… He'll be stepping into the open universe soon. Once he starts harnessing mana, his power's gonna skyrocket. With his abilities, it won't take long before he becos a Monarch. There's a reason they call him the Almighty."
Krozak's eyes narrowed. A thought crossed his mind, and he turned to Wraith. "Then what about Adam? If he and his father fought… who wins?"
Wraith was silent for a mont, then sighed. "Right now? His father. If he went all out, Adam would lose."
Krozak raised a brow. "But?"
A small grin tugged at Wraith's lips. "But Adam's power grows every day. It's only a matter of ti before he surpasses him."
Krozak crossed his arms, his four hands tightening into fists. "Heh… Can't say I'm surprised." His gaze drifted back to the clones, watching them move with inhuman precision. "That kid's a monster. Every ti I see him, he's stronger than before."
Wraith chuckled. "That's just how he is. The more you think you understand his limits, the more he shatters them." He leaned back, his crimson eyes gleaming. "Honestly, I doubt even he knows how strong he'll beco."
Krozak's expression darkened. "And when he surpasses his father… what then?"
Wraith's smirk widened. "Then? Then we'll be looking at sothing this universe has never seen before."
A cold silence settled between them. The weight of Wraith's words hung in the air, heavy and undeniable.
Krozak exhaled sharply, shaking his head. "Tch. Guess we just sit back and watch, huh?"
Wraith shrugged. "That's all we can do."
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