Azrael eyed his Corruption Progression several tis, making sure he wasn’t imagining things. In the end, he had to admit the undeniable truth: the Corruption in his body had been lifted off.
Naturally, his eyes landed on the one responsible for that.
’I have never heard about soone being able to rid people of Corruption,’ he mused, unsure how to proceed further. He had just been saved by the person that he had tried to kill a few seconds ago, after all.
He didn’t really feel much guilt since at the ti it had looked like the only way to survive. Should he fake being sorry and apologize? Or stay cautious in case the woman tried to hurt him for payback?
Seraphina mirrored his conflict; she stared at him, eyes narrowing several tis as if using [Inspect].
Eventually, her lips parted.
"Why is there still a Corruption in your body?"
Azrael’s breath caught. He couldn’t see the full story, but what he knew was enough to paint him a murky picture.
’It seems she is able to see that I have a Corruption Rank. Probably thanks to her Inborn Trait, maybe it even allows her to cleanse people from it. However, since my Inborn Trait gives the ability to devour Corruption, I will always have a part of it in my soul. She’s probably wondering why her Trait didn’t cleanse completely. Too bad mine ensures it never will.’
From Seraphina’s sharp glance it was clear, she had reached her own assumption.
’What to do now?’
Instinctively, the grip on his weapon tightened slightly... if people found out about his Divine Inborn Trait, it would have devastating consequences.
Under normal circumstances, he would go for the kill. Every person that knew what he was capable of was a potential enemy. It was better to get rid of them as quickly as possible. But reality crashed over him like a wave—he had failed to slay her when she was distracted. If his ambush had failed, how would he be able to best her in one-on-one combat?
’Not to ntion...’ His eyes darkened even further, surveying the monster’s corpse lying on the field. Isolde, Seraphina’s companion, was behind him. He struggled to imagine beating one of them. Two at the sa ti was out of the question.
Unfortunately, Victor wasn’t in a state to help him. As soon as the enemies he had been fighting against had been killed by Isolde, he collapsed on the ground from sheer exhaustion.
Azrael was out of options.
"Usually, when people look at , they do so with admiration, not with killing intent," Seraphina pointed out, tilting her head to the side.
Azrael took a step back, cursing that he had made his intentions so obvious. "And usually, when people are attacked, they strike back,"
A subtle smile tugged at Seraphina’s lips. "Many have co for my head, every single one of them has failed. If I slaughtered every person that wants dead, I would lose too much ti. So I just don’t bother."
Azrael remained silent, still on guard, Seraphina was about to speak again. Until her breathing hitched, eyes moving toward her sitting companion. She stared at Isolde intensely as if speaking to her.
From Azrael’s point of view, it looked like they had a ntal conversation away from his prying ears.
Making use of the mont he took several steps back ready to get out of the area.
"Attention,"
A familiar voice resounded in the entire artificially created mountain range, making him halt his steps.
"All the monsters in the area have been slain. Well done. The survivors are all to return to the exit."
There was a small pause until the voice spoke again.
"Harming other Chosen is forbidden from now on. Doing so will lead to a heavy penalty for the rule breaker."
Azrael let out a sigh of relief. The chance of being attacked by Seraphina and her companion was still there, but they didn’t seem to plan to do so, as the forr was intensely staring at the latter with faint annoyance.
"Can you get up?" he asked Victor, examining his condition.
The man didn’t respond; he was clearly out cold.
"I should really just leave you here."
With a curse, Azrael managed to pick up the two-hundred-kilogram (~440 pounds) body of the behemoth, his shoulder and left heel screaming in pain as he did so, slowly going towards the exit of the containnt zone.
’You owe one,’
*****
Thankfully, the heads of the military schools had been kind enough to turn off the falling snow in the area, making the Chosen’s return easier.
Leaving a trail of blood as he walked, Azrael managed to reach the eting area. Since he was carrying a body weighing 200 kilograms (~440 pounds), he had been the last one to arrive.
One imdiate thing stood out to him: their number had dwindled.
There weren’t just a few dozen Chosen missing.
The missing numbers were in the hundreds.
’The Moon Breakers have lost about 30% of their mbers, while the Elite School about 20%,’ he concluded.
’This is even worse than the elimination ceremony. Forget about a rivalry eting—this looks like an excuse to kill off the weaker mbers of the schools,’
With a frustrated sigh, he let go of Victor’s body, dropping him on the ground. Even now, the man was still out cold. It looked like unless a healer helped him, he wouldn’t be waking up anyti soon.
With a grunt, Azrael sat next to him. His condition was even worse than his companion’s. His vision was blurry, and his skin was paler than usual from the vast amount of blood he had lost.
He caught a few whispers—they were directed at the angelic duo, of course. Since every Chosen that had survived had at least a bit of scars and blood sared on them, it looked eerie to see two won that stood spotless, unbothered by it all.
There was another point of discussion, surprisingly. Azrael and Victor were in the worst state of them all. The hardened monster blood on them was so much it gave a demonic look, coupled with an unpleasant sll.
That caused two circles to form: one around the angelic duo, with stares and whispers filled with admiration and awe... and another around Azrael, with pity and mockery.
He didn’t really care for their opinion; all that mattered was that he was alive. Not to ntion, his mind was still racing, thinking about what to do with Seraphina.
"I like the look on your faces," Iris appeared with a rare smile on her face.
’She looks so happy that they have fewer mouths to feed,’ Azrael mused.
Unlike last ti, there wasn’t any disobedience on the survivors’ faces. They knew what they had gone through was in the na of preparing for the Rifts in the future.
The weaker would be left behind and die, while the others would learn from their mistakes and adapt. It was only natural. The schools weren’t raising cannon fodder but skilled individuals, they had an image to maintain.
"Formalities aside, you all did well," Iris said, observing their expressions. "Many of you died—but those who survived are far more experienced than before."
Her smile widened upon seeing their faces. A stark difference between now and two months ago. Back then, most of them had looked terrified and unprepared. Now, every Chosen stood tall, blazing determination in their eyes.
"I know you’re exhausted, so we won’t keep you much longer. All that’s left is to na those with the highest scores."
The wind in the area stilled. Everyone waited with quiet anticipation.
"Seraphina Flaborn and Isolde Flaborn," Iris declared. "The geniuses of the Flaborn Clan have taken the lead with the highest points. Seraphina, in particular, managed to single-handedly kill a Tainted monster."
Silence fell—then the crowd erupted in loud cheers.
The Elite School mbers bead with pride. Their representatives had taken the top spot.
Naturally, so couldn’t hide their disappointnt at failing to reach the top, falling short of the expectations of their respective clans.
Seraphina and Isolde looked unsurprised by the news; they had expected it, after all.
Iris waited for the excitent to die down before continuing.
"Claiming the third and fourth spot—Azrael and Victor Watson."
A flicker of confusion spread across the faces of the Moon Breakers and Elite School mbers alike.
Who were these people the instructor spoke of?
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