"How?" The only word Violet managed to whisper, her voice trembling with shock.
Maruti smirked,"Too bad, but this foundation always reaches twice."
Violet's body tensed as she watched Maruti's fist speeding toward her face. The sheer force of the wind from Maruti's punch brushed against her skin, sending chills down her spine. But just before the impact—
"I accept defeat!" Violet shut her eyes and spoke firmly.
For a mont, there was silence. Then—Swish!—the air trembled from the leftover pressure of Maruti's halted punch. Her fist hovered just inches away from Violet's face.
Maruti sighed, lowering her hand. She had wanted Violet to fight until the very end, but it seed she knew when to back down.
"The winner of this match—Maruti from Class A!" the referee announced.
The arena erupted in cheers. The audience, who had been holding their breath, now roared with excitent. Even though Violet lost, her performance was nothing short of impressive.
Up in the stands, Esdeath watched the match unfold with an amused smirk. She leaned back, arms crossed.
"Young ones are full of energy and make reckless choices," she murmured to herself. "But she knows when to surrender. Quite knowledgeable for her age."
But suddenly—**Slap!**
She smacked her own face, her expression twisting in frustration.
Why?
Because although her eyes were supposed to be on the arena, her right eye kept trying to steal glances at the VIP seats. Specifically—where Lortell Mariette was sitting.
"Stop looking at her!" Esdeath scolded herself inwardly, gripping the armrest of her seat. She forced herself to focus on the competition, but the weight of her emotions, influenced by the real Esdeath's lingering presence in her mind, made it increasingly difficult.
anwhile, Maruti walked over and sat down beside her, still grinning.
"This 'Turn Phantom Essence Stone' is amazing," Maruti said, stretching her arms. "For three whole breaths, my body turned into a phantom, making all physical attacks useless."
Esdeath smiled faintly but didn't seem too interested. "Forget about that," she said. "What I really want to see is the second match. Let's see who's fighting next. The best outco would be Ethan versus Kaelith. If that happens, we'll gain the most benefit from this."
But The mont the referee announced the next match, both Esdeath and Maruti felt their excitent drain away, replaced by deep disappointnt.
"The next match is between Maruti from Class A and Kaelith Maranthia from Class A!" the referee declared.
A collective sigh spread through the audience. So students even leaned back in their seats, shaking their heads. Everyone already knew the outco.
Maruti let out a frustrated sigh, rubbing the back of her head. "Seriously? Just my luck."
Esdeath crossed her arms, exhaling. "It seems your luck is even worse than mine. Now, it's all up to whether we win this competition or not."
Maruti turned to her with a hopeful look. "Is there any chance I can win?"
Esdeath didn't hesitate. She shook her head firmly. "Nope. Right now, it's impossible. Just stick to the plan. If I were the one fighting, I could make it work—but your chances are still high if you do it right."
Maruti nodded. She had no choice but to trust Esdeath's judgnt. With a deep breath, she stood up and walked toward the arena.
---
The battle between Violet and Maruti had lasted only a few minutes, and now the next match was about to begin.
Kaelith Maranthia stepped onto the battlefield with absolute confidence. Her silver hair floated upward, as if defying gravity, while her cold silver eyes scanned the surroundings with an icy sharpness.
She carried no weapon. She didn't need one.
Kaelith was the strongest first-year student—even among the second years, no one could rival her. Only a few third-year students could match her power.
Her very presence was overwhelming.
Maruti entered the arena with a casual smile, trying to ease the tension. But Kaelith didn't react. Her face remained cold, her expression unreadable.
The referee raised her hand. "Begin!"
Maruti stepped back—
And then—
Splash! Splash! Splash!
A mighty aura erupted from Kaelith, surging like cold silver flas.
The sheer force of her energy sent a violent shockwave across the battlefield, splitting the ground clean in half like a sword slicing through butter.
The air grew heavier—thicker—as her aura intensified. Cracks spread across the arena floor.
Then—
Swoosh!
Silver horns—sharp and radiant—burst from her head.
She looked like a deity descending onto the battlefield.
Even though she hadn't moved, her presence alone was enough to make Maruti stumble, her knees threatening to buckle.
Even the audience felt an eerie chill crawl down their spines.
Maruti clenched her fists, gritting her teeth. "A B-rank level aura?! Even the barrier is struggling to hold it back!"
This wasn't just a difference in strength.
It was absolute domination.
If it were anyone else, they would have pissed their pants by now. But instead of fear, a wide smile stretched across Maruti's face.
"Hahahaha… very nice! As expected from you," she said, her voice filled with excitent. Then, with a teasing tone, she added, "But are you really satisfied with winning without even taking a single hit from ?"
Kaelith narrowed her silver eyes. For the first ti, she spoke. "What are you trying to say?"
She adjusted her aura slightly, making the pressure a little more bearable.
Maruti grinned. "What I an is—everyone already knows you're stronger and will win. But where's the fun in that? Let's make a ga out of it."
Kaelith raised an eyebrow but stayed silent, listening.
"I'll make three moves on you," Maruti continued. "You can't dodge or attack—only defend. Then, you get to make three moves on , and I'll do the sa. Whoever stays standing in the end wins!"
She paused, then smirked. "Of course, you can refuse… if you're afraid."
Kaelith's lips curled into a sly smile. "? Afraid?" she scoffed.
Then, she chuckled and added, "Fine. But let's change the rules. I'll only make one move. If you're still standing after that, you win."
Maruti nodded quickly, feeling a sense of relief. She had used Kaelith's pride against her to get a huge advantage.
Kaelith withdrew her intense aura, making the air around her feel less suffocating. Her eyes softened slightly, but inside, she was smiling for a different reason.
"This will also give a chance to show her my true strength," she thought.
The truth was, she had let her aura explode so fiercely earlier because she wasn't just angry—she was sad.
She wanted to prove her superiority to Maruti.
Or rather… she wanted to show off.
Why?
The reason was short but left a deep impact on her heart.
––––––——
When Kaelith first found out that Maruti had kissed soone, she froze in shock.
Maruti… had a boyfriend?
Her mind struggled to accept it.
Of course, she didn't know the full story—that the person Maruti kissed was actually Princess Ravenna. If she had known, her reaction would have been even more extre.
But even with just that much information, her heart felt… weird.
She acted normal on the outside, as if it didn't bother her.
But before the match even started, she had been alone in the gym, punching a solid iron training dummy—one that was reinforced with enchantnts to make it even harder.
She wanted to forget about it. She wanted to focus on sothing else.
But no matter how hard she tried… the sa thoughts kept circling in her mind.
"Of course, she's beautiful and popular… it's no surprise that she has a boyfriend."
She threw another punch—harder this ti.
Then, she gritted her teeth.
"But why? Why does my chest hurt so much?"
Her fists trembled.
"Is it because she won't be interested in being my friend anymore? Will she start spending all her ti with him instead?"
She didn't know the answer.
All she knew was that her mind was a ss.
BAM!
Kaelith's fist slamd into the iron dummy with all her strength.
CRACK!
The tal dummy shattered into pieces, breaking apart like bricks hit by a hamr.
Her breathing was heavy—not because she was tired, but because sothing inside her felt unbearably heavy. Her heart was restless, her thoughts a tangled ss.
Just then, a voice called out from behind her.
"Umm… Ms. Kaelith? The competition has already started. Why aren't you there yet?"
It was a girl's voice.
Kaelith turned around with an icy gaze. The girl flinched.
Her na was Althea—one of the volunteers responsible for making sure the tournant ran smoothly. She had co to remind Kaelith to hurry up before she caused delays in the schedule.
But the mont Kaelith looked at her, Althea felt her breath hitch.
"Why do her eyes feel so heavy? Was she… crying?" Althea thought in frustration.
Kaelith didn't answer her thoughts, of course. Instead, she spoke in an expressionless voice.
"Let's go."
With that, she started walking. Althea followed beside her, feeling the weight of silence between them.
It was awkward.
Althea was naturally a talkative girl, and this tense atmosphere was suffocating. She wanted to say sothing—anything—to break the silence.
Then, an idea popped into her head.
"Are you feeling down because of sothing?" she asked casually.
Kaelith didn't reply.
But Althea wasn't discouraged.
"You know," she continued, "I've been feeling a little sad too. I broke up with my boyfriend last week,He was a Rank C."
She sighed dramatically, then smiled. "But it's fine! I already found a new boyfriend—and he's even better!" she said with excitent.
Kaelith's silver eyebrows rose slightly. For the first ti, she showed a bit of interest.
"Is he Rank B?" she asked.
Since Althea claid her new boyfriend was "better," Kaelith assud he must be a Rank B Awakened. That would be impressive, considering how rare and powerful they were. Rank B individuals were basically elites—they had wealth, strength, and endless opportunities.
But to her surprise, Althea shook her head.
"No! He's Rank D!"
Kaelith froze.
"…Huh? But wasn't your previous boyfriend Rank C?" she asked, confused. "Wouldn't that make him better?"
For a second, irritation flashed across Althea's face.
"Hmph! My ex acted all high and mighty just because he was a Rank C," she scoffed. "He always did whatever he wanted during our dates, but he never actually showed his strength. Who knows? Maybe he was faking it the whole ti."
Kaelith frowned slightly.
"Maybe he had a reason to hide it," she said.
Althea rolled her eyes. "What reason could he have to hide things from his own girlfriend? Why even date if he wasn't going to be real with ?"
Kaelith didn't answer.
Althea continued, her voice firm.
"You're a girl too, so you should understand."
She took a deep breath and then said, "Every average girl wants soone who gives her attention. When she's with him, she should feel safe and comfortable."
Kaelith listened quietly.
"No woman wants a weak loser who just acts tough leven if it's a good boy," Althea continued. "A mother wants a strong child. A wife wants a strong husband. A sister wants a strong brother. Every average girl wants her partner to have superior genes."
She let her words settle for a mont before finishing with a soft, dreamy sigh.
"Compared to my ex, I feel so much safer with my new boyfriend. Every ti I hug him, his chest is so wide—I feel like a little cake in his arms. He really cares about ."
Her face turned pink as she hugged the air, lost in her thoughts.
But Kaelith wasn't paying attention to that anymore.
Her heart stopped for a mont.
A deep realization hit her like a bolt of lightning.
"…Does that an Maruti also thinks all my strength is just a bias? That I'm all talk?"
Her mind spun in shock.
"She might be right. Everyone naturally follows soone stronger than them, soone superior."
"If I show off my powers… will Maruti start paying more attention to ? Will she see as soone superior to her 'boyfriend'?"
Her hands clenched.
For the first ti, she realized she didn't just want to win.
She wanted Maruti's attention.
No!
More like needed it than 'want it'.
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