FWOOSSHH!!

"Ugh—!"

Stacia cut down the last spear just in time, her blade trembling as the light shattered apart.

Her breath came out rough, chest heaving as heat and exhaustion slammed into her all at once.

In only a few seconds, her body had been pushed close to its limit.

The barrage had felt endless.

Yet in reality, it had lasted no more than a heartbeat.

In her slowed perception, Stacia saw it clearly—Rose was already preparing another spell below.

Calm.

Unrushed.

Like this was nothing more than routine.

If she wanted to win, she couldn't stay at range.

She had to close the distance.

"Damn it…"

Mana flared violently around her.

[Flame Curtain]

Her body dissolved into a burst of crimson-gold fire, flames compressing and launching her downward like a falling comet.

[Hidden Blade Technique]

[Second Form]

[New Moon]

Her movement sharpened instantly.

Crimson lightning wrapped around her limbs as her speed surged, the air screaming as she shot toward Rose faster than before.

The distance closed—

Then suddenly—

A pull.

Her vision lurched.

Before she could even react, the ground vanished beneath her feet.

She was back in the sky.

"…Again?"

Below her, the stage glittered.

Thousands of golden points of light formed at once.

Spears.

More of them.

Stacia clicked her tongue in frustration, twisting midair as she glanced down at Rose.

Rose met her gaze.

Neutral. Unbothered.

That was when it hit her.

She wasn't being tested.

She was being controlled.

Rose wasn't going to let her get close. Not even once.

As more shimmering light gathered around Rose's position, forming spell after spell without pause.

…..

She's dangerous…

That was the conclusion Rose reached almost immediately.

There was no doubt about the gap between them as mages.

Rose could see it clearly—raw mana density, control, casting speed—everything pointed in her favor.

And yet, that gap didn't make her relax even a little.

If anything, it made her more cautious.

Stacia's flames weren't ordinary fire.

They ate mana, melted through it, distorted the flow around her.

Combined with her swordsmanship—sharp, efficient, eerily similar to what Riley and Seo used—it made her presence unsettling.

She wasn't just strong.

She was built to kill mages.

A perfect mage hunter.

Rose knew that if Stacia ever managed to close the distance, things would become messy.

Not dangerous—not yet—but troublesome enough that ignoring it would be foolish.

And Rose never ignored threats.

That was why she kept her distance.

Why she controlled the battlefield. Why she didn't allow Stacia even a moment to breathe.

Because Stacia was hiding something deeper.

With Rose's absurd mana perception—enhanced further by her golden eyes—peering into Stacia's magical essence was effortless.

Beneath the flames, beneath the sword techniques, something far more ancient stirred.

A presence.

A heat that wasn't just fire, but will.

Rose recognized it instantly.

A blessing.

[Blessing: Sol Fal]

The mark of the Fire Spirit King.

The Burning Wolf—Takal.

Rose's eyes narrowed ever so slightly.

She wasn't deeply versed in elementalism or spiritual contracts, but even she knew how rare—and dangerous—that blessing was.

It wasn't something granted lightly. And it certainly wasn't something a normal first-year should carry.

'She's just like that Gray haired junior…'

Questions piled up in her mind.

How did she form a contract with it?

How much of its power can she draw out?

What are the limits?

And how does she know the Gyeoul Family's techniques?

Too many unknowns.

But for now, none of that mattered.

After all, she would get her answers soon enough.

Rose's mana expanded again, steady and controlled, as more Spears of Light formed around her.

One after another, golden arrays appeared in the air, their shapes clean and precise.

To an outside observer, it might've looked repetitive.

Dull, even. Inefficient for someone of her level.

After all, Rose had countless ways to end the fight immediately.

But that wasn't the point.

This was the most efficient way to observe

Even while keeping her distance, Rose never relaxed her focus.

Stacia's movements, the timing of her reactions, the way her flames behaved when pressured—every detail was being recorded in Rose's mind.

Caution and curiosity mixed together, quietly guiding her actions.

Now show me…

A faint flicker of interest passed through Rose's golden eyes as she watched Stacia struggle beneath the relentless rain of light.

And then—

Something shifted.

The mana around Stacia changed, subtly at first. Rose felt it immediately.

A presence stirred behind the blessing embedded deep within Stacia's essence, like a sleeping beast beginning to turn in its rest.

"So, it's finally responding…" Rose murmured under her breath.

...

Meanwhile, up in the VIP seats, Riley and the others watched the battle unfold with very different expressions.

Snow leaned back comfortably, clearly entertained.

Alice frowned slightly, eyes glued to the sky, her fingers gripping the armrest.

Seo, as always, remained calm, her gaze sharp and unreadable.

The fight had gone beyond what most students could even comprehend, yet somehow it still felt… familiar.

This was still Rose. Just another variation of how she fought.

"…Is she playing with her food?"

Seo's quiet comment caught everyone off guard. It wasn't like her to speak up during matches.

Alice blinked. "Eh—Seo, that's kind of harsh…"

Snow shook her head lightly. "I don't think so."

She continued watching the glowing storm above the arena.

"If anything, this looks like a mage's curiosity at work. Rose isn't underestimating her—she's trying to understand her."

Snow smiled faintly.

"Honestly, if I had that kind of power… I'd probably do the same when facing such an interesting opponent."

Seo nodded at Snow's words.

Honestly, she didn't really get mages.

In the middle of a fight—especially a real one—your life would be on the line.

As a swordsman, efficiency was everything. If you could eliminate your opponent, then you should. Immediately.

No hesitation, no unnecessary steps.

That was how she had been taught.

That was how her sword worked.

Maybe it was because of her up brining, or maybe it was because the Hidden Blade technique itself was designed for speed and clean execution.

Either way, dragging things out had never crossed her mind.

And yet…

She glanced back at the stage, where Rose continued to dominate the fight without even looking pressed.

Slowly.

Deliberately.

Curious.

Seo tilted her head slightly.

Is that… fun?

The thought lingered longer than she expected.

Winning fast was satisfying, sure—but there was a strange, subtle boredom to it. Every fight ended before it even began.

No tension.

No buildup.

Just draw, strike, end.

…Maybe slowing things down wasn't completely pointless.

Should I try that next time? she wondered.

But then another thought followed almost immediately.

They always die instantly even if I slow down…

Her brows knit together.

Then… should I just make them bleed first instead…?

Her eyes lit up.

…That sounded reasonable.

A sudden idea—one she firmly believed to be brilliant—sparked to life in Seo's mind.

Next to her, Alice glanced over and immediately felt a chill.

Seo was quiet.

Too quiet.

And the look on her face—focused, thoughtful, and faintly serious—was somehow more worrying than if she had been smiling.

Alice let out a nervous chuckle.

"Uhm… Seo…?"

"Yes?" Seo replied calmly, turning to her.

Alice opened her mouth… then hesitated.

"…You know what—never mind, hehe."

She closed it just as quickly.

Although she wanted to tell Seo not to take Rose's habits too seriously, Alice decided it was probably better to let Seo figure things out on her own.

Maybe slowing down in battle would be good for her growth.

…Probably.

Hopefully.

Alice glanced back at the stage, then back at Seo, and sighed quietly.

Let's just hope this doesn't turn into something weird…

At the same time, Riley who continued watching the scene unfold, couldn't help but feel a little bad for the struggling Stacia.

To an outsider, it probably looked like Rose was showing no mercy at all.

But Riley could see it.

At the very last moments—right before each spear should have pierced straight through—Rose was deliberately slowing them down.

Just enough. Enough for Stacia to block, or at worst, get grazed instead of skewered.

Thousands of spears.

And Rose was controlling them manually.

That alone was terrifying.

The level of precision required to do something like that was absurd.

Any lapse in focus, any slip in control, and the match would've ended instantly.

Yet Rose maintained it effortlessly, her expression calm, almost detached.

Riley exhaled quietly.

Behind his awe… and his pity… there was curiosity.

So, this is why Alice said I'd understand if I watched it myself.

At first, he hadn't noticed it.

Evelyn's runes were subtle—etched deep into Stacia's soul, layered so naturally that even Riley's senses had glossed over them.

But now, as the battle dragged on and Stacia was pushed closer and closer to her limits, the truth surfaced.

For just a split second, Riley's eyes flickered.

Dark blue.

His vision pierced deeper than normal, past mana flow, past surface readings.

"…A blessing, huh."

And not just any blessing.

Understanding clicked into place.

That explained how Stacia had managed to burn Lucas back then.

He remembered the spike in mana a few days ago—overwhelming, violent, unnatural.

At the time, he'd assumed it was Alice messing around with something again.

Especially since he'd felt her mana too.

But now…

"…That clone of mine," Riley muttered under his breath.

A faint mix of amusement and concern crossed his face.

He appreciated Evelyn's influence, truly. He knew better than anyone how capable she was.

But even so… he hadn't expected her to push things this far.

After all—

A Spirit King wasn't just some high-level entity.

It was something far closer to a god.

"Rose might end up losing at this rate…"

Riley muttered the words without thinking.

He didn't even realize he'd said them out loud.

Unbeknownst to him, a certain golden-haired, golden-eyed girl was silently monitoring his reaction throughout the battle and heard every syllable of his words.

Rose's gaze flickered—just for a moment.

And then—

The rain of spears stopped.

No explosion.

No dramatic pause.

Just silence.

The mana on the stage twisted unnaturally, folding in on itself as if space itself had taken a breath.

Most of the crowd didn't even realize what had happened.

[Celestial Magic]

[Spatial Imperium]

Blue starlight shimmered briefly—soft, beautiful, terrifying.

And in the next instant, Stacia was no longer in the sky.

She was intently back onto the stage.

Her battered body staggered forward, flames flickering weakly around her as her crimson eyes widened in confusion.

"What…?"

Her feet touched solid ground again, but her balance didn't return.

She barely had time to register the change before Rose was standing in front of her—close, too close.

Those golden eyes looked dull now.

Flat.

Cold.

Then—

FSSSHHHHH!!!!

A crushing pressure descended.

It felt as if the world itself had pressed down on her shoulders.

Stacia's knees buckled instantly.

Her sword scraped against the floor as she dropped to one knee, then both, desperately using it to keep herself upright.

Her lungs burned.

Her mana screamed.

This… this pressure—

For a brief, terrifying moment, she wondered if another spirit king had descended.

"Cough—!"

Blood spilled from her mouth, splattering onto the stage.

Her vision swam.

What's happening…?

Why can't I move…?

Then she heard it.

Rose's voice.

Low.

Cold.

Unforgiving.

"Summon it…."

Stacia's body trembled.

Slowly, painfully, she lifted her head.

Rose stood there calmly, one hand raised.

At her fingertips, an orb of condensed light began to form—dense, heavy, humming with terrifying power.

It wasn't large, but the pressure it emitted made her instincts scream louder than anything before.

This wasn't a test.

This wasn't curiosity anymore.

Rose looked down at her.

"Call for that dog," she said flatly.

"Now."

Stacia swallowed hard.

Her throat felt dry.

[Ultimate-Grade Light Magic]

[Light] [EX]

'W-what is that?'

Her heart pounded wildly as she stared at the growing sphere of light it looked like any other light magic but no she could tell it was unique by nature, she gulped, knowing—deep down—that if it was released as it was…

She wouldn't survive it.

Crack...!

Her emergency bracelet cracked.

Like literally.

'W-What's going on!?'

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.