Chapter 190

The next day arrived wrapped in pale winter light, the kind that made the world feel brittle, as if it might crack if struck too hard.

By sunset, the remaining forty participant groups would be cut cleanly in half. Thirty matches. The top twenty then the top ten.

Tomorrow would decide the top five rankings.

And after that, the main event. Empire against kingdom. A duel meant to be a friendly cultural exchange.

Suri was draped over Kana’s back when they arrived at the participants’ room, still fast asleep, her weight familiar and oddly grounding. Kana didn’t wake her. Extra rest mattered now. Exhaustion did not announce itself when it arrived. It waited. It watched. Then it took everything at once.

The room itself felt different today. Yesterday, this place had been heavy with nerves. Faces tight. Hands restless. Some students had paced in circles, others stared at the floor as if searching for courage between the stones.

That atmosphere was gone.

The anxious expressions had been replaced by some confidence. Eyes were sharper now. Shoulders squared. Conversations flowed not with panic, but with purpose. Most of the talk was about strategy. Leo had claimed a corner and laid out an array of expensive snacks on a low table, their rich smells cutting through the cold air. Dried fruits, sugared pastries, strips of preserved meat. 

Suri’s nostrils flared before anyone spoke.

The scent reached her, transforming her into a hungry monster. She stirred once, then vanished from Kana’s back in a blur, landing beside the table with uncanny precision. Several of them flinched as she descended, eyes half-lidded, hair wild, reaching like a creature awakened mid-hunt.

She was already eating before anyone could protest.

Boris snorted softly. “She looks like she’s preparing for war.”

“Eating is preparation, for Suri at least,” Rin said seriously, already adjusting the straps on her gloves, trying to feel the mace. They burst out of laughter except for Suri.

A moment later, Toby rushed in, breath fogging the air in pale clouds. His face was flushed from the cold, spectacles slightly crooked, but his eyes shone with excitement.

“I have good news!”

Every conversation died instantly.

“Our next opponent is a second-year group,” Toby said, unrolling a parchment. “Mostly from silver class. They already surrendered fighting us since we defeated Valdi’s group so badly..” He hesitated, then added, “And I suspect Suri’s fists scared them the most.”

Suri froze mid-bite.

Boris folded his arms. “Then perhaps you should rely on your fists again.”

“No way!” Suri snapped, crumbs flying. “My hands still hurt. Never again.”

Laughter rippled through the group, light but genuine. It wasn’t nervous laughter this time. It was relief mixed with confidence.

Yuri leaned forward, eyes already on the parchment. “And after that?”

Toby spread the list wider. “Either a third-year or fourth-year group. No weak links. Balanced teams. Strong coordination.”

Kana studied the names carefully. She remembered their movements. Their formations. The way they protected their backline. “They aren’t flashy,” she said. “That’s what makes them dangerous.”

Her finger tapped names. “They have healer-class members.”

Yuri nodded immediately. “We can’t let this turn into attrition. If their healer stays standing, the fight drags on—and that favors them.”

Adam spoke up, calm and grounded. “Then we hit fast. We must reach and engage with the healer support class as soon as the battle starts.”

“And isolate,” Yuri added, eyes bright. “Break formation before they can adjust.”

The group drew closer, shoulders nearly touching now, voices lowering as strategy replaced speculation. Target priorities. Signals. Timing windows. Who committed first. Who held back. When to retreat without losing pressure.

Kana watched them, something warm settling in her chest.

Yesterday, they had been nervous students standing on the edge of something vast.

Today, they were finally a team.

Someone jested that it would all be easier if Kana were fighting alongside them. She smiled and let it pass. This was their arena now.

Winter pressed against the walls, silent and patient.

So were their opponents.

And for the first time, Kana believed her team was ready. She might not need to spend a few coins to get the prize—the ring capable of giving her extra experience.

…..

It was shortly after lunch when the final bout of the second round ended.

Twenty matches were reduced to ten.

Quicker than anyone expected.

Several groups surrendered the moment the matchups were announced. Others tried to fight and failed within minutes, bodies and mana both exhausted from battles they had barely survived the day before. Victory did not always come from strength. Sometimes it came from knowing when not to stand.

Kana watched the arena shift once more.

The stone walls that had divided the field into five sections sank smoothly back into the ground, earth folding in on itself under the careful guidance of dozens of [Mage] hands. What remained was a single, vast arena. Open. Exposed.

Too wide.

Kana’s jaw tightened.

This terrain favored long-range combat based classes. Space meant time. Time meant skills layered upon skills. And her group had only one answer to that.

Suri.

And even that was new. Untested. Risky.

The crowd roared as the first group emerged from the tunnel.

Adam stepped out first, axe resting casually on his shoulder, his presence alone drawing cheers. The rest followed close behind. But it was Suri who stole the sound.

Her name rippled through the coliseum like a tide.

“Suri! Suri! Suri!”

Kana’s stomach tightened.

Suri waved lazily, smiling wide, posture loose, as if she were greeting friends instead of tens of thousands of spectators. She looked harmless. Almost delicate. A girl who might struggle to throw a punch but everyone knew it was not the case. The contradiction only fed the crowd’s fascination.

Kana gulped. Yesterday’s stunt had rewritten how people saw Suri. That kind of attention was a blade with two edges.

Their opponents emerged next.

Fourth-year students.

Veterans.

Most of them bore gold class badges, polished and unmistakable. Their builds were larger though not as much as Boris and Adam. They didn’t look at the crowd. They looked like people who had learned how to win without announcing it.

Kana’s mind raced.

She remembered hearing about their last match. One-sided. Clean. Efficient. No injuries. No theatrics.

The only advantage Kana could see was simple.

Condition.

Her team was rested. This was their first fight of the day. That mattered more than people realized. The fourth-years positioned themselves farther back than Valdis’ group had yesterday. Much farther.

Kana felt it like a pressure shift.

Yuri noticed too.

Kana saw her turn immediately, speaking in quick, precise phrases to Suri, Boris, and Andel. Hands gesturing. Angles. Distances. Suri hesitated, eyes flicking toward the empty space ahead, then nodded.

Yuri blinked.

Surprised.

Kana swore under her breath.

She tried to focus her [High Awareness], narrowing it toward the battlefield, but the coliseum fought back. The noise was overwhelming. The crowd today was nothing like yesterday. Every seat was filled. People stood shoulder to shoulder along the aisles, voices overlapping into a constant roar.

Breath. Movement. Heartbeats. Too many. Kana pressed parchment to her ears again, dulling the sound enough to think.

The air felt tight.

The bell rang. The signal to begin.

And in that instant, Kana knew this fight would not be decided by power alone.

It would be decided by who understood the space first and took advantage of it.

…

The fourth-years moved first.

They were efficient about it.

A [Swordsman] and a [Spearman] broke from their line in a clean, practiced arc, angling straight for Boris. Not reckless. Calculated. They knew who he was. 

Steel rang as they closed in.

At the same time, their [Bowman] loosed an arrow. It cut the air with a sound that wasn’t right. Too sharp. Too heavy.

Leo stepped into its path and raised his shield.

The impact slammed through him. Leo’s boots carved shallow grooves into the sand as he slid back several inches, heels digging in. His arms shook, teeth clenched, but the arrow shattered against the enchantment instead of piercing through.

Kana’s eyes narrowed.

Not a normal shot. A skill-enhanced projectile. Probably layered with some kind of force amplification.

Yuri didn’t hesitate. She whispered a command, sharp and fast. Kana unfortunately couldn’t hear it.

Adam broke formation. The move was sudden enough to look like a mistake. He charged straight toward the two veterans bearing down on Boris.

The fourth-years reacted a half-beat too late.

Adam met them head-on.

Not just hold them. He pushed them back.

Metal clanged as the [Spearman] tried to set his footing, only to be driven several steps backward by Adam’s shoulder. The [Swordsman] slashed, blade skidding across Adam’s arm, sparks flying.

Adam dropped his shield. It hit the sand with a dull thud. For an instant, Kana’s heart jumped.

Then Adam reached over his shoulder and drew a second axe. Now he held a battle axe in each hand.

He grinned.

Blades struck his skin. Steel bit. And stopped. His [Tough Skin] absorbed the blows, the force dispersing across his frame like rain hitting stone. Adam advanced anyway, axes rising and falling in brutal rhythm.

Rin and Suri advanced together. Rin led, shield high, steps were slow. Suri followed close behind, eyes half-lidded, staff held loosely at her side as if she were strolling rather than walking into a battlefield.

They stopped at a precise distance.

Suri lifted her hand.

[Lightning Bolt].

The spell cracked through the air. It struck a [Swordsman] who hadn’t even raised his weapon yet. His necklace shattered instantly. He froze, disbelief etched across his face, then stepped out of the arena with clenched teeth.

The crowd erupted.

Suri didn’t pause.

Another bolt flew.

This time, the fourth-years were ready. Their [Knight] stepped forward, shield angled just right. Lightning splashed harmlessly across the metal and dissipated.

Kana exhaled slowly.

Then Suri changed tactics. She ascended. Her feet left the ground, body lifting as if buoyed by the air itself. Blue sparks crawled across her skin, lightning coiling around her like a living mantle.

Suri’s image was so powerful she looked like a lightning god.

Their [Bowman] drew on her immediately.

And then stopped. Two skeletons burst from the sand at his flank.

The [Bowman] stumbled back, swearing, arrows flying wide as the summoned undead pressed in with jerking, relentless movements.

Suri raised both hands. Lightning poured outward.

A storm.

Thick bolts, blinding and violent, tearing across the battlefield toward the clustered enemies.

The crowd gasped as one.

The fourth-years braced.

And then—

Nothing.

The lightning passed through them. Illusions. All of it.

Fear did the rest.

In that heartbeat of confusion, Boris appeared behind their support line. No warning. No sound.

Their healer spun just in time to see him. A small figure stepped in Boris’ path, the last line of defense of their enemy’s support. A [Scout], blade flashing up in defense.

She blocked the first strike. Barely.

Then Andel was there as well as if he was teleported there. Yellow lightning crackled along his lance as he drove it forward.

The blow landed. The healer collapsed, shock written across his face as his necklace shattered into fragments.

The skeletons finished their work.

The [Bowman] went down as well. Now approaching their second target, [Mage].

The two [Mage] tried to finish casting. But didn't get the chance.

Their [Knight] looked around, taking in the empty space where his team had been.

He raised his hand. “We surrender!”

The bell rang.

The crowd roared.

Suri descended slowly, lightning fading as her boots touched the sand. Cheers washed over her like waves. She smiled and lifted a hand. Then, playfully, she conjured a massive lightning illusion overhead, letting it loom toward the stands.

The crowd gasped.

Then laughed because all of it were illusions.

Kana didn’t. She stared at Suri, heart thudding then to the stands of where the high ranking officials were seated. The king wearing a cloak, hood shadow covering his face, he stood and clapped his hands. The empire students were staring at her too.

Kana’s mind raced. Multi-casting? Because she saw them. Andel, Boris and the skeletons didn't appear out of nowhere—Suri casted an illusion skill to hide them.

She had tried it before. Again and again.

It wasn’t supposed to be possible.

And yet—

Suri might have done it.

Or something dangerously close to it.

Post note:
Have a great ⚡ weekend!

Hope you enjoy the chap! 🙂