“Winner, Jared Leonard!”


    Upon securing my victory, I heaved a sigh of relief and began walking down the stage.


    Surprisingly, I was met with the deafening roar of the crowd as they cheered in amazement. The students—especially those from the Lower ss—burst out in cheers of excitement.


    A brief smile formed on my face and I relished the moment for a little while.


    A Lower ss reject had defeated one from the Upper ss—and not just any kind of elite, one of the two biggest geniuses among Ainrk Academy’s First Years!


    Somehow, this urrence must have given other students hope. If a Lower ss reject could beat a genius, then it certainly wasn’t impossible for others to rise above their designated spots.


    I hoped this battle proved to be an inspiration to those who had lost faith in themselves and had given in to the current system.


    ‘There’s no cement that’s absolute in this world! We make our own ranks!’


    Once people understood, then they could soar above what they naturally deemed impossible.


    So what if one was born inept? They could still excel in academics and be a Great Sage!


    So what if a person was born poor? They could birth an innovation that would pave the way to wealth.


    So what if a person was born powerless? They could simply w their way into power—doing whatever it took to achieve their dreams.


    In essence, nothing waspletely impossible so long as a person had the will and determination! The sky allows many birds to fly, without exception. It only waited for those who dared raise their wings to take flight!


    Even a chicken could climb atop the back of an eagle… and soar high into the sky!


    My eyes trailed to Stefan who was already being carried off stage in order to amodate the next contestants.


    ‘It wouldn’t hurt I’d you relied on others more…’


    With those final thoughts, I descended from the stage to return to my seat.


    On my way, I met Kuzon and Ana who were already climbing the stairs to the slightly elevated grounds.


    “Give it your all, Ana.” I smiled at her with absolute pride.


    She nodded, and I could see the determination in her eyes. She wasn’t going to quit at this juncture—that was what her convicted eyes told me!


    Suddenly, I felt a light tap on my shoulder. It jolted my body, but I quickly kept my destabilized emotions under control.


    “That was a fine match. Impressive, too…” Kuzon spoke as he drew nearer to me.


    “… But, you took too long.”


    I gritted my teeth when he said that.


    While I indeed dragged the fight longer than necessary, the purpose of a match was to gather information on the target and enjoy oneself even while achieving victory—especially if victory was assured.


    From Kuzon’s tone, though, he had a different philosophy.


    “Watch the next match closely. If you are able to understand even the slightest bit of it, I’ll consider enjoying my match with you.” He gave a light-hearted smile, and once I stared into his distant eyes, I suddenly got a bad feeling.


    ‘This guy…’


    Before I could say anything in response, us announced the names of the next contestants and they sped into the stage.


    A tinge of regret enveloped my heart and I wished I could have at least told Anabelle onest thing before she becamepletely out of reach.


    “… Be careful!” I whispered, looking in her direction.


    **************************


    I rushed to my seat so I wouldn’t miss the fight that would ur.


    Fortunately, immediately after I sat and looked in the direction of the match, us Tallman dered it to have begun.


    The crowd burst out in excitement, clearly eagerly expecting how this fight would y out.


    I simply sped my fist and observantly watched thepetition very intensely—just as Kuzon had said.


    ‘Ana is most likely going to lose against Kuzon. The only question is… how long will shest?’


    Anabelle instantly chanted the moment the match began, enhancing herself to the max while also preparing a High-Tier Intermediate Spell topletely decimate Kuzon.


    As I watched the fight, I nodded at the soundness of her tactics.


    Ana’s current limit was a ‘Highest-Tier Intermediate-Level Spell’. But, since it took too long to cast, she must have decided to fire her current Spell—most likely to buy her enough time to cast her Trump Card.


    So far, it was going well.


    The zing blue me that Ana summoned above her could be felt, even from my distance. Beads of sweat formed on my face, and I wondered whether they were in reaction to the heat of the High-Tier Intermediate Magic, or I was just being nervous.


    FWWOOMMM!!!


    Anaunched the blue mes of destruction in Kuzon’s direction. The giant ball of fire was at least as big as five humans put together. The name was ‘[Giant Dark FireBall: Intermediate]’.


    As I watched the mes rapidly approach its target, my eyes caught Kuzon doing absolutely nothing. This line of action puzzled me, almost to the point of disbelief. What was he up to?!


    Ana was already beginning to chant her next spell, the one that boasted her highest offensive capabilities.


    The ball of fire would reach Kuzon in only a few more seconds, engulfing the area that surrounded him in deep blue mes. We all watched in anticipation of the inevitable… until…


    BOOOOOOMMMMM!!!


    The blue fireball erupted whole still in mid-air, a few more seconds until impact.


    It parted, sending sparks of fire flying around and consuming the area, all except the ce directly affecting Kuzon.


    “What?!” I eximed, losingposure for a moment.


    Even Edward was already on his feet, wondering what the hell had happened. We both gazed in shock and puzzlement at the sight of the mes prematurely exploding and the fact that none of the brilliant bursts of fire touched Kuzon even after.


    ‘Ana’s control over her spell is top-tier. That fireball wouldn’t have erupted… unless… it made an impact with something!’


    I closely observed the space where the fireball burst. There was nothing really visible, so it was most likely an invisible barrier.


    No, if it was one, I would have noticed the distortion in space, plus Kuzon would need to chant before executing one—unless he used a magic item, which was prohibited in the Exchange.


    This just led me to even more confusion.


    ‘Kuzon Midas… what in the world… did you do?!’