"Watch out for yourself in the exam. After all, a wasp might kill you."
"Thanks." He begrudgingly replied before heading off, well aware that a wasp probably could be the death of him.
The day had been going normally bar his near death experience.
Julius had been wandering the academy grounds, trying to shake off the lingering headache from his "friendly" encounter with Sunday.
Mostly everyone was extremely worried about tomorrow's entrance exam.
Then, a sudden announcement had shaken the entire student body.
"ALL STUDENTS, REPORT TO THE DUELING ARENA IMMEDIATELY."
Whispers filled the air as students flooded toward the massive dueling arena in the heart of Ruloy Academy.
Julius, following the crowd, soon found himself standing among hundreds of students, all murmuring anxiously.
On the raised stage, a few academy instructors stood with stern expressions.
Then, Professor Silver stepped forward.
His icy gaze swept over them.
"Listen well," he spoke, his voice booming over the arena. "Due to an overwhelming number of applicants, Ruloy Academy has deemed it necessary to conduct an immediate selection process."
Julius felt his stomach sink.
"This means," Silver continued, "that every student here will participate in a one-on-one duel."
A wave of shock spread through the students.
"Seriously? The exam is tomorrow, we're all gonna be tired if we have to fight right now!"
"Wait, can we talk about how unfair this is?"
"No." Professor Silver snapped. "Do not question the school's decisions."
Many people opposed the idea.
Some looked excited. Others, terrified.
"These battles will determine your eligibility to remain in this academy," Silver stated. "Only those who prove themselves worthy will move forward. Those who lose will be eliminated. If you don't wish to participate, you can leave through the gates now."
The students went silent.
Julius clenched his fists.
So they're already cutting people? This was a pretty bad time to make people fight for their places. And this was bad for him specifically, who was planning on rolling good teammates and winning by luck.
"Pairings have already been decided," Silver continued. "Now—let the duels begin."
With a wave of his hand, three massive dueling stages appeared before them.
The first matches were quickly called, and the battles began.
The first match Julius saw was Sunday's.
Her opponent—a tall, muscular boy wielding a broadsword—stood sternly, expecting a great fight.
But the moment the fight started—
ZAP.
A bolt of purple lightning surged forward.
In an instant, Sunday appeared in front of her opponent, fist crackling with power.
She slammed a devastating punch into his gut.
A loud BOOM echoed through the arena.
Her opponent's body was flung backward, crashing into the ground outside the ring.
The crowd erupted in cheers and gasps.
"Winner, Sunday!" the announcer called.
Sunday simply brushed off her sleeves and walked away, looking unimpressed.
Julius swallowed.
Yeah… she's terrifying. She didn't even unsheath her sword.
Next up—Yevian.
His opponent was another highly-ranked student.
The moment the match started, Yevian raised a single hand.
A golden magic circle appeared before him.
With a casual flick of his fingers—
A bright beam of light energy shot forward.
His opponent tried to block—
But the blast struck with overwhelming force.
Before anyone could react, the match was already over.
Julius sighed.
Yeah, I expected that too.
As he watched more battles, he started noticing a pattern.
The weak were always paired against the strong.
Some duels lasted mere seconds.
Some were dragged out, but the result was always the same.
It was clear that Ruloy wanted to keep only the strongest.
And then—
His name was called.
Julius felt his heartbeat quicken as he stepped forward.
His opponent was already waiting for him—a tall, well-built young man with red hair, sharp features and soft green eyes. He had a pair of boxing gloves.
The crowd murmured upon seeing him.
"That's Argus Van Trelle! The son of Count Trelle!"
"He's one of the most talented fighters here…"
"He's gonna crush that Level 1 guy…"
Julius sighed internally. You know it's bad when the background characters get hyped up for your opponent.
"He's a prodigy!"
Great. So I have to go against a prodigy.
Argus, standing confidently, gave him a smug look.
"You should surrender," he said, rolling his shoulders. "It'll save you the pain. I heard about your situation... How strange must it feel to be so weak?"
Julius sighed. "I appreciate the concern. But I'll prove right here and now that levels don't mean anything! Or I'll get my fucking ass kicked in. I guess we'll have to wait and see.
The announcer raised his hand.
"Begin!"
And then—pain.
Julius had no chance.
From the moment the fight started, Argus dominated him.
Not in that way...
Each of his strikes was precise and powerful. He was a striker, who used his gloved fists to beat sense into his opponents.
Each of Julius' attempts to dodge? Useless. Argus was a superhuman, speed was his best friend.
The fight dragged on, but it wasn't even a fight—it was a beating.
"Wait! Wait! Wait! Can't we talk things out?" Julius rolled to the side as Argus tried to smash his face into the ground.
"I'm doing you a favour by not playing with my food." Argus blitzed him and kneed him in the face.
"I hope you're ready for my special move... 5 Big booms."
The 1st boom sent Julius to the ground.
The rest were just collateral damage.
Julius felt the world spin.
"Agh-. You bastard. You're lucky you're a superhuman."
The crowd winced as Julius was repeatedly knocked down, only to stagger back up time and time again.
"For a level one, you've got some resistance." Argus grinned as he slammed another fist into Julius' belly.
Julius went flying again.
By the fifth time, people started feeling bad for him.
"Ehh-. He looks a little more hurt than he should be... No-. Trust the process. There's no way he loses here." Silleto mumbled to herself, unsure of how the process worked by any means.
"He's gone." Said Yevian who looked away calmly.
"Just stay down, man…"
"He's trying his best…"
"Damn, that's rough…"
Even Argus seemed disappointed.
"You're still standing?" he muttered. "I admire the effort, but this is over."
"The plot needs me to go on!" Julius roared. "And there's always the chance you get a sudden heart attack."
Julius coughed, blood trickling from his lip.
Damn it… I can't even fight back. Stupid academy, putting me against some prodigy.
His vision blurred.
His body was reaching its limit.
Argus sighed and raised his fist for the finishing blow.
Then—
Julius' fingers brushed against the ring on his hand.
The Force Ring.
He had completely forgotten about it.
Aldric had given it to him.
It might've had some energy stored in it for when Aldric gave it to him—enough for one powerful attack.
Julius exhaled. His bloodied body staggered upwards. He put his hand out, gesturing Argus to attack him.
"Come on? Don't you want to win?"
"Alright," he muttered. "It's my last chance, I just have to hope my guess is right... That this thing was pre-charged..."
Argus lunged forward—
And Julius activated the ring.
Shit- I need a cool move name.
"SHOCKWAVE."
BOOM.
A sudden, massive shockwave erupted from Julius' hand.
Argus was blasted backward—completely caught off guard.
His body flew out of the ring, landing hard against the stone floor outside.
"Eh?" Argus felt something in his back break.
The arena fell into silence.
Julius stood there, panting as he looked at Argus who had most definately been knocked off the stage.
"Eh? It worked?"
The announcer hesitated—then raised his hand.
"…Winner, Julius!"
The silence broke.
Gasps.
"I mean of course it worked. My plan was executed flawlessly." Julius tried to play it off, but everyone knew his victory was merely the accumulation of years of luck.
Shouts of disbelief.
"What just happened?!"
"How did a Level 1 just defeat Argus?!"
"Did he just awaken some hidden power?!"
Julius straightened his posture, forcing himself to look calm and composed.
"All part of the plan guys, you can all relax."
He turned and walked off the stage.
Silleto was already rushing toward him, eyes wide.
"You really were playing with everyone's feelings there.
Julius simply shrugged.
"Everything was planned," he said smoothly, ignoring his injuries that needed urgent medical care.
Silleto narrowed her eyes. "I see, I must admit I doubted you for a second. Your acting looked so real..."
Before he could respond, Yevian suddenly appeared beside them.
"That was… interesting," he mused. But he didn't seem too surprised. He stroked his hair and muttered "That ring suits you well."
Sunday, standing nearby, folded her arms. "Tch. That was ridiculous. Argen's father is going to beat the living crap out of him when he gets back home."
Julius gave them both a mysterious smile.
Nobody knew how he had won.
And he wasn't about to explain, after all he only had a few trump cards in this world.
The last duel he stayed to watch was Silleto's. He wanted to see if she was all talk or not. I guess I am kind of interested in her... She's a weird one.
Her grey hair cascaded down her neck, she didn't have a sword or a wand. She just stood there menacingly.
Her opponent was a knight, a broad-shouldered young man clad in heavy armor.
The moment the match began, the knight charged forward, sword gleaming.
A bad move.
Silleto didn't even move.
She simply raised a hand.
A faint hum filled the air—then—
BOOM.
A violent explosion erupted around the knight, engulfing him in flames and smoke.
The blast sent shockwaves through the arena.
I feel like I just witnessed an illegal move.
When the dust cleared, the knight lay at the bottom of the stage—smoldering.
The announcer, stunned, took a second before calling out:
"W-Winner, Silleto!"
Julius blinked, jaw slightly dropped.
He turned to look at her, eyes wide.
Silleto simply brushed the dust off her cloak, completely unfazed.
That's her power while sealed?! It's a good thing I'm on good terms with her then.
The stage had to be rebuilt before the next match.
Healers ran out, as they did after every match. Julius' wounds had taken a while to heal, but now he stood looking at his repaired flesh in amusement.
"I guess this world does have it's good points. And they healed me for free."
Silleto winked at him, unsure of the meaning he walked towards her suspiciously.