The battlefield lay in ruin.
Where there had once been carefully constructed platforms, shifting terrain, and strategic positions, now there was only chaos.
Clouds of dust and debris hung in the air. Those who had barely escaped being buried alive staggered to regain their footing, coughing as they took in their surroundings.
The first round of the tournament had ended in record time.
Kalem stood exactly where he had knelt moments ago, his expression unreadable as he took in the results of his calculated disruption. His crate of weapons, mostly untouched, sat behind him as if mocking the entire premise of the battle royale.
It wasn't that he had won by force.
He had won by ending the fight before it even began.
Around him, the few who remained were trying to process what had just happened.
Nara stood on the edge of a cracked stone slab, arms crossed, scowling as she took deep breaths. She had survived through sheer physical ability, leaping from collapsing structures and brute-forcing her way out of unstable terrain. Jhaeros was perched atop a large, half-buried pillar, watching with keen interest. He had noticed the moment the battlefield began to destabilize and had reacted accordingly, avoiding the worst of it. A handful of other students had managed to survive through luck or skill, standing on patches of stable ground, eyes darting around as if expecting the fight to resume.
But there was nothing left to fight for.
The Academy's mages—those overseeing the tournament—stepped forward, their hands glowing as they began to reinforce the broken terrain to prevent further collapse.
Then, a voice boomed across the arena.
"Enough! The first round has ended!"
In the Spectator Stands
The reaction among the audience was divided.
Gasps and murmurs rippled through the noble seats as various lords and high-ranking officials discussed what they had just witnessed.
"Unbelievable."
"He broke the battlefield itself? How is that even allowed?"
"That wasn't just power. That was understanding."
"Who is that boy?"
In the nobility section, Lord Mathias Evernwood exhaled, a look of mild amusement on his face. "He didn't fight," he mused, tapping his fingers against the armrest of his seat. "He simply chose not to play by their rules."
Lyra, sitting beside him, let out a slow breath. She had expected Kalem to pull something unconventional, but even she hadn't thought he'd end the round this way.
She could feel the eyes of powerful figures shifting toward her. They had made the connection.
They knew she knew him.
"I assume he's your friend?" her father asked, his voice carrying a note of intrigue.
Lyra hesitated. "Something like that."
Within moments, the Academy's mages descended upon the battlefield, stabilizing the land beneath them with intricate spells, repairing the worst of the damage. The tournament officials, all high-ranking instructors, stood in discussion for a brief moment before one of them stepped forward, amplifying their voice.
"The first round is complete! Those who remain standing have qualified for the next stage!"
There was a brief pause before the official's eyes landed on Kalem.
There was no rule stating that manipulating the battlefield was against the tournament's regulations. But that didn't mean the academy hadn't taken notice of what he had done.
And the fact that he had done it deliberately.
As the remaining competitors were escorted off the battlefield, Kalem was stopped.
A senior instructor, an older man with streaks of silver in his beard, regarded him with sharp, scrutinizing eyes. His robes marked him as one of the Academy's top enchanters, and the way he stood suggested that he had already been briefed on what had just occurred.
"You disrupted the enchantments that structured the battlefield," the instructor said, voice calm but firm.
Kalem shrugged, brushing some dust off his sleeve. "I just noticed that the terrain shifted in a pattern. It was only a matter of understanding how it worked."
The instructor's eyes narrowed slightly. "You didn't just understand it—you broke it."
Kalem met his gaze. "Was it against the rules?"
A silence stretched between them.
"…No," the instructor admitted.
Kalem gave him a small nod and moved past him.
As he walked off the battlefield, he could feel dozens of eyes on him.
Some were curious.
Some were impressed.
Others were watchful.
He wasn't sure which was more dangerous.
As soon as Kalem reached the designated resting area for competitors, Nara wasted no time.
She stormed up to him, poking him hard in the chest.
"You ruined my fun," she said, glaring at him.
Kalem smirked. "I saved you some energy."
"I don't need you to save me, I need people to punch!"
Jhaeros, standing nearby, chuckled. "You have to admit—it was efficient."
Nara turned on him. "You're not helping."
Jhaeros raised his hands in surrender. "I'm just saying—I don't think anyone else in this tournament expected a first round to be won by disrupting the arena itself."
Nara crossed her arms. "Cheating," she muttered under her breath.
Kalem tilted his head. "It wasn't against the rules."
Nara groaned. "That's not the point!"
Lyra's voice cut through their banter as she joined them. "You do realize you just painted a target on your back, right?"
Kalem turned to face her. "What do you mean?"
She gave him a look. "You didn't just survive the first round—you ended it. The moment you did that, every noble, every mage, every sponsor took notice of you."
Kalem was silent for a moment.
"…So?"
Lyra sighed. "You really don't get it."
Jhaeros leaned against a nearby stone pillar. "She's right. People are going to watch you closely now. Some might even try to eliminate you early in the next round before you pull another stunt."
Nara grinned. "Good. That means more people will come at us head-on."
Kalem shrugged. "Then I guess I'll just have to be less predictable."
Lyra gave him a long look before shaking her head. "Just… don't get yourself killed."
Kalem smirked. "I'll do my best."
But as he glanced back toward the remains of the battlefield, he couldn't shake the feeling that Lyra was right.
He had disrupted the tournament once.
And now—
Everyone was going to be watching his next move.