Dio's display of "misperceived courageousness" and performance in the duels easily allowed him to qualify. Considering he was out cold for the rest of the event, this was a fair judgment. His body was also put under too much stress and far too suddenly.
They say strength refers to two things, your will and your ability. In this case, Dio's will to act was immense but his body's capability? Not so much. Resulting in a far inferior version of the original spell, which should still be considered superior to what his body could currently handle, to manifest.
The shock of being drained of his entire mana reserve in a single go is something that mages get used to, warriors fighting on pure willpower and zero stamina is a similar example. However, mana was slightly more special as it served a similar level of importance to oxygen.
The state went by many names. Drained, Crash, Paralysis, each of them referring to the same condition. Typically, the amount of mana used would determine the severity of the condition. Fortunately, the degraded version of the spell didn't require so much more than what his body could handle.
"Dio"
His body shot forward with his eyes wide open, out of breath and dazed, Dio looked around to make sense of where he was. Soft white cushions were placed behind him, and curtains were drawn all around him to maximize privacy. The desk to his right had a few vials of glistening liquid, the green liquid seeming increasingly nostalgic, a single cushioned seat that awaited visitors. For a second there he thought he was back in his delusions.
"You're in the infirmary,"
He turned around to spot a familiar face. It was the same professor who had been intrigued by Dio's skill during the matches. He had a knack for noticing those who appreciated him. The man now donned a white lab coat which presumably was customary for faculty within the infirmary.
"Congratulations," he smiled, "after taking into consideration your performance and feats accomplished during this phase, I think it is more than safe to say you've exceeded our expectations,"
"I see," Dio's expression remained the same, "what about Jin?" He was far more curious about who that kid was.
"Well…..while he did, on a technicality, lose that match, it was ultimately decided that he would be accepted into Hexora. Although his actions have been recorded and sent over to the disciplinary committee, so he's under close supervision,"
'Seems rather unfair considering the power behind the spell,' he thought to himself and nodded quietly.
"You may be thinking this is unfair considering the power the spell held, and you are right to feel so," the professor spoke, startling Dio a little bit. "The truth is, everyone could feel the spell that Jin had cast, however, the residue measurements were next to nothing," he smiled and narrowed his eyes onto Dio.
"...?"
"...." He held his expression and stared at Dio.
"So you're saying, the reason he was let through was because of me?" Dio cocked his head to the side and thought about the spell he used. He was certainly not aware of the exact applications Universal Aegis had. In the first place, he wasn't too sure he did something. To overlook that and consider mana nullification?
"No. You are saying that. All I've said is that to assess whether Jin truly did try to cause harm, we needed to measure the residue, and there simply was none," he smiled cunningly.
'Shit…' the professor was smart, he got Dio to admit that he used some spell that could not only dispel such a strong spell but remove its mana footprints as well. Dio could guess that there was more to this situation than just what he was told. Intent was unfortunately not enough in this case.
"Nevertheless, I shouldn't really be discussing this with you." He got up and ran his hands over the coat, "We feel responsible for your current state. Had we, the professors acted sooner, none of this would have happened. For that, let me apologize on their behalf," he turned around and began to walk towards the door.
"Oh, if you're okay, you should step out and explore the campus a bit. Your friend seems to be extremely worried about you, so I'd suggest talking to her first," he said before disappearing behind the door.
'Residue nullifying? That seems unreasonable, there has to be some sort of a drawback to such an act. However, residue cleansing simply referred to all the magicules scattered around due to a spell, being non-existent or "cleansed", which could theoretically be modified into nullifying the mana (or magicules) within the spell…..'
His eyes widened with exciting possibilities, naturally, he was far too young and weak to be testing such a spell, nevertheless modifying was exciting. At the same time, given his ability, Dio could very well be the perfect candidate to modify such complex spells.
There was no easy way to go about this process, learning spells required one to be able to visualize the entire runic structure of the spell itself, the closer it is to perfection, the better the outcome. Naturally, if a structure were tremendously inconsistent, then the spell would never materialize. Which was simply why it was impossible to cast two spells at the same given moment.
They could be a second apart, and that would depend upon the caster, but to cast two spells at the same time would mean visualizing both structures perfectly within the same mental canvas at the same time. There was a long way to go before he could ever think of testing out this theory. Runic structures were complicated and still have not been entirely figured out to this date.
Dio mustered the strength to lift himself up and eventually left the infirmary to reunite with Alex, who was apparently dead worried. Upon exiting the building, he was greeted with a pleasant sight, a splendor of greenery that looked excited to thrive in such an environment, architecture that complemented nature, that inculcated its complicated and precious existence.
"If only nature was more mirror-like…." He smiled and nodded to himself, appreciating the view in his own weird way. Which is another reason why Alex and him grew so close. She tended to express herself in the way she saw fit. In this case, it was a strike with enough power to send him back to the infirmary.