Chapter 654

Book 1 Chapter 654

654.

Shhhk—!

Leo unsheathed his blade.

Swoosh—!

In that split second, Chen Shia disappeared from view.

Clang—!

Leo squinted, locking eyes with Chen Shia, who had materialized directly beside him.

‘When did Chen Shia become so rapid?’

Even before his weapon was completely clear of its scabbard, her short blade was already slicing toward his throat.

Deflecting the assault with his scabbard, Leo caught the lethal gleam in Chen Shia’s gaze and poured power into his arm.

Crash—!

As their weapons ground against each other, he used sheer physical might to push her back.

Screeech—!

Chen Shia crossed her twin daggers to arrest Leo’s downward pressure.

Yet, despite her efforts, she failed to halt his advance.

Her aggressive posture, which initially targeted his throat, collapsed under his overwhelming weight, forcing her into a defensive crouch.

Crack—!

The stone beneath Chen Shia’s feet began to fracture.

Boom! Rumble—!

Suddenly, Leo’s blade slammed violently into the floor.

“Ah!”

“Chen Shia?!”

Cries of shock rippled through the third-year onlookers, many believing she had succumbed to Leo’s crushing power.

Leo peered through the dense cloud of debris that erupted from the impact.

Having redirected the worst of the blow, Chen Shia was flattened against the earth.

The diagonal trajectory of Leo’s slash had passed a hair’s breadth from her hair.

Whoosh—!

Springing upward from her prone position, Chen Shia launched herself forward to close the gap.

Thwip—!

She hurled one of her daggers directly at Leo.

Whirl—!

The rotating blade zipped toward a critical target on his body.

With a slight tilt, Leo evaded the projectile effortlessly.

Capitalizing on the distraction, Chen Shia lunged directly into his guard, pressing her palm against his chest.

Boom—!

An explosion of aquatic energy erupted at point-blank range.

A ferocious torrent of pressurized water swirled around Leo.

Yet, completely unfazed, Leo reached out toward Chen Shia.

“He took that head-on?! Senior Shia’s strike?”

While Habiden yelled in astonishment, Duran watched intently.

“Negative. He neutralized it using an identical elemental energy.”

Leo had unleashed his own water aura to cancel out her offensive.

As his fingers reached for her throat, Chen Shia pushed off the floor to retreat.

Concurrently, the liquid swirling around her coalesced into sharp edges, darting toward Leo’s lethal zones.

Slash—!

Leo caught the watery substance as though it were a mere fabric.

The fluid blades, capable of cleaving solid stone, were seized firmly in his palm.

Bubble… bubble…

The deadly currents dissolved harmlessly against Leo’s own manipulation.

Chen Shia nimbly attempted to pull away further.

But just as she tried to sever the connection of the aura held by Leo—

Yank—!

“…?!”

With a sharp tug from Leo, Chen Shia found herself pulled right back toward him.

The reversal did not end there.

Leo’s energy began overtaking Chen Shia’s own element.

‘He has wrested control of the fluid from me.’

The very energy that once obeyed her commands was now turning against her.

The liquid coalesced into bonds that wrapped tightly around Chen Shia.

She found herself completely immobilized, as if bound by thick cords.

Utilizing her own captured energy against her, Leo swung the aquatic lasso and hurled Chen Shia violently downward.

Crash—!

As her body collided with the arena floor, the underclassmen watching from the stands instinctively closed their eyes in horror.

“Since you approached me with lethal intent, it is only proper that I reciprocate,” Leo remarked, his countenance entirely devoid of emotion.

His words signaled an end to any leniency.

Chen Shia surely anticipated this consequence when she initiated the duel.

‘No, this transcends a standard training match.’

Tugging the bonds once more, Leo crashed her into the opposite side of the arena, thinking silently.

‘This has evolved into a lethal struggle.’

Because Chen Shia was giving everything she had, Leo owed her the same level of commitment.

Only through his full power could she convey the message she intended for the spectators.

‘It is the respect demanded by an adversary fighting with absolute dedication.’

Just as Leo went to haul her in again—

Snap—!

Chen Shia burst through the watery restraints holding her captive.

The scattered droplets instantly reshaped into sharp needles, showering down upon Leo.

Thwack-thwack-thwack—!

Leo leapt backward, evading the metallic rain.

Swoosh—!

Suddenly, a projectile flew from Chen Shia’s grasp.

Leo leaned his upper body back to avoid it.

Tap—!

Chen Shia touched down on the earth.

Leo straightened his posture once more.

Drip—

A slender line of crimson welled up on Leo’s face.

“Interesting.”

Leo brushed his fingers against the scratch.

“Concealed armaments. We are truly escalating now.”

His crimson irises flared with an ominous light.

Chen Shia offered a slight grin, using her opposite arm to pull her right shoulder back into place.

Crack—

With a sickening pop, the joint realigned.

She then grasped her left forearm firmly.

Crunch—!

The sound of fracturing bone being forced together resonated.

By driving her energy into the musculature surrounding her broken radius, she stabilized the limb.

An agonizing wave of torment washed over her, but she disregarded it entirely.

Chen Shia was not so fragile or pampered that physical suffering would compromise her combat efficacy.

“I prefer to avoid excessive violence.”

“Yet you are the one who escalated it,” Leo replied, the edge of his lips twitching upward.

Staring at him, Chen Shia wrapped her fingers tighter around her weapon.

Yielding was out of the question.

Celia’s expression grew grim as she observed the exchange.

‘Leo is no longer holding back.’

Celia squeezed her hands into tight fists.

Witnessing the clash, she understood completely.

The conflict unfolding before them was a savage, high-stakes encounter where lives hung in the balance.

It was an engagement at the absolute precipice, typical only of veterans who had stared into the abyss repeatedly.

A single misstep would result in immediate fatality.

‘If I were facing Leo at his full power, could I hold my ground the way Shia is?’

She lacked the certainty to say yes.

In that instant, Chen Shia’s underlying message became crystal clear to her.

‘This is authentic combat.’

Regardless of whether it was Chen Shia or Leo, the adversaries awaiting them in the coming days would surely belong to this tier.

Though the gap appeared as thin as a single sheet of paper, that minute distinction separated life from death.

Duran likewise bore a solemn expression, having sensed the same reality.

He was far from the only one.

Chloe, Chelsea, Avad, alongside Wareden and Eliza, shared that realization.

While the rest of the crowd watched Leo, their eyes remained locked on Chen Shia.

‘Throughout these past two years, I have never witnessed Chen Shia unleash her true potential.’

Their supposed peer had been concealing her genuine capabilities all this time.

The companion they believed was walking alongside them was actually a step out in front.

‘This goes far beyond a mere demonstration.’

Celia bit down on her lip.

‘I must ensure that I am the one who earns the right to stand at Young Master Leo’s side.’

This duel served as an open challenge to all her peers.

They had been forcefully awakened by a declaration of war from a classmate they presumed to be an equal.

As the spectacle stunned the senior students, Chen Shia advanced, weapon raised.

Observing her stance, Leo focused his gaze.

‘This needs to conclude now.’

The only reason Chen Shia could safely unleash such unbridled malice was the sheer disparity in their capabilities.

Even while pushing herself to the absolute limit, the absolute pinnacle of her effort yielded nothing more than a superficial graze on his face.

That was her ceiling.

Should the confrontation persist, her safety would genuinely be compromised.

‘I will bring this to a close with my subsequent blow.’

Her upcoming maneuvers were already completely anticipated.

The outcome was predetermined.

Just as that realization crossed his mind—

Swoosh—!

Chen Shia’s physical form dissolved like a hallucination.

A dark mist was all that remained in Leo’s field of vision.

It felt as though she had slipped entirely out of reality.

‘This technique…!’

It completely blindsided Leo.

Her signature energy signature completely evaporated from his perception.

Had he been unfamiliar with the nature of this ability, responding in time would have been impossible.

Leo whipped his open hand toward his rear.

Under standard circumstances, a closed fist would have been delivered.

However, a direct punch likely would have proven fatal for her.

Though he had maintained an element of restraint throughout their interactions, he met this particular maneuver with unmitigated focus.

Whack—!

His palm connected with Chen Shia’s sternum.

She was launched backward across the arena, hurtling toward the perimeter wall.

Swoosh—!

Claria, an associate instructor working under Ein, caught Chen Shia gracefully before she could collide with the stone, touching down lightly.

Tap—!

“Per the regulations of the Knight Academy, lethal dueling is strictly prohibited,” Ein announced, materializing in the center of the arena. “Holding the position of student council president does not grant immunity from the rules. Furthermore, you were genuinely trying to break her just now, correct?”

“My apologies.”

“Sigh… As a consequence, both you and Chen Shia are assigned sanitation duty for the lavatories for the upcoming week. Penalty marks will also be recorded against your files.”

“Understood.”

Ein observed Leo’s composed acknowledgment.

“To begin with, transport Chen Shia to the medical wing.”

Approaching Leo, Claria transferred the unconscious girl into his care.

Cradling her limp form, Leo walked toward the clinic.

“Is that penalty not somewhat minor?” Claria questioned.

Ein let out a soft laugh.

“Neither Leo nor Shia are foolish enough to engage in reckless behavior out of mere immaturity.”

Had this altercation stemmed from simple malice or petty rivalry, the penalty would have been isolation in the disciplinary hall rather than simple chores.

Instead, their confrontation acted as a powerful catalyst for the rest of the student body.

“It was a constructive clash,” Ein noted, shifting his gaze from Leo to the introspective elite of the third-year class. “For Leo’s sake as well.”

“For Leo?” Claria asked, visibly confused.

“Indeed. It should alleviate a portion of the weight he carries.”

Reaching the medical bay, Leo placed Chen Shia gently onto a mattress.

Sometime later, her eyelids fluttered open as she returned to awareness.

“What did you think, Young Master Leo?”

“…Where did you learn to execute that technique?”

“You remember when my forebear inhabited my physical form? I retained the memory of those physical patterns and refined them through continuous training.”

The precise stepping method she had exhibited belonged to Vihar.

It was Vihar’s specialized energetic concealment—an advanced maneuver leaving neither trace nor odor.

An esoteric methodology that even Kyle had failed to master.

“…It seems I must stop viewing you as a youngster,” Leo admitted.

“Naturally, I have reached nineteen years of age. I am fully matured, am I not? You ought to regard me as such going forward.”

“Even so, crossing that line was excessive. Piercing my flesh crossed a boundary,” Leo countered, gesturing toward his spine.

During that brief instant when her position eluded him, the ancestral blade of Vihar she wielded had managed to score a superficial puncture along his back.

The injury itself was minor, though it had drawn a small amount of blood.

“Ensure that blemish remains permanently,” she requested.

“For what purpose? I have outgrown the phase where physical trauma is required to denote personal development.”

“It represents a token.”

“A token?”

“Indeed, a testament that my lifelong place is right behind Young Master Leo. Evidence that I have secured that exact role.”

A triumphant grin appeared on Chen Shia’s face.

“From this moment onward, that position belongs exclusively to me. I refuse to cede it to anyone else.”

Leo offered a faint, amused smile, observing her assert dominance as though marking territory.

“As the individual responsible for drawing first blood on your back, I have earned that privilege, correct?”

“Fine, have it your way,” Leo murmured.

Her smile widened at his acquiescence.

Leo laughed softly, studying her expression.

“In that case, a reward is in order, wouldn’t you agree?”

“A reward?”

“Correct. Shut your eyes for a moment.”

She complied, her chest tightening with an unfamiliar flutter of anticipation.

Suddenly, a distinct pressure was applied to her brow.

“What is this?”

Touching her brow in confusion, she shaped a reflective surface out of her elemental water.

Her brows knitted together upon spotting the ink imprint reading [Excellent Job.] left on her skin.

“A juvenile ink stamp is my reward?”

“What else did you anticipate? Such commendations are perfectly suited for youth.”

“Did I not just clarify that I am grown?”

“Insisting upon your own maturity simply confirms your lack thereof.”

Leo gave her forehead a playful tap and rolled his shoulders.

“Rest up. I must return to my lessons.”

Letting out a profound sigh, Chen Shia tracked his departing figure as he exited the room.

‘Perhaps if my demeanor and stature appear more mature, he will finally stop treating me like a youth.’

Late into the night.

At the extreme northeastern perimeter of the mainland.

This territory belonged to the dwarven race, seized ages past during a conquest led by Tartaros.

“Retreat, everyone! Hurry!”

Roaaar—!

A monstrous howl reverbered through the dark.

The complexion of the dwarven champion heading the scouting party drained of color.

Indications of an emerging Hero Dungeon had manifested in this sector, prompting the dwarven authorities to risk sending an expeditionary force deep into the domain of Tartaros.

An unsealed, volatile Hero Dungeon posed an existential threat that required neutralization before its corruptive influence spread across the realm, regardless of political borders.

Regrettably, the specialized unit now stood on the precipice of total destruction.

They had stumbled upon an immense contingent of Gigantes forces, entities previously absent from these coordinates.

Their presence confirmed beyond doubt the emergence of an active anomaly.

The leader’s primary duty was to survive long enough to transmit this intelligence back home.

“An ancient stronghold of our forefathers lies just ahead! We shall establish our defensive line there!” the dwarven commander bellowed to rally his remaining troops.

Despite his encouraging words, hopelessness clouded his expression.

The fortification in question had deteriorated into rubble centuries ago, stripped entirely of its strategic utility.

‘Delaying them is paramount! This intelligence must reach Demian at all costs!’

Grit teeth and heavy hearts marked the realization among the survivors that their lives were forfeit.

Their sole objective now was to ensure their findings outlived them.

Yet, the closing Gigantes columns sought to deny them even that final achievement.

As they neared the ruined stronghold, the volume of monstrous foes multiplied dramatically.

The frenzied Gigantes tore through the dwarven ranks under the cover of dusk.

“Commander! Save yourself, move!”

“Pelorne!”

Noren, the dwarven champion, cried out in anguish as his comrade fell.

The engagement had devolved into pure butchery.

“O venerable Demian! O magnificent Dweno! Afford us the strength to fulfill our charge!” Noren implored the spirits of his ancient ancestors.

Daybreak was fast approaching.

Once daylight arrived, the potency of the predatory Gigantes would diminish, granting the survivors a chance to reach the outpost.

‘With dawn’s help, I might still deliver the warning…’

Monitoring the passage of hours, Noren fervently anticipated the first light.

Yet, when the darkness finally receded—

“…”

Thud—

Noren sank to his knees, his strength evaporating.

A blood-red sun ascended, bleeding into the fading starlight.

An ash-colored dawn cloaked the landscape.

The sight was instantly recognizable to Noren.

It was a phenomenon detailed in the legendary epics he had devoured during his infancy, long before ascending to his current rank.

“The epoch of… devastation?”

The reality of the situation defied comprehension.

The undeniable truth was that the scarlet orb signified absolute ruin.

Beholding the apocalyptic sky, the remaining dwarves abandoned all hope and resistance.

In their overwhelming shock, they lost awareness of the fact that they had arrived at the perimeter of the ancient ruins.

BOOM—!

The thunderous roar of artillery shattered the air.

Crash! Roar! Screeech!

Sustaining a direct bombardment from magical artillery batteries, the Gigantes shrieked in agony.

The bewildered scouts snapped their attention toward the origin of the heavy fire.

Before their eyes stood an imposing citadel, completely intact and heavily fortified rather than reduced to debris.

Noren stared, utterly dumbfounded.

“What sort of madness… is this?”

Amidst his disbelief, Noren discerned the lone figure of a dwarf positioned atop the ramparts.

Clad in radiant, golden pyre-like energy, the majestic presence caused Noren to gasp.

“The Divine… Blacksmith?”