"Your affinities are honestly boring," Raven paused, looking at his shoulder before continuing, "Even with level 12 fire, you’re still nothing."
Soren started laughing. "Are you that sure of yourself?" he said, still laughing. "My affinity is hellfire. Without using even ten percent of my mana, I can turn someone's body to ashes," he added calmly.
Miles was beyond shocked at this point. There were some evolved affinities, and the evolution of fire was hellfire. That alone would be equivalent to at least a level 5 or 6. Miles couldn’t help but wonder if Soren was the strongest second-year student. He briefly considered that they might win, given Garrick had already fallen, but with this new information, it seemed impossible. Maybe Soren was bluffing. Should they try to escape or negotiate calmly? If they could beat him, they wouldn't have to deal with bullies for a while. Raven wasn't in any shape to fight; moving his left arm might make his injury beyond treatable. So in every case, it was going to be a one-on-one fight.
Raven started talking: "How about trying out that hellfire you’re so proud of?"
Miles knew Raven had no idea what hellfire meant, but he should have at least understood the danger. Laughing nervously, Miles said, "My friend is a bit ignorant when it comes to magic, we apologize. Could you let us go?" As he said this, Raven grabbed the sword behind Miles with one hand and lunged at Soren.
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Soren laughed. "I love this energy!" he shouted, covering his hands with hellfire. Unlike normal fire, it was more red and matte; it didn’t even look like fire—it was more like lava, but it rippled like flames in his hands. So, he wasn’t bluffing; he really was using an evolved fire. Raven knew very well he had no chance of winning, but he had never been the type to run away.
Soren shot a wave of fire from his hands so fast that Miles almost didn’t see it. But Raven dodged it easily, sidestepping while running. His face didn’t look scared; if anything, he seemed to be enjoying himself. With his dark eye bags, wounds, and hair almost covering his eyes, his laughing made him look nearly monstrous. He swung his sword, but Soren casually stepped back, dodging it.
No matter how flawless Raven’s technique was, it only mattered if the strike landed. If he didn’t have the speed to hit, the technique meant nothing. With each missed swing, Raven's attacks became more erratic, and he started looking like a bloodthirsty beast, mindlessly slashing. Soren wasn’t taking him seriously at all—he even stopped using his magic. He completely abandoned technique and started fighting purely on instinct.
As Raven continued slashing, he began to laugh maniacally. A normal person would have been terrified, but Soren wasn’t just anyone. He underestimated Raven so much that he wasn’t even watching the attacks anymore. Finally, Raven swept Soren’s legs out from under him with a low kick, sending him crashing to the ground. Soren tried to throw a fireball from where he lay, but it was futile. Raven’s instincts had peaked to the point that he could be compared to the wildest of beasts. Raven raised his sword, about to plunge it into Soren’s head, when Professor Malcolm, the one responsible for the magic control and affinity tests, arrived and grabbed Raven’s hands.