Towards the center, there were two parallel lines drawn about 3 meters apart. A voice like that of a lark began a countdown from 10 until the host finally initiated the battle.

As one might suspect from this race, they were quite aggressive. Shar lunged at me, striking with his bare fists horizontally in rapid succession.

For my part, I dodged most of the attacks and blocked those I couldn't with my armor, taking some fortunate opportunities to strike my opponent's face.

The exchange continued until a particularly strong punch that I couldn't block sent me flying backward. The audience, which had been constantly cheering for my opponent, erupted in applause.

"Very well, it's time to finish the probes," I said as I unsheathed my greatsword and removed my belt for greater mobility.

During our exchange, I noticed one of the significant differences between our species. My opponent was using a kind of energy similar to mine in his body. Apparently, there were other races that were much more skilled in this use. It's no surprise they ranked so high.

However, I also noticed another difference: the quality of his energy seemed to be inferior to mine. It's likely that his awakening or handling of it had external influences that had a negative impact on it.

Since my body wasn't yet fully accustomed to energy circulation, I could only use it explosively to gain a significant advantage in the form of the Ashen Bastion, which immediately changed my presence. Now, a reddish aura enveloped me, and my presence was much more intimidating.

My opponent immediately unsheathed two swords just over a meter long and assumed a defensive position. However, he appeared tense and defensive, quickly giving in to anger and fear of a being he considered inferior.

This time, the exchange of blows was not one-sided; rather, I was more proactive in attacking. I used my greatsword to block the most powerful attacks and evaded the rest with impeccable footwork. Taking advantage of an opening in his attack, I delivered a diagonal downward strike.

Somehow, my opponent managed to predict my attack and leaned back at the last second. However, I used my position to deliver a strong blow to his face with the pommel of my greatsword.

My strike landed solidly on his forehead, causing him to fall to the ground. Without wasting the opportunity, I slid forward with another vertical attack. My opponent reacted with a margin and moved to the side, but it was too late. My sword cleanly severed his right arm in a single stroke.

My opponent reacted quickly, somersaulting backward over his shoulder and then regaining his footing a bit further away. During his retreat, I decided not to pursue him. Although I initially wanted to end the duel as quickly as possible, that wasn't the wisest option, so I remained in an unshakable position in the face of the enemy's maneuvers.

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Somehow, I knew that my small act had an effect, as the noise around us subsided, and silence reigned. I had managed to make a great impression on the other races.

It had also affected my opponent. Although he had previously shaken off his fear with a shout, now he couldn't help but retreat in the face of my presence. I suppose it was time to end this.

I increased the power of the Ashen Bastion. Although the main virtue of this ability lay in enhancing the Ashen Knights who followed me, it also had a particularly striking and oppressive aesthetic effect. It was this effect that I aimed for. I truly hoped to intimidate the others so that they wouldn't challenge Earth again.

Shar launched a suicidal offensive, and the constant loss of blood must have made him panic. It was really easy to deflect his attack with an upward vertical movement, then with a crosswise attack, I severed his remaining arm, and with a kick to the chest, I sent him to the ground.

Now, with my armor bathed in blood, I slowly approached my opponent and decapitated him with a single blow.

Although I truly felt like vomiting, I knew what I was doing was right. I knew it, yet somehow, I felt guilty for killing him. This time, he wasn't a system-invading monster; he was a sentient being like us. The only reason that allowed me to retain my mental calm was the fact that they had challenged us to death first.

Lost in my thoughts, I didn't notice what the host was saying.

"You may withdraw now. I must warn you that you cannot buy potions from the store or use any that you may have left, so if you assume more fights, you must take this into consideration."

I nodded, placing my hand over my chest as a sign of reverence toward the host, and then I returned to the human side.

Dimitri was the first to speak to me, "Truly impressive, soldier. You are strong for..."

However, he cut himself off mid-sentence as he noticed that my mood was not appropriate for joking at this moment. I truly felt conflicted about what I should do and what I was doing. Somehow, I was becoming the killing machine my mother had always despised.

The host continued, allowing the others to make their challenges without even bothering to clean the battlefield, so the bodies kept piling up.

There were no changes in the top ranking, and after other challenges were overcome as overwhelmingly as mine, no one else challenged the top positions on the board. Most challenges occurred in the lower positions, causing a real field of corpses.

Finally, no one else dueled.

"If no one else has any dissatisfaction to resolve with their rankings, I declare this event over, and I congratulate you on your integration into Glamoria. Warriors, enter the blue portal; the seven main members, enter the red one. Additionally, you have a few minutes to discuss among yourselves if you wish."

Once he finished his speech, the portals appeared, and everyone began moving to their respective portals immediately. The seven members of Earth exchanged brief glances, but apparently, there was nothing more to say, and they began walking toward their portal.

As for me, I couldn't walk; somehow, I was being held in place. Once the others had left, the host finally moved in my direction.

"Host, do you want something from me?" I asked, confused by the events.

"Well, Alex, first of all, congratulations on your feats. You've truly demonstrated an ability that surpasses all the participants this time."

"I don't believe I'm the strongest, my lord."

"I don't mean raw strength; it's more about the ability to adapt and grow. I know for sure that you're not the strongest, but in Glamoria, there will be plenty of opportunities to improve. What's most valued here is the ability to grow and adapt." The host made a thoughtful gesture and suddenly applauded with his hands, at which a couple of larks approached me and with a glow, completely cleaned my armor.

"The reason I stopped you here is because of what happened toward the end of your test. You stole three blessings from Davros, and to be honest, it would be very problematic to let you carry those."