Kai scanned the group gathered before him. He recognised Jibril among them, but the other 3 were fresh faces. The Headmaster introduced, "Kai, I believe you're already familiar with Jibril after your little duel yesterday. The girl who has completely covered herself in robes is our #2 student, Viper. She's a little shy and quiet, so please empathise with her."

Kai glanced at the girl named Viper. With her ninja-like clothing that covered her from head to toe, Kai couldn't discern any of her facial features. Very mysterious indeed. Zilean continued, "This lady here from the respected Benvalor Family is our #3 student, Eunice Benvalor. She may be a little feisty at times, but a little patience would do the trick."

Kai turned and looked at the little noble lady, who gave him a curtsy in response. A well-mannered gesture, but Kai can sense the underlying haughtiness in her action. Probably the pride of being born into a high-ranking noble family with close ties to the King. "A little discipline would be enforced with her." Kai thought silently.

Zilean then pointed to the last student remaining, "Finally, this hot-blooded young man is our #4 student, Chen. I would be handing you all their information files, so that you may get to know them better. However, nothing beats personal interaction, so I highly encourage spending a little time to get to know them! That's all from me, you all are dismissed."

Eunice whined, "What's the meaning of this? Having all 4 of us, the elite students of Zion Academy, gather in this god-forsaken place? This K-mentor must be out of his mind! At least Jibril's here though." Eunice then snuggled uncomfortably close to Jibril, who was struggling to keep her at bay.

Viper remained silent but Chen quickly retorted, "Mentor Kai must have his reasons for gathering us out here! I believe in him, for he fought side by side with Master Jonathan in the 3rd Holy War!" Eunice glanced mockingly at the young man before her. From his sturdy built and the bandages around his arms, Eunice knew that Chen was a workaholic and a seasoned fighter to boot. However, his idiocy frustrated her to no end.

Eunice snapped, "Oh, you're such a simpleton, Chen! You know that being a great fighter doesn't make you a great leader, right? Doesn't matter if he's a national hero, I don't think he possesses the requisite leadership qualities to lead a group as capable as us!" Eunice was scared out of her wits when she suddenly heard an unfamiliar voice, "Wow, you guys arrived rather early to have sufficient time for idle chatter."

Eunice turned around quickly to find Kai leaning on a tree behind her. Eunice was stunned. She was a capable sensor in her own right and yet Kai could sneak up behind her completely unnoticed. If Kai had the intent to kill, she would probably be dead already. The remaining students were shocked as well, except Viper, whose eyes displayed an unnerving calmness.

Kai clapped his hands and continued, "As per the Headmaster's advice, I thought that we should use the limited time we have together to get to know each other better before departing for our mission in a week's time. However, I don't believe in wish-washy, lame ice-breakers to get us started. I'll treat you all with respect like soldiers, and in return, I demand that same amount of respect as well. Is that clear?"

The students nodded nervously as Kai carried on, "Instead of ice-breakers, let's do this. You all are excellent duellists right? Since some of you believe that respect has to be earned, very well, I'll take you all on. Alone." The students were stupefied. A duel, straight off the bat? Not to mention that it was a 4v1.

Kai cleared his throat and clarified, "Sorry, my mistake. Jibril, you'll sit this one out. I've already assessed your abilities back in our duel then, so take this time to analyse the reason for your loss as well as to observe this battle. Sometimes, you learn more from observing others than being constantly immersed in battles."

Eunice was about to protest, but Jibril stopped her and nodded softly, moving to a safe location before settling down against a tree. Eunice was appalled. The Jibril she loved was a man of immense pride who wouldn't submit so easily. However, all she saw now was a pale shadow of the man he used to be.

Eunice gritted her teeth in anger as she cried, "Very well. Since you're so arrogant to dare to challenge 3 Grandmaster tier opponents to a duel, we'll happily accept your challenge! Let's go, Viper, Chen!" Chen initially appeared reluctant, his code of honour barring him from such an unfair duel, but he soon overcame his reluctance with a deep breath, and entered his combat stance. Viper was emotionless like always, as she readied herself for the battle ahead.

Kai taunted, "What're you all looking so stiff for? You have the numerical advantage, you know? Of course, this means that I won't hold back." as he started exuding a strong intent to kill. Eunice was taken aback by Kai's murderous aura, and in her panic, she quickly cried, "Be gone! [Lightning Storm]!"

Eunice conjured a huge amount of cracking electricity before her hands, sending it flying towards Kai as the innumerable lightning bolts mercilessly tore through the woods. Viper and Chen quickly jumped out of the way, barely dodging the erratic discharges from Eunice's Grandmaster tier spell that desecrated a large area of the forest.

Jibril sighed as he watched from the sidelines. Contrary to Eunice's beliefs, Jibril hadn't submitted to Kai. He simply respected the man for his power and acknowledged the wisdom behind his words. Kai probably wanted him to learn something that he could see better from the outside. For now, all he could say was that Eunice was being reckless with her magic, relying too much on brute force.

Meanwhile, Kai was hiding behind some intact trees, as he scanned the huge amount of destruction from Eunice's spell. From the information file, Eunice was highly proficient in Lightning magic, to the point where even teachers could help her no more, thus earning the moniker "Lightning Sorceress". In terms of magic power, Eunice can easily wipe the floor against him and maybe even Yuri, whose magic potential was already deemed prodigious.

However, as he'd observed from the attack earlier, she really lacked knowledge in combat tactics, clearly evident from her failure to notice that her teammates were in the line of fire. Kai sighed. Someone like her who relied solely on magic power would be easily killed in no time on an actual battlefield. It's no wonder that she performed excellently in single duels, but she would fare horribly in team fights.

In addition, from the information gathered, she was a ranged combat specialist whose style focused on denying opponents the opportunity to get close to her. This implied that close combat was probably her biggest weakness. However, the information did state that she had an Enigma Ability as well…

Chen exclaimed, "Eunice, we've got to work together! If we work together, we can definitely defeat him!" Eunice retorted, "Just stay out of my way and attack him when it's safe! That's all the tactics we need against him!"

Viper shook her head as she concealed herself amongst the trees. Chen was visibly frustrated but complied nonetheless, moving to a safe location. Kai sighed helplessly as he thought, "If she continues to attack like this, it won't be a 3v1 anymore. It would just be a group of 3 individuals with one common enemy. This would be an easy picking, since her teammates don't dare to move when she attacks."

Getting impatient, Eunice shrieked, "Stop hiding and show yourself! [Lightning Dragon Bullet]!" Eunice conjured a huge dragon composed of electricity that rushed through the forest, setting numerous trees ablaze as Kai barely dodged her spell. Kai muttered, "Time to put an end to this farce." as he disappeared in a flash.

Eunice smiled. She might had appeared reckless, releasing 2 Grandmaster tier spells in such a short period of time, but they were all essential baits to lure the big fish, Kai. He wasn't the only one armed with information. She too knew that in a direct matchup, a melee specialist like him with insane speed would easily bypass her defences and strike her down.

However, the time Eunice  bought with those spells enabled her to set up her defences perfectly. She had Viper to her rear, and Chen to her right, so any approaches in those directions would give her early notification and sufficient time to counteract. Eunice had largely desecrated the forest in front of her, so a direct frontal approach was unlikely and even if it did transpire, she had a good chance of coming out on top.

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That only left her left flank "exposed", the final piece of her puzzle. True enough, Kai came blitzing in from her unprotected left flank, his [Lightning Body] activated. Just as it seemed that Kai's [Lightning Blade] was poised to reach her, suddenly, 5 stuffed animals appeared from the ground in a horizontal formation, their eyes and mouths cackling with electricity.

Eunice ordered, "[Horizontal Formation - Converging Ray]!" as the 5 puppets directed their lightning bolts to a single point, striking Kai squarely on the chest. Eunice bragged, "You thought you had me all figured out? Wrong! I saved my trump card for last! My Enigma Ability, [Doll], which allows me to manipulate inanimate toys and infuse them with my magic! Did you honestly think I wouldn't come prepared against a melee specialist like you, hahaha!"

Just as Eunice thought her victory was certain, Kai's body suddenly dissolved into electricity, electrocuting her 5 puppets as they collapsed onto the ground, lifeless. Before Eunice could even gasp in surprise, she felt the sharp edge of a [Lightning Blade] pressing against her throat. It was Kai, who had actually emerged from the ground under her.

Kai explained, "Your considerations were pretty well thought out, but you over-rely on your own strength and Enigma Ability. I suggest that you go think of how you can better complement your teammates with your extremely powerful ranged magic as well as contingencies in the event that your Enigma Ability fails. Now, go join Jibril, you've been eliminated."

Upon being released by Kai, Eunice angrily stormed away before joining Jibril. Before she could launch her tirade, Jibril shushed her, speaking calmly, "You've got to agree with the Mentor on this one.

Yes, your use of [Doll] to protect yourself when someone gets close is remarkable, but he still managed to overcome your last line of defence, albeit with some deceit. His advice to you is pretty reasonable too, since we cannot afford to fight like individuals when the mission begins, otherwise, we could very well pay with our lives."

Eunice was still furious, but simmered down considerably after Jibril's words as she sat down next to him. Chen was frozen in shock. He had been there when Kai used this exact same tactic on Yuri, but he'd failed to warn his teammates.

Chen was shaken out of his thoughts by a shuriken that landed next to him. Looking at the direction it was thrown from, it was from Viper, who performed a few hand signals incomprehensible to most. To everyone's surprise, the simple-minded Chen nodded and said, "Let's do this! The battle's not over yet!"

Kai scrutinised his remaining opponents. To be honest, even with the removal of Eunice from the battle, things were still looking grim for him, perhaps even more so now that the disruptive lass was absent.

From the information files, Chen was a non-magic close combat specialist, having trained under his old pal Jonathan. This meant that Chen too was probably an expert in inner mana manipulation, enabling him to be efficient and deadly concurrently, since there was minimal loss of mana from combat.

Sadly, with regard to Viper, Kai almost knew nothing about her apart from her affinity for Dark magic. Back to the battle, Chen drew a deep breath before he suddenly vanished, much to Kai's surprise. Kai barely dodged Chen's sweeping kick to his head by squatting down swiftly.

Subsequently, Chen quickly followed up with a series of incessant punches and kicks, each barely avoided by Kai as he was slowly pushed into a corner. Kai was genuinely surprised by the power contained in each punch and kick, therefore, he decided to investigate the reason behind Chen's inexplicable power boost.

After activating his Luminos, Kai found his answer almost immediately. The truth was, Chen had accelerated the flow of mana within his body, to a level previously unthinkable. Thus, with more mana supplied to his muscles, Chen can generate more power and speed per strike.

Kai quickly distanced himself from Chen with a big jump and asked, "Impressive, Chen. I can see that Jonathan has taught you well. However, one thing puzzles me. To accelerate this flow of mana throughout your entire mana circulatory system, doesn't it place a huge toll on your body? Even Jonathan couldn't accelerate the flow of mana throughout his body, only his palms which formed the basis of his [Scalpel Palm Style]."

Chen, who was visibly exhausted, replied truthfully, "Well, to be honest, I'm not exactly worthy of being Master Jonathan's student. I lack the fine control required for the [Scalpel Palm Style], but by accident, I found out that I can apply the basic principle of the [Scalpel Palm Style] throughout my entire body, much to my Master's surprise.

As you said, this technique places a huge toll on my body, so my Master thought that it was impossible to accelerate the flow of mana in the body without causing harm. I guess my physical constitution is a little unique, enabling me to invent my own unique technique, [Limit Break] that augments my physical attributes far beyond normal inner mana manipulation. Prepare yourself, Mentor!"

Kai was surprised that the rate of flow of mana within Chen's body was further elevated from an already impressive level. Chen proudly challenged, "What you experienced earlier was my [Limit Break - Level 1]. Now, taste my [Limit Break - Level 2]!" as he disappeared instantly, cracking the ground under him as he took off.

Even with his Luminos active, Kai could barely follow Chen's movements now, as the young man threatened to overwhelm him with sheer power and speed. This meant that at the moment, Chen was travelling even faster than Jibril was when Jibril had used his [Flash Rush] technique against him.

Kai winced as his right cheek was nicked by a swift jab from Chen, who maintained the tempo in hope of getting a critical strike in. To make matters worse, the previously inactive Viper began making her move, supporting Chen from afar with her [Shadow Barrage] spell, accurately cutting off Kai's best escape route and even scoring a few cuts on him.

A bead of sweat trickled down Kai's forehead. He had totally underestimated these kids, and they really packed a punch above their weight when they worked together. Kai muttered, "Very well, looks like it's time I settled this. [Lightning Body]."

Upon activation of his trademark spell, Kai could now easily track Chen's movements and swiftly countered with a pinpoint [Lightning Blade] that looked set to hit Chen. After all, [Lightning Body] sharpened both his reflexes and speed to incredible levels. However, just before Kai could reach Chen, the boy simply vanished into thin air.

Kai thought, "Impossible, don't tell me he…"as he was instantly tripped and sent flying into the sky with a powerful kick to his chest. Kai spat out blood as he soared rapidly towards the clouds. He would have fared worse than having a few broken ribs if he hadn't focused his mana armament on the point of impact.

Now, Kai could see Chen clearly on the ground. His mana level had risen again, to the extent that it was now spilling a little out of his body. Chen's skin had now turned red, his muscles all being strained to the limit from the amount of mana pumped into them.

With a mighty leap, Chen jumped towards Kai, leaving a huge crater in his wake. Spinning rapidly in mid-air, upon reaching the top of his flight just above Kai's torso, Chen mercilessly landed a heel-drop on Kai's back, sending him plummeting towards the ground with such force and speed that the resultant crash created a humongous crater that had a minimum radius of 50 m.

Chen landed heavily on the ground, albeit not as forceful as Kai's descent. As Chen laboured to stand up, his body had reverted to its original state and he appeared to be on the verge of losing consciousness. Chen said weakly, "I hope that didn't kill him…maybe I overreacted a little there…"

To his horror, a hand emerged from the rubble and a figure crawled out from the crater. The next instant, the figure reappeared behind Chen and knocked him out with a light strike to the back of his head, having dodged Viper's attempt to halt him in his tracks with her [Shadow Barrage].

The figure was none other than Kai, who was in a dreadful state as his clothes were badly ripped, revealing his grievous injuries. Jibril and Eunice, who was watching from the sidelines, were appalled that Kai could still be conscious after that attack, not to mention move as quickly as he did.

Kai rubbed his head and remarked nonchalantly, "Whew, that was some attack you've got there. Too bad you can't last in that state for long, otherwise you could have beaten me single-handedly. I'm fortunate to be alive thanks to my quick thinking. Before your kick had landed on my back, I had already attempted to accelerate my free fall back to the ground with my Lightning magic.

However, the force from your kick was so strong that it sent me crashing into the ground despite not being a clean hit. The rest is pretty obvious, I protected myself from the impact using a little mana armament, making the wounds look a lot more serious than they actually are. However, one thing's for sure, I certainly didn't expect that any of you could hurt me this badly. Fortunately, there's only one person left now, right, Miss Viper?"

Viper looked at Kai with a cold expression as she remained silent. Without warning, she launched a [Shadow Barrage] spell at him as she retreated deeper into the woods. Kai started to analyse his enigmatic opponent as he dodged spell after spell from her.

Truth be told, Kai was most worried about facing Viper, and her actions earlier confirmed that she was a tactical genius, having supported Chen's attacks without any prior discussion or rehearsal. Those gibberish hand-signs she gave to Chen didn't really mean much even if Chen didn't understand them, for her attacks were all tailored perfectly to his.

What Viper required from Chen was only complete confidence in her abilities to support him, and that was what Chen had done perfectly, making the two an unexpectedly deadly duo. From Kai's observations in this battle and the information provided, Viper specialised in defeating her opponents with minimal power, often injuring them critically at their blind spots or unprotected areas.

Unfortunately for her, Kai's Luminos enabled him to see all her incoming attacks and react more quickly than most, as he slowly closed the distance between them. Kai thought, "Perhaps raw power is her weakness, since she's been throwing rather weak spells at me in hope of catching me off guard with one of them. Too bad for you, my enhanced senses prevent your little attacks from hitting my vital areas. It’s time to end this."

Kai leapt towards Viper with a [Lightning Blade], ready to end the session as he looked set to strike her unprotected back. To his surprise, Viper turned around swiftly, a huge mass of darkness between her hands. Kai was stunned. It was the Grandmaster tier Dark spell [Void Blast], and she was going to shoot it at point-blank range?