The oval amphitheater where student duels were held was located a mile away from the main campus. There was currently a long line out front with many students attempting to get inside all at once.

August and Emil easily bypassed the line, going through the entrance designated for staff. There was a reserved section for the special course students to sit that had the best view, so the two went there.

To Emil’s surprise, there was a person already seated in one of the spots with medium-length, curly black hair.

“Oh! Xavier, you’re going to watch, too?”

Xavier turned his head at August’s voice, revealing his deathly pale and inhumanely handsome face. His red eyes flashed when they rested on Emil. “Yes.” Xavier swirled the wine glass in his hand which was filled with a thick, crimson liquid and raised it to his lips.

August laughed and sat in the chair to Xavier’s left while Emil took the one next to him. “Xavier’s a reborn pureblood vampire prince. The current age of his body now is only twenty-four, but the blood in his veins is as old as dust,” August explained. “Hey, what did you say your bloodline was again?”

Xavier scoffed and didn’t respond.

“Right. He won’t tell me because it reveals his weaknesses.” August turned back to Emil with a grin. “He’s a decent guy though. He doesn’t bother with the power struggles. He’s the lone wolf of the special course.”

You’re saying a lot about him in front of his face… Emil thought.

Xavier, who was clearly used to August’s behavior, turned his gaze to the field below. “It’s starting.”

Emil looked down and saw two figures emerging from either side of the sandy arena.

The first was a giant of a man who must’ve stood at least two meters tall. His skin was a deep shade of red, and a horn wrapped in golden bands protruded from his forehead.

“He’s Eddie, he’s Dragonborn,” August said.

That’s… a Dragonborn? He looks more like a demon.

Emil’s eyes widened as he had never seen a member of the draconic race before. Activating his special vision, Emil saw that the color of Eddie’s anima circuit was a rich gold with some flecks of emerald green mixed in.

“That’s Melissa.”

Emil redirected his gaze from the Dragonborn to the short, slender woman on the opposite side of the battlefield.

Her auburn hair was tied back into a ponytail, showcasing her pretty, freckled face. Next to Eddie, the ordinary woman looked like she would be crushed if he flicked her. But the expression on her petite face was severe and intimidating.

Emil saw that her anima was the same golden color as Eddie’s, but without green.

“Watch closely,” August warned. “Quick matches have a five-minute time limit to get your opponent to surrender or be rendered unfit to continue. These battles go fast.”

A loud beep rang through the arena and the previously bustling crowd went completely silent. Emil knew that this meant the duel was to begin now and found himself leaning forward in his seat.

Eddie began to walk towards Melissa leisurely, his chiseled face bearing a mocking expression.

Melissa shook her sleeve and three, small metallic balls fell out and levitated in the air while spinning slowly. She began to whisper underneath her breath, moving her arms and legs in a strange, stiff dance. A magic array took form behind her head, glowing like a halo.

“One!” the petite woman let out a shout that reverberated in Emil’s ears and made his brain shake.

The metal sphere shot out from the spinning ring, leaving behind a beam of light as it headed towards Eddie with a sonic boom. Eddie rose his hand up slowly as he continued to stalk towards Melissa. The object collided with his palm with a clap, continuing to rotate rapidly until it lost all its steam. Eddie didn’t even stop or falter in his steps and dropped the ball down to the ground, landing heavy thump, a small dent formed in the sand.

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Emil felt cold sweat run down his back. He knew that the sphere had enough strength to snap his body in half like a twig, but Eddie had caught it without much effort.

That wasn’t magic! It was just his pure, physical strength.

“Two!” Melissa said.

The remaining balls shot out in a curved path, approaching Eddie from both sides. The Dragonborn smirked and made a subtle gesture with his left hand. Multiple earthen barriers rose out from the sand between him and the balls approaching on either side. The spheres broke through the obstructions with each, loud cracks echoing with each shattered wall.

As this was happening, Eddie had raised his palms and whispered something. Pillars of flame burst out from his hands once the last barrier was destroyed, causing the spheres to be blasted backward. They slammed into the magical barrier that protected the crowd and collapsed to the ground harmlessly.

Melissa flicked her hands and the three balls shot back towards her, resuming to rotate in a ring around her wrist.

The exchange happened so quickly that Emil could barely blink if he wanted to know what had just happened. There was an underlying degree of skill and sophistry that carried through all their movements.

“It’s my turn, right?” Eddie spoke in a deep, gravelly voice. He had stopped moving and smiled tauntingly at Melissa. He didn’t bother trying to hide his arrogance either and was looking down at her.

Emil felt his distaste towards the man growing.

Hearing this, Melissa said, “Eleven.”

The balls attached themselves to her wrist and turned liquid. The silver material rapidly spread across her body and formed armor. A metal, great shield sprung out, thumping against the ground as Melissa crouched behind it.

Eddie laughed and shook his head. He muttered four short, ugly sounding words. A light formed at the tip of his horn and four, tiny flames rose up into the air above his head.

Within a split second, the fire that had risen from Eddie’s horn had swelled in size and formed four heads of a dragon.

That’s Salamander’s Rage… Did he cast four that easily? And each of them is more potent than the one I had used back then! This guy is on a different level than me entirely. Emil’s entire body felt itchy and his throat was beginning to close. Even though there was a barrier, Emil felt the illusion of the intense heat produced by the spell.

Salamander’s Rage was a difficult spell to master. Its potential could only be brought out by those with a powerful fire attribute. But not only had Eddie reached that requirement, but he had also surpassed it and transformed the spell into an even more powerful one!

It’s not over...

Those heads then combined once again, forming a gigantic head above Eddie that began to develop into a dragon’s full body. The beast was completely made of orange and red fire with eyes glowing white. It spanned at least fifty meters in length.

The dragon opened its large mouth and an earth-shaking roar erupted. The entire foundation of the coliseum shook, and dust began to fall from the pillars.

A blast of fire exploded out from the dragon’s mouth, directed towards Melissa. “Fourteen!” she exclaimed as the flame approached her.

The great shield suddenly doubled in size, fourteen female heads sprung out from its perimeter and began to sing in haunted, ethereal voices. The shield began to glow with a brilliant light.

The flame impacted against the shield.

A loud boom echoed throughout, and a blinding light filled the arena, but Emil didn’t dare to look away despite his eyes burning.

He watched as Melissa was slowly being pushed back despite using her entire body to attempt to move forward against Eddie’s attack. While she was struggling, the Dragonborn had his hands in the pockets of his uniform and was gazing at her coldly.

Her feet dug into the ground, leaving deep gouges as she slid backward. Emil saw her muscles flexing underneath her skin-tight armor, her thighs and calves doubling in size. With his vision, he saw that she was concentrating her anima in these areas and feeding it into her muscles. Emil felt amazed by her ability to do the complicated process within a matter of moments.

Eddie clapped once and the flame intensified. A second dragon head burst from out from the neck, its mouth wide open and another breath of fire charged towards Melissa, slamming against her shield.

The song of the sirens was drowned out by the sound of a dragon’s roar.

Melissa, unable to withstand it, was blasted off her feet and flew backward into the barrier with a thud that rang throughout. Emil felt the ground shake again upon her collision.

Her shield has shattered as well as her armor, the three balls returning to their original shape and falling to the ground with a useless clatter. Eddie waved his hand the moment this happened, and his attack ceased. He seemed to be bored.

She crumpled to the ground, still conscious. Her hands formed into fists, clutching the rough sand in them. Emil couldn’t see her eyes, but he knew that she frustrated.

Even if it was supposedly a battle to curb any arrogance Emil might’ve had, she had been utterly crushed by her opponent. He didn’t give into her at all.

If Emil didn’t understand how skilled she was, he would’ve believed that she was an easy opponent. Eddie’s strength had been too dominating for anyone to think otherwise.

Eddie moved forward until he loomed over Melissa’s petite figure. “Well?”

Melissa pushed herself up with shaky arms. Her teeth gnashed together, and she said, “I surrender.”

The crowd erupted into cheers.