"You may begin."
The moment the referee's voice echoed across the platform, Zephyr lunged forward with overwhelming force.
He hadn't bothered digging too deeply into his opponent's background. All he knew was what Azriel had mentioned that the boy was strong, a top-ranked student from Horizon Academy.
Even so…
From the aura Zephyr sensed, his opponent didn't feel threatening enough to make him hesitate or slow him down still, the previous unnoticed appearance made him cautious…
…So, Zephyr decided to test his opponent first.
He threw a straightforward punch, golden energy flaring around his fist as his martial art activated.
His attack landed cleanly on Ryou's ribs.
CRACK!!!
With a cracking sound, Ryou was sent flying backward like a ragdoll, crashing straight into the mana barrier surrounding the platform. For a brief moment, silence followed and then the boy stood up immediately.
"Huh…?"
Zephyr's eyes narrowed in disbelief.
