Under the watchful eyes of both classes, the Princess Trio remained unfazed, radiating an air of superiority.
Yukino gripped her staff with a cold expression, clearly not taking the fight seriously. Eriri clashed her iron gauntlets together with a smug grin, creating an unexpectedly cute sight, while Kei wore a faint smile, calmly holding a white orb.
The opposing team, on the other hand, looked nervous and hesitated before finally launching their attack.
One of the two boys, holding an iron sword, advanced toward Kei, the group's healer. But Eriri quickly appeared in front of him and landed a punch directly to his stomach.
He barely managed to withstand the impact, stumbling back while coughing violently.
The girl from his team, attempting to help, cast a fireball spell toward Eriri.
Eriri flashed a slight smile and easily dodged the fireball. The boy with the sword rushed again, seeking to land a hit, swinging his blade toward her chest, but the blonde girl didn't seem to care about defending herself.
Suddenly, the boy felt a chill run through his leg, and when he looked down, his eyes widened as he saw ice covering half of it, restricting his movements.
His other teammate, armed with a bow, fired an arrow at Eriri in an attempt to take her down. However, it was ineffective.
The arrow froze mid-air and fell to the ground, scattering tiny ice fragments.
Eriri then charged forward and delivered a punch to the face of the boy with frozen legs, sending him flying backward.
He crashed into the frightened girl from his own team, whose legs and arms were now also frozen.
Seeing that two were down, Eriri glanced at the last remaining member and found the boy frozen like a statue, clutching his bow. She turned to Yukino and made a V sign.
Kei watched everything with a smile. She had not done anything, but as long as her friends and she remained unharmed, she felt content.
As the Princess Trio stepped out of the fighting area, Miwa nodded in satisfaction with their results, thinking that maybe there was hope for the new generation. She signaled to some students from Class 2E to help their fallen classmates.
Once the fighting area was cleared, two more matches ended before Reisou's team was finally called.
"Team Sixteen and Team Four, you know what to do," Miwa said, giving an encouraging smile toward the two teams.
Reisou from Team 16 grabbed a spear from the weapon shelf and walked alongside his two teammates.
His team consisted of a shy pink-haired girl with twintails and red-framed glasses, and a short boy whose left eye was hidden by his bangs, giving him the look of a classic anime introvert.
The pink-haired girl gripping her staff was none other than Sakura Airi, a character originally from the same world as Horikita Suzune.
She, just like Suzune, retained her shy personality, wanting to avoid drawing attention to herself.
As for the other boy, he was an unknown figure who followed quietly, holding a small dagger.
Most of the other classmates showed little interest in the match and could hardly remember their names.
Reisou didn't pay it any mind and took the lead position, while Airi and the other boy remained behind him.
"You two, let me go first. If you see I'm struggling, then step in to help," Reisou said, spinning the spear in his hand and taking an attack stance.
The two simply nodded nervously.
Their opponents were three guys. The bulky one led the team, wielding a battle axe, while the other two stood behind, each holding a staff and wearing smirks.
"This is a lost battle," a random guy from Class 2C commented, sighing.
"Yep, Handou's gonna destroy those three," a female classmate said, predicting a big defeat.
"Yeah, it's not even worth betting, but hey, our class is guaranteed another match," another person said with a satisfied grin.
*Sshhwee!
Miwa paid no attention to the mocking comments and blew the whistle to start the match.
At the sound, Handou charged toward Reisou like an enraged bull.
Sensing the threat, Reisou quickly rolled to the side, avoiding the axe as it swung down and struck the ground.
Though the force was immense, the ground absorbed the impact without a scratch. The fighting area, constructed from rare Draconic Obsidian, could easily withstand an A-rank Hunter's full hit.
Handou, realizing he had missed his target, marked Reisou as a greater threat than the other two, who stood frozen, too scared to move.
"You're fast, little guy, so I'll get you first," Handou said with a serious expression.
When Reisou saw his two teammates' horrified expressions, he sighed heavily, knowing he was practically alone in this fight.
Moreover, he noticed that the mages had not attacked yet, which meant they were very confident in Handou's victory.
✫| Armament Haki |✫
Reisou coated his spear with Armament Haki, ready to show that he was not a pushover.
As Handou charged again, swinging his axe downward toward his head, Reisou swiftly parried the attack.
The impact sent a shockwave through the air, and with a well-placed deflection, Handou's weapon was knocked clean out of his hands, flying across the arena.
Before Handou could even process what had happened, Reisou thrust his spear into the bulky guy's stomach, sending him flying three meters backward. He crashed onto the ground, unconscious, leaving the entire arena in stunned silence.
"H-he defeated Handou!?" a guy stammered, blinking rapidly as if trying to process the sight before him.
"What the fuck... this is bullshit!" another student blurted out, unable to believe what just happened.
Although Handou was not the strongest, he was far from weak. He held a respectable position on the Kiroku List, and his aggressive style, combined with his sturdy body, made him a difficult opponent to face.
Reisou took advantage of the two distracted mages and rushed toward them. They tried to fight back, but his Armament Haki was far too overpowering for their elemental magic.
In the end, the two lost miserably, leaving Reisou surprised at how easily he could now wield the fighting style of the body's original owner. It seemed he had finally absorbed every memory, even the muscular ones.
Reisou wiped the little sweat dripping from his forehead and walked toward his teammates.
Airi and the other boy looked at him, feeling ashamed for not helping while also admiring how he had handled the battle alone.
"Let's go," Reisou spoke without a hint of coldness, surprising both of them.
The two glanced in his direction with gratitude and followed in silence.
Meanwhile, Miwa typed something on her tablet and nodded, satisfied with Reisou's performance.
She was curious to know what kind of technique he used to deliver such a heavy blow, as she knew that Enhancement technique alone wasn't enough to knock out a tough guy like Handou almost instantly.
As she was deep in thought, a group of students from Class 2E shamelessly gathered around Reisou, showering him with praise for managing to defeat Handou so easily.
He was a bit overwhelmed by all the attention and offered an excuse, saying it was just a basic Enhancement technique combined with good timing.
><
A few hours passed, and Miwa stood in front of both classes, displaying the four teams that had qualified for the semifinals.
Teams 5, 9, 12, and 16 were the ones who had made it through, with Team 16, Reisou's team, surprising the onlookers as Reisou alone decided all the matches.
Now he was set to face Team 5, which included his classmates Ken, Kiyotaka, and Hachiman.
This surprised him greatly and sparked his curiosity.
'Is Kiyotaka pretending to be weak? His performance so far has been merely average,' he thought, not out of arrogance but from observing Team 5's matches. 'Still, I won't let my guard down. This guy is dangerous.'
From what he could tell, only Ken and Hachiman were actively fighting well, though the latter didn't seem particularly concerned about winning.
Putting the matter aside, Reisou approached Airi and the other boy from his team, whose name he discovered was Taiki.
"You two, come here. We need to talk," he said, calling them over.
Some students glanced briefly in their direction before returning to watch the match between Team 9 and Team 12.
Since his victory against Handou and the other teams, Reisou's reputation grew slightly, while his two unused teammates felt increasingly ashamed with each fight, realizing that he didn't need their help at all.
Reisou neither minded nor judged them. In fact, this was a good thing.
Five minutes later, the match between Team 9 and Team 12 concluded with Team 9 winning effortlessly.
The next fight would determine which team would represent Class 2E against Class 2C.
Class 2C expected an easy victory, while Class 2E hoped Ken's team would win, aiming for a less humiliating defeat.
They knew that relying solely on Reisou would likely end poorly against the Princess Trio.
When Miwa called to initiate the match, Reisou and his teammates stepped into the fighting area.
He stared at the opposing team and saw Ken gripping his mace with a scowl, Hachiman holding his staff with a tired expression, and Kiyotaka standing calmly, holding his sword.
None of them said a word and waited for Miwa to start the match, eager for it to end quickly.
*Sshhwee!
At the sound of the whistle, both teams launched their attacks.