The battlefield was tense.
A clear field beneath the Academy's dome, surrounded by hundreds of cadets eager to see who would rise—and who would fall.
Raijin, loud as ever, shouted from the stands, cupping his hands around his mouth.
Raijin: "YOO! EDGY CAT GIRL, BEAT THAT BITCH-BOY TYRONE'S ASS!"
Gendai raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.
Gendai: "What exactly did Tyrone do to you?"
Raijin: "Exist… with that name."
Mia, standing just outside the arena, ignored the heckling.
Mia: "Focus on your fight, Tyrone. I'll handle the rest."
Tyrone gave a calm nod, stepping forward. His chain double-scythe gleamed under the artificial sunlight.
Tojo: "I wonder what kind of abilities they have…"
Xavier leaned forward, adjusting his glasses with interest.
Xavier: "Let's just watch and see."
Nile, acting as the match overseer, raised a hand.
Nile: "Begin."
Without hesitation, Tyrone spun his chained scythe with precision, the sound slicing through the air. Raijin's eyes lit up.
Raijin: "Yo, this man got earth-bending powers or something?!"
Tojo: "Looks like someone we know."
Gendai: "If he can master it, he has a real shot… though Mia's a necromancer."
Tojo: "Bet five dollars she's not."
Gendai: "Easiest five bucks of my life."
As the fight commenced, Mia lunged in with her scythe, striking blow after blow. Tyrone blocked with discipline, waiting for an opening. Then—he found it. Deflecting her scythe, he slammed his foot down, summoning a pillar of stone that launched her into the air.
Gendai: "He's good…"
But dark aura coiled around Mia like smoke. A swarm of shadowy hands burst from the ground, clawing toward Tyrone.
Tojo: Sighs and hands over five dollars. "Damn it."
Riah, appearing beside them with a casual smirk: "Thanks for the easy cash."
Raijin: "Yep. Bros is cooked."
Tyrone, thinking quickly, kicked up a barrage of rocks, sending them at the shadowy limbs as he created a stone clone of himself on the surface—his real body sinking underground.
But Mia didn't move. She simply waited.
Then—a massive skeletal hand erupted from the earth, grabbing Tyrone and yanking him to the surface.
Mia raised her hand slowly, voice calm and deadly.
Mia: "Fall."
The skeletal behemoth obeyed, slamming Tyrone into the ground. Dust flew. The match was over.
Nile: "Match concluded."
Raijin: "Not gonna lie… that was kinda cold."
Tojo: "Tyrone's got potential, though. Thought he'd do worse."
Gendai: "He won't pass selection though."
Raijin: "Whatever. Time for the lightning gun girl to get clapped."
Across the field, Evelyn smirked confidently, twirling her sword with flair.
Evelyn: "Hehe, let's go."
Lihanna stood opposite her, calm and unreadable.
Lihanna: "…Oh."
Evelyn: "I'm going to win. I'm faster, I've got range, and no one dodges my lightning bullets."
Lihanna: "Oh."
Evelyn: "I'll make this quick."
Lihanna: "Oh."
Nile: "Begin."
Evelyn dashed forward in a blur of electricity, striking with her sword—but Lihanna sidestepped each blow, moving like flowing water.
Frustrated, Evelyn drew her gun and fired a massive point-blank blast.
Raijin: "Bruh, she got embarrassed so hard she had to pull out the stick!"
But the dust cleared—and Lihanna was gone. In her place, a clone made of water fizzled away.
Tojo: "She turned into water. Look—she's behind her!"
Evelyn, confused, turned slowly—only to find Lihanna standing there, her eyes glowing softly.
A blur of slashes erupted, so fast they tore through the protective barrier in mere seconds. The system declared the victor before Evelyn even realized she'd lost.
Lihanna: "Oh."
She turned and walked off casually.
Gendai: "She's… impressive."
Raijin: "She's bad as fuck—in both ways."
Tojo: "We should recruit her. Her and the necromancer."
Xavier: "Something feels off about Lihanna, though. She turns into water… isn't that similar to Riah?"
Gendai: "Riah can enter her sword and remain conscious… not exactly the same, but close."
Raijin: "Eh. Still, fuck bitch-boy Tyrone."
Tojo: "Whoa, where did that come from? I want to see him beat you one day."
Raijin: "Nah. I'd Perpetual Absolute his ass."
Gendai: "You called me a dick rider for liking Kazimir's moves, and now you're copying them?"
Raijin: "Silence, bozo. You just salty you can't do it."
Gendai: "I'd rather not waste myself like you. That S-Rank should've finished the job."
Raijin: "Cry, bitch."
Meanwhile, Nile looked over to the last contestant of the day—Felicia X.
Her suit sparked erratically. Warning signals blared across her visor.
Felicia X: "System… overloading. Overheat. Overheat…"
Nile: "Your suit needs maintenance. Command X: shut down."
She collapsed gently into the arms of a nearby attendant as the match was postponed.
Tomorrow's battles promised even greater fire—and those worthy would soon stand before the Vandors.