The duel between Kylen Noor and Wei Lian played out on a massive screen inside what seemed to be a lavish waiting lounge.
The room was lined with rows of soft leather sofas and polished tables, designed to welcome visiting dignitaries or honored guests of Atlas Academy.
Seventeen people sat scattered throughout the room, all with their eyes fixed on the fight.
In the middle row sat a man draped in a long cape, his armor forged in the style of ancient samurai. A devil's mask concealed his face, and at his hip rested a sword that radiated quiet menace.
Next to him sat an instructor of the Academy. Her skin was dark, her suit crisp, her posture strict. Square glasses gleamed as she adjusted her holographic panel, scrolling through cadet data. This was Instructor Lena Johnson—one of the Academy's trusted staff.
"So what do you think of the new generation of heroes, sir?" Lena asked politely, her eyes flicking up to the masked figure.
The man's voice rumbled deep, distorted slightly behind the mask.
"Disappointing, I'd say. Most of them lack spirit. But… those two cadets are different. Promising. What are their names?"
"The one with white hair is Wei Lian," Lena replied, tapping her panel. "Young lord of the Wei clan. A prodigy with martial arts talent, already famous among the cadets. He managed to defeat an instructor on his very first day here."
The masked man leaned on his palm, contemplative.
"And the other one?"
She scrolled down and exhaled, her voice losing enthusiasm.
"That would be Kylen Noor. Rank 101. Nothing remarkable to his record… except being trapped in a gate during his very first exploration." Her tone carried clear boredom, as though the boy's name wasn't even worth noting.
Just then, the door opened. Another man stepped inside, his clothes marked with sweat, as if he'd just come from sparring or drills. His presence carried authority even without formal dress.
Dante Von Atris, the Academy's second principal.
"Oh?" Dante chuckled as he spotted the masked figure. "To think you'd arrive this early, Seo Hyeon. Wait, you're not here as a parent… You're here as a hero, aren't you? Then I should call you the Devil King."
The masked man reached up, unclasped the mask, and set it aside. His scarred face was revealed, the long battle mark cutting diagonally across his cheek, a reminder of countless wars fought.
"You're still as loud as ever, Dante," Seo Hyeon said flatly, though his lips twitched with faint amusement.
"Hahaha, of course! Someone's got to keep the atmosphere alive." Dante's laugh rolled through the room. His eyes, however, twinkled knowingly. "So tell me… did you come here to see your child?"
Seo Hyeon glanced at Dante, his expression unreadable beneath the faint glow of the screen. Then he turned his head back toward the duel, his eyes narrowing ever so slightly.
That thing doesn't even qualify to be my child in the first place.
he thought, the words sharp enough to cut.
Aloud, his voice was steady, low.
"For now, I just want to search for great talent."
"For what?" Dante arched a brow, leaning back casually with one leg draped over the other. "You know cadets aren't allowed to join a guild before they graduate from the Academy, right?"
Seo Hyeon's lips curved into something that wasn't quite a smile.
"Knowing which cadets are talented is enough. I can make them join my guild later."
Dante chuckled, shaking his head. "Still the same as always… picking your future hounds before they're even out of the kennel."
Seo Hyeon ignored the remark, his gaze locked on the big screen.
◇◇◇
「Back at the arena」
The crowd's laughter had only just died down when I straightened, brushing the dirt from my uniform as though Wei Lian's last kick had been nothing more than a mosquito bite.
I raised my chin, a mocking grin stretching wide.
"Young Lord, it seems the people here don't believe in my martial arts. So…" I cracked my neck, mechanical fingers flexing, "…I'm going to show them that it truly is a martial art."
Wei Lian tilted his head, crimson eyes glinting beneath the arena lights. His voice dripped with arrogance.
"And how do you plan to do that?"
"Simple." I leveled my mechanical arm toward him, the crowd's murmurs swelling into a wave of anticipation.
"By making you kneel."
Wei Lian's lip curled. "What a joke."
He stepped back once, twice—and then vanished. His figure blurred, lost in the roar of the crowd.
[Wei Lian disappears! His speed is off the charts!] the commentator shouted, voice rising with excitement.
But I already knew.
Do you know what attack people always try when they go invisible?
An attack from behind.
I lashed my leg backward, heel colliding with his abdomen. A sharp grunt escaped him, but he didn't buckle—he caught my leg mid-kick and, with a roar, flung me like a ragdoll toward the wall.
The cadets erupted.
[Unbelievable! Kylen actually predicted Wei Lian's move! But—ohhh! He's been hurled across the arena like a toy!]
The impact was seconds away when I twisted, using my left leg to push off the wall and launch myself straight back at him. My boot crashed forward, aimed for his chest.
Wei Lian crossed his arms, catching the kick, his body skidding an inch across the arena floor before he countered with a crescent moon kick.
I tucked and rolled, the floor scraping against my back as I stopped my momentum just short of another wall. My head snapped up, a smirk tugging my lips.
"You counter my attacks so well, Young Lord. I'm impressed."
Wei Lian's eyes narrowed, his tone like sharpened steel.
"And you attack well… for someone who was nothing but a punching bag a few minutes ago." He dropped back into stance, aura tightening, pressure spiking.
"But this is the end."
And then—he reached for his ear.
The crowd hushed instantly. Every sound died the moment Wei Lian unclasped a small silver earring and clenched it in his fist.
A faint glow leaked between his fingers. When he opened his hand again—the earring was gone.
The commentator's voice cracked.
[W-wait… no way! Is he really going to use that here?!]
The entire hall vibrated.
Thunder split the air, ignoring the reinforced ceiling and arcane barrier of the arena. The floor quaked as lightning carved open the space between us.
Two spears descended from the heavens themselves.
One was blood-red, its aura oppressive, oozing with malice. Gáe Bolg.
The other gleamed white and gold, radiant as dawn. Gungnir.
Gasps tore through the cadets, the hall trembling with awe and fear.
[H-He actually summoned them! Wei Lian's personal weapon—two legendary spears at once!!]
I froze, bile rising in my throat.
Wait… personal weapon?! In a lesson duel?!
A personal weapon was a weapon given to each of the 10 playable on Atlas Online. Some characters needed to go on a journey to receive their personal weapon.
But there were also characters that already had them, though they could only use them with restrictions. Wei Lian's restriction was that his weapon could only be used once a week.
And yet here they were, their power making the arena itself shudder.
Wei Lian gripped them both, the contrast of blood-red malice and golden divinity making him look less like a cadet and more like a god of war.
He raised them slowly, his voice calm, confident, merciless.
"Consider it an honor. You'll be defeated by a legendary weapon."
[This is insane! Using a personal weapon in class?! That's overkill!]
"Well damn me," I muttered under my breath.
He didn't give me time to breathe. Both spears left his hands in a blur, flying at me like divine judgment.
I twisted, dodging left, then right—the crowd's gasps echoing with every close miss.
But the spears didn't stop.
They turned.
[Tracking! They're tracking him!]
The spears curved in midair, accelerating each time I dodged. Their speed was rising, becoming impossible to keep up with.
My heart clenched. My lungs burned. My limbs lagged.
And then—pain.
One spear pierced through my chest, drilling agony straight into my heart.
Even with [Pain Resistance], the shock was unbearable. My vision flickered, the taste of iron flooding my tongue. I stumbled, vomited blood, and dropped to my knees.
The commentator's voice broke through the silence.
[H-he's down…! Kylen Noor is down!]
The crowd roared in triumph and disbelief as my vision dimmed.
Wei Lian lowered his stance, crimson eyes still locked on me, as though daring me to rise again.
But my body gave out.
To be continued...