The match between Dion and Aurelius had left the audience drowning in astonishment.
No one had truly managed to process what they had just witnessed.
Even now, countless spectators were exchanging bewildered glances and hushed whispers, each trying to make sense of the terrifying speed with which the battle had ended.
Yet before the shock could fully settle...
The family steward stepped forward once again.
He stood calmly at the center of the platform, his posture composed and dignified despite the lingering commotion. Then he raised one hand, drawing the attention of the spectators back toward him.
His voice soon echoed throughout the arena.
"Ladies and gentlemen... I apologize for the unexpected incident that occurred moments ago."
He paused briefly, allowing the murmurs to fade.
"Now, we shall proceed to the third round."
The scattered conversations gradually died down, and countless gazes returned to the arena.
The steward announced the next names.
"Alaric Dainhart... versus Carr Dainhart."
The two contestants immediately stepped forward.
They entered the battlefield from opposite sides and stopped several meters apart, neither showing the slightest intention of yielding.
From the very beginning, it was obvious that there was little difference between them.
Both were around the middle stage of the Second Circle, and their overall strength and skill were remarkably close.
And because of that...
The battle was not short.
Far from it.
What followed was a prolonged battle of attrition.
Spell after spell was exchanged.
One attack was blocked.
Another barely missed.
One advanced.
The other retreated.
Then came the counterattack.
Neither side was willing to give the other even the slightest opening.
As time passed, however, the signs of exhaustion gradually became impossible to hide.
Five minutes passed.
Then ten.
And the battle continued until nearly fifteen minutes had elapsed.
It was the longest match since the beginning of the Direct Lineage Trials.
In the end...
Alaric Dainhart emerged victorious.
But there was nothing easy about his victory.
He had won by the narrowest of margins.
In fact, the difference between the two had been so small that Alaric had barely managed to bring Carr down.
A modest wave of applause spread through the stands.
But Leo...
Remained seated in his chair with an expression that was almost completely devoid of interest.
Throughout the entire match, his expression had barely changed.
At last, he let out a quiet breath.
"Boring..."
From Leo's perspective, the battle had not been poorly executed.
The problem was something else.
It lacked decisiveness.
Both fighters had been excessively cautious, constantly testing each other and retreating whenever even the slightest danger appeared.
All they cared about was surviving until the end and securing victory while taking as little risk as possible.
To Leo, it hardly resembled a true battle.
It was merely a struggle for survival.
Still, he had no reason to criticize them.
After all...
Not everyone was like him.
And not everyone could look at a battle from the same perspective.
A short while later, the fourth match began.
Blontier Dainhart versus Chester Dainhart.
Yet the result was not particularly different.
Their levels were once again quite similar, and the battle unfolded in a tense and cautious manner.
Neither side was willing to expose themselves recklessly.
After another prolonged exchange, Blontier Dainhart finally secured the victory by a narrow margin.
Once again...
Leo felt no real excitement.
To him, it was almost as though he were watching the same battle repeat itself with different faces.
But then...
The atmosphere changed.
The family steward stepped forward once more and activated the sound-amplifying spell.
This time, however, his voice carried noticeably more energy.
"Now..."
He paused.
Then his voice rose above the murmuring audience.
"We have finally reached the climax of the Direct Lineage matches of the Dainhart Family!"
The moment those words were spoken, whispers began spreading throughout the stands.
There was a different feeling in the air now.
Many of the spectators already knew that the final match would be different.
Attention shifted toward the members of the Dainhart Family's Direct Lineage.
Some spectators began discussing the family's overwhelming talent.
"Indeed... the Dainhart Family certainly isn't lacking in talent."
Another spectator nodded.
"Dozens of children have already displayed Second Circle cultivation today... and one of them even reached the Third Circle before adulthood."
Someone else spoke with clear admiration.
"At this rate, it seems the glory of the Dainhart Family won't fade anytime soon."
Those words spread through the stands.
But the steward did not give the crowd much time to continue.
He raised his voice once more.
"As for the final match of the Dainhart Family's Direct Lineage..."
He paused deliberately.
Then announced:
"It will be between... Lionel Dainhart... and Leo Dainhart!"
The moment Leo's name was spoken...
The nature of the murmurs changed.
The noise in the stands grew noticeably louder.
"Leo Dainhart?"
"Was there actually someone by that name among the Direct Lineage?"
"I heard rumors about some failure among the Direct Lineage..."
"Wasn't he the one who didn't even reach the upper stage of the First Circle?"
Another spectator suddenly seemed to remember.
"Ah... now I remember him."
A quiet laugh followed.
"He was that failure."
But someone beside him immediately lowered his voice.
"Keep your voice down! You're insulting a member of the Direct Lineage on Dainhart territory. It seems you're tired of living."
A few nervous chuckles spread among those nearby.
Even if Leo's reputation was terrible...
He still carried the name Dainhart.
And that alone demanded a certain degree of caution.
On the other hand, Lionel's reputation was considerably better.
He was a cultivator in the middle stage of the Second Circle and had already established himself as a reasonably capable member of the Direct Lineage.
Naturally, this led some spectators to wonder:
"Do you think Leo has any chance of winning?"
The answer came almost immediately.
"Impossible."
The man laughed before adding,
"If he wins, I'll call you Dad! Hahaha!"
Laughter erupted around him.
Leo, however, did not even bother turning his head.
He had no interest whatsoever in what these people were saying.
To him...
They were nothing more than meaningless noises filling the arena.
Then Leo stood.
He walked toward the battlefield at an unhurried pace.
Across from him, Lionel stepped forward as well.
The two entered the arena from opposite sides and eventually stood facing each other.
Yet the contrast between them was immediately obvious.
Lionel was sweating.
Profusely.
It had nothing to do with the heat.
Nor was it simply because of the pressure of having hundreds of eyes upon him.
He was sweating because he knew a portion of Leo's strength.
He had seen something before.
And that alone had been enough.
He knew, deep within himself...
That he had no chance.
The tension inside him had already reached its limit.
Leo, meanwhile, simply looked at him.
He did not need to analyze the situation for long.
One glance had been enough.
Pathetic.
The family steward raised his hand.
The arena gradually fell silent once more.
"Prepare yourselves..."
Both contestants took their positions.
Then—
"Begin!"
But before Leo could even make a single move...
Lionel suddenly raised his hand.
And shouted at the top of his voice:
"I surrender!"
...
Silence.
Absolute silence.
The whispers stopped.
The expressions of the spectators froze.
For a moment, even Leo remained motionless.
No one understood what had just happened.
It was simply...
Too sudden.
Lionel, who was supposed to fight Leo, had surrendered before his opponent had even taken a single step.
A few moments later, the spectators finally erupted into confused whispers.
"Did I hear that correctly?"
"Why did he surrender?"
"Weren't the odds supposed to be in his favor?"
Another spectator asked in disbelief:
"Could it be that he doesn't want to enter the academy?"
Someone else shook his head.
"Whatever the reason... surrendering before even fighting is rather cowardly."
Yet amid all those voices...
Lionel himself was thinking about something completely different.
Damn it...
Do you actually expect me to walk into my own grave?
Lionel was not an idiot.
If he already knew the fight would end in disaster, why would he willingly step into it?
Meanwhile, the family steward appeared slightly awkward for a brief moment before quickly restoring his formal composure.
He cleared his throat.
"Ahem..."
The arena fell silent once again.
"By this... I hereby declare Leo Dainhart the winner of this round."
...
No cheers rose from the stands.
No applause followed.
No one shouted the victor's name.
There was not even the atmosphere of a true victory.
Only...
Complete silence.
It was difficult to determine whether the spectators were shocked by Leo's victory...
Or by the manner in which that victory had been achieved.
As for Leo himself...
He simply did not care.
He turned around calmly.
Then walked away from the arena with steady steps, as though nothing at all had happened.
He returned to his seat.
Sat down.
And relaxed against the chair.
For a few moments, he stared at the battlefield.
Then he let out a quiet sigh.
There was only one thought worth expressing.
Damn... what a disappointment.