Those who had been complaining, those who had belittled Norma until now and claid she was not the right choice to face Elana in the arena, had all fallen silent. Every single one of them simply stared, eyes wide, watching the battle unfold.
In the arena, two streaks of blue clashed again and again, accompanied by the dull, heavy thuds of physical exchanges between the two warriors.
Norma and Elana were evenly matched in speed and technique. It was impossible to tell who was holding back, if anyone at all, since neither relied on mana consistently.
Adrian, having already finished his own matches, turned his attention to the fight. His eyes followed their movents closely, a faint smile curving his lips.
DHAK. Slam.
Norma drove Elana into the mat as the silver-haired woman tried to lock her neck with her legs. But Elana did not stay down long, nor did she allow the instructor to overpower her.
She tilted her body to the left, then flipped sharply to the right with all her strength, her legs still coiled tightly around Norma's neck.
Norma could have used mana to stop the fall, but she chose not to.
They rolled across the mat before springing back to their feet almost simultaneously.
Their eyes t for a brief mont, then they lunged again.
Elana straightened her fingers and struck toward Norma's chest. She missed as Norma shifted aside at the last instant and hooked her arm beneath Elana's.
Norma's right leg swept around Elana's left as she used the montum to drag her backward. Elana responded instantly, flooding her legs with mana and resisting the pull.
"Ah!" Norma yelped as Elana reversed the hold and dragged her down instead.
The redhead twisted in a way that looked almost unnatural, as if the rigidity of bones did not apply to her, and broke free from Elana's grip.
Taking a short breath, Norma said, "Your ability to charge mana on command is staggering."
Elana smiled faintly. "Charging like a bull has never been my style."
Norma chuckled, pumping her fist as she bounced lightly on her feet. "Then I suggest you beco one, because this spar is about to end."
The mont Norma finished her sentence, mana erupted.
It did not explode outward in a wild display. It compressed.
Those watching felt it first as pressure, as if the air itself had thickened.
The light around the arena dimd subtly, blue hues deepening as both won released their restraints at the sa ti.
The gymnasium fell into an oppressive silence.
And then,
CRACK
Elana charged first, her figure nearly invisible to the first years.
The silver-haired woman spun into place before the older fighter, her right leg snapping toward Norma's torso. The height was perfect, too low to duck, too high to jump over.
Norma chose neither. She arched her arm across her side.
DHAK
The strike landed, reverberating like a struck bell. Mana exploded outward, freezing the mont in place.
Norma moved instantly, seizing Elana's extended leg.
Elana did not panic. She twisted her hips and swung her free leg toward Norma's face.
A mistake.
Swish
Norma ducked at the exact mont, leaving Elana completely off balance.
With sheer brute strength, Norma hoisted her overhead.
"GAH!"
She slamd Elana into the mat.
DHAK
A collective wince rippled through the stands as Elana's body bounced once before she rolled and sprang back to her feet.
She clicked her tongue. Her ribs throbbed, but there was no ti to breathe.
Norma was already there, fist drawn back.
Elana raised her arm and took the blow on her forearm.
DHAK
The impact echoed through the hall, a clear declaration of how seriously Norma was taking the spar now.
Elana felt her muscles scream in protest, yet she refused to give ground. She pushed forward instead.
Norma grinned, spinning on her heel, elbow rising as she aid for Elana's face.
Elana blocked with her palm, caught the elbow, and yanked her in close.
Norma was tilted rather than pulled, her balance slipping just enough.
Elana capitalized instantly, driving her knee into Norma's gut with her full weight.
"Agh… that was nasty," Norma said, staggering back but staying upright.
Elana wiped her mouth before replying, "Sorry, ma'am. I can't afford to embarrass myself here."
Her eyes flicked briefly toward the side.
My professor is watching.
As those words left her mouth, Elana charged again.
Her mana sharpened to a razor's edge, flaring only at the instant of impact. Every movent was deliberate, every strike asured. Norma's mana, in contrast, was vast and crushing. It flowed like a tide, controlled yet overwhelming, pressing down on Elana with every exchange and claiming space inch by inch.
The battle intensified.
Each punch, each collision, echoed through the arena. The sounds carried into the stands, and with them, the pressure. So spectators felt it in their chests, others along their skin, a reminder that what they were witnessing was far beyond a simple spar.
Elana's fighting style drew the crowd in once more. Her precision, her speed, the ruthless efficiency behind every motion reminded everyone why she bore the title of the strongest. She slipped through openings that barely existed, struck at angles most could not even perceive, and adapted instantly whenever Norma shifted her stance.
And yet, Norma did not falter.
She answered every challenge with certainty. No clean hit landed on her. No blow forced her back for long. Where Elana questioned speed and technique, Norma responded with power and absolute control.
Minutes passed, though to those watching it felt like far longer.
Finally, the two separated, sliding back to opposite sides of the arena. The air between them trembled with lingering mana. Their gazes locked, bodies coiled tight, neither willing to be the first to blink.
Elana's breathing was slightly uneven, her chest rising and falling as she steadied herself.
Norma, too, showed signs of strain, though her posture remained firm.
Mana flared around the redhead once more as she smiled and said, "Ready for another?"
Just then, a third person entered the scene, "Now, that should be it, Professor Norma?" Rylie said, a little uncertain if he should have intervened.
But the way Norma reacted it beca apparent that she had forgotten that this was supposed to be an assessnt.
Elana exhaled a sigh and lowered her arms.
Slowly, she turned towards Adrian, a little hesitant to see his reaction.
But the mont she saw that proud smile on his face, her exhaustion lted and a beautiful smile curved the corner of her lips too.
…
After the assessnt, Elana was in the changing room.
She took a bath in the locker room, as she had plans to have lunch with Aries afterward.
She was not disappointed in her performance. On the contrary, she felt proud of herself for not losing control of her mana even once.
Losing control had once been a common occurrence for her. Ice would explode outward whenever she attempted to use mana. However, after that day, after her professor killed the Fallen God, a portion of her control had returned.
Because of that, she had been able to fight Norma at her very best.
A gentle smile touched her lips as she stepped out of the changing room, only to stiffen when she spotted a familiar man standing across from the entrance, his back resting against the wall.
"Hey, how do you feel?" Adrian asked, offering a calm smile.
Elana briefly glanced down at herself before replying, "Professor… you're here. Did you need sothing?" She hesitated. She really did not want to be seen like this, especially by him.
Dressed in plain gray pants and a plain shirt, she felt she looked far too unpresentable.
However, Elana had no idea how brutally hard it was for Adrian to keep his gaze locked on her face.
Fresh from the bath, her skin still carried that warm, damp glow—cheeks and throat lightly flushed, steam-kissed. Wet strands of silver hair clung to the delicate curve of her neck and trailed slowly down across her collarbone like inky ribbons, each droplet tracing a lazy path over pale, glistening skin before disappearing beneath fabric.
The thin, slightly-too-small shirt she'd thrown on was practically transparent where it touched still-damp skin. It molded to her like a second skin, clinging obscenely to every swell and dip.
Every small movent made the fabric slide and stretch in new, torturous ways: a tiny lift of her arms tugged the hem upward, exposing the smooth dip of her waist and the beginning of the flare of her hips-
Adrian coughed and reminded himself why he was here.
"Um…I wanted to talk about our visit to your house."
Elana blinked, "Oh,"
Adrian nodded, "Co with to my workshop so we could talk."
He just didn't want others to hear about this…but was it a wise choice to invite her like this…
°°°°°°°°°
A/N:- Thanks for reading. Please drop a comnt if you have been enjoying the story so far.
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