I quickly opened the system again. Ten mana. Then eleven. Eh, good. Mana regeneration existed, but it was painfully slow.
I turned around just in ti to see Ken sprawled across the dirt while trying to crawl backward away from Lenik.
Unfortunately, Lenik moved faster. The mage extended one hand calmly, and a fireball burst from his palm toward Ken. The spell struck him directly in the side.
"Ken is down!" Professor Veyra announced.
"Oh, man," Ken groaned while lying flat on the dirt. "Yeah, I’m definitely down. Crap."
I got distracted for half a second. That was enough.
Tobias slamd into my back with his massive shield before I could react.
The impact launched across the arena floor. I rolled violently through the dirt until my back crashed directly against the golden barrier surrounding the arena.
Pain exploded across my spine instantly.
The shield itself was not made from wood like the weapons. So it hurt like hell.
Before I could fully stand, Tobias rushed forward again and kicked hard between the shoulders. My head smashed against the golden barrier a second ti. Stars flashed across my vision.
I was exhausted. Out of mana. My entire body hurt.
Tobias grabbed the back of my head and slamd shoulder-first into the barrier again before yanking downward by the hair.
I crashed flat onto my back. He imdiately raised his wooden sword above his head and swung downward toward my chest.
I barely managed to roll away in ti.
The sword smashed into the dirt where my body had been a second earlier.
I kicked hard into Tobias’s knee while scrambling back onto my feet. The strike forced him down onto one leg.
"Co here," I growled.
I lunged forward imdiately and grabbed him by the throat, then moved behind. Tobias’s eyes widened as I squeezed with everything I had left. My dagger slipped from my hand and fell onto the dirt beside us, but at that point I did not care anymore.
Tobias dropped his shield first. Then he tried swinging his sword at with one hand, but the lack of balance ruined the attack completely.
The sword fell from his grip too.
Panicking now, he twisted one palm toward and released a desperate fireball at point-blank range.
I ducked under it just in ti. The spell shot over my shoulder and exploded harmlessly against the arena floor after losing control. Tobias’s face had already turned red, eyes rolling slightly.
"Enough!" Professor Veyra shouted sharply. "Tobias Renn is down!"
I imdiately let go of him and shoved him away with a kick to the back. He collapsed face-first into the dirt while coughing violently.
I turned toward the other side of the arena and realized Mio had already handled Daren herself.
The larger boy was lying flat on the ground while groaning in pain.
Mio stood several feet away from him, breathing heavily while holding a wooden sword instead of her bow. Her uniform was covered in dirt and sweat, and it was obvious she had been forced into close combat because our team lacked a frontline fighter.
Even exhausted, she still looked steady on her feet.
The last remaining opponent, Lenik, stared at all of us silently for a mont before exhaling and raising one hand.
"I give up."
Professor Veyra nodded once.
"The match is concluded," she announced loudly. "Victory goes to Ace Walker, Mio Lenn, and Ken Noi."
Another wave of cheering spread through the courtyard.
I finally let myself collapse backward onto the dirt. Every muscle in my body scread in pain.
My chest rose and fell heavily while I stared up at the sky above the academy courtyard, trying to catch my breath as the noise of the crowd echoed around .
I stayed on the ground for a little while, breathing heavily while the noise of the crowd slowly settled around the arena. My arms felt numb and my chest still burned from exhaustion.
Mio walked past first. She glanced down briefly and gave a stern nod before continuing toward the edge of the arena. She looked exhausted herself, but sohow still composed.
Ken ca next. Both thumbs raised. A giant grin stretched across his face like we had just won so legendary war instead of barely surviving a practice match.
"We actually did it!" he said loudly. "We actually won!"
"Yeah," I muttered while still lying there. "Barely."
Then I heard another pair of footsteps approaching from behind.
I glanced back and saw one of the academy healers kneeling beside . Her palms glowed with soft green light as she held them over my shoulders and chest. Warmth imdiately spread through my body, easing the pain in my muscles.
"This one’s mostly exhaustion," the healer murmured. "I will just help with the strain and... oh. Gods, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry."
I frowned slightly.
"Huh?"
I pushed myself up onto one elbow and looked behind . Then my stomach imdiately tightened. Queen Mia was standing only a few feet away. Beside her stood Thornhawk.
The Queen had both hands linked calmly in front of her waist while watching with an unreadable expression. Her long dark-red hair moved slightly with the afternoon breeze, and the golden ornants on her crimson dress reflected the sunlight around the arena.
Why was she here?
"Good work, Walker," she said with a small nod. "I did not expect your team to win. You fought as though your life depended on it."
"I wonder why," I muttered under my breath.
Thornhawk imdiately stepped forward and grabbed harshly by the collar.
"I will not tolerate that kind of disrespect in front of Her Majesty, you little rat."
"Enough," Queen Mia said calmly.
Thornhawk released imdiately, though the glare he gave promised violence later.
The Queen shifted her attention back toward .
"I am satisfied with your perform—"
"QUEEN!"
A guard suddenly rushed into the arena at full speed before stopping beside her throne platform. He was breathing hard, panic clear across his face.
"I apologize, Your Majesty, but this is urgent. The elf we captured the other day is gone."
Thornhawk’s expression darkened instantly.
"What do you an gone?"
"He was inside the holding cage, sir, but now he is not there. The locks were untouched. The cage was not damaged. It is as if he simply vanished."
"Shit," Thornhawk muttered while imdiately turning toward the courtyard entrance. "You. Return to the front courtyard. Gather more n and sweep the surrounding area imdiately."
"Yes, sir!"
The guard rushed off again without another word.
I slowly pushed myself fully upright and dusted dirt from my uniform while trying to process what I had just heard.
Yeah. I knew this whole thing slled wrong from the beginning. Nobody attacked an academy filled with teachers, guards, and S-Class students unless there was sothing bigger happening behind the scenes.
Then everything happened at once.
"AGH!"
A figure suddenly appeared beside Thornhawk out of thin air.
One second there was nothing. The next second a dagger was buried deep into his side.
The attacker slamd shoulder-first into him and sent Thornhawk flying out of the arena space. He hit the dirt hard and rolled several tis while clutching the wound.
My eyes widened.
Invisible.
They could turn invisible.
I turned left instinctively just in ti to see another elf appear beside Queen Mia herself.
The assassin moved fast, driving a dagger directly toward her ribs. But the Queen reacted even faster.
She caught the attacker’s wrist mid-strike and twisted her body away at the last possible mont. The blade still pierced her side, but not deeply enough to be fatal.
"Ugh..."
"Do it now!" the first elf shouted.
The second assassin imdiately jumped backward and drove another dagger into the dirt arena floor. The weapon glowed bright gold. A second later, the massive barrier surrounding the arena shot upward again. Guards imdiately slamd into it from the outside.
Nothing happened.
So tried forcing their way through physically. Others attacked it with swords or spells, but the barrier did not even flicker.
Panic erupted around the courtyard.
Teachers imdiately began evacuating students while guards shouted orders over one another outside the arena.
Queen Mia dropped onto one knee while gripping the wound in her side. Blood stained part of her crimson dress almost imdiately.
I raised both hands slowly.
"Nope," I said quickly. "Let’s all calm down here. I seriously want no part in whatever this is."
The two elves now stood several ters away from us.
Both wore dark assassin clothing made from tightly fitted leather layered beneath cloth wrappings that covered most of their bodies. The material looked flexible enough for fast movent while still hiding light armor underneath.
The taller one was lean and sharp-faced with pale gray skin and short buzzed black hair. Thin silver rings lined the edge of one pointed ear, and several faded scars ran across his jaw and neck. He carried two curved daggers reverse-gripped in his hands, both coated in a faint green substance that definitely did not look healthy.
The second elf looked younger but far more unsettling. His long white-blond hair was tied behind his head, though several strands hung loose over narrow yellow eyes. Unlike the other assassin, he wore a sleeveless dark coat that exposed tattoo-like markings running across both arms.
Neither of them looked nervous. Neither looked rushed. They looked prepared.
The buzzcut elf pointed one dagger toward casually. "Kill the human too," he said flatly. "Wrong place, wrong ti, buddy."
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