'...A late-stage Grandmaster?'

Gray watched calmly as the massive blue flood dragon rushed down toward him, its body twisting through the sky with heavy pressure, making the arena shake as if a storm had dropped straight into the grounds.

Dust rose around the edges of the ring, people held their breath, and Lyra's fingers tightened around the railing so much that her knuckles went white.

'He should be able to take the second move… right?'

He thought that to himself while lowering his body slowly, bending his knees, letting his center of gravity drop in a smooth, stable way.

His right hand slid behind his waist as he grabbed the handle of his rapier in an unusual reversed grip with the blade pointing behind him.

His breathing slowly relaxed to the point where he was holding it.

"Shadowless Sword Art..."

Fwoop!

The moment he whispered those words, the light around him bent a little, as if his figure began to blur between one breath and the next.

"IT'S TIME FOR YOU TO DIEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Damien shot down from the sky at full speed, spear first, his body wrapped in bright blue scales as the dragon aura howled around him.

The roar echoed across the arena, shaking the stands and making several spectators step back in fear.

But even with that, Gray still didn't move, waiting for the right distance.

30 meters...

12 meters...

5 meters...

And finally... a single meter of distance.

"...Vanishing Light Step."

Fwish!

Gray simply vanished from that exact point like smoke blown away by the wind.

BOOOOOOM!

Damien's spear pierced through empty space and slammed into the arena, sending shards of stone flying in every direction.

"What?! Where—?!"

Before Damien could even turn his head to search...

"Up here, loser."

Gray was already above him, spinning gracefully through the air like a dancer who had trained this movement a thousand times.

Mana flowed down the length of his rapier, making the thin blade grow thicker and brighter with each rotation, as if it was being sharpened by the air.

And then he struck.

Clink! Clink! Clink!

Three quick hits smashed into Damien's forcefield.

The shield trembled violently with each impact, ripples spreading outward like circles on water.

"F-fucking hell!" Damien cursed, trying to pour more energy into the barrier.

But unfortunately for him... Gray's technique was simply flawless.

CRACK!

The forcefield shattered into fragments of blue light that scattered through the air like broken glass.

Now Damien stood completely open.

Gray descended with even faster strikes, forcing Damien to block desperately.

Clang, clang, clang!

Sparks burst with every clash of metal. Damien's arms trembled, his feet slid across the cracked floor, and his breathing turned rough as he tried to keep up.

"D-damn it—!"

He tried to push Gray away with a sudden burst of lightning that spread around his body, but Gray didn't give him even a second to breathe.

Twisting in mid-air, Gray reached for Damien's left arm and grabbed it tightly, locking his grip around the muscle and bone with perfect precision.

"What—?!"

Before Damien even understood what was happening, Gray wrapped both legs around Damien's head, locking it between his thighs like an iron trap.

"T-the fuc—"

BAAAAAAM!!

Gray flipped backward with all his weight, dragging Damien down with him, and Damien's head crashed into the stone floor so hard the entire arena shook.

A wave of dust exploded upward, covering the ground like a cloud.

"WHAT THE HELL?!"

"He slammed him straight into the floor!"

"That technique… that was too fucking clean!"

The arena was still shaking lightly from the impact when Damien's body suddenly twitched again.

BOOOOM!

A burst of blue aura exploded out of him, tearing Gray's leg lock apart and forcing Gray to release him.

Sharp gusts of wind whipped across the arena, and several students in the front row were pushed back a step.

Gray simply let the force break his hold.

He spun in the air once, lightly flipping backward.

And then...

Tap.

He landed on the stone floor with a calm, soft step, not even bending his knees too deeply, as if the violent explosion meant nothing.

Across from him, Damien struggled to stand.

His whole body shook while blue veins crawled up his neck and temples.

Strange blue blood slipped from the corner of his mouth, from his nose, even from the edges of his eyes like ink running off a painting.

"Y-YOU… YOU DAMN… BASTARD!" he shouted, spitting the words like poison.

The arena murmured in shock.

"What's wrong with his blood?!"

"He's overusing that dragon technique!"

"He looks like he's going to explode!"

Then, Damien snapped his spear up, spinning it wildly as lightning wrapped around the shaft like angry snakes.

CRACCKLEE!

"GRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAYYYYY!!!!!"

The storm shimmered around him, and he let out an animal-like roar as he prepared to launch another attack.

Everyone expected Gray to brace himself.

Everyone thought he would step back or prepare a stance.

They were wrong.

Damien took a single step forward...

And then froze.

Because Gray was already standing in front of him, silent and cold, without making the slightest sound.

He hadn't teleported or used a skill, which meant that...

His speed alone had erased the distance.

"You…"

Damien's eyes widened in pure disbelief.

"How—"

Gray instantly cut him off with a bored expression.

"…Keep your head up. At least you survived my second move."

Damien didn't even get the chance to reply.

THACK!!

Gray's fist slammed into Damien's solar plexus with a heavy, deep impact, the kind that crushed breath, crushed strength, and crushed will.

Damien's eyes bulged wide, and all the air in his lungs escaped in one broken gasp.

"GU—HAAAH!"

A spray of saliva mixed with blue blood burst from his mouth, splashing through the air as his body bent violently around Gray's fist.

Then he was launched, like a broken arrow shot from a failing bow.

BAM—!

Damien's body flew out of the arena, smashing into the outer barrier with such force that it rippled like water before sending him falling limp onto the ground outside the ring.

The arena went dead silent.

"HE—HE KILLED HIM?!"

"No… he's breathing! I think… I think he's breathing!"

"What kind of first-year is that?!"

"This first year is fucking monster!"

At that same moment, just as Damien's limp body hit the ground outside the arena, Lyra didn't wait another second.

She jumped the railings in one clean motion, dropping down into the arena with a soft thud. Her hair fluttered wildly behind her as she sprinted toward Gray with everything she had.

"Gray!"

Her voice cracked, not with fear this time, but with pure relief.

Gray turned his head at the sound, clicking his tongue quietly as he blinked once. And in that blink, the familiar hypnotic rings shimmered back into his dark eyes.

Lyra reached him in the next second.

Thump!

She threw herself right into his arms without even slowing down.

Gray caught her naturally, his hands circling her waist with surprising gentleness. He even spun her lightly, her feet lifting off the ground as her hair brushed against his cheek.

"Gray…" she whispered breathlessly, her eyes soft, filled with so much emotion that it almost felt heavy.

She stared deeply into his hypnotic rings.

Then slowly… she closed her eyes, her lips parting just a little... awaiting their normal greeting kiss.

But her movement made Gray frown faintly.

Instead of leaning in to kiss her lips…

He lowered her back to the ground, placed one hand on her cheek, and pressed a soft kiss onto her forehead.

"Chuu..."

Lyra froze instantly.

Her eyes flew open, trembling, confused, flustered.

"G-Gray… y-you…?"

Her voice was barely more than a whisper, full of shock. She tried to look up at him, maybe to understand… maybe to ask why…

But she didn't get the chance.

Her face was already buried against his chest as Gray pulled her into a close, warm embrace.

She shook lightly in his arms, her cheeks burning red.

The crowd around them watched with wide eyes. Some were blushing, but more were fucking jealous.

There was also some whispering madly about the scene happening before them.

Gray ignored all of them.

'…That dumb version of me really doesn't know how to express normal affection, huh?' Gray scoffed inwardly as he looked down at Lyra.

Her small tremors, the way she clutched his shirt, the way her breath hitched lightly… all of it told him how easily she was shaken by the smallest bit of genuine emotion.

He brushed her back slowly with his fingertips, letting her calm down.

'If he didn't have Jasmien's authorities, that idiot would never be able to make such a delicate girl fall in love with his stupid playboy style…' he thought with a sigh, lifting his chin slightly as his hand continued its gentle motion along her spine.

Lyra's face was hidden, but her whole body was trembling... her heart pounding so loud Gray could probably feel it through her chest.

A forehead kiss… for a girl like her…

It was far more intimate and meaningful than anything flashy or passionate.

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