The first-year students who were watching swallowed hard and collapsed back onto the seats behind them, their breathing irregular and ragged as though they had just survived the greatest apocalypse of all time rather than a mere demonstration of power.

Although the Instructor had protected everyone and the coliseum by covering it with an Astra-forged, cube-shaped barrier, perfectly blocking the shockwave and devastation of the Tenth Sun's attack, to the first-year students, it still felt as though their bodies and souls had directly endured the attack regardless, as if the terror had bypassed all defenses and struck them from within.

Sweat drenched their backs, soaking through their clothes as their eyes remained fixed on the monster who was as human as they were, a contradiction that made the fear even worse. Some students who had fainted earlier remained unconscious, their minds unable to process what they had witnessed, while others trembled uncontrollably, their fingers digging into their seats as though afraid the world itself might shatter again.

Ryaen Silvershade sat in a calm state, or at least she appeared calm outwardly, but her body was drenched in sweat just like everyone else, her breathing slightly heavier than usual despite her composed expression. When Asher had asked her whom she wished to challenge within the top three prior to this battle, she had indeed been truthful when she said she hadn't decided.

But something deep within her still wanted to challenge Asher, a quiet and stubborn desire that refused to disappear, although she knew such a challenge would only come after she closed the enormous gap between them.

'Is the gap between us truly this large?' she thought to herself, her eyes remaining fixed above without blinking, 'or did he make such ridiculous improvements within just two months?' her mind spun at the absurdity of her own thoughts, unable to reconcile what she had known with what she had just witnessed.

Such progress in two months was nothing short of impossible, something that defied logic and reason.

'Or was this his true power which he never truly showed during his battle against me during the Star Academy entrance battle exam, because he didn't want to kill me?' her thoughts continued to churn restlessly as her eyes refused to leave Asher's position as he floated in the air like an untouchable existence.

But even at that thought, a faint smile that seemed almost nonexistent broke across her lips at the mere idea of training and one day being this strong. 'I guess I will challenge the Prince or the Princess when the time comes,' she thought to herself quietly. She had gone on missions with the Princess, Vaelra Lux Vanthelmor, and she knew exactly how strong she was. Ryaen didn't believe she would lose against either her or the Prince, not after everything she had endured and the growth she had achieved.

But she would only challenge them after her training was completed, there was no rush, no need to recklessly throw herself into a fight she wasn't prepared for.

Princess Vaelra Lux Vanthelmor's eyes stayed on her brother, Prince Vaelric Lux Vanthelmor, as he was no different from a purple, human-shaped piece of charcoal at the moment, smoke faintly rising from his body. Her gaze lingered on him for a long moment before she sighed softly and shook her head, she had advised her brother against challenging the Tenth Sun, but he hadn't listened, stubborn as always.

While her brother was a genius in every right, blessed with talent that eclipsed countless peers, somehow she could sense the ridiculous gap between the Tenth Sun and everyone else. She could tell right from the very beginning when she met Asher at her royal birthday party that the Tenth Sun was different from many, if not all, an existence that felt fundamentally detached from common standards.

While she might be a Princess, she wasn't arrogant or blind. This was one of the things her father, the Emperor, had taught both her and her twin brother right from when they were little; know how to differentiate between prey and predator, know which predator disguises itself as prey, know when a predator becomes prey, and know when to corner such a predator-turned-prey without hesitation.

This was one of the mantras her father had drilled into them repeatedly, arrogance brought nothing but destruction, confidence was good, necessary even, but there was a fine and deadly line between the two that only fools ignored.

'At least he is still alive,' she thought to herself, although her heart ached faintly seeing her brother in such a miserable state. This was her brother after all, her twin, someone who had grown beside her since birth. But she didn't entertain any foolish thoughts of revenge, there was absolutely nothing to gain from challenging the Tenth Sun to a battle, only something to lose, perhaps everything.

'If I challenge him, it won't be a battle-style challenge,' she mused to herself as she shook her head slowly. With a single attack, the Tenth Sun had already shown the vast and humiliating gap between him and everyone else, and this was without even trying. What would happen if he actually tried? What if he went all out without restraint?

Anyone challenging Asher directly in combat was simply asking to experience unbearable pain.

But the Star Academy allowed the students to challenge any student in any shape or form, it didn't necessarily have to be battle-style. Meaning anyone could still challenge Asher for his rank, all they had to do was avoid challenging him through direct combat. But at the end of the day, it had to be something reasonable and fair, or the Instructor wouldn't even approve such a challenge to begin with.

For example, Ryaen Silvershade couldn't challenge Asher to a contest to see who could manipulate bone better than the other. This was simply absurd, as the Tenth Sun didn't possess any ability to manipulate bone while Ryaen did, and such a challenge would be pointless and one-sided.

And in the end, even if any form of challenge was approved, it was still left up to the challenged whether to accept or not, meaning Asher could simply refuse without consequence.

At this moment, Princess Vaelra Lux Vanthelmor didn't know what type of challenge she would use for Asher, but that wasn't her priority right now, those were thoughts for another time. After all, her potential challenge had nothing to do with revenge or wounded pride or anything of that sort, it would be something meaningful.

'I will visit him at the Healing Department after this,' she concluded calmly, knowing the supervising Instructor would take her brother over there to be treated and restored.

Murmurs of various kinds filled the air within the coliseum as students whispered among themselves, shock, fear, admiration, and disbelief mixing together into an indistinct buzz. Vaelra was quietly grateful this had happened only within the Star Academy of the Separate Plane, if it had occurred in the outside world, her twin brother's loss might have affected the Royal Family's image and sparked unnecessary political complications.

But for now, this was still within the Star Academy grounds, a place isolated from the schemes of the world, and no politics were being played here, only strength, growth, and the ruthless truth of reality.

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