"T‑that's the Shadow Immortal's Spirit Beast!"

"I heard about it from Professor Zeno… She's called Frostborne Vulpestra!"

"I heard Immortal Vale calls her Vulpie…"

"Whoa… So beautiful…"

"But why am I only seeing three tails? Maybe that's her cub or something?"

"I think it's preserving its strength. Professor Zeno said she has nine tails and is the guardian of the Academy… I wonder why she's here…"

The whispers spread through the crowd…

However, some of the first‑years looked at each other in confusion.

"Guardian? What are they talking about? I've never heard of this beast before…"

"Is it dangerous? Shouldn't someone stop it?"

"No… look at it. It's just… watching."

The higher‑year students exchanged knowing glances, their voices were a bit excited since most of them had also just heard about this Spirit Guardian…

"Professor Zeno mentioned her once in lecture… said she was older than the Academy itself."

"Older? That's impossible… I heard from Professor Dalton that she's just a new Spirit Beast that Lord Shane had contracted with…"

"Yes… It's not impossible. But she's a spirit beast bound to Immortal Vale. They say she only appears when something important is happening."

The silver fox padded gracefully along the edge of the dueling circle, its three tails were swaying and emitting some traces of frost in the air…

Soon, even the four in the stage noticed the presence of the Spirit Beast…

Hans and Tim froze and their aggressive smirks faded…

Cassian and Selene lowered their hands slightly, their focus drawn to the creature. Even Ardan, the arbiter, squinted his eyes, unsure if they could just ignore its presence.

"This isn't normal," he muttered under his breath. "But since it's not interfering… I guess we should just continue."

The crowd's excitement shifted from the duel to the fox.

"Maybe she's here to judge the fight…"

"Or to warn us…"

"No, look at her tails. She looked so relaxed... Maybe she's here testing us…"

"Testing? Testing what?"

The fox's gaze swept across the arena, pausing briefly on Cassian and Selene, then on Hans and Tim. Its eyes glowed indistinctly, as though measuring something unseen.

And then, without a sound, the fox sat at the edge of the circle with its tail curling around its body.

It felt as if it was enjoying the sight of many Arcanists in the training space…

Just like that, the duel was forgotten…

Ardan, however, felt that the beast seemed to like watching the duel…

"Just continue!" Ardan announced that this battle might just be an entertainment for the Spirit Beast.

"Game!" Cassian stepped forward as he didn't waste his time…

He must admit that the methods of these apprentices of the Order were quite impressive. However, that was it…

His talent was more than enough!

Soon, he triggered his Harmonizing Light, and the spell radiated from his palm, a soft glow spread across both him and Selene.

The Cleansing Flame struck, but instead of burning, it was absorbed and neutralized by the harmonizing aura.

The crowd that had turned to their battle gasped.

They didn't expect that these low-tier Spells would work this spell against each other…

Hans scowled. "You're hiding behind shields and prayers. That's not strength."

Cassian's eyes narrowed. "Strength isn't about destruction. It's about endurance, about protecting what matters."

Selene raised her hand again, releasing another Resonant Pulse.

This time, the wave struck Hans directly, forcing him to stagger.

His Arcane Protection absorbed the impact, but the crowd saw the difference… the Church's spells weren't flashy, but they disrupted, defended, and stabilized.

Tim knew that they weren't doing well, but he had to overwhelm them with the duration of his Mystic State in order to win...

'I can win this…'

Apparently, the reason why he was able to get an invitation to enroll in this academy was that he could last for more than 13 minutes in his Mystic State…

Although his magic zone was still limited in terms of range, it was still an incredible achievement for his age!

"Bring it on!"

Tim then summoned another Binding Seal.

Chains rose again, this time, he did his best to control how to chain Selene...

But the latter countered once again with Spirit Veil, covering over herself. The chains clashed against the veil, but they couldn't break through.

Hans tried another Piercing Ray, aiming at Cassian's shoulder.

But Cassian didn't block this time… Instead, he let the ray strike his Arcane Protection, then countered with Harmonizing Light. The glow spread outward, strengthening Selene's defenses and stabilizing their rhythm!

Everyone could easily understand the principles of each side's spells…

The students supported by the Order pressed forward with aggression, trying to overwhelm with beams, chains, and flames.

The students supported by the Church, on the other hand, responded with incredible harmonization of spells, turning defense into strength and disruption.

A small crowd had even formed. They were divided between cheers for the Order's raw offense and admiration for the Church's defense….

Finally, Selene realized that her Mystic State was about to be over while her opponents seemed unbothered!

'This can't continue… The wager…' Selene recalled their wager, and there was no way she'd let herself stain the church's discipline.

She swiftly cast Spirit Veil around herself, then released a powerful Resonant Pulse.

This was her final Spell as she was already drained of Mystic Energy!

Thankfully, the wave struck both Hans and Tim, forcing them back simultaneously as they prematurely released their Cleansing Flames! Their Arcane Protection was already gone at this point!

Cassian followed up, raising his hand.

Harmonizing Light spread across the arena… Their flames had basically become useless against the two!

Hans gritted his teeth. "Damn it… they're… holding us back."

"We can't break through their shields! Just delay until their Mystic State is gone!"

However, it was at this point that the Arbiter had to intervene…

Ardan raised his hand…

"Enough. The duel is decided…"

As soon as the four heard this announcement, they were both confused but eager to hear their names as the victor.

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