"You’re next, Lightning Prince."

The words rang across the entire coliseum. Several seconds passed in silence as eyes slowly widened. Then the silence shattered.

Many roared at the top of their lungs, screaming Vaelor’s name. Only a singular thought echoed through the minds of all.

How brazen.

Vaelor had just defeated Kaelion, a known Calderalth prodigy, and immediately afterward challenged the Lightning Prince. Such a thing was rarely seen. An intense rivalry between the two houses!

Now, with only one candidate remaining for both houses, it was clear that whoever won would carry the Proving! The anticipation surging through the crowd was tangible.

Above, City Lord Ociden smiled.

’Perfect, son. Perfect.’

The fight with Kaelion had turned out even better than expected. And with this new challenge, everyone would now be anticipating their battle.

In that case, Vaelor winning would carry far more significance than before.

As the other city lords cast envious glances his way, Ociden slowly raised his chin, his smile widening. None of them had ever imagined he was hiding such a genius.

It was exhilarating.

Vaelor didn’t wait for a response. He simply left the arena and calmly returned to his seat.

As the deafening roars continued echoing throughout the coliseum, Nedra gritted her teeth, glaring at him.

The bastard had practically declared her fight with Zephyrion a guaranteed loss.

’Fucking bastard... fine then. I’ll show all of you.’

A cold glint flashed through her eyes as she turned and fixed Zephyrion with a burning stare.

Soon, after the arena gradually settled, the next match was announced.

"Zephyrion Calderalth. Nedra Heno."

As they both stepped onto the arena, violent cheers rumbled throughout the coliseum and across the entire South.

This was the final match of the semifinals, and whoever won would face Vaelor in the finals.

From the endless chants of "Lightning Prince," it wasn’t difficult to tell who the crowd favored.

Above, City Lord Selmira Heno’s expression darkened. She stared at her daughter with worry.

’Nedra...’

Though she trusted her daughter’s ability, something about this match unsettled her deeply. Her gaze slowly shifted toward Zephyrion, the concern in her eyes deepening further.

On the arena, Nedra clicked her tongue at the crowd.

"Tch, cuck-sucking bastards."

They clearly thought Zephyrion would win. There was no way a woman like her could defeat him, right?

’Wrong.’

She would prove all of them wrong. She would defeat this bastard before her and win the Proving.

Again, a woman would stand at the top.

A cold smile slowly spread across Nedra’s face. She turned toward Zephyrion, only for her eyes to narrow. The battle was about to begin, yet he wasn’t even looking at her...

Nedra’s jaw tightened.

’This bastard...’

He was clearly looking down on her.

’Fine then... fine. I’ll teach you a lesson you’ll never forget in your miserable life.’

A moment of tense silence passed. Then...

"Begin!"

"Magnetic Storm!"

A sharp hum rippled. Metal blades formed around Nedra, orbiting her body at incredible speed.

Nedra smiled coldly at Zephyrion.

"Whatever little trick you used earlier, it won’t work here," she said. "The Heno rune art is too grand for a useless man to copy. This will end fast."

She pointed at him, eyes glinting sharply.

"Go."

The metal blades blasted forward.

Each one moved in erratic patterns, as though constantly being pulled and pushed by an invisible force. Their trajectories were unpredictable as they converged at Zephyrion from multiple directions.

"Shield."

The blades halted before Zephyrion. Though they trembled violently as if trying to force their way through, none managed to move even an inch further.

However, Nedra grinned.

’Perfect.’

The Heno arts differed greatly from other rune arts. They granted the ability to manipulate the magnetic properties of metal itself.

Push.

Pull.

As long as something possessed metallic properties, it could be manipulated.

Including Zephyrion’s shield. And more importantly... the thin coating of metal aura surrounding his body.

Suddenly, Nedra stomped forward and thrust her arm out.

"Ultimate Push."

A blast-like force erupted toward Zephyrion. It ignored the swarm of weapons. Ignored the shield. Then rushed directly toward him.

Nedra smiled coldly. Soon, Zephyrion would be blasted back into oblivion. The Lightning Prince losing in the first exchange was exactly the kind of humiliation she wanted to inflict upon him.

There would be no recovering from that.

The force crashed directly into Zephyrion, causing his clothes to billow violently and his hair to whip back.

For a moment, time itself seemed to freeze around him. Then...

BOOM!

The force rebounded, blasting back into Nedra.

"What!?"

Nedra was hurled back, spinning violently before quickly forming a slab of metal before her. She pulled, halting her momentum.

She lifted her head, eyes wide and trembling.

’He withstood it?’

How was that even possible?

Ultimate Push was simply overwhelming magnetic force compressed into a single direction. However, if the target’s weight and strength exceeded what she could move... the user would be pushed back instead.

Which made this entire situation utterly insane.

She could push away an entire two-story metal structure. Yet Zephyrion hadn’t budged even slightly.

Just how monstrously heavy was he...?

’It doesn’t matter.’

Nedra shook the thoughts from her head.

What mattered was beating the hell out of him.

Her gaze locked onto Zephyrion once more. He stood there calmly, his indifferent eyes now fixed directly on her. Countless calculations flickered within them.

Suddenly, Nedra felt exposed.

As though someone had stripped her bare and was leisurely studying every inch of her body.

’This fucking pervert.’

Nedra prepared to move, but the calculations in Zephyrion’s eyes abruptly ceased.

He slowly raised a hand.

"Ultimate Pull."

"What—"

An overwhelming force yanked Nedra forward.

She appeared directly before Zephyrion with his hand tightly wrapped around her neck.

"What!?"

Above, City Lord Selmira shot to her feet, her expression trembling.

That... that was Heno art.

"...H-he copied it?"

The expressions of the other city lords darkened instantly. So earlier hadn’t been a fluke after all.

"Wh-what is this!? How are you doing this!? How can you use Heno art!?"

Nedra clawed desperately at Zephyrion’s arm, but it felt like gripping solid steel itself.

Zephyrion’s eyes remained cold as he slowly drew back his fist.

"I copied it."

"Impossible—!"

BOOM!

His fist slammed into Nedra’s midsection.

Her body folded instantly as all the air exploded from her lungs. She tore backward, skipping violently across the arena floor.

Just as she was about to fly out of bounds, Zephyrion’s voice echoed again.

"Ultimate Pull."

Nedra was violently yanked back. But this time, Zephyrion didn’t grab her. Instead...

BAM!

His fist crashed into her face. She was sent flying back once more.

"Ultimate Pull."

BAM!

"Ultimate Pull."

BAM!

"Ultimate Pull."

BAM!

"Ultimate Pull."

BAM!

By the fifteenth strike, the entire coliseum had fallen silent.