Luca jumped, then rolled under a thick root, grabbing his sword as a long line of arrows trailed in his wake.

Each collision birthed an explosion of powerful smoke and fire.

It danced in the air– sending the head throbbing smell of smoke.

The boy stopped behind a mushroom stump and breathed loudly.

’That’s one... but the other is too far and I still can’t see him.’

He needed to close the distance.

Luca glanced at his sword, then back at the spot he last saw the arrow coming from.

His head churned as his heart began to beat on overdrive.

’Let’s try it.’

He flung his sword in one direction and took complete control of it. Then he dashed through the opposite side.

Daryon, who had maintained the 900-meter distance, watched in bafflement as a flying sword arched through the air.

He aimed his bow and pulled his arrow. His sharp gaze fixed on the spot when he found Luca moving again.

’He’s coming here.’

He released an arrow, then forged another from thin air and then released it.

He watched for a second. A synchronised explosion erupted, yet the boy was still standing.

’Shit! What is he?! How is he fighting so well!’

He jumped down from the mushroom and began to swerve through the forest plain.

Turning around ever so diligently as he searched for a new target spot.

’I’ve never heard or seen a commoner who uses and fights like him. What is he, a monster?!’

Of course, there was a word for people like that, but Daryon felt using such a word would demean it for those who were truly meant to use it.

"I wonder if the Formal Heads have anything to do with this."

He found a different spot. A flower as large as a bungalow, and immediately jumped on top.

He immediately knocked his bow and began his search.

’That punch he landed on Orveth was weird. Even if Knights are strong, everyone knows that Brawlers, who have the fist talent, are the best at hand-to-hand.’

The more he found out about Luca, the deeper his resentment became.

Vassal families like theirs were hardly paid attention to. Heck, they were called the runts of the household– a blunder born from lust.

To prove themselves to the main house, they would do everything they could– and even reduce their worth to that of dogs.

So when they heard of a kid their age whom the Main House had their eyes on, they couldn’t help but seethe in their own rage.

Call it an inferiority complex, an immature tantrum or even a foolish thought, but Daryon hated the idea of working hard for a position someone would get by merely fitting a criterion.

No, they wouldn’t allow it.

"Since the Main House has such a high image of you, you should be able to handle at least this much." Just then, he found it. Movement.

Daryon stumbled to his feet and pulled the arrow backwards as a sudden, loud, whirling noise ensued.

Flames ignited around the arrow and began to spin, increasing in such capacity that it looked like a massive drill.

His eyes traced the subtle movement from before and in silence, he watched– following that movement through a predicted pathway he was certain he followed.

Daryon didn’t need a compass– he was the compass.

’There!’

He sucked in air as he proclaimed. "Fire Dart."

The arrow blazed like a rocket in a straight line, crashing into the distance before a large, circular dome of pure fire blazed and exploded.

’You’re dead now.’

Special or not, commoners were simply commoners.

The true geniuses were Nobles and Royals.

Daryon watched as the fire spread through the forest in a frantic hunger. A destruction that brought the sound of burning wood and vegetation.

’Beautiful.’

Destruction was art, after all.

Daryon shook the thought and turned in the direction he last saw his partner. He dropped his bow, ready to depart to assist when a shiver ran down his spine.

He attempted to turn, but—-

"Don’t move."

Luca’s voice boomed in his left ear like a death sentence.

Daryon froze as his eyes widened.

"Wh– When?" he couldn’t help but ask out loud.

Then he saw it. His pupils shrank as a sword’s blade was placed dangerously close to his neck.

"Why would you consider asking that in a situation like this? I could kill you, you know."

Daryon gulped.

"Do– Don’t kill me. You’ll make enemies of the Ardenthals, if you do."

"Oh please, the Ardenthals wouldn’t care about one or two Branch families."

Daryon bit his lips at the boy’s words. A fit of rage blanketed his eyes as he spun, tugged his bow and began to form an arrow, when something went wrong.

His grip clamped and the weight of his bow suddenly spiked by a hundred tons.

He collapses to a knee with wide eyes as he stares into the glowing golden ones of Luca.

The yellow-haired boy smirked as he watched Daryon seethe in rage, unable to move or control his body properly.

"What is this, telekinesis?"

Luca tilted his head. ’He can still talk?’

He had tried using his control to completely overwhelm him, especially since the range was barely a foot between them.

His form worked better when his targets were closer, and it became difficult when it left a certain range.

Luca predicted the range to be about 100 meters– the size of a football field.

But clearly, his form still needed work.

’Well, that doesn’t matter.’

He smiled from ear to ear.

"You guys have one of those right? Inventories."

Inventories came with the interface. They were unlocked when you wish to store something within your third eye.

Luca had one himself and had kept his two Null Cores within it.

Daryon bit harder on his lips. A clear rebuttal of Luca’s actions on his strained face.

"Wh– Why would you care?"

"Oh? Don’t you get it? You’re under my control now, right? And quite frankly... if word gets out that two 3rd Stages lost to a 2nd Stage, let’s not begin to imagine the kind of rumours that would spread."

When it came down to things, Luca could put two and two together.

How else can you swindle customers into paying higher prices for low-commodity goods?

"Tsk." Daryon clicked his tongue.

His eyes darted from side to side as if concocting some great escape plan but the more he pondered, the worse the situation appeared to be.

’How did he even sneak up on me?! Is he a Rogue Archetype? But that’s impossible. They can’t punch or fight with a sword as he does.’

Daryon was confused. Extremely so, but at the moment, there were other concerns he needed to mitigate.

"What do you want?"

He knew more than anyone that it would be more than just social standing they would lose if they were to find out.

His partners– the other two who were too far to meet up with would kick them out of the group.

Their fathers, members of the Formal Heads would lose face.

It was deeper than it looked.

"Now you’re talking."

Luca drew his sword away.

"I think we have about ten minutes more, you and your buddy over there can go and find more, so drop all your cores."

Daryon’s face shifted.

"Oh? Are we short on supplies?"

Luca’s smile faltered. Then he moved.

His sword sliced through the air with ease. His arm stretched out as blood splashed in an arc through the air.

Daryon’s eyes darkened as it shifted to the newly fresh stump.

A Muffled thud echoed next to him as an arm– his arm fell to the ground in a pool of his blood.

His throat bulged and his mouth tore open in a scream.

"AHHHH!!! MY ARM! MY ARM, MY ARM, MY ARM! HOW DARE YOU?!"

Lucas’ smile returned.

"Now, now... You still have another hand. And remember... the Institution could easily take your deaths as casualties, right?"

He was no fool.

These two had been here to kill him, so they were confident enough to know the Institution wouldn’t care about that.

’That’s terrible in my books. How can they not care about the deaths of Egoists?’

The rule of survival of the fittest played out anywhere and even amongst egoists, some who would love natural selection to take its place.

Daryon’s cries turned to whimpers as he shivered like a broken recorder.

Veins stained the white of his eyes and a deep resentment built within.

"Yo– you wouldn’t dare."

Luca moved again.

A second arm dropped.

Daryon screamed.

"Okay! Okay! Okay! I’ll give it to you."

Saliva dripped down from his lips as his body tipped downwards, reeling in pain as blood rushed out from the open wounds.

Tears fell down his cheeks and pained sobs filled the air.

Luca tuned it out. He shifted his gaze down at the seven clean orbs that shone beneath his feet.

He nodded in delight and picked them up, one after the other.

Then summoned his interface, and slowly pushed the items into it. One after the other.

This took a few seconds before he was finally done.

"Seven huh? You Nobles really hit the jackpot."

He tilted his head slowly.

"Though, I may have gone overboard with your arms."

The world was cruel as it is, and his Trance had shown him what exactly happened to those who hesitated.

A moment of relapse was a moment to be torn apart.

If he wanted to survive and grow... he would need to be critical in his decisions.

’The Institution had Harmonics if I recall.’

He had seen Cadets who lost a limb in the first task get it back, so this too was an easy fix.

"Ca– can you let me go... please... I need to heal myself."

Luca nodded as he descended the stairs.

"Do as you please, but don’t forget, you’re your own embarrassment."

He activated his Stealth Talent again as he headed back into the forest.

His smile stretched even longer.

’This Stealth Talent is more handy than I thought.’