CHAPTER 193: LEON VS EMILY—END

The mana inside Emily’s body stirred as mysterious energy enveloped her. The crowd watching the arena fell silent.

They knew what was about to happen. They had never seen it in person, but the news from the Academy had traveled far and wide through the weekly newspapers.

Headlines of how her opponent wouldn’t even know how they were defeated had made the audience even more excited.

A silence ensued in the arena as they waited to see what it looked like in reality.

An invisible energy wrapped around Emily.

Leon blinked in surprise.

So this is her trick. Interesting, but predictable.

Her figure vanished from in front of his eyes like mist. He couldn’t see her at all, yet his body naturally moved to the side, feeling her attack.

Despite her invisibility, his spatial awareness perfectly tracked where she was in real time.

With every movement she made, he could sense her presence clearly than if he were looking with his eyes, because of how detailed his spatial awareness was.

Every motion, every shift of air—more evident than sight.

He dodged her again and again effortlessly. To others, it looked like he was moving randomly. Yet, the fact that he wasn’t struck even once after she disappeared made them think of a possibility.

A possibility that seemed almost unreal.

It felt as if the entire arena leaned forward together, unwilling to even blink.

IS HE DODGING THAT ATTACK... WITHOUT LOOKING?

If that was the case, this black horse was much more potent than they had thought. Even with his previous stunt, no one had believed the Academy’s famous contender for the top ten would actually lose.

But now it seemed like anything could happen.

Leon’s voice sounded calm as he effortlessly moved and dodged the attacks, invisible to normal eyes.

"I have to say, you’ve got moves... yet you are simply too weak."

Anger flared in Emily even more. Losing was one thing, but being played around with—it was humiliating.

Never in her life had she felt like this. Instead of attacking him directly, she backed off and started throwing one dagger after another. Even the daggers weren’t visible to anyone, her illusion affinity cloaking them perfectly.

Multiple daggers from different angles were fired, traveling fast, slicing through the air like nothing. There weren’t just one or two—but five daggers.

She was sure this time she would at least land a hit. This was one of her best attacks.

Leon sensed the projectiles aimed at him. Their speed could be considered significant for someone like her, but to him...

He just stood there. When they got closer, his hand blurred, and he only used the bare minimum of speed to catch them all one by one.

When the dagger rested in his hand, he felt the element around it. His own elemental affinity stirred.

Illusion affinity. Rare. I’ll need this one.

The most important thing for him when learning a new element with all his existing affinities was to discover it and make some kind of connection—whether through a real-world phenomenon or by interacting with the elemental power of another person.

Trying to gain control over something he had no idea how it looked or felt was much harder.

Now this is worth it... and I should finish this. There’s nothing more to gain from this fight.

All five daggers fell to the ground with a soft cling, their actual appearance revealed. Sleek black, thin, and razor-sharp daggers.

Dozens of nobles leaned forward in their seats, some eyes glinting with greed, others with hostility.

The nobles’ voices rose, not in cheer but in a hungry roar, as though they could swallow Leon whole if given the chance.

But it didn’t stop there. Leon had now become the topic of discussion among those sitting on the top and higher floors.

He had become someone to recruit—or an enemy to keep in check.

Malverick’s face twisted into an ugly expression. He knew Leon hadn’t even used his Ice affinity yet, the one he had read about in reports. This man was far more potent than he had anticipated.

Even then, right now, he still didn’t believe he would lose.

Emily wasn’t as strong as him or the other geniuses. She was considered bottom tier among them. He was much stronger than she was.

But a doubt arose in his mind. Can I really win against this man when we face each other?

His expression soured because he wasn’t sure.

You’ve shown off enough... kek, let me make sure you die today.

The Crown Prince was already in their plan, and Malverick had the backing. But now, Leon was leaning toward his father, trying to gain the King’s support.

That would only be possible because of the disrespect Seraphine had shown earlier to the Crown Prince.

Kek kek... You two have made everything easier for me. Even if I lose somehow, I’ll make sure you die today. And Seraphine will be mine.

Malverick felt it in his soul—today would be an exhilarating day for him. And most of the credit went to the "bitch" who had made everything easier for him earlier.

I can’t wait

He made his way toward his father while the match inside the arena continued.

—

Emily’s eyes widened in shock. For a moment, she even forgot to undo her invisibility.

Her lips quivered as broken words of disbelief escaped.

"H-How?"

How could he catch all the daggers like it was nothing? She had put everything into that attack, even using her mana body enhancement while throwing them.

H-He didn’t just dodge them... he caught them.

That realization made her understand the enormous gap between their physical prowess.

Despite not using any elemental ability, he was still far too strong.

Leon’s confident voice sounded again, not irritated anymore, but calm after showing his capabilities.

"I’m going to end this now. You had your fun—it’s getting boring."

Yet the condescending tone, the way his words implied she couldn’t do anything, made her irritation flare even more.

Even after knowing he was stronger and his reflexes were monstrous, she couldn’t stand it.

She couldn’t make excuses about not having mastered her techniques or skills. That wouldn’t change the fact—she was weaker.

I won’t admit defeat before landing at least one hit on this smug bastard.

Not once had she seen him take her seriously. She couldn’t just go down like this.

Her face hardened with resolve. She knew she couldn’t use it for long, and she would probably pass out afterward, but she couldn’t accept a defeat like this.

Her mana body enhancement roared at full force.

The audience could taste her desperation, the air charged like a storm about to break.

"Oh? You still have more to show? Come at me with everything you’ve got. If you put a scratch on me, I’ll admit defeat."

A vein bulged at the side of her head as she heard his words. This was too much. She swore to herself she would make him choke on those words, because now she would land a hit.

It was a promise she made to herself.

She wouldn’t go down without it.

The crowd fractured — some whistled in admiration, others jeered, their voices colliding in a storm of noise, torn between love and hate for Leon’s blatant mockery and overwhelming power. Some cheered, while most expected his demise.

But one particular giant green monster was laughing quite hard during the entire match.

Leon decided to give her one last chance to show what she had. This time, he would attack—but only lightly. He didn’t want to kill her accidentally.

Her illusion element buzzed. Instead of vanishing like before, right before his eyes, she became not one, not two, but three.

There were three Emilys in total.

Leon didn’t think he could be more surprised, but now he was.

Not illusions... duplicates. Impressive.

They weren’t just illusions of sight but actual bodies with mass.

His desire to learn the illusion element intensified to a new level.

With a light smile on his face, his finger gestured for her to come—and it worked.

She came. Her speed was much faster than before.

All of the daggers had a lethal glint to them.

He guessed it was a technique.

All four rushed from different angles, each dagger aimed at a different part of his body. Dodging seemed impossible for anyone watching.

Cheers rang louder—they thought they were about to see what they wanted.

The arrogant man was brought down.

Malverick was grinning. He was even surprised by this move.

Time seemed to halt. Cheers turned to silence.

From four directions the attack came. The arrogant man didn’t even use his mana.

Their satisfaction was at its peak.

Every pair of eyes locked on the scene.

Even Aurelia and the Saintess were invested. Even if it was a fight between the weak, it was entertaining. Both of them were secretly rooting for the girl.

Then Leon, still smiling, brought his foot down and stomped the ground.

Laughter echoed, cut short by the bone-shaking boom that silenced the arena.

His foot landed on the black marble floor—

Boooomm!!

The arena rumbled, the sound hitting people’s ears like slaps. Cracks spiderwebbed around five meters from where he stood.

A dry, dusty smell rose from the shattered marble, as if the entire stage had been buried for centuries and just unearthed.

Emily lost her footing. She was about to flip her hand to regain balance when an overwhelming force slammed into the side of her stomach.

Crack!

Her whole body went flying.

"Arrrgghhh!"

The pain hit her hard. She lost consciousness midair as her body bounced across the arena a few times before finally lying broken at the edge.

Her ears and mouth bled, and her ribs poked through her stomach.

She was seriously injured.

Even from the stands, some swore they felt the phantom ache of broken ribs with every breath she struggled to take.

It’s finished.

The silence was so complete it seemed the arena itself had forgotten how to breathe.

Which was broken by...

The clapping sound echoed from the highest floor.