Zane was quickly surrounded by the group, yet they didn't attack him recklessly. Despite their numbers, they knew better than to underestimate someone who had made it this far alone. A cornered beast fights hardest, and none of them wanted to be the sacrificial pawn that got knocked out first.
The three strongest of the group—Eron, Finn, and Bryce—stood further back, clearly planning to hold their strength until the others had softened Zane up. Meanwhile, Niagara Everfall lounged even farther away, arms crossed, watching it all unfold with a passive expression.
Zane's gaze briefly landed on him, and his eyes narrowed.
He might be interesting… he whispered under his breath.
Alright then. I'll deal with the small fry first. Then I'll entertain myself with him.
He wasn't particularly worried about Eron, Finn, or Bryce. The one who piqued his curiosity was Niagara. Zane had a gut feeling the guy was from a Super-family or a Noble bloodline. That didn't matter much—but it was something to keep in mind.
Suddenly, the floor lit up. Several runes activated, erecting glowing barriers that enclosed them all in a compartment—isolating their battle from the rest of the arena.
The moment the barrier formed, weapons came out—longswords, broadswords, wooden staves, spears. Five charged forward, weapons raised, while another seven flanked Zane from behind, aiming for a classic pincer attack.
It was a tactic they had used earlier with brutal efficiency—enough to eliminate five capable opponents. Their confidence soared. To them, this was just another overconfident fresher who would crumble under pressure.
Zane, however, was done playing around.
He poured mana into his core and activated Divine Radiance, instantly boosting all of his core stats by +5. The system promptly displayed the updated status window in the corner of his vision:
[Host: Zane Carter (Human)]
[Stats]
Strength / Physical: 86 (Base) + 5 (Divine Radiance) + 10 (Radiant Strike) = 101
Agility / Speed: 85 (Base) + 5 (Divine Radiance) + 10 (Luminous Step) = 100
Mana / Intelligence: 89 (Base) + 5 (Divine Radiance) + 10 (Sacred Barrier) = 104
Health Bar: 390 / 390
Mana Bar: 430 / 430
He burned another chunk of mana and activated Luminous Step, his signature movement technique.
In a blink, Zane vanished—reduced to a flurry of radiant specks. The five charging students slashed wildly, their blades slicing through empty air.
He reappeared behind them.
One strike. One target. Precision.
A swift chop to the back of the neck dropped the first. Then the next. And the next.
One by one, he knocked them out with surgical precision. In under a minute, more than half of the group was already sprawled unconscious on the ground.
Only five remained standing.
Zane appeared behind one of them, drew a standard-issue training sidearm from the student's holster, and pressed the cold metal against his skull.
"Surrender… or die?" Zane said, his voice calm, playful.
The poor student froze, eyes wide. He glanced down and, with a look of utter terror, peed his pants.
Zane blinked and laughed. "Ah, sorry. I forgot—this thing's not even loaded."
He knocked the handle of the sidearm hard against the boy's head. Thud. Out cold.
Suddenly, danger prickled across his senses.
He reacted instantly, stepping back multiple times.
A heartbeat later, three spinning daggers whizzed through the space he had just been occupying. The System didn't trigger an alert—it didn't need to.
The daggers curved sharply through the air and twirled back toward the hand of the thrower—Finn.
"You missed the sneak attack," Eron sneered at him.
"So what? I'll get him next time," Finn snapped back, clearly agitated.
"Next time?" Eron grinned mockingly.
"Cut it out," Bryce interjected sharply, stepping between them. "Focus. This one's a speedster. We'll need to coordinate."
The three quickly fell into formation, eyes locked onto Zane.
Niagara remained seated, unmoving as though carved from marble. Whether he deemed the clash beneath him or was simply conserving his strength, no one could tell. But Zane had a feeling—no, a certainty—the real fight hadn't begun yet.
"You're pretty good," Eron called out, tightening the grip on his broadsword. "Where are you from?"
Finn, his daggers gleaming, smirked. "Yeah, who even are you?"
Zane tilted his head with a casual shrug. "I'm Zane. A nobody from a backwater town you've probably never heard of."
No more words. The air split as both Eron and Finn launched themselves toward him from opposite sides—an attempted pincer, fast and precise.
Finn came in low, twin daggers flashing with practiced elegance. Eron's broadsword carved through the air like a crashing wave. But Zane didn't dodge. No—he welcomed them.
Since they asked so politely, I'll greet them the same way, he mused.
With a clean motion, he drew the battered black broadsword strapped to his back. Its blade was chipped, dulled with age and wear, a stark contrast to the polished gleam of Eron's blood-red weapon.
CLANG!
Steel rang against steel, the deafening chime echoing across the arena.
Zane met Finn's daggers first, driving him back with a raw, overwhelming force, before spinning to catch Eron's broadsword in a powerful parry. Sparks flared where the weapons met.
Eron grimaced, feeling the tremor run down his arms. "He's not just fast—he's strong too."
"I can agree with that," Finn muttered, steadying his breath. "No more playing nice."
Bryce stepped in with a grin, hefting two wicked-looking axes. "Mind if I cut in?"
He twirled them expertly, the blades a blur, before charging in a whirlwind dance of steel aimed at Zane's torso.
Zane slid to the left, narrowly avoiding the dual strike, the wind from the axes brushing past his ribs.
Finn weaved his hands in quick succession, chanting under his breath. "Frost Daggers!"
The blades in his hands froze over, glittering with jagged frost. With a sharp toss, he let them fly.
Zane sprang across the ground, bouncing from one spot to another—five times in the blink of an eye. Each icy dagger buried itself into the arena floor where he had just stood, missing by inches.
Eron followed up with a powerful water art. He swung his broadsword, summoning a condensed replica made of surging water. It roared forward like a tidal blade and smashed into the wall behind Zane, exploding in a misty burst.
Bryce hurled one of his axes. It spun midair—and then detonated with a concussive blast.
It was chaos. Ice, water, explosions. But Zane?
He was untouched.
A phantom in the storm.
"You done?" Zane's voice was calm. Almost bored. "Because I'm starting to yawn over here."
The three attackers gritted their teeth. His words stung not because they were arrogant—but because they were true.
"Watch out!" Finn cried, but it was too late.
Zane blurred—then appeared behind Finn like a ghost. A single, precise jab to the neck. Finn dropped.
Eron turned in time to see it, only to feel a sharp impact to his own neck. His world spun into black.
Bryce's eyes widened. He swung his twin axes in a full circle, generating a protective whirlwind. "You can't break through this!"
Zane landed in front of him, eyes glowing faintly. "That's impressive. But…"
He raised his palm. "Luminous Strike."
A radiant light burst from his hand, flooding the space in blinding brilliance. Bryce yelped, instinctively shielding his eyes.
THWACK!
Something struck his head with bone-cracking force. Bryce collapsed.
The brilliance faded. Zane deactivated the skill and exhaled softly, then casually bent down and began collecting the downed students' cards.
Up in the observation deck, the representatives roared with excitement. Zane's speed had clearly climbed into the extraordinary range. When the white burst of radiant mana blinded Bryce moments before the knockout, several analysts rated the skill as an A-rank technique on the spot.
Zane's name on the leaderboard jumped rapidly. 89th. 67th. 58th… 53rd.
By the time he took the final card, he had climbed high enough to threaten the upper ranks.
And then, at last, Niagara stood.
He walked toward Zane with composed grace, then spoke, voice calm and measured. "You're stronger than I thought. I'll admit that much."
Zane said nothing. His grip tightened on his sword.
"But…" Niagara's gaze darkened. "You won't be so lucky next time."
He took one step forward—
BWEEEENG!
A red light flared across the arena ceiling.
"Time's up. All combatants, cease fighting immediately."
Niagara stopped, then scoffed. "Tch. Saved by the bell."
He turned his back and walked away, pausing only once. "Next time, Zane."
Zane watched him go, silent, but his eyes burned with challenge.
Yes, he thought. Next time.
And I'll be ready.