I watched as the Scholars' match concluded—the winner being Dave, a glasses-wearing boy whole I knew quite well in our class.
Of all the Scholars, he stood out the most, besides Ana. Of course, if he were to go up against her, there was a huge gap in their mental abilities and he would lose.
Looking to my side and watching Ana, I noticed she was smiling slightly and had a grateful look in her eyes that she wasn't participating as a Scholar.
"I prefer using Magic than just solving theories... what was I thinking before now..." She muttered to herself.
My smile widened. Of course, it was only natural that practicing a craft would be better than just studying and propounding theories. Now that Ana had enjoyed the thrill of using Magic, there was no going back for her.
After the Scholars match, that wrapped things up for the Lower Class first years. Next up were the Middle-Class students.
To be honest, none of them caught my eye.
If Lower Class students were discarded as the lowest of the low, the Middle-Class ones were only seen as average. It was apparent that none of them would be exceptional.
That was why, even while their Magic Department was called out to engage in a Battle Royale, I felt no excitement. I simply wanted to fast-forward time to the point where the Upper-Class students would perform.
Since that was impossible in my current state, though, I had to wait.
****************************
"Winner of the Scholars Division, Terra!"
Once Klaus announced the victor of the final match allotted to the Middle Class, my zeal returned.
The entire competition between the Middle-Class students was as I had predicted, less than my standards.
None of them could replicate or even surpass the bar we set during our round. As a result, their battles looked boring. Now that it was finally over, the moment 8 had been waiting for had arrived.
The Battle Royale of the Upper Class!
"Now, then, I call upon the Magic Division of the Upper-Class First Years!" Klaus' voice boomed, summoning the seated students.
Out of thirteen of them who sat, only eleven stood, leaving two in their seats.
Immediately I realized this, the thought came upon me.
'The other two are Martial Artists and Scholars... it seems they won't need any Battle Royale to decide their advancement...'
I had at least wanted the Martial Arts division to have two or more students so Edward could see what kind of power they possessed, unfortunately, that wasn't an option anymore.
Of the eleven students who went to the stage, I knew a few quite well; Stefan Netherlore, Maria Helmsworth, and Ivan Smith. The new student also caught my eye, so that made four students who had my full attention.
'I look forward to your performance!'
********************
The eleven students were scattered all across the arena, all waiting for the voice of the moderator to signal the commencement of their round.
"Begin!" Klaus sharply announced.
Instantly, bursts of mana manifested on the stage, sending waves of power surging through the area. My eyes widened in anticipation as they looked at the potential winning candidates.
'Show me your power, geniuses!'
The students quickly formed bands, apparently realizing the gap in their abilities compared to monsters like Stefan and Maria. If they could take them down, as a group, then this was the most rational strategy.
'Looks like our seniors really corrupted our hearts in this match...' My thoughts trailed, realizing most students were simply following the lead of the initial matches we witnessed.
However, unlike those from earlier, the Upper-Class students formed a group of five. I deduced that they planned on winning the Battle Royale as a team. It wasn't a bad strategy.
>FWOOOOSHHH<
The band of five students who had seamless teamwork rushed toward their target. Based on their trajectory, I realized that they were after the new student.
'Oh? That makes sense...' I smiled.
The Upper-Class students were elites. Only those who scored the highest had any right to belong there. As a result, the Upper-Class students already knew their limits as well as those superior to them.
It would be foolish for them to try taking on someone like Stefan first—suicide to chase after Maria. Their first course of instinct was to go after the one whom they underestimated the most—the newbie who didn't take the exams with every other person.
As they infused their Mana to execute joint Magic, I took a good look at their opponent. I had no idea what his name was, but the young boy casually stood, having hands in his pockets. He had a calm, condescending smile as his adversaries prepared to launch everything they had on him.
It was as though he dared them to do their worst.
>RUMBLE<
The arena shook as the ground quaked. The imbalance caused most of the students to struggle for equilibrium, yet the new guy remained composed.
"[Joint Magic: Intermediate Flaming Earth Golem]"
The rumbles intensified, and from the ground suddenly brought out a massive creature of horror—one that humans stood no chance against.
It was a Golem!
However, unlike other Golems that were strictly comprised of one element, this particular one—despite being made of rock—had bursts of flames covering it.
The flames spread across its head, flowing down its body and every crevice across it. Since it was made through Joint Magic, the flames had no adverse effects on the Earth Golem, rather, they made it stronger!
Every step it took caused rumbles to occur, and the arena floor trembled. The height of the summon was at least seven meters, and its huge build was nothing to scoff at. This thing was a genuine weapon!
"ROOAAARRRRRR!!!" The monstrosity gave a loud bellow, sending echoes and reverb flying our way.
'Judging its Mana capacity and the level of strength this thing must have, this is on the High-Tier of Intermediate Level!'
The Lower Class students were only able to cast a Lower-Tier Intermediate Spell when they ganged up on Ana and me.
Compared to the Upper-Class students who were merely five in number, the Lower Class students had more members, yet they couldn't exceed the limits of the Lower-Tier Intermediate Level.
Given the gap between both Classes, it made me realize just how much of a difference existed between the geniuses and dregs. Such a thing was possible at an early age? Amazing!
