It was the 4th day afternoon, and the stadium was buzzing with excitement. After all, there were only a few matches left.

  “Who do you think will take the top spot?” Zeke asked with a bucket of popcorn on his lap. “Harrison seems like the obvious choice for me.”

  “It’s hard to argue that,” Elina sighed. “He just beats everyone so easily. Can I have some popcorn?”

  Valar scrunched up his nose as Zeke passed the bucket of corn to Elina. Sure, it smelled good, but it was still corn. Corn slop, corn bread, corn soup, corn…

  The energy mage noticed his frown. “What? Do you want some? Elina, I think Valar wants some!”

  “No, I really don’t-,” Valar tried to interrupt, but…

  “Sure, let me just grab a handful,” Elina cheered from two seats over before stretching her hand and putting the bucket of popped corn in Valar’s lap.

  Eww…

  Valar looked down at the disgusting kernels. The disgustingly good smelling kernels… Maybe I should taste just one. Just one kernel…

  He lowered his hand to the bucket of popcorn. With two of his fingers, he picked one kernel up, and without preamble, tossed it into his mouth.

  What is this?

  Valar’s mouth was flooded with a salty, buttery taste unlike any corn he had eaten before. The kernel was anything but mushy, crunching in his mouth as the flavor just kept on coming. Soon, he grabbed a second one. Then, a third.

  “How?”

  “Never had popcorn before?” Zeke grinned. “It’s pretty good, isn’t it?”

  “But it’s corn,” Valar gaped. “Corn is bad. It’s mixed into a slop or made into a mushy bread with no flavor. Whatever this is, it just can’t be corn!”

  “That’s what the orphanage fed you?” Helen couldn’t hold her disgusted expression back. “How come the matron isn’t in jail by now?”

  He chuckled, shaking his head. “As far as I’m aware, she was pretty much the only one who kept the place even running. Viktor did say that an investigation would be conducted on the place, but I don’t know if his influence is enough to make the city care… I’m guessing that sponsoring an actual functional orphanage would cost a lot.”

  Valar didn’t notice Helen’s and Elizabeth’s glances at each other, nor did he notice their wordless communication. He was too fixated on the popcorn below himself to pay attention to such things.

  “Yeah… Let’s hope that his influence will prompt some change.” Helen finally responded, her tone a bit strained. “You never know; Maybe something has happened already!”

  Valar nodded distractedly, although he was suspicious that the city would ever do something that fast.

  I can’t really see anything happening through all the city-level bureaucracy unless a noble from a big house or a member of the royal family gets involved. Still, I hope that at least something has changed when I finally visit. Maybe three years is enough to repair the rickety stairs? Nah, I doubt that…

  When Valar noticed that the popcorn bucket’s contents had dwindled significantly, he handed it back to Zeke with a blush on his face. “Sorry, I ate more than I thought. I can buy you a new one during the break!”

  “Don’t worry about it!” the abstract mage laughed. “I’m glad that you enjoyed it!”

  “Still, I ate a good third of the full bucket. Can I at least pay you back somehow? Do you want another snack or something?”

  “We can figure something out later if you really want to, but it’s not necessary,” Zeke brushed him off. “We’re here to enjoy ourselves watching the tournament. Speaking of the tournament, look!”

  At that very moment, Harrison Thorn’s fire magic surged throughout the arena. He was fighting Sohpia Dalton, the water mage who had been introduced as the first combatant of the whole tournament. Up until that very moment, the fight had been relatively even, although it had looked like Harrison was getting exhausted fast. Most of the spectators had already been aware of his ‘ace’, however.

  “Thorn School Variant 4: Forest of Flames!”

  “And there it is,” Elizabeth sighed. “That’s the end of the fight.”

  Nobody argued against her statement. Even when they had, she had been right anyway, so what was the point? Harrison Thorn’s biggest spell had always ended the fight, and it would do so now too…

  Thick, thorny vines of fire erupted from the man, spreading towards the Dalton water mage. Considering she had had quite a bit of time to prepare for the incoming attack, she was quite prepared to take it on. Escaping would’ve been essentially impossible in the relatively small arena, as the vines could reach everywhere within the magically walled-off area, after all.

  “He’s abusing the arena’s shielding,” Elina grumbled. “That’s not fair!”

  “Yeah, you’re right,” Valar sighed. “It just feels bad to watch matches like this.”

  As the vines expanded, they inevitably started hitting the arena walls. A normal spell—something like a Fireball or Water Bolt—would’ve just fizzled out against the translucent dome, but the fiery vines acted differently. Instead of dissipating, they rebounded off the wall, moving in a seemingly random direction. The only thing that remained true was that they never hit their wielder—a fact that Valar found incredibly annoying.

  He’s using fire magic that should hurt him just as much as mine hurt me… That’s just not fair!

  Still, Sophia Dalton was not going to go down without a fight.

  “Sanctuary of the Deep!”

  “Finally, someone is fighting back!” Zeke cheered. “You go get him, Sophia!”

  The young water mage was swiftly enveloped in a cocoon of water, hiding her form completely. The shell of water, an almost unnatural shade of aquamarine in color, condensed, leaving the girl unmoving. In a normal situation, that would’ve been a gigantic blunder, but fighting against Harrison during his ‘signature’ spell, it was the perfect defence.

  One vine after another slammed against the shield of water,turning to nothing but smoke on contact. Some of the thorns managed to reach quite deep into the water, but as nobody could see the woman inside, it was hard to say if they managed to do any damage to her.

  “They’re both draining their mana, and they’re draining it fast,” Helen muttered. “Although I think the Thorn boy will have to let go of his spell first.

  It was true. Both combatants’ reserves were dwindling rapidly, and if they continued pulling mana out from their souls at such speeds, one of them would fall unconscious from mana exhaustion soon. But…

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  Harrison started walking towards the cocoon of water with a strained expression coloring his face. Each step seemed like it strained him more and more, but he kept moving nonetheless.

  “Come to think of it, has he moved once during that spellcast in previous fights?” Valar asked. “He hasn’t, right?”

  “There’s been no need,” Elizabeth shrugged. “The other combatant has fallen in seconds each time.”

  But why hasn’t he moved? Has he just been confident in his ability, or…

  “It’s the spell’s downside,” Helen explained. “His Forest of Flames is certainly a powerful spell, especially if he’s fighting in a closed space, but it’s not perfect. No spell at bronze rank is.”

  “Does that mean that there are spells that are truly perfect?” Valar asked excitedly.

  “I haven’t seen one yet, that’s for sure,” the silver rank fire mage laughed. “But back to my point. Harrison Thorn’s spell’s major flaw is that he needs to control the vines if he doesn’t want to get hit by them.”

  So he’s not immune to his own spell after all. Yes!

  Suddenly, Valar didn’t feel so bad about the young man’s fire magic anymore. He had the same flaws as everyone else. Mine just always hurts me. Always… Hurts…

  Zeke’s friendly slap on his shoulder woke Valar up from his brooding. “Eyes on the match! It’s coming to an end!”

  Moving his eyes back to the arena, Valar didn’t notice the abstract mage’s worried frown. Zeke looked at him for a couple seconds, then shook his head. He turned back to the match, turning his frown upside down. “You go, Sophia!”

  Valar joined in shortly, emboldened to shout his praise for the Dalton scion by Zeke’s shouting. Silently, without anyone overhearing him, Zeke muttered a silent thank you to the gods above, and continued his cheering. Disaster had been averted this time. The boy’s energy was back to normal.

  …

  The match between Harrison Thorn and Sophia Dalton came to an extremely unsatisfying end. There was no flash of brilliance, no grand eruption of fire or water. Instead, both combatants let their spells go essentially at the same time. Unfortunately for Sophia, Harrison had managed to drag himself in front of her face just before dismissing his spell. That meant that there was no way for her to avoid his descending fist.

  The grand magical duel between two scions of great houses ended… with a simple punch.

  The stadium exploded with a mix of applause and boos. Some seemed to be enjoying the different ending, while others—like everyone seated around Valar—were not.

  “Bullshit!” Elina screamed. “This is the most unsatisfying semi-final ever!”

  Valar, however, was not so sure.

  Ending a duel between mages with a simple punch. I like it.

  …

  Harrison’s win did mean one thing. Their prediction of the final two combatants had come true. The last duel of the tournament would be between Harrison Thorn and Aron Morell, and Valar knew who he would be cheering for. Carla didn’t seem to like her family overly much. Aron it is!

  The spectators had been given an hour to rest and stretch their legs before the final match. And what a match it would be!

  Before the previous match, Valar would’ve said that Aron didn’t stand a chance. The Thorn scion’s fire magic had just decimated every other combatant, making him believe that the fire mage was unbeatable in the arena’s specific conditions. To be fair, he had never thought that the young man’s fire itself was exceptional. It felt shallow—like Harrison’s understanding of flames was lacking. As he was a bronze ranker, having only completed his adventuring internship at iron rank, that was completely understandable, however.

  Still, Harrison had beaten every opponent before Sophia Dalton relatively easily. Her resistance had shown him and every other spectator that Aron had a chance, but considering he was a wind mage…

  Aron Morell—like many other wind mages around his rank and above—relied on his speed in fights. That meant that he hadn’t showcased any grand defensive means before the final match.

  Could he just… dodge the vines? Nah, that would be impossible for a bronze ranker!

  As it turned out, it wasn’t impossible. Not impossible at all.

  “This is the final match of the tournament,” Gideon Folren announced from the middle of the arena. “And what a final match it will be! Please welcome our first combatant, Harrison Thorn!”

  Without further preamble, the Thorn scion appeared on one side of the arena—probably transported there by some gold or even onyx ranker. Maybe a space mage?

  Regardless of how he appeared, Harrison seemed to be as well put together as always. He kept his brown eyes forward, and his dark brown hair was as tidy as ever. His sleeveless robe was unmarred. Even though he wears a robe that’s suited for hand-to-hand combat, he hasn’t entered a melee except for that one lackluster punch.

  Valar was curious as to if the man was a mere pushover, or if he actually knew how to fight with his hands. Hopefully, Aron would give him an answer before the day was over.

  “And as our second combatant, challenging Harrison for the top spot and the 100 gold grand prize, Aron Morell!”

  As the savant wind mage appeared on the opposite side of the arena, Valar found himself smiling from ear to ear. Not as young as me, but he’s certainly young alright!

  Aron Morell did not look like a finalist of the academy tournament, not at all. He looked more like a sixteen-year-old kid, and that was because he was a sixteen-year-old kid. The white-haired boy looked around the arena with frightened eyes before locking them to the center of the arena, as if to avoid any and all eye contact. His eyes calmed and breathing slowed as soon as he found the spot without any people. The boy seemed to let out a nervous sigh.

  “A savant, through and through,” Helen chuckled. “He’s a precious boy, isn’t he? You’re a few years too old, Elizabeth, but Elina…”

  “Mom!” Elina blushed as Elizabeth started cackling at her sister’s expense.

  “What? He’s a savant of wind magic, and a powerful one at that,” the girl’s mother scoffed. “Why wouldn’t you?”

  “Why wouldn’t you… what?” Valar asked, his eyes wide with confusion. “Why is Elina blushing like that?”

  “Mom’s trying to marry me off!” the girl practically growled. “Let me be!”

  “Oh, come on…” Helen grinned. “You think he’s cute, don’t you? He’s just your type!”

  Elizabeth’s laughter reached new heights. “She’s right, sis! He’s exactly your type!”

  Her sister’s following punch only made her laugh harder. To be honest, Valar was struggling to not laugh as well, as was Zeke. The dark-skinned man leaned to his ear and whispered, “She looks like a tomato…”

  Valar couldn’t hold his laughter in anymore, letting out a small chortle. When the sixteen-year-old girl’s eyes locked onto him like two balls of fire, he froze. Shit!

  The boy wasn’t sure if the following pummeling could’ve been considered a violent attack under kingdom law. Probably not; I’m a bronze ranker while she’s unawakened. She isn’t immune to her mother’s scolding though!

  As Helen berated her younger daughter, Valar moved his eyes back to the arena.The fight is starting!

  When Gideon finally retreated from the arena and yelled for the combatants to begin, the mood shifted. Drastically.

  The young savant’s eyes turned almost translucent, and he breathed out a sigh. “I’m sorry, Harrison…”

  Aron Morell had showcased a terrifying level of skill with wind magic in his previous matches. He had used small spells to avoid practically every attack, gliding upon the ground and tossing simple wind blades at his opponents like they didn’t cost him any mana at all. That was probably closer to the truth than not; He was a savant, and that meant that his spellcasts were extremely efficient. As if that wouldn’t have been enough, he hadn’t uttered a single chant thus far. For the simple spells he had used, he simply hadn’t needed one.

  That was about to change.

  Harrison’s eyes hardened, becoming as red as a roiling inferno as he started his spellcast. Valar and his group had predicted that the men would start their bout with small jabs in the form of simple spells, moving to larger attacks later in their duel. That assumption was built on their previous matches, but…

  “Thorn School Variant 4: Forest of Flames!”

  The final fight seemed to be quite different indeed.

  The spectators quieted when the Thorn scion cast his spell. That was for a good reason too, as the spell was quite a formidable one, especially in a space with walls like the arena. Aron wasn’t concerned.

  A fire magic spell, focused on raw power instead of any kind of finesse. The vines themselves are a nice touch, considering his family name…

  The boy found himself smirking as he looked at the approaching fiery vines. I really should cast a spell too, shouldn’t I?

  Aron wasn’t one for bravado and flashy spells, but he would make an exception for today’s match. His mother had drilled him so, so much on his public image that he felt forced to show at least something nice to the crowd.

  A display like that would bring his family attention, and attention brought money. He found himself uncaring of such matters. The wind didn’t care about money, so why should he?

  Just this once…

  A single rune manifested itself upon Aron’s back. From there, he let the wind blow where it pleased. Who was he to choose the spell he would cast, after all?

  Aron frowned when the first vine impacted the ground next to him. He would have to cast his spell soon. Luckily for both him and the spectators, it was almost ready!

  A gleeful grin spread across his face as the final runes set themselves upon both of his hands. The wind had been surprisingly generous today! This almost rivals some silver rank spells… It needs a good name!

  Aron Variant-... No, that’s a stupid naming convention! Divine-... That’s almost as bad; It’s no divine spell!

  “Cast it already, you oaf!”

  Aron scowled as his mother yelled at him. The bronze rank woman’s voice promised a beating if he didn’t hurry up. And for good reason too…

  The sixteen-year-old boy’s eyes widened when he saw the fiery vine in front of him. It was only a couple meters away. He would be hit in only a single second!

  Argh, what do I call it? Fuck it! I’ll say the first thing that comes to mind!

  “Pleasant Morning Breeze!”