The air was thick with the smell of blood and burning. Louize clenched her fists hard, about to shout, when Ivaldie started laughing. Louize froze in place.

  Wiping a drop of blood from a scratch on her face, Ivaldie said, “Sure, you can have it, Magnus.”

  “Wait!” Louize’s copper aura expanded out of her body, making her shine. “We worked together for it, you can’t just give it away on your own!” It was the first time she laid eyes on Ivaldie with anything that wasn’t admiration.

  The soldier-girl scratched her chin. “I suppose I can’t. My apologies, Magnus, but you will have to do without it.” She opened the core pouch and shoved the massive core there.

  A dangerous glint appeared in Louize’s eyes as she stared at me. “I changed my mind.” She snickered. Ivaldie looked at the copper girl strangely. “You can give him the core if he can defeat you.”

  “If we can defeat Ivaldie!” Steel raised her hand. “Magnus already won once; together we’ll be unstoppable.”

  Ivaldie scratched the white scales on her neck, surveying the arena. “I suppose that won’t make a difference.” There was a certain kind of pity in her eyes. She was looking down on me, on us.

  Louize laughed louder. “Such useless slander.” She shook her head. “So, Ivaldie, will you fight them?”

  Ivaldie cracked her back. “It has been some time since I fought without holding back. I don’t mind teaching a lesson.” Just how prideful can she be? She was strong – sure, but not at the untouchable level of strength. Especially not after I got my ice bomb, barrier, and mind acceleration.

  Just like every other dragon here, she was just a kid and was overestimating herself... Unless she was blessed by the monsters outside the galaxy. With a grin, she said, “I’ll let you have the first move.”

  Golden thunder surged across her body, and she swiftly jumped to another platform, staring at us. In mere moments, she held a golden sword in her hand, without even performing any visible form. When I fought her before, Ivaldie wasn’t even trying.

  Truthpower Sword

  Created with these types: Phasics, Symbolics, Imbua

  Mastery: Knight

  SE used: 51

  Description: Supremely concentrated starpower, imbued with concepts of duty, responsibility, and justice.

  How was that even possible? Her SE was only 33! This was a ridiculous construct.

  “Did you make this sword with a trait?!”

  A slight smirk appeared on her face. “Perhaps.” She stood on the edge of the platform, looking over us carefully.

  Steel slammed her hands on my shoulders, staring confidently in my eyes. “Don’t worry, Magnus! We can do this!”

  “Dream on!” Louize laughed louder. I decided to ignore her.

  I accelerated my mind, quickly thinking of ways to take her down. “Steel,” I whispered. “Here’s the strategy: I will surround myself with barriers and prepare an ice-bomb. You need to hold Ivaldie in place, bear-hug her. Don’t let her come close to me, or it’s over.”

  “Uh-huh.” She nodded.

  “Prepare a napalm cough and wait for me to start the fight. We can do this.” Despite Ivaldie’s speed, there was no way she could just survive a fully charged ice bomb. She didn’t even take us seriously. Her eyes were locked on the ceiling. There was a chance, if not for victory then for something close.

  “We can win.” Steel took a step away, calling upon Dragon’s Might. Slowly, her body grew, reaching. She sprouted a longer tail, becoming akin to an adult.

  “All air, no substance.” Louize rolled her eyes. Just how annoying could she be?

  I was already summoning barriers around me. Two in the front and one above, enough to get some cover. Once that was done, I started working on an ice bomb, bumping up the mind acceleration to the maximum.

  It wasn’t going to be my average ice bomb; I condensed even more starpower than I usually would, infused far more cold than I did in the past. It was going to be a killer.

  Clutching her throat, Steel nodded at me. “We’re done!” I shouted, holding the ice bomb tightly.

  Ivaldie shrugged. Then golden lightning surrounded her body. Her SE started growing, from 33 to 38, then to 41. I peeked around the barrier, and with all the force I could muster, I threw the ice bomb.

  Even in the slowed-down world, the projectile flew as fast as a bullet. It wasn’t enough. Ivaldie shifted her legs and disappeared. The bomb exploded, covering half the platform in ice.

  “We win!” Steel shouted prematurely.

  A sense of dread welled up in my stomach. I quickly made a detection form – right underneath our platform, there was a small sun of energy… Light erupted underneath, making everything outside the platform shine white. I made a split-second decision and grabbed onto the barrier above me.

  Then, the platform exploded into a thousand bone fragments. Steel let out a yelp, trying to jump away, only to slip. Louize summoned her wings and flew away just in time. Her eyes sparkled with admiration.

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  I crawled up on my barrier, trying not to give it too much time to cover me in a solid construct. I forgot how to breathe, my heart clenched. Steel tumbled down, falling into one of the holes. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Ivaldie just destroyed the whole platform… It was absurd.

  “Steel! Are you alive, Steel?!” I shouted down, over the sounds of falling bone shards.

  “I’m fi-” Another flash of light erupted below me, and Steel went silent. Just like that, she defeated her. My eyes snapped from corner to corner searching for any trace of Ivaldie, ignoring the unbearable dread.

  I made a detection form. Immediately, my mind went silent as a massive starpower construct flew at me. In the slowed world of mind acceleration, I took a gamble and jumped towards the closest platform, flooding my body with starpower.

  I flew far further than I expected, but it wasn’t quite enough. I managed to grab onto the edge, lifting myself up.

  A rippling voice erupted behind me. “You never cease to amaze me, human.” Ivaldie stood on my barrier, lazily holding her sword. “In just a few short days, you managed to turn from a shivering coward into a combat-capable warrior, even lifting two others behind you.”

  While she was talking, I had already started weaving an ice bomb. My hands were shaking so hard that it was difficult to make the form correctly. I heard Louize growl in the air.

  “I believe that every dragon can rise above their fate; however, unlike others, I am destined to become the best.” There wasn’t any pride in her voice, nor was there any emotion – it was as if she simply stated the facts. She pointed her sword at me. Lighting started coursing through her body as her eyes lit up brightly. Ivaldie must’ve been ‘blessed’ just like me.

  I knew what she was going to do. She was about to use that same movement technique to appear in front of me. I wasn’t going to let her win. Holding the ice bomb with one hand, I made a detection form with the other.

  Time slowed down even further as I pumped starpower into the mind acceleration technique. I had to be faster, had to think faster, and indeed it worked.

  Ivaldie wasn’t like any other person. Her starpower flowed like clear water, orderly in ways I haven’t ever seen before. Within her there was a complicated starpower construct, a technique so convoluted I couldn’t figure out the start or the end… But what I could figure out was helpful.

  In the back of her feet, there were numerous force forms, placed together like an array connecting to a massive, unknown thing. And there was a blinding amount of starpower gathering there.

  I knew the force form; it was the first one I learned, and I studied it religiously. The direction of that pattern, the angle of the curl. I could approximate where she was going to appear.

  In my next breath, Ivaldie disappeared, but I was already moving forward, slamming my ice bomb where I thought she would be. Starpower exploded in front of me as I held my breath in anticipation.

  The dragon girl materialized in front of me. I hit her… then – pain. My hand burned with agonizing pain. It was so much that the mind acceleration technique broke down.

  “See, you never cease to surprise me.” Ivaldie stood left to me, only a nail away from the bomb. “Good fight.” She smiled.

  Then my hand fell on the ground, together with the ice bomb that was in it. Blood spurted from the stump as I screamed in agony. My nerves were burning in me, my heart was howling like a chasm, and my breath fell short. I stumbled to grab a pill, only to cover myself with more crimson. Blood was everywhere, I was going to die because of my idiocy... I promised not to make mistakes...

  “The screaming is annoying.” She raised her hand, and everything turned black.

  My eyes opened wide. I stared at the glass ceiling, and beyond it, there were stars. There was no pain in my body, and my arms were completely normal. Was it all just a dream?

  The detachment vanished in but a moment, when loud sounds of pained groans and victorious screams rang in my ears. I took a deep breath; my heart was beating like a drum. I jumped to my feet and looked around.

  “See, junior, that’s how you wake up a patient. The calming form is crucial to learn.” Right next to me, there was a dragon-woman, dressed in rather white-ish VITA. Beside her stood a young dragon with a similar color palette.

  “What happened? Where’s Ivaldie? Where’s Steel?” I looked around the crowd. It was filled with small dragons, groaning in pain, people from the soldier course, and their partners. Some lost limbs, some lost eyes, some cried, but all were surrounded by healers…

  “There is no need to worry, Magnus, your partner is in good health. You were brought here by the winning pair, thus passing the test. I am from the restoration and healing course, assisting with injuries. Your hand has been mended wonderfully.” It still felt unusual for everyone to just know my name. The woman who healed me was named Melissa, 64 SE. The cold detachment still remained.

  “Right… Thank you, Melissa. Can you point to where Steel is?”

  She smiled and pointed right at Professor Willich. Steel was loudly talking with her. Just as quickly, Melissa and her junior went to a different injured person.

  My mind swarmed with thoughts, occasionally flashing with panic, but I held those back for now. I went towards the professor.

  “Hey, Magnus! We won!” Steel immediately turned her head to me, smiling.

  “No, we didn’t.” I sighed.

  Willich cleared her throat. “In fact, you did complete the order, bringing quite a large haul of cores with you. It is commendable for a first dungeon delve.” There was not a smidgen of that coldness she spoke with before.

  “I won’t have to get remedial courses! The professor even gave me special access to techniques in the Archive. It’s so cool!” Steel grabbed my hand excitedly.

  Willich shook her head. “Your teamwork still needs work, Steel. I will quiz you on the Party Dynamics at the next lesson.”

  “Yes, professor!”

  Rage shimmered just above the surface. I had to speak, but not here. I wasn’t going to ruin my friend’s reputation because I was angry. “Are we free to go?”

  Willich shook her head. “Since you do not have the knowledge to distribute loot in a just manner, I have taken the liberty of distributing the cores you acquired according to your performance.” She clapped her own shoulder, making gems appear on the ground like magic.

  Loot!

  - Sired Bone Potential (31 SE) x1

  - Sired Flesh Potential (21 SE) x1

  - Weack Potential (10 SE) x3

  “This is your half, Magnus. Your ability to navigate the level as well as your ability to recognize dangers is commendable. Your lack of communication skills was your downfall.”

  I stared at the huge gems on the ground. With this, I could practice a lot. “Do you have a bag, or something I can use for transportation?”

  “You won’t be absorbing them? Sure, you can have a bag.” She clapped again, and a small pouch appeared near the gems. Quickly, I started stuffing it. It was weird. I felt fire burning inside me, fury welling up just beneath the surface, but all of it was muted.

  The damn healers miffed my emotions. Of course, they did – anyone would be going crazy after losing an arm. I had to remain rational, had to make plans on how to win the exam.

  “Where’s mine!?” Steel said loudly.

  Willich rolled her eyes, making gems appear on the ground. “Nice! I’ve been so hungry.” Without hesitation, she scooped up the cores and shoved them into her mouth, letting out a moan. Right in front of my eyes, her SE rose by two…

  “Thanks for the help, Magnus! I’ll invite you to the next delve! I’m tired, gonna sleep. Bye.” I stared in confusion at her as she started running off into the distance.

  “Wait, I have to talk with you!”

  “Too sleepy! I won’t understand a thing.”

  She just footballed me.

  Willich shook her head. “Youth sure are lively nowadays…”

  I tied the bag around my waist and, with shaking hands, went towards the only person I could speak with right now.