Several rounds passed since then. Some battles were close, while others were one-sided. The nobles selected a few students from the first round. The event held two group stage rounds and then the final round. Maria, Aizis, and Raizel passed their first two rounds without any difficulty and reached the final round.
The final round was between eight participants. Based on their performance, they would receive a special demonic level and be chosen by certain noble families.
The announcer's voice echoed.
"Well then, it's time for the final round. I'm impressed with your performances in the group stage. As we have found eight participants for the final round, we would like to start it now. For the first round of the grand final, I would like to invite Aizis and Bairon to ascend the stage."
Both Aizis and Bairon entered the middle of the stadium—the stage.
"I've heard a lot about you. You're one of the strongest students in the whole realm. You belong to one of the best noble families around the realm," Bairon said.
"Well, well, it doesn't really matter to me. I'm here for a reason, and it's to defeat you," Aizis replied.
"I'm also here for a reason. I'm here to prove myself worthy of standing in front of everyone, every single person of the society. I want to show them that I can do it. I will stop them from insulting me every time," Bairon said, his eyes full of rage and a hint of tears.
"You hate them?"
"Hate? I don't know if I have the capability to do that. I'm the one who's getting hated by everyone, everyone," Bairon said loudly.
"No matter how many times I try, no matter how many spells I learn, I can never use magic. I'm a failure who can't use magic. I'm a failure. No matter how much I try, my shortcomings will always be the reason for my failure," Bairon screamed loudly.
Tears streamed down his face, his eyes full of rage, desire, and hatred toward the world.
Bairon was born without magic power and thus failed to use magic from the very beginning. As a person without magic, his family, society, and the entire world called him a failure, a failure without magic. To compensate for his lack of magic, he trained his body intensively. However, intense physical training was never enough to fill the gap left by the lack of magic. Due to his excellent physical attributes, he decided to use magic-amplified weapons. He was using a magic suit and a magic-amplified katana.
Aizis smiled a bit.
"You're a failure, huh? So, you're here to prove yourself as the strongest, ridiculous.'' Aizis said with a sarcastic smile.
"The false meaning of success and victory prevents you from learning the reality and truth, doesn't it?"
Bairon drew his sword from its grip and ran toward Aizis. Despite being a non-magic user, he was surprisingly fast.
He swung his sword toward Aizis's chest. Aizis instantly jumped away.
Bairon attempted to cut Aizis multiple times, but Aizis easily dodged them.
After several failed attempts, Bairon's body was exhausted, and he was breathing heavily.
"No matter how much you train physically, the gap between a magic user and a non-magic user isn't something you can fill just by physical training," Aizis said.
"But my question is, why can't he use his magic?" Aizis thought to himself.
"Oh? Something blocking it? Yeah, just as I thought, someone's blocking it from transferring," Aizis thought with a smirk.
"Yeah, they're right. You're a failure. You'll never be better than a magic user," Aizis criticized with a smirk.
"Shut up! I'm not a failure! I will prove myself!" Bairon said loudly.
"You can never, you're a failure."
The word "failure" kept tormenting Bairon relentlessly.
Bairon sat down, pressing his head with both hands.
"No... no... no, I'm not a failure," Bairon whispered.
Suddenly, a storm of mana erupted from Bairon's body, accompanied by his scream.
"I'm not a failure!" Bairon shouted loudly.
His entire body was covered with an overwhelming amount of magic power.
"There you go. They say silence is the precursor to a huge storm, and this is the example," Aizis said a bit loudly.
"Come to think of it, a ruler from a higher world transferred his magic power to Bairon before his death. To transfer magic power to someone, one must block the receiver's magic root, and that's what the ruler did to Bairon from birth. Because of this, Bairon's magic root was blocked, and he became a failure without magic in his arsenal. It was actually for his own good. Now, he has managed to break the seal of his magic root through pure mental desperation and eagerness. That's exactly how he broke his seal, just like the ruler intended," Aizis thought to himself.
"Come at me, with everything you have, Bairon."
Bairon's entire body was covered with magic power, his face filled with surprise.
"I can feel it! I can feel the outstanding magic power within me! I can feel the extraordinary power!" Bairon said with a small smile.
As he was an expert in magic attributes and spells, the sudden influx of magic wasn't a problem for him.
In no time, he controlled his magic power easily.
Bairon drew a magic circle targeting Aizis and released a red flame spell. A huge storm of magic power surged toward Aizis with incredible speed.
Aizis drew a magic circle and created a barrier in front of him. He easily blocked the flame spell, which vanished instantly.
Aizis drew out a dark blue sword and flew toward Bairon. Bairon also drew his katana and flew toward Aizis. They clashed with each other.
A huge amount of magic power engulfed both of them in a white fog, taking them out of sight. The mana power was so strong that it covered the entire stadium instantly.
"You were angry, you were desperate, you wanted to show everyone your capability, right? Then show them what you can do," Aizis said, casual.
Aizis sent Bairon flying several meters away.In no time, Bairon flew back at Aizis and clashed with him again.
Aizis kicked his chest with his left leg and sent him flying once again.
Before Bairon could return, Aizis flew toward him and held his sword in front of Bairon's neck.
"Give up."
Bairon smiled.
"I lost."
"Well done, wild dummy," Aizis said while lifting Bairon up with his left hand, he was smiling a bit, a trace of joy.
"Thanks. Thanks for everything. I will never forget you in my life," Bairon said, his eyes filled with extraordinary happiness. He tried to hold it back, but a tear escaped—quiet proof of the weight he carried inside.
"Fool, what did I even do? You awakened yourself on your own."
Bairon smiled a bit and start speaking.
"You anticipated everything from the beginning, didn't you? I knew it, I knew that you criticized me on purpose. Everything you did is just to awake my trueself, the hidden strength that was covered by my own hesitation and sadness." Bairon said with a small smile, his eyes filled with tear yet joy.
Aizis laughed awkwardly.
"Hahaha, could be. You finally realized your position, right? Now go ahead, do what you are suppose to do, I know you can do many thing that you failed to do in the past, now it's time for you to shine. As long as you wait for someone's praise, you'll never achieve anything," Aizis said with a smile.
"The world is selfish," Aizis thought, his expression distant and alone.
"They smile only when it's expected, and cry only when the moment allows. But no smile can truly bury sorrow— not when sadness lingers beneath, waiting to be seen."
"Well then, if Mr. Bairon gives up, I would like to announce Aizis Jasin as the winner," the announcer said.
Aizis left the stage and went back to his seat.
"I don't think I need to explain anything. You guys always anticipated everything as soon as he awakened, right?" Aizis said with a smile.
Marco and Maria nodded with minor smiles on their faces.
"After witnessing such an excellent showdown, I would like to move to the next round. The next round will be held between Maria and Elaine. I would like to ask both of you to move to the center," the announcer said.
Both Maria and Elaine stepped into the center of the stadium.
Even if her presence wasn't as commanding as Aizis's, each step Maria took echoed with quiet authority. There was grace in her movement, a gentle confidence that upheld her royal stature as she made her way toward the center.
At the same time, Elaine entered the circle with equal poise, her steps light and unhurried, a faint smile playing on her lips—subtle, yet unmistakably intentional.
Elaine seemed to be a tall girl with dark red hair. She was wearing a long gown, like the other female students.
She smiled and spoke up casually.
"Maria Reinino, right? I've heard of you, the strongest female student around every academy.''
''But from here and now, I will steal the title from you," Elaine said in a rude and challanging voice.