Ren walked back to the candidate observation area with measured steps, his expression maintaining the same calm composure he had shown throughout the battle.
To the thousands of observers filling the arena, his victory over Lyra had appeared almost effortless to the viewers. It was a demonstration of superior tactical thinking that had systematically dismantled her formidable abilities.
But the reality was far more complex than appearances suggested.
The battle against Lyra had been anything but easy, requiring every ounce of his analytical capabilities and strategic experience to achieve victory while revealing as little as possible about his true abilities.
The advantages he had possessed were real but limited, requiring precise exploitation to be effective.
His mind affinity had indeed provided the key to countering Lyra's temporal magic, but only because he understood the fundamental relationship between mental clarity and complex magical weaving.
