After the Alger Cremore fight, Dylan said goodbye to his parents, telling them he had to prepare for the next fight.
...
"I can't overlook that guy. Who knows what evil deeds he did to leave his life of misfortune behind," Dylan joked to himself as he walked down a hallway that led directly to the dressing rooms of those waiting to participate in the remaining fights.
…
Dylan's next opponent surrendered, which meant that Dylan only needed to win one more fight to become one of the 10 Promises of the first year.
Dylan's parents headed to the hotel where they were staying, and Dylan went to his room in the Academy dorms.
••••
Dylan's room.
"Find out everything you can about Alger Cremore. Don't let anyone know. I don't want to punish you," Dylan said casually, while reading a book on intermediate magic.
Evon swallowed hard and nodded. He couldn't help but fear Dylan because every time Dylan talked about punishment, Evon remembered what had happened to one of his henchmen.
Evon was about to head for the door when he felt a chill as Dylan snapped his fingers.
"Get me some quality liquor."
Evon was about to ask if he had heard correctly, but seeing the subtle smile on Dylan's face was enough for him to nod and leave.
After finishing the book, Dylan glanced at a clock on the wall.
At 5 p.m., Dylan headed to the training grounds and did a basic workout routine he used to do in his previous life. His goal was to maintain an athletic, healthy, and fit body that would allow him to enjoy the pleasures that women could offer, just as he had done in his previous life.
...
When night fell, although he was bored, he decided to go to bed early so he could go to the coliseum the next day.
...
Dylan Gray vs. Dez Crerev
Dylan entered the combat arena and, although he greeted the crowd with elegance and grace, most of the fans remained silent, bored of seeing most of Dylan's opponents surrender.
Dylan just smiled and directed his greeting toward the female audience members who still supported him because of his handsome appearance.
The student named Dez was tall and burly and carried two swords. Seeing the determined look on Dez's face, who was a 3-Sun warrior (low level), the entire audience thought that Dylan would have to fight without holding back.
Begin!
"Hey, buddy. I wish you luck in the next fight." Dez said the first thing that came to mind, turned his back, and walked away from the stage to quickly get away from the guy who was about to seriously freeze each of his fingers.
Dylan just nodded, greeted his parents, and at that moment Anelia hugged Demian. Dylan's parents were satisfied with the result, because with that victory Dylan had secured his place as one of the promises and also guaranteed that his family would not lose the title of Viscount.
...
"I don't think I need to win the next fight, but I can put on an excellent performance so as not to dishonor the position I've achieved," Dylan said to himself as he walked toward the dressing rooms, because with fewer participants, his next fight would come soon. ...
In the dressing rooms.
Miriam massaged Dylan's shoulders while he waited for his turn to fight again.
"What do you know about Alger Cremore?" Dylan asked her.
Dylan knew that Miriam was a spy sent by the kingdom of Drecon, and she knew that he knew, which is why she had started acting like Dylan's follower, since he told her that as long as she was useful to him, he wouldn't betray her.
"Very little. I only know that he was adopted by a marquis named Hernan Dileriant."
"This is nothing like his tragic and heartbreaking story. Did he become the protagonist?" Dylan thought as he stood up after looking at his watch.
...
Zia Distanian vs. Dylan Gray.
Dylan greeted the audience as usual.
Now he would face a high-ranking noblewoman. Everyone was curious to see what would happen; it was almost obvious that the beautiful Zia Distanian would not give up.
Zia frowned slightly as she looked at Dylan. She could see the wicked and ominous aura that hung over Dylan like tar. She only saw evil when she looked in the mirror or when she looked at most of her relatives.
Dylan greeted her with an elegant gesture.
Begin.
Ten fireballs were shot at Dylan.
Dylan, for his part, shot ten medium-sized icicles. When the two opposing forces met, they exploded, causing a mist that spread throughout the combat arena.
Dylan was holding a magic wand that he didn't need and was using his main element.
Two pressurized water bullets headed toward Zia Distanian's left side and back.
Bang! Bang!
Two walls of fire appeared and vaporized the pressurized water bullets. Then a shockwave spread out from where Zia was standing and dispersed the fog. At that moment, Zia saw Dylan appear in front of her.
Dylan held his magic wand firmly in his hand, and at its tip, a magic water bullet with a high concentration of mana was forming, making the water shine.
Zia struck the ground with the base of her magic staff, and a column of fire engulfed Dylan before he could fire the magic water bullet.
Seeing himself engulfed in flames, Dylan subtly made his magic water bullet disappear and let the flames burn him, then fell to his knees with his magic wand turned to ashes.
"I lost," Dylan said, acting as if he had exhausted his mana to avoid suffering major burns.
"Zia Distanian is the winner."
Zia was somewhat dissatisfied. She noticed how Dylan had made the magic water bullet disappear and then pretended he had been pushed to his limit, but at that moment she could only accept the result.
••••
After the result was announced, he was carried on a stretcher to the arena clinic. As they carried him away, he waved to his father, who nodded back.
...
After Dylan disappeared from the arena, Demian took it upon himself to calm Anelia, who had been frightened when she saw her son engulfed in a column of fire.