"This..." Andre touched his face in disbelief. "You... you bastard...!"
His body trembled with rage.
"How dare you lay a hand on me?!"
"I'll make you regret being born!"
"DIE!!"
After being struck across the face by the glove Knox had thrown at him, Andre flew into a rage and immediately raised his hand, gathering jet-black to cast Black Magic.
Seeing that movement, Knox's eyes instantly turned cold. In that brief moment, countless ways to destroy Andre had already flashed through his mind.
However...
"Stop it!"
A sharp voice suddenly cut through the commotion, causing both sides to pause. A female student pushed her way through the crowd that had gathered to watch everything unfold.
"Hey, Andre! What do you think you're doing?! You're a second-year student threatening a first-year! Aren't you ashamed of yourself?!"
As soon as the girl with waist-length cream-colored hair stepped forward, the atmosphere around them shifted. The surrounding students, especially the second-years, instinctively straightened their backs as nervous whispers spread through the crowd.
She was the president of the Mutant Club and one of the current Student Council members. She was also the successor of the Vanilla Group, one of the continent's largest companies specializing in the production and distribution of undead.
Her name was Benya Vanilla.
"Tsk... how troublesome."
The moment Benya stepped in, Andre clicked his tongue. Without any hesitation, he chose to back off instead of escalating the situation further.
Unfortunately for him...
There was no way Knox was going to let his target walk away so easily.
Especially after the bastard had openly threatened him.
One thing Knox hated more than anything was being threatened.
"Heh... Running away, aren't you? So much for all that royalty nonsense."
The surrounding students immediately fell silent after hearing Knox's words, while Andre spun around and shouted,
"What did you just say?! It's not that I'm running away! I'm trying to let you off the hook, and yet you're still acting like this?!"
"Pfft... Let me off the hook?" Knox let out a mocking laugh. "You tried attacking me with Black Magic, and now you're backing away. So your royal pride is only good for hit-and-run tactics? You don't even have the courage to accept my challenge."
"...Coward."
Looking into Knox's eyes, Benya couldn't help but narrow her own.
She had heard plenty about Knox.
To everyone around him, he was usually cheerful, approachable, and surprisingly easy to talk to. Yet the person standing before her now felt completely different. The hostility in his eyes was so cold that it sent a chill through everyone who met his gaze.
So, something must have happened.
With that thought in mind, she turned to the surrounding students and began asking what had taken place. After asking the surrounding students what had happened, and hearing Simon fill in the remaining details, Benya slowly turned toward Andre, her expression noticeably darker than before.
"Hey, you crazy bastard! Are you seriously attacking and threatening someone over something this ridiculous?!"
She pointed a finger straight at Andre.
"And you even threatened him afterward?!"
"Don't you realize that if this reaches your parents, the King and Queen of Dresden, they'll choose his side over their own troublesome son without a second thought?!"
"Wha-What?! How dare you say that to me?! Do you have a death wish, Benya Vanilla?!"
"Sigh... That's enough."
A calm voice suddenly echoed across the square.
It wasn't loud.
Yet the moment those words left Knox's mouth, the entire area fell silent. The air itself seemed to grow colder, making everyone instinctively hold their breath.
Moreover, because Benya and Andre were standing closest to him, they felt that icy pressure more clearly than anyone else.
"!!!"
Benya's pupils contracted as the sudden pressure washed over her.
Even Andre, who had been shouting only moments ago, unconsciously took half a step back.
"Ah...". Andre, who had never experienced fear this closely before, froze on the spot.
That overwhelming fear reminded him of his mother, who had always looked at him with cold eyes and treated him as nothing more than a tool.
The humiliation he had suffered moments ago, Benya's merciless reprimand, and Knox's emotionless gaze all blended with those bitter memories. One after another, they chipped away at the last remnants of his composure.
Gritting his teeth in anger and humiliation, Andre finally snapped.
"You...! You...! Fine! You want to die?! I'll accept your challenge! Just because you're famous doesn't change the fact that you're just a first-year student!"
Seeing the situation becoming increasingly heated, Benya took a deep breath before stepping between the two. In her mind, there was only one way to settle this.
"Okay, enough! I understand the situation. As a member of the Student Council, I'll arrange an official duel for the two of you! But first, both of you need to calm down!"
"Hmm, an official duel?" Knox asked.
"That's right. I'll arrange an official duel under the Student Council's supervision. Let's end this here for today. Later, both of you will be summoned to the Student Council room."
"Alright, Senior."
"Hmph, got it."
And just like that, news of the duel between a first-year and a second-year student spread throughout Kizen in the blink of an eye.
***
Knox's duel spread throughout Kizen in less than a day.
Most students were appalled that a second-year had abused his position to threaten a first-year. Of course, there were still a handful of upperclassmen who sided with Andre.
"How dare a first-year do that to a second-year!"
"It's arrogant for a mere commoner to talk back to royalty!"
Fortunately, those voices remained a small minority. Quite a few of them immediately fell silent after learning that the first-year they had been criticizing was none other than Knox Aznable.
Meanwhile, some people's reactions were... somewhat excessive.
For example, Lorain.
"...So this bastard dared to speak to Knox like that... and to make matters worse, he even threatened Knox...?"
The temperature around Lorain seemed to plummet. A crimson aura slowly seeped out from her body before erupting outward in a violent wave, causing the surrounding air to tremble.
"...Andre Dresden."
"I WILL KILL YOU!!!"
Fortunately, several Kizen staff members managed to stop her before she could rush out of the academy.
Another example was Serene.
Alone in her room, Serene quietly listened to the report, resting one cheek against her hand.
"...I see."
She lowered her gaze for a brief moment before the corners of her lips slowly curved upward.
"Pfft."
"Haha."
A soft chuckle gradually turned into laughter. She covered her mouth with one hand, her shoulders trembling slightly as the laughter grew louder and louder. Yet despite the cheerful sound echoing through the room, there wasn't a trace of warmth in her eyes. An ivory aura quietly seeped out from her body, carrying a chilling bloodlust that only continued to intensify.
"HAHAHAHA!"
Wiping a tear from the corner of her eye, Serene slowly looked up again. Her lips were still curved into the same beautiful smile, yet her eyes had turned frighteningly cold.
"I never thought someone this brainless actually existed."
She gently rested her chin on one hand, idly twirling a strand of hair between her fingers.
"Good."
"...Andre Dresden, was it?"
The smile on her lips widened ever so slightly, though the coldness in her eyes only grew deeper.
"Count your days..."
Unfortunately for Andre, it wasn't just the students who reacted so strongly.
The news eventually reached Vice President Jane.
When a staff member came to report the incident, Jane happened to be taking a short break during a meeting. Several professors were present as well, so it didn't take long before everyone in the room learned what had happened.
The meeting immediately descended into chaos.
Most first-year professors openly criticized Andre's actions, while several second-year professors tried defending him. Bahil, in particular, showed absolutely no restraint with his words, causing the argument between the two sides to grow increasingly heated.
Then...
Baam!
The sound of a hand striking the table echoed throughout the meeting room.
"Enough."
Jane's voice wasn't loud.
Yet every professor immediately fell silent.
Those from the first-year faculty, especially the ones who knew Jane well, quickly noticed that she looked even colder than usual.
Without waiting for anyone to speak again, Jane calmly dropped a bombshell statement.
"Stop making a fuss." Her tone was as cold as ever.
Without even sparing anyone a glance, Jane casually took another sip of her tea.
"Besides, are all of you blind?"
She lowered the teacup with the same composed expression she had worn from the beginning.
"There's no need to discuss who the winner will be."
"Knox Aznable will win."
The first-year professors exchanged helpless glances before quietly sighing in agreement.
Meanwhile, several second-year professors wanted to argue back, but the moment Jane's cold gaze landed on them, every word they had intended to say disappeared.
Meanwhile, outside Kizen...
Two of the Dark Alliance's most well-known figures, Jean Arskalt, the Second Legion Commander, and Tenerife Echeverria, the Fourth Legion Commander, happened to be having tea together not far from the academy.
The moment news of Knox's duel reached them, the atmosphere around the two changed completely.
Neither of them said a single word. After exchanging a brief glance, both quietly stood up and left in a hurry.
Later, everyone who had witnessed the scene remembered only one thing.
For a brief moment...
The killing intent radiating from the two Legion Commanders had been so overwhelming that everyone nearby lost consciousness.