The arena had finally fallen silent.
The echoes of the battle still lingered in the air, but the excitement that had filled the stadium only moments ago had already faded. The medical team hurried across the battlefield, carefully lifting Michael onto a stretcher before carrying him toward the clinic.
Lucy stood quietly, watching them disappear through the exit.
Her expression remained calm as always, yet her eyes lingered on the scene for a brief moment.
Even though I knew this match would end quickly...
...I never expected it to be over in less than two seconds.
Her gaze shifted to the marks Thomas's bullets had left behind.
And he only fired twice.
Those weren't even full-powered shots.
For a moment, silence settled between the remaining Guardians.
Beside her, Gideon let out a quiet whistle before shaking his head.
"Well... that was even faster than I expected," he admitted with a faint smile. "A lot faster."
Lucy folded her arms across her chest, her voice as composed as ever.
"What did you expect?" she replied. "There's an entire rank separating them."
She looked back toward the now-empty arena.
"The weakest person among the B Ranks is still expected to be stronger than the strongest person among the C Ranks."
Her tone carried no arrogance—only simple fact.
"This duel was meant to demonstrate the gap between ranks."
A brief pause followed.
"And to motivate those below them to work harder."
Gideon nodded slightly, but Lucy's eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly.
"...Although," she continued quietly, "for some people, it might have the opposite effect."
Her gaze became distant.
"It could drive them into despair."
She sighed softly.
"But if someone's spirit is weak enough to break after witnessing a difference like this..."
Her voice grew colder.
"...then they'll never survive real missions."
"The battlefield doesn't care about broken confidence."
"People like that will eventually be filtered out."
Gideon scratched the back of his head before giving a helpless smile.
"Yeah..."
"I guess you're right."
His expression quickly brightened again.
"Anyway, I'm going to check on Michael."
"It's been a while since I last saw him after the recruitment tests."
Lucy looked away.
"Do whatever you want."
"The practical training begins tomorrow."
"You should get some rest afterward."
A faint smirk appeared on her face.
"Not that you really need it."
Gideon laughed.
"Don't worry."
"I'm heading back to the dorm after visiting him."
Then he tilted his head.
"Aren't you coming?"
"Michael's your friend too."
Lucy answered without hesitation.
"I'm not as free as you three."
"After this, I have to meet with the other Guardians."
"I'll visit him later."
Gideon simply shrugged.
"Fair enough."
"I'll go with Kevin and Thomas then."
"See you later."
Lucy gave a small nod.
"Yeah."
Without another word, Gideon walked away.
Lucy remained where she was, quietly watching him disappear into the crowd.
There were still several things she needed to take care of.
Especially now that...
Smith has returned.
She had sensed his presence the moment he entered the arena during Kevin and Nel's match.
Even though he had already left before the final battle ended...
There was no mistaking it.
She would recognize his presence anywhere.
Turning around, Lucy walked toward Warren and Greg, who were finishing the last bits of cleanup around the arena floor.
They looked up as she approached.
"Are you two done?" she asked.
Warren brushed the dust from his gloves before nodding.
"Yeah."
"We're finished."
Lucy gave another nod.
"Then we should head to the meeting room."
"Smith is waiting for us."
Greg blinked in confusion.
"Smith?"
"When did he get back?"
Lucy answered calmly.
"During Kevin and Nel's match."
"I felt his presence then."
"He left a while ago after the last match ended."
Warren didn't question it.
"In that case..."
"We should get going."
Greg rubbed the back of his neck with an awkward laugh.
"Seriously..."
"S-Rank detection is ridiculous."
"I didn't feel anything."
Lucy glanced at him.
"Not really."
"It's only because it's me."
"That's why I noticed."
Greg raised an eyebrow before smirking.
"Oh?"
"You've only been an S Rank for three months..."
"And you're already acting proud."
He folded his arms.
"Maybe I should go get Smith."
"I'm sure he can humble you."
Lucy met his gaze without the slightest hint of intimidation.
"If it bothers you that much..."
"Then get stronger."
A faint smile appeared on her lips.
"Maybe then you'll finally earn the chance to spar with me..."
"...without me holding back most of my strength."
For a brief second...
Everything went quiet.
A vein twitched on Greg's forehead.
His expression remained calm...
But the irritation in his eyes became impossible to hide.
"...What did you just say?"
His voice stayed level.
Only the anger behind it betrayed his emotions.
Lucy looked directly into his eyes.
"What?"
"You want me to say it again?"
She tilted her head ever so slightly.
"It's not like you could do anything if I did."
Greg clenched his fists.
"This little—"
Before he could finish...
Warren stepped between them with a tired sigh.
"Alright."
"That's enough."
He looked toward Greg.
"And you."
Then he turned to Lucy.
"You've already irritated him enough."
A helpless smile crossed his face.
"We should probably leave."
Lucy let out a quiet sigh before giving a small nod.
"Fine."
She turned and began walking toward the exit without another word.
Greg stared at her retreating back before exhaling through his nose.
"Haa..."
"Fine."
"Let's go."
After a moment, a nostalgic smile appeared on his face.
"...I really miss the younger Lucy."
"The one who was always asking questions about Celestial Energy."
Warren chuckled.
"Yeah."
"The cute little Lucy who kept begging us to train with her."
Before he could continue—
"That's enough."
Lucy's voice echoed from farther ahead.
She didn't even bother turning around.
"I thought we were leaving."
The irritation in her voice made both men exchange amused glances.
Warren couldn't help but laugh.
"Yeah..."
"We're going."
Still smiling, the three Guardians left the arena together.
Later that afternoon, the clinic was unusually quiet.
The faint scent of medicine lingered in the air as soft footsteps echoed through the hallway.
The door to Michael's room slowly opened.
Gideon stepped inside first, followed by Thomas and Kevin.
Lying comfortably on the hospital bed, Michael turned his head toward the sound. The moment he saw the three familiar faces, a small smile spread across his face.
"Oh, hey, guys."
Gideon looked around the room before letting out an amused laugh.
"Wow... at this point, it feels like the clinic has become your dorm."
He crossed his arms with a grin.
"I swear you've spent more time here than anywhere else... except when you are participating in the rank matches."
Michael couldn't help but laugh.
"Yeah..."
He rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.
"That's almost the exact same thing the nurse said when I came in."
The room filled with light laughter.
Kevin walked closer to the bed, still looking at Michael with disbelief.
"You know..." he began, shaking his head, "when I first met you at school, I honestly thought you'd only just awakened."
"I figured you couldn't do much yet."
He pointed between Michael and Gideon.
"I expected Gideon to be ridiculously strong..."
"But you?"
"I definitely didn't see that coming."
Gideon nodded in agreement.
"I know, right?"
He looked at Michael thoughtfully.
"You have so little Celestial Energy that it's hard to believe you're even capable of fighting at a D-Rank level..."
"Not to mention C-Rank."
Michael sighed dramatically before raising both hands in surrender.
"Alright, alright."
"I get it."
"You guys are stronger than me."
Gideon immediately waved his hands.
"That's not what I meant."
His expression became more serious.
"What I mean is..."
"If your energy was only a little lower than ours..."
"...just how strong would you actually be?"
Thomas quietly spoke up.
"That's probably the reason his energy is so limited."
He looked at Michael calmly.
"It's almost as if it's intentionally being restricted..."
"...to stop him from becoming too strong."
Michael let out another quiet sigh.
"You guys are thinking way too deeply about this."
A small smile appeared on his face as he looked at each of them.
"What about you three?"
"You're all incredibly strong yourselves."
His eyes settled on Thomas.
"And especially you."
"I never imagined you'd end up taking first place."
Kevin immediately burst into a laugh.
"Seriously!"
He pointed at Thomas with a grin.
"I didn't expect this little guy to be that strong either."
He leaned forward curiously.
"Seriously though..."
"How the hell did you make those bullets move that fast while packing that much energy into them?"
Thomas scratched his cheek awkwardly.
"...It's part of my technique."
"So..."
"It's kind of difficult to explain."
"And honestly..."
"It's not even that strong."
Kevin rolled his eyes.
"Fine."
"You don't want to explain it."
"But don't stand there pretending it isn't powerful."
He pointed toward Michael lying in bed.
"I mean..."
"Just look at him."
Michael stared at Kevin with an expression of complete disbelief.
"...Really?"
Kevin laughed.
"No offense."
"But it's true."
Then he turned back toward Thomas.
"And don't compare yourself to this golden-haired monster."
Gideon blinked in confusion.
"...Monster?"
"Why are you calling me a monster?"
Michael looked equally puzzled.
"Yeah."
"What do you mean?"
Kevin sighed as if remembering something unbelievable.
"You know how every rank has plenty of talented people?"
He looked directly at Michael.
"Well..."
"This guy was the only person who received an A-Rank."
He paused before continuing.
"And remember the bullet Thomas fired at you?"
"The one that defeated you?"
Michael nodded.
"That wasn't even fired at full power."
Kevin held up three fingers.
"Now imagine that same attack..."
"...but three times stronger."
"That's what Thomas fired at Gideon."
He couldn't help but laugh.
"And this golden-haired monster simply swatted it away..."
"...like he was brushing a fly out of the air."
Michael's eyes widened.
"...Huh?"
Kevin nodded with a helpless smile.
"Exactly."
"That was everyone's reaction."
Thomas gave a small nod.
"It surprised me too."
"I fired two more shots with the same amount of power."
"He blocked both of them just as easily."
"So..."
"I surrendered."
Michael looked at him in surprise.
"You surrendered?"
"There was really nothing else you could do?"
Thomas simply smiled bitterly.
"What else was I supposed to do?"
"I watched one of my strongest attacks get brushed aside like it was nothing."
He shook his head.
"At that point..."
"Surrendering was the only realistic option."
Everyone's attention shifted toward Gideon.
He scratched the back of his head, looking genuinely confused.
"I don't know..."
"I saw the bullet coming."
"It looked kind of slow."
"And it was pretty small."
"So..."
"I just swatted it away."
He shrugged innocently.
"I honestly thought you were only testing me."
"I didn't realize that was one of your strongest attacks."
Michael stared at him silently.
Slow...?
His thoughts replayed the battle.
I could barely follow its movement...
And to him...
It was slow.
A bitter smile slowly appeared on his face.
He looked directly at Gideon.
"Bro..."
"You're a monster."
Gideon's eyes widened.
"Seriously?"
"Not you too?"
Michael blinked.
"Me too?"
Kevin laughed so hard he nearly doubled over.
"Yeah."
"I started calling him the Golden-Haired Monster..."
"And before I knew it..."
"The entire B-Rank picked it up."
Thomas suddenly looked back at Gideon.
"But still..."
"That attack required hours of Core Cultivation."
"And even longer spent performing Full Body Circulation."
Michael frowned.
"...Full Body Circulation?"
Thomas nodded.
"Yeah."
"After rotating your core through Core Cultivation and increasing the amount of Celestial Energy stored inside it..."
"You have to circulate that energy throughout your entire body."
"It's how your body adapts to the increase."
"It also improves both your physical strength and your energy output."
He continued patiently.
"The difficulty is different for everyone."
"For some people, it's easy."
"For others, it takes a long time."
"But eventually..."
"If you don't complete Full Body Circulation..."
"...your growth reaches a limit."
"You won't be able to increase your energy properly."
"And you won't be capable of drawing out its true power."
Thomas paused.
"It's considered common knowledge."
He gave Michael an apologetic smile.
"But..."
"You've been stuck at thirty percent for so long..."
"So I figured nobody had told you."
Michael's eyes widened slightly.
"...I honestly didn't know."
Kevin smiled encouragingly.
"Don't worry about it."
"You can still try."
"Maybe it'll make you even stronger."
Michael returned the smile with a quiet nod.
"Yeah."
As the conversation slowly drifted to other topics, Michael's thoughts remained fixed on what he had just learned.
Maybe...
Maybe this is the reason my energy stopped increasing after reaching forty-one percent.
If that's true...
Then Full Body Circulation might be exactly what I've been missing.
A quiet determination burned within his eyes.
I really hope this makes me stronger...
Because I'm nowhere near the level I want to reach.