After a full month…
Ares was no longer the boy who was learning how to hold energy—
He had become something… that made it bend.
He stood in the arena, facing three.
Three at once.
And there was no hesitation in his eyes.
Only…
A heavy calm.
Then—
The arena exploded.
The air itself began to boil, visible waves of spiritual energy spreading like unstable tides, hitting the walls, bouncing back, and wrapping again around the fast-moving bodies.
One rushed from the front, the second from the side, and the third moved to block the path—
But Ares…
Did not step back.
He entered between them.
His steps were not retreat… but penetration.
A sliding strike, a pushing shoulder, a twisting body, and spiritual energy exploding at points of contact like compressed sparks—every move was calculated, every collision created a vibration felt through the arena floor.
The fight was not an exchange of blows…
But a struggle of control.
Then—
Something changed.
Without warning.
Without a clear movement.
But…
The ground became heavier.
Much heavier.
The three bodies slowed suddenly, as if something invisible was pulling them downward. Their steps sank, their jumps broke before they were completed—
But Ares…
Became lighter.
In a frightening way.
His body turned into a flow, moving between them like a weightless shadow, disappearing from one point to appear in another, while they were pulled toward the ground, toward weight, toward helplessness.
Impact.
One of them tried to attack—
But his fist stopped halfway, gravity pulled it down, leaving his chest exposed—
A strike.
Short.
But it released a wave of energy that pierced his body and threw him back violently.
The second jumped—
Or tried to.
But his body did not rise properly, as if the air refused to carry him, so he stayed suspended for a moment… like a clear target—
Ares was there.
Above.
How?
No one saw.
But they saw the fall.
A descending knee, loaded with unnatural weight—
Impact.
The ground shook.
And the body… did not rise.
The third moved around them, trying to find an angle, any opening—
But suddenly—
He stumbled.
No…
He was pulled.
His feet stuck to the ground, his body bent by force, as if an invisible power was pressing him from all sides—
Then Ares appeared in front of him.
Calm.
He raised his hand.
And did not strike.
He only…
Let gravity finish the rest.
He fell.
The three—
At different times.
But with the same result.
The silence that followed…
Was not normal.
Even the air—
Seemed to be waiting.
As for Ares…
He stood there.
Still.
As if everything that happened…
Was only the beginning.
Their breathing was heavy… burning.
Every inhale felt like a knife entering their chests, and every exhale carried what remained of their strength, and yet—they did not retreat.
The three stood for a moment, slightly apart, but their eyes were connected… a silent understanding, one decision, then—they moved.
They advanced together.
Not like children training…
But like wounded hunters who decided to end it with one strike.
As for Ares…
He was still.
His calm was not normal.
It was heavy.
As if the arena itself… was waiting for his signal.
Suddenly—
The first exploded forward.
He rushed, then jumped high, his body twisting in the air, his leg thrusting like a spear falling from the sky, cutting the air with enough force to tear it—
But Ares…
Moved only slightly.
A small shift.
Enough.
The kick passed beside his face, only a hair away from impact.
At that moment…
While the body was still suspended in the air—
Ares raised his eyes to him.
Calm.
Then…
The world dropped on him.
Gravity did not just increase…
It was crushed down.
It collapsed onto the boy's body as if the sky itself fell on him. He was pulled from the air with terrifying force and fell—
No…
He slammed.
Like a projectile.
The ground shook, dust exploded, and his body sank for a moment before becoming still.
But the second had already arrived.
He rushed from the side at deadly speed, trying to use the moment, trying to find an opening—any opening—
But Ares…
Was there before it formed.
One step.
A slight slide.
The attack missed.
Then—
A touch.
Light.
On the leg.
But it was enough to break everything.
His balance collapsed, his body started to tilt, to fall—
At that moment—
The force intervened.
Gravity intensified suddenly, pulling his body toward the ground at an unnatural speed, faster than his reaction, faster than his awareness—
But before he hit—
Ares' leg appeared.
Reinforced.
Tightened with spiritual energy that was glowing around it like a dense flash—
Impact.
The boy's face took the kick completely, between the violent pull of gravity and Ares' explosive strike—
Everything stopped.
His eyes went blank.
And his body completed the fall…
Unconscious.
As for the third…
He did not stop.
He moved.
Disappeared from sight.
Then rushed from behind, silent, fast, deadly—
But Ares…
Did not need to see.
Because what was around him…
Was no longer empty space.
It was a field.
A hidden field of sensation, where gravity detected every disturbance, every movement, every intention…
Before it was completed.
Ares paused.
For a fraction of a moment.
Then—
He disappeared.
The gravity around him became extremely light, his body almost lost its weight, his legs ignited with spiritual energy—
And he jumped.
No…
He broke free from the ground.
He rose at an incredible speed, as if he no longer belonged to it, as if he stepped out of its law for a moment—
Then, at the highest point—
Directly above his opponent—
He froze.
A moment.
Cold.
Still.
Then…
It reversed.
Gravity returned.
But not on him.
On what was below.
On the target.
Then—
He fell.
A descending kick, loaded with all the weight, all the fall, all the force one body could carry—
Like a projectile.
The impact was silent…
But it ended everything.
A moment of calm.
Short.
But it did not last.
The first one… who had fallen at the beginning…
Stood up.
Slowly.
With stubborn determination.
He rushed.
A desperate kick, cutting through the air toward Ares' head—
But…
Once again—
A hair.
Just a hair.
Ares shifted, and the kick passed beside his face, so close that he felt the air pressure on his skin—
At the same moment—
His hand rose.
He grabbed the leg.
But instead of stopping it—
He removed its weight.
Completely.
As if it was no longer connected to the ground.
As if it lost its reality.
The boy's entire body became light… in a terrifying way.
Then—
Without any effort—
He threw him.
Simply.
The body flew out of the arena like a feather thrown by a storm, disappearing far away before the sound of his fall was heard.
The instructor stepped forward with calm steps, his eyes scanning the arena before settling on Ares.
He said in a steady tone, without clear emotion:
"In one month… you became able to face three of your peers and surpass them without real difficulty. Your progress… is noticeable."
He paused for a moment, as if reevaluating what he saw, then added:
"But there is something I do not understand… you possess gravity ability, which is a very rare ability in the universe, and your control over it at this level… so why did you not choose the Elemental Path?"
Ares smiled lightly… a smile that carried certainty more than explanation.
Then he said calmly:
"I have my own path."