Golden light flooded the clearing.
Karl Virex stood at the center of it like a rising sun.
His final skill—Solar Ascension—burned around him in violent waves of radiance. Heat rippled through the air, distorting the forest like a mirage. The ground beneath his feet blackened under the pressure of condensed energy.
Across from him—
Zael stood still.
Wind brushed through the broken trees.
Leaves drifted slowly across the battlefield.
Inside Zael's body, Qi flowed steadily through his meridians.
But this time…
It was different.
The moment Karl activated Solar Ascension, something inside Zael shifted.
The Child of Dao class stirred.
The faint threads of natural energy surrounding the forest suddenly became clearer.
The wind.
The soil.
The quiet life within the trees.
Everything existed in a vast, interconnected flow.
Zael could feel it.
Not with his eyes.
Not even with normal senses.
It was as if the entire forest had become a map inside his mind.
And his body moved naturally within it.
Karl attacked.
Sunstep.
He became a streak of blazing gold.
His blade descended like a falling star.
But before the strike even reached him—
Zael moved.
Not fast.
Just… perfectly timed.
CLANG!
The blades met.
But this time the shock traveled into Karl, not Zael.
Karl's brows tightened.
Zael stepped sideways.
The wind carried him half a step farther than expected.
Night Sever.
Karl blocked—
Yet somehow the strike still forced him backward.
His boots tore through the dirt.
Karl's eyes narrowed.
"…What?"
He attacked again.
Solar Edge blazed.
Zael moved again.
But this time it looked effortless.
Every step followed the movement of the wind.
Every shift of his blade matched the rhythm of the world around him.
Phantom Split.
Karl deflected the illusion—
But the real strike slid through his defense and slammed into his guard.
CRACK!
Karl stumbled.
For the first time since activating Solar Ascension—
He was being suppressed.
Behind them—
Zane blinked.
"…Wait."
Lily leaned forward slightly.
Her spatial senses trembled faintly.
"That… isn't normal movement."
Karl attacked again.
Faster.
Harder.
His blade burned brighter.
Solar Edge.
Sunstep.
Solar Guard layered instinctively.
But every time he attacked—
Zael was already moving.
The wind shifted.
Zael stepped with it.
The ground vibrated.
Zael redirected the force.
It wasn't speed.
It wasn't strength.
It was flow.
Zael stepped forward.
Void Step.
He appeared beside Karl instantly.
Night Sever.
Karl barely blocked.
The force of the strike drove him to one knee.
Shock flashed across his face.
"How—"
Zael moved again.
Phantom Split.
Karl deflected the illusion—
But the real blade struck his armor.
CRACK!
The fracture spread across his chest plate.
Karl gritted his teeth.
Behind Zael—
Zane whispered.
"…Boss is cooking him."
Lily didn't respond.
Her eyes were fixed on Zael.
Because the air around him had changed.
The wind seemed to curve around his body.
Leaves drifted toward him before being carried away again.
The forest itself felt… aligned with him.
High above—
Inside the observation vessel—
The officials stared at the screen.
One analyst spoke quietly.
"He's suppressing Karl."
Another shook his head slowly.
"That shouldn't be possible."
"Karl's Solar Ascension boosts all physical parameters."
The lead examiner leaned forward.
Watching Zael's movements carefully.
"…He's not overpowering him."
"He's controlling the battlefield."
Back in the clearing—
Karl lunged again.
Solar Edge blazing.
Zael sidestepped.
The blade missed by a hair.
Zael stepped inside Karl's range.
Resonance Strike—
Karl raised Solar Guard instinctively.
But Zael's blade stopped just before striking.
For a brief moment—
The entire world felt perfectly clear.
Zael could feel every movement.
Every vibration in the air.
Every shift of energy in Karl's body.
Victory was right there.
One more strike.
One precise movement.
Then—
It vanished.
Like a dream breaking.
The wind returned to normal.
The forest fell silent.
The invisible threads of energy faded instantly.
Zael's senses snapped back to normal.
His body paused for half a second.
And in battle—
Half a second was eternity.
Karl's eyes flashed.
His blade surged forward.
CLANG!
Zael barely blocked in time.
The impact pushed him backward several steps.
Karl jumped back as well.
Both of them created distance.
The clearing fell silent again.
Zael stood still.
Inside his body—
Qi still circulated.
But the perfect connection with the world was gone.
He tried to reach for it again.
Focus.
Breath.
Awareness.
Nothing.
The feeling wouldn't return.
Across the battlefield—
Karl wiped sweat from his forehead.
His Solar Ascension aura flickered slightly.
Then he laughed.
Low.
Breathless.
"…You had me."
Zael said nothing.
Karl straightened.
"You were suppressing me."
His eyes sharpened.
"And then it disappeared."
Zane scratched his head behind Zael.
"…Did boss just lose a buff?"
Lily spoke quietly.
"No."
Her gaze remained fixed on Zael.
"He lost a state."
Karl lifted his blade again.
But this time his smile was calmer.
Satisfied.
"Well."
He exhaled slowly.
"That explains it."
Zael raised his sword again.
Both fighters were breathing harder now.
Solar Ascension was draining Karl.
Zael's brief state had consumed concentration and energy.
Neither had the advantage anymore.
Karl tilted his head slightly.
"…Looks like we're even."
The two of them stood across the shattered clearing.
A stalemate.
Behind them—
Zane stretched lazily.
"Man, I thought that was ending."
Lily watched Zael carefully.
Because she knew something the others didn't.
That state Zael had entered…
Wasn't a skill.
It was something far rarer.
A glimpse of true resonance.
And if Zael ever learned to control it—
Battles like this wouldn't even be fights anymore.
———–
The clearing slowly cooled.
Karl Virex stood with his blade lowered, golden light from Solar Ascension fading little by little around him. The intense heat that had filled the battlefield moments ago dissolved into the ordinary rustle of forest wind.
Across from him, Zael rested his sword against his shoulder.
Neither moved to attack.
For several seconds, the two simply watched each other.
Both breathing harder than before.
Both understanding the same thing.
The fight—at least for now—was over.
Karl finally exhaled and deactivated his aura completely. The blazing solar energy around him vanished, leaving only faint scorch marks on the earth.
He rolled his shoulders and gave a small laugh.
"…Looks like neither of us is winning today."
Zael chuckled lightly.
"Seems that way."
Karl glanced at the fractured battlefield around them—trees shattered, ground split, and scorched earth everywhere.
Then he shook his head slightly.
"If we keep going, one of us might win."
His gaze sharpened.
"But we'd both be in terrible shape when the real monsters show up."
Behind Zael, Zane stretched lazily.
"Oh wow, common sense."
"I thought combat schools outlawed that."
Lily ignored him.
Karl looked back at Zael.
Then calmly extended his hand.
"Let's call it here."
Zael stared at the hand for a moment.
Then clasped it.
Firm.
Respectful.
Karl nodded once.
"But this isn't finished."
His expression held a quiet excitement now.
"When the trial ends."
"When we reach the camp."
His eyes gleamed.
"We fight again."
"This time there will be a winner."
Zael laughed.
A genuine laugh.
"I was thinking the same thing."
Karl grinned.
"Good."
He released Zael's hand and turned toward his teammates, who were now slowly recovering from their earlier defeats.
"Move out."
As he walked away, Karl glanced back once.
"Don't get eliminated before we meet again."
Zane raised two fingers in a lazy salute.
"No promises."
Within moments, the Helios students disappeared into the forest.
The clearing grew quiet again.
For the first time since the Ravager appeared—
There was no enemy.
No pressure.
No incoming attacks.
Zane stretched dramatically.
"Well."
"That was fun."
He dropped onto a fallen tree trunk and leaned back.
"Boss, you almost ended that guy."
Zael sat down nearby, resting his sword beside him.
"Almost."
Lily walked over as well, checking the surrounding forest with a brief spatial scan before relaxing slightly.
"Your condition?"
Zael flexed his fingers.
His body was tired, but not dangerously so.
"The energy circulation helped."
Zane leaned forward.
"Yeah about that."
He pointed.
"What the hell was that thing you did?"
Zael didn't answer immediately.
Because he was thinking about the same thing.
That moment earlier.
When everything had changed.
When the world had become… clear.
He could still remember it perfectly.
The wind.
The ground.
The energy inside the forest itself.
Everything had felt connected.
And he had moved inside that connection effortlessly.
But when he tried to reach for it now—
Nothing.
It was gone.
Zael frowned slightly.
"It wasn't a skill."
Zane blinked.
"Then what was it?"
Zael looked down at his wrist.
His watch flickered faintly.
The status panel appeared.
Name: Zael
Level: 20
Class: Child of Dao
Talents: Supreme Blessing (Mythical), Ascendant Echo (Mythical), Adaptive evolution (mythical)
Skills remained the same.
No new entry.
No record of what had happened.
Zael closed the panel slowly.
"…It wasn't on the system."
Lily's eyes sharpened slightly.
"That makes it more important."
Zane scratched his head.
"So you just… accidentally became stronger?"
Zael leaned back against the tree.
"Something like that."
But inside his mind—
The memory kept replaying.
That feeling had been real.
Completely real.
And if he had kept it for just a few seconds longer—
Karl would have lost.
Zael stared quietly at the forest canopy above.
What was that…?
Meanwhile—
Several meters away—
High in the branches of a massive tree—
A girl sat silently.
Aurelia.
Her silver hair moved gently in the wind as she watched the three below.
Yet none of them looked in her direction.
Not Zael.
Not Lily.
Not even Zane.
It was as if she simply didn't exist in their perception.
A faint distortion wrapped around her figure, blending her presence with the surrounding space.
Her eyes remained fixed on Zael.
And the shock on her face had not faded.
She had witnessed the entire battle.
Every movement.
Every exchange.
Especially that moment.
When Zael had entered that strange state.
Aurelia slowly tightened her grip on the tree branch.
"…So that's why."
Her voice was barely above a whisper.
Earlier, when she had first encountered the group, her talent had reacted.
Strongly.
But she had assumed it was because of Zane.
After all—
Zane had displayed the most obvious strength at the time.
But now she understood.
Her talent hadn't reacted to Zane.
It had reacted to Zael.
Because that moment earlier—
That strange connection with the world itself—
Aurelia had seen something similar only once before.
In a record.
An ancient one.
Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
"…Child of Dao."
Below her—
Zael continued staring up at the sky, lost in thought.
Unaware that someone was watching him.
Unaware that someone had already begun to realize just how unusual his existence truly was.
And far above the forest—
The observation vessel quietly recorded everything.
Because the entrance trial had only just begun.
And the real monsters were still hiding.