## CHAPTER 15: The Phantom's Cadence
Silas landed softly, his right foot absorbing the impact of his bicycle kick with the silent grace of a cat. He didn't spare a glance at the body of the noble sprawled outside the ring. He simply reached up, adjusted the hem of his hoodie, and turned to leave.
But the ring wasn't finished with him.
A ragged, wet groan echoed through the Bastion. To the absolute shock of the spectators, the noble boy—who should have been unconscious after such a strike—began to push himself up. His face was a mask of bruised pride and desperation, a deep, trembling frown etched into his features. He stood on shaky legs, unwilling to let the world see him defeated by a "Commoner."
Silas stopped in his tracks. He slowly turned his head, the darkness of his hood still masking his eyes.
"You can still forfeit," Master Erwin said, stepping forward with a look of concern. "You are in no condition to continue this fight."
"I'll... fight!" the boy screamed, his voice cracking with a mixture of rage and tears.
The crowd, moved by the noble's stubborn refusal to stay down, erupted in a thunderous outburst of applause. "Finish him!" they cheered. "Show the commoner who's boss!"
"It won't end like this," the noble hissed, his gaze fixed on Silas. "No matter what... I'll still win."
Master Erwin sighed and turned to Silas. "Do you still wish to continue?"
Silas responded with a single, slow, deliberate nod.
"Alright then. Both sides, pick up your weapons."
"That won't be necessary," Silas said.
His voice was a void—cold, relaxed, and unnervingly calm. It was a stillness that didn't belong in a child, a sound so hollow it sent a shiver of primal fright down Master Erwin's spine. The instructor actually took a step back, momentarily losing his breath.
The noble stared at Silas, his heart hammering against his ribs. He waited for a punch, a kick, or a surge of mana. But Silas didn't move an inch. The boy looked around, confused. Suddenly, the cheers of the crowd seemed to muffled, as if the air had turned into thick, grey wool. A strange, unnatural fog began to roll across the tiles of the ring.
"What's going on?" the noble whispered to himself.
He turned back to Silas, and for the first time, he saw past the shadow of the hood. Two Red Eerie Glows burned where Silas's eyes should have been.
Then the ground beneath the noble's feet began to rumble. The slate tiles cracked and groaned as giant, bone-white snakes slithered out from the dark fissures. The noble's eyes widened to the size of saucers. His breathing became shallow hitches of terror. No one at the academy knew he had a paralyzing phobia of reptiles, but Silas shouldn't have known.
"This can't be real"
"This can't be real"
The snakes didn't just slither; they surged. They coiled around the boy's legs, their cold, dry scales squeezing his chest tight, pinning his arms to his sides. One massive serpent crawled up his torso until it was eye-to-eye with him. Its eyes were pools of boiling blood, and as it opened its maw to reveal fangs the size of daggers, the boy's mind finally snapped.
********************
"Help!!!!!!!!"
"Help me!!!!!!!!"
"I don't want to die!!!!"
To the crowd, the ring looked perfectly normal. There were no snakes. There was no fog. There was only Silas standing perfectly still, and the noble boy screaming in absolute, lung-bursting terror at the empty air. The boy's eyes were fixed on the sky, looking at a ghost only he could see.
Two of the boy's companions scrambled into the ring, horrified, to pull their friend away. He was a total wreck, sobbing and clawing at his own skin as if trying to remove invisible coils.
**The Aftermath:**
The Bastion remained in a state of fear . Master Erwin stared at the noble being carried away, then at the "Commoner" who had broken a high-born spirit without even lifting a finger. He didn't understand the magic used—it felt deeper, older than the spells taught at Aethelgard.
"Winner," Master Erwin announced, his voice hoarse with a sudden, deep-seated respect. "**Silas Hashira.**"
Louisa and Edna, standing behind the mesmerized **Lyra Valerius**, shared a knowing, grim look. They knew Silas was the most dangerous among them when he was pushed.