As Kain stepped onto the battlefield, a tangible shift rippled through the watching crowd. The instructors watched carefully, making quick, whispered notes to one another. Kain's victory wasn't guaranteed, but it was no longer the impossibility many assumed. After Serena's impressive display, he now felt countless eyes boring into his back—curious, expectant, and wary.
And wary eyes were the worst. Kain would have much preferred for the upperclassmen to still not take him seriously.
On the opposite side of the arena, Dmitri Sanguine stepped forward silently, expressionless and composed. His black hair glistened faintly under the artificial lights, matching the dark, heavy aura he carried with him. Everything about Dmitri suggested meticulous calculation and suppressed danger. While his younger brother Alexei was impulsive and brash, Dmitri was the quiet observer. The tactician.
They stood facing each other, neither moving nor blinking.
