The Training Grounds roared with anticipation. Students and instructors from every race—humans, elves, orcs, dwarves, and even dragons in human form—lined the arena. All eyes were fixed on the sparring ring where Dante stood across from Instructor Kahlup.
Avabel Ruthwilfer stepped into the viewing area, her dark robe swaying with her confident stride. Taka trailed behind, eyes narrowed and jaw clenched.
"Let's see how he fares against a seasoned instructor... with mana," Avabel said, a grin pulling at her lips.
"I hope he dies from an accident," Taka muttered bitterly.
Avabel gave a small laugh. "Calm yourself, nephew. If Dante dies, Kahlup would lose both his position as instructor and his title as general. But Kahlup... he's a good man. He wouldn't go that far."
She placed a reassuring hand on Taka's shoulder.
"Unless, of course... it's an accident," she added with a chilling smirk. "Just wait for a few exchanges. Once they're tired, you'll see."
She walked forward to the edge of the stands, then turned slightly, her eyes gleaming.
"All things are rewarded through... unforeseen consequences."
A long, deliberate pause.
"Wait," she said with a sly smile. Something was brewing behind that calm expression.
---
In the ring, Dante and Kahlup took their stances.
"Ready, boy?" Kahlup asked.
"Ready, Sir," Dante replied, voice loud and clear.
Without warning, the two launched at each other. Fists collided. The impact echoed across the arena.
Kahlup grabbed Dante's wrist and pulled, delivering a swift punch—but Dante twisted free, thrusting his palm forward.
His style… interesting, Dante thought. I need to read his movements.
He shifted into a defensive stance, analyzing Kahlup's rhythm and flow.
Smart, Kahlup thought. He's reading my attacks... but he'll need to be faster—
His thought froze.
Dante's fingers locked onto Kahlup's arm in an unexpected counter. A quick pressure point strike to the chest sent Kahlup staggering back. He touched the spot.
"What... did he just...?" he muttered.
His legs wobbled. A haze filled his vision.
"Feeling tired, sir?" Dante said coolly. "Good."
Dante launched into a palm-strike flurry. His movements were precise, targeting nerves and pressure points with unnerving accuracy.
Each hit thundered like ten.
What is this boy's strength?! Kahlup reeled. It's like every strike carries the weight of a hundred fists!
Just as Dante's final blow was about to land, he froze it midair.
Then stepped back, composed.
"Thank you for the sparring lesson, sir," he said, bowing.
"Damn brat," Kahlup wheezed, chuckling. "Don't think a weird style like that wins every fight. Hahaha!"
They shared a respectful laugh—until a voice pierced through.
"That was a spar?!" Avabel called out, mockery in her voice. Though she planned to put the 'accidental' blame on Kahlup but it ended early. So she improvise.
She stood with Taka before the crowd.
"How about a match against Taka, Dante?"
Kahlup stepped forward. "With all due respect, Lady Avabel Ruthwilfer, but you cannot just—"
"Okay," Dante interrupted.
Kahlup blinked. "Dante, this isn't a joke. That's Avabel Ruthwilfer, and—"
"I know." Dante leaned in and whispered, "Secretly call Lady Diana. And the Patriarch. Tell them what's happening."
Kahlup hesitated. "But—"
"Enough!" Taka stepped forward, his aura rising. Avabel's hand pressed discreetly against his back, channeling her mana into his core. A sudden surge. His mana erupted to Stage Four.
The crowd gasped.
Two Ruthwilfers. One born of legacy, the other... a mistake.
"A sword, huh?" Dante said, arms folded.
"Shut it! Only the strongest live. The weak get crushed," Taka snarled.
Then came the venom.
"I heard about your mother," Taka sneered. "That whore. Aunt Avabel was right to kill her. She was filth. Uncle Will only saw her as a—"
His words were cut off as steel clashed with flesh.
Taka's sword rang out.
Something snapped.
Dante launched forward, fists a blur.
What is this strength?! Taka's thoughts raced.
They'd grown up differently—Taka, raised with wealth and pride; Dante, with only borrowed books from the library Eva allowed him to read. While Taka bathed in luxury, Dante survived on scraps and silence.
And yet, Dante had reinvented the world around him. Chocolate. Toys. Medicine. Wealth. Innovation.
And now—vengeance.
The fists kept coming.
Taka swung his sword in precise arcs, but Dante dodged with ease. On the sidelines, Zhurong and Lytharis watched with bated breath. They saw it—not just anger. Fury controlled, caged behind Dante's eyes.
The blows intensified. Steel met flesh. Then—
Crimson.
A scratch opened on Dante's chest.
"Dante!!" Zhurong and Lytharis screamed.
Their collision resumed—faster, harder, as if both sought to erase the other from existence.
---
Back at the Ruthwilfer estate.
Lady Diana gasped, clutching a crystal message.
"WHAT?!"
Fina, her personal bodyguard, appeared in a blink.
"Fina!" Diana cried, lifting herself with her walking stick. "Get to the academy! Stop them before they destroy each other!"
"Yes, my lady!" Fina vanished in a blur.
In another chamber, Will Ruthwilfer stood stunned, a crystal flickering in his hand.
"SIMON!"
"Yes, Patriarch!" his stone-faced bodyguard responded.
"Get to the academy! Make sure Dante isn't even scratched!"
Simon vanished, the air vibrating behind him.
---
Back at the arena—
"I'm going to kill you, dormant trash!" Taka screamed as his sword slashed Dante's chest.
Blood seeped through fabric.
Zhurong and Lytharis cried out.
Avabel grinned. With a subtle flick, her mana surged through Taka. His body pulsed with red light.
"No! Taka, STOP!" Kahlup roared, charging in—but he was too late.
Taka raised his sword. The aura around it exploded—Stage Four.
The ground shook as the blast struck Dante's spot dead on.
Dust and debris erupted. Screams filled the air.
"DANTE!!!" Zhurong shrieked.
When the dust cleared, the field was wrecked.
And one figure still stood.
"Hehehe…HAHAHAHA!!!" Taka laughed. "You see? You're nothing. A mistake. A—"
He stopped.
Eyes wide.
From the haze, Dante stood tall. His fists were glowing. Not with raw mana... but something deeper.
Gloves.
Black leather gloves adorned with thirty small mana crystals each. Purple and black energy flowed from them.
"No…" Taka stammered.
Avabel bit her nail so hard, it cracked.
"He..."
Zhurong wiped her tears. Lytharis collapsed in relief.
Dante.
Alive. Standing. Power flowing around him like a storm.
"These?" Dante raised his hands. The gloves shimmered.
"Handmade. I almost forgot to leave them in my room after testing. Lucky me."
The mana crystals pulsed as he stepped forward, energy building.
"I studied mana crystals," he said softly, voice echoing across the silent arena. "Amplifications and altercations were really a little.... disturbing odd, that is." Dante said with a smirck as he looks at Taka's fear like face.
"And I knew something like this would happen." His eyes turned slightly to Avabel as she realized, Dante knew her planned.
Now he turned back to Taka. His fist on his palm and cracked his knuckles on each fingers together. By the crack of his knuckles. The mana burst the ground in a center cobweb under Dante's feet at the center between them.
Then looking at his worn torn shirt. He tore it out. The crowds went gasping. The female students of all races felt hot all of a sudden. Using their hands as a fan. But the most was Zhurong and Lytharis.
"Oh. My. Mera ." They both said in unison in a fury of red blush to see Dante was chiseled. Both muscular and Athlethic built.
For a fifteen year old.
Once his shirt was torn. He tied it around his waist tightly and gave a mocking middle finger to Taka with a wave to come at him full swing and finally said.
"And now... I'll show you what knowledge can do."
"Where brains, beats brawns."
---
Chapter 20 — End.