Martial Demons Ascension

The buzz of excitement didn't fade as the students filed out of the classroom. If anything, it grew stronger with every step down the hall The chatter bounced off the walls, carried by nervous energy and anticipation

They weren't heading to the training yard they normally used for light enchantment drills No this time Emmet was leading them to the large battle stage, a place most of them had only seen in glimpses.

The stage wasn't for beginners It wasn't even for casual lessons This was where older students those who had passed the threshold of awakening a core and chosen to continue their magical studies trained against each other in combat simulations.

It was bigger, harsher, designed for serious clashes Wide stone platforms stretched across the floor, separated by runic barriers that shimmered faintly in the air The walls were higher, reinforced with protective wards to contain stray spells Charred marks scarred the stone in several places proof of the battles that had already taken place here.

For the younger students, stepping inside felt like entering another world.

Emmet split them into two groups of fifteen, pointing them toward the rings where they would fight.

"Two matches will go on simultaneously," he said. "Two last ones standing. Remember spells allowed, full enhancement allowed Don't waste this chance."

The murmurs picked up again as the groups organized.

Rinnte and Eto ended up in the same group. The moment the list was finalized, the two of them exchanged another look, one filled with the same quiet weight as before They both knew what it meant: whichever one of them went all out, the other would be forced to adapt and whoever survived to the end would be weakened.

Neither said a word, but the thought was there in both their eyes: being grouped together is a disadvantage.

Across the ring, Millis stretched his shoulders, grinning ear to ear.

"Hah! Looks like I'm top dog here," he announced loudly enough for half the group to hear "Eto and Rinnte can choke each other out over there This side? Mine."

Hella laughed at his side, egging him on. A few others nodded or muttered in agreement, caught up in his bravado Millis stood tall, puffing out his chest, enjoying the moment as though he had already won.

"Can't wait to see who lasts long enough to challenge me," he added, cracking his knuckles for show.

It didn't take long before someone asked the question lingering in the back of several minds.

"Hey… where's Rhyka?"

Heads turned, scanning the stage, but the boy was nowhere to be seen.

"Did he chicken out?" Millis said with a smirk, seizing the chance instantly "Wouldn't surprise me He got lucky dodging a rock and a little flame, but now that spells are allowed? He'd get cooked alive."

A couple of students chuckled. Others frowned, glancing around, unsure if Rhyka was actually gone for good.

Millis stretched again, satisfied "Figures. Cowards don't last long in this place."

Hella leaned in with a grin "Maybe he finally realized his place."

The laughter spread a little more freely this time, but underneath it was a nervous curiosity. Nobody believed Rhyka would actually just walk away but the longer he didn't show, the more the question gnawed at them.

Where was he?The noise of speculation filled the arena, a rolling tide of voices bouncing between stone walls Millis was still laughing, still bragging about how Rhyka must have run off, when the sound of boots hitting stone cut through the chatter.

Thump Thump Thump

Someone landed in a low crouch at the edge of the ring, the motion smooth, practiced, almost theatrical The body rolled forward into a clean flip before sticking the landing with perfect balance The class collectively flinched not out of fear, but out of surprise.

When the figure straightened, there was no mistaking who it was.

Rhyka.

But not the Rhyka they knew.

A curved blade rested loosely in his hand, its steel glinting under the arena lights. A half-mask of dark red trimmed with gold covered the upper half of his face, leaving only his mouth visible, curled into the faintest smirk. The combination was so out-of-place, so deliberately dramatic, that the silence lasted for only two beats before the classroom erupted.

"…Oh gods."

"Is he serious?"

"He bought a mask?"

"That's pathetic."

Laughter rippled through the groups, sharp and mocking Some doubled over, others whispered behind their hands, a few outright pointed at him Even Eto's fan club, normally busy ignoring Rhyka entirely, couldn't help but join in.

Emmet, however, didn't laugh.

The moment Rhyka landed, his eyes had narrowed He froze in place, watching the boy's footwork, the balance of his crouch, the way he had shifted his weight before flipping into the ring That wasn't clumsy showboating That was precise movement. He recognized it instantly the kind of body control that shouldn't have belonged to an untrained, magicless child.

His brows furrowed, his expression betraying only the smallest flicker of unease before he masked it again.

"Two purchases," Rhyka said suddenly, lifting the blade and holding the mask at an angle for everyone to see His voice was calm, but dripping with deliberate arrogance. "So thanks."

The pouch Emmet had handed him was gone Every coin spent The implication was clear.

The laughter redoubled.

"You actually wasted money on that junk?" Millis barked, clutching his stomach.

"He thinks a toy sword makes him strong!" someone jeered.

"Nice mask, bandit-boy!" another yelled, mocking.

The ridicule rolled over him like waves against rock Rhyka didn't flinch. Instead, he slowly tilted his head, exaggeratedly cracking his neck left and right until the sound echoed across the arena.

Then he pointed his blade toward the center of his group.

"I'll go first."

The statement carried no hesitation, no second-guessing It was blunt, absolute.

For a moment, even the laughter faltered.

"…What?"

"He's serious?"

"He thinks he can fight first and last?"

But Rhyka wasn't finished He turned his masked gaze across the arena, locking eyes first with Eto, then with Rinnte His voice carried clearly, cutting through the noise.

"And whichever one of you two wins your group" he paused deliberately, the edge of a smirk pulling at his mouth"I'll beat the shut out of you

The arrogance of it was so far beyond anything they expected that even the jeering students fell into stunned silence for a heartbeat.

Eto blinked, caught between shock and disbelief

Rinnte's jaw tightened, though he kept his expression otherwise calm His eyes, however, betrayed a flicker of interest.

"Did he just"

"He's in Millis's group!"

"He actually thinks he can take everyone and then fight Eto or Rinnte after?!"

Mockery filled the air again, louder than before Students shouted insults, laughed openly, waved him off like a madman.

But one thought circled in many of their minds, unspoken but present:

The mask really has made him delusional.