The Exalt [Cultivation Fantasy]

Great Elder Robert arrived at the terrace with his usual peaceful face and his eyes closed. He walked on the terrace with steady steps under Grand Commander Margaret's indifferent stare.

"Robert."

"Maggie."

"Don't call me that." Margaret waved the attendants and guards to leave the terrace. Now the two pillars of the Pavilion were alone.

"What did you call me here for? I have so much work with the Grand Gatherings. The Minor Hall is a complete mess right now." Robert grumbled.

"Oscar Terr." Margaret said.

"Excuse me?" Robert was taken aback that Margaret uttered Oscar's name. In the past, she never bothered to remember any student's name, so this shocked him.

"Why was he sent to the Abyss Prison? Why was I not informed of this?" Margaret stepped closer to Robert in a hostile manner.

"Margaret, you never cared about any prisoners. Those are all Draven's concerns, not yours."

"Except this boy appears to know 'Reis Awaken' and 'Flowing Mountain'. Of course, some bright Apprentice and Elite Exalts touch upon 'Ein Awaken' on their own, but 'Flowing Mountain' and 'Reis Awaken'? We all know only Draven is inclined toward that concept."

Robert sighed and nodded his head, giving a letter to Margaret. "This was from Draven when Oscar was admitted into prison."

Margaret read the letter, muttering 'crazy foul-mouthed fraud' with a complicated expression. Her eyes widened slightly at the content.

"So that's why Draven decided to teach the boy. Then who made the request?" She started at Robert with an inquisitory tone. Margaret was akin to Draven because they had no time for nonsense and treated the law and rules as king. Sending this boy to Abyss Prison without real grounds touched her bottom line.

Robert opened his eyes, revealing their blue and red glow to show his seriousness against Margaret's accusatory eyes. "It was the guest, Elder Saul."

"Elder Saul? That elder has not moved in a while, staying put in the Outer Hall for so long. What has prompted him to action? And why Oscar?" Margaret interrogated Robert for an answer.

The old Great Elder turned around to leave. "I do not know. But remember that he is a guest invited by our Pavilion Master. I believe he's not acting against our Pavilion."

Margaret crossed her arms and stared at Oscar, who was struggling against George and the hedgehog. "You seem to favor Elder Saul, while Draven despises him. I'm always the one on the fence, aren't I?"

"Haha. That is true; you've always been the one to mediate between us. I bid you farewell, and do not worry; I'll take care of any issues." Robert departed.

Alone on the terrace, Margaret resumed watching the students' matches with a tired expression, rubbing her temples.

…….

"Austin…." Frederick took out his 'Twin Leaf Swords' in a smooth motion.

"Frederick." Austin took out a dagger. It wasn't his anima, but a real armament. It was dark and unnatural as if it sucked in all the sunlight.

"I never got to ask. How was prison?" Frederick taunted him.

"Your friend, Oscar, should have told you. I spent two weeks there, next to people who took joy in taking my food and beating me to a pulp." Austin's voice was coarse and dark while retelling his experience in the Abyss Prison; his eyes were dark and emotionless, and his dagger anima appeared in his other hand. "I endured and fought back, earning my place. I learned the true meaning of fighting for your life. This battle won't be like last time. No playing around."

"I do not care for your history. But there will be no killing. I will stop the match if it reaches that point." The proctor warned the two of them.

"Of course." Frederick summoned his bird anima. It flew overhead, staring at Austin.

"Ready?" The proctor raised her hand.

Not a single response came from the two combatants. Frederick and Austin locked eyes, unblinking and waiting for the signal.

The proctor sighed, but she saw they were ready. "Begin!"

Frederick unleashed his 'Wind Steps', speeding straight to Austin, who wrapped his two daggers in 'Acid Coat'. Meanwhile, his hawk anima kept overhead, not interfering in the battle but biding its time for an opening.

A fierce clash began as the two dodged, sliced, parried, and stabbed at each other. Frederick and Austin came close to each other due to the short range of their weapons.

Frederick thanked Oscar and Emily for training with him. His swordsmanship had progressed to a great degree. But his eyes narrowed at Austin, who kept up with no issue. 'This guy is really talented.'

Austin's daggers were swift and erratic, like the slithering of a snake. Frederick was forced to defend several times before he could counter with one attack.

"Will you be spending so much time on defending?" Austin deflected Frederick's sword and stabbed toward his throat, making the proctor tense up to interfere if needed.

But from a blind angle, Frederick's other hand swung the sword at Austin's neck. The two immediately blocked each one's killing blow as loud clangs of metal beat against their eardrums.

'This is bad.' The proctor focused her Ein to be prepared. These children were not to be trifled with. Their determination to kill each other was unusual for their age.

More flashes of swings came from them as sparks flew out from their weapons.

'This bastard….' Frederick noticed how Austin was perfectly calm and composed, even amidst these dangerous strikes. He thought Austin would be enraged or rash in seeking his revenge, but he miscalculated Austin's state of mind.

"You're distracted," Austin said coldly.

Sensing the incoming danger, Frederick used 'Wind Steps' to retreat. A swift dagger slashed right as he managed to get away. But the dagger cut his jacket, very close to drawing flesh and the 'Acid Coat' worked to melt parts of his sleeves. "Kuh."

"You're faster than before, but my daggers can catch that." Austin rushed in, not wanting to give Frederick any space.

'Wind Steps'

Frederick retreated again to gather his thoughts, but Austin was unrelenting. To Frederick's shock, Austin could keep up with his increased speed.

"How the hell?" Frederick, while fighting off Austin's attacks, observed his enemy. He saw Austin's body had a thin layer of thick dark Ein. "Body Strengthening Spell?"

A body-strengthening spell increases a body's capabilities, from its toughness to speed and power. Of course, not to the extent of specialized spells like Frederick's 'Wind Steps'.

"Grade One Rounder's Gift" Thanks to his instincts, Austin could already keep up with Frederick's speed in their first match. With this spell, he was more than able to suppress Frederick.

The clash continued over the stage as Frederick and Austin moved quickly everywhere while ferociously attacking each other. The sight of sparks and the sound of clangs filled the entire stage.

The proctor floated in mid-air to keep track of the entire stage while letting them fight freely without her in the way. Her eyes rapidly moved as they followed the two boys locked in combat.

Neither gave in.

The battle reached a standstill.

Austin was expressionless, but he had one worry, Frederick's other spell. From what he gathered, he knew Frederick took on various missions and accumulated points, so there was no doubt in his mind that Frederick got a new spell. The question was, what spell did he get?

To maintain his Ein usage, Austin canceled 'Acid Coat'.

Frederick was increasingly frustrated from Austin's endless chase, like a dog refusing to let go of what it had bitten. The speed and power of Austin's daggers were boldened by 'Rounder's Gift' and forced Frederick to play defensively.

"Tch." Frederick's right sword began to glow as he unleashed his new spell. A slash of light flew out from it toward Austin, who immediately activated his 'Acid Coat' on his daggers. The slash of light met against the acid, but Austin was blown back until the light melted.

"Grade One Brilliant Slash"

Frederick unleashed more 'Brilliant Slash', slowly forcing Austin back as he had to defend. The 'Acid Coat' was great against physical things, but it lacked the same corrosive speed against spells like this 'Brilliant Slash'.

'Aren't you being too wasteful with this?' Austin felt it was odd that Frederick kept releasing large slashes like this, using up a lot of Ein with each blow. 'Also, you can't use it on both swords.'

Frederick was not proficient enough in his spell, so he could only use it with one blade at a time. This discrepancy did not escape Austin's eye.

Austin inched closer little by little. Slowly, he dodged and blocked each incoming blow. By seeing which sword, Frederick was using, Austin would know how to move and counter.

'What are you planning?' Austin tasted defeat at Frederick's hand because of his arrogance and Frederick's tricks. This time, he would take everything Frederick does as suspicious.

Finally, Austin was right before Frederick, breathing hard from his efforts. Austin was not in the best condition due to dealing with every blow.

The two tired, bitter enemies looked at each other and drew deep breaths. In an instant, Frederick's right sword shined as it slashed toward Austin. The sword was about to release a 'Brilliant Slash' at close range, but Austin's dagger moved to block it.

Austin was wary as the slash came in. It was inconceivable that Frederick would waste all this effort just to do a simple slash.

Right before Frederick's sword was blocked, the glow faded. Suddenly, his left sword slashed at Austin. The right sword was a feint.

But Austin was prepared for that and blocked Frederick's surprise attack.

The swords and daggers were deadlocked, grinding against each other and making scraping noises that irritated the ears.

"Do you think you can overwhelm me with brute strength?!" Austin roared. His time in the Abyss Prison had strengthed his body, and he held some confidence against Frederick.

"No, but this is fine. You guessed right that I can't use the 'Brilliant Slash' on both swords. Whenever I try, my Ein goes crazy and explodes. It's pointless and self-harming unless my enemy is very close." Frederick's yellow eyes stared unwaveringly at Austin.

"You crazy bastard!" Austin tried to back away, but it was too late.

Frederick's swords glowed with light, but then the torrent of Ein exploded out of them, blowing Frederick back to the edge of the stage. His face was slightly burned, and his clothes were slightly scorched.

The proctor did not have time to interfere and looked on in horror. She did not expect this student to take it so crazily.

"Did it work?" Frederick looked at the cloud of smoke that covered where Austin stood.

"Bas-bastard" A figure stepped out of the smoke, Austin. His clothes were nearly burnt off, his skin was slightly dark but not burnt, and his nose was bleeding. His 'Rounder's Gift' had prevented the worst.

Austin stared at Frederick, who was sitting on the stage. He saw how Frederick's current state and realized what he had forgotten.

In the first battle, this maniac was ready to sacrifice his own hand to win. Now, here, he was willing to blow himself up. Austin coughed up blood that was boiling from the heat.

He struggled to keep moving.

Frederick stared at the struggling Austin and spoke in a low, hateful tone. "Stop."

Austin was stunned, frozen, and unable to move. Staring at Frederick was like staring into a dark, bottomless pit. The face of the man was unlike his usual playfulness. It was an icy expression that sent shivers down Austin's spine.

"You don't even understand what it means to want revenge. An eye? That is nothing compared to what I've lost."

Frederick's voice made Austin feel fear. The hate and anger emanating from Frederick were not directed toward Austin, but he still felt it.

Just what is this man?