At this point, the area around them was a complete ruin, the black platform, whose hardness was out of this world, nowhere to be seen.
Magnus and Ae'zard gazed downward at the unfolding battle, each with small smiles on their faces, but obviously for different reasons.
For Magnus, this was exactly what he wanted: a battle so intense that it would push Atticus to his very limits.
It could never be the same thing as when he was battling Atticus. Magnus was far too powerful for Atticus; the battle had no significance. It was almost the same when battling robots; no amount of programming could make them fight like real humans. Robots were ultimately robots.
During battle, especially against a single opponent, it was impossible for just one side to feel the thrill of battle without the opponent also feeling it too.
Atticus had the Ravenstein blood flowing within him. Even though he had some questionable abilities, it didn't matter. It was basically tradition at this point.
Everyone in the human domain knew that members of the Ravenstein family loved fighting; it wasn't a secret. It was a part of their trait, their blood.
It was usually always done after the academy and before the military. But as soon as youths of the Ravenstein family finished their three years of academy, they would each undergo an intense battle and experience their thrill if they hadn't already.
The feeling might seem normal to some people, just a feeling of excitement when battling, but to the Ravensteins, it was more than that.
If one should look at each of the extremely successful people in history, they would notice some kind of pattern. Every single one of them, at least 99%, had reached such a level because of one thing: passion.
Once one was incredibly passionate about something, one way or another, that person would find a way to succeed.
Feeling a thrill during battle brings exactly this feeling to the members of the Ravenstein family, and in doing so, opens up a world of remarkable possibilities that they would have otherwise not known existed.
Their love for battle would intensify. Everything would flow smoothly, from their movements to their next actions, and even predicting the next movements and attacks of their opponent would become easier.
They would reach a new level of focus they never thought possible, becoming another person entirely.
From everything he knew about Atticus and his overwhelming strength, there was only one option that came to mind when it came to finding his opponent: Apexes.
Magnus could see the speed and ease at which Atticus was utilizing his elemental mimicry art.
Despite having so many elements to choose from, he always seemed to adopt the perfect style and movement according to the need, the nature of his movement shifting at each passing second.
He was feeling the thrill! He was becoming freer, more instinctive. He was unleashing his true potential! This was exactly what Magnus wanted!
Now Atticus would be able to experience an intense amount of growth, not from rank or the amount of mana in his core, but in true battle sense.
Things would flow more naturally, he would move more smoothly and without hesitation. He would understand and feel things he wouldn't normally understand and feel.
It was an awesome feeling, akin to the term sports people back on Earth use when they suddenly perform way beyond their usual limits—he was in the Zone!
Meanwhile, Ae'zard's smile was more subtle, more calm, but there was no doubt about it—he was utterly shocked beyond words.
The Aeonians had never for even one second thought the human domain worthy of their time. It wasn't only them; most of the other races also followed this path.
And yet, here was a human boy matching the apex of their race. Ae'zard knew Atticus's age, knowing who his grandson was going to battle was a natural thing to do.
It was unnerving. It wasn't something he could say out loud and expect people to believe him, despite his overwhelming strength. It was just that unbelievable.
What did this mean? What were the implications? Would the power dynamics be shifting? Just what would happen in the next Veriatega Nexus?
Ae'zard's gaze suddenly narrowed, and he couldn't help but chuckle in the next second. 'He got me good,' he thought.
He turned towards Magnus, his smile widening. 'He got me really good,' Ae'zard thought once more.
Atticus's existence was something that every single other race would want to know of. But because of the terms of the mana contract, Ae'zard, and everyone else in attendance, weren't allowed to disclose anything about Atticus to anyone.
Granted, Ae'ark and Ae'na hadn't signed any contracts. It was up to Ae'zard to use any method he deemed fit to silence them. In essence, not a single piece of information about Atticus and his strength could be disclosed to the other races, even his own!
Ae'zard couldn't help but feel cheated, but he simply shrugged it off. What was done was done; there was no changing it.
Currently, there were far more interesting things happening. He removed his gaze from Magnus and focused it on the fight.
Magnus and Ae'zard weren't the only two figures in the sky. At a little distance away, Avalon and Sirius were both suspended high above the air, their intense gazes fixated on the battle.
Avalon had a completely wide grin on his face, his hands clenched, and excitement palpable. He had watched the battle from the beginning, and words could not do justice to describe his current feelings.
Avalon was beyond proud. Seeing was truly believing. He had heard a lot about Atticus's talent, but now was truly the first time he was seeing it face to face.
It went without saying—it was thoroughly blood-pumping.
It hit differently, seeing your kin display such overwhelming talent. Avalon felt as though he should go around the human domain announcing to everyone that this was his child!
'Come on, my boy, you can do it,' Avalon inwardly cheered. If Atticus could defeat an apex here, it would be nothing less than history making.