To Theron’s senses, the fist practically moved in slow motion. He watched as it approached him, his eyebrow slowly raising.
BANG!
The fist seemed to land on his face, but Theron was still staring at it, his body having not moved a single inch.
[Shedding Water Skin].
Theron hadn’t wasted his time upon his return. With his comprehension increase, pushing all of the Bronze Resonance spells he had chosen to Consummate had been far too easy.
It wasn’t just a matter of his comprehension either, but the formation of his Manaborn Resonance. Water Mana somehow came even more naturally to him now than it ever had before.
Even if [Shedding Water Skin] hadn’t been built on many concepts of [Bursting Water Shield], he would have still pushed it to Adept with a glance at the runes that formed it. Because it had been, though, he had long pushed it to Consummate as well.
There didn’t even seem to be a ripple of water around him at all, the transparent blue so clear it just seemed to tinge his skin just the slightest bit.
The commotion in the surroundings came to a slow halt as everyone looked over.
“… Are you finished?” Theron asked.
Holden’s wrists were trembling, his knuckles having already split and begun to bleed.
Support was something that Water Mancers were quite good at. Their defensive methods weren’t nearly as good as Earth Mancers, but they were more than decent. This, however… seemed to be on an entirely different level.
None of them even sensed Theron’s Mana move.
The only reason Rowan had Holden attack in the first place was because he had sensed Silver Mana coming from Theron. But he had no idea what level Theron was at.
Given the time between then and now, it should just be First Resonance at most. But how was Theron so strong, then?
Theron’s head turned back toward the receptionist and Holden stumbled back, grasping his hand to try and stop it from shaking.
“Are there rules against attacking the Imperial Academy?” Theron asked.
Flustered, the receptionist could only hurriedly nod, but then she shook her head, then nodded again.
Then she keeled over and fainted.
This was her best option at this point. She didn’t know the background of any of these people, but she couldn’t afford to offend any of them.
Theron had, of course, asked just for show. He knew exactly what the rules were. In the Imperial Academy, all fights could only take place in sanctioned arenas with supervision of an overseeing elder.
The problem was that these rules only applied to actual students here. He technically didn’t count as one, and neither were these Sect disciples.
“Which family of losers are you from?” Theron asked, tilting his head to the side as though genuinely curious.
“What did you just say?” Rowan’s eyes flashed.
“Well, I assume for you to come here and attack me without a word, it could only be because I killed someone you sent back when I challenged all the Bronze Mancers of the province. Isn’t that so?”
Rowan’s face stiffened.
“So… which family of losers are you from?”
The group of more than a dozen were all suddenly furious. All thoughts of the crown prince and pleasing him flew out of the window.
They were a Marquis Clan, not something a live-in son-in-law could so easily turn his nose up at. But before they could say anything, Theron spoke first again.
“No response? I guess it also doesn’t matter. If you want, I’ll give you another chance. Anyone at First Silver Resonance is welcome to challenge me. If you can last 10 exchanges, you can have my head. How about it?”
The silence of the hall gave way to shocked murmurs. Such arrogant words, they had heard some faint inklings about something similar before. Could he and that person be one in the same?
A ripple of Mana came from Theron and a badge appeared in his palm. He tossed it behind him and it landed on the receptionist’s desk, right on a set of runes that activated all on their own.
Theron seemed to understand how these things worked like the back of his hand.
Barely a few dozen meters away, something in the large hall shifted and a large group of students were forced to move away as a platform elevated.
Theron had already calmly walked over and took a step onto it.
“Well?” Theron asked. “Who is coming?”
Holden’s eyes lit up with fury. He had already forgotten about how much he had made fun of Rowan, unsheathing his great sword and taking a heavy step forward.
With a leap, he landed on the platform with a booming resonance.
His Flux Mana surged, shingles of heavy silver armor forming out from it and slapping into place on his body.
He roared, an echo that disrupted natural Mana flow pulsing through the air and whipping Theron’s head back.
Holden stomped the ground, rushing forward. He cut across the air like a rushing bull, a harsh whistling pulling against the skin of his face and through the gaps in his Flux Armor.
In a blink, he had already appeared before Theron, his great sword flashing down from the skies.
Theron took a step forward.
It was almost eerie how well timed it was, so perfect that Theron’s palm lightly touched Holden’s forehead the instant all of his momentum transferred to his blade.
There was a ripple of Water Mana that shattered the sound spell Holden had only just used. A small drop of water rapidly increased in size until it encased his body.
[Water Prison].
Holden’s body was forced to a stop. And then… his body began to spin.
The waters churned, once current spinning him to the left before another formed from the right, spinning him the other way. He flipped upside down, then right side up, then at an angle.
As though stuck in a spinning cycle, Holden lost sense of up and down, water even opening his mouth and forcing its way down.
The First Resonance Silver Mancer lost consciousness, his eyes rolling into the back of his head.