To the observers the fight was a blur, but to Axel that was far from the case. In fact, even as Nero firmly wrapped himself around Axel’s upper body, and used the weight of his own body to pull Axel down, Axel had the time to think.
Yet, instead of thinking about how to get out of his situation, Axel kept thinking about the aether. Had Nero actually used his aether control to throw a feint? It was so natural and seamless that Axel was actually fooled, which was far from easy.
His original opinion had been to ruthlessly dominate Nero in a fight to test his resolve, but who knew that Nero would actually be able to trick him like that. Moreover, Axel had already seen Nero’s resolve. Faced with a foe he could not beat, Nero unleashed his bloodlust, aiming to kill rather than to defeat.
The difference was notable, otherwise there would not have been a need for the distinction. Such a mindset was something Axel could admire, truly. In fact, he admired it so much that he nearly thought of letting Nero get his wish for half a second. But then he changed his mind.
Even as Axel fell, he lifted his left foot and balanced completely on the right, allowing his body to twirl perfectly, using Nero’s weight to add speed to his twirl. That had allowed him to regain his balance, and Axel slammed down his left foot once more, and used all his strength to grab Nero and fling him across the arena.
Nero could not react fast enough, and the next thing he knew, he crashed into the referee who was standing outside - though he miraculously did not suffer any injuries. Or maybe the referee was just used to catching cadets.
For a few seconds, he was unable to react. Just as he was about to fight desperately, as if it were a battle of life and death, the match was over. He never even got a chance to react the moment the formidable redheaded opponent wanted to end the fight. It seemed like... the difference between ranks was not something that could be overcome with only dedication and focus.
Then, his gaze fell to the floor. While he had left the arena entirely, the redheaded man’s left foot had left its original position. Was that all he could achieve? While Nero pondered over how feeble a change his best efforts had wrought, the rest of the cadets were watching the scene with shock! Axel’s foot had actually moved!
This was not a small feat! Axel was already both famous and notorious inside KMA for various reasons. His notoriety came from the fact that he didn’t hold back his strength, and often used his full capabilities as a Mystic in a fight even with cadets.
Thus, for him to win was not shocking. Instead, the fact that he had been made to move was what shocked them! An Initiate had moved a Mystic in combat! While that seemed pathetic, in truth it was probably a historical first. Whether something like this had ever happened before was something they could not know, they were sure something like this had never happened to Axel at least. That was enough.
"You are not bad at all," said Axel. "You have permission to issue Crucible challenges to whomever you wish. I will leave a few notes for you to review about your combat style with Madame Isabella - you may collect them from her tomorrow morning to review."
With his words said, the redheaded man turned to leave, but Nero stopped him.
"Wait," he called out. "Can I know your name?"
The redhead quickly turned back and looked at Nero with surprise. Was there actually someone in the academy who didn’t know him? But then again, the new cadets hadn’t been here long enough to hear about the rumors surrounding him.
"My name is Axel Anzem, and I am a professor here at KMA. If your performance continues to shine, then you may get a chance to meet me again," he said with a confident smirk, and then left.
Nero did not stop him again. Axel Anzem - Nero hadn’t heard about him, but he at least recognised the family. It was the same Great family as the one Gabriel was from. Speaking of which, Nero found it odd that he hadn’t run into Gabriel yet.
"Not bad, Grant," said Sergeant Renald who walked up to Nero. "Looks like you’re not all talk. In celebration of your achievement, I think we’ll shake things up during tomorrow’s drills."
Reynolds grinned widely, as if genuinely pleased by the situation, but all the cadets who heard his words felt like falling to the ground right then and there. Either they could be happy, or their professors and teachers, never both at once. The wider that Renalds grinned, the worse off they were going to be.
Nero responded with a weak smile. He wasn’t exactly in the mood to joke around.
"Who was that?" Nero asked instead, taking advantage of the Sergeants presence. "It seems like he’s quite famous."
Reynolds looked towards Axel, who was leaving the Battle Arena, and did not respond for a few seconds. That was a complicated question.
"There are many stories going around about Professor Axel, but all you need to be concerned about is that he is a highly decorated soldier who gave up a very successful career in the army to come to the academy and train the future generations. Both for his skills, and his sacrifices, he is greatly respected within the academy."
Nero nodded, understanding that the story was more complex than that but it would be inappropriate for a sergeant to share the details with him.
After nodding towards Nero once, Renalds also walked away, leaving the cadets to their own activities.
"If you want to know, I can tell you," said Michelle, who was standing nearby.
All the fresh cadets, who were thoroughly impressed by Axel’s strength, turned their gazes towards her, as if waiting for her to elaborate. Nero gave her a soft smile, as if appreciating her help.
"Professor Axel was a highly decorated soldier who was an enlistee instead of an officer. He was on track for many promotions, not only because of his own excellent skills but also because of the family backing he enjoys. It’s unconfirmed, but I heard that he was assigned as an assistant to some generals.
"While that may sound like a menial position to those who don’t know, in truth such a position is basically the same as getting training for a promotion to general itself! It was like getting hands-on experience before he even got the job. But, as the story goes, his brother who was an officer died during a mission.
"While such things are not uncommon, Professor Axel didn’t think that was the case. He was convinced that the reason his brother died was because the combat training in KMA was lacking. So that no other promising officer ever suffers the same fate as his brother, Professor Axel dropped out of the army and joined KMA, taking the training in his own hands.
"While he has a very special position in the academy, he teaches the Science of Combat, as well as a few other classes to senior cadets in their third, fourth and fifth years. He’s been invited back to the army many times, and even faced a lot of family pressure to return, but he’s always refused.
"Some people even say that he threatened to drop the Anzem name if they tried to coerce him in the future, causing severe friction between him and his family. Whatever the case, it’s a fact that he’s one of the most senior professors in the academy. In fact, he’s in line to become the Dean of Combat this year if nothing goes wrong. If he continues to be as remarkable as he’s been so far, I wouldn’t be surprised if he got promoted to Vice-Dean of the whole academy itself."
Nero nodded, and looked towards the redhead with a newfound respect. Though he still felt a hint of frustration at his own inability to defeat him, he felt even better about having someone so skilled and knowledgeable as his combat professor.
In fact, the more competent and skilled Axel was, the more he could teach Nero, which is why Nero wished that he would grow even stronger than he currently was.
"Are you planning on challenging Vilhelm now?" Bella asked, looking at Nero, aware of the reason behind his recent efforts. "If you are, you’ll have to wait till tomorrow. He’s already accepted a challenge today. If we head on over, we might be able to catch the fight before it ends."
All of Nero’s attention suddenly shifted towards Bella.
"Lead the way," he said. "I’m quite curious to see his skills. After hearing so much about him already, I’d like to witness his prowess myself."
Nero did not underestimate Vilhelm at all. For a single student to dominate an entire year was no joke, and so he would give him the full respect he deserved. Underestimating an opponent was not a mistake Nero was going to make.