(Rodova Military Academy, Spectator Stand, The VIP Box)
Principal Alric sat leisurely, swirling his glass of champagne as the murmurs of the merchant groups and sponsors around him flooded the private gallery.
His eyes flicked lazily across their expressions— widened eyes, whispered exchanges, and barely contained intrigue.
As he couldn't help but scoff internally, his contempt masked behind a calm facade.
"We thought Clarence Academy was going to usurp Rodova and steal the number two spot this year," murmured one representative from the Silvergrain Syndicate, stroking his beard. "But seeing this... Rodova still has teeth."
"Su Yang, the Su Family's young master," another whispered. "Why did he enroll into Rodova? Why not Geneva? With talent like that, Geneva would've rolled out the red carpet for him."
A third, sharper voice then cut in, belonging to the Gray Metal Consortium's representative.
"Geneva's loss is our opportunity. From what I hear, the Su Family hasn't tied him to any sponsors yet. Perhaps we can rope him in early… the way he fights, he'll be the team captain by next year and worth a lot of money."
Alric chuckled quietly to himself as he took a sip.
'Vultures… all of you. Like hell I'll let you sponsor Su Yang for cheap now'
Yet not every face shared the excitement.
The Horizon Merchant Group's representative sat stiffly, arms crossed, eyes narrowed with clear dissatisfaction.
The Horizon group, who had shifted allegiance from Rodova to Clarence Academy earlier this year, now looked like they had bet on the wrong horse, as Rodova seemed to be on the road to resurgence.
Alric noticed the sour expression and immediately smiled in satisfaction, as he found the horizon group's misery to be delightful.
'Regretting the switch now, aren't you?' He thought, as he let out yet another amused chuckle.
—-----------
Meanwhile in the general viewing stands, amongst the non participating cadet population, the chatter was just as animated.
"Faizan's doomed."
"There's no way he holds onto his spot."
"An archer against Su Yang? And not even a good one like Minerva? He's finished."
"They should've just handed Su Yang the spot without wasting Faizan's time."
Although a few optimistic voices tried to defend Faizan's chances, the general sentiment was that the senior was about to be crushed.
Faizan was good. But Su Yang was something else.
And everyone knew it.
—-----------
(Combat Arena – Center Stage)
Faizan stood at the ready, bow in hand, breathing measured but betraying subtle nerves as he stared down Su Yang, who was now walking onto the stage with the same lazy composure he had displayed all morning.
Su Yang's blade hung loosely at his side, as if it weren't even part of the fight yet, as just like his previous fights, he did not draw out his weapon this time either, which caused the audience to let out a few nervous gasps.
"So arrogant that you won't even pull out your weapon? Do I look that weak in your eyes?" Faizan asked, as Su Yang shook his head in denial.
"It's not about you being weak. Which you are no doubt, but it's just that I don't want to reveal my swordsmanship to the universe just yet.
So I'll he holding that card close to my chest for now—" Su Yang replied, as Faizan grit his teeth in anger.
*DING—*
The match began as Faizan's bow snapped upward immediately, his eyes sharp with focus as he activated his signature skill— [Phantom Quiver],
causing five semi-transparent spectral arrows to materialize mid-air beside him.
Without hesitation, he fired the first volley, launching three arrows in rapid succession as each one curving unnaturally mid-flight, as they arched toward Su Yang's limbs.
*SWOOSH*
*SWOOSH*
*SWOOSH*
With precise footwork, Su Yang sidestepped the arrows by mere inches, letting them whistle harmlessly past, as the entire crowd tensed at his calm and precise evasion.
Faizan gritted his teeth as he immediately backed away while knocking another arrow, this time channeling mana heavily as he activated his second technique —
[Rain of Binding].
A barrage of mana-imbued arrows exploded outward from Faizan's position, filling the arena with dozens of arrows that blurred into a net-like formation, threatening to completely trap Su Yang.
Cheers erupted from the spectators as the trap looked flawless.
But Su Yang's eyes remained steady.
"Predictable," he muttered under his breath, as he raised his hand and activated [Flowing Steps],
a mobility technique that allowed his body to shift like a flowing current, seamlessly weaving between the incoming arrows with delicate but blindingly fast footwork.
Each step was impossibly smooth, and each movement reduced the chaos of the arrow net into mere background noise, as he carved a path straight toward Faizan.
Faizan's eyes widened as he hurriedly activated his trump card —
[Piercing Luna] —
an arrow condensed with nearly all of his remaining mana, glowing silver as it promised devastating penetration.
He drew it back fully, aiming for Su Yang's navel, as the tension in the arena peaked.
Yet Su Yang didn't even blink.
With one swift step, he entered striking range, as he tightly gripped his sword—not to swing—but to feint and instead activate [Iron Breaker Palm].
As while his opponent expected a sword slash, Su Yang's real intention was to unleash a martial skill designed to collapse an opponent's guard with a single blow.
*Boom*
Su Yang's palm collided with Faizan's chest the moment before the arrow was loosed, as–
*CRACK!*
The arrow fired wildly into the air as Faizan's entire frame was lifted off the ground, crashing against the arena floor as his bow snapped in half beneath him.
*THUD–*
Faizan coughed violently as the referee rushed forward, to prevent Su Yang from injuring Faizan even more, as he threw his body between the two contestants.
"Match Over! Winner—Su Yang!"
The referee declared, as the crowd exploded into shouts and applause, not just because of Su Yang's overwhelming victory, but due to the perfect suppression of Faizan's every trick.
Sponsors exchanged hurried whispers, noting each of Su Yang's moves displayed today with wary interest, as the fact that he didn't even need to draw his sword raised some major concerns.
Su Yang, meanwhile, sheathed his half drawn blade without a word, as he calmly turned his back to the fallen archer and walked toward the waiting area as if nothing had happened, as Major Hen from the professor stands took up a microphone and announced to whole academy that Su Yang, a first year, had replaced Faizan to officially become a part of the Rodova Circuits Team!
And that he shall represent the academy at the Interstellar Circuits this year.
"SU YANG! SU YANG! SU YANG!"
Chants of his name rang throughout the arena, as he seemed to become a role model for all first years once again…. The stain of his previous defeat diluting, as even his haters could not help but admit to his dominance.
It wasn't the showing that he wanted for today, as his goal was to fight Minerva.
However, it was a showing he could be proud of, as from start to finish he did not even break a sweat, scoring convincing victories over all his opponents, as he should with a tier difference.