"Are you ready?" The instructor overseeing the arena looked at the two participants and asked.

  "Mm." Hilda gave a slight nod, and Caius indicated he was good to go as well.

  "Then… ready—begin!" The instructor shouted, activating the protective mechanism of the arena. Should either combatant be exposed to a lethal threat, the system would immediately release a force to separate them.

  This was why Hydis was considered a top-tier Magic Academy—its facilities were comprehensive. Even a sparring arena had safeguards like this. Ocean City's academy certainly didn’t have such luxuries; they had to rely solely on instructors to intervene.

  "President! Teach him a lesson!" shouted one of the female students, and instantly, the hundreds of spectators around the arena erupted in cheers for Hilda—the president of Hydis' student council.

  Of course, a few voices called out for Caius too.

  Mostly jeers, though.

  The only one earnestly cheering for Caius was the little catgirl, but her voice was quickly drowned out by the crowd.

  "Come on." Caius reversed his grip on his shortsword, blade angled downward—this was the proper professional grip known as forward grip, though civilians often mistakenly called it reverse grip.

  This grip leaned more toward offense. It allowed for better exertion of force. Compared to the actual reverse grip, the attack range was slightly shorter, but the damage output was higher.

  As the saying goes: an inch shorter, an inch more dangerous.

  That danger didn’t just apply to oneself—it applied even more to the opponent.

  Short weapons had a lethality and attack frequency in close quarters that long weapons couldn't match.

  Seeing Caius take an offensive stance, Hilda shifted her posture, turning her side toward him and tucking one arm behind her back.

  The reason? The side profile presented a smaller target, and this angle enabled stronger forward lunges and cleaner retreats. From this stance, her legs could unleash explosive force.

  It was clear—Hilda had excellent combat fundamentals. At least for now, Caius couldn’t find a flaw.

  "How old are you?" Caius suddenly asked.

  Hilda: "?"

  Though surprised, she answered, "Eighteen."

  "I'm nineteen," Caius replied.

  Kiki: "?"

  Not eighteen, meow?

  "Go ahead. I'm older, so I’ll let you have the first move." Caius held his shortsword in a forward grip before him, his other hand slightly extended in front—meant for parrying. Hilda could see from his stance alone that this was someone with battle experience.

  But then, Caius crooked his fingers with that parrying hand, beckoning her.

  Hilda’s gaze instantly sharpened, and in the next heartbeat, her long leg lashed out as she launched herself into an attack.

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  She was truly annoyed—and not holding back.

  Hilda’s speed was extraordinary. In the blink of an eye, she was already in front of Caius, the tip of her slender sword aiming straight for his chest.

  This wasn’t a kill strike—she was holding back. Even if Caius failed to block it, the sword would only leave a shallow mark on his muscular chest. It wouldn’t be fatal.

  She was going easy on him.

  But Caius… smiled.

  Still too young.

  True, this was just sparring, and holding back was normal. But Caius could feel Hilda's aura in this strike.

  Though it was sharp, it lacked the true intent to kill.

  And what exactly was the intent to kill?

  That was what Caius was about to demonstrate.

  As the slender sword thrust toward him—

  Caius didn’t step forward. Instead, he leaned to his left, while his sword-wielding right hand slashed upward in a diagonal arc—straight for Hilda’s throat!

  With his large frame and long limbs, his reach actually surpassed Hilda’s by just a bit.

  From this angle, her sword would merely graze his chest—not even enough to harm him. But Caius’ reversed short sword could take her head clean off.

  Hilda’s pupils contracted, shock flickering in her eyes.

  But her reaction was swift—she changed her stance mid-strike, arched her neck backward, and ducked low, sliding past Caius’ side.

  In that fleeting moment, Hilda saw the edge of Caius’ blade flash right past her face, so close it brushed by her eye.

  Fsshh… The screech of her knight boots skidding on the floor echoed. Hilda braced one hand against the ground, sliding meters away, her gaze locked in disbelief on Caius, who had already reset into an attack stance.

  A lock of golden hair slowly drifted down from above.

  Hilda reached up to her high ponytail.

  It had been sliced—just a little.

  "You tried to kill me?" Hilda said calmly, face set.

  "What, scared?" Caius grinned broadly.

  Hilda said nothing. Around them, the crowd had gone silent.

  Though their exchange had lasted mere seconds, it was clear—Hilda was on the back foot.

  They couldn’t understand it. Caius was such a massive guy—how could he move so fast?

  Faster than Hilda, even—that’s why she’d been forced to alter her attack into a dodge, shifting from offense to defense.

  "Keep going." Caius jerked his chin upward.

  Hilda remained silent, but the aura radiating from her shifted.

  She was getting serious.

  In the next instant, golden light erupted from her body. She became a streaking column of radiance, lunging toward Caius, her sword aimed at his chest, faster than ever before.

  Caius’ smile faded.

  This time, Hilda was clever. She hadn’t gone in full force. She held back just enough to maintain flexibility, allowing her to switch tactics at any moment.

  Caius noticed this too. That meant he couldn’t reuse his earlier strategy.

  Against an expert, a technique that fails once will never succeed again.

  This time, he focused purely on defense.

  As the sword point neared, Caius slashed diagonally, dispersing its forward momentum.

  But Hilda didn’t pause. She stepped forward again, switching from a thrust to a slash, her blade trailing along Caius’ shortsword, slicing toward his hand.

  Caius twisted his wrist instantly, redirecting her sword away from his flank. At the same time, his other hand darted toward Hilda’s neck.

  His strength was overwhelming—Hilda couldn’t force her blade downward even if she wanted to.

  In desperation, she lashed out with a kick toward Caius, hoping to spring backward.

  But to her shock—her leg was caught.

  Caius had anticipated this. The hand reaching for her neck bent at the elbow, pressing against her calf, while his other leg lifted. Elbow and knee snapped together like an iron clamp, locking her leg in place.

  Then, twisting his waist with powerful force, Caius grabbed her ankle and hurled her outward.

  Hilda spun midair before landing stably on her feet—but the moment she raised her head, Caius was already in front of her.

  So fast!

  Clenching her teeth, Hilda channeled her magic power to enhance herself, transforming into golden light and dashing backward at high speed.

  But Caius gave chase without hesitation.

  Everyone watching stared in shock at the massive figure.

  How could someone so huge perform such extreme directional shifts during a full sprint—without even using Combat Techniques?

  Even as Hilda refracted across the arena in bursts of golden light, Caius’ afterimage remained close behind, his shortsword clashing repeatedly against Hilda’s rapier, ringing with metallic strikes and throwing sparks.

  It was jaw-dropping—was this guy’s ankle joint made of steel or what? How could it withstand the momentum of that bulk?

  He could even pull off near-ninety-degree turns mid-charge—how the hell was that even humanly possible?

  Of course, it wasn’t.

  But for a giant—it absolutely was.

  At this point in the battle, even a blind man could see it.

  Hilda was being overwhelmed.

  And it was a complete suppression — she had no power to fight back at all!