"Princess," he respectfully bowed, "with all due respect, he needs to show some ability if he wants to form his own faction here."

'And besides, would I dare to challenge that monster if he had formed his Rune? I just need to beat him now so I can get the reward from Young Master and also make a name for myself.' He inwardly thought, pleased with himself.

Orion thoughtfully looked at Aeron and turned his gaze to Arya and said, "It's fine."

Her eyes widened slightly. "Are you sure? He's an actual Awakener. Wind Affinity gives him incredible speed and movement. It's not the same as sparring."

Orion smiled faintly. "I know. But I also know myself."

Emilia looked at him quietly, then at Aeron. Her grip on her spear tightened slightly, but she didn't speak.

Aeron smirked. "So you're accepting the challenge?"

Orion nodded. "Lead the way."

The students scattered quickly, word spreading like wildfire as the group moved towards the nearest dueling arena, just off the combat practice field. Arya walked beside Orion, biting her lip in worry.

"I've heard Aeron's pretty fast. Probably one of the best among the new batch of students in terms of fighting."

"I have a plan," Orion said, tapping two fingers against his temple.

Arya looked confused. "Plan?"

Orion smiled. "You'll see."

The arena came into view as a raised circular platform with runes etched all over the place. The entire platform was fortified to handle the shockwave of Awakeners' battles.

Dozens of students were already gathering, climbing onto benches or standing at one side to watch the show.

The dueling official was a calm-looking instructor with silver-rimmed spectacles as he nodded once. "Standard non-lethal duel rules. Physical harm beyond permanent injury is forbidden. First to be forced off the platform, surrender, or lose the ability to fight—loses."

Orion looked at the instructor in confusion. 'First was that teacher in the administrative office and now him—how the fuck do their eyes even go bad that they need glasses? It's a damn magic world for godsake.'

[Those are special treasures, Master. Anyways, we'll talk about that later. First, we need to show that idiot who's the boss here! (ง •̀ᴗ•́)ง]

Aeron jumped onto the platform with dramatic flair, summoning a burst of wind beneath his boots. He grinned, "Try to last at least a minute."

Orion stepped up, hands behind his back, a relaxed smirk on his lips. The moment his foot touched the platform, a hush fell again.

'He really accepted it…' Arya stared up from the edge of the crowd, heart pounding.

[Hehe, Master's gonna wreck him~ ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و]

The arena buzzed with tension as Orion stood calmly on one end of the rune-etched dueling platform with a sword tied at his waist that he had just taken out, his back straight, his black hair flowing slightly in the wind.

'I wonder, where did he get the guts to target me? Doesn't he fear if I was a petty person I would make his life hell after becoming stronger?' Orion couldn't help but question inwardly.

[Master, you overestimate the intelligence of these spoiled nobles. They think their backing can handle it even if the sky is falling.]

'Haa… they love to live in their little delusions.' Shaking his head, he prepared for the battle ahead.

Opposite him, Aeron Wynthorne played with a slim rune-inscribed wand with a cocky gaze, as if beating Orion was already guaranteed.

[Alright, Master, don't hold back too much! Let's give these people a little taste of what happens when they poke a dragon~ (≧∇≦)/]

'Let's first see what this Tier 1 Awakener's got,' Orion replied mentally.

The instructor raised a hand and called out, "Begin!"

Immediately, Aeron's body shimmered with a gust of wind, his robes fluttering as he leaped backward and raised his wand.

"Wind Spirits, heed my call—form the blade that cleaves the sky! [Gale Cutter]!"

Orion's eyes narrowed. 'Spell chanting huh… that's my chance.'

Without hesitation, he dashed forward, drawing the sword from his side with a swift metallic hiss. It wasn't anything flashy—just the standard sword issued by the academy. But in Orion's grip, it looked dangerously lethal.

The moment Aeron began chanting, Orion charged like a predator lunging for its prey, blade aimed at Aeron's shoulder to disarm him before the spell could finish.

"Too slow," Aeron muttered, revealing a thin metallic thread looped around his fingers. With a flick, a needle-like dart shot out from his sleeve.

Orion's eyes widened just a second before it struck. He twisted his body mid-dash, narrowly dodging the dart, but his approach failed—giving Aeron just enough time to finish his chant.

"[Gale Cutter]!"

A slicing arc of wind exploded forward from Aeron's wand, the air whistling violently as it tore through space like a razor-edged crescent.

Orion twisted and dove sideways, the blast missing him by inches, but the shockwave still clipped his shoulder's clothes and sent him sliding across the platform.

He landed in a crouch, gritting his teeth. 'That was close… I nearly dropped out of the platform.'

Arya watched with her fingers clenched tightly around her robes. "That spell—it was clean. Aeron isn't just fast, he's experienced. While Brother Orion…" she trailed off, clearly seeing his lack of battle experience.

[Master! He's tricky, using cheap shots and distractions! Are you gonna let that little mosquito sting you around like this?! щ(ºДºщ)]

'I've seen enough,' Orion muttered, eyes sharpening as he slowly stood back up.

His muscles tensed, his grip on the blade loosened briefly before correcting it. Then, with a soft exhale, he thought inside his mind:

'I have suppressed myself for long enough.'

As soon as his words finished, the world around him shifted.

Colors dulled. Sounds faded. The only thing he could hear was the steady rhythm of his own heartbeat. Then, everything reversed—colors turned vividly vibrant, and he could distinguish every sound, every voice, with crystal clarity.

Everything in front of him seemed to slow down for a second. Aeron's body posture, the slight twitch of his shoulders, the flex in his fingers—all became clearer to him.

From the audience, everything looked the same—Orion standing still. However, some with keen eyes could notice something had changed about him, yet none could pinpoint what.

Even Arya looked toward him in confusion, not understanding what had changed.

[I'm sensing danger from him.]

Emilia's spear softly whispered to her.

'Huh? How is that possible? He hasn't even formed his affinity rune yet.' Emilia couldn't believe the absurd words of her spear this time.

[Something changed… Something changed just now. I can feel it. His aura… it's—wild now. As if a monster just got freed from its cage. You better watch out in the future. He might not be as peaceful as he looks.]

Emilia's grip tightened on her spear, looking at Arya worriedly.

Orion, on the other hand, had finally completely released his Dragon Instinct, freeing his mind from the worry of consciously suppressing it all the time.

'Haaa… this… feels good. But…' he looked at Aeron again, however this time, his eyes held a hint of anger. 'How dare this bastard challenge me?'

[Master, you need to calm down and focus on what's important for now.]

He took a deep breath, then he began to walk.

Aeron narrowed his eyes. "What? You giving up?"