Unrelenting Will

The fight was finally over and as a sense of relief washed over them so did a wave of exhaustion. Shina had it worse as she had expended all of her energy during the fight. With one last smile, she collapsed. Roxanna managed to grab her before she landed on the ground. A sense of panic held her heart as held Shina in her arms but as she found out she had only lost consciousness, she sighed in relief.

She held her watch and turned the rim, doing the same for Shina, which set their location back to the academy, and with a push of the button on the watches, they had teleported back. They had only spent about an hour on the mission, which was a record time, most of the time missions like that took at least four days. As they landed back at the Combatant Lounge, a few students looked at them in shock. Roxanna had no time to explain what had happened, so using {Light Speed] (which granted her only a fraction of light speed), she zipped through the demons and buildings and reached the infirmary. Once she reached there, she was greeted by a few demons in a lab coat walking around. She was spotted by Miss Hecla, who called a few nurses to take Shina from Roxanna's hand. She immediately demanded an explanation as to what had happened, and Roxanna gave her a detailed explanation as to what occurred without missing a single detail.

Miss Hecla thought for a while. This was strange and it wasn't the first time hearing about an item that enhanced monsters around the continent. In fact, there had been a few cases about them in past years but this year received more reports about the matter than in previous years and with the kidnapping that happened it couldn't be a coincidence but that didn't matter now. The girls needed check-ups and that took priority. She took Roxanna in despite her complaints and after some ointments and healing magic cast on her, she was good to go. She was told that Shina was fine just unconscious for now and that put her at ease. Now all she had was report back to the receptionist for the quest rewards. It had been twenty minutes since she came and the lounge was going to close in an hour, so she hurried over.

She got there on time and after apologizing and giving a brief explanation of what had happened, she handed over the two watches. It was the same woman she met when she was leaving, due to a string of events that would not be delved into, she was staying overtime which pissed her off. After taking the watches, she peered into what had happened. With her {Evil Eye}, she was able to look into the past of anything she touched [as far back as a few weeks if she gave it her all]. She was astounded to see what happened, an impressive display if she said she so herself as she put it. She nodded and split the reward evenly between them. The A.P. is documented in the academy's record. Roxanna thanked her and left. Even though she was originally mad, seeing such a display made staying overtime a bit more bearable but she witnessed something strange and immediately sent a message to the higher-ups.

Three days passed since then,

Shina had fully recovered and despite the warnings from the nurses to rest, she was already up and about.

The days weren't any more pleasing to Arcon as it was for Shina with Crystal's 'training' to all the academy work he had to do, he was soon to reach his breaking point. Crystal could easily do something about this but she would never. She wanted to see him suffer, to forge him by force or watch him break, either way was going to bring her satisfaction but she took it slowly. It wasn't his time to break yet, not until her delight was satiated.

Maybe it was because of the continuous 'training', his dreams which had subsided were now at an all-time high but thanks to Crystal (the one in his dreams) he was able to pass through them without being as torn up as before but something within him was changing. He felt the change with every passing dream but could do nothing about it. All he could do now was persevere and hope for the best.

As he comes out of his room to start the day, a figure pounces on him and covers his eyes.

"Guess who", the cute small voice tingled his ears.

This sweet scene, this delight I feel at my back, who else could it be? Just hearing her voice alleviated all the stress he accumulated.

"How long did you wait, Shanti?" This was the nickname he had given her for a while.

With a smile, she turns around and hugs him.

"Not long, my love", she whispers the last part seductively. It took all that was in him for him not to pounce on her right that moment and also the fact that he had a roommate. He had a good look at his girlfriend, she was so cute and lovely. Something that he enjoyed graciously and also suffered for. He had earned himself the scorn and jealousy of a lot of males in the academy. Many of the battles he faced from some upperclassmen and his own mates were just in spite but that was the cross he had to bear for dating one of the prettiest girls in the academy. Did he hate it? Not in a million years. A grin spread across his face as he locked hands with her and as though in appreciation for his grin she rested her body in his arms. Just as they are about to leave the dorm, they meet with Ian, who is fiddling with a pair of glasses. Of course, he looked as cute as always and he looked even better in his uniform. Arcon really envied him but could never come to hate such a cute face. He waves and the three of them move together to their class, which was as lively as ever as they entered.

At the start of the new term, it was announced to the first-year students that there would be an inter-class tournament, which of course hyped most of them up. The inter-class tournament was a tournament spread over the course of one month. With free dueling and ranks at sake, it's the best way to get their blood pumping to drive them to greater heights.

Classes went on without a problem, as they talked about battle strategies till class was dismissed. These days their class went more on class missions than just the occasional teaching and sometimes they went on group missions. These groups are hand-picked by Miss Suki herself. The standard to which she picked the team was a power balance and these teams consisted of at least ten students. While most students were mostly cheerful that their hectic first year was coming to an end, a select few could do nothing but worry. These guys were those who were still of bronze rank, and this was because; by the end of the first year, those of them who didn't have a kind of support type specialty would be expelled. Many of them training their butts off to either earn themselves a good role in the support department or to bolster their strength while others had resigned to their fate and decided to just enjoy the remainder of their stay in this academy in hopes that they'd be placed in a more laid back academy.

Once classes ended, Arcon headed straight for Combat Arena I. He wasn't going there to check out just any fight, he was there to see his friend Ian battle. Ian was the type of guy who would only fight if absolutely needed, he was the 'peace to all' type of guy but something had lit a fire in him recently. Arcon really loved seeing fights once in a while but between his classes and his 'training', time wasn't on his side so he had to shift his desires to the wayside but he wasn't going to miss this sight. Luckily for him, he was able to snag a sit close to the forefront despite the battle already being underway. Not many demons had come to watch this fight but there were still a fair number of students that came to watch.

Ian with a serious look that betrayed his normal cutesy demeanor gauged his opponent. His opponent, Brawn was a melee fighter (wearing a gauntlet) who relied on brute force in any fight. His {Adaptation} (which allows him to slowly adapt to his opponent's fighting style) and {Unyielding Spirit} (which makes him stronger the more damage is inflicted on him) suited his fighting style like a glove. Ian needed to be on his toes when facing this type of opponent because, unlike Brawn who had overwhelming strength that he could rely upon, he relied more on strategies to bring him success. His {Negative Impact} (which lets him counter [absorbing and unleashing threefold] or cancel an opponent's attack) is a good counter to Brawn but it sapped energy and could gather an insane amount of recoil if the opponent was just that much stronger. Through their initial bout, Ian used {Martial Prowess} to gauge his opponent and now it was time to spring into more action. His gauntlet started giving off an ominous aura as the eye in the center opened. This made Brawn jump back and chuckle.

"If you think a trick like that would work on me. You have another thing coming".

He charged at Ian with his fists raised. The attack was all too predictable as Ian just weaves off the attack by a hair's length. Brawn was getting riled up as his punches just kept missing their mark but with every couple of misses, he was getting faster. He gathers enough energy in his fist and threw a devastating blow. This was what Ian was waiting for, he grabbed him by his fist and draws closer to him then lands a punch on his solar plexus and with a spinning kick sends him flying. His face was now mostly calm, with his calculations over all that waited was to execute them and claim victory. He watched as Brawn got up while a hand was on his chest. No doubt he was in serious pain, he had just received the full brunt of his attack, threefold on his solar plexus but with this came power. Brawn smiled as he got ready to attack, he was just pushing through the pain or was he straight up ignoring it? No one could tell.

Ian was aware of this development but nothing strayed from the plan. According to his calculations, he needed three more hits to bring down his foe.

With Brawn's newfound strength, he launched another series of powerful attacks at Ian but he was able to move through them with ease. In place of strength, Ian had his speed and agility. Something his small frame could handle. Brawn decided to go for a straight punch, which Ian leaned back to dodge, a grin spread across his face. Ian had fallen for the feint. He quickly changed the direction to a downward strike. Ian quickly grasped his hand and using its momentum as support delivered a full powered spin kick to the side of his temple then slamming him into the ground.

With his gauntlets unleashing a strong purplish aura. He drives both into the side of Brawn causing a small crater to form. He gave his distance preparing himself for the final attack. Brawn after a few seconds stood up while gritting his teeth. He could feel the intense pain spreading through his body but why wouldn't he? He was just hit with an attack that damaged his insides, ignoring his natural defense. He didn't understand what happened but he understood the implications. One more hit like that and he was done.

"You really are something you know"

With that, he lunged at Ian yet again. While his mind was screaming danger, his body was feeling pumped for that same reason. 'The danger was what he lived for' as he so put it. Gathering as much energy as he could in his hand, he thrusts it forward releasing a massive wave of energy in the form of a spear {Spear Fist}. Ian reacted by covering the spear in purplish energy and absorbing it. Before he could react, Brawn was already behind him about to unleash a thunderous amount of energy with his fist.

"I've got you", With a smirk on his face he unleashes the energy behind Ian at a speed far exceeding the speed of sound. Just as he thought he had won it all, Ian released a huge amount of energy around him, protecting himself and creating distance between them. As Brawn tries to get his footing, he sees a fist of purple energy hurling at his face. He could neither dodge nor block it. It slammed into his face causing him to crash into the wall with his eyes rolled back, he slumped to the ground and that marked the end of the fight. The crowd cheered, some taking notes and others discussing. Arcon nodded with a smile on his face, his friend had got into his element. A good understanding of himself, making the best out of his pros and finding counters to his cons. He was shaping up into quite the fighter. One that Arcon couldn't see a clear shot of victory with.

Meanwhile over at the first-year training grounds,

A group of students hurdled up to train, or at least that was what they came here to do. The looks on their faces explained everything. They looked dejected and somewhat lost, these were most of the bronze students (ten out of the twelve). They were all gathered here for a reason.

"Thank you all for coming here today", a cute voice said, catching the attention of everyone there. She was small and cute in more ways than one; her platinum blonde hair and big blue beady made anyone around here want to protect her and she was one of them.

Asia walked in front of the crowd and slowly analyzed their behavior. She had gathered all of them here today because she felt the need to bolster their confidence. She had called for all of them but two didn't show up. There was nothing she could do about it now but she would no doubt try to persuade them later. She was a very sociable demon and was really hard to hate, ever helpful and cheerful. Her overflowing aura of kindness touched the hearts of all those who come to her. She found pleasure in doing things like this and even when she tries to avoid being kind and charming, she finds herself unconsciously helping others. Unlike most of them, she had secured a good spot in the sorcery department which has nothing to do with her {Ego: Tamer} or {Inherent Talent: Nature}. She did not have the heart for fighting so she didn't really do all that well in the fighting department but she was as sharp as ever when it came to knowledge. She loved reading as much as she loved animals and nature and she consumed knowledge like no other it was due to this that she became a core member of the sorcery club. All she had to do was to make sure not to get expelled and she was fine. She being who she is just couldn't turn a blind eye to her mates who were clouded in despair or lost the will to fight. She decided to take it upon herself to rekindle the flaming spirit that brought them here and she wasn't going to take no for an answer.

She took another glance at the lost souls she was about to bring back to the right path and a smile appeared on her face. Without missing a beat she began her speech, basically telling them to stay strong and believe in themselves, promising to guide them every step of the way, recounting memories of when their efforts paid in full. Slowly but surely, the crowd began seeing the light. The fire in them was lit as they all cheered and thanked her. As she saw them with new hope, she couldn't help but smile. She had this magnetic effect about her which drew others close to her and made them want to strive with her. Her stubbornness and hardworking nature only helped increase this effect.

Did she believe they could go through?

Yes with all her heart. They all had egos and inherent talent so all that was left was evolution. All they needed was more effort, to pour their heart and soul into it and she was sure it would bear the best of results. Her unrelenting will to see others prosper along with her was in fact her most attractive feature.