Hyperion's Ace

The esper handling a spear readied herself to deflect the sword hurtling toward her, while the other three espers seized the opportunity to launch a coordinated attack against Stella. However, just as their blows were about to connect, a shiver ran down the spear wielder's spine as she met Stella's piercing gaze.

Shing!

Stella swapped places with her sword. The three espers missed their attack while the spear esper's eyes widened in shock as Stella suddenly appeared in front of her. However, she still reacted quickly and swung her spear at Stella.

Pack! Bang!

Before she could land a strike, Stella seized the spear with her left hand and landed a powerful punch to the esper's chest. The spear-wielder collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath.

"Out," the muscled man announced, appearing beside the spear wielder. He swiftly grabbed her and disappeared again, leaving the remaining three espers in a state of shock and unease as they met Stella's gaze.

"Don't slack off! Now that we know her ability, be prepared to counter it," one of the espers instructed, assuming a leadership role. The trio repositioned themselves in a triangular formation, placing Stella's sword at the center, and took battle stances. "Be ready to counter her next swap," the leader urged, his voice brimming with determination.

Crackle! Boom!

The esper at the front took a step and a flurry of ice spikes erupted from the ground below his foot, aimed towards Stella. 

Shing! Bzzz

Stella disappeared, evading the ice spikes and reappearing in the middle of the espers' formation, wrapped in crackling purple bolts. However, the espers were prepared, launching their coordinated attacks. The leader thrust his spear and conjured an ice spike, the second esper unleashed a barrage of telekinetically controlled weapons, while the third altered the air viscosity to stop Stella from dodging the attack.

'Wait, her sword is still there...' the leader realized as he observed Stella's weapon lying on the ground. 'She didn't swap places... f*ck,' he thought as he realized his mistake. Even though Stella was one of the most, if not the most popular esper in the academy, most people only knew her stage. Little people knew the specifics of her ability.

"She's our most promising esper…" Jake commented from behind the window.

Shing! Shing!

Just as the espers' attacks were about to strike, Stella teleported her sword back into her hand and then teleported herself away.

Boom!

"...Hyperion's Ace, Purple Flash"

The three espers' attacks missed their target, striking the ground instead, creating a cloud of smoke, engulfing the espers and blocking their visibility.

Shing! Shing! Shing!

Three purple flashes shone from within the cloud of smoke, followed by silence.

As the smoke dissipated, the three espers could be seen lying unconscious on the ground. Stella stood at the center, her sword sheathed, little purple bolts still dancing around her body.

Clap Clap Clap

An applause filled the gymnasium as the muscled man approached Stella.

"Excellent performance, Stella. Next time, you'll spar against a last-year student, the academy's second strongest, a stage 2 manipulation esper. You perform well against espers at lower stages than you, now you'll practice against someone one step above you. With that you should be ready for the tournament," he told her.

"Thank you, teach. I'm looking forward to it," Stella replied, a smile gracing her lips.

"F*ck, now we're really going to be late," Jake cursed, checking his watch. "Let's go, Seth, we need to run," he told, tugging Seth along as they ran to their next class.

On the way to class, Seth could only think about the fight he had just witnessed, how that girl was able to handle so skillfully, four espers that he couldn't even dream of fighting. 'She's truly amazing' he thought.

Suddenly, Seth noticed Jake smirking at him.

"What?" Seth asked, confused.

"You're thinking about her, aren't you?" Jake teased, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"W-what? I mean, yes, but not in the way you're thinking," Seth stammered.

"Don't worry, dude. I'm just messing with you," Jake chuckled. "It's no secret that half the academy has a crush on her by now."

After a minute of sprinting through the corridors, they reached their classroom, only to find the door already closed. Seth and Jake exchanged glances.

"You go first," Jake said to Seth.

"What? No, you go first, and I'll back you up," Seth insisted.

"I'm not going first; you go ahead. We're late because you were daydreaming about Stella," Jake said, his smirk widening.

"W-what?" Seth exclaimed, taken aback.

"After you," Jake gestured, signaling Seth to approach the door.

Knock Knock Knock.

"F*ck you," Seth said as he looked back to Jake, however, the door opened at the same time. Seth and Jake froze in place as a tall, slim man with glasses appeared before them.

"Mr. Pierce, would you be so kind as to repeat the last thing you said?" the man spoke in a severe tone.

"I-I said nothing," Seth said nervously.

"Yeah, I didn't hear anything ei—" Jake tried to help, however, he fell silent as Mr. Voight gave him a severe glance.

"Not only are you late to class, but you also have the audacity to insult me," Mr. Voight said.

"I apologize, Mr. Voight. I didn't mean to—" Seth began to apologize.

"I'm not interested in your excuses. Your behavior is unacceptable. You will have three hours of detention after school and submit a 5-page written assignment on the implications for quantum physics of espers' abilities discovery by the end of the week. I expect demonstrations and definitions of the main equations covered in class. Furthermore, there will be a deduction of 15 points from your next exam. Is that clear?" Mr. Voight reprimanded Seth.

"Yes, Mr. Voight," Seth replied.

"Now, go take your seat," Mr. Voight ordered, and Seth entered the classroom. He then turned to Jake. "As for you Mr. Weyer, expect a deduction of 10 points on your next exam," Mr. Voight added, Jake only gulped. "Now, go take your seat," he continued, allowing Jake to enter the classroom.