Showdown: Carrying the Burden Alone

Aizen returned to the Knight Division's Class 3 section while being watched by the students from Class 2 and Class 1. The stares were one of admiration and some of the disdain. He was unaffected and continued to walk outside the arena.

For a moment, he thought about giving Abigail some advice. But he forced his heart not to do that. He felt what was unrelated to the Omni War was insignificant.

After all, the second chance only came once since he didn't know whether he could repeat it over and over again or not.

Don't waste any opportunity.

Aizen's resolve to prevent the Omni War era may waver when he witnessed firsthand how events change and differ slightly due to his interference. However, he steeled his heart again not to doubt his second chance. And he convinced himself that his only goal was to stop that era, even if it cost innocent people.

'If I have to turn into a demon that slaughters a handful of humanity. I'm willing to do it as long as the Omni War doesn't happen! To become a Devil without a heart, I'm ready!'

Aizen clenched his fists and wore a somber expression, enough to make his classmates shudder.

Ayduin swallowed hard. And ventured to greet Aizen, "Are you hurt? Why is your face like that? Aren't you happy about winning over the talent of the Lenheart family?"

"It's fine. Don't mind me. Just prepare yourself for the upcoming match." Aizen answered flatly.

Before long, Ainkrad approached the Class 3 section and asked Aizen to follow him to the weapons room. Aizen followed without making a fuss and not disobeying. He was surprised that Aizen accepted so easily and thought that his student had realized how important a good weapon was.

Meanwhile, as Aizen and Ainkrad walked out of the Class 3 section, only Ayduin watched until the two of them disappeared from view.

Somehow, Ayduin felt that Aizen's back, which he had watched with inspiration before, felt lonely now. No matter how crowded the venue was for the spectators and students participating in the competition festival, he felt repulsion from Aizen.

He couldn't help feeling sad. Being alone, like carrying a heavy burden, was the most tiring thing.

Even though he didn't know what happened to Aizen, he did know a bit about carrying the burden alone. His family had spent a lot of money to send him to Raven Academy instead of the usual conventional schools to read, write, and study history.

Ayduin could be said to be the backbone of his family, although now he couldn't work and earn money. And that was why he tried hard to learn everything in the Knight Division so that later he could graduate and get a decent job.

One who understood how difficult and tiring it was to fight alone. And one who insisted that the destiny of the realm was in his own hands.

It could be said to be a wise maturity while still being influenced by childish traits.

Meanwhile, over the next few matches, everything was the same as the first round. Everything was as expected, except for Ayduin's fight.

Yes, the match that ruined all the audience's expectations the most after Aizen.

Ayduin confronted a student from Class 1 who was of the Grand Knight lineage. He was known for being strong, and Ayduin was no match for him.

But, even then, Ayduin did not give up and fought with all he had.

Because of his courage and tenacity, he could last until the end of the match, despite the overwhelming odds. And the goddess of luck seemed to grant his persistence, giving him unexpected victory. His bravery was enough to make some audiences cheer and applaud him despite his miserable state.

Luckily, the Knight Division's competition festival would be paused and resumed tomorrow as the first round of Mage Division would begin shortly.

So, Ayduin was able to rest and heal the wounds his entire body had suffered for his dramatic victory.

Meanwhile, in the weapons room, Ainkrad was busy choosing the spears that his golden boy would use in the match the next day.

Aizen was at a loss for words seeing Ainkrad's cheerful and shining face as if a child had a new toy.

"These spears are good. And quality-wise, it's better over your wooden stick that's been destroyed. However, I suggest you use this one." Ainkrad said as he handed Aizen a spear.

The spear was made from the finest steel, forged by expert hands. The shaft of the spear was straight and narrow, polished to a mirror-like sheen. The point of the spear was sharply honed and tapered to a needle-like point.

It had a sturdy crossguard that had been intricately decorated with engravings of dragons and other mythical creatures, adding an air of mysticism and power to the weapon.

The handle of the spear was wrapped in dark leather, providing a secure grip even in the most chaotic battles. At the top of the handle was a magnificent crown of gold, emblazoned with a ruby that radiates mystical energy. The spear was a powerful and majestic weapon, befitting only the one Supreme Knight.

But Aizen wasn't the least bit fascinated or amazed by that. In his previous life, he didn't care about high-grade, medium-grade, and low-grade items. He only used spears of any kind as his main weapon.

It was because he had Reeva. The power of lightning and thunder was potent in enhancing the spear to be an extraordinary item.

The power of that ancient spirit belittled all kinds of weapons in battle, except for magic technology that used Aether and Quanta energy.

Thus, he never placed importance on choosing weapons. Besides, He deliberately used a wooden stick, not because he was too arrogant, but because he intended to fight with his bare hands if the wooden weapon was destroyed.

He had no intention of winning the competition festival. He just put it as a training ground only. Nothing more, nothing less.

But thinking back that the fate of the Azure Realm rested in his hands, he couldn't just do the half-assed training. He only had less than three years to become the Supreme Knight again and prevent the Omni War.

Since things had turned out like that, he better make it to the end in earnest.

Aizen then grabbed the spear proffered by Ainkrad. He could indeed feel the difference between quality and ordinary goods. He knew that the spear in his hand now had incredible durability even without being tested in battle.

"What is the name of this spear?"

"Dragon Breath!" Ainkrad exclaimed, answering Aizen's question.

Aizen smiled wryly. He didn't know whether to be sad or happy about it. The spear was a weapon with the nature of the fire element.

However, that didn't matter. The current Aizen couldn't gather Mana because Reeva's powers needed another week or two to return. So, the problem of two elements colliding wouldn't occur.

"It's perfect. Heavy and solid. Sharp and just the right size." Aizen said as he casually swung the Dragon Breath Spear.

Seeing that, Ainkrad rubbed his hands together and tried to persuade Aizen. "Since you're saying that, how about removing the 20 kg weight? This spear is already a bit heavy, so something like that isn't needed on your wrists and ankles."

Aizen lowered his eyes. "No. I won't take off the weight. After all, this spear only weighs around 3 or 4 kg. It's light. Please believe me. And in exchange, the one who will win this competition festival will be the Class 3."

"Well, if you say so. Sure then."

"And place a bet with me as the winner."

"Bah! You sure are too overconfident. Remember! If you're in trouble. Don't hesitate to take off the ballast. I'll punish you if you can't win and make me lose money."

"Not betting on the remaining Knight Division competition festival matches. It will be pointless because of my battle with the Lenheart lineage, the odds won't be as high as before anymore."

Ainkrad rubbed his chin, thinking about what Aizen had said just now. He had left the arena area earlier and was unaware of the development of Aizen's new opinion.

But it would make sense if the odds weren't as high as before. Now, Aizen could be categorized as a winning candidate.

"That's fine. If you win, I'll still get some money from the bet. Hehehe."

Aizen could only shake his head. "I asked Sir Ainkrad to bet on me because I also want to get a share of it. However, if we bet on the remaining matches in the Knight Division, we won't gain much."

"Don't tell me, you!?" Ainkrad flinched because he understood the direction of Aizen's conversation.

"That's right. During the mage versus knight later. The odds for our division will be high. And in addition, if I become one of the participants from the three students of the Knight Division, then the odds will be even higher."

"Are you sure?" Ainkrad asked doubtfully. The discourse of a mage being greater than a knight was not mere gossip or joke from an irresponsible party.

It was a fact that had stabilized since the last war ended a hundred years ago. The rapid development of magic users was able to accelerate and raise the degree of mages in society.

"I will beat those mage students mercilessly."