The classroom was filled with a calm aura of concentration. The teacher talks in front of the magic blackboard about controlling energy, while the students watch the oscillation of strings of light in the air. As for Saruto, he was in another world entirely, a silent world in which he could only hear the sound of his breathing and the roar of his dark energy moving within him.
He sat straight, his eyes half closed, as if contemplating. From the outside he seemed calm, but inside him a dark storm was moving through his veins, writhing and colliding like angry souls searching for a way out. Void's voice broke through the stillness of his consciousness, deep, calm, but overflowing with power: "Well done, Saruto... You now control the flow of energy in a balanced way. Do you feel it? How does it flow from your chest to your limbs and back?"
"Yes, I can feel it… like a warm current filling my body. It's not exploding anymore, it's moving as I want," Saruto replied to himself in a slow voice as he took a deep breath.
Void laughed lightly, a deep laugh like the echo of an ancient dragon echoing deep within the earth: "Then let's move on to the next stage… You've mastered balance, now it's time to focus."
Saruto's eyebrows rose slightly as he whispered, "Focus?"
Void replied: "Yes... to collect all that energy in one point inside your body. Your hand, your arm, your chest, any place you choose. The power you distribute across your body now is balanced, but if they combine them in one place, the power of your attack will double."
Saruto's features changed as he remembered something. A scene from his old battle against the Queen of Hell, when she used the same technique against him. He saw in his mind how she stood in front of him, her body covered in a dark red aura, and then she gathered all her energy in her stomach, to repel his blow that was enough to destroy half the arena. He opened his eyes slightly and whispered: "Just like the Princess of Hell did…"
"Exactly," Voyd continued, "and now you're going to do the same thing."
Saruto began to slowly extend his right hand in front of him, palm facing upward, and closed his eyes again. The dark current inside his body began to move, gathering from his limbs, from his chest, from his legs, from every cell in him, to gather towards his right arm.
It was difficult at first...the energy resists, fluctuates, tries to escape. His forehead began to drip with sweat, and the voices of the class faded into the background. He could only hear his heartbeat and the roaring rhythm of the dark energy condensing within him. "You feel it, don't you," Void said in a low voice, "this heaviness in your hand...this warmth mixed with coldness? Not like you usually do, when your hand is enveloped in the aura."
Then he continued, "Let's give this skill a name, Saruto."
"Yes, it seems to be a Jedi idea," Saruto replied, "What do you suggest we call it, Void?"
"How about Bassem, Edo skill," Void said.
Saruto nodded in agreement with the name. Moments, then everything calmed down. Saruto slowly raised his head and looked at his palm where the dark aura was condensing, pulsing with a deep faintness. "Just like that... when you gather energy in one place, one blow is enough to demolish a mountain," Void said calmly and contently. "But remember, Saruto... if you mismanage, it will destroy you before it destroys your opponent."
Saruto slowly opened his fist, emitting a powerful vibration that shook the table in front of him. The teacher raised his head in astonishment, and the heirs exchanged looks in stunned silence. But Saruto was smiling softly, a faint smile that concealed a new awareness of his strength.
The atmosphere in the classroom was charged with something unusual, a mixture of curiosity and awe. After the table where Saruto was sitting shook, silence fell. Even the teacher stopped explaining, his narrowed eyes fixed on him with a flicker of interest.
The teacher stood before the class and said in a quiet but heavy tone, "It seems one of us has grasped the lesson faster than I expected."
He gestured with his cane toward Saruto, whose hand still emitted the remnants of dark threads that faded into thin air. "Since you're the center of attention, Saruto, let's make it official. Show us what you've learned… show us how you control your energy."
Whispers rose through the hall, a mixture of excitement and fear.
Rain smiled confidently and said in a low voice between himself and Kyle, "The demonstration begins."
Saruto rose slowly from his seat, his steps heavy but steady.
He stood in the center of the hall, all eyes following him. The teacher said, "The rule is simple. Gather your energy as you did a moment ago, then direct it toward the target."
He gestured, and a magical training dummy, encased in a protective layer of energy, appeared before them. Its purpose was to test the students' strength. Saruto closed his eyes for a moment, and in his mind, he heard Void's voice say softly and encouragingly, "Now, it's time to put what you've learned into practice."
He slowly raised his right hand. Energy began to gather around his arm, condensing and swirling like a living, black liquid that shimmered with a purple glow. The ground beneath his feet trembled slightly, and the air grew heavy, pulsating with invisible vibrations. "This isn't ordinary energy," Selena whispered, a shiver running down his spine. "It's like a dark vortex."
In an instant, Saruto opened his eyes. They glowed with a deep, unwavering purple light. "Here it is..."
He drew a breath, then suddenly clenched his fist, pointing his hand at the dummy. A dark, compressed mass shot out at incredible speed. No one heard the sound of its explosion, only the wind folding behind it. Then—BOOM!—the entire hall shook with a muffled blast. The light faded for a moment, and when it returned, the puppet had vanished completely, leaving only a circular hole in the ground from which the remnants of black energy emanated, dissolving like smoke.
The master stood stunned for a moment, then said, trying to conceal his excitement, "…A concentrated force of this magnitude? Without a single escape?"
He approached Saruto, who slowly lowered his arm, breathing deeply, his hand still trembling slightly. "Well done, Saruto. As expected of the heir of the Dark Family, you've surpassed Marta's limits once again."
Saruto smiled faintly and said in a low voice, "Thank you for the compliment, Master, but it's nothing."
From behind, a short laugh could be heard. Ryan had risen to his feet and said, his voice loud and defiant, "What a beautiful sight… but I want to see if that power can take me down."
He reached out, and a golden aura began to rise around him, piercing the air with oppressive heat. But Kyle quickly grabbed his arm and said sharply, "Enough, Ryan. Remember what I told you earlier."
The two exchanged tense glances, but eventually backed away. Saruto stood silently in the center of the hall, smoke still swirling around him. His eyes held a mixture of weariness and satisfaction, and inside, Foid's voice whispered with a hidden smile, "Saruto, trade places with me. Let me fight this kid. I'm starting to be interested."
Saruto smiled slightly and said, "You wait, Foid. Maybe next time I'll let you fight him."