Nathan's balance broke, and he stumbled forward.
Nathan crashed to one knee, his palms slapping the mat to keep himself from face-planting. His breath hitched in surprise.
Elion blinked, almost surprised at himself.
His body felt weightless for a moment, like instinct had overridden exhaustion entirely.
Selene's voice cut in sharply.
"Good sweep, Elion. Follow through!"
Her command snapped something inside him, and his eyes sharpened with focus.
What he didn't see, though, was that everyone, everyone was watching, some from the corner of their eyes, while sparring, others stopping entirely.
Nathan pushed himself back up, teeth gritted. "Lucky shot," he muttered, lunging again, this time with a desperate hook aimed at Elion's jaw.
Elion ducked low, feeling the wind of the swing ruffle his hair.
Before he even thought about it, his fist shot upward, striking Nathan squarely in the gut.
"—Guh!"
Nathan folded with a breathless wheeze, staggered backwards, then dropped onto the mat, clutching his stomach.
Elion could have stopped there, but something in him clicked.
He followed up, driving his knee into Nathan's chest just enough to send him sprawling onto the mat.
"Yield," Elion said softly, panting.
Nathan groaned. "Ugh. Fine. You win."
The match ended. Elion stood there, chest heaving, sweat dripping from his chin, feeling half-triumphant and half-confused.
He'd moved… cleaner. Faster. Almost subconsciously.
For a heartbeat after Nathan hit the mat, the gymnasium fell into absolute silence.
Not just quiet, silence so complete it felt like the whole room forgot how to breathe.
Every pair of eyes, sweaty, tired, unfocused from exhaustion, was now locked entirely on Elion.
Elion.
The guy who had never once won a spar since they all came here.
Elion.
Who flinched when someone raised their voice.
Elion.
Who froze whenever William so much as looked his way.
Yet here he stood, chest rising and falling with ragged breaths, sweat dripping down his jaw… and Nathan was the one on the ground.
It didn't make sense.
A dozen thoughts raced through the minds of the students.
Did he really beat Nathan?
Was that real?
He moved so fast… that wasn't luck, was it?
Is this still the same Elion?
Even Nathan, still clutching his abdomen, stared at him like he didn't recognize the person who had hit him.
Elion felt all their stares, not sharp or mocking like usual, but bewildered. Hesitant. Almost wary.
A subtle shift, but a definite one. Something had changed.
Whatever happened during those hours, the class believed him dead… something had changed in him.
He wasn't as weak as he was anymore. And they could all feel it in him. To what extent, they didn't know.
Off to the side, William, who had paused mid-spar with his partner, finally broke the silence with a loud, derisive snort.
"Tch. Don't get excited," he drawled, rolling his shoulders. "Nothing special happened here."
He jabbed a thumb toward Nathan. "Nathan's weak."
Then pointed directly at Elion, the contempt in his voice dripping like venom.
"And that trash over there is also weak. The outcome of a fight between weaklings isn't worth celebrating."
A murmur flared, some uncomfortable, some unconvinced.
William spread his arms wide, arrogance radiating off him. "If you want to see a real fight, watch me."
"Enough," Selene snapped before he could continue.
Her tone sliced clean through his rant, and he stiffened, visibly annoyed but not daring to talk back.
Selene looked toward Elion, her tail flicking once with amusement, and offered him a small, genuine smile.
"Don't listen to him," she said, voice warm but firm. "You've improved, far more than anyone thought possible."
Her eyes sharpened slightly, as if she were trying to peer through his skin.
"I don't know how long you've been training on your own, or if you were hiding your strength… but keep this up, and you'll catch up to the rest of the class soon."
The students reacted again, this time with hushed whispers, surprise, even a hint of respect.
"Tch, like hell he will," William muttered under his breath.
Elion stood there, still trying to steady his breath, but for the first time in a long while… he didn't shrink under their attention.
He met Selene's eyes.
And he nodded.
Selene's tail flicked once, her grin widening.
"That's the fire I want to see," she said, mostly to herself. Then, as if forgetting everything she had said just now, her tone shifted to something more serious, "However-"
She approached Elion and Nathan, hands clasped behind her back, assessing him like a blade she was considering sharpening further.
"Your endurance is all over the place, but your reflexes…" Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "Your reflexes are interesting."
Elion swallowed, unsure what to say. His pulse thundered in his ears.
"And you," Her eyes snapped toward Nathan, "You lost to someone a whole stage below you?"
"But we were not even using mana!" Nathan tried to justify himself, but he was only met with a sharp, disapproving look.
"Is that supposed to make you feel better! GET UP, BOY!" She screamed at him, causing him to flinch, "Another hour! GET UP AND RUN!" Nathan grit his teeth and scurried off his feet.
Selene straightened and turned to the room. "Everyone else! Switch partners!"
A wave of groans echoed, but no one dared linger.
Elion barely had time to breathe before another student, Tessa, a beautiful girl with tanned skin, notorious for having more brawn than brains, stepped in front of him.
She was as clueless as they came. wearing skimpy clothes with no regard for decency. Even now, no matter where Elion looked, her tanned skin met his eyes.