Unedited chapter. It will be edited soon.

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A draw?

That was the first thought that crossed the minds of many who were present.

The level of equality they saw in this combat was astonishing. Both were very powerful and made excellent use of their respective advantages. Distances, accurate magic shots, speed, and power.

Although the Armamentalist was in trouble because he couldn't shoot to kill or use his tactics for which he existed (murder), he still managed to match a wizard who specialized in this type of combat.

And in the end, it wasn't clear who had won!

It seemed to be a draw!

But there was no way a fight like this could end in a draw... right?

What was clear was that both contestants had left the arena and that they were very powerful.

After the whole situation was clarified on the sand, the referee stepped onto it. He had to make a decision, but it wasn't risky.

He was a professional referee, he had carefully observed the whole situation and then corroborated it with the allied referees, and 80% of them agreed on the same thing.

He hadn't seen wrong. So he had to give his verdict.

"This time, the situation seems to have become complicated when it comes to giving a final verdict, but that's not really the case. There is a clear winner this time, driven by the one who touched the barrier first," he said and looked at Mark and Louis in the distance.

Although both were injured, Louis only had severe burns and a few broken bones, and with those injuries, he could stand up, so he did.

Mark was in a bit of trouble. He wasn't as tough as Louis, so he didn't enjoy what Louis enjoyed. In addition, he had been shot several times, and although none of the shots had targeted a problematic area, several had hit bone and even gone through it, so he was in a lot of pain and found it difficult to stand up.

He had to bend over and lean against the walls of the nearby bleachers. Also, since he was outside, he took the opportunity to drink some potions to help him recover from his injuries.

"This time, there wasn't much difference between who touched the barrier first. The difference was minimal, a few milliseconds, but it was certainly very clear. What I am about to say will be corroborated by the powerful figures of the empire. So I hope there will be no objections," assured the referee.

With his years of experience, he announced a winner: "The winner is Louis von Habsburg, who touched the barrier about 50 milliseconds after Mark Neville," he declared.

Many people in the stands were surprised by such a confident verdict, especially when the difference was so minimal. That would naturally trigger outrage among Mark's fans, family, and supporters.

Even Professor Niles disagreed with this. Why would they declare him the winner when the difference was so small and the referee might have been wrong?

In fact, even some very high-ranking people in academia and among the castles were slightly indignant, especially those in the north, who refused to accept that there was a winner in this, who was an armamentist.

Although perhaps it was more... fear that he would gain too much power among the students.

Or perhaps it was because of Hardrial?

Although none of them expressed their point of view, it was clear that they were leaning more toward Mark winning.

"It's because of Niles," Hardrial said suddenly, looking at Neville. "Who do you think won?" he asked.

Robert Neville smiled slightly, mocking himself. "My son lost, that's for sure. Despite using his ultimate, he missed the most powerful attack and could only rely on the lag. That kid did well. He knew that certain bullets couldn't penetrate some bones, so he took advantage of that to shoot at them, so that instead of being penetrated, they were forced by the impact. No doubt about it, strategically he was superior."

"If you don't want the other side to gain strength by having the top student back among their ranks, then you should stand up. They're putting pressure on the little referee. It seems that the other side has no intention of corroborating what we all saw," said Hardrial. "Look, even the emperor hasn't said a word."

Robert Neville sighed, but stood up. He hadn't taught his son to be a cheater because he wasn't one himself. Those who were meant to win would win, and those who weren't would lose.

So he got up and walked over to the window of the room.

Many people were speechless when they saw him appear. If anyone could have the final say in this, it was him. Not only because he had also seen what everyone else saw, but because he was also Mark's representative before the voices of the powerful crowd.

"Why harass one of the students to give glory to the other?" he asked suddenly. He didn't look at the referee, he looked at the other side.

"I had heard that the Academy tournaments were inviolable by powerful forces, but what I am seeing does not match what I have been told and what I personally experienced when I was a student."

Although his words were unclear to most, the referee sighed with relief when he saw him speak and not address him. He knew this man was on his side.

"It takes a lot of humility to side with someone who is against your son," he thought.

And Robert soon confirmed what he thought: "The winner has been decided, with an exact difference of 67 milliseconds," he declared. "My son, Mark, hit the barrier first and therefore left the arena first, so he lost. So stop looking for five legs on a cat that doesn't have them. We Nevilles don't need anyone's sympathy, nor do we need undeserved gifts from those who stab us in the back."

After his words, he sat back down, leaving the entire arena in dead silence for several seconds.

None of the powerful figures on the other side who had been speaking before said anything again. Everyone remained silent.

Minutes later, the hubbub of astonished people began again, with some cheering for a new champion, others lamenting the loss of the one they had bet on, and...

From Robert Priestley, with a bitter feeling in his chest. The guy they were supposed to support had won. They managed to remove Niles' hegemony at the top, which was important in order to counteract any attempt by those guys to take over the academy.

But at the same time... he had lost a ridiculous amount of money.

100 billion.

That's not something you see every day, even in his family.

"Sigh, well, there's nothing I can do," he thought, and endured the mocking smiles around him (from Rebecca and Miss Evergreen).

Director Miroc and the other academy leaders rose from their seats; it was time to close the tournament.

"I must say, I am amazed," said Miroc, looking at the finalists and also at the one who had won third place in the final (Laura).

Although it went unnoticed for a while, there was a moment when Louis and Mark's fight was boring, and it was then that Laura managed to defeat her opponent to establish herself as one of the top three.

"Young Lord Habsburg truly lives up to his surname. Despite his youth, with only his first year of study at the academy behind him, he has managed to do what no one else has done before. Becoming the champion of the Ascended Tournament."

"The first 16-year-old to achieve this, please accept my congratulations and also my respect. If you continue to grow under the tutelage of my academy, you will reach the greatest heights in the future, just as your father and your ancestors did," he declared.

At his words, Louis looked up slightly and frowned. Laura was helping him at that moment, but even she noticed a change in his expression.

"Is something wrong?" he whispered.

But Louis didn't answer.

He had noticed something... that he wished he hadn't.

"A bold statement, with a certain murderous intent and authority. He's trying to tell me that if I don't align myself with his ideals, I won't have that great future he talks about," he thought.

It wasn't very obvious, but he wouldn't be a good businessman if he couldn't notice these small changes and subtle messages between the lines.

"Miss Laura has also surprised me. Congratulations on reaching the top three and establishing yourself as one of the best in the academy. Right now, although the number of stars will have to increase, I'm sure there's a big difference between the top three and the rest of the stars. All of this is your work, my young students."

"Most rewards will be given out in due time. Here, I will only give you the medals of recognition and the three main rewards, the three Grimoires. I remind you that you will have to work among the top three in order to study these grimoires, so please." He descended to the largest combat arena and stood over them.

The top 18 were called up.

Each was given a medal. The top three were given a Grimoire each.

This reward was not permanent for the winners; it would remain with them for an entire academic year, during which they could study it with their teachers and share knowledge among themselves.

Each book had to be studied by each student during that year.

"I wonder what those other rewards are. Laura told me they were pretty good, but she didn't tell me what they were," Louis thought, although he knew he couldn't find out for now. He had to wait.