"......"

Shija found himself alone, the sudden silence of the arena amplifying the heavy growl of the Obsidian Golem, feeling the cold dirt floor beneath his feet uncomfortable without his training sandals.

"The exam begins... Now!"

And so, with the receptionist's voice echoing through the venue, the official combat began.

("GRRRROOAAAWW!!")

The Golem reacted instantly, who, despite its size and build, was not slow.

(GRRRNNNK!)

The chains tightened, limiting its movements while its enormous obsidian fists rose, adopting a defensive posture that challenged any frontal attack.

"!!"

In response, Shija did not hesitate. The fear of Dominion-H and the fury over his Master's situation overcame his shame.

"Kyōgetsu Style: Rapid Wind of the Blade!"

Shija, shouting, lunged forward, using the momentum to concentrate his Aura and channeled his energy through an open palm strike aimed at the golem's center of mass.

(Boom!)

Shija's attack was powerful, designed to unbalance and penetrate defenses, a fundamental technique of his martial school that struck with a dull thud, releasing a concentrated gust of wind.

"Impossible?!"

However, the golem barely moved. The obsidian plate on its chest absorbing the blow without showing a single crack.

("GRRRR!")

The monster only tilted its head, its red eyes blinking, as if it was slightly annoyed by an insect.

"Is that all you've got?! You'd better get serious!!"

On the other hand, Mireya from outside the arena rested his arms on the magical barrier, watching and cheering with his arms raised alongside the small silver armor to his left and the floating straw doll to the right.

"A low-level concentrated Ki attack won't do anything to it! Try something else!!"

Mireya shouted with an irritated tone, as if letting out a complaint.

"......"

Shija ignored him, dodging a slow but massive sweep of the Golem's arms, searching for a weak point.

"If it's not strength, it'll be speed!"

Deciding, Shija accelerated, disappearing in a gust of wind caused by his movement.

(CLACK! CLACK! CLACK!)

Thus, he executed a rapid series of precision strikes aimed at the knee and elbow joints, searching for a softer area using the Kyōgetsu Style at its peak: fast, elegant, and focused.

(CHKKK-CHKKK-CHKKK!)

But despite the attacks, the golem merely creaked under the onslaught, unfazed.

(GRRRNNNK!)

"Ugh...!"

Instead of yielding, the magical chains on its arms lit up, and the Golem unleashed a static shockwave that forced Shija back, the invisible blow nearly expelling him from the arena.

"I see"

For her part, in reaction to the combat, the receptionist diligently noted things down on her clipboard.

"Haaaah...!"

Meanwhile, Mireya sighed theatrically, his tone growing louder and more critical.

"Oh, the coordination is awful! What are you doing?!"

Seeing the scene, he began to stomp his feet in frustration against the ground, on the verge of entering the arena, being solely held back by the Silver armor and the Goldie straw doll, who held him firmly in place.

"Excuse me, you must refrain from interfering with the test..."

And even the receptionist kept him at bay with a professional smile.

"Ah... Yes, I'm sorry... However, I'm not interfering! I'm just advising!"

Thus, after snapping, Mireya focused his attention on Shija, who was catching his breath in the middle of the fight.

"Listen, Guide! You're wasting your energy! Your style is too clean and focused! You must start improvising!!"

(That's easy for him to say!!)

Shija, listening, although exhausted, felt a surge of rage.

(It's true! Even when giving my maximum, I barely scratch it! I'm... weak!)

Driven by humiliation and frustration, Shija lunged again, this time with a risky pinning technique, attempting to climb the golem's arm to reach the retreat medallion.

(BAM!)

But the golem, fed up with its persistent attacker, launched a direct blow.

"!!"

However, Shija, reacting in time, narrowly got away, but the air displaced by the impact violently threw him against the magical barrier, leaving him breathless and slumped on the arena floor.

"Enough!"

Seeing that, the receptionist raised a hand, declaring the end.

"Time has expired, and the competitor has demonstrated the capacity for persistence, although he lacks the necessary offensive power."

In that way, she addressed Shija, who was struggling to get up.

"You did well, Retsu. Your initial rank will be determined soon. Now, get out of the arena!"

"......"

Thus, Shija crawled out, his body aching and his morale crushed, feeling Mireya's contempt without him saying a single word.

"Well... Something is better than nothing... At least now we know where to start!"

Mireya, on the contrary, was radiant, doing a few stretches, thus taking a step toward the edge of the arena, without looking at Shija.

"Now it's my turn!"

And with a sickening smile, he announced, looking at the helpless golem that was in front of him.

"....."

On the other hand, Shija crawled out of the arena, with every muscle protesting the high-efficiency beating he had just received, both from the Golem and Mireya's criticism.

"Hhhhh... Hhhhh..."

Gasping, he collapsed next to the magical barrier, just in time to see Mireya enter the arena.

"This is my chance!"

Mireya, with his silver hair falling to his shoulders and his youthful physical appearance, looked ridiculously small in the arena's vast space compared to the Obsidian Golem, two meters tall and pure mineral mass that towered like a threatening mountain.

"I know I can dominate it..."

At that moment, while Mireya was excitedly jumping, muttering to himself, a group of adventurers who had gathered to observe the new novices began to murmur.

"Look at that. Is that a child?"

"Miss, are you sure this is appropriate? He could get hurt!"

The mages in the group frowned, concentrating on the small figure.

"I don't feel... anything. There is no trace of mana or magic in that body. It's as if he's empty."

For their part, the warriors assessed his physique.

"He's too delicate. No muscle. He doesn't give the feeling of being strong."

A veteran adventurer concluded, shaking his head.

"He's not a warrior. He gives a very weak impression."

Hearing those words, Shija, still crestfallen, without bothering to look up, agreed mentally.

(They are valid comments)

Shija thought with a familiar bitterness with a self-critical expression.

(They are guided by common sense, and that is the problem.)

Shija thought that if he hadn't witnessed it, he would have reached the same conclusion the first time he saw him: a weak and lost child. But the reality he had witnessed broke all known logic.

(Yet, he was able to confront my Master on equal terms, without suffering any damage. Not even a scratch!)

The memory of the fight was hazy, but the fear was not.

(Also...)

Then, another recent memory, which occurred during their uncomfortable journey to the city, imposed itself on his mind.

(... What he did)

At that moment, they had been walking along the forest path with him still refusing to look him in the eye after getting lost, when suddenly, an Earth Wolf monster had leaped from the bushes, a common but dangerous being for a low-ranked adventurer.

"I'll take care of it...!"

(BWOOM!)

But before Shija could even raise his guard, or even understand what had happened...

(BOOOOOOM!!)

The monster had disintegrated into a cloud of dust before it could even touch the ground...

"Ugh, Echidna, I think I overdid it!"

... He saw Mireya turn toward the air, whispering in a panic to no one.

"Ah, I mean! Just as I planned!!" Check latest chapters at novel_fіre.net

Immediately afterward, as if he had noticed he was being watched, he turned to look at Shija with his perpetually awkward and embarrassed expression, at which Shija realized something more, beyond the flash of destruction.

"!!"

In front of Mireya, a straight line of destruction had opened up, starting from the location where Mireya held his frying pan, extending through the forest up to the top of the hill.

(A mountain)

And on the top of the hill... the mountain that had been there a moment ago was now... shattered.

(He erased a mountain with a casual attack I didn't even notice. And he did it with a frying pan)

The truth was inescapable.

(Logic doesn't apply to him)

Shija raised his gaze, his eyes fixed on the small figure of Mireya in the center of the arena, who was now face-to-face with the Obsidian Golem.

(What kind of power is that?)

And in response to the surrounding attention, Mireya merely smiled, holding his arm down with an open palm.

"It's time to try something new!"

("GRRRR!")

And with that cry as a signal, the Obsidian Golem, unaware of what was about to happen, raised its massive fists, preparing for the charge.

"....."

The receptionist secretly held her breath, her hand hovering over the emergency button.

"Begin!"

(FSSS-FSSSHH!)

The instant the word resonated, a flare of purple fire was released from Mireya's open palm, engulfing the entire arena with terrifying power.

("GRRRROOAAAWWW!!")

The Obsidian Golem, designed to resist, whimpered with a scraped metallic sound as it was forced back by the repulsion of the heatwave.

(CRACK-CRACK!)

"Is he burning the barrier?!"

And unexpectedly, the furious sea of flames took the present guild members by surprise by cracking the barrier designed to withstand the attacks of S-rank Adventurers.

"Condensation... compression... and control in a single point..."

However, Mireya, oblivious to all this, remained in the center, with his palm open downward. His face was blank, reflecting immense concentration, completely unaware of the chaos he had unleashed.

"Almost... I can do it!"

At that moment, his eyes began to glow with a strange light as he examined the phenomenon.

"Stop, end the test! The barrier is going to fail!"

The receptionist paled, shouting into the communicator, noticing how even with the magical support of the present mages and the barrier's magical reserves, it was still on the verge of collapsing.

"Hate... Resentment... If I can't control them... Then I just have to let them burn!"

But Mireya wasn't listening. The nearby mages and adventurers panicked, hastily channeling their own magic into the defensive barrier, desperately trying to make it withstand the heat pressure.

("GRRRROOAAAWWWOOAAAWW!!!")

The Golem, sensing the mortal danger, began to slowly approach step by step through the fire's repulsion, determined to reach its target.

"Reception, cancel the test!"

The terrified mages shouted.

"The barrier won't be able to hold any longer!"

(VVVHHHUUUUM!)

But at that moment, before the receptionist was able to shout the cancellation, or the Golem reached its target, the torrent of fire, all the flames and wails, condensed into a single point, forming a nucleus of purely distilled energy.

(SHOOOOOM!)

And so, a spherical mass of fire compacted into a single point surged.

"Here we go! Bewitched Hearth Flame: Ignis!"

(VROOOM-PACT!)

The result was a sonic and visual explosion that shook the foundations of the Guild.