A couple of hours had passed since the initial ambush. Albedo had spent that time exploring the Magma Biome and defeating both students and beasts alike. He could constantly hear the distant shrieks of monsters and the occasional echo of battle, allowing him to always find opponents.

Now, he had just finished battling a wave of monsters, and was already on the move looking for more. He was eager to clear through the Magma Biome and take down anyone and everyone who potentially stood in his way.

He kept moving until he sensed something, and a low hiss drew his gaze to a cluster of basalt boulders, their edges glowing from residual heat. Something slithered towards him like a predator.

The very air grew heavier, denser with the oppressive stench of brimstone. Albedo narrowed his eyes as he finally spotted what it was.

Fire Basilisks!

Three of them emerged, each the size of a carriage. Their armored scales shimmered with infernal heat, and glowing red eyes locked onto him. They were territorial predators, evolved and adapted to hunt in this terrain, and they looked at him like he was their new prey.

One hissed and coiled like a spring, mouth opening to reveal jagged fangs and a growing orb of fire in its gullet.

Albedo didn't move immediately. He watched, analyzing then for any potential opening, and once he saw the opening, he vanished.

The orb of fire in the basilisks mouth launched like a miniature sun, exploding in a concussive blast that obliterated the ridge he'd stood on.

But the Albedo that had been there shimmered into nothingness, being a mere mirage due to the Gift he inherited.

From behind the creatures, the real Albedo stepped out of a nearby rock face, his boots crunching against the brittle, heated stone as he raised his hand, fingers crackling with Magic energy while he casted a spell,

"Crimson Javelin,"

A spear of compressed destructive crimson apocalypse flames burst into existence, sharper than steel, its aura sizzling the air.

Albedo hurled it without a chant. The projectile whistled through the canyon like a bolt from heaven and impaled the lead basilisk through its open maw, its head erupting in a bloom of gore and flame.

The other two shrieked and lunged, one spitting a stream of corrosive flame while the other pounced with razor-edged claws.

"Crimson Bloom," He immediately casted, and once again, dozens of fire blossoms spiraled around him and exploded outward.

The leaping basilisk was caught midair and blasted backward into a lava pool, the crimson apocalypse flames immediately swarming all across its body, causing it to shriek wildly in pain.

The third was on him in a second, trying to coil around him in a grapple, but once again, its coils only crushed an illusion. The real Albedo appeared above it, balanced on a floating glyph.

"Ashbind," He muttered, chains of flaming sigils erupted from the ground and holding the basilisk in place, just enough for Albedo to cast his upcoming spell.

"Crimson Drill," He formed a spiraling bolt of flame and compressed wind, launching it like a corkscrew. It bored through the basilisk's plated hide, punching through its skull with brutal force.

Albedo landed, cloak fluttering.

All three Fire Basilisks were dead.

He let out a breath, checking his token again.

[Current Score: 2,150 pts.]

"Pretty good," He muttered, seeing himself still in the rank #1 spot. He immediately walked foward, looking for any other people he could defeat.

The Abyssal Attack would only happen towards the later stages of the Exam, so he still wanted to do well in the early portions. Plus, eliminating people would be indirectly saving them.

As he was walking, a whistle cut through the air, sharp and fast. Albedo ducked instinctively, a glimmering arrow whizzing past and striking the stone beside him with enough force to fracture it.

Three students emerged from the surrounding ridges, archers and close-range fighters. Their uniforms marked them as high-ranking Elite Class members. Each one had at least 400 points.

One of them stepped forward, a tall girl with silver hair and a massive halberd crackling with lightning.

"It's him, rank 1, let's get him boys," The three of them cracked their muscles as she finished speaking.

Albedo straightened and narrowed his eyes, "You here to chat?"

She grinned, "Nope. Just here to make a name."

And just like that, the fight erupted.

The archer let loose a barrage of enchanted arrows, each humming with kinetic force. Albedo sprinted sideways, dragging his foot in a line as he moved.

"Flame Veil," He casted, a sheet of living fire rising behind him and catching the arrows before they could reach him, incinerating them.

From above, the halberd wielder leapt into the air, lightning arcing down her weapon.

"Crimson Mirage," Albedo said, his body shimmering and splitting into four identical copies, each darting in a different direction.

The halberd crushed one, but it dissipated into flames, completely covering him in flames that caused him deep pain, patting his skin to try and put the raging fire out.

The real Albedo meanwhile had ducked beneath a swipe and responded with a fiery uppercut, knocking her off balance as the flames continued.

The third student, a close-range brawler with mana-reinforced gauntlets, surged forward.

"Ashstep," Albedo teleported a few meters away in a puff of scorched dust, barely dodging a ground-shattering punch. He reappeared and responded with:

"Crimson Lance," A searing projectile of destructive mana streaked forward, spearing the brawler in the stomach and teleporting him out of the Scape.

The halberd wielder roared and surged again, lightning flaring as she wanted to take down Albedo before the flames claimed her, but Albedo easily met her strike with his palm, raw mana surging out like a dome.

"Combustion Barrier, " Her weapon struck the barrier and exploded backward, the volatile shield detonating on impact. She flew several meters before slamming into a jagged outcrop.

"Last one," Albedo muttered, turning to the archer who was already retreating to a better vantage point.

"Ember Stalk," He said, a series of flickering flame steps burst into the air beneath his feet as he sprinted into the sky itself, rising up until he stood level with the archer's path.

She cursed and loosed three arrows at once, each one splitting mid-flight into five.

Albedo easily dodged them however, extending a hand.

"Scorch Pulse," A point-blank burst of concussive flame sent her flying off the cliff and crashing into a geyser of steam. When the mist cleared, she was gone, teleported out and eliminated.

Albedo descended slowly, flames curling around his form like loyal spirits. His token flashed again.

[Current Score: 3,650 pts.]

He groaned and flexed his muscles, looking around and hearing the roar of beasts, running in that direction to take them on.

With a steady breath, he brought his fingers to his lips and whistled sharply.

The air shimmered and a brilliant flash of white-blue flame tore across the sky, spiraling downward like a comet from the clouds.

It was Ember, she stood tall and proud, her mane flickering like a banner of celestial flame, eyes burning intelligently.

Albedo smiled and stepped toward the creature, "Took you long enough."

Ember neighed in reply, nuzzling Albedo's shoulder with surprising gentleness before turning toward the incoming tremors.

"Let's clean up."

Albeco said, leaping onto Ember's back, the celestial steed launching into a spring that burnt the ground beneath them.

Below, in a sunken volcanic basin, an entire pack of Magma Hounds prowled the edges of a lava river, mutated beasts with molten flesh, glowing red cracks along their hides, and jagged horns that pulsed with hostile mana. At least fifteen of them.

Albedo's eyes gleamed as he saw them as another perfect hunting opportunity. He rose slightly in the saddle, arms glowing as he layered spell after spell, weaving them through silent incantations and gestures like a maestro conducting a deadly symphony.

"Crimson Aria – First Movement: Bloom and Burn."

Dozens of flaming sigils bloomed midair like lotus petals, each one charged with destructive potential. They rained down onto the pack like divine judgment, the hounds howling in agony as the explosions sent them tumbling, burning, screeching.

Some tried to leap toward the cliff, but Ember reared and unleashed a burst of her white-blue flames, her fire seeping into the beast's body and corroding them from the inside out, reducing them to ash.

One of the larger hounds lunged from the side, attempting to flank, but Albedo turned in the saddle, palm raised.

"Ashbind." The hound's limbs locked as blazing chains coiled around it, and a second later, he casted another spell.

"Crimson Lance." He fired the spell directly through its skull. The creature vanished in a flash of white light.

A massive one,easily the alpha—, charged forward, magma dripping from its fangs like venom, its roar splitting the air.

Albedo didn't flinch, immediately casting another spell.

"Graviton Spike - Crimson Variant."

He fused gravitational compression with destructive flame, hurling a spiraling spear of dense, heavy flame at the beast's core. It struck with the force of a collapsing meteor, imploding the hound's torso in on itself. The monster exploded in a gout of lava and blood.

Albedo and Ember moved through the carnage like dancers in a war ballet—fluid, precise, untouchable.

Every beast that came near was either crushed by Ember's crushing hooves or obliterated by Albedo's relentless spells.

"Second Movement - Floral Requiem."

A wave of petal-shaped flames spun outward in a perfect ring, scything through the remaining hounds and setting their dying bodies ablaze in an eerily beautiful display.

Seconds later, silence fell. Only the bubbling magma rivers remained. The wind whispered across the charred battlefield, carrying the scent of ash and ozone.

Albedo dismounted, stepping across the stone and surveying the scorched ruin.

His token glowed again, showing his new upgraded point total.

[Current Score: 5,200 pts.]

He was still rank 1, and he looked across the horizon, where the magma gave way to a more forested area beyond.

Another Biome awaiting him to conquer it, and every challenge within it.