Whoosh!

Black smoke billowed outward, and Geran’s scorched figure came into clear view.

He stood there with a blank expression before collapsing to the ground, losing consciousness completely.

The smoke continued to pour from his body, making him look utterly pitiful.

The courtyard fell into silence. Everyone stared at the scene in shock.

Ronald took a deep breath and appeared right beside Geran.

He checked Geran’s condition and let out a sigh of relief when he confirmed he was still alive.

“Leona,” he called.

“Yes, Vice Principal!”

Leona hurried over.

“Take Geran to the medical room. Stay with him and make sure he recovers. Understand?”

Leona didn’t dare object. With the help of the other students, she carried Geran to the medical room in the main building.

Ronald stood up and turned toward Merlin with a stern expression.

“Merlin Clay, do you understand what you just did?” he asked coldly.

Merlin wasn’t intimidated by his gaze. He straightened his uniform and replied casually, “I do. And I don’t think I did anything wrong. What do you think, vice principal?”

A playful smile curled across his lips.

From the start, Merlin hadn’t intended to hit Geran that hard. But Geran had attacked first—aiming to kill.

If not for the shield Merlin had created, that strike would have left him severely injured.

So, Merlin didn’t feel even the slightest guilt.

Ronald stared at him for a moment, then shook his head.

“Don’t do that again. Understand?”

Merlin only smiled and gave a small nod.

Ronald said nothing else and turned away.

“Everyone, the party is over. Return to your rooms.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he vanished from where he stood. The professors followed after him, leaving the students behind with dazed expressions.

“Tsk! Merlin Clay is insanely strong!” Mey praised in admiration. “Do you think you can defeat him, Trigard?”

Trigard forced a smile and rubbed his nose.

“It’s hard to say unless I fight him directly. But Merlin Clay really is strong. I’m not confident I could win against him,” he admitted honestly.

He could tell Merlin was still holding back, and that alone made the boy terrifying.

Meanwhile, Geran had already unleashed all his power and even used his ultimate attack.

Yet it still couldn’t harm Merlin at all. Since Geran was slightly stronger than him, Trigard could already imagine how a fight between himself and Merlin would end.

“Hmmm… That makes sense. Merlin Clay really is an anomaly. I’m sure the battle for the seven rings will only get more interesting from here on,” Mey whispered, her eyes filled with anticipation.

Rose, standing beside her, remained silent. However, her face carried a seriousness she had never shown before.

“Let’s go,” Arta said, turning to leave.

Coming to this welcome party hadn’t been a mistake. The person who had caught his attention had finally appeared.

Still, he knew this wasn’t the right time to intervene.

Perhaps in a month… only then would he act personally and challenge Merlin Clay.

Trigard nodded and followed after him.

“Let’s go,” Mey chimed in as well, pulling Rose along.

Rosaline studied Merlin for a moment, then turned away and left too.

“Wait, Sister!” Lucius stopped her at once. “Why are you leaving!? Didn’t you say you’d help me?”

His face twisted with frustration and disappointment. He had thought Geran could defeat Merlin—maybe even kill him.

But instead, Geran had been completely crushed.

Fear of Merlin’s revenge welled up inside him. He was certain Merlin already knew he was the one who had provoked Geran into attacking.

Rosaline halted and turned to him with a cold gaze.

“Don’t worry. Merlin Clay won’t escape me. But I can’t act right now. You need to understand my position, Lucius.”

Lucius froze. He remembered his sister’s status—one of the Seven Ring Bearers.

If she took direct action against Merlin, she would become the target of everyone’s criticism.

In the end, Lucius could only fall silent and lower his head.

Rosaline shook her head and was about to leave when a teasing voice came from behind her.

“Wait, Rosaline Hexaris. Are you really going to leave just like that?”

She stiffened, then turned around and saw Merlin walking toward her with a faint smile.

The students who were about to return to their dorms immediately stopped, their eyes lighting up as they stared at the two of them.

“Could they be about to fight?” one of them asked excitedly.

Rosaline was far stronger than Geran, and Merlin was the strongest among the first batch.

Just imagining the two of them facing off was enough to make him tremble with excitement.

“That seems impossible,” another student replied, shaking his head. “Don’t you remember the bet in the hall earlier? Geran lost, which means Rosaline has to give up a million contribution points.”

Right after he said that, Merlin stopped in front of Rosaline and extended his right hand.

“You haven’t forgotten, have you?”

Rosaline furrowed her brows and stared at him sharply.

Seeing that, Lucius’s irritation instantly vanished, replaced by delight.

He had even considered provoking his sister to hate Merlin even more.

But unexpectedly, Merlin had walked straight into his own grave. It made Lucius’s job much easier.

“Wait a moment, Merlin Clay!”

Mey suddenly ran toward him and stood in front of Merlin with her arms outstretched, as if blocking him from approaching Rosaline.

“What do you mean by demanding that from Rosaline?”

Merlin glanced at her calmly and explained, “Earlier, Geran and I made a bet, and Rosaline promised one million contribution points. What’s wrong with collecting it now?”

Mey pursed her lips in dissatisfaction. Crossing her arms over her chest, she retorted, “That was just a baseless bet. It wasn’t officially recorded, so let’s just forget about it.”

Her shameless words made the surrounding students feel disgusted. Only now did they realize that Mey, who had always seemed innocent and adorable, could actually be this annoying.

“How pathetic. A second-year senior dares to act so shamelessly. Have you lost all sense of shame?”

A mocking voice sounded from behind Merlin.

Mey turned toward the voice and saw Margaret approaching with a disgusted smile on her face.

Luna, Monica, Liora, and Catrine followed behind her. Each of them looked displeased with Mey and Rosaline.

“Margaret, you—”

Mey felt her anger flare and was about to act, but Rose suddenly grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

“Don’t act impulsively. You’ll only embarrass yourself,” Rose warned.

“But Merlin is truly shameless. He dared to demand a million contribution points from Rosaline. How can I stay silent?” Mey protested.

Rose rolled her eyes. Mey was sometimes smart, but other times she could be irrational and foolish.

Still, what Mey said wasn’t wrong. One million contribution points were an outrageous amount—even for seniors like them.

Rosaline was their friend, and they couldn’t let her be wronged.

Rose took a deep breath, then said, “How about we reduce the amount to 200,000? A million is too much. But don’t worry—we can guarantee no one will bother you in this academy.”

Behind her calm tone was a clear hint of arrogance.

As one of the Seven Ring Bearers, Rosaline held great power within the academy. With her protection, Merlin could live in peace, and no one would dare cause him trouble.

Margaret knitted her brows, about to speak, but Merlin stopped her first.

“Protection, huh? Now that’s funny,” he mocked.

Rose raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

Merlin looked at her calmly and asked, “Senior Rose, may I ask you something a bit sensitive?”

Rose didn’t answer, but her silence was an unspoken consent.

“You’re currently at the Fourth Spirit Core level, right? Did you know I’m at that level too? And I’m only thirteen—two years younger than you. If I’m given a full year, not just six months, I could surpass you and even Rosaline. When that happens, are you sure I’ll still need the protection you’re talking about?” Merlin said with a mocking smile.

In truth, Merlin could break through to the Fourth Spirit Core level even faster than before. His understanding of magic was already deep, and his combat experience was no small thing either.

However, he felt his foundation still wasn’t solid enough, despite the system repeatedly telling him he was ready to break through.

Eventually, he asked the system for help and successfully broke through to that level.

Getting protection under Rosaline’s name?

That was nothing but nonsense.

With his current strength, he was already among the top first- and second-year students. If he wanted to, he could even participate in the future competition for the Seven Rings—and he was confident he could win.

Rose’s face darkened when she heard his arrogant, self-assured words.

“You…”

Just as she was about to say something, Rosaline suddenly tapped her shoulder, stopping her.

“Where’s your ID card?”

Merlin smiled broadly, then took out his card and showed it to her.

Rosaline took out her own card and swiped it. Instantly, one million contribution points were transferred.

Without saying another word, Rosaline put her card away and turned to leave.

However, she didn’t forget to warn him.

“I hope you can still act this arrogant in the future. Otherwise, it would be very disappointing, and everything you said just now would amount to nothing but empty talk.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep