“You lost,” Merlin said with a faint smile.

Catrine froze for a few seconds before letting out a long sigh.

“I… lost.”

Merlin withdrew his fist, then reached out his left hand.

Catrine took it, and Merlin pulled her to her feet.

“Are you okay? You’re not hurt, right?” Merlin asked, examining her from head to toe.

He had held back his strength, but who knew if Catrine had been injured without realizing it?

“I’m fine. Don’t worry.” Catrine shook her head. She looked at Merlin with admiration and said, “But, Brother, you’re too strong. I’m starting to doubt your power is really only at the Fourth Spirit Core level.”

Catrine herself was at the Fourth Spirit Core level. By all logic, it should have been impossible for her to be defeated so decisively.

But reality proved otherwise. She had been overwhelmed by Merlin without even managing to land a single hit.

“You’re flattering me.” Merlin simply smiled and waved his right hand.

After that, the two walked toward Celestia and the other students.

“You’re truly amazing,” Celestia said in awe. “I’m sure you’ll become powerful figures in the future.”

She let out a small sigh, not knowing what else to say.

At such a young age, the two of them had already reached a level rarely attained in this world.

Even Celestia herself was still at the Seventh Awakening level, equivalent to the Third Spirit Core.

Given her unremarkable talent, reaching that level was already an impressive achievement.

Still, compared to the two of them, she couldn’t help but feel ashamed.

“Thank you for the praise, Professor,” Merlin said politely. “Even though we’re strong, there are still many people above us. So we won’t consider ourselves the greatest.”

Catrine nodded in agreement. “Brother Merlin is right.”

Celestia was satisfied with their response. Sometimes, those with talent would become arrogant and start believing they were invincible.

That kind of mindset could prevent Merlin and Catrine from growing stronger in the future. Fortunately, her worries didn’t come true.

Their maturity is far beyond my expectations.

“Good!” Celestia smiled gently.

She turned to the other students and said, “Take Merlin’s and Catrine’s attitudes as an example. Only then will you become stronger in the future. Understand?”

“Understood!” everyone answered obediently.

Only Luvis turned away in annoyance. He refused to admit Merlin was superior, though it was clearly true.

“In that case, find your partners and begin sparring practice. I’ll record the results and use them for evaluation later.”

“Yes, Professor!”

Without wasting any time, the other students immediately began looking for partners.

Since Merlin was paired with Catrine, Luna reluctantly paired up with Margaret, while Monica paired up with Liora.

Luvis was paired with Caldor, and Crystal with Caelith. Both of them ranked in the top ten during the battle arena test.

Although their achievements had been overshadowed by Nysera and Catrine, their strength was beyond question.

“Nysera Zakriel, how about you pair up with me?”

That casual voice came from behind her.

Nysera turned and saw a white-haired girl with twin ponytails walking toward her.

She was beautiful and tall, with a well-proportioned figure that could make any girl jealous.

Most striking were the two large horns protruding from her forehead, clearly marking her as a member of the dragon race.

“Nexara?” Nysera narrowed her eyes warily. “What do you want?”

Nexara was a well-known princess of the dragon race. Although the dragon race was divided into several clans—the Silver Dragon Clan, the Red Dragon Clan, and others—there was one clan that stood above them all: the White Dragon Clan.

They were the true leaders of the dragon race. Their bloodline was the purest, the closest to the Dragon Ancestor.

“Don’t be so wary,” Nexara said, showing not the slightest hint of hostility. “I don’t have a partner. When I saw you were alone too, I thought we could spar together. What do you think?”

Nysera didn’t immediately trust her. The dragon race was filled with complicated politics, and she couldn’t afford to take things lightly.

Still, she couldn’t refuse. Doing so would only make her seem petty and suspicious.

Nysera took a deep breath and replied calmly, “Alright. But I don’t want to get close to you. Once this sparring session is over, don’t contact me again.”

“Tch! You’re really rude.” Nexara clicked her tongue, but she didn’t look angry at all.

After the students found their partners, they spread out, keeping their distance from the other pairs, and began their sparring sessions.

Three hours later…

“Hah… hah… hah…”

All the students lay sprawled across the grassy field, completely exhausted. Their faces were pale, and fatigue was clear in their weary eyes.

“I’m so tired! I can’t feel my legs!”

“Me too! Someone, please carry me back to class!”

Voices of despair and helplessness echoed all around.

Meanwhile, Merlin and Catrine helped Luna, Margaret, Monica, and Liora back to their feet.

“Drink this,” Merlin said, handing them bottles of cold water.

Luna’s and Margaret’s eyes lit up. They immediately grabbed the bottles and gulped the water down eagerly.

Monica and Liora received theirs from Catrine as well.

Once the four of them recovered, they regained their energy and began stretching their stiff bodies.

“I didn’t expect you to be this strong, Margaret,” Luna said with admiration.

At first, she had thought Margaret was just a spoiled and annoying princess.

Who would’ve guessed her martial arts skills were actually this good?

“Hmph! Glad you finally realized it,” Margaret snorted arrogantly. “But, well… you’re pretty great too. Especially those surprise attacks.”

Her tone softened as she praised Luna.

Luna chuckled quietly and didn’t respond. But after this sparring session, the two of them had grown noticeably closer.

“Good job, everyone,” Celestia’s voice echoed across the field. “I’ve managed to gather data on each of your abilities. This will be useful for your future development. I’ll share these results with the other professors so they can prepare lesson materials suited for you.”

She paused for a moment, then smiled and continued, “It seems moving on to the next class is quite impossible. Alright, you may take a break for the next hour. Once you’re done, return to class.”

Everyone’s eyes lit up. They quickly stood up straight and cheered, “Thank you, Professor!”

“Merlin, let’s go to Aunt Lisa’s shop!”

Margaret wrapped her arm around Merlin’s.

Merlin nodded. “Sure.”

He glanced at the others and asked, “Do you mind?”

“No.” The four girls shook their heads.

“Alright, let’s go.”

Just as Merlin and the others were about to leave, an annoyed voice rang out from behind them.

“Did you forget about me?”

The six of them stopped. When they turned around and saw Nysera, their expressions turned awkward—especially Merlin’s.

“Ahem! Sorry. I really did forget about you.”

He walked over to her and took her left hand in his.

“Let’s go.”

Nysera nodded flatly, but her gaze remained fixed on the hand holding hers.

In the distance, Nexara watched them leave with a strange look in her eyes.

“There’s something different about that girl,” she murmured, narrowing her eyes. “She’s not like the usual Nysera.”

She still remembered clearly how arrogant Nysera had been in the battle arena a few days ago.

But earlier, during their sparring session, Nysera had remained calm, showing none of her usual fiery temper or arrogance.

It felt as if she were an entirely different person.

***

Two months had flown by. The new students were already getting used to life at the academy.

The atmosphere was lively, especially now that the second- and third-year students had returned from their long vacation.

Although everything seemed peaceful, a major upheaval was lurking in the shadows.

In the end, it all came down to one thing: the Seven Rings Competition.

“By the way, when will the potion be distributed?” Merlin asked, twirling the vial in his hand.

It was the same potion used to cure those afflicted with blackpox.

More than three months had passed since the potion was created, and Nivis was living proof of its success.

However, distributing it widely required a far more complicated process.

Tharvis walked over and placed two cups of tea on the table.

“Maybe another half a month. Professor Leona said the potion can still be refined, though I don’t know how.”

Tharvis let out a helpless sigh.

He understood his teacher’s personality. The fact that the cure for the Blackpox outbreak had come from Merlin left Leona frustrated and unwilling to accept it so easily.

She had spent years researching it, yet still couldn’t find the most efficient way to brew it.

But then Merlin appeared with such a perfect recipe, and it clearly wounded her pride as an alchemist.

“Ah…” Merlin laughed awkwardly, unsure what to say. He understood better than anyone just how proud Leona was as an alchemist.

The recipe he had obtained from the system had clearly stirred her dissatisfaction.

“By the way,” Tharvis said as he sipped his tea, “the Seven Rings Competition is about to begin. Are you going to participate?”

Merlin smiled and shook his head.

“I don’t think so. I’m too lazy to get involved in something like that.”

At first, he had planned to participate. But after thinking it over, he decided against it.

Wouldn’t it be better to focus on the heroines and grow stronger to face the threats ahead?

“What a shame…” Tharvis sighed in disappointment.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep