Helena stepped down from the arena, head lowered. Frustration burned in her chest, sharp and unresolved—but beneath it lingered something stronger.
Resolve—and a desire to prove herself next time.
'Next time,' she promised herself. 'I won't lose.'
She was used to standing at the top.
Within her family, she had always been praised and indulged—Vivianne's talented younger cousin, the pride of the side branch. Within the academy, her status was even more undeniable. First-ranked mage among the first-years. Two hundredth overall in the academy rankings.
To most students, she was untouchable. Until today.
From the outside, Alex's victory had been clean—almost merciful.
And yet.
Helena's brow twitched faintly as she replayed the moment in her mind.
'Seriously…' she thought irritably. 'Who ends a match like that?'
She had already been immobilized. Completely restrained. There had been no need for it—no reason to flick her forehead like she was some misbehaving child.
Her cheeks warmed despite herself. 'He really doesn't know how to treat a girl…' The thought only deepened her scowl, equal parts humiliation and flustered annoyance.
Behind her, the murmurs in the hall still hadn't fully settled.
Elena's voice cut through them cleanly.
"What happened here does not leave this room."
The hall quieted immediately.
Her gaze was calm—but unmistakably sharp.
"This applies not just to Alex's performance," she continued evenly, "but also to everyone else's progress. If I hear that information from today has spread," Elena said, her tone softening just enough to be dangerous, "I will personally remove you from the tournament."
The students stiffened.
William scoffed quietly from the side, folding his arms, irritation thinly veiled. He drew a breath to speak—
"I deny the request."
Elena didn't even look at him.
William blinked. "I haven't even finished speaking."
"You were about to request a magic verification for Alex." Elena replied calmly. "The answer is no."
A ripple of tension passed through the mage students.
William's jaw tightened. "This is highly irregular—"
"And already addressed," Elena cut in smoothly. "The documentation is verified. Your concern is noted. It is not required."
That was that.
No debate followed.
More telling than Elena's refusal, however, was what happened next.
Several magic students—those who had earlier whispered doubts, who had lingered near William's side—quietly stepped away from him.
They simply created distance. William noticed this and his expression darkened.
◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆
Elena lingered only long enough to offer a few final words of encouragement. With that, she departed—already buried beneath the endless duties of the academy.
William had left much earlier. His presence had been little more than ceremonial, a reminder of politics rather than authority. Once denied, he saw no reason to remain.
Only Irene stayed behind.
She stood at the edge of the training hall, quietly monitoring them.
Once the tension fully dissipated, the Knight Faculty students were the first to approach Alex.
A few of the magic students followed, hesitation giving way to curiosity. Whispers turned into questions. Questions into conversation.
For the next two to three days, Alex trained with them.
The newcomers' tournament included both a group event and an individual one, and Elena had made her expectations clear. Coordination, familiarity, and trust all mattered.
Alex blended in quickly. It wasn't always about individual strength—and Alex never treated it as if it were.
Among the students, reactions to him varied.
Some were openly friendly—eager, even—drawn to his strength. Others remained lukewarm, polite but distant, unsure how to reconcile what they had witnessed with their preconceived notions.
And then there was Helena.
She was, without question, the strangest of them all.
At times, she stared at Alex as if trying to bore a hole straight through him—eyes sharp, expression stormy, bristling with lingering irritation. At other times, she spoke to him casually, even sharply, as if their match had been nothing more than an inconvenience she hadn't quite forgiven.
More than once, Helena shut others down with a sharp look or a curt remark. She never defended Alex outright, never praised him—but she made it unmistakably clear that pushing him aside was unacceptable.
If anyone was going to challenge him, glare at him, or pick faults in his actions, it would be her.
Which only made her behavior impossible to mistake for indifference.
Aurora grinned as she leaned closer to Alex. "Careful—she's got that 'I lost, but I'm not done with you yet' look. That's not hostility." Her smile widened, eyes glinting with amusement.
"That's rivalry."
◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆ ◇ ◆
Night settled quietly over Star Shine Academy.
The principal's office.
Alex stood before Elena's desk once more. She gestured toward the chair across from her.
"Sit," she said. "This won't take long."
Alex complied, though a faint tension lingered in his shoulders. Tomorrow marked the tournament's opening day. Even knowing he was prepared didn't stop the weight of it from pressing down on him.
"Tomorrow marks the beginning of the Nine Academy Tournament." Elena said evenly. "Once you step onto that stage, every action you take will be observed, analyzed, and remembered."
Alex nodded. "I understand."
"Good." Her eyes sharpened slightly. "Then we'll start with restrictions."
Alex blinked. "Restrictions?"
"For the Magic Tournament," Elena continued calmly, "you are forbidden from using magic above Tier-3 until the main phase of the tournament."
There was a brief pause.
Alex stared at her. "Eh? ...I thought," Alex said slowly, genuine confusion creeping into his voice, "you wanted me to dominate the tournament."
"I do." Elena replied without hesitation.
She leaned forward slightly, fingers interlaced. "But domination does not mean excess."
Alex frowned. "Using stronger magic would end things faster, though."
Elena's gaze hardened. "Tier-6 magic is already overkill," she said flatly. "Tier-7 is absurd."
She let the words settle before continuing.
"I don't know whether you fully grasp this yet, but the vast majority of students in this academy don't even know a single Tier-5 spell. Many will graduate without ever touching one."
Alex's eyes widened—just a little.
She met his gaze directly. "As far as I can tell, you are one of the very few students here who can use Tier-6 magic."
Alex stiffened.
"And," Elena added, almost casually, "you already know a Tier-7 spell."
"Really?" he asked. A slow, unmistakably proud smile crept onto his face before he could stop it.
Elena nodded. "Yes."
She exhaled softly, a flicker of amusement slipping through her otherwise severe expression.
"Considering your mana capacity and your ridiculous casting speed," she said, "you could defeat most opponents using nothing more than Tier-1 and Tier-2 spells."
She tilted her head slightly.
He understood her reasoning.
In fact, the more he thought about it, the more it made sense.
Using nothing but low-tier magic through the early rounds would lull both spectators and opponents into a false sense of understanding. And when the moment finally came to step past that boundary, the contrast would strike far harder than raw power ever could.
'Yeah,' he thought. 'That would be way more effective.'
Across the desk, Elena sighed inwardly, fingers tapping once against the wood.
'If this boy starts spamming high-tier magic from the beginning, the entire tournament will lose its tension. The other students would be crushed before they even had a chance to grow—and nothing kills motivation faster than hopeless disparity.'
Alex spoke again. "What about the Knight Tournament?"
Elena blinked, then gave a short, almost amused huff.
"There's no need for restrictions there," she said. "You already fight with enough limitations as it is."
Alex relaxed slightly at that.
Before he could say more, Elena reached into a drawer and produced a small, sealed case. She opened it and slid it across the desk.
Inside lay several matte-gray pills, faintly etched with containment runes.
"These are for you." she said.
Alex frowned, peering down at them. "What are they?"
"Mana suppression pills," Elena replied. "Specialized ones."
She tapped the case lightly.
"They suppress all mana attributes except Ice."
Alex's eyes sharpened.
"Tomorrow," Elena continued, "there's a good chance you'll be subjected to public verification."
Her tone made it clear how little she respected the spectacle.
"With these," she said, "even if someone insists on testing you, all they'll detect is Ice affinity. Nothing more."
Alex picked one up between his fingers, studying it skeptically. "Are these… safe?"
Elena laughed softly. "Perfectly," she said. "They're standard issue for high-risk prisoners. Designed to suppress mages completely."
She glanced at him sideways. "If they were unsafe, I wouldn't hand them to a student."
She continued more seriously, assuring him that they wouldn't interfere with his physical condition—and that they wouldn't damage his mana circuits.
That was oddly reassuring.
Alex carefully closed the case and nodded. "Alright. I'll use them if needed."
"Good." Elena stood. "That covers everything."
As Alex turned to leave, she added, almost casually, "Try not to overthink tomorrow."
He paused at the door.
"I'll do my best." he said.
Outside, the corridor was quiet once more.