"Settle down, everyone," Professor Goodwitch's crisp voice cut through the chatter like a blade. The faint hum of conversations died instantly. "With the arena floor cleared and reset, I will now be calling down the next two teams."
All eyes turned toward her. The anticipation in the air was palpable; every student leaned forward slightly, waiting for their team's name to be called.
"Team CLDN and Team CRMN," she announced. "Please step down into the arena."
The two teams descended the steps, weapons drawn, expressions hardened.
The match began with a sharp clang of steel and the roar of Aura flaring to life. Immediately, the formation dissolved into chaos. Rather than coordinated tactics, both sides broke off into scattered duels, each member locked in their own one-on-one skirmish. The occasional shout for backup or defensive maneuver flickered through, but overall, it was a contest of endurance rather than strategy.
Minutes stretched longer as neither side yielded. Students in the stands began to shift restlessly, some leaning on the railings while others whispered commentary under their breath. Even Professor Goodwitch's patience seemed to thin as her tablet hovered idly in hand.
By the time the match neared its end, both teams were running on fumes. Every strike was slower, every dodge heavier. Finally, Team CLDN's leader managed to corner CRMN's captain against a broken section of the arena wall. A final, desperate strike shattered the opponent's Aura, ending the prolonged stalemate.
The sound of the buzzer was almost a relief.
"Winner, Team CLDN," Glynda declared, her tone polite but undeniably weary.
A few polite claps echoed across the stands. The moment the teams cleared out, she wasted no time.
"Next two teams, to the arena," she commanded.
The next battle began... and history repeated itself.
Another sluggish match. Another clash of individuals rather than teams.
The pattern was almost identical to the last, everyone fighting separately, shouting orders, improvising without any real cohesion. Dust explosions flared, blades clashed, but there was no rhythm. Just noise and stubborn determination.
Even Ruby, who usually found excitement in any fight, was starting to fidget.
The battle dragged on for what felt like forever before it finally ended with a flash of light signaling Aura depletion.
"Winner, Team MGTA!" Goodwitch announced.
A collective exhale swept through the stands.
"Finally," Blake muttered, flipping her book closed with a tired sigh.
"Man," Yang groaned, slumping against the back of her chair. "The past two fights have been an absolute slog. No one wants to lose today, huh?"
"Can't really blame them," Ruby said thoughtfully, spinning Crescent Rose's handle idly. "They're fighting not to lose rather than fighting to win. It's safer that way. If they go all out now, they risk showing their team's formation and tactics. And if that happens, the next round becomes way harder."
Weiss nodded in agreement, though her tone was less sympathetic. "Understandable, but dull. Strategy is admirable, cowardice isn't."
"I dunno," Yang said with a lazy grin, stretching her arms until a loud pop came from her back. "Tactical or not, it's still boring. I wanna see something flashy."
"Agreed," Weiss added primly. "If this is the level of competition we're facing today, then I'm even more confident our team will take first place."
Blake gave her a sidelong glance, unimpressed. "I wouldn't say that just yet. We haven't seen what Tsutsumi's team has in store for everyone."
Weiss blinked, startled. "O–Oh, yes, my apologies. I completely forgot about Pyrrha's team."
Professor Goodwitch's voice cut through the air once more, her tone firm and commanding.
"Team GOLD and Team TNPR, please make your way down to the arena."
All conversation immediately ceased.
A majority of eyes trailed the girl clad in bronze armor. Her red hair and sash swayed as she descended the stairs. With her shield and spear secured on her back and confidence born from years of experience, Pyrrha made quite an imposing figure as she made her way to the arena.
With each step she took, whispers followed.
Pyrrha Nikos was a legendary figure to her peers. A girl who built a near legendary run in the Mistral tournament circuit. She was the model figure that every young child aspired to be. She was the picture-perfect champion that everyone held with the highest regard.
For them, it was absurd at the level of fame that Pyrrha amassed in a few short years.
The students at the school showered the girl with unbridled love and praise, no matter what she did or where she was.
But not everyone was looking at her. Among the crowd, a few pairs of eyes shifted to the one walking in front of her, the boy in the black and magenta coat.
Tsutsumi Ryoko led his team from the front. Although he has defeated the Invincible Girl in a sparring match under the watchful eyes of everyone. But since he did it while using Pyrrha's appearance, people concluded that he only did it because he copied Pyrrha's skills and abilities, and he was either lucky or she was going easy on him.
The two teams faced each other across the arena floor as Professor Goodwitch raised her tablet. The massive monitors above displayed their team names, flaring brightly in gold and magenta.
"Are both teams ready?" she asked.
"Yes, ma'am," Gilt replied, Team GOLD's leader, tightening his grip on his axe.
All attention turned to the opposing side.
Tsutsumi simply replied. "Yeah."
Before pulling out his Rider Book, gun mode.
"What the hell?" Yang blurted, blinking in disbelief. "Is that… a handgun?"
"It looks like… a weird-looking gun..." Weiss said, squinting. "No Dust ports, no tech components, just a weird-looking gun."
"I remember he could summon weapons at will," Blake said thoughtfully. "Maybe he just… messing around?"
Ruby's squeal nearly broke the tension. "AHHH! That's so cool! I'll never get tired of seeing him do that! Tsutsumi, teach me how to summon weapons like that! Please! Take me as your student!"
"H-Hey! You dork!" Yang quickly wrestled Ruby back into her seat. "Chill out! You're embarrassing us, again!"
Weiss joined in, flustered. "Now is not the time to be fawning over his… weapon, Ruby!"
Blake sighed and rubbed her temple. "You guys are hopeless."
"Begin!" Professor Goodwitch's voice cracked through the air.
Like a gunshot, Team TNPR exploded into motion.
Nora was the first to move, a blur of orange and pink streaking across the field. With a thunderous roar, she raised Magnhild high above her head and brought it down like a war god's hammer.
"RAAAAGH!"
"M-MOVE!" Gilt shouted as the impact hit.
The entire arena shook. Stone cracked, dust burst skyward, and a shockwave rippled across the floor. The ground cratered upon impact, shaking and cracking the foundation of the entire arena. A giant plume of dust was thrown up into the area, along with chunks of stone raining down from above.
Nora moved so uncharacteristically fast. Most people knew that the orange-haired girl was built for power and strength. While aggressive, Nora lacked the speed to chase the more agile members of their class.
Rather, the hammer-wielding orange-haired girl usually relied on Ren to bog them down enough for her to close the gap. So to witness her rocketing out of nowhere and blitzing the other team down was rather shocking.
"What the!?" Ruby jumped to her feet. "Since when could Nora move that fast!?"
Yang let out a low whistle. "I've seen that girl run for pancakes, but this? Damn. Tsutsumi must've been training her like crazy."
Although having only half a day remaining before the exam, Tsutsumi did bring his team together for one quick training session to refine their combat style. The reason for this sudden training session is that he has unlocked all of their Cards, giving him a greater understanding of their skill sets and abilities, along with their flaws.
"Ignore her!" Gilt coughed, waving his arm through the dust. "Focus on Pyrrha Nikos! If we take her out first-!"
He didn't finish the sentence. Because from the dust came a streak of red and bronze, a comet descending upon him.
Pyrrha burst through the haze, spear in hand, eyes locked onto her target. Gilt barely had time to raise his weapon before she drove her shield aside, twisting her torso to add torque to her thrust. Her spear cut through the air and slipped past his defense like lightning.
In two swift maneuvers, Pyrrha and Nora had separated Gilt from his team, isolating him completely.
"Boss!" Oasis shouted as she and the others emerged from the dust. "Damn it! Lavender! Diesel! Take out the hammer girl! I'll cover you! We need to regroup!"
But Team GOLD was already off-balance, reacting instead of leading.
Pyrrha and Nora pressed forward relentlessly, while Ren moved with surgical precision to close off their angles of retreat.
Attack Ride: Trigger Storm Bomb!
And then came the light.
Tsutsumi raised his gun to the air and pulled the trigger, dozens of radiant light bullets raining from above like shooting stars.
They struck the arena floor with bursts of force, shredding through the enemy's Aura meters faster than they could recover.
"Holy crap," Yang muttered, eyes wide. "How can a simple gun have such firepower!?"
Tsutsumi spun the gun while pulling a card.
Attack Ride: Blast!
A barrage of light bullets surged forward, slicing through the air and slamming directly into Gilt.
The sound of shattering glass echoed.
"Gilt has been eliminated," announced Professor Goodwitch, her voice cutting through the stunned silence.
"No way…" A shocked Oasis whispered, her disbelief echoing faintly across the arena floor.
"What?" someone from the stands muttered, stupefied.
"What the hell just happened?" another voice called out, confusion rippling through the watching crowd.
"No, seriously! Does that thing have any reload time?!" someone else shouted, demanding answers as the students around them erupted into chatter.
The fight had shifted faster than anyone could process.
A wave of disbelief washed through the students. The entire arena seemed to still, everyone realizing they'd just witnessed something unexplainable.
Before the crowd could even blink, another loud BOOM thundered across the arena. Nora came down like a living hammer, Magnhild slamming directly into Diesel's shield with the force of a charging bull. The impact sent a shockwave of dust and force across the arena.
"Diesel has been eliminated," Professor Goodwitch announced, her composed voice barely cutting through the murmurs of awe.
The battle was collapsing before Team GOLD's eyes.
Ren, who had been nothing more than a whisper for most of the match, finally made his move. He slid out of the chaos behind Lavender, his twin blades glinting in the light. In a swift, silent motion, he struck, one precise blow to disarm, another to sweep her legs, and then a burst of aura as his palm struck her chest.
"Lavender has been eliminated."
Two eliminations in under five seconds. Team GOLD was unraveling.
And then came Pyrrha.
The Invincible Girl moved like a storm of grace and precision. Her spear spun in her hands, gleaming as she clashed with Oasis. Every strike she delivered was fluid, beautiful, and lethal. Oasis's saber swung wildly, desperate to parry the redhead's seamless attacks, but Pyrrha's rhythm was unrelenting, an elegant tempest of skill.
Meanwhile, Tsutsumi positioned himself behind Pyrrha, and he then raised his gun, pointing it directly at her back. This made every spectator's heart jump.
Attack Ride: Trigger Full Burst!
He pulled the trigger, unleashing multiple light bullets toward her.
Weiss shot up from her seat, eyes wide. "Wait, hold up! He just fired at Pyrrha!"
"He wouldn't dare!" Yang barked, already half out of her seat.
"Tsutsumi, you're a madman!" Ruby screamed, cupping her hands around her mouth.
Pyrrha spun around, her eyes meeting Tsutsumi's in that fraction of a second. The glowing projectiles twisted midair, bending around her like streaks of guided light. They swirled past her harmlessly, curving like serpents of radiance.
Oasis barely had time to react before the redirected barrage came crashing down on her from every direction. She raised her gauntlets in panic, trying to block, but the energy beams bent mid-air, striking her from the sides, behind, even above. The assault was relentless.
Her defenses shattered.
Pyrrha finishes her spin, lunging forward with her spear and using her built-up momentum. One clean thrust pierced Oasis's aura barrier, sending a bright flash of red light across the arena.
"Oasis has been eliminated."
Pyrrha exhaled softly, spinning her spear once before holstering it behind her back. Her movements were composed as she turned to meet Tsutsumi's gaze.
He simply lowered his gun, smirking faintly.
"Winner, Team TNPR," Professor Goodwitch announced.
No one made a sound as the victors returned to their seats.
The heavy silence in the arena was almost tangible, like the air itself had frozen in disbelief. Even the usual buzz of the crowd, the whispers and murmurs that filled every corner of the stands, had been utterly snuffed out.
Tsutsumi led the way back up, his expression unreadable as ever, while Pyrrha followed behind him, calm and composed. Nora waved cheerfully to the audience, her hammer slung lazily over her shoulder as if nothing special had happened, while Ren trailed behind, quiet as a shadow.
Glynda Goodwitch stood still at the edge of the arena, eyes glued to the stopwatch in her hand. Her brows twitched, her mouth opening just slightly as if she wanted to speak, but nothing came out. The time on the screen was absurd. Even by Beacon's standards, even by huntsmen standards… it was ludicrous.
"Seventeen seconds."