When they arrived at the sparring grounds, a teacher was already waiting for them.
She had long brown hair with blonde features and a tall, muscular build. Her skin was tanned, and she had a strikingly sharp face.
"She looks like an older version of Lina," Nox thought.
After all the first years gathered, she introduced herself.
"I am Altair Senja. Today you will have matches in your newly formed groups. Four teams will always fight against each other at the same time."
Altair's gaze swept over the students like a blade testing for flaws. When her eyes passed over Nox, he felt a faint pressure on his chest, as if she were weighing him against some invisible standard.
"Just so you won't get injured, we have this magical armour, which absorbs a certain amount of damage. When it takes a strong hit, it beeps, and you are counted as defeated."
"The last team standing wins."
"I will give 200 points to the winners," she added with a grin.
"How about the best of the best show us how it's done?"
She pointed at Nox and the other students of class A.
The sparring grounds felt less like an arena and more like a fragment of wilderness torn from the world. Jagged stones broke the terrain unevenly, trees cast long shadows, and a shallow river cut the field in two — perfect for ambushes, retreats, and fatal mistakes.
"When every team stands in one corner, the fight will commence!"
After putting on their armours, Nox's team gathered in a corner.
He tapped the surface of the armour. It felt warm, almost alive, and he suddenly wondered how many students before him had trusted it with their lives.
"We have to protect Lina as best we can," Beatrice said.
Lina opened her mouth as if to object, then closed it again. Her fingers dug into the straps of her leather pants.
"Yeah, let's go after the team on our left; they only have one main stigma user," Nox suggested.
Even though Lina was supposedly a healer, she was able to keep up with the three, hurdling over trees and rocks effortlessly. The river now lay between them and their target, which apparently had the same plan.
While Beatrice distracted them with flames, Regea summoned two small golems to infiltrate the enemies.
"Activate," he whispered, and the golems exploded near one of the opponents, causing his armour to beep.
An arrow flew past Nox's ear with tremendous speed.
"There's the guy with the main stigma."
Nox's eyes fell on a tall student holding a long wooden bow, his stance precise and deadly.
Regea immediately summoned a larger golem to attack another enemy, but they dodged it skilfully.
"I have to slow them down somehow," Nox thought, drawing mana from his core.
The magical energy responded as if it recognized his intent. In a blink, he unleashed a freezing wind, coating the ground and trees in ice.
"Huh, I can't move!" one enemy shouted, as Regea's golems hurled him away. Another was taken out by a massive fire arrow from Beatrice.
But suddenly, the air shifted unnaturally.
"Everyone, get behind me!"
Regea summoned a massive, thorned plant that erupted from the ground. Arrows rained down around them.
Regea didn't hesitate—not out of courage, but because retreat wasn't an option.
They could only stare as their comrade turned to face the barrage.
"Seems like you'll have to win without me," he said, his armour beeping.
It was absurdly calm, mechanical even, given what he had endured.
"You will pay for that, you bastard," Beatrice shouted, summoning a giant fireball.
The remaining three enemies froze, unable to move on the ice, their faces registering shock. Violent blue flames engulfed them, eliminating another.
"Hah, I'm exhausted. My mana is almost empty."
Nox panted, sweat dripping down his cheek.
Suddenly, a warm light engulfed him, replenishing a part of his mana and easing his
fatigue.
"Oh, thank you, Lina," he said with a grateful smile.
"No proble—" Before she could finish, a black arrow shot past her shoulder.
Analus van Weilhafer had appeared, flanked by four more students. The air darkened around him. Unlike the others, he didn't look excited, he looked entertained.
"Looks like they managed to take out the other team," Nox thought, eyeing him warily.
"Defeat the red-haired one. I'll handle the healer myself," he said, summoning a volley of black arrows.
Nox barely blocked them with his sword. Beatrice, however, made short work of the four additional enemies.
"She already defeated one. She's really strong," Nox admitted silently.
As the fight continued, the two were gradually pushed back toward Beatrice. When she defeated the last enemy, Analus summoned a massive arrow. Its deadly form sent a cold shiver down everyone's spine.
The projectile however, missed Nox by multiple meters. Its immense speed and size seemed good for nothing.
"What is he even aiming at?"
A beep came from behind; Beatrice's armour had registered a hit, too late to save her.
Nox froze in his steps, as he slowly turned around. The unwritten rules of combat had been violated.
"That bastard attacked her while she was engaged?" Nox thought furiously. Multiple ice crystals formed around his head.
Analus's eyes widened in surprise, he staggered back but it was too late.
"What? I thought that kid was the failure of the gods. How is he doing that?"
His armour shattered under the barrage.
"What is this? I wasn't prepared!" he screamed, summoning a tiny dark energy ball.
"Stop! Your armour is broken—you're defeated!" Lina shouted.
Analus' smile widened, careless of consequences.
"Shut up, you fucking princess!" he yelled, hurling the dark orb at her.
Altair tried to dash toward them, but she was too far away.
Nox's mind raced. "That magic… her armour won't withstand that. She's going to die!"
An idea struck him. He slammed an ice crystal onto her armour. If it failed, he would make one that wouldn't.
-You have combined the item Ice armour
The blue magic fused violently with the academy armour, cracking and reforming into something neither system had intended. Without hesitation, Nox shielded Lina with his body.
The orb struck, exploding violently. Pain tore through Nox's back, his newly obtained armour cracking before it completely broke apart. Sound vanished, leaving only agony.
He heard Lina scream before darkness swallowed him.
"Where am I?" he muttered, opening his eyes to a white ceiling.
"In the infirmary. Are you feeling better?" a concerned voice asked.
"H- Hello Lina. What are you doing here?" Nox said. A sharp pain shot through his body as he tried to sit up.
"Please don't move," Lina said, gripping his hand tightly. Her tone seemed firm and strict but quickly returned to concern.
She glanced down their hands and immediately let go of him.
"I'm sorry."
You can hold my hand… only if it doesn't bother you," Nox stammered, embarrassed.
As Lina held his hand again, his cheeks turned red.
However, her expression was completely calm, like an indestructible mask.
"I'm almost an adult. How can I be embarrassed? And why did I even save her?"
"Thanks for saving me. Without you, I'd probably be dead," Lina said softly.
"Oh… uh, no problem."
"…"
An awkward silence hung in the room until the door burst open. Regea and Beatrice tumbled in.
"I told you to keep it closed, dammit!" Beatrice closed.
"It doesn't feel right to eavesdrop," Beatrice replied, he seemed even more embarrassed than the other two.
"But Lina told us to wait outside, so she could be with Nox alone."
"D- Did I really say that. Can't remember," Lina said, her voice seemed to tremble slightly, as she desperately tried to keep up her calm act.
"The three of us should go back to lessons. Please recover well for the first mission in one week."
As they left, a warm feeling surged through his back where there had been pain a minute ago. For the first time, he didn't feel the suffering was pointless.