The Return Of The Exiled Villain

After defeating those four, Gray turned away from them without comment and took a look at what was happening in the field.

Surprisingly, the Phoenix Class occupied far more space than any of the others; their presence spread across multiple sections in battle formations that had held together instead of breaking under pressure.

Their casualties were lower as well, of course, some students had been eliminated, but that battle formation made Gray smile.

After all, it was one of the formations he had taught them.

But even so, it would be difficult to pull it off without having some kind of leader... and that someone was not hard to identify.

Cassandra was several sections over, not fighting in the direct sense so much as reshaping the battlefield around her, forcing opposing students into worse and worse positions until they ran out of room to maneuver and had no choice but to withdraw or be pushed out.

On the eastern side, Maelis had established a gravity field that bent the arena around her in an oppressive curve, three White Tiger Class students trying to navigate it and failing to do so cleanly, their movements dragging just enough to disrupt their timing.

Seraph stood closer to the center-right, with her sword qi being strong and precise, causing two Azure Dragon Class students to back away from her.

Taken together, the picture was almost absurd.

The Phoenix Class was winning.

”...It seems that I didn’t even need to act.”

That was when he saw her.

Far to the left, near the boundary line, one of the younger Phoenix students, Vivienne, had taken a hit that had not looked serious at first glance but had landed at the worst possible angle.

Her footing slipped, her weight shifted the wrong way, and her body began to tilt outward with the unmistakable trajectory of someone who had already realized, too late, that she was going to fall out of bounds.

Swoop!

Gray moved before the motion finished.

He crossed the distance in a instant, arriving at the edge just as her balance gave out completely.

One arm slid under her knees while the other supported her back, catching the fall cleanly and redirecting the momentum so it vanished instead of carrying through.

For a moment, she simply blinked up at him, suspended in that position, her mind trying to reconcile several things at once.

Her face shifted color in a way that was difficult to miss.

”I—” she began, and then stopped, clearly unsure how to continue.

”Your footing,” Gray calmly said, even adjusting his grip on the back of her knees. ”You leaned into the impact instead of letting it pass through you.”

”Y-yes, I...” She trailed off again, her thoughts catching on something else entirely. ”You’re carrying me.”

”You were about to go out of bounds,” he replied.

”I mean, yes, but you’re carrying me like—”

”I am aware of how I am carrying you.”

That did not seem to help.

She made a small, indistinct sound that might have been an attempt at a word and failed somewhere in the middle of forming it.

Gray set her back on stable ground without ceremony and stepped away, giving her space as though the interaction had already concluded.

Vivienne immediately adjusted her uniform with both hands, her gaze fixed somewhere just past his shoulder with intense concentration, the kind of gaze people used when they had decided that direct eye contact would only make things worse.

”Your ears,” she said suddenly, as if the thought had forced its way out before she could stop it.

He looked at her.

”What about them?”

”They’re...” She made a vague gesture near her own head, clearly searching for a safer way to phrase whatever she had been about to say.

”I never noticed from a distance, but up close they are—” She stopped, inhaled, and then shook her head.

”Sorry. That was inappropriate.”

”Focus on your positioning,” Gray smiled and tapped her little head.

”Yes. Right. Positioning.” She straightened with flushed cheeks, raised her sword, and turned her full attention back to the match with the slightly forced determination of someone using focus as an escape route.

Gray did not comment further as he had already moved on.

His gaze swept the arena once again, then settled on a section that had looked quiet.

The Black Turtle Class had not been inactive.

So, Gray decided to make them his target. He started walking at a slow pace and had covered perhaps fifteen meters before a sudden change happened.

They instantly closed in from three directions at once, with almost perfect timing, like they had been watching him, and were exactly waiting for this to happen.

Six of them formed the outer layer, spreading into a loose ring that cut off the obvious escape paths without crowding each other.

Inside that ring, three figures took position.

Crackle!

Lyra stood directly ahead, her sword pointing straight ahead with golden lightning running along its edge in a controlled current.

To his left, Vael’s catalyst rings were already active, ice spreading outward from his position in a thin, continuous layer that crept silently across the arena floor.

To his right, Adrian stood with an almost relaxed posture, his arms loose at his sides, all four elemental affinities present at a stable output that gave away nothing about how much more he was holding back.

Adrian took a moment to look around, as though appreciating the arrangement, then returned his attention to Gray.

”The others did a fair amount of work before we stepped in,” he added with a small smirk.

”They did not,” Gray replied.

Adrian’s expression changed slightly, not surprised, but satisfied in a way that suggested he had expected that answer.

”No,” he said after a moment.

”They did not. You look exactly the same as when you started.”

”You were watching me?”

”The entire time. It would have been a waste not to watch our dear top student fighting.”

His gaze flicked briefly toward the area where Katia and the others had withdrawn.

”The part where you lost your sight was especially interesting.”

Gray simply nodded at his words.

”Lyra almost moved to intervene during that exchange,” Adrian added casually.

”I did not need it,” Gray glanced at Lyra.

”She knew that, but that was not the point.”

”Brother!” Lyra’s expression tightened for the briefest moment.

”I am only explaining the situation,” he said mildly.

”You are adding unnecessary detail.”

”Noted.”

Freezee...!

While they spoke, the ice had reached Gray’s feet, the thin layer now extending in all directions, subtle but pervasive, altering the surface beneath him in a way that would punish careless movement.

Gray glanced down, then at Vael.

”You started this early, huh?”

”Three minutes into the match,” Vael answered calmly, proudly looking at the ice layers.

”It required time to spread without drawing attention. I preferred to prepare it for someone worth the effort.”

”And the outer ring.”

”To limit your options,” Vael stated simply. ”If you try to break out, they close the space. If you stay inside, the terrain works against you. Adrian and Lyra handle the rest.”

Gray let his gaze move across each piece of the setup in turn, taking in the spacing, the timing, the intent behind it.

Adrian, who had not yet shown anything close to his full capability.

Lyra, whom he knew almost everything about, except her other three authorities that she didn’t seem to want to use.

Vael, whose preparation had been layered patiently over the entire match.

And the six forming the perimeter, not weak, not placeholders, but positioned to matter.

He took all of it in.

Then he exhaled slowly.

For the first time since the engagement had begun, his posture changed in a way that was impossible to miss.

The loose readiness he had maintained until now settled into something more defined, his weight shifting, his grip on the rapier adjusting, the line of his body aligning with intent rather than flexibility.

The difference was enough.

Two of the students in the outer ring adjusted their footing without realizing they had done it.

Adrian noticed immediately, the corner of his mouth lifting in amusement.

”There it is,” he mumbled in satisfaction.

Crackle!

Lyra’s lightning flared for an instant before smoothing out again.

”Do not hold back,” she narrowed her eyes, staring deeply into his.

”I was not planning to,” Gray replied.

He stepped forward.

Crack...!

The ice beneath his foot cracked, the sound sharp and clear as it spread outward in thin fractures.

’...Of course, I’m going to hold back.’

[...Did you know they were planning a trap for you?]

’I mean... yeah. That’s why I’ve decided to target the Black Turtle Class first. Besides, Adrian was practically gouging me since I’ve set foot in this arena.’

’It was clear that he was preparing himself to target me.’

[Mhm... Just saying, Adrian’s God seems to have taken an interest in you. I’m feeling a huge amount of Divinity coming out of Adrian’s body. But not like... to strengthen its vessel, but like... to try and talk with you.]

’Really?’

[Yup.]

’...I’ll take notice of that.’

His eyes settled on the black turtle class.