Name: Lan Arvok
Magic: Lightning — Circle 1 — 45%
Mana Capacity: 204
Unique Ability: ???????
Soul: 79
Enrico calmly observed Lan's statistics. If he really wanted to speed up that character's development, he could not give him any opportunity to continue acting as he had before. In fact, even if he humiliated Lan that day, Enrico knew he was not the kind of person who would simply let it go. He would definitely try to get revenge, probably starting with his friends. Therefore, Enrico needed to completely crush him in that fight. Only then could he prevent immediate retaliation and, little by little, begin turning that idiot into the character he knew from the future.
'Good thing I went to the fake dungeon beforehand. I couldn't find that Jago, but I defeated everyone else, even Rirus... Of course, at Level Two Zara.'
A discharge of electricity coursed through Lan's body. He moved his arm to the side, concentrating his mana until it formed a spear made of pure lightning. The weapon crackled intensely, illuminating his face as he spun it through the air before pointing it at Enrico.
"You'll regret challenging me."
Enrico remained calm. The magic circle on his chest pulsed in reddish tones and began slowly rotating. Since reaching the First Circle, his body had improved considerably, but the greatest advancement was in his mana control. He could now use it with much greater precision, without wasting energy on unnecessary movements.
'With this guy, I'll simply act like the rival between two families.'
Enrico then smiled.
"The only thing I regret... is not doing this sooner."
Flames rose around his feet, and Enrico shot across the ground like a flaming bullet. Lan advanced at the same time, and the two met in the center of the arena.
The initial clash caused an explosion that made the students nearby retreat. When the smoke began to dissipate, Enrico was standing with his fist raised, blocking Lan's lightning spear. The impact made his arms tremble, but he managed to hold his position and push the weapon aside.
Lan immediately realized that he would not be able to defeat him that way. He disappeared in an explosion of electricity and reappeared above Enrico, descending toward him while a spiral of lightning formed around his body. The discharges moved like snakes of light as he concentrated the full force of the attack into his descent.
Enrico raised his arm and reacted at the last moment. His fist was engulfed in flames and collided directly with the attack.
The impact made the ground tremble. Cracks spread across the arena beneath Enrico's feet, while Lan was pushed several meters backward. The audience fell silent for a moment.
Lan's attacks were not random. Every strike aimed for vital points, trying to hit Enrico's neck, chest, or head. The teachers watched closely but did not interfere. As long as neither of them was about to die, the rules allowed the fight to continue.
Serenya watched from a distance with an irritated expression.
"I don't like him."
Kai, standing beside her, continued watching the fight attentively.
"I think Enrico must be holding back. If this is the level of the strongest student in Class A, I think I can go straight there too."
Valença and Serenya seemed to be thinking similarly. Both considered Lan strong, but not as strong as they expected the best student of that class to be.
'Why do I feel like they're misunderstanding me?'
Enrico almost laughed.
'Actually, this is better.'
He dodged a sequence of lightning bolts that struck the ground behind him, causing small craters to appear in the arena. However, the spectators did not realize the truth: Enrico was not holding back. He was using practically everything he had at that moment.
Lan moved to the side, leaving an electric trail behind him. Enrico was already expecting it. Flames covered his feet again, and he propelled himself forward, crossing the distance in an instant.
Lan advanced as well.
The two collided in the middle of the movement.
Enrico's fist struck Lan's face, while the electric spear grazed his shoulder. The impact sent both of them flying toward opposite sides of the arena. Dust and small pieces of stone rose, covering part of the battlefield.
From above, the teachers stood up, tense.
"That boy... Is he trying to seriously injure my student?"
Virelle narrowed her eyes.
"Is that so? I want to tear him apart."
The two teachers beside her tensed. They knew that, among all the students in Class C, Enrico was the one Virelle had begun to grow most attached to, although she would never admit it. It was even strange to think that this woman, who had always despised the weak, now showed such obvious concern for one of her students.
'I feel sorry for that boy if he irritates Virelle even more...'
The smoke began to disappear.
Enrico emerged first.
He advanced without waiting for Lan to fully recover and struck him directly in the abdomen with a punch, without using magic. The blow knocked the air out of Lan and made him retreat several steps.
Enrico immediately raised his hand.
"Fireball."
A flaming sphere shot toward Lan.
Lan gritted his teeth and covered his body with mana, reinforcing his muscles and resistance before crossing his arms in front of his face.
The explosion hit him directly and dragged him several meters backward. His feet left deep marks on the arena floor as he tried to regain his balance.
Enrico remained still, watching him.
The battle was still far from over.
Enrico rolled across the ground, feeling his muscles burn. His ring was beginning to lose its glow, but there was an advantage: now that he had reached the First Circle, its duration had increased by another minute. He raised his hand and observed the ring for a moment.
'Only two minutes left.'
Lan slowly got back up. His breathing was heavy, and his shirt was torn at the shoulder. Lightning crackled around his body as he spat blood onto the ground and glared at Enrico angrily.
"Impressive... You improved, Enrico. But I'm still at the top."
Lan raised his arms. Dark clouds began forming over the arena, covering the sky within a few seconds. Lightning began falling like whips, repeatedly striking the ground and converging toward Enrico. The crowd retreated from the thunderous crashes, but the teachers remained alert, ready to intervene if the situation got out of control.
Enrico clenched his fists and took a deep breath. He closed his eyes for only a second. When he opened them again, his eyes were red.
'Crimson Eyes.'
He had decided to keep the name of the technique he had developed from the Fire Eyes, in honor of Tolen.
His vision expanded. The electrical discharges became easier to follow, and the movements around him seemed to slow down.
'Fire Arrow.'
The circle on his chest rotated. A flaming bow appeared in his hands, and Enrico pulled the string, feeling the heat course through his body.
Up above, Lan roared as the lightning concentrated around him.
In the stands, the Class C students began cheering. Serenya shouted as she stood up.
"FINISH THIS, SUBORDINATE!"
Kai raised his fist.
"Go! Finish that weakling!"
Valença murmured without taking her eyes off Enrico.
"Show your true strength already."
Sílvia, sitting near the Class B students, also raised both fists, completely excited.
Enrico fired the arrow.
At the same instant, he kicked the ground with his flame-covered foot, raising a cloud of dust that concealed his position.
The lightning descended.
Lan narrowly dodged the arrow. The flaming blade grazed his body and opened a cut across his abdomen. His eyes widened when he realized the speed and power of that attack.
"How...?"
Then the lightning struck the place where Enrico was.
A silhouette was struck and immediately split in half.
Lan smiled.
"I did it..."
But the smile disappeared when he realized that something was wrong.
In the stands, Serenya and Kai panicked.
"ENRICO!"
However, the teachers did not react in the same way. Virelle watched the scene with her eyes shining with interest.
"A new ability, Enrico?"
The cloud of dust began to disappear.
The silhouette struck by the lightning was not Enrico.
It was a clone made entirely of fire.
His unique ability, acquired not long ago, had finally been used in a battle.
Lan was confused for only an instant, but it was enough for the next move to happen quickly.
Enrico appeared behind him, leaving a trail of fire along the way. His hand touched Lan's shoulder, and Lan turned around in surprise.
"You're—"
Enrico's fist, coated with all the mana he could still gather, struck Lan directly in the face.
CRACK!
The impact broke several of his teeth and sent his body crashing to the ground. Lan lost consciousness before he could even react.
Enrico remained standing for a few seconds, breathing heavily. There was no mana left inside his body.
"You know, Lan... you have a weakness. Even if your resistance increases with the Circles, you're still more fragile than other magicians when compared to the increase in power. If you take a strong enough hit..."
He looked at Lan, who remained unconscious.
"...you go down."
Enrico took a deep breath.
"Incredible. Until a week ago, he was still in the Zero Circle."
Damian watched Enrico with extreme interest, while Hao remained silent.
Caelan, Elian, Liam, Serenya, and Kai ran toward Enrico, all excited to talk to him. Valença walked right behind them, maintaining a more controlled expression.
"I knew it. You don't even look tired. He was weak, right?"
"Yes."
Enrico replied calmly, despite not having even a drop of mana left. He had decided to become the wall everyone would need to overcome. If he wanted his companions to evolve, he needed to always remain above them.
'I have to be that. I have to be stronger.'
Enrico clenched his hand and gave Lan one last look. He still needed to think of a way to make that idiot change and prevent him from continuing to interfere with the others as he had in the original story.
"Enrico Solcren Ferreira is now a Class A student, and his Rank is 31. Congratulations, Enrico."
Professor Sairus nodded, acknowledging the boy's effort, and then turned his attention to the other students.
"Very well. Who's next?"
Before any other student could speak, three people raised their hands at the same time and pointed toward the Class A students.
"I want to fight him."
The three voices sounded together as they pointed at Rank 32.
They were Serenya, Valença, and Kai.