The massive sphere of black fire descended toward Vanessa like a falling sun. The heat was so intense it cracked the protective barriers around the arena. Vanessa, exhausted and mana-depleted, could only raise a fragile ice shield, knowing it wouldn't be enough.
I failed him, she thought, closing her eyes.
BOOM.
The earth shook. Dust and steam billowed out, obscuring the entire ring.
Damon laughed maniacally, his eyes bleeding from the strain of the demon blood. "Ash! She's nothing but ash!"
But as the smoke cleared, the laughter died in his throat.
Vanessa was alive. She was unharmed.
Standing in front of her, holding the massive fireball back with a single hand, was Ren.
He wasn't struggling. He looked annoyed. The black flames licked at his uniform, but they couldn't touch his skin. The Gauntlet of the Void on his right hand was open, the maw of the runes drinking the fire as fast as Damon could pour it on.
"You..." Damon gasped, stepping back. "How? That's A-Rank destruction magic!"
Ren crushed the fireball in his hand, extinguishing it into a puff of black smoke. He shook his hand, looking at the residue.
[System Alert: Demonic Essence Detected]
[Purity: Low]
[Absorption: Initiated]
Ren turned his head slightly to look at Vanessa. She was kneeling behind him, staring up at his wide back with wide, watery eyes.
"I told you to win," Ren said, his voice cold but possessive. "Not to die."
"M-Master," she stammered, clutching his pant leg. "He cheated. The power..."
"I know," Ren cut her off. "Stay there. I'll handle the trash."
Ren turned to face Damon.
"You broke the rules!" Damon shrieked, pointing a trembling finger. "Interference! Disqualify him!"
Ren laughed. It was a low, terrifying sound that echoed through the silent arena.
"Rules?" Ren took a step forward. "You drink demon blood in my school, attack my property, and then cry about rules?"
Damon roared, his sanity slipping further. "I am the strongest! I am a God!"
He unleashed everything. Beams of black fire, waves of necrotic heat, spears of magma. He threw his entire life force into a barrage meant to vaporize Ren.
Ren didn't dodge. He walked through it.
He walked through the fire like a man walking through a light rain. Every spell that touched him was absorbed by the Void.
Step. Step. Step.
He reached Damon.
Damon's mana ran dry. The demon blood began to backlash, eating his own veins. He fell to his knees, coughing up black sludge.
"Stay back!" Damon wheezed, crawling backward. "Don't touch me!"
Ren grabbed him by the face. He lifted him up effortlessly, his fingers digging into Damon's skull.
"You borrowed power you couldn't control," Ren whispered, his violet eyes glowing inches from Damon's face. "Let me show you what real ownership looks like."
[Skill: SOUL DRAIN (Limit Break)]
Ren didn't just take mana. He took the corruption. He took the demon blood. He siphoned the foreign entity right out of Damon's body.
Damon screamed—a sound that made the crowd cover their ears. It was the sound of a core shattering.
Ren pulled. A shadow, screaming and twisting, was ripped out of Damon's chest. It was the remnant of the demon essence.
Ren opened his mouth and inhaled it.
He ate the shadow.
Damon went limp, his eyes rolling back into his head, his skin turning grey and wrinkled. He looked like an old man.
Ren dropped him. Damon hit the sand, breathing faintly, but his life as a mage was over. His mana core was dust.
Ren stood over the body, his body pulsing with the new, dark power.
[Demon Essence Assimilated]
[Level Up: 7 -> 9]
[New Skill: HELLFIRE AURA (Active)]
Ren looked up at the VIP box. The Headmaster, the Guild Scouts, and the officials were all standing, frozen in horror and awe.
"Disqualify me if you want," Ren shouted, his voice amplified by his mana. "But the winner is clear."
The Verdict
Valerica was the first to react. She jumped from the VIP box, landing in the arena with a crater-forming impact. She marched over to the referee, who was shaking in his boots.
"Damon Vance used a Forbidden Substance," Valerica announced, her voice booming. "Ren intervened to save a student's life. By Academy Law 45-B, he is not disqualified. He is commended."
She turned to Ren, bowing her head slightly—a sign of submission disguised as respect.
"The match is declared a No-Contest," Valerica said. "But Damon is expelled. And Ren..."
She looked at the crowd.
"Ren advances to the Finals."
The crowd erupted. They didn't cheer for a hero. They cheered for a King. They had seen true power, and they were terrified of it.
Vanessa stood up on shaky legs. She walked over to Ren. She didn't care about the thousands of eyes watching. She wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face in his chest.
"You saved me," she sobbed softly. "I'm yours. I'm completely yours."
Ren put a hand on her head, looking at the unconscious Damon.
"I know," Ren said.
He looked at his hand. The Hellfire he had absorbed was buzzing, hungry for more.
Who gave him the blood? Ren wondered. There's a supplier in the city.