Dekai stared down at Atticus and the others from the fifth summit with a narrowed gaze. One of the sanctum instructors stood bowed behind him, having just explained something to him.
‘I didn’t think it was that bad,’
Dekai had orchestrated the situation intentionally. Everyone knew about Cerron’s interest in Joana and his hot-blooded personality, making Cerron the perfect candidate for Dekai’s plan.
Before Atticus left the fire sanctum, and he was sure it would be very soon, he wanted the boy to experience a real battle using just fire. This was where Cerron came into play.
However, Dekai had miscalculated the extent of Cerron’s history with Atticus. The instructor behind him had just informed him about Atticus’s connection to the decline of Cerron’s family.
‘If I hadn’t acted immediately, he would have cut off his head. Is this really a 16-year-old boy?’ Dekai was left feeling utterly baffled.
As soon as Dekai finished speaking, Atticus sheathed his katana and walked toward his partner, Joana.
There was not a single person who wasn’t staring at him, but Atticus acted as though nothing had happened and stood with a calm expression in front of Joana.
Everyone had different thoughts running through their heads. What was that? That was the strength and power of a master+ rank! Since when could 16-year-olds display master+ rank strength?
‘Was it an artifact?’ Duran speculated.
Regardless, there was not a single one of them as baffled as Cerron. The man was shocked. He had almost died!
The fear he had felt a few seconds ago was instantly replaced with an intense amount of anger. One that he had no idea what to do with.
Cerron clenched his fist so hard blood started pouring down from it, the drops instantly boiling and steaming due to the temperature.
‘He caught me off guard somehow, yes, that’s it,’
Cerron reassured himself, but his anger was still very much present.
He turned and saw the boy who almost killed him not giving him a single ounce of attention, his anger flaring up even more.
‘Three days. I’ll crush him thoroughly,’
Cerron declared in his mind, his whole form seething. Without wasting time he turned and descended the summit. He couldn’t spend another second here any longer.
Duran sighed heavily, “There goes my partner,” he mumbled dejectedly. ‘But at least I got to see something interesting today. So that’s our next family head, huh,’
Duran had no doubt about it; Atticus would be the heir. There was simply no one capable enough to challenge him.
“…”
“…”
Both Atticus and Joana silently stared at each other. Atticus might appear normal, but a weird coldness radiated off him. There was no doubt about it—he was angry.
While Joana, although still inexpressive, those who knew her well would notice the intrigue on her face.
‘Is this why Mom couldn’t stop talking about him?,’
“Let’s get this started,”
Atticus broke the silence, causing Joana to nod silently.
The air around the duo ignited, intense fire swirling around them.
Joana had been faster in creating her construct, and its temperature was nothing short of scorching. Her construct took on the form of a woman clad in Viking-like armor, holding a long and thick halberd.
Atticus had still chosen to use his normal construct of Magnus with a spear.
No order was given before both constructs shot towards each other, colliding in a series of clashes that shook the air.
Joana’s construct, as expected, had the upper hand in the confrontation, with Atticus’s being pushed back.
Compared to her, who had spent a longer time on the fourth summit and was more proficient in using her construct, and Atticus, who had just passed the third summit test, it should be impossible for him to match Joana, at least at first.
‘He’s still trying to adapt,’ noting Atticus’s awkward movements, she immediately seized the chance.
Joana’s construct moved expertly, as though it were a regular human despite its large size, unleashing devastating strikes that pierced through Atticus’s construct brutally.
Atticus’s mind instantly became strained as he tried to cover up the holes the halberd left while also trying to evade Joana’s attacks.
His movements were still clumsy, but Atticus was able to evade some attacks. However, it eventually ended in his loss.
The others had stopped to watch Atticus and Joana’s battle, all of them curious about Atticus’s prowess. Although he lost, none of them thought less of him.
The fact that he was able to achieve such a stage in such a short time was way more mind-racking than anything else.
Atticus released his control over the molecules, the construct crumbling. He instantly entered into a focused state where he played back every moment of the battle, highlighting each of his weaknesses.
‘I’m still not adept enough at moving the construct, which makes my movement clumsy and sluggish.’ This was what Atticus identified as his main problem. A problem he instantly found an answer to.
‘I should change the construct and weapon. I’m naturally not too adept at using the spear in the first place, and the construct is too big. I should tone down the size a bit.’
Atticus immediately put each of his realizations into practice and manipulated the fire molecules to form his desired construct.
This time around, he used a katana and also reduced the size of the construct.
Joana remained unfazed. Her construct swept its halberd to the side, as though telling Atticus she was ready when he was.
Atticus responded in kind, a multitude of instructions leaving in waves. His construct shot forward, both hands holding its katana’s hilt at its side.
Joana’s construct also shot forward, and both constructs unleashed a series of slashes and thrusts as they neared.
Each collision resulted in a wave of fire spreading out across the area.
‘Good, it’s easier to control now. It’s smaller and more efficient to use. The katana is also a perfect touch.’
While its clumsiness was still present, Atticus found this construct easier to use, and as time passed, he started adapting, his proficiency increasing.
