Maris glanced toward Sophria.
His expression was calm.
Almost unreadable.
“Go.” Sophria looked at him.
Maris crossed his arms.
“Don’t embarrass yourself.” A few students nearby reacted immediately.
“That’s your girlfriend!” “Why are you encouraging her like that?” Another student laughed.
“Maybe that’s his way of motivating people.” Maris glanced at him.
“It is.” Sophria didn’t flinch.
Instead, her fingers tightened.
Her heartbeat roared in her ears.
She looked at the arena.
Then at Liberia.
Then briefly back at Maris.
She thought, “If I lose here…
then my feelings for him are nothing but weakness.” Her eyes sharpened.
“I won’t allow that.” Teacher Foshi raised his hand.
The crowd immediately fell silent.
“Sophria Fruilder versus Liberia Berter.” He paused.
“Begin.” The wind died.
Even the sunlight seemed to fade.
The two girls stood opposite each other.
Liberia stepped forward.
Her confident smile slowly turned cruel.
“So…” She raised her hand.
“The little forest girl thinks she can stand against me again?” Sophria said nothing.
Liberia smirked.
“Pathetic.” She slammed her palm toward the ground.
“Crust!” CRASH!
A barrage of stone shards erupted from the earth.
They shot through the air like bullets.
Sophria’s eyes widened.
She jumped left.
One passed beside her face.
She ducked.
Another flew overhead.
She flipped backward.
“She’s dodging all of them!” A student shouted.
“She’s fast!” Liberia smiled.
“You’re not getting away.” Another wave of stone shards erupted.
Sophria twisted sideways.
Then— SLASH!
One jagged piece caught her shoulder.
She landed heavily.
A small amount of blood stained her uniform.
Sophria gritted her teeth.
“Tch…” She pressed her hand against the wound.
Liberia tilted her head.
“Already bleeding?” A student whispered, “That’s not a good sign.” Another replied, “She needs to counterattack.” Sophria slowly lifted her hand.
The ground beneath Liberia shifted.
Vines burst from the soil.
They snapped through the air toward her.
Liberia scoffed.
“Too obvious.” Fire erupted from her hands.
The vines burned away.
Sophria’s eyes widened.
Liberia took a breath.
Then unleashed a wave of flames.
WHOOM!
The arena flashed orange.
Sophria was thrown backward.
She crashed onto the broken earth and rolled several times before stopping.
The crowd gasped.
“She’s down!” “That was powerful!” “Is she okay?” Sophria pushed herself up.
Her palms were scraped.
Her breathing was uneven.
Her lip was bleeding slightly.
She coughed.
But she stood.
Liberia stared at her.
“Stand down.” Sophria looked up.
Liberia’s voice became cold.
“Trash has limits.” A few students murmured.
“She’s right…” “That attack was brutal.” Pinezoku crossed his arms.
“This is pointless.” He shook his head.
“She’s finished.” Sophria heard him.
She looked toward him.
Then lowered her gaze.
Her legs trembled.
Her lungs burned.
But she refused to fall.
She thought, “Love?” Her fingers dug into the soil.
“Weakness?” She slowly raised her head.
“Is that what they think I am?” A memory suddenly returned.
Maris’s voice.
Cold.
Sharp.
Uncaring.
“You break once…” The memory continued.
“…you stay broken forever.” Then his voice became firmer.
“So don’t.” Sophria’s breathing stopped for a moment.
She remembered his face.
His confidence.
His strange way of encouraging people without ever saying what they wanted to hear.
A tiny smile appeared.
She thought, “I chose him.” She stood straighter.
“I chose my path.” The vines beneath her feet began moving.
“And I won’t abandon it.” Liberia’s eyes narrowed.
Sophria’s voice became stronger.
“So I’ll stand.” The ground cracked.
“I’ll fall.” Roots erupted around her.
“And I’ll stand again.” The arena became silent.
Sophria smiled.
“I’ll keep doing it until even fate gets tired of watching.” Liberia’s expression hardened.
“You don’t know when to stay down.” Sophria slammed her palm into the soil.
BOOM!
The earth split.
Roots spiraled violently through the arena.
A massive stem emerged behind her.
The students stared.
“What is that?” The stem continued growing.
Leaves unfolded.
Then— A gigantic sunflower erupted behind Sophria.
Its petals spread across the battlefield.
A sinister golden glow began radiating from its center.
Liberia’s confident expression disappeared.
“The hell is that?” Foshi’s eyes narrowed.
“Interesting.” Sophria raised her hand.
The sunflower began gathering energy.
The golden glow intensified.
A student whispered, “She’s changing her power…” Another stared.
“During the fight?” Foshi’s eyes widened.
“She evolved mid-battle.” The sunflower’s energy condensed into its center.
“Level 2…” Foshi’s voice became firm.
“Tree.” Sophria looked toward Liberia.
Her expression was calm.
But her eyes carried determination.
“My light…” The sunflower’s core began glowing brighter.
“…is not gentle.” Liberia’s eyes widened.
“What are you planning?” Sophria extended her hand.
“Photosynthesis…” The entire arena became golden.
“BEAM!” BOOOOOOM!
A concentrated beam of solar energy erupted from the sunflower.
Liberia immediately raised both arms.
“Crust!” A gigantic wall of earth rose before her.
The beam struck.
KRAAAAAASH!
The earth wall cracked.
Liberia gritted her teeth.
“You think that’s enough?!” She slammed her hand into the ground.
A massive boulder tore itself free.
The stone rose above her.
Then flames wrapped around it.
The rock began glowing red.
Liberia grinned.
“Then die WITH YOUR HOPE!” She launched it.
“BURNING STONE!!” The flaming boulder collided with Sophria’s beam.
For one second— Nothing happened.
Then— BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The entire arena exploded with energy.
The students were thrown backward by the shockwave.
“GET DOWN!” “Whoa!” “What the hell?!” A violent storm of sand and dust ripped through the training ground.
Trees bent.
Branches snapped.
The sky disappeared behind the dust.
Foshi immediately raised his hand.
“Everyone stay back!” The shockwave continued expanding.
Light and fire collided in the center.
Nature against fury.
Hope against hatred.
Neither side yielded.
The arena disappeared beneath the clash.
For a moment— nothing existed except the violent glow of their powers.
Then silence.
The dust continued drifting through the air.
Nobody could see what had happened.
Pinezoku slowly lowered his arm.
“…Who won?” No one answered.
Melio stared into the dust.
Maris remained completely still.
His eyes narrowed.
He thought, “Come on, Sophria.” The dust slowly began clearing.
And somewhere inside that battlefield…
a new version of Sophria Fruilder had been born.
She was no longer simply the academy’s quiet genius.
She was no longer merely the famous girl everyone admired.
She had discovered something far more dangerous.
A reason to keep standing.
A reason to fight.
A reason to grow.
And with that awakening came a single truth— Sophria Fruilder was not just a pretty girl anymore.
She was a threat.