The battlefield had already stopped resembling an arena long before the end.
Solar fire consumed the sky while gravitational distortions twisted the air itself around Solar Creation.
Violet plasma storms flooded the combat zone in violent waves capable of vaporizing reinforced magical stone instantly.
Meanwhile, darkness had spread across nearly the entire battlefield now, black flames devouring everything they touched while abyssal shadows swallowed even the remaining light struggling to survive inside the arena.
And at the center of that apocalypse…
The three S Ranks stood smiling.
Blood covered portions of their bodies.
Their breathing had grown heavier.
Their mana reserves were being burned apart at absurd speed.
And none of them cared.
Because this…
This was the battle they had wanted.
Magnus slowly rested his colossal hammer against the shattered battlefield while crimson-gold solar mana flooded upward around him like the birth of a dying star.
Across from him, Raizen Virel twirled both plasma swords once before violet energy exploded violently around his body, ionized lightning tearing through the arena uncontrollably.
Nearby, darkness continued spreading beneath Noctis’s feet while black flames ignited across the battlefield itself.
The pressure alone became unbearable.
Several surviving candidates watching from the stands could no longer remain standing properly beneath the overwhelming mana radiating from the three monsters below.
Even professors looked shaken now.
One of them stared toward the battlefield with pale eyes.
“…If these three survive long enough…”
Another finished the sentence quietly.
“They’ll become disasters capable of reshaping the world.”
Meanwhile, inside the arena, Magnus slowly raised his hammer toward the burning sky.
The miniature sun above the battlefield immediately reacted to his mana, expanding once more while crimson-gold flames spiraled around the gigantic warrior like a collapsing star preparing to explode.
The air itself screamed beneath the pressure now.
Entire sections of the arena continued melting despite the countless barriers surrounding the battlefield while even gravity had started fluctuating violently around Magnus’s body.
Raizen narrowed his eyes while plasma storms condensed around both of his swords.
Violet arcs of unstable energy exploded continuously across the battlefield as the blond noble lowered his stance slightly, his entire body radiating destructive heat.
The plasma surrounding him became denser and denser every second until parts of the arena itself started ionizing around his presence alone.
And then there was Noctis.
Darkness swallowed the battlefield entirely around him while black meteors slowly started materializing high above the arena itself.
Abyssal flames spread across the shattered ground while shadows twisted violently like living creatures preparing to devour reality itself.
The darkness no longer looked like ordinary magic anymore.
It looked alive.
Even the spectators felt it instinctively.
A cold sensation.
Like the world itself was approaching its end.
Noctis slowly raised his scythe afterward while Authority of Knowledge desperately attempted analyzing the absurd mana levels flooding the battlefield.
Failure.
Failure.
Failure.
The calculations no longer made sense.
Meanwhile, Magnus laughed loudly while crimson-gold light flooded the arena harder and harder every second.
“HAHAHAHA!
THIS IS PERFECT!”
Raizen smiled as well, plasma crackling wildly around his body while the pressure generated by his mana distorted the air around him.
“No regrets after this.”
Noctis answered calmly while darkness spiraled violently around his scythe.
“None.”
The atmosphere inside the arena changed completely afterward.
The professors immediately realized it.
Every single one of them.
This was no longer another exchange.
No longer another phase of the fight.
This…
Was the ending.
One professor stood up abruptly from his seat.
“WAIT—”
Too late.
The three S Ranks attacked simultaneously.
“BIG BANG.”
“PLASMA BOOM.”
“APOCALYPSE.”
The world disappeared.
Magnus Solvar’s attack detonated first.
The artificial sun hanging above the battlefield instantly collapsed inward on itself before exploding outward in a catastrophic wave of crimson-gold destruction.
The resulting solar eruption swallowed the entire arena beneath blinding light while gravitational pressure crushed everything surrounding the battlefield hard enough to fracture reality itself for a brief moment.
Big Bang.
The name fit perfectly.
It did not resemble magic anymore.
It resembled the violent birth and death of a star compressed into a single instant.
At the exact same moment, Raizen unleashed Plasma Boom.
Violet plasma storms erupted violently from both swords before expanding throughout the arena in a massive chain reaction of unstable explosions.
Ionized lightning flooded every corner of the battlefield while entire sections of reality itself became distorted beneath the sheer thermal energy released by the attack.
The plasma did not spread normally.
It consumed.
Devoured.
Everything touched by the attack instantly vaporized into glowing particles of energy.
And then came Noctis.
Darkness exploded across the battlefield.
Not shadows.
Not ordinary darkness.
An apocalypse.
Black flames erupted across the shattered arena while gigantic abyssal meteors descended from the burning sky itself.
Endless darkness flooded every remaining portion of the battlefield while reality disappeared beneath writhing shadows and black fire.
The world itself looked like it was ending.
Flames darker than death consumed the battlefield while the meteors crashed downward one after another, each impact detonating into oceans of abyssal destruction.
The shadows spread endlessly beneath the arena like a living abyss preparing to swallow existence itself.
Then the three attacks collided.
Everything broke.
The arena barriers shattered instantly beneath the impact.
Mana itself screamed violently while solar destruction, plasma annihilation, and abyssal darkness devoured one another at the center of the battlefield.
The resulting shockwave erased the arena completely while space itself visibly distorted beneath the collision.
The spectators could no longer even see the battlefield anymore.
Only light.
Darkness.
Fire.
Plasma.
And destruction beyond comprehension.
Several professors instinctively stepped backward in horror despite knowing the barriers would protect them.
Others simply stared at the catastrophe unfolding before them with pale faces.
One of them whispered quietly:
“…This is impossible.”
Another answered without taking his eyes off the battlefield.
“No.”
His voice trembled slightly.
“This is history.”
Meanwhile, at the center platform overlooking the arena, Aetherion smiled calmly.
Golden light expanded silently around the stadium while the God effortlessly stabilized the collapsing battlefield.
Reality itself reconstructed beneath his presence while the apocalyptic collision remained perfectly imprisoned inside the divine barriers surrounding the arena.
Even then…
The Academy still shook violently.
The sky above the stadium had turned completely black and crimson now while fragments of abyssal fire and plasma lightning continued exploding against the divine barriers protecting the spectators.
Entire portions of the arena had already vanished completely while molten debris floated through the air beneath the remaining gravitational distortions generated by Big Bang.
Inside the battlefield itself…
Nobody survived.
The collision consumed everything instantly.
No victor emerged.
No final attack pierced through the others.
No last survivor remained standing.
Only destruction.
Pure destruction.
For one terrifying second, the entire world felt it.
Not just the Academy.
Not just the spectators.
The planet itself.
Despite Aetherion’s divine barriers perfectly containing the physical destruction inside the arena, the sheer amount of mana released by the collision still spread through reality like an invisible shockwave.
The natural mana flow of the world trembled violently beneath the pressure generated by the three S Ranks.
Far beyond the Academy, ancient magical artifacts suddenly activated on their own.
Deep inside forgotten ruins, dormant creatures slowly opened their eyes.
Several archmages across distant kingdoms abruptly stopped what they were doing before instinctively turning toward the direction of Aetherion Academy with pale expressions.
Somewhere in the depths of the Demon Territories, even monsters reacted instinctively to the disturbance spreading through the world’s mana itself.
Because somewhere…
Three monsters had just collided with enough power to shake the magical balance of the planet.
And inside the arena…
Silence.
Complete silence.
The battlefield no longer existed.
The combat zone had been erased so completely that even the reinforced magical arena beneath it had vanished entirely.
Only a gigantic abyss of molten destruction remained at the center stadium while fragments of plasma lightning and black flames still drifted slowly through the air like remnants of the apocalypse itself.
Nobody moved.
Nobody spoke.
The spectators could barely breathe anymore because their minds still struggled to process what they had just witnessed.
One professor slowly stared toward the ruined battlefield with pale eyes.
“…Did they really just…”
Another answered quietly beside him without looking away from the destruction.
“Yes.”
His voice sounded hollow.
“They destroyed the arena.”
Meanwhile, high above the battlefield, Aetherion calmly lowered one hand while golden particles slowly faded around the divine barriers surrounding the stadium.
Unlike everyone else present, the God looked completely relaxed.
Almost amused.
As though what had just happened genuinely interested him.
Then—
Three flashes of transfer light activated simultaneously outside the battlefield.
Noctis.
Raizen.
Magnus.
The three S Ranks slowly reappeared beyond the destroyed arena, their bodies fully restored by the Pocket Dimension system.
And yet despite that restoration, all three still looked exhausted beyond words.
Because while their injuries had vanished… the fatigue remained.
Mental exhaustion.
Mana depletion.
The lingering sensation of death itself.
For several seconds, none of them spoke.
Then Magnus suddenly started laughing.
A tired laugh this time.
“HAHA… now THAT was a fight.”
Raizen slowly pushed his blond hair backward while weak plasma sparks still flickered around portions of his body.
“I finally found people worth fighting seriously.”
Nearby, Noctis remained silent while darkness slowly faded around his body.
His heart was still beating abnormally fast from the adrenaline flooding his system.
And somehow…
He wanted more.
The realization honestly terrified him a little.
Then the three looked at one another.
No arrogance.
No hatred.
No resentment.
Only respect.
Magnus extended one hand first.
Raizen accepted it immediately.
Noctis joined them a second later.
Three monsters.
Three equals.
And the stadium exploded into applause.
Not normal applause.
Thunderous applause powerful enough to shake the Academy itself.
Even several professors were clapping now despite the disbelief still visible across their faces.
Others looked genuinely disturbed by what they had just witnessed.
One of them muttered quietly:
“…What exactly are we supposed to teach people like that?”
Another answered almost immediately.
“Nothing.”
Near the spectator platforms, Kael practically launched himself toward Noctis.
“YOU’RE INSANE!”
The lightning user grabbed him by the shoulders before laughing loudly.
“We basically have the same level actually, right?
AHAHA!”
“Delusional,” Faelyn replied instantly while approaching beside him.
Varkas crossed his arms nearby before shaking his head slowly.
“Monsters.”
But Lyra…
Lyra said nothing.
She simply rushed directly toward Noctis before wrapping both arms around him tightly.
For a brief second, Noctis looked surprised.
Then he felt it.
Her hands were trembling.
“You idiot…” she whispered quietly against him.
“I thought you were dead…”
The noise of the stadium suddenly felt very far away.
Noctis slowly relaxed afterward before gently placing one hand against her back.
“I’m still here.”
When Lyra finally pulled away, her eyes remained locked onto his for several silent seconds before Kael immediately ruined the moment.
“Alright enough emotional tension, I wanna fight him next.”
“You’d die,” Varkas answered immediately.
“Rude.”
High above the arena, Aetherion calmly stepped forward while golden light illuminated the destroyed battlefield behind him.
Instantly, the entire stadium fell silent once more.
The God slowly observed the new generation standing below him.
Then he smiled.
“This battle ends in equality.”
His voice echoed naturally throughout the Academy despite remaining perfectly calm.
“A magnificent fight worthy of remembrance.”
Golden particles slowly spread across the stadium afterward while countless students stared upward toward him in awe.
“From this day onward…”
Aetherion’s gaze slowly moved across every surviving candidate present.
“…you are all officially students of Aetherion Academy.”
The stadium erupted one final time.
And moments later…
The God vanished.