Chapter 326: Lessons Learned and a Triumphant Return
An overbearing strength which couldn't be resisted!
Ayrin's gained an advantage through his usage of Domain of Silence to neutralize Presley's Draconic Assimilation and proceeded to never look back as he threw out a flurry of attacks and overwhelmed Presley's defences, ultimately knocking him out cold.
Although the students of Abel Academy had known that defeat was a definite possibility, they had never expected Presley to be defeated in such a straightforward manner. They had never expected him to pose no threat whatsoever towards Ayrin!
The battle had simply been too one sided!
Kelly felt his heart turn numb as he thought to himself, "This child's strength has risen to such a degree!"
Although he had been constantly ridiculing and scolding Lotner, Presley, and the others, they were still well-known high-level competitors in the national tournament.
One would need the strength of an Office of Special Affairs' arcane team member to defeat any of them in such a clean manner.
"The gap between them and their competitors in the national tournament has indeed been widened." There was no surprise in Minlur's eyes, only approval.
After seeing their performances within the Abyss of Evil, he had already believed that their strengths had surpassed the level seen within the national tournament.
Now that they had passed the life and death test of the Poisonflame Emperor Egg, this gap had only widened. In fact, Minlur was certain that even if it was Stingham or Rinloran who had been chosen, they too would have defeated Presley in such a clean manner.
The more Minlur thought about it, the more pride he felt. After all, these three children before him had made it through a war which even Rui had been forced to withdraw from; they had ventured deep into the depths of the Southam Demon Forest and fought their way to the Abyss of Evil.
Through their own efforts, these three children had completely separated themselves from their counterparts in the national tournament.
All this time, the students of Abel Academy remained completely silent.
Previously, they had only believed that the three youths before them were strange. Somehow, their own ambush had been discovered and their traps had been used against them. They had consoled themselves that this was the only reason why they lost. But following this battle, they could no longer use this excuse.
Their loss had been completely due to a difference in strength!
"I won so easily against an opponent of this level… does that mean I am stronger than Rinsyi was?"
A magnificent smile spread across Ayrin's face.
Ayrin observed the members of Abel Academy's team and waved his fist at them as he said, "There are a lot of bad rumors about you guys, saying that you all rely on tricks and deceit to win. But remember, such tricks are useless in the face of true strength."
Afterwards, he thought about all the tough opponents he had faced up until now and continued, "In the end, strength is still the most important thing to have as an arcane master."
If Ayrin had said these words to them at the start of the national tournament, these students of Abel Academy would have turned their noses up at him.
But as they faced the radiantly glowing Ayrin and his teammates right now, they felt an indescribable and inexplicable emotion welling within them. It was an emotion which numbed their bodies to the bone and caused them to subconsciously begin reflecting on their past actions.
"They surpassed me without me even knowing…"
A fiercely burning flame emerged within Presley's eyes as he stood up and wiped away traces of blood from the corners of his mouth.
"In the past, we all thought that we were much more talented than our peers of the same age. For victory, all we needed to do was wait for others to come and fall into our plans. But now, compared to these youths before us, I now see that we are but nothing."
Presley's voice resonated throughout his own mind as he took a deep breath and nodded towards Ayrin, "Thank you."
"Eh?" Stingham's mouth dropped wide open as he looked at Presley and asked Rinloran, "Rinloran, did Ayrin beat this guy into an idiot? He was beaten to the point of spitting blood, yet he is still thanking Ayrin."
Rinloran didn't even look at Stingham as he swore, "Idiot!"
"I shall increase the intensity of my training and try to one day catch up to you!"
Presley's eyes were like burning stars as he looked Ayrin in the eye and vowed, "One day, we shall fight again!"
"Then you must work hard!" Ayrin put a hand behind his head as he laughed heartily. "Because we train as if our lives depend on it."
"Training as if one's life depends on it…" A smile slowly emerged on Presley's face as he thanked Ayrin once more. Afterwards, he turned around and walked back to his teammates.
"Hey! Don't forget to leave behind our prizes!"
All of the members of Abel Academy had felt it coming, yet their faces still immediately darkened as Stingham's loud shout broke the silence.
"Make sure you never meet me by yourself in the future, youth of Holy Dawn Academy. Don't you know how annoying you are?" Kelly muttered as he threw several items towards Stingham.
"What do you mean? Me? Annoying? Impossible!"
Stingham combed through his hair and then put his hands at his waist as he shouted towards Kelly, "I am handsome!"
Upon hearing Stingham's response, Kelly almost tripped.
At this time, Ayrin turned and looked towards Minlur as he said, "Teacher Minlur, in the future, you, Teacher Carter, and the others will become the people I chase after. Only if I also surpass you all can I defeat Jean Camus… and that guy is constantly improving as well."
"Ahahaha…" Minlur laughed wildly as he asked, "Is Jean Camus truly that strong?"
"He's strong. Very strong," Ayrin sternly replied with a nod.
"If that's the case, then you must train even harder so that you can surpass him!" Minlur exclaimed as he extended a fist towards Ayrin.
Smack!
Ayrin received Minlur's fist bump. Afterwards, he shouted, "I promise to train even harder than before. But for now, let us go and find Charlotte and the others!"
Stingham almost tripped over himself as he shouted, "Ayrin, just how can your thoughts jump so much?!"
Atop a plain in Fallen Shadow Valley located in what was now designated as the Third Northern District, ten arcane teams spread out and conducted a sweep of the area.
This area had been a market town of the Evil Dragon Followers. As a result, there were many warehouses, bakeries, and pubs in the area.
Areas like this one often contained hidden rooms and buildings which contained things which could be of use for arcane masters.
"That's?"
At this moment, several of the arcane teams abruptly froze as a man with long black hair appeared in the distance and walked into a collapsed pub.
They watched as the long-haired man picked through the debris, picked up a bottle of wine and uncorked it with his mouth before promptly throwing his head back and draining the bottle.
"I haven't tasted wine for so long…"
A look of satisfaction emerged on the man's face as he muttered to himself. Afterwards, he began to walk away.
"That was… Dimensional Wanderer Cold Moon?"
"It's already been twenty years since his last appearance… He's still alive?!"
"Are you sure that was him?"
"I'm certain! Look at the arcane energy fluctuation below his body, it's like a black crescent moon. That's his symbol! And he looks the same as described in legends!"
Cries of shock emerged as the arcane masters watched the black haired man's disappearing figure.
As he walked, there was a curved streak of black light flickering beneath his feet like a black crescent moon.
"That's? … Ayrin and the others?"
In an area which had been named Witch Hat Town, Moss, who had been sitting in the attic of the tallest building on guard duty, abruptly saw several familiar figures appear in his vision.
"And Teacher Minlur as well… Ayrin and the others have returned!"
Moss quickly snapped out of his daze as he let out an excited shout and made his way down from the attic and out of the building like a raging whirlwind.
"Ayrin and the others have returned?"
Upon hearing Moss's shouting, figures began to emerge from witihn several of the surrounding buildings.
Belo, Chris, Charlotte, Wilde, Ivan, and Ferguillo all appeared atop the once empty street in quick succession.
"Charlotte! Moss! Chris! Belo!…"
Ayrin's loud and excited voice rang over from the distance.