Bam!

Rolling on the hard floor, Killian let put several coughs as the sand and dust entered his mouth. The rough, gritty texture of sand present in each article of clothing he was wearing.

Even with the course sand making him physically uncomfortable in just about every way shape or form. He still stood up and faced Casper.

He had run out of arrows just a while ago, resorting to manifestation in order to create some while also using his bow like a staff.

If anything, it helped that Killian was the most proficient in mana applications in the entire academy. Despite it being over a year now, he still had yet to discover what exactly his mana attunement was, and left with no other choice. He went back to the basics.

Mana applications were just extremely basic Arts that anyone could do after all, they didn’t require a special attunement to be good. Although they definitely helped to make it better.

Just to enter into the special class, Killian had trained his enhancement capabilities to the absolute limit. Able to enhance different muscle groups individually to obtain greater speed or strength when necessary and adapt to his needs. This was boosted even further by his strange attunement, sometimes it made him more agil, sometimes it made him more powerful. Sometimes it even made him weaker and more sluggish.

But today was a good day, his attunement made him even faster and stronger.

So why?

Kukk

He spat out some blood from his mouth, wiping away some of the sand on his face. He was really starting to hate sand now.

Casper flourished his longsword, flying in the air

His white hair blowing in the winds caused by his Arts. The sun shining behind him masking his outline and making it hard to look directly at him.

He looked just like an angel from heaven right now, looking down on humanity before delivering his judgement.

With Killian on the ground, and Casper in the sky. The two of them looked up and down at each other. Countless thoughts running in their head alongside the adrenaline in their bodies.

Fully extending his sword to the sky, arm fully stretched. He brought it down, firing off a bright ray of light from the tip of his sword.

"Light Ray."

The name of the Art was deceptively simple, but the power it contained was beyond what a regular E-rank should have possessed. For scions like Casper, who had been training ever since they were old enough to wield a weapon. They were always leagues above regular folk, who simply didn’t have access to the same kind of resources they did.

The best mentors, elixirs to improve health and potential, high grade Arts and artifacts. As long as any scion was just decently talented—they could take on two, maybe even three regular awakened at the same level.

It was unfair, but that was just the way of life. The only thing fair about it was the fact that it was unfair to everyone1

Gritting his teeth, Killian manifested an arrow in his hands. Notching it and firing it at the incoming beam. Ignoring his burning body and mana core as he did so.

His iridescent mana arrow clashed with the ray of light briefly. Creating sparks of mana that made the clash hard to look at directly.

But anyone who could see the clash could tell it was obvious. One side was already losing.

Casper immediately intensified the ray, condensing the size which concentrated the power and let it easily knock away Killian’s hastily fired arrow.

With how easy it was to aim the light ray, Killian had no chance of dodging or outmanoeuvring it.

That left with with only one option. Defend it!

Digging his heels into the ground, his mana flowed out of his core and exited his body through his arms. Forming a dome around him. The sunlight catching onto the dome and scattering, causing his figure to become blurry and harder to aim at.

Not that it helped much.

His hastily put up mana shield cracked and shatter almost immediately, if it had continued. The ray would have pierced a hole through his chest and cut him into half the long way.

Blue shields of mana flared up an inch away from Killian. Stopping the ray of light before it could injure him, as well as sending out a signal to both participants.

The fight was over, he had lost.

Collapsing to his knees, Killian stared blankly at the ground.

Ahh...damn it. He really wanted to scream right now. To hit something. Go back to his room. Go back to his tribe. Anywhere but this place.

He even lost right in front of her.

He knew that she was somewhere up there, watching him from the spectator seats as he lost.

After saying so much and acting so confident, all the pride he had gotten from entering the special class. All of it was such a drag. Meaningless now that he had lost like this.

The entire world seemed distant, his chest felt heavy, and breathing became harder then normal. Each second of their fight replaying on his mind.

Every mistake, every opportunity he could have had. Every second of it.

His hands curled up into fists, it was frustrating. Maddening, not at the situation. But at himself. Even his own mana flared up at his frustration.

During the fight, he couldn’t help but think to himself...

If I was in his position, I would have succeeded as well.

If Killian had access to what Casper had, he would have become stronger as well, he would have become more powerful. Rather then blame himself, he blamed it on their circumstances. Believing that he lost all because of that one reason. Like a loser. It was pitiful.

Hadn’t he once taken pride in his own background? Yet he had actually thought something like that.

A shadow blocked out the sun, looking up. He found Casper, sticking a hand out towards him.

"That was a good fight."

"...thanks."

Killian stared at him for a while, before grabbing his outstretched hand and getting up.

It was strange, but Killian could definitely feel a strange...thing on Casper. An unusual sensation that he could normally feel on others that was strangely amplified now.

Even his mana felt strangely reactive today. With how it flared up at his frustration, mana didn’t usually react to thoughts like that. It had to be consciously directed.

But Casper’s face was completely still. Making Killian wish he knew more Arts. If he could just tell what he was thinking, what he was feeling...

Feeling?

Killian turned his head, looking up at the countless other spectators. The remnant traces of mana in his body and core reacting to the roars and cheers.

All of a sudden it made so much sense to him. His mana never reacted much with any of the Arts that he utilized, and for the few Arts it did react with. The effect was always random. Never being the same each time. Sometimes even making him weaker. It was the most unusual attunement that he or any of the academy instructors had ever seen.

But now it was clear. The silence and and the loudness. The highs and the lows. The constant and the irregular. Each time, his mana surged. Reacting with all those around him. Pulsating like a heart.

"I see...it was so simple all along."

The realization felt so simple, and it was annoying because all the evidence was right there. He just hadn’t managed to connect the dots together to realize what his attunement was.

But the frustration he had felt, and the blank face of Casper was enough for him to feel it. Enough to finally sense it and gain the enlightenment of what had been eluding him this whole time.

The emotions.

---

"Casper has the light-attunement and all they do for it is shine a few spotlights?"

"If it looks good, it looks good."

"Maybe so, but they put so much effort into showing off Killian’s emotion-attunement. Why couldn’t they have done more for Casper?"

"Cuz he’s the main character, of course it has to look good."

While Arthur and Zachary furiously debated on this topic. A certain red haired girl a few steps away glared at them. Putting a finger to her lips.

"Shhhh!"

Of course her glare was more adorable then scary, but they still listened to her anyways.

Even Arthur listened to her. Because what kind of messed up person would say no to Erin’s face over such a trivial matter?

Noelle put a hand to her head, petting her soft hair.

As much as she was immersed in the play right now. Erin’s presence was really distracting. Every ’wowww!’, ’awww!’ and ’yeaah!’ was enough to break her out of the immersion.

It was quite cute though.

And also quite weird that someone she knew since young was already raising a daughter. Even if they weren’t blood related.

She and Ellen were basically set up to be rivals from the start, ever since they were born. But ever since her isolation, she had basically become a completely different person.

Especially when she was with Raymond, the with and without was such a stark difference. It was hard to connect them as the same people.

Without him, she was mostly the same Ellen she knew. Quiet, reserved, having a cold aura and neutral glare that made anyone back away from her.

With Raymond, she became carefree, smiley and for some reason. She liked to tease Raymond quite a lot, even if she tried to hide it somewhat. It was still obvious to the rest already what happened behind closed doors, especially when Raymond himself complained about her ’villainy’.

She even lived in the same apartment as Raymond now, sleeping in the same bed and raising a child together...

It was like they were a married couple already.