"Have you finalized the team?" Tristan asked.

"Yes. But the fifth slot's a problem. Only seven seniors have reached Level 4, and three of those were serving in the military. They came back injured—badly. They won't recover in time."

Tristan fell silent again. The other major academies would be fielding nothing but Level 4 Awakeners. Bloodstone would be starting a fight with a handicap.

The assistant hesitated, then brightened. "What about Axel? Didn't you once say he should compete? I heard he joined the Whisper Syndicate. Word is, he's growing fast."

Tristan's lips curved into a weary smile. "When I saw him before, he was barely Level 2. At best, maybe Level 3 by now...."

His assistant blinked, then sighed. "True. And with the military stretched thin, he's probably buried in missions anyway."

Tristan leaned back in his chair, still smiling faintly. "Even so… maybe. We'll see. The competition's not here yet, and that kid has a way of surprising people."

.....

After confirming the date of the academy competition, Axel shut himself away in Northern Spiritual Town. Other than grabbing the occasional drink with Geoffrey, the grizzled head of the Ministry of Defense, and dropping by Fabian's vegetable garden a few times for a meal, he disappeared completely into cultivation.

Day after day, he drowned himself in the thrill of absorbing Life Crystals.

He'd set aside a portion of fragmented crystals for Annabelle, and over the course of twenty-seven days, he burned through nearly three-quarters of the rest. The last quarter, he kept stashed away for emergencies—battle would demand it.

When dawn light spilled into the room, Axel sank into his inner vision.

Physical: 3445 / 3471. Force: 3578 (2003) / 3688. Spirit: 3322 / 3358.

His Force had finally surpassed his other stats. Thanks to the fire spirit, his Physical and Spirit had always outpaced his energy reserves—but that was the old Axel. Now, after compressing more than two thousand points of Force, he was in a league of his own.

"Two thousand compressed points… that's already stronger than most Level 4, top-grade Awakeners," he thought, lips curling into a grin. His total Force sat at a monstrous 3,688.

He'd done his research. On average, a Level 4 top-grade Awakener, after compression, usually ended up with something around 1,600.

Axel had more than doubled it.

But what really stunned him wasn't the numbers. It was his Awakening skill. Recharge had finally broken through to its second stage.

Explosive Energy:

Burns one's own Force, transferring it to a target. Grants target +20% Physical Strength, +15% Force and Spirit. Weakens pain response, boosts Force recovery speed by 30%. Duration: 1 minute. Consumption: At least 200 Force points, max capped by own reserves. Self-use: Costs 800 compressed Force. Cooldown: 30 minutes.

Axel stared at the description, stunned into silence.

Before, Recharge had been a decent little support skill. Now? This was god-tier.

It wasn't just about lending energy—it supercharged allies, amplified stats, dulled pain, and accelerated recovery. In the hands of someone like Millers, whose explosive combat style drained Force like water, Axel could turn him into a goddamn war machine.

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The only catch was the cost. Eight hundred compressed points gone in one shot, and a long cooldown. He couldn't just toss it around like before. But in the right moment, it would flip a battle on its head.

Axel broke out of his trance and turned to wake Annabelle. She sat cross-legged, still locked in meditation, crystals dissolving in her hands.

"Time to go," he said.

Her lashes fluttered, and she blinked herself awake, sweat beading her brow. Her eyes, large and bright, shimmered with excitement.

"Brother, you're leaving already?"

For weeks she had trained like never before. Without Axel, she would've never dared to burn through crystals so recklessly. After nearly a month of devouring them, she had climbed to mid-grade Level 3. Axel had tested her himself—her strongest strikes could now break through a thousand points of Force energy.

And if she slipped into her infected state, her power would spike even higher.

.....

By the time Axel's convoy from the Ministry of Defense rolled into Shiverstone, it was close to 10:30 in the morning.

The city was buzzing, its streets packed with spectators and vendors hoping to squeeze every last coin out of the upcoming competition.

"Academy Competition Strength Rankings—one gem per copy! Straight from the Intelligence Bureau! You won't find better!"

A boy with a wide grin waved a bright yellow booklet in Axel's direction.

Axel raised a brow and walked over. "Rankings?"

"Yes, sir! A list of all the participating students!" the kid said eagerly.

Axel tossed him a gem and cracked the booklet open. The first name stared back at him in bold lettering.

First Place: Terrence — Stormwatch Academy.

Fourth-generation prodigy of the Starcrest family, Everton City. Level 4, top-grade. Force compression exceeding 95%. Awakened Talent: Blade Warrior. Original Instruments: Unknown. Combat techniques: All at minor mastery.

Terrence? His Force compression level was about the same as Jorvan's, but he was younger.

Axel skimmed the booklet, curious about Bloodstone Warfare School's standing. After all, this tournament wasn't solo — it was a team battle. If he wanted that rock spinal cord, his teammates had to be capable.

He found their first mention on page five. A girl.

Ranked Fifth: Yara, Bloodstone Warfare School. The school's strongest senior, Level 4, Upper Grade. Force compression exceeding 90%. Original Instrument: C-rank Red Tassel Spear — channels Force into the spearhead, granting devastating piercing power. Basic Combat Techniques: All at Minor Success.

Axel frowned. Only one name from his academy in the top ten. Stormwatch Academy had three, Eagle's Crest two, Cavalier's Honor two, and Bloodstone just Yara. Weaker than he'd expected.

He flipped further, scanning for other Shiverstone contestants, when the boy who sold him the booklet piped up, eyes gleaming:

"Brother, the competition's about to start. Want to place a bet?"

Axel froze. "What? It's starting already?"

"No opening speeches? No ceremony?"

"It's done. Contestants are heading in now. Once they enter, the venue gets sealed. Nobody in, nobody out."

"Where's the arena?"

"Olympic Sports Center."

"Thanks." Axel tossed him a few original stones and vanished with Annabelle at his side.

The boy blinked at the sudden disappearance, then gasped as the realization hit. "Holy shit… his speed! Could he be a contestant?!"

Clutching the original stones Axel had left, the kid's grin spread wide. "What a good guy… I'll eat well for weeks on this." He tucked them away safely and went back to hawking booklets.

.....

By the time Axel arrived, the Olympic Sports Center was packed. The roar of the crowd rattled the steel beams, but he didn't see many competitors on the floor.

"Excuse me," Axel stopped a volunteer. "Where's the Bloodstone Warfare team?"

"They've already entered the Landscape Scroll," she replied.

Landscape Scroll? Axel frowned, unfamiliar with the term.

Scanning the crowd, his eyes caught a familiar figure — a man pacing anxiously, someone who had once hosted his mentor, Varric, at Bloodstone.

"Mr. Varric!" Axel called out.

The man spun, surprised. "Axel?!" His face lit with relief. "Why are you here?"

"I'm here to compete. Mr. Tristan asked me. Am I late?"

Varric slapped his forehead. "Late?! Christ, no time for the principal's deliberations now — it's you! Get in there!"

He thrust a paintbrush into Axel's hand and waved him toward a massive scroll unfurled near the stage.

Axel blinked. "So urgent? Alright." He tightened his grip on the brush and jogged over.

Beside Varric, one of the women overseeing the competitors narrowed her eyes at Axel. "Took long enough. This is him, right? No substitutions?"

Varric nodded quickly. The woman gestured Axel forward without another word.

"The principal already signed off on Axel's participation," Varric muttered under his breath. "I'm not pulling this out of thin air."

Bloodstone's roster had taken a beating — literally. Several of their Level 4 Awakeners were injured, leaving only four available. The principal had been agonizing over who to fill the last slot with, but time was up.

Thankfully, Axel had shown up.

He may not have officially reached Level 4, Varric thought, but his potential speaks for itself. At the very least, he's a rock-solid Level 3. And among Level 3s, nobody is stronger than him.

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