Henry got up slowly, clearly struggling. Derek and Art were already making their way toward him from the balcony.

Once they reached him, both offered their shoulders to help him stand.

"You were amazing back there, Henry," Derek said sincerely.

Henry could only give a faint, bitter smile. "What's the use? I still lost the match. And after everything he said about my family, this was the best I could do."

Art and Derek didn't respond right away. After a brief silence, Derek spoke again. "Henry, about Leo speaking ill of your family… I think something else is going on."

Henry, who had just managed to stand properly with their support, looked at Derek in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"Don't you think it's strange?" Derek continued. "You found out that he was talking badly about your family, and at the exact same time, he came to accuse you of mocking him behind his back. And judging by his expression, I don't think he was pretending or faking his anger."

Hearing that, Henry fell deep into thought. "Now that you put it like that, it really does seem strange."

"You think someone wanted the two of you to fight?" Art asked, glancing at Derek.

"It does feel that way," Henry said thoughtfully. "Even though the legacy families are always competing, none of us from the younger generation would dare to openly insult another's family. And as Derek said, Leo genuinely seemed furious… but I don't remember ever mocking him."

A brief silence followed. Then Derek said, "Whatever the case, let's head to the infirmary first. You should get yourself healed."

"Yeah, let's go," Henry agreed with a tired smile.

With that, they climbed up the stairs from the arena floor and exited the fighting arena. Most of the crowd had already dispersed, though a few students lingered, wanting to congratulate Henry. Seeing his condition, however, they decided to wait until later.

Even in defeat, Henry had performed remarkably well, better than most had expected.

After that, the three of them began walking toward the infirmary. Thanks to all the times Derek had toured the academy with Eva, he already knew every corner of the campus, including where the infirmary was.

It didn't take them long to reach the building. Once there, a woman in her early thirties came out and guided them inside. Within minutes, she began healing Henry's injuries, and soon, every wound had completely disappeared.

After that, the day passed uneventfully. The next few days also went by without any interruptions as Derek continued to follow his routine.

A few nights later, Nicholas was seated behind his desk, leaning back in his chair. In front of him stood a man in his mid-twenties.

"Peter, make arrangements to transfer two students from the Raging Bulls to our house," Nicholas ordered. "They are Leo Stark and Henry Pendragon."

"What?!" The man looked utterly shocked. "Sir, I don't think that's possible. Once the students are assigned to their houses, the distribution can't be changed. And the Raging Bulls' housemaster, Yami, would never approve of it."

Nicholas's eyes narrowed coldly. "It can't be changed under normal circumstances, yes. But considering who's giving the order, it shouldn't be a problem… or have you forgotten who I am, Peter?"

"N — No, sir," Peter stammered quickly. "I'll look into it right away. But may I ask what's behind this sudden interest? I mean… why go so far as to bend the academy's rules just to transfer two students?"

Nicholas didn't respond immediately. After a brief silence, he began, "You must've heard about the student who recently cleared three consecutive floors in the Tower. Normally, that wouldn't be too surprising if it were an adult, such as an instructor or a hunter from outside — but for a student? You understand what clearing three floors in a row means, don't you?"

"Y... Yes, I do," Peter replied cautiously. "But… are you saying it's one of them?"

"I'm not a hundred percent certain," Nicholas said slowly, "but I'm fairly confident. No one else from that house is capable enough of achieving such a feat."

"Oh! And who do you think has the highest chance?" Peter asked.

"I believe it's that Leo kid," Nicholas explained. "He possesses dual attributes, and his control over them is remarkably fluent. He's also close to reaching F-Class already."

"Understood, sir. I'll make sure both of them are transferred to Lion's Heart by next week."

"Good," Nicholas said with a faint grin. It wasn't that his smile was inherently evil, but with his face and demeanor, it looked disturbingly wicked. "You may leave now."

Peter bowed respectfully and exited the room, closing the door quietly behind him.

Outside, a cold glint flashed in the young instructor's eyes. "Looks like I've found my target," he murmured before striding off with long, determined steps.

_________

The days went by quickly, and soon, it was the final day of orientation.

"Derek," Eva said softly, "I've already shown and taught you everything I was supposed to. Starting tomorrow, both your classes and ours will officially begin. But even then, if you ever need help with anything, just ask."

"Sure," Derek replied with a slight grin. "I'm probably going to trouble you a lot then."

Eva suddenly looked at him intently, her tone turning thoughtful. "You know, I never really thought about it before… but whenever I talk to you, it feels like I'm speaking to an adult."

"Huh?!" Derek blinked, surprised. "Why would you say that?"

"Well," Eva said, tilting her head slightly, "your strength is one thing, but it's more than that. Your attitude, your composure — none of it feels like that of a kid."

Derek scratched his head with a sheepish smile. "Maybe it just seems that way. After all, I'm just a kid — you can see that yourself."

'Yeah,' Eva thought. 'A kid… who I don't know how many ripples he'll create if not stopped.' She sighed silently.

"If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave now. See you soon, Derek." Eva said with a polite smile before turning to leave.

Derek watched her retreating figure for a moment. 'An adult, huh!' A smile spread across his face as he left the place as well.

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