...…

Leonard was planning to apply for the special course of the Magical Ace Academy like what his master had said. But when he was on his way towards the school registrar, he suddenly received a message from Arthur that he was also on his way. Moreover, the latter also said that Shin also arrived at the Blue Stone City too.

So, instead of registering himself alone, Leonard decided to wait for the two so that they could apply for the special course together.

While he was waiting for the two, he decided to take a walk on the school plaza for a moment so that he could see what kind of atmosphere the school had.

Being together with Shin and Arthur, Leonard would naturally have visited the Top Military School when those two asked him to tag along. And visiting that place was engraved in his mind even though it was already a long time ago.

That place seemed like hell from what he could see. Everyone was always wearing a serious expression on their face, whether it was a student, a teacher, or other personnel; everyone was always emitting a unique aura that seemingly said that they couldn't be provoked.

But compared to that place, the atmosphere surrounding the Magical Ace Academy was totally its opposite. The people in this place might be different, but those differences were creating a strange harmony when they came together and made the atmosphere in this place quite enjoyable to feel.

"Yeah, this is how a school atmosphere should be," muttered Leonard as he was growing fond of the atmosphere on the school plaza.

Unfortunately, there were always a few people who tended to destroy that harmonious atmosphere by creating some chaos. And currently, such a person was currently making his way towards Leonard in an aggressive manner.

Naturally, Leonard was able to sense the hostile gaze that was locked at him. And given that he possessed the 'Bestial Instincts' talent, he would naturally be able to notice that the owner of that gaze was not a simple person.

"I smell the scent of a beast," muttered Leonard to himself as he turned his head towards the direction where that hostile gaze was coming from.

In that direction, Leonard saw a two-meter guy with a muscular body. And given that the tall guy was walking towards him in a very aggressive manner, he was sure that this guy didn't want to exchange some greetings.

And it didn't take long to prove that his thoughts were right. Because the 2-meter guy suddenly disappeared from his sight right after Leonard noticed his presence.

'This guy is quite fast despite having a heavy-looking body,' thought Leonard to himself the moment he saw the muscular guy disappear from his sight.

But that thought only lasted for a moment because he immediately threw his fist forward after a second.

Bang!

His fist collided with the fist of the 2-meter guy which created a very loud sound that attracted the attention of every student present in the vicinity. But from the looks on their faces, all of them seemed to be unsurprised of what they saw. In fact, they were seemingly used to seeing such occurrences.

After all, a school was still a competitive place – and it was even more true to a top-notch school like the Magical Ace Academy.

Moreover, the Magical Ace Academy was a place where a lot of hidden dragons and crouching tigers had gathered. It might be a school on the surface but it was actually a silent warzone when looked deeper into it.

Furthermore, a lot of geniuses from the other parts of the world were studying in this place. So, it was not surprising if someone met their archenemies from a rival country.

Due to that reason, a lot of conflicts were bound to happen every now and then. And it was also because of this every student in this place was not surprised if a fight suddenly occurred out of nowhere.

What's more, the school was actually encouraging such occurrences to happen since they were thinking that it would make their students grow a little faster. So, the school would not interfere in such conflicts as long as the students would not go overboard such as killing their opponents.

Leonard was aware of this fact which was why he was not surprised at all despite being attacked out of nowhere.

Meanwhile, the tall and muscular guy was quite surprised after Leonard countered his attack. He might not use his full strength when throwing that punch, but it was still more than enough to send someone flying even if it was blocked by someone as lean as Leonard.

Moreover, Leonard didn't only throw a strong counter despite being caught off-guard, but he also didn't budge an inch even after facing the powerful attack directly.

But what surprised his opponent even more, was the very strong force behind the counter that Leonard had thrown.

'That was a strong one. He really is worthy to be on the list. I guess my stay in his place is going to be quite enjoyable,' thought the muscular-two-meter guy while looking at Leonard with a pair of excited eyes.

"Hey! You seem to be a strong one, let's have a match!" said the tall guy at Leonard while wearing a huge grin with his lips.

Hearing that, Leonard suddenly smirked before replying. "You are just saying that after attacking me? I see that you are lacking in terms of Martial-Arts etiquette."

But despite saying all of that, Leonard didn't directly refuse the challenge. In fact, there was even an excited expression on his face. It had been a long time since he fought someone as strong as this guy in front of him. What's more, they seemed to be the same age, so it even made Leonard wholeheartedly welcome the invitation.

Meanwhile, the tall guy grinned even further before introducing himself. "I am 'Simone Bartolomeo' of the 'House of Bartolomeo'."

Hearing those words, Leonard couldn't help but raise his eyebrows a little as he heard that Family Name from his master before. 'House of Bartolomeo? That Ancient Martial -Art Family who considered themselves as the one and only real 'Body Practitioners'? Interesting!'

"Leonard – I am Leonard Fireheart, the first disciple of the 'Blood Slaughtering Fist: Galileo Freeman," replied Leonard, introducing himself.

Right after that, both of them put more strength on their arms before simultaneously pushing it forward. And due to the opposing forces, the two of them were suddenly separated from each other before finding their footings right after their feet touched the ground.

*******

On the other hand, Jean and Thomas were watching the sight with amused expressions on their face.

"That red-haired guy is really something. Should I join the fun a little?" said Thomas who was getting ready to jump in the fight.

"You know that Simone will kill you if you spoil the fun, right?" sneered Jean while crossing his arms in front of his chest.

Hearing that, Thomas suddenly smirked and replied. "As if killing me is that easy," while starting to walk towards the two.

Seeing that, Jean could only shake his head haplessly since he knew that he couldn't stop these two when they found some worthy opponents. In fact, he was also tempted to join in the fight. But he couldn't do it for now since it was going to be overkill if the three of them ganged up on a single person.

Actually, he was against the idea of Thomas joining the fight. But he didn't stop him because he saw someone walking out of the crowd when Thomas decided to join the fun.

"Looks like this is going to be even more interesting," muttered Jean with a smiling face as he decided to watch a little more.

But not long after, his face suddenly turned weird as he noticed that there was actually another person right beside them since earlier.

Turning his head to the side, he saw a young with ash-grey hair sitting beside him. And what shocked Jean even more was the fact that this particular young man was not even emitting any kind of aura despite him focusing his senses.

'Since when did this guy sitting there?' thought Jean as he looked at the young man with a slightly cautious gaze.

Meanwhile, that young man sitting beside was currently looking at the ongoing battle with a slight annoyance. And after a few more moments of observing, he suddenly muttered with a soft voice. "Tsk! Why are there always some troubles every time we are together?"

After that, he turned his head at Jean before saying. "Yo! Are you going to join that fight? If you are going to, can you not do it instead? I just came back from a hellish place, so I am not in a mood to fight right now."

And that was when Jean finally recognized Shin. So, he slightly squinted his eyes while thinking to himself. 'Shin Kinghad? Another person on the list.'

Realizing that, Jean wanted to give it a shot and exchange some blows. But he decided to go against it since he felt that it was still not the right time to clash with him. Moreover, the current Shin sitting of him was giving a completely different vibe compared to the reports that they had received.

Given that, Jean shook his head and said to Shin. "No, I'm actually also not in a mood to fight either."

After that, he turned his head at the ongoing battle before adding to what he had said. "And I apologize on my friends' behalf. Those two are quite hot-blooded, so they are quite eager to fight whenever they find some worthy opponents."

Hearing that, Shin immediately became overjoyed before shaking his head. "Nah! You don't have to apologize. I actually understand how you feel since I also know someone who always jumps in front of trouble just to gather some attention."

When he was done saying those words, Shin turned his head back to his front and looked at the person that Jean had seen earlier before continuing. "He is quite a showoff, which is why I am always being dragged in trouble due to him."

...…

At the same time, Thomas was currently sprinting towards Leonard with great speed. He was quite eager to test how strong were the people on the list. But before he could even reach the halfway-mark towards his target, he suddenly felt another presence who was charging at him with a great speed.

Sensing that threat, Thomas immediately halted his advance and quickly hopped backward to see who was the person that dared to interrupt him.

The person who blocked Thomas' path removed the sunglasses that he was wearing before saying. "Hey! You reek some blood. Are you an assassin? If you are, then what type are you? White Hats or Hitmen? If you are the latter, then I guess I can't let you freely walk on the streets."

Given that this particular young man was wearing a pair of combat boots, a military shirt, and camouflage paths, it was quite obvious that he was a part of the military – or most probably a young talent who came from a Military Family.

Since Thomas came from a 'dark' Assassin Family, it was natural for him to be hostile to a person who came from the military. Moreover, this young man blocking his path was also on the list, so he became even more eager to pick a fight with him.

'Arthur Springfield. Now, things are getting even more interesting,' thought Thomas to himself before saying to Arthur. "White Hat or Hitmen, you, military people will never listen to someone like us after all, so why bother asking such stupid questions?"

Hearing that reply, Arthur put down the military bag hanging on his back before saying. "Given your tone, I am guessing that you are the latter. After all, only those people are the ones who will think that way."

"Since that is the case, then how about we cut off the chase and you come at me instead?" he added before taking a brief pause.

After that, Arthur's eyes suddenly turned sharp as he pointed his sunglasses at Thomas while saying with a provoking tone. "I am actually quite eager to teach you some lessons."

...…