...…

Boom!

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There was a loud explosion in the middle of the arena where Leonard and Simone were. And when the spectators saw that, they couldn't help but lean a little forward to have a better look at what happened.

Their line of sight was being blocked by a pair of blinding lights that were intervening with each other, so Shin and the others used their respective ocular skills to see through that curtain of light.

That was when they saw Leonard and Simone switch places for some unknown reasons. Those two were wearing a deep frown as both of them were also confused at what happened.

Swoosh!

Then they saw the lights created by their clashing Internal Qi dissipated as if they had never been there in the first place.

After that, they saw Professor Michael clapping his hands not far from them while saying. "That should be enough for now. Both of you put up a pretty good show for us, so how about we stop right now and call this battle a draw?"

Leonard and Simone stared blankly at him for a moment before finally reacting.

"Tsk! I almost had him. There's supposedly a hole in his abdomen right now," said the former while clicking his tongue.

"Heh! You got lucky that you still have your head intact," sneered the latter while retracting his arm.

After that, they quickly spun around and faced each other once again.

"Want to give it another go?" asked Leonard provokingly.

"Nice suggestion," answered Simone with a smirk.

Then they quickly charged at each other once again, planning to resume their battle.

Swoosh!

Bang!

Unfortunately, their fists were caught by Professor Michael before the situation escalated even further. He then gave them a sidelong glance and warned them. "I like your enthusiasm pretty much. But as I said, enough is enough, so both of you can stop now."

Swoosh! Swoosh!

After that, Leonard and Simone found themselves sitting on their respective seats, back to their comrades.

Meanwhile, Professor Michael swept his gaze at everyone before saying. "Since we have a really good opening match, I am hoping that all of you are going to show the same level of energy."

"Do worry about harming your rivals since you will not be able to kill each other as long as I am here," he added with full confidence.

After that, he snapped his fingers while saying. "Now, let's start the next duel."

Then the battles proceeded just like that. And with the words that Professor Michael had said, the other participants also became confident with themselves and immediately went all-out from the get-go.

The following matches were not as eye-catching as the previous fight between Leonard and Simone but they were at least as entertaining to watch since all of them were doing their best to show a good match.

And after a few minor matches, some of the most anticipated matches also took place, just like the battle between Ezio and Falcon, Molton against Mavin, and Lorraine versus Marie. These matches were at least on par with the first match that took place and the results were also the same.

All of those three matches also ended up with a draw as Professor Michael decided to step up at the very last moments. And out of these matches, the most eye-catching one was the matchup between Lorraine and Marie.

Both of the girls were quite skilled at being a mechanic but Marie had a slight advantage in this area since her county focused on developing scientific devices and technological tools. She relied on this aspect to suppress her opponent, also taking advantage of the large number of devices that she had.

Unfortunately for her, Lorraine also had a quite remarkable background; she was from a gunsmith family who was known around the world.

Their methods for gunsmithing were quite famous and unique since they combined the traditional way of making a gun and advanced technology. And one of their finest works was the pair of pistols that Lorraine was using.

Those guns could transform into four different forms, a pair of pistols, an assault rifle, a shotgun, and a sniper rifle.

With these forms, Lorraine could have different fighting styles depending on the situation that she was currently facing. And coupled with her abilities as a Dual-Partitioner, she was a very formidable opponent for anyone.

Their battle made the gymnasium a shooting ground without any covers to hide on. They continuously move while firing at their opponents without having any rest; they would only pause for a moment to reload their guns before firing at each other once again.

There were also some times when Marie was trying to throw some explosives at Lorraine, but the latter would always shoot them in the air accurately. Letting them roll was useless either since Lorraine would always spot them and let them explode before they could even reach a dangerous distance for her.

The battle lasted for quite some time before Professor Michael decided to stop the duel since it would take them forever to finish if not stop these girls.

In the end, those two also had no choice but to stop unwillingly and went back to their seats with a displeased expressions on their faces. No one from the team even dared to talk to both of them given the 'Kill I you, if you talk to me' vibes that radiating from their bodies.

After that, the rest of the matches took place. But they still couldn't finish all of them given the number of the remaining matches. And due to that, the professors assigned to oversee the matches decided to postpone the remaining duels and continue them tomorrow.

So, after the last match that took place in the afternoon, everyone was sent back to where they were living and told to come back tomorrow morning.

It was also for all of them to recover themselves. After all, Shin and the other participants who still didn't have their turn were also quite exhausted from sitting all day long and watching all of those battles from the sidelines.

Given that, Shin and his gang immediately went back to their respective rooms. But of course, it was only after they'd eaten the dinner that Shin prepared for all of them.

After a good night of sleep, everyone had gathered once again at the Magical Ace Academy. But this time, they were not summoned in an open field within the academy instead of being in the gymnasium.

"Heh! Looks like these old fogies finally realize how strong we are," said Arthur sneeringly as he surveyed the surroundings.

At the same time, Shin was also sweeping his gaze at the whole place before nodding in agreement. And thanks to his special Ocular Mentalism Technique, he was also able to see a very huge cube-like barrier right in front of them.

"They even created a proper barrier this time," said Arthur from the side as he also observed the barrier with the help of his own ocular skill.

Being able to notice that, Shin slightly knitted brows especially when he saw that Arthur's eyes seemed to be similar to what dragons had. "It looks like you have a rather interesting ocular skill – what is it called?"

Hearing those words, Arthur gave his brother a sidelong glance before replying sneeringly. "What? Got interested in my skill? How about you tell me about your Ocular Technique first and I will tell you mine?"

"I can't just expose my secrets for free even if it is you. We are still rivals after all," added while proudly crossing his arms in front of his chest.

Unfortunately, Shin replied to him as he wanted. "Tsk! Forget it then. After all, I can already tell that that ocular skill is self-created by you."

"What is it? A combination of your 'Foresight' Talent and one of your Martial Art Skills alongside some application of your breathing technique. Hmm… What is it called again? 'Imperial Tactics'? Yeah, that how it is called; I believe."

Then he walked past Arthur while patting the latter's shoulder. "And given your personality, I'm pretty sure that you named this skill – 'Dragon's Eye'."

After listening to those words, Arthur stared blankly in the air for quite some time before fuming in rage. "F*ck! That is unfair! That smartass reads me like an open book when it comes to these things."

He then turned around and chased after Shin. "Hey, Mr. Know-It-All! At least tell me what is the name of your ocular technique!"

"Tsk! Guess it yourself. This is why I told you that studying can also be used in Martial-Arts," said Shin while sitting underneath a tree shade, planning to take a quick nap while waiting.

Though, not everything would always go according to the plan. Arthur persistently asked him about the name of his ocular technique, which was why he couldn't have a peaceful nap. So, he still gave up and answered.

"Tsk! I named it 'True Sight'. Happy? Now get out of here and let me have a peaceful time," said Shin while shooing Arthur away.

At that point, Arthur was about to stand up and head elsewhere when everyone suddenly heard Professor Michael's voice. "We are now going to start immediately since we don't have much time left to drag this special exam."

"Arthur Springfield and Thomas Brooks, enter the barrier now," he added without waiting for anyone to process what he just said.

In the meantime, Arthur was already waking his way towards the center of the open field right after he heard his name. He even grinned quite widely while muttering to himself. "Finally! I thought I would die in boredom while waiting for my turn."

He then started rolling both of his shoulders before saying. "This time, I am going to be the highlight of today's event!"

...…