Chapter 201 — Gareth II

Everyone watching couldn’t even understand how all of this was possible for a first-year student.

Even the elite Demons Damian previously fought were equivalent to C rank at most.

And he was having a hard time even surviving them!

So... In just a few weeks after that, Damian was so strong that the strongest fourth-year was a plaything in front of him?!

What the hell happened in that daman portal?!

As these thoughts were coming into the minds of everyone present...

Gareth rose up slowly, spitting blood from his mouth, his face showing shock and pain in equal measure.

’He’s faster than me. Stronger than me. More skilled than me. How?! I’m a whole major rank above him! This shouldn’t be possible!’

He reached into his spatial ring and pulled out his greatsword, the massive weapon’s blade catching sunlight.

His brown Aura flared, wrapping around both his body and the weapon.

Damian smiled and summoned his axe, the weapon appearing in his hand with comfortable familiarity.

"Abyssal Slaughter."

He only said it once, but the effect was immediate and overwhelming.

Translucent flames of Slaughter Intent erupted around his entire body, the mental pressure radiating outward with intensity that made even S rank professors tense.

"!!!"

The flames spread across the arena platform, creating a zone of pure killing intent that made weaker students in the audience collapse unconscious immediately.

Thud Thud Thud

’This level of Slaughter Intent... how many did he kill in that portal to manifest something this powerful?!’

Even Seraphina looked shocked, her military experience recognizing that level of intent only appeared in veterans who loved slaughtering Monsters.

Damian was sixteen years old and radiating killing intent that would make even some battlefield generals nervous.

The two fighters clashed again, but now the power dynamic was even more obvious.

Their forms blurred, moving too fast for normal students to track, only the sounds of metal striking metal and periodic explosions marking their positions.

CLANG CLANG BOOM CLANG.

But Damian was using everything now, not holding back, wanting to end this quickly.

Macro Vision tracked Gareth’s muscle movements, predicting strikes before they fully developed.

Sonic Blink let him appear and disappear unpredictably, attacking from angles Gareth couldn’t defend.

And then his telekinesis activated, invisible force grabbing Gareth’s greatsword mid-swing.

The massive weapon stopped dead despite Gareth’s full strength pushing it.

Damian’s axe came down in a perfect arc enhanced by Abyssal Slaughter’s absolute belief principle.

CRACK.

The greatsword shattered, two pieces falling to the platform with metallic rings.

"..."

Complete silence crashed across the watching crowd.

Gareth stared at his broken weapon with disbelief.

’That was reinforced with B+ rank Aura! Enhanced through my weapon art! It shouldn’t be possible to break it with a single strike!’

But evidence lay at his feet, undeniable.

Damian’s axe had cleaved through the greatsword like it was made of glass rather than enchanted steel.

Gareth took a deep breath, making a decision.

His brown Aura suddenly intensified, the energy becoming almost solid around his body.

"Imperial Skill of House Blackwood..."

His voice resonated with power, the very ground beneath the platform responding to his will.

"TITAN’S ASCENSION!"

His body began growing, muscles expanding, bones lengthening, his already massive frame becoming truly gigantic.

Three meters. Four meters. Five meters...

His skin took on a stone-like quality, becoming grey and hardened, defensive capabilities multiplying as his size increased.

By the time the transformation completed, Gareth stood nearly six meters tall, his body resembling the Giants Damian had fought in the portal – massive, powerful, seemingly unstoppable.

The Imperial Skill of House Blackwood. Temporary transformation into a titan-form that dramatically increased physical strength and durability at the cost of speed and Aura consumption.

The watching crowd gasped, many having never seen the Blackwood Imperial Skill demonstrated at full power.

But... Damian didn’t flinch.

He looked up at the transformed Gareth, and his expression shifted to something almost nostalgic.

His self-healing technique activated, Aura flowing through his body in patterns designed to repair damage continuously.

Then he smiled – that crazy, blood-drunk smile that people who’d seen him fight Giants and survived the portal would have immediately recognised!

He stored his axe back in his spatial ring.

’This reminds me of the portal. Fighting opponents bigger and stronger than me. Using everything I learned to overcome impossible odds.

I missed this feeling.’

The fight resumed, but now it was even more brutal.

Gareth’s titan-form gave him devastating strength, each punch creating shockwaves, each step cracking the reinforced platform.

Bam Bam Bam

Damian got hit and got hurt as his ribs cracked and bones fractured.

But his self-healing kicked in immediately, visible regeneration making injuries disappear within seconds.

And every time he recovered, he came back harder, faster, more aggressive.

"MORE! I WANT MORE! I MISSED THIS FEELING EVER SINCE I CAME BACK FROM THE PORTAL!"

Damian’s voice carried manic joy, his combat instincts fully engaged, his body remembering the desperate fights that had kept him alive for two months.

He started overwhelming Gareth, his superior speed and technique compensating for the size and strength differential.

Bam Bam Bam

Punches to joints. Kicks to pressure points. Strikes designed to cause maximum damage despite the stone-like skin.

Gareth began faltering, his Aura reserves depleting rapidly under the strain of maintaining his Imperial Skill.

Damian sensed the weakness and pressed harder, his assault becoming relentless.

"Argh!"

Finally, Gareth’s transformation failed, his body shrinking back to normal size as his Aura ran dry.

He tried to defend, but exhaustion made his movements sluggish.

Damian didn’t stop.

He moved in close and began systematically destroying Gareth, each strike precise and devastating.

BAM BAM BAM BAM

Punch to the solar plexus, knee to the face, elbow to the temple and kick to the knee joint...

Methodical violence, delivered with cold efficiency.

Thud

Soon... Gareth collapsed, no longer responding, his body shutting down from accumulated damage.

Bam Bam Bam

But Damian kept punching, his face empty of expression.

"I waited for this for a long time."

His fists kept moving, each impact making the unconscious body jerk.

The crowd had gone completely silent, horror replacing excitement.

This wasn’t a fight anymore. This was brutality! It reminded them of the Damian who beat the shit of the first-year Nobles.

"Sigh..."

Professor Salazar Blackwood stood, his expression complex, clearly about to intervene to save his family’s heir.

But Seraphina’s hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"Elizabeth is about to interrupt. Let her handle it."

Indeed, Elizabeth had already moved, appearing on the platform with speed.

Her hand settled on Damian’s shoulder gently but firmly.

"It’s enough... You won."

Damian clicked his tongue in annoyance – tsk tsk – but still stood up, stepping away from Gareth’s broken body.

"Yeah. Go ahead and take him to the medical wing or whatever. Don’t want him dying and his family coming after me for it."

Elizabeth smiled, though her eyes showed she was processing something.

"Well, Junior Damian... you wouldn’t mind having a little spar with me, would you?"

"???"

Damian looked confused, his bloodlust fading as genuine surprise replaced it.

"Why? You’re the Student Council President. This challenge was about removing corrupt members, not fighting you."

Elizabeth’s smile widened, becoming something almost playful.

"If I win, I want Gareth, Liam, and Arielle to stay in the Council. You can remove the rest – I don’t really care about them. But those three have value."

She paused for effect.

"But if you win... I’ll make you the Student Council President."

Whisper Whisper

Shocked whispers exploded across the entire gathered crowd, the noise level rising instantly.

"Did she just offer him the presidency?!"

"That’s insane! She’s the strongest student in the Academy!"

"This is the greatest Noble talent versus the greatest commoner talent!"

"I can’t believe this is happening!"

Even the professors showed shock, several of them standing involuntarily.

Elizabeth was legendary. Rumored to have SSS rank talent, though never really confirmed.

Her combat capabilities were so far beyond normal students that most people assumed she could fight multiple A+ rank awakeners easily despite being only third-year.

And now... she was challenging Damian Valcor, who’d just demolished another Imperial family heir like it was casual exercise.

The two greatest talents of their generation, about to fight.

"..."

Damian stared at Elizabeth for several long seconds, his crimson eyes searching her purple ones for the angle, the trick and the hidden motivation.

Then he smiled – not the crazy combat smile, but something more genuine.

"Alright, Senior Elizabeth. Let’s see what the legendary Student Council President can actually do."

The crowd’s roar of anticipation drowned out everything else.