Chapter 443: Dark Demon Returns to Duel (4k)
The assessment for the Duel Class was held in the Number 1 Battle Hall.
Professor Pavar Jones was still dressed neatly, arriving at the Number 1 Battle Hall before one o’clock in the afternoon. Accompanying her were Professors Kazel, Shylph, and Lily from the First Year.
Professor Kazel observed the facilities with great interest, asking casually, “Professor Jones, what kind of tournament format will be used for this assessment?”
Professor Jones crossed her arms and replied, “Of course, it’s the Novice Tournament. Not every First Year student can be like Dark Demon, and it’s already quite challenging for them to gather twenty useful Magic Guidance Cards by the end of the semester.”
Professor Lily immediately lifted her head, her nose high in the air, saying, “That’s right!”
Professor Shylph asked seriously, “Pavar, since you want us to score, you must have detailed scoring criteria, right?”
Professor Jones nodded with a smile, “Of course.”
But when Professor Shylph relaxed her expression, Professor Jones continued, “Your scores are the best criteria.”
Professor Shylph’s face darkened instantly, and even Professor Kazel was taken aback, while Professor Lily seemed very pleased.
Professor Shylph sighed, “Forget it, let’s agree on a scoring standard before the time comes.”
Professor Kazel looked up at the large-hearted Professor Jones with suspicion, “Professor Jones, is this really what you want?”
Professor Jones quickly waved her hands, “How could that be? I truly believe in you all!”
…
While the four professors urgently formulated rules, the First-Year students also gathered their spirits and headed to the Number 1 Battle Hall.
The continuous failures in three assessments had plunged some students into an unprecedented low.
The highly anticipated Duel Assessment seemed to have lost its appeal.
Perhaps no one had expected that these practical assessments would become increasingly difficult. Some students even predicted they might fail all three, walking with shaking legs.
Only a few top students still had hope for this Duel Assessment, wanting to prove themselves.
As more students entered the Number 1 Battle Hall, the atmosphere became increasingly oppressive.
“This feels familiar.”
Dark Demon was quite accustomed to this pre-exam solemnity. His face showed a hint of nostalgia before he stepped confidently into the hall.
The rules for the Duel Assessment had been set earlier.
This assessment would use the Novice Tournament rules, requiring the number of Magic Guidance Cards in each participant’s deck to be between 20 and 40.
The Magic Guidance Ball Life Barrier used would be Level Two—2000 points.
The battlefield in the Number 1 Battle Hall was 30×20 meters, slightly larger than a basketball court.
After getting used to the 120×80 meter field, this smaller field felt cramped and difficult to maneuver.
Moreover, a 2000-point Life Barrier was too fragile, making it seem easily breakable with just a snap of the fingers.
Dark shook his head, putting aside those thoughts.
He wasn’t particularly interested in the Duel Assessment itself, but aiming for the top of the First Year would turn him into a Duel Machine.
This Duel Assessment was purely a random pairing system. Each student needed to participate in two rounds of duels.
The supervising professors would score each round separately, and the final score would be the average of the two rounds.
Professor Jones said she wouldn’t look at the outcome, only the process.
However, everyone knew that winning the duel would undoubtedly result in higher favorability scores.
“I wonder who my opponent will be?”
Dark scanned the venue and quickly retracted his gaze.
…
Ten minutes later, the four professors who had hastily agreed on a scoring standard ascended the platform, drawing all the students’ attention.
The students naturally gathered below the platform, looking up at the professors, waiting for the assessment to begin.
As the professor responsible for the Duel Class, Pavar Jones stood center stage and announced loudly, “Today’s Duel Assessment will be conducted by me and your professors from Summoning Spells, Mana Theory, and Arithmetic Classes. The rules have been mentioned repeatedly in previous classes. If there’s anything unclear… then continue to be unclear! Now, please come up one by one to collect your number plates.”
The number plates were still red and blue, which could be split into halves by injecting mana.
Students came up one by one, collected their number plates, split them, returned the blue halves, and kept only the red ones.
Once everyone had their number plates, Professor Jones drew four pairs from the jar filled with blue number plates and announced the numbers.
The selected students went to arenas 1 to 4, climbed onto the Competitors’ Platforms, and prepared for the duel.
The four professors walked to the judges’ seats in their respective arenas, serving as both referees and scorers.
With no additional procedures, the first four duels began simultaneously with a unified whistle!
As the countdown appeared on the projection, the First-Year students suddenly regained their spirits from their lethargic state.
The inherent attraction of a duel naturally made the students focus entirely on the match, disregarding everything else.
The eight contestants standing on the Competitors’ Platforms surveyed the field below, their expressions turning serious.
…
Half an hour passed, and the Duel Assessment was in full swing.
Due to the long absence of in-class duels, most First-Year students were quite inexperienced.
But as time went on, they became noticeably more skilled, and their duels were more impressive.
The four professors scored based on the students’ performances in the duel, but did not announce the scores.
This made some students, especially those who lost, uneasy.
Outside Arena 1, Dark remained watching, gradually gaining an understanding of the First-Year students’ average level.
Next to him, Diana went from eager anticipation to boredom.
On the other hand, Rose became less nervous.
When another duel ended, Professor Jones swiftly drew a new set of number plates and announced, “Next round, 66 and 29.”
“It’s my turn,” Dark thought, picking up his number plate and glancing at it. He turned his head and noticed that number 29, Justin Wayne, was also scanning the area.
Their eyes met instantly, and they realized they were each other’s first-round opponents.
“Is it him?”
Dark raised his interest slightly.
Compared to other students who hadn’t even participated in the Novice Tournament, Justin Wayne, one of the seven duelists among the First-Year students, was still somewhat of an intriguing opponent.
He nodded slightly at Justin Wayne and turned to the two beside him, “I’m going up now.”
“Good luck!” Diana waved her little fist.
Rose shyly added, “Good luck!”
Then, Dark walked toward the Red Side Competitors’ Platform.
When Justin Wayne confirmed that his opponent was Dark Demon, a look of distress involuntarily appeared on his face.
His friend patted his shoulder in sympathy.
“Don’t worry, Justin. Professor Jones said she won’t consider the outcome when grading.”
“Do you believe her?”
“But what else can we do?”
“In any case, give it your all. If you can last through one round, you win!”
“Uh… That seems a bit exaggerated. Even if it’s Dark, I’m not completely powerless. I can hold on for two or three rounds… Never mind, I’ll go up now.”
Justin Wayne shook his head and stepped toward the Blue Side Competitors’ Platform.
As these two stepped forward, the students watching from outside immediately began discussing.
Leaving aside Dark Demon, Justin Wayne was also a prominent figure in the First-Year of the Knight Academy. His upright character and healthy appearance easily earned people’s goodwill. Unlike the somewhat isolated Emma and Wit in the Knight Academy, he attracted many supporters.
Given the constant hostile relationship between the Knight Academy and the Noble Academy, many students in the Knight Academy hoped for Justin Wayne to win against the odds.
Naturally, students from the Noble Academy scoffed at this notion, believing Justin Wayne had no chance of winning.
“It’s almost two months until Easter, right? Justin Wayne must have improved significantly.” Tudor and Pistons murmured.
But then they added, “Of course, Dark has improved even faster!”
What made Dark Demon most disheartening was that he was stronger and worked harder than you.
The gap between them only widened over time unless Dark Demon hit a bottleneck and occasionally took a moment to enjoy the scenery.
Even those watching from the sidelines had the energy to gossip, but Justin Wayne felt immense pressure as he stepped onto the Competitors’ Platform steps.
His forehead started to sweat due to the sudden warmth, and his right hand involuntarily clenched into a fist, revealing rare signs of nervousness.
As a typical “Knight Personality,” he was usually brave and gentle, confident yet unassuming. Even in his debut match during the Novice Tournament, he performed impressively.
Afterwards, whenever Dark stopped paying attention to duels due to ample credits, Justin Wayne often participated, accumulating experience and credits to steadily improve himself.
Against Second-Year duelists, his win rate gradually increased.
Yet, the more he improved, the more he understood the terrifying feat of Dark Demon winning the Easter Duel Festival from First to Third Year.
Thus, his current inner pressure was unimaginable to others.
Nevertheless, the steps leading up to the platform were short, and he had to complete them.
By the time he reached the Blue Side Competitors’ Platform, Dark was already waiting on the Red Side.
The two contestants had no prior interactions in the academy. Upon ascending the platform, they simply greeted each other and then retrieved their decks, placing them into the Spellboard slots.
As the Spellboard was reactivated, projections appeared in front of the Competitors’ Platforms.
Dark, having not touched a Spellboard in two months, showed no sign of unfamiliarity.
Ready, he lifted his hand and waited quietly for the whistle to sound.
“Beep—”
Professor Jones blew the whistle abruptly, and the atmosphere on the field instantly tensed.
“Standby Phase” [30s]
When the 30-second countdown projection appeared, both contestants drew cards simultaneously.
Whether it was out of contempt or fear, once the duel began, these external factors became insignificant.
True duelists focused solely on their opponents.
“Duel begins!”
Dark drew his cards instantly.
Five Magic Guidance Cards were in his hand immediately.
Then he flipped his hand, spreading the cards like a fan.
The five Magic Guidance Cards came into view, and his brain activated, rapidly considering possible tactics and strategies.
A smile appeared on his face.
[Bliss III Moon]
[Magic Beast: Ibut]
[Mana Nightmare Demon]
[Vampire Noble]
The simultaneous acquisition of two “Bliss III Moon” cards made everything simple.
In the Novice Tournament where the deck size could range from 20 to 40 cards, Dark held no useless cards. No matter how he started, he would be fine.
Especially with the addition of “Vampire Noble,” “Soul of the Moon Goddess I,” and “Primordial Dragon Egg,” his deck activation became easier.
With this starting hand of five cards, if he wanted to, he could start with “Mana Nightmare Demon,” trigger “Vampire Secret Ritual,” and summon “Vampire Noble,” overwhelming his opponent with the power of a Seven-star Magic Guidance Card.
But he didn’t plan to do that.
“Tick!”
As the 30-second countdown ended, the round switched.
…
“Battle Phase” [30s]
…
When Dark summoned, it was clear that Justin Wayne’s expression eased slightly.
But that wouldn’t affect him.
“Decided, it’s you, ‘Mana Nightmare Demon’!”
Depending on the difference in summoning speed, Dark completed his summon before Justin Wayne finished his regular summon.
The Mana Nightmare Demon quickly emerged from the card and flew straight towards the Blue Side’s zone.
When Justin Wayne finally completed his regular summon, Dark began his second regular summon.
But the Three-star Mana Spirit summoned by Justin Wayne managed to block the Mana Nightmare Demon before it reached the Blue Side’s summon zone.
It was a bald knight riding a pink giant pig, wearing armor with a heart-shaped opening on his chest—”Love Knight”!
Despite its slightly flawed appearance, Love Knight was incredibly powerful. In terms of stats, it was among the top in the Three-star Mana Spirit category, and its ultimate skill “Love Rescue” was a healing miracle that had special effects on its mount.
However, the gap in class was hard to bridge.
When Love Knight, under Justin Wayne’s command, raised its spear and released another ultimate skill, “Love Beam,” a stronger pink beam illuminated the Mana Nightmare Demon.
The Mana Nightmare Demon, making a ghostly face, instantly evolved under the effect of “Bliss III Moon”!
The “Mana Nightmare Demon,” resembling a witch, quickly formed in the evolution light and ruthlessly shattered the heart-shaped beam, lunging towards “Love Knight.”
Fear descended.
