Ragnar stared steadily at him as he approached, his gaze sweeping over Ryujin from head to toe, searching not for flaws in posture or clothing, but for the crack beneath the surface where truth might reveal itself.Ryujin appeared way too eager as he scrutinized Ragnar. “Can I see?”The question landed too softly to be innocent, too close to be casual. For half a breath, the air between them thinned as though the dining hall itself had fallen silent to listen.Ragnar stepped closer, studying Ryujin's eyes with unnerving intensity, as if a long enough stare could peel away every layer of certainty until the hidden doubt beneath was finally exposed.“Ryujin,” he called, his voice low and measured, edged with something that was neither concern nor accusation. “Are you sick?”Ryujin, who had been watching him just as intently, stiffened. His shoulders jerked back ever so slightly, as though the question had struck somewhere far more vulnerable than expected. “What?”“Why are you saying so

“Ragnar, it's past eight. Why are you still staring at your computer?” Thane shouted from the doorway, his voice cracking through the room like someone trying to pull a drowning man back to the surface.Ragnar looked up only briefly. The glance was distant and distracted, as though his mind had yet to return from whatever world the screen had imprisoned him in. The tournament, together with everything leading up to it, had left him with barely a moment to spare. The pressure rested across his shoulders like a coat he could neither shrug off nor grow accustomed to wearing. Forget stock trading—he hadn't even found the time to reply to the executives at Moonstone Fishing. The mountain of unanswered messages weighed on him more heavily than any responsibility he had carried throughout the week.After collecting the herbs from the suspicious-looking mysterious woman he had contacted online, he had taken a quick look through the company's reports before transferring the expansion funds al

Ragnar looked at the boy again. He was completely unremarkable. Except, perhaps, for the small black mole beneath his right eye.“Let me give you a quick biography. He's Mo Zhixuan, seventeen this year, one of the few people who awakened their martial soul before entering the Inner Court.” Darlene was so excited that Ryujin wondered if she had a crush on him. Her eyes sparkled, her words tumbled out in a rush, and she grinned like a fool as she watched the teams take their battle formations, as though the sight itself was a gift.“Actually, he awakened his martial soul at fifteen,” Nika added as an afterthought. The casual way she said it somehow made it carry even more weight. “A Snow Wolf. Some people say it's because his bloodline is special. His mother is from that place.”Ragnar's thoughts spun rapidly before tightening into a knot.That place? Where? Was it Aretria? After all, Aretria was famous for its advanced magic, using holograms, spatial portals, and powerful artifacts as t

As Ragnar watched the matches, one thing became clear to him, and the clarity settled in his chest like a stone he would not leave. Each group was more formidable than the last, and today's matches were so well arranged that groups that won matches weren't called up for another match till at least forty-five minutes, a pacing that let bruises cool and minds sharpen instead of burning everyone out in a single hour. His eyes drifted to the board, and the board felt like a map of who was still standing, superior to everyone else. There were seven groups in total still standing in division B, and the number was smaller than it looked when each name carried weight. Thankfully, Mo Zhixuan's group hadn't been called up again, and the absence of his name on the rotation felt like a mercy no one wanted to question. The moderators seemed to be saving him for the division B finale. If it was another group that was kept on reserve after fighting just one battle, others might have protested or r

The whistle went off, its shrill cry slicing through the charged silence and signalling the beginning of the battle.For a heartbeat, neither side moved.Both groups had their eyes fixed on each other, unblinking and intensely focused, as though even the slightest twitch would expose an opening. The air itself seemed to tighten, invisible tension stretching across the platform until it felt ready to snap.For this battle, Thane was acting as Group Sixty-Four's vanguard, standing directly opposite Mo Zhixuan.The pressure settled upon his chest like a mountain, carrying the crushing weight of the expectations of their entire four-man team. It wasn't merely the burden of leading the charge. Their hopes, their trust, their determination—it all rested squarely on his shoulders.The responsibility was crushing.Yet beneath that unbearable weight, his heart burned hotter than ever.He had to win.Otherwise, he would be back under his big brother's thumb, where even breathing had once seemed