Chapter 96: The Fall of the Capital’s Number One

The Fall of the Capital’s Number One

"We’re probably going to lose."

BOOM!

The two phantoms collided multiple times before finally separating—wind howling in their wake.

The golden and white energies scattered across the battlefield.

The golden Suanni staggered.

The Divine Beast White Tiger remained standing.

On the stage, Selena stood calm and composed.

She shifted slightly—and the residual shockwave of the golden light passed harmlessly by her.

Her snow-white robe fluttered.

Her long silver-white hair swept across her shoulder.

She didn’t even take a step backward.

The golden light, having spent its last ounce of power, dissolved into the air.

Silence descended.

For a moment, the entire arena was completely quiet.

Blood trickled from the corner of Victoria’s mouth.

She looked at Selena in the distance—her eyes filled with bitterness and helplessness.

She had lost.

Not because she had failed to fight.

She had fought with everything she possessed.

She simply couldn’t overcome the overwhelming difference between them.

Her shoulders slowly dropped.

"We surrender!"

Steffan rushed over to support Victoria.

"Victoria, you’re okay?"

Victoria nodded weakly.

Steffan helped her steady herself.

Leon nodded at them.

He didn’t mock them.

He didn’t look down on them.

This was the first team in the ten placement matches that Leon actually acknowledged.

They had genuinely fought.

They had pushed Selena enough to make her enjoy herself.

Of course—Selena had still held back.

Her level was higher.

Her stats far surpassed that SS-rank Golden Eyed Smoke Lioness.

Leon looked toward Selena.

"Well done, dear Selena."

Selena walked back toward him.

"You enjoyed the fight?"

"A little."

She smiled.

"Then I’m glad."

Evelyn approached from the other side.

"Darling Evelyn, what do you think?"

Evelyn looked at the destroyed battlefield.

"I think you two are monsters."

Selena raised an eyebrow.

"You were helping too."

Evelyn smiled.

"Then we’re all monsters."

Leon laughed softly.

"That’s my girls."

The atmosphere between them was relaxed.

But above the arena, the massive display suddenly changed.

The entire venue went silent.

Then a familiar notification appeared.

[ Arena 102 — Aurelia No. 1 High, Martial High (8) Class, Leon — Complete Victory +10 Points! ]

[ Total Score: 100 Points! ]

Leon’s name blazed across the massive screen above.

"100 points?"

"No way—how did he get a perfect score?!"

The shock spread through the spectators like a wave.

People who had been talking moments ago suddenly fell silent.

One hundred.

A perfect score.

The placement match rules meant that even staying on the stage for the full 10 minutes didn’t guarantee a perfect 10 points.

A contestant had to perform exceptionally well to receive the highest possible score.

Steffan had performed well in his first nine matches and lasted the full time—but still didn’t get a perfect 90.

His total was 89.3.

That was already excellent.

Most people would have considered such a result incredible.

But a perfect score required the highest possible standard: single-handedly eliminating everyone else.

It had happened in previous years—but only rarely.

And now someone had done it again.

Not once.

Not twice.

Again and again.

Seeing the massive score above, Steffan drew a sharp breath.

His eyes remained fixed on Leon’s name.

"Nine perfect matches... I don’t feel bad losing to him."

He lowered his gaze toward Leon.

There was disappointment in his eyes.

But there was also respect.

"You’re... really strong."

Leon simply nodded.

Steffan gave a tired smile.

"See you in the Heavenly-tier hunting ground!"

Steffan helped Victoria off the stage—his figure weighed down with defeat.

The capital city’s number one had fallen.

And he had fallen in a straight fight.

The audience erupted.

The capital city’s number one—Steffan—defeated in a straight fight?

"The Suanni is a descendant of dragons—an SS-rank Golden Eyed Smoke Lioness—and it still lost to Leon’s tiger-type beast-girl?!" A spectator stared in disbelief.

"Holy shit—what beast-soul is she? How is she this strong?!"

"Where did Leon even come from? I didn’t pay attention to his earlier matches—was he hiding his strength this whole time?" Another audience member was equally stunned.

"Exactly. I thought he was just an ordinary student, but he’s been getting perfect scores for nine matches straight. His strength is absolutely terrifying! Many of his opponents were top students from their own cities—and they all crumbled before him!"

Another spectator slapped the railing.

"With Leon’s performance so far, he’s even more impressive than the so-called prodigies. This is a true dark horse!"

"Definitely headed to the Heavenly-tier hunting ground, right?"

"Absolutely. Check the placement rankings—his score is definitely in the top ten."

The discussion spread through the venue.

Some people were already checking Leon’s profile.

Others were replaying his previous battles.

And some were simply staring at the screen, trying to understand how someone with a D-rank beast-soul master classification had achieved something so ridiculous.

At Bellemont Martial University.

Rias stared at the screen, utterly dumbfounded.

It took her a long moment to snap out of it.

"Leon... actually defeated Steffan?"

"Victoria’s beast-soul—SS-rank Golden Eyed Smoke Lioness—is practically unbeatable in this year’s exams!"

"Even the other two SS-rank beast-girls in the province couldn’t match her!"

"This... I underestimated him."

Rias slowly leaned back into her chair.

The president of Bellemont Martial University had seen countless talented students.

She had watched geniuses rise.

She had watched others collapse under pressure.

She thought she understood the limits of this year’s examinees.

Apparently, she had been wrong.

Rias—president of Bellemont Martial University—was a woman of breathtaking beauty.

Her long crimson hair flowed over her shoulders like a curtain of red silk.

Her red eyes were clear and sharp, yet there was an unusual warmth in them whenever they rested on something that truly interested her.

She wore a fitted crimson robe wrapped around her narrow waist, secured with a golden sash.

The robe moved naturally around her long legs as she shifted in her seat, revealing only brief glimpses of smooth skin through its elegant slit.

Her porcelain-like skin seemed almost luminous beneath the office lights.

She had an unmistakably mature beauty.

But right now, none of that mattered to her.

Her attention was completely captured by the young man on the screen.

Leon.

Shoulder-length black hair.

Purple eyes.

A handsome face that stood out even among the talented young cultivators gathered for the examination.