The air in the courtyard was heavy with silence after the duel. The ground bore the scars of the intense combat—cracked stones, scorch marks, droplets of blood. Canon and Dante were seated opposite one another, bruised, scratched, breathing heavily but still glaring as if the fight hadn't really ended.
Then came the unexpected.
Samuel reached into his coat and pulled out a small vial. He opened it, and with a soft plop, a round, semi-transparent creature slid out and bounced lightly on the ground. A soft green glow pulsed from within its gelatinous body.
"A slime?" asked the dojo's nurse, approaching in surprise. "But… that's a healing slime?"
Samuel gave a slight nod and whistled. A second one slipped from another vial and bounced over to Dante.
"They're fast, clean, and effective," Samuel said.
The nurse blinked, watching as the slimes gently clung to the wounds of both fighters, pulsating as their magic seeped in. Bruises faded. Small cuts closed. Even Dante's swollen ankle began to ease.
"Incredible… They're more efficient than our salves."
Meanwhile, the atmosphere between the fighters didn't soften.
Canon gave Dante a dark look. "Try not to melt from your own sweat, twig."
Dante smirked, not even wincing as the slime patched up a gash on his arm. "You swing like a drunken ox. I've seen barrels fall faster."
"You want another round, brindille?"
"Tempting. But I don't hit headless meat twice."
"Keep talking and I'll shove that katana in your ass."
Samuel ignored them. He had already pulled Kai aside, speaking in a low tone near one of the wooden pillars of the courtyard.
"You did what I asked?" he asked calmly.
Kai nodded, glancing briefly at the others before answering:
"Dante Menendes. Level 24. Passive skill: fire resistance. Active skills: Awakened Speed, Twin Edge, Ice Lance, and one rare skill—Flash Slide. Mana level: 3107."
Samuel raised an eyebrow. "Flash Slide… sounds like an advanced form of Awakened Speed, based on how fast he moved after activating it."
He folded his arms, thinking.
"And the old man?"
Kai's tone shifted slightly. "Kazan Lioren. Level 71. He's got around thirty skills in total… Sorry, I couldn't remember all their names."
Samuel frowned. "What? Thirty? But… you only gain one skill every five levels. At his level, 71, he should have—what, fourteen max?"
Kai shrugged. "I guess once you hit a certain threshold, the conditions for acquiring skills change. Or maybe he has a special class. I'm not sure."
Samuel narrowed his eyes, looking across the courtyard at Kazan, who stood quietly with his back turned, arms behind his back.
"And his mana?"
"23 101"
Samuel didn't respond right away.
He stared at Kazan with something between awe and calculation.
This man… is the strongest being I've met so far.