Ascension of the last Celestial

Inside a large room were dozens of medical beds; the bed sheets were pristine white, like they had never been used before. But these beds were all empty except two.

In one lay a silver-haired elf; her crimson-magenta eyes were locked on the ceiling as she thought about her fight with Arthur.

’I could have won...’

Every moment that happened, every blow they traded, all of it was replaying inside her head, reminding her of her mistakes.

She shifted in her bed, her silver hair flowing behind her like spilled moonlight. A frown took over her beautiful face.

And between all the memories of the fight was also the face of someone she spotted before the fight.

’To think I would lose when we meet again... so uncool.’

During the two months after she and Valerian met, she thought about him. And the conclusion she came to was that she acted way too clingy when they first met.

Well, it wasn’t just her fault; Valerian, too, acted way too comfortable with her, considering the time they actually knew each other.

And what happened during the dance didn’t help the weirdness of her feelings.

She knew that he would attend the academy at the same time as her, and she made a plan that when they met again, she would build a bit of distance between them.

But it wasn’t in her plan that she would lose in front of him. And for some reason, it didn’t sit right with her.

She shifted in her bed again, unable to find a comfortable place to lie. Her wounds were pretty much healed after the barrier pumped her with life mana.

But she still chose to stay here in the medical area; she didn’t want to leave yet. She didn’t want to go out and be faced by the people that just watched her lose, and she didn’t want to see Valerian, not while her emotions were so strange.

A few beds away from Seraphine was another contestant, but this one was still in the process of getting healed.

He didn’t have any major injuries, just some cuts and bruises. But what hurt the most right now weren’t his physical injuries.

Lucian looked absently into the air; his eyes were unfocused.

He lost.

And he didn’t just lose; he was completely overpowered, and not just overpowered. He lost completely to his own element.

He was hailed as a prodigy back in the Frost dukedom. He was the heir to the cold flame, the most talented being his family has ever given birth to. He reached the peak of B+ at 16, and now even A- at 16.

But he still lost to the oppressive ice of [Absolute Zero]. And even beyond the elemental affinity, he was outmatched in nearly every other department as well. The only thing he was better at than Valerian was his skill with his weapon.

But the difference in skill was completely overshadowed by the difference in mana.

’I should have known he wasn’t just a mage.’

His original assumption that Valerian was just a mage that throws magic from the back was proven wrong, as even in physical abilities, he was way behind him.

It left a deep mark on his pride. But he didn’t break. He didn’t bend his knees in front of overwhelming might; he stood his ground and lost.

He should be proud of himself; he was an exceptional young man. He wasn’t just talented in magic; he was a hard worker who spent nights staying up and practicing his spear. He spent hours in the library of his family to gather knowledge he might need in the future.

He had the respect of everyone back in the Frost duchy, not because he was the heir and they were supposed to respect him, but because he worked for it.

’So why...’

’Why did I lose...?’

He couldn’t hold it anymore, and tears streamed down the side of his face. He moved his forearm to block his eyes, but no matter how hard he tried, the tears wouldn’t stop.

"I’m a fucking failure..."

He quietly whispered to no one in particular, just wanting to say something to not drown the medical area in his pathetic sobbing.

A few beds to his side, he heard the bedsheets rustle.

The sudden sound made him realize that there was still someone here. And he quickly wiped away all the tears and turned away from the direction the sound came from.

He didn’t want someone else to see him in such a pathetic state; even breaking down in tears, he had the pride a noble of his status has to not cry in front of strangers.

The curtains that separated the beds swung open. Lucian couldn’t see who it was, as he had his back turned, and to be honest, he didn’t want to know.

"You."

A melodic yet cold, young female voice echoed through the silent medical area. And Lucian’s heart began to beat fast.

’Just go, please. Just leave.’

Seeing as he wouldn’t answer, the female voice called out again.

"Don’t pretend to sleep. I heard you cry."

’Fuck, fuck, fuck.’

Lucian began to sweat, but he still didn’t turn around.

Seeing his unwillingness to turn to her, Seraphine got mildly annoyed with him. With a pulse of mana, hands made from darkness emerged from the ground.

The hands moved around the medical bed, and with no regard for the person lying on it, she flipped it upside down, keeping the bed hovering in the air.

Lucian was thrown out and landed on the hard floor.

"Ow. What the fuck!"

The embarrassment from earlier was completely thrown out the window as he looked at the person that just threw him out of his bed. And the person he saw completely took his breath away.

The long silver hair that had a faint shimmer to it, the intense crimson-magenta eyes that bore into him, the intensity made it impossible to hold eye contact with her for long. Her long elven ears clearly showed her race with pride.

Her slender and lithe figure, which was surprisingly developed for her age, even in her torn and burned combat outfit, was more beautiful than any noble he had ever seen.

But even though her appearance was beyond any beauty he knew, the coldness in her eyes removed any kind of attraction he had for her.

"You. Will you answer now?"

The cold and menacing edge in her voice was unmistakable; she wasn’t interested in him directly, but rather something else.

"Ye- yes."

In a small voice that was completely unfitting for a noble like him, he answered Seraphine.

"You fought him, right?"

"Huh?"

He was confused for a moment at the sudden question. But after thinking for a second, he realized who she was talking about.

"You mean this Valerian, right? Yes, I fought him."

Her cold eyes lit up for a moment, but it was replaced by the same coldness before Lucian was sure it was even there in the first place.

"And you lost."

Lucian’s face turned into a frown.

’Did she just want to rub it under my nose?’

"How strong is he?"

Her question had a weird amount of earnestness in it, and Lucian could clearly see that the question meant a lot to her. And so he didn’t want to lie and just said the truth.

"He is... stronger than anyone our age should be. His mana reserves are larger than even the ones of some of the elders in my family. And the strength behind every attack was simply absurd. Whenever our spells clashed, I could feel it: he was holding back, and still he completely overpowered me. Even physically he’s better than me; I didn’t even manage to touch his skin..."

Lucian put his knees to his chest; saying to someone how outclassed he was hurt even more than just thinking it.

But Seraphine ignored Lucian, who was still on the ground. Her mind was completely occupied by what he had just said.

’I knew it, his mana felt different from the last time. And did he get better-looking...?’

Seraphine slapped her cheeks with both her palms.

’Focus! The mana is more important right now.’

As her head was already filling with theories about the change in Valerian and her obsession with magic took hold of her, she walked out of the infirmary to the stadium.

On her way out, she snapped her fingers, and the bed that was hovering above the cowering Lucian was placed to the side, and the darkness hands disappeared.

"Huh?"

He didn’t even notice when she left, but she must have gotten what she wanted, leaving him now alone.

’I’m really pathetic, aren’t I?’

He stood up from the ground; his physical wounds were fully healed, and even his mana was restored. But the injury to his pride that he had gotten would still take some time to heal, but maybe in the future, he can look back on the fight and thank Valerian for opening his eyes to his weakness.

But for now, he didn’t want to see Valerian’s face, and so he moved out of the stadium, having no interest in watching the finale.

Speaking of the finale, it was finally time to find out who the apex of the first year of the Starlight Academy is.

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