The Anomaly Beyond The System

"Let’s leave that aside for now," Cedric said, seeing the thoughtful yet tense expression on Lucian’s face.

He didn’t ask anything, feeling it was something personal and not something he should interfere with. So, without prying any further, he shifted his gaze toward the two newcomers who had been waiting nearby.

A man and a woman stood a short distance away, both wearing the Association’s guard uniforms.

They had arrived around the same time Leonardo’s blade had struck Lucian’s glasses and had caught that faint glimpse before the fight ended, finishing in an unspoken draw.

None of them spoke about it, even though they clearly had many questions about why the Assistant Director had been fighting someone...

Someone who, from their perspective, didn’t even seem particularly powerful.

Yet...

They could see the way the Director spoke to Lucian, which almost sounded respectful now for some unknown reason.

Cedric gestured toward the two guards.

"They are Axel and Ava, the temporary Association guards... with both of them currently being E rank."

"Sir!"

"Sir...!"

The two immediately straightened before giving a slight bow of respect.

Lucian and Seraphina turned toward them.

Seraphina merely nodded slightly in response, her expression hidden beneath her mask.

Lucian, however...

"Why are there two of them? And E rank?"

His eyes narrowed.

"M—Selene is only F rank, old man."

Axel and Ava immediately tensed the moment they heard the term old man directed toward the Director, but instead of reacting, Cedric simply spoke in a calm voice.

"It’s just to test her, since there aren’t many F rankers who are trained as well. As for the two of them... one of them was for you to fight with."

He hadn’t previously expected Lucian to drop the bomb and request—more like order—to fight against his grandson, so there were two people standing beside them right now, who were a little confused and, at the same time, surprised by the casual conversation between them.

Lucian frowned, not liking the arrangement despite understanding what he meant.

But then—

"It’s fine," Seraphina—now Selene—spoke quietly, her gaze moving toward the two guards as she felt the faint mana naturally shifting and reacting around both of them.

Lucian’s frown deepened, but Cedric simply shrugged.

"You heard her."

There was something almost pleased in his voice, as if he had finally managed to win against the troublesome lad in some small way.

The corners of his slightly wrinkled lips curled into a faint yet seemingly cocky grin, making Lucian click his tongue.

Lucian silently looked at the two people for another moment, and after briefly seeing their status windows, he gave a small nod.

They weren’t that strong, but still...

"Best of luck," he whispered gently, his voice calm yet clearly carrying a hint of concern.

Selene silently nodded, a faint smile appearing behind her mask as she watched her son being so protective of her.

...

"I’m repeating this again, but this is just a spar, a combat examination to test your strength. So don’t seriously injure your opponent."

Cedric’s loud voice echoed throughout the training hall once again, his attention shifting between the two women standing in the centre of the training ground.

Axel stood off to the side, a short distance away from Leonardo and Lucian, seemingly keeping his distance out of respect...

Or perhaps fear—for Leonardo, the Assistant Director.

Selene and Ava nodded while standing opposite each other, both of them firmly tightening their grips around the twin daggers in their hands as they prepared themselves.

Cedric had deliberately chosen Ava for this fight because she used the same type of weapon as Selene, making the examination somewhat more suitable.

But there was something else that had been bothering everyone’s mind.

Well...

Except Lucian, of course.

’Can she even see properly with that mask on her face?’

Cedric’s eyes narrowed slightly before widening as realisation finally dawned on him.

’An artifact... how did I not realise it?’

Of course. How could he have missed something so obvious?

There was no way a person could properly see through a completely flat mask without any visible eye gaps unless they possessed some special unique ability...

Or unless it was an artifact.

Cedric’s expression became complicated.

’They already have artifacts.’

By now, he didn’t even know if he should still be surprised, since the young man already seemed to be related to that mysterious golden-eyed woman.

Compared to that, a magical see-through mask wasn’t exactly shocking anymore.

"This isn’t going to last even a minute," Axel muttered from nearby, his voice low as he almost let out a faint chuckle.

"Axel—"

Cedric was about to say something, but he didn’t even get the chance.

"Fucker, did anyone ask for your opinion?"

Lucian’s voice cut through before Cedric could finish, irritation flickering within his tone as his crimson-red eyes glowed faintly behind his glasses.

Axel’s expression faltered.

But seeing the Director not even saying anything, he merely gritted his teeth before lowering his head.

Ava, standing a short distance away, glanced toward Lucian.

And as she looked at him more properly...

A small flicker of interest and curiosity, along with something unknown, passed through her eyes.

The man really didn’t seem to care about other people’s opinions, and neither the Director nor his Assistant appeared willing to say anything to him.

’Are they... afraid of him?’ she thought, feeling a strange mixture of disbelief and amusement.

Her gaze then shifted towards Selene.

The woman hadn’t moved an inch from her position, nor had she reacted in the slightest to their banter, as if everything happening around her had simply passed over her ears—even though that clearly wasn’t the case.

She simply stood there, both daggers held firmly in her hands, her masked face directed towards Ava.

Ava glanced towards Lucian, and a thought suddenly crossed her mind.

’If I defeat her... will he take an interest in me?’

Her gaze lingered on the young man for a brief moment, taking in his unnaturally handsome features, his calm expression, and the dark sunglasses covering his eyes.

There was something captivating about him.

Something about his demeanour that naturally drew her attention.

But then, she realised something.

He wasn’t even looking at her.

His entire focus was completely on the masked woman standing a few metres before her.

Ava’s lips pressed together sli—

"Start...!"

Cedric’s loud voice echoed throughout the hall, snapping Ava’s attention back towards her opponent.

But the instant she turned back—

Whoosh.

"!!!"

Her eyes widened.

Her mind went blank for a brief moment as she saw...

The masked woman was suddenly standing so close that Ava could even see the eerie darkness covering her face.

The dagger in Selene’s hand was already pointed directly at her neck, the blunt end faintly touching against her skin.

"The... match is over. Winner... Selene Frost!"

Cedric’s voice came again, though the disbelief in his tone was completely obvious, as if even he couldn’t understand what had just happened.

Selene slowly lowered her dagger before taking a few steps backwards, slightly tilting her head...

In confusion?

"W-What...?"

Ava stumbled backwards, her frozen expression slowly turning into confusion for a moment before the reality of the situation finally settled into her mind.

She had lost.

She had lost instantly, without even getting the chance to raise her hand.

Her face slowly paled.

Meanwhile, Axel and Leonardo had also gone completely silent. Their eyes were widened as well, clearly caught off guard by the result.

As for Lucian... his brows rose, genuinely surprised by his mother’s speed. But after a second, a wide smile appeared on his face as his lips slowly parted.

"It seems someone was right... the fight didn’t even last for a minute."

Axel stiffened. His face immediately darkened as he glared at Lucian, but before he could come up with a response—

"Pft—!"

Leonardo immediately covered his mouth, his shoulders trembling slightly as he struggled to suppress his laughter.

Lucian was right.

The match hadn’t lasted even a whole minute. Not even close... just like Axel had said.

Cedric glanced toward them but didn’t say anything, though he was a little amused by his grandson’s reaction.

"Wait—!"

A sharp voice suddenly cut through the training hall, prompting everyone to turn toward Ava, whose expression flickered between shock and disbelief, with something close to dread slowly appearing in her eyes.

"Sir!"

She looked toward Cedric.

"There’s no way I lost this easily?!"

"Hm?"

Cedric frowned, his expression immediately becoming more serious.

"What do you mean by that?"

Hearing the heavy sharpness in his voice, Ava stumbled over her words.

"Th–This woman... are... are we sure that she is an F rank, sir? S–She must be cheatin—"

"Ava. You were distracted, and I saw the match with my own eyes."

The Director’s voice cut through, stopping her immediately.

"Are you... doubting me?"

The atmosphere around them seemed to grow heavier, making Ava immediately shut her mouth as she slightly lowered her head.

Her gaze flickered toward the masked woman, who hadn’t reacted even after winning the match, almost as if... the result meant nothing to her.

Ava’s teeth ground against each other.

That only made the humiliation worse.

"C-Can we have a r-rematch?"

Her words trembled, coming out almost as a whisper.

Cedric’s frown deepened, and even Leonardo’s brows furrowed.

Cedric let out a deep breath—

"Sir!"

Her voice grew more desperate.

"I’ll show my strength! Please let me have a rematch with her, just one more time!"

Silence fell across the training hall.

Cedric simply looked at the girl, disappointed that she couldn’t even accept a defeat properly.

Clicking his tongue inwardly, he opened his mouth, intending to refuse.

He wanted to send this girl back and end the examination.

But before he could speak—

"...Fine."

A cold, quiet voice echoed through the silence as Selene spoke, her gaze shifting toward Ava.

Ava’s brows furrowed slightly, and seeing her reaction, Selene repeated herself.

"Let’s have a rematch," she said calmly.

"I’m not satisfied with the results."

Selene then turned toward Cedric, giving him a faint nod.

In reply... the old man let out a tired sigh before shaking his head. He briefly glanced toward Lucian... who simply gave a small, agreeing nod.

"Fine, we’ll have a rematch, but... just once."

The Director almost sounded exhausted by now.

His words made Ava immediately nod, but even as she prepared herself, Selene’s words continued to bother her.

What did the woman mean by not being satisfied with the results?

Was she... insulting her?

Her brows furrowed, but seeing Selene walking back toward her original position and creating a distance between them, Ava immediately snapped back to focus.

Her fingers tightened around her daggers as she lowered herself into a stance.

Selene’s gaze briefly shifted toward Lucian, wondering what he was thinking about... especially regarding her actions and the rematch.

But when she looked at him... the only thing she could see was a genuine smile on his face.

She tilted her head slightly, a little confused by his reaction.

But after a moment, she stopped thinking about it, returning to her position and turning back toward her opponent, her fingers firmly tightening around the hilts of her daggers.

Her relaxed expression instantly disappeared, turning indifferent, calm, and cold. Her entire attention was now focused on the opponent standing before her.

A few seconds passed in silence, and neither of the women moved, as if deliberately building anticipation before finally—

"START!"

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