193 UNI RANKING DUEL
Damen stopped and looked at him….then smiled.
"Pest, like you…" he said coldly. "You have no right to test me."
Gasps rippled across the courtyard.
"Did he just call Professor Liric a pest?"
"Arrogant bastard…he hasn't even been here a year! no he was never even here."
"Does he think he owns this prestigious institution?"
Liric's face turned red. "This is preposterous!" he shouted.
Before anyone could react, Damen moved.
In an instant he was in front of the professor, his hand clamped around Liric's neck. Then he rose, lifting the man with him—floating higher and higher until both were above the crowd.
The students craned their necks in awe.
"He's flying!" someone gasped.
"How is that possible? That's not possible for a freshman!"
"Even Professor Liric couldn't fly like that."
Damen looked down at the terrified professor dangling in his grip. His voice was calm, almost mocking.
"Like I said," he murmured, "you have no right to test me."
For several long minutes, the entire academy watched as the rebellious student held their most feared professor suspended in the air….an open challenge to the entire alma mater.
"There he goes again," Zairgid muttered, shaking his head.
"What do you mean again?" a nearby student whispered.
Zairgid sighed. "Back in high school, he challenged every student… and beat them all. Most ended up in the hospital afterward."
The students' eyes widened. "Then what's going to happen to Professor Liric?"
"Well…" Zairgid smirked faintly. "Unless your classes are held in the hospital wing, I doubt he'll be teaching you in Year Two."
Gasps rippled through the crowd as a figure shot into the air…Dean Aelion himself, his coat flaring in the wind. A Rank BB meta who had only recently mastered flight, hovered with calm authority.
"Student Damen Dark," he said firmly, though with a note of respect. "Release the professor please."
"He stopped me from orientation for no reason," Damen replied.
"Liric," Aelion said, turning to the gasping professor, "I already sent you Damen's records and his exemption from Year 1's final exam. He's cleared to start from Year Two."
"That is improper!" Liric protested, his voice hoarse. "If anyone can skip an entire year, the quality of our education will collapse!"
"This was approved by the Board," Aelion said patiently. "Let him through."
Liric shook his head stubbornly. "No. The rich and powerful cannot keep bypassing the rules. That's not how education should work!"
For the first time, Damen's expression softened.
He almost smiled.
Despite the scene, he found himself respecting the man's conviction. Professor Liric was defending the integrity of education, believing that backdoor exemptions usually from the rich and powerful would destroy that integrity.
"You're weak," Damen said, lowering Liric slightly, "but you have a point. What do you want to test me on?"
Liric steadied himself, coughing. "At minimum, a first-year student must reach Rank D in meta strength and display a meta skill of at least Rank E in intensity."
Damen blinked. "That's your test?"
Before anyone could react, he raised a hand and snapped his fingers.
A blinding bolt of lightning tore through the air, obliterating the entire orientation stage in an explosion of thunder and light. The crowd fell silent with dozens of students shielding their eyes from the smoking ruins.
"Is that power enough?" Damen asked, his tone calm, almost bored.
Dean Aelion's mouth twitched. "That… that meta skill easily registers at Rank C intensity….or higher," he admitted, still stunned.
"Then do you still need me to feed the bloody machine?" Damen asked, his eyes narrowing.
Aelion shook his head quickly. "No…that won't be necessary. You can't cast a Rank C skill without a Rank C meta core, and you can…erm… fly."
Satisfied, Damen descended, setting Professor Liric back on the ground. The man collapsed to his knees, coughing hard.
Zairgid hurried over. "You didn't put him in the hospital this time, buddy. You've learned restraint….good on you."
A few nearby students overheard and froze.
"Wait…what does he mean this time?" one whispered, eyes wide.
"How many people did he injure already?"
Another swallowed hard. "Who the hell is this Damen Dark?"
-----
"Liric, I heard you were humiliated by a new student?" Professor Keris chuckled, swirling the tea in his cup. A few other instructors gathered around, eager to gossip.
Not everyone had attended the Year Two orientation earlier.
Liric said nothing. He simply stared at the ground.
When the others pressed him, he replied quietly, "He was tested… and he passed."
Keris leaned back with a grin. "I heard he unleashed a Rank C meta skill in front of the entire school. That's already close to our graduation benchmark. Honestly, he's probably stronger than you."
Some of the professors laughed under their breath.
Liric's jaw tightened. "We are teachers, not competitors," he said firmly. "It's our duty to help the students grow. Whether they surpass us or not doesn't matter."
He spoke with conviction, but his words felt hollow even to him.
Liric was only a Rank C meta himself…. strong enough for theory classes, but nowhere near the battlefield-level strength that students like Damen already wielded.
The humiliation still burned in his chest.
Keris leaned closer, his voice low and conspiratorial. "There are plenty of geniuses in this academy, Liric. Hidden talents everywhere. But that doesn't give any of them the right to be arrogant."
Liric's gaze flickered toward him. "And what exactly are you suggesting?"
Keris smirked. "You know about the university's Student Rankings, right? The list that determines sponsorships, privileges, access to research labs…all the perks worth fighting for."
"Of course," Liric said cautiously. "What does that have to do with… teaching him a lesson?"
"Well," Keris said, his tone oily, "this Damen Dark just displayed a Rank C meta skill. That's enough to justify placing his name near the top of the rankings. Officially, it would be fair recognition."
Liric frowned. "But doing so will make him a target. Every ambitious student will challenge him for the position."
"Exactly." Keris's smile widened. "He'll be swarmed with duels. The arrogant ones always need a little… humbling. Think of it as education."
Liric hesitated.
The idea felt wrong…but at the same time, a part of him couldn't forget the laughter of the students, the sting of being lifted into the air helplessly in front of the entire academy.
Keris leaned in again. "You don't want that boy turning into a tyrant in the future, do you? Better to teach him humility now than let him dominate the weak later."
Liric finally nodded, his eyes dim with resignation. "I understand."
"Good," Keris said, smiling as he patted Liric's shoulder. "Then let the ranking war begin."
------
Damen returned to his old apartment for the first time in a year. He expected dust, maybe silence… but what he found instead made his blood boil.
The place was crowded.
Students lounged everywhere… his couch, at his desk, even in his bed. Loud music blared from the speakers, and the air reeked of synthetic smoke and spilled gene stimulants.
"Who the hell are you people?" Damen barked.
A bleary-eyed boy looked up, unimpressed. "Who the hell are you? This is our common room. Get lost."
Damen didn't bother replying.
He grabbed the boy by the collar, dragged him through the corridor, and hurled him out into the fields below. The others jumped up in panic, but one by one they met the same fate….flung out like trash.
Moments later, Zairgid appeared at the doorway, half out of breath. "What the hell is going on here?"
"My apartment got invaded," Damen said flatly. "I'll need to borrow your nurses to clean this mess up."
Zairgid frowned. "No way. They're preparing the incense bath for me!"
Damen raised his fist, pretending to strike him.
Zairgid backed away, then they both broke into laughter.
Their moment didn't last long.
From down the hall came a loud commotion…shouting and stomping footsteps. A group of students marched toward them, the one in front waving a challenge slip.
"Damen Dark!" the leader yelled. "I challenge you to a University Ranking Duel!"