"Hee, that's an interesting contract. I mean, an interesting promise," Knox said while crossing his arms, his tone sounding light as if he was only making a casual remark.
However, in his mind, he had already reached a clear conclusion.
This baldie would break it.
Bred ignored Knox and kept his gaze fixed on Simon, his expression tense and filled with irritation.
With a heavy stomp on the ground, Bred suddenly charged forward.
Simon watched him closely, his eyes wide open as he tried to read the incoming attack.
Bred's movement was unusual. Despite his large build, his body twisted from side to side as he approached, creating a rhythm that was difficult to predict and carried an overwhelming sense of pressure.
"Right hand straight," Simon muttered as he tried to anticipate the attack.
Just as his body began to react, Bred's arm had already cut through the air and appeared right in front of him.
Crack!
A heavy impact landed as the force slammed into the protective barrier and carried through to Simon's face at the same time.
Even as he took the hit, Simon clenched his right fist and struck back.
But Bred had already ducked and shifted to Simon's left.
Smack!
Then he moved to the right again.
Bam!
Then back to the left.
"Urgh!"
Simon staggered, his body struggling to keep up with the relentless assault.
If not for the protective suit, those blows could have knocked him out or even killed him.
"Hahaha! What are you doing?" Bred laughed mockingly.
Simon wiped the corner of his mouth and forced himself to track Bred's movements.
Is this bastard seriously trying to beat me? he thought.
From Bred's side, even he found this situation ridiculous.
No matter how anyone looked at it, this was a fifth-year assistant instructor pummeling a first-year student.
Anyone hearing about it would blame him, calling it bullying or saying he was venting his frustration.
Even he understood that.
But even so.
"If I don't do this, I can't calm down!"
Crack!
A solid punch slammed into Simon's abdomen.
Simon's body bent forward from the impact, and immediately after, Bred's elbow came down and struck the back of Simon's head, sending him crashing to the ground.
"This brat is going to become Professor Hong Feng's direct disciple. All the more reason to fix that attitude right now," Bred thought.
Just as Bred lifted his leg to stomp down.
Thwack!
Simon suddenly grabbed Bred's ankle and twisted it.
"What!" Bred's eyes widened.
At the same time, Simon's legs wrapped around Bred's leg, applying force and disrupting his balance.
Bred staggered and turned his back unintentionally.
"A joint lock?" Bred realized.
In that moment, a skeleton emerged from Simon's subspace and hurled a spear toward him.
"Well, look at this," Bred muttered.
Even in that unstable position, Bred gathered Darkness in his palm and detonated it.
A violent burst of pressure exploded outward, blasting away the spear and the skeleton at the same time.
Simon released his hold and slipped away in the opposite direction, creating distance.
"Impressive. Were you a fighter before coming to Kizen?" Bred asked.
Simon raised both fists, his stance steady.
"I just trained under my father, the lord."
"You expect me to believe that?" Bred replied sharply.
He charged again.
Simon summoned two skeletons to his sides and lowered his stance.
"No need to overthink this. If I land just one hit, I win," Simon thought.
As Bred rushed forward, Simon also stepped forward to meet him.
The distance between them closed rapidly.
Simon reached out.
"...!"
Bred suddenly dropped his body low.
Simon's attack cut through empty air, and in the next moment, he felt a strong grip wrap around his waist.
"Like I didn't know what you were trying to do," Bred said.
In one smooth motion, Bred lifted and arched his body, executing a perfect throw.
Simon's head and neck slammed into the ground with a heavy impact, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Bred released him and stood up. But before he could fully reset his stance.
A leg shot out from the dust.
It struck Bred's arm.
"A kick while getting up? Doesn't this bastard feel any pain?" Bred thought.
That first kick was a feint.
Bred quickly raised his other arm to guard.
Thud!
Simon's opposite leg crashed in with force, followed immediately by a rapid sequence of kicks.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
The continuous strikes forced Bred to lean back and retreat slightly as he avoided them.
Bred's lips curled.
"Not bad. Seriously, where did this guy come from?" he muttered.
It was embarrassing.
His blood was boiling against a mere freshman.
He had thought Simon was just another academic student without real combat ability, but now he was beginning to understand why Professor Hong Feng paid so much attention to him.
This guy has the physique and instincts. But his posture is unstable, and his power doesn't transfer properly. He hasn't received proper systematic training, Bred analyzed.
The same must have gone for Professor Hong Feng.
"With a talent like this, it would be impossible not to want to teach him," he thought.
Crack!
Bred suddenly turned.
Two trees were falling toward him in a crossing angle.
Simon's skeletons had chopped them down.
"When did he summon more skeletons?" Bred realized.
Even in the middle of combat, Simon had the composure to manage multiple actions at once.
While stepping back and avoiding Simon's attacks, Bred wrapped Darkness around both of his fists.
Sharp, blade-like energy extended from his hands and sliced through the falling trees cleanly.
The two halves crashed to the ground as Bred adjusted his stance again.
"Hup!"
Simon charged once more.
"Time to end this," Bred thought.
As Bred twisted his body to deliver a powerful punch, Simon suddenly clenched his teeth and thrust his head forward.
Bred's eyes widened.
"Is this bastard trying to kill himself?"
"Bone Nail."
Simon flicked his finger upward.
A sharp sensation spread.
Bred's eyes snapped behind him.
Bone fragments embedded in the tree shot forward and slashed into his thigh.
Blood flowed immediately.
"What the, why is this hitting me from there?" Bred thought.
Then he realized.
"He set this up from the beginning."
Before he could fully process it, a dangerous presence came from above.
Simon's leg descended in a powerful arc.
Bred raised his arms to block.
Crack!
"Gah!"
The impact landed.
Bred staggered back as blood flowed from his nose.
Simon landed and looked at him.
"No more excuses, right? I win."
A snapping sound echoed inside Bred's mind.
His last thread of patience broke.
"Hah... hahaha... hahahahaha!"
A massive wave of jet-black (darkness) erupted from his body.
The energy surged and wrapped around him, forming a black armor that covered him completely.
"I admit it. I lost, and the deal stands. I'll accept whatever decision you make," Bred said through gritted teeth.
"But before I leave Kizen."
He clenched his fists tightly.
"I feel like I'll regret it for the rest of my life if I don't crush you right here and now!"
"...."
Simon let out a long sigh, his shoulders slightly dropping as if he had already lost interest.
"Isn't this going against our agreement? Just how low are you planning to go?"
"Say whatever you want, I don't care!"
"Alright, then do as you please."
Simon let his arms hang loosely at his sides, completely dropping his stance.
Seeing that, Bred's brow twitched.
"What are you doing?! Get into stance, now!"
"My patience has reached its limit entertaining you. I'll do as I please now too. If you're going to act like this, then just beat me down already."
"You little bastard...!"
Bred's killing intent rose sharply.
Just as he stepped forward and reached out to grab Simon by the collar—
Someone stopped him.
"Urghh!"
Bred's voice broke out in pain.
His hand had been grabbed.
No.
Crushed.
The grip was so tight that it felt like his bones were being ground together.
He slowly turned his head.
It was Knox.
Knox stood there calmly, his hand gripping Bred's wrist without any sign of effort.
"You… are you really ignoring me? Ignoring your promise?" Knox spoke slowly.
"Do you want to die?"
His voice was quiet.
But it felt cold enough to freeze the soul.
For a moment, Bred's breathing stopped.
Knox's crimson eyes were staring straight at him, glowing faintly as if soaked in blood.
At that moment, Bred felt it clearly.
Fear.
And death.
He, an assistant under Professor Hong Feng, was feeling fear toward a student.
"No… this is impossible… hehe… hehehe…" Bred muttered, his voice shaking.
Then suddenly—
"This is impossible!!!"
His shout exploded through the forest.
Right after that, darkness burst out from his body.
Thick, jet black energy spread across his skin, crawling and wrapping around him like living shadows before quickly forming into a solid shape.
It covered his entire body.
A black suit.
A technique used to coat the body in darkness like armor, enhancing the user's physical abilities and durability. Each user had a slightly different form, depending on their nature and control.
Bred's version took shape in a very distinct way.
The black energy clung tightly to his muscular frame, forming a sleek yet oppressive armor that followed every contour of his body. Dark patterns spread across his torso and limbs like flowing veins, twisting and pulsing as if alive.
At the center of his chest, a sharp, glowing red core stood out clearly, beating like a heart and radiating an ominous presence.
Smaller red cracks appeared across parts of his body, giving the impression that something violent was contained beneath the surface.
The armor did not look bulky.
Instead, it emphasized his physique, making him look more like a living weapon than someone wearing protection.
The aura surrounding him grew heavier.
Denser. More dangerous.
Even the air around him felt different.
Bred slowly lifted his head, his expression no longer restrained.
Now—
He looked ready to kill.
Then, before Bred could even make a move to swat Knox's hand away from his grip, his body was suddenly sent flying.
The impact came without warning.
Knox's leg had already moved.
In a swift motion, Knox drove a powerful rider kick straight into Bred's body, launching him away with overwhelming force.
Bred's figure shot backward through the air before crashing violently into a tree, the impact strong enough to crush it on contact.
The tree splintered and collapsed under the force, debris scattering across the ground as Bred's body continued to slide slightly before finally coming to a stop.
Seeing Knox send Bred flying with just a simple kick, everyone there could only stare, their eyes wide and their jaws hanging open.
Their mouths were opened so wide that it would not be surprising if an emergency food named Paimon, or a twin tail white haired elf named Frieren, decided to stick their heads inside just to check whether there was any treasure hidden in there or not.
After sending Bred flying, Knox slowly lowered the leg he had just used to kick, returning to a calm and steady stance as if the previous action meant nothing to him.
Then, in a composed voice, he spoke.
"Those Who Break Their Promises Shall Suffer the Wrath of the Rock."
As those words settled into the air, flames suddenly ignited from both of his hands, not in a chaotic burst, but in a controlled and deliberate motion, rising and wrapping around his hands as if the fire itself had awareness.
The flames did not spread wildly or burn his skin. They stayed around his hands and arms, moving smoothly under his control.
The heat was still there, but it stayed within the flames. Nothing leaked out, making it clear that he was keeping their power in check.
Gradually, the flames began to change.
Their movement slowed, their brightness dimmed, and their form started to condense into something more solid, as the vivid fire transformed into a darker, denser energy that wrapped tightly around his arms.
What had once been flames now hardened, shaping themselves into a pair of gauntlets.
The gauntlets covered his hands and extended up to just below his elbows, forming a structure that fit perfectly along the shape of his arms, as if they had been crafted specifically for him.
The base color was a deep black that seemed to absorb light, giving them a heavy and imposing presence, while along the surface, faint lines of glowing violet flowed like traces of energy, resembling flames that had been frozen mid-motion.
Those violet patterns pulsed slowly, not like ordinary light, but like something alive beneath the surface, quietly circulating power through the gauntlets.
Around the edges, subtle flickers of purple energy appeared and faded, like embers that refused to die, adding a sense of depth and quiet intensity to their presence.
The design followed the natural contours of his arms, avoiding unnecessary bulk while still conveying strength, with the knuckle area reinforced by layered, angular plating that suggested overwhelming striking force.
Even without movement, the gauntlets radiated a restrained pressure, as if a powerful force was sealed within them, waiting for the moment it would be released.
Knox slowly flexed his fingers, and the gauntlets responded immediately, moving as naturally as his own body, without delay or resistance.
Then, from the rubble of the tree where Bred had crashed, a shout suddenly erupted, followed by a violent burst from within the broken wood and scattered debris.
"Bastard! I will kill you!" Bred roared as he forced his way out, fragments of wood and dust scattering around him while his killing intent surged even higher.
However, before Bred could even take a step forward or raise his hand to attack, his eyes caught something that made his entire body tense.
Knox had not moved from his spot, yet his stance had already changed into one that clearly showed he was prepared to strike at any moment, his gauntleted arms slightly lowered while a heavy pressure gathered around him without any unnecessary movement.
There was no visible action, but the intent was already there, fully formed and directed at Bred, making it feel as if the next moment of movement would decide everything.
At that instant, Bred understood it instinctively, as a cold realization crept into his mind that if he tried to move even slightly, he would be struck before he could react.
And in that moment, only one thought surfaced in his mind.
Death.
Knox stood still as dark violet flames flared behind his back, spreading out into a pair of wings that burned quietly with a heavy presence.
Then both of his hands began to move.
His right and left hand moved together in front of his body, tracing a smooth, circular motion as if he was guiding something invisible, the movement controlled and steady like a practiced form rather than something improvised.
The violet flames responded to that motion, flowing along the path of his hands instead of spreading outward, tightening their movement as if being gathered into a single flow.
As the motion continued, the rhythm shifted.
His right hand slowed down and lowered slightly, while his left hand became the focus.
Knox raised his left hand forward and upward in a clean motion, his palm open as if pulling something toward him.
At that exact moment, everything changed.
The light around him was dragged inward, not fading but being pulled directly toward his raised hand, and the surroundings darkened rapidly as if all brightness had been swallowed.
The violet wings behind his back shrank at the same time, collapsing inward and being absorbed into his left hand together with the surrounding light.
Knox then pulled his left hand back.
All the gathered energy followed that motion, compressing tightly into his arm as the dark violet flames condensed without leaking, the pressure building in a controlled way.
His body aligned with that movement, his stance shifting just enough to support what came next.
Then, without hesitation, Knox stepped forward and drove his left fist straight ahead, releasing everything in one clean motion as the condensed violet energy surged out along the path of his punch and slammed toward Bred with overwhelming force.
"Ah...."
In the next moment, a figure appeared right between Bred and Knox's incoming attack, stepping into its path as if intending to block it head on.
The violet surge slammed into that figure.
A massive explosion followed, bursting outward from the point of impact as dust, debris, and violent energy spread in all directions, swallowing both the figure and Bred from sight.