The nine captains gazed at Charles, whose arm was raised high, their expressions filled with interest.
Aside from his rather... disastrous performance in the first test, Charles had excelled at every other challenge so far. If nothing unexpected occurred, it was almost certain that all nine captains would raise their hands for him. No one would want to pass up such a rare talent.
So when Charles stepped forward on his own, anticipation surged—what was he planning?
Standing before everyone, Charles said calmly, "Since this is a combat test, I need proper opponents to demonstrate my true abilities. And only opponents close to my level are worthy of being called rivals."
As he spoke, Charles released his magic. Behind him, his aura took shape—a gigantic dragon of flame that roared to the sky, unleashing a wave of scorching heat.
The air itself grew hot under his magic. The other examinees instinctively shielded their faces and backed away several steps just to breathe normally again.
Even the captains on the viewing platform were visibly shaken. The magic Charles had just unleashed was no less powerful than a high-ranking Magic Knight. It was hard to believe this was a mere fifteen-year-old who had only just received his grimoire.
"Can people who can't even stand before me be considered my opponents? What a joke."
Charles's face showed no emotion, but his disdain for the other candidates was crystal clear.
Many of the examinees were considered geniuses in their regions—some even hailed from noble families. Being mocked by a "lowborn" from a fringe village was infuriating.
They had tried to withstand Charles's magic and approach him, but even getting close proved impossible, let alone facing him.
Charles's high-profile display had a simple reason: he was pissed.
What Charles despised most was the rigid classism of this world. Whether it was in Hage Village or the capital, he'd heard the phrase "that's impossible" far too many times.
But that was wrong. Magic was supposed to be something beautiful—something that symbolized freedom. And now, the frustration Charles had bottled up finally exploded.
Sure enough, these people—who did nothing but deny others—weren't ready to face someone like Charles.
Only one person stepped forward—Yuno, surrounded by a swirl of green wind magic. His steps were steady, and he came to a halt right in front of Charles.
Charles's mouth curved into a slight smile. "I knew it. You're not someone to stop here, Yuno."
Yuno's gaze burned with determination. "You stopped sparring with me three years ago. This is a rare chance—let's settle things today."
Before Charles could respond, another voice cut in.
"Hold on—you two better not forget about me!"
Charles turned his head. Asta's grimoire was open, and he had drawn his Demon-Slayer Sword, gripping it tightly.
Veins popped on his forehead, but a wide grin spread across his face. Asta stepped forward to stand beside Yuno, pointing his massive blade at Charles.
Charles laughed heartily and opened his arms. "You two are the best! Come on, then—show me what it means to dream of becoming the Wizard King!"
Yuno and Asta exchanged a glance. Though they often clashed, their mutual understanding was second to none.
They both knew Charles had always been stronger than either of them. Alone, neither had much chance of victory. Only by working together could they force Charles to fight seriously.
So without hesitation, they attacked simultaneously.
A nearby judge was about to speak up—it wasn't exactly within the rules to fight two-on-one—but Yami barked out, "Hey! Don't ruin the fun, bastard! This is getting interesting!"
The judge looked to Vangeance, who calmly nodded. "It's fine. This way, we'll get an even clearer look at the strength of these three youths."
By then, magic had already begun to clash.
"Creation Magic: Gale White Hawk!"
A giant hawk of wind flapped its wings and dove at Charles—fiercer than any real bird of prey, clearly intending to rip its target to shreds.
The watching captains all nodded in approval. To refine wind magic to such a precise and dynamic creation spell—Yuno's talent was undeniable.
"Fire Dragon's Crushing Fang!"
Charles didn't dodge. He charged straight at the wind hawk, his flame-wreathed hands slashing rapidly, tearing the creature to pieces.
No sooner had Charles destroyed the wind hawk than a figure appeared in front of him—Asta, swinging his Demon-Slayer Sword down hard.
"When did he get there?!"
The other examinees hadn't even noticed Asta's movement. Only the captains had followed it.
"Was that acceleration magic?!"
"No—just raw physical strength!"
Even Yami's eyes sharpened as he exhaled a puff of smoke. He hadn't expected the loudmouthed brat to move that fast just from training his body.
Asta's speed was impressive—and more importantly, he had chosen the perfect timing to strike. Charles, having just neutralized Yuno's spell, had no time to dodge and was forced to clash directly.
"Fire Dragon's Claw!"
Flames encircled Charles's foot as he spun and kicked at Asta.
Clang!
The two clashed and were instantly repelled. Charles flipped through the air to absorb the force, while Asta skidded back several steps.
This was Charles's first time fighting Asta since he received the five-leaf clover grimoire. The anti-magic power was absurd.
In that exchange, the flames on Charles's leg had been completely neutralized, leaving his physical body to absorb the force of the blow.
If not for his Dragon Slayer physique, he might've been seriously injured.
But Yuno wasn't just standing there—he wasn't about to waste a perfect opening.
"Wind Magic: Tempest Fangs!"
The air twisted violently, forming jagged vortexes of wind shaped like fangs that launched toward Charles.
More intense flames surged from Charles's arms.
"Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!"
Flames coiled around his arms and burst outward, forming two massive wings of fire. The wings swatted away Yuno's fangs like they were nothing.
Asta, determined not to let up, charged forward again with his sword dragging behind him.
The anti-magic in that blade was troublesome—Charles had realized that much during their earlier clash.
And this was before Asta had fully awakened his anti-magic powers. Right now, all he had was one sword. Against certain types of spells, that was already a huge headache.
"Flames of both arms—merge! Fire Dragon's Radiant Blaze!"
Charles formed a massive fireball between his hands and hurled it straight at Asta.
The Demon-Slayer Sword could negate magic, but even if Asta managed to cleave the fireball in two, the dispersed flames would still hit him.
Asta realized this instantly—but the fireball was already too close for him to think.
Thankfully, Asta's finely trained body reacted on its own.
He twisted the flat of his sword and batted the fireball away—causing a shocked murmur from the crowd.
Charles ducked the returning fireball—but now he was headed straight for Asta, who hadn't recovered yet.
Asta's wide-eyed face screamed "How did I even do that?!"
"Towering Storm!"
Yuno unleashed his strongest spell—a tornado, roaring toward Charles like it was going to tear him apart.
But Charles didn't flinch. He planted his feet and brute-forced his magic, withstanding the storm through sheer power.
His flames flickered, though—nearly extinguished.
"Smart kid…" Charles realized what Yuno had done. He had used wind magic to suck the oxygen from Charles's surroundings—cutting off his flame's fuel source.
"Asta! Snap out of it!" Yuno shouted.
"Shut up! I'm getting serious now!" Asta yelled, slamming his sword into the ground and launching himself forward again.
But as Asta's blade swung down, it suddenly halted mid-air.
Charles had caught it.
His fingers avoided the edge and clamped down on the spine of the massive sword. No matter how much Asta struggled, he couldn't pull it free.
"Your training still isn't enough, Asta. Bite down and take it—Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"
His flaming punch landed squarely on Asta's sword—blasting him backward.
Asta crashed into the ground, smashing the stone floor.
"What a useless fool. That's my so-called rival?" Yuno said coldly.
His grimoire flipped open and formed a longbow of wind in his hands, with a sharp wind-formed arrow drawn between his fingers.
Asta growled and stood again, jamming his sword into the ground to support himself. A dark aura pulsed over his body like black markings.
"Not over yet—not by a long shot!"
"I'm going to be the Wizard King!" he and Yuno shouted together.
Charles grinned, fire burning in his eyes. "Now that's what I'm talking about. I'm fired up! Let's end this with one last move!"
He puffed out his cheeks. A dragon-emblazoned magic circle formed before him.
"Fire Dragon's… ROAR!"
Yuno loosed his arrow of wind—while Charles unleashed a torrent of fire from his mouth. The two attacks collided mid-air, spiraling into a vortex of wind and flame.
And above it all, Asta jumped high, sword raised, and dove down at Charles.
Charles didn't flinch. He poured more magic into his attack—the magic circle expanded, and the fire pillar swelled several times larger.
It overpowered Yuno's wind arrow and surged toward Asta.
"Whoa whoa whoa—that spell's going too far!" Yami stood, hand on his sword hilt.
But Vangeance, who had been closely watching, intervened just in time.
"World Tree Magic: Ashen Protection!"
Thick roots burst from the ground and coiled around the three, separating them instantly. The flames and wind dissipated before they could destroy the arena.
"That's enough," Vangeance said calmly. "We've seen your power clearly."
The roots gently lowered the three. They looked at each other—sweaty, battered, but grinning.
Charles smiled. "Looks like we couldn't finish it today. Next time."
Asta clenched his fist. "I'm going to get stronger, Charles! Just you wait!"
Yuno didn't speak, but his gaze said the same thing.