Chapter 245: Miho’s Challenge Issue - 1 Chapter 245: Miho’s Challenge Issue - 1 The Hurricane Falcon was far smaller than any Skyrend Eagle—its wingspan barely reached 8 meters—but its presence was far more oppressive. Its eyes burned with a savage intensity, and a thin red line of feathers began at the corner of each eye, stretching all the way to the back of its sleek body. Every feather looked like a sharpened blade, densely layered and compacted, clearly meant as both armour and weapon. Yano’s face twisted into an ugly expression the moment he saw it. He hadn’t been prepared for this at all. From Uraan’s previous matches, everyone had believed he possessed only a single Pseudo 3-star beast. But now it was clear—he had another, and an even higher-ranked one at that. This revelation alone effectively pushed Uraan into contention for the top 3 positions. As murmurs spread through the stands, the Host’s voice rang out, dripping with amusement. "Uraan is a clever guy! He deliberately misled people into betting on Yano. And now that he’s revealed his cards, many are headed straight for a loss—while Uraan’s supporters walk away rich!" The crowd immediately split. Cheers erupted from one side, while loud boos thundered from the other. Naturally, the loudest boos came from those who had just realized their money was gone. But before the noise could settle, something unexpected happened. The falcon soared higher into the sky—and in the very next moment— Shing! Pak! It didn’t dive toward the stony beast. It went straight for Yano. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢 Like a supersonic missile, the Hurricane Falcon cut through the air and struck. Yano was eliminated in a single, blinding attack, his body vanishing in a flash of teleportation light. His beast didn’t even have time to react. The instant it sensed its master’s removal, it was automatically disqualified as well. After all, if a beast master couldn’t even protect himself, what use was having a powerful beast? The arena fell into stunned silence, broken only by the Host’s hurried commentary. "Huh? Ore! Uraan has won the match! And it looks like it didn’t even take a few seconds!" The Host let out an exaggerated sigh. "Looks like the students still aren’t ready to show their true might—and honestly, I get it! We still haven’t seen 3 student faces yet! How can anyone risk revealing their cards when they don’t know their opponent? Or worse, when that opponent can analyse them through a single fight? Tsk. Tsk. Seems like Tier-1 is going to be filled with one-shot matches. Let’s just hope the final phase gives us our money’s worth." Most of the crowd booed at Uraan for taking the easy way out, but he merely shrugged it off. He didn’t care about their opinion. All that mattered was securing a top 3 position. If not 1st or now 2nd—since a monstrous bastard with nearly 400 thousand trial score points existed—then at least 3rd. Even the current 2nd or now 3rd place holder had around 250 thousand points. Only the true 3rd rank—now pushed down to 4th—had a score that was realistically within reach. As for why Uraan didn’t believe the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd hadn’t cheated? Nobles had their connections. The Tier-1 battles were spaced out, and the next match wasn’t scheduled until 6:30 PM. Right now, the clock read 6:03 PM. Leo and his group took the opportunity to discuss the newly revealed threat. "Lily," Leo asked, turning toward her, "will you be able to defeat him?" Lily scoffed, folding her arms. "Of course. Birds rely on wind to fly—and what do I control?" she replied confidently. Leo shook his head with a small smile and reached out, patting her head. "Alright, alright. Sorry for underestimating you. Still—be careful." Lily’s face flushed red as she nodded shyly. No matter how much she prided herself on being the ’big sister,’ she couldn’t stop herself from getting flustered whenever Leo did that. Strangely enough, it brought her inexplicable joy. Leon watched the interaction with curious eyes. Maybe I should try this on Miho... Soon, the time for the next match arrived—and a name was familiar. Ronan Virex Rank: 11 Cecil Milton Rank: 8 Ronan once again summoned his towering 6-meter guardian-like beast, its massive frame plated in cooled lava. Cracks ran across its armor, glowing brighter every time it moved. Moltenbrand Sentinel (Pseudo 3-star) – Super Bloodline Cecil, another top-10 contender who had previously challenged Tavian and lost, stood opposite him. Her beast was a 6-meter horse-type entity completely wreathed in flames. Even its eyes burned—white instead of normal—giving it a striking and unnatural appearance. Flamehoof Vanguard [Half-Spirit] (Pseudo 3-star) – Super Bloodline "People! Take a look!" the Host shouted excitedly. "Many of you may have seen it already, but for those who haven’t—this is a Half-Spirit beast, Flamehoof Vanguard! For those still unaware, spirit-type beasts directly increase mana—without doing anything! You’ve all heard of our famous hero Pyro p—er—I mean Purgatory Phoenix! He also has a fire-type Half-Spirit beast!" Before the Host could recover, the crowd had already caught on. "Pyro Pervert!" "Yes! We know him!" "Pyro Pervert is our hero!" As usual, the loudest cheers came from the boys. The Host scratched his head awkwardly before signaling for the match to begin. Professor Lu... I guess he really is famous. Leo chuckled internally. As the battle unfolded, Leo noticed something peculiar. Ronan’s Moltenbrand Sentinel didn’t avoid Cecil’s fire attacks—instead, it took them head-on. The magma-like surface of its body began glowing hotter and redder, and to Leo’s surprise, its movement speed increased along with its ferocity. Ronan was already relentless, hacking endlessly at Cecil with his lava-coated sword, but his beast matched him blow for blow. Cecil did her best to maintain distance, but Ronan advanced like a suicidal maniac, letting the flames engulf his body as he pushed forward. Before the beasts’ clash could reach its conclusion, Ronan had already closed in on Cecil herself. Flamehoof Vanguard moved to shield its master, but that brief distraction was all the Sentinel needed. It delivered a crushing blow straight to the horse’s abdomen. Both battles ended almost simultaneously. Ronan emerged victorious, claiming the 8th rank. Ronan Virex Rank: 11 → 8 Cecil Milton Rank: 8 → 11 It became clear that Ronan was the only Tier-2 student truly capable of challenging Tier-1, as every other match ended in under a minute or even a single shot like that of Uraan’s. And just like that, Phase 2 came to an end.