The Strongest Student of the Weakest Academy-Chapter 391: The Beginning Of The End [LIII]

Chapter 391: The Beginning Of The End [LIII]
Aestrea didn’t waste any time.
Before the noise in the arena could even settle, he turned toward the floating platform where the professors stood and spoke clearly.
"I’ll challenge the 100th-ranked student today," he spoke, adjusting the sleeves of his uniform.
"I’ll continue the rest tomorrow."
The words hit the arena like a second shockwave.
The professor closest to him stiffened, then took a breath. After what they had just witnessed, there was no reason to doubt him anymore.
"...Very well," the professor said, nodding slowly.
"Your request is approved."
The crowd erupted again.
"He’s not stopping?!"
"He just broke a domain, and now he wants the Heaven’s List proper?!"
"This is insane!"
The whispers instantly broke as the professor raised his voice.
"Summon the 100th-ranked student!!!"
For a moment, nothing happened.
Splash...!
Until the air suddenly grew humid.
A soft sound of flowing water echoed through the arena, gentle but heavy at the same time. Moisture gathered in the air, forming a faint mist that clung to the ground.
A figure stepped forward from the opposite side.
Violet eyes.
Dark blue hair that flowed like a calm tide down her back.
Water gathered beneath her feet, lifting her slightly above the ground as she entered the arena with relaxed confidence.
"Vanya..."
Whispers spread instantly.
"The Goddess of Water."
"She’s been on Heaven’s List forever."
"She’s no joke."
Vanya smiled as she looked at Aestrea, her eyes narrowing slightly in interest.
"I didn’t expect you to be the one challenging me for my rank," she laughed loudly, her lips curling up into a sharp and wide grin.
"I was watching your earlier fights. You really don’t know how to slow down."
Aestrea casually returned the smile. "Don’t worry. I’ll go a little easier on you since we’ve met a few times."
Her eyebrow rose.
"Oh, really? Should I be honored?"
"Mayhaps."
She laughed again, this time a little louder, water rippling beneath her feet in response to her mood.
"You’re still as arrogant as ever."
"And you’re still wearing that ugly grin as always," Aestrea retorted.
The professor descended slightly, his expression turning slighly more serious.
"This duel follows Heaven’s List rules," he announced. "No forfeits once it begins. Victory is decided by incapacitation or surrender."
The barrier rose.
Splash!~
Water surged outward from beneath Vanya, spreading across the arena floor like a shallow sea. Waves formed, slow at first, then faster, circling the battlefield.
Aestrea tightened his grip on Midnight.
Vanya rolled her shoulders lightly, her violet eyes glowing.
"Try not to break the arena too badly," she warned him.
"I’d rather not pay for repairs."
"Don’t worry about it."
The professor raised his hand.
"Begin!"
BOOOOOM!
Instantly, Vanya let out a flood of water!
The shallow layer covering the ground thickened instantly, rising to Aestrea’s ankles, then knees. Waves rolled outward from Vanya, smooth and heavy, each one carrying a dense divine pressure.
Vanya grinned widely.
"There we go," she said, rolling her neck once.
"I was worried you’d finish this in one move too."
Seeing this, Aestrea didn’t rush immediately and instead took a single step forward to test how Vanya’s abilities worked.
Fwip!
The water reacted immediately as a column shot up from the surface, twisting into a spear aimed straight at his chest.
Aestrea tilted his body slightly and let it graze past his shoulder.
The spear shattered into droplets on impact with the barrier behind him, the water immediately rejoining the flood at his feet.
Vanya’s lips curled into a wide grin.
"Good reflexes," she said, her violet eyes glowing intensely.
"I was hoping you wouldn’t just stand there."
She lifted her hand and clenched her fingers slowly.
The water around Aestrea’s legs tightened like invisible chains, pressure building as the liquid tried to lock his movement in place.
The surface hardened, turning dense and heavy, as if attempting to root him to the ground.
Aestrea looked down briefly, then stepped forward anyway.
The water resisted, vibrating violently, but shattered apart as his foot came down.
"You really weren’t lying about holding back."
She jumped backward, and the water beneath her rose instantly, lifting her into the air on a smooth current.
Without hesitation, she pushed forward, her body gliding just above the surface as she closed the distance at high speed.
As she moved, water wrapped around her forearm, compressing and sharpening into a curved blade.
She swung.
Aestrea leaned back just enough for the water blade to pass a breath away from his neck, the pressure slicing the air where his throat had been.
Before he could counter, Vanya twisted her hips and drove her knee into his ribs, water reinforcing the strike at the last moment.
THUD!
The hit landed cleanly.
Aestrea slid back half a step, boots skimming over the flooded surface.
Vanya froze for a fraction of a second, then burst out laughing.
"I actually hit you!" she said, clearly delighted.
"You really are going easy on me!"
She didn’t give him time to answer.
Using the recoil of her knee, she spun and brought her elbow down, water compressing tightly around the strike. Aestrea raised his forearm and blocked, but the impact still sent water exploding outward in a violent splash.
Instead of counterattacking, he stepped back.
That made Vanya’s expression shift slightly.
"Oh? You’re letting me keep going?"
She swept her leg low, and a crescent-shaped wave tore across the surface toward Aestrea’s feet.
He jumped, clearing it easily, but before he landed, Vanya pointed upward.
The water obeyed.
Dozens of spears formed around him midair, each one condensed and aimed inward from a different angle.
Aestrea exhaled slowly, twisting his body as he fell.
Just before the spears reached him, he flicked his wrist outward.
A ripple of pressure burst from his body.
BOOM!
The spears shattered into rain, the fragments splashing harmlessly back into the flood as Aestrea landed smoothly on his feet.
Vanya touched down across from him, breathing slightly faster now, her grin sharp and eager.
"You’re annoying! Every time I think I’ve got you, you slip through."
"I told you," Aestrea replied calmly.
"I’m not trying to end this quickly."
"Then don’t complain when I get serious," she snorted, puffing out her cheeks.
Spreading both arms, Vanya drew deeply on her authority.
The water surged violently, forming a massive rotating current that wrapped around the arena. The flow pulled from every direction, dragging at Aestrea’s balance as if trying to tear him off his feet.
Vanya ran along the current effortlessly, her movements fluid and precise. As she passed him, she slammed her palm downward.
The water beneath Aestrea hardened instantly, compressing around his ankles with crushing force.
"Got you," she grinned confidently.
Aestrea looked down, then lifted his foot and stepped forward.
The hardened water shattered apart like brittle glass.
Vanya’s eyes widened.
She appeared in front of him in a burst of motion, water launching her forward, and drove her fist straight into his stomach.
The punch landed.
A deep, hollow sound echoed through the arena as Aestrea’s body bent slightly under the impact.
Vanya stared for half a second, disbelief flashing across her face.
"...You felt that, didn’t you?"
"A little," Aestrea admitted.
Her grin returned instantly, brighter and sharper than before.
"Perfect!"
She followed up immediately, unleashing a rapid series of strikes. Punches, elbows, knees, each one reinforced by compressed water, each one landing with surprising force.
Aestrea blocked most of them, but not all.
A knee slammed into his thigh.
An elbow clipped his jaw.
A punch struck his shoulder.
He slid back several steps, water spraying outward with each movement.
The crowd erupted.
"She’s actually landing hits!"
"Is he really holding back?!"
Kael was practically screaming from the stands.
"BRO, YOU BETTER NOT LOSE AFTER ALL THAT!"
"Don’t worry about him," Tyrian watched silently, narrowing his eyes lightly.
"He’s clearly controlling the fight."
THUUUD!
"Phew! This is so much fun!" Vanya grinned widely.
"It’s like I have an unbreakable punching bag!"
She raised both hands.
The water answered immediately.
Towering walls surged upward, sealing the arena as the sky darkened above. Clouds formed rapidly, heavy and dense, churning with power.
BAAAM!
Each drop struck like a hammer, slamming into Aestrea’s body with sharp impacts.
He raised an arm to shield his face as the rain peppered his skin, leaving shallow marks where the pressure hit.
Even so, he stepped forward.
Vanya hesitated for a fraction of a second, but just as quickly, she waved her hand sharply.
A massive wave formed behind Aestrea, curling inward like a closing jaw.
He stopped, turned, and punched.
BOOM!
The wave exploded, water blasting outward and crashing violently into the barrier.
Vanya stared.
"...Okay," she muttered. "That one’s on me."
Her smile faded just a little.
She clapped her hands together, and the water beneath her shot upward, lifting her high above the arena.
Spiraling currents wrapped around her body like wings as her expression shifted from playful to focused.
"Enough for the warm-up," she stretched her arms lightly.
"Now I’m getting serious!"
From her violet eyes, a trident symbol appeared, as her words echoed throughout the whole arena, if not the whole academy.
"
Blood Sea Domain, open!