Bruce himself smiled. He wasn't going to lie, these two and their loud bravado honestly warmed his heart a little. And from their names he already knew who they were. Both of them were ranked near the top in this trial. Ranking at least top 20, he remembered scrolling past their name back when he checked Sophie's points, with his photographic memory even casual views of names where hard to forget.

"Leave this to me, Aria. Handling him should be a piece of cake." Donn Chitt stepped forward, brandishing his massive axe, his muscular outline flexing under the sunlight. Every movement made his veins bulge, his body radiating intimidation.

'Two people with completely opposite personalities forming a team? Tch. These weirdos definitely knew each other before this trial.'

Bruce, jet-black hair gleaming faintly in the sun, held the hilt of his sheathed dagger with a relaxed grip and an even more relaxed smile. His casual air stood in sharp contrast to Donn, who looked like a volcano about to erupt. The great axe wielder's eyes locked on Bruce, burning with unfiltered fury.

Donn's voice thundered across the savannah field as he began chanting, pride packed into every syllable.

"Mana Convergence!"

At once, fiery orange mana surged toward his axe, wrapping it in a violent, translucent glow. Sparks of condensed energy danced across the blade like living embers.

But Donn wasn't done.

"Armor of Earth!"

The ground reacted. Pebbles, sand, chunks of dried earth all tore free from the savannah floor, swirling up around him in a whirling storm. In seconds, the earth fused over his flesh, hardening into plates of crude armor until Donn resembled a walking rock golem.

His eyes glowed from within the helmet of stone, two burning red coals of will and battle-lust.

Then came the third chant.

"Colossal Buffalo Rampage!!!"

His Berserker class was quite unique, versatile and impressive...

A violent gust erupted from him as the red light in his eyes sharpened.

"Don't think I'd dare underestimate you!!!"

The earth cracked beneath his feet as he launched himself forward, charging at Bruce with the full ferocity of a rampaging collosal buffalo. His massive axe came crashing down in a wide arc, fueled by raw strength and murderous intent.

The force behind the swing was enough to split a boulder clean in half.

Bruce just smiled.

He didn't take a stance. He didn't brace his daggers. He simply lifted his palm, calm, relaxed, like he was catching falling fruit instead of a killing strike.

Aria, standing at the side, frowned deeply.

"…Is he stupid?"

Donn had the same thought, except his version came with extra rage.

'Who does this insect think he is?! Blocking an attack like THAT with his bare hand?!'

His fury spiked, he roared and poured even more strength into the swing.

'HOW DARE YOU UNDERESTIMATE ME!!!'

Then...

BOOM!!

The impact detonated into a shockwave, blasting dust and wind outward. Smoke curled in the air where the strike landed.

But when the dust cleared…

Both Donn and Aria froze.

Bruce hadn't moved an inch.

He had caught the full-powered axe strike with one hand, fingers wrapped casually around the glowing blade as if it weighed nothing.

His smile didn't even fade.

Both Donn and Aria muttered the same word under their breath, voices trembling.

"Impossible…"

"Don't be so shocked when this is just the start…" Bruce said casually, as if he were only warming up. He didn't even tighten his fist, just threw an effortless punch, not even half his strength behind it.

The massive axe met his knuckles, then shattered like brittle glass.

The strike didn't slow for even a fraction of a second.

Bruce's fist slammed straight into Donn's head.

Then...

BOOM!

Donn's skull exploded like an crushed melon. Blood, bone fragments, and brain matter scattered through the air in a gruesome spray... The next second it was on the floor splattering across the grass in a single disgusting burst. His body crumpled immediately, headless, twitching for half a second before going still.

Bruce shook the blood off his wrist with a loose flick, face perfectly calm, no sign of adrenaline, no hint of remorse, just mild annoyance, as if Donn had been a mosquito buzzing around his ear.

"He was starting to get annoying anyway," Bruce said, tone disturbingly casual, as though he hadn't just erased a top-ranked recruit with one punch.

And Donn wasn't some random nobody. From his point total, it was obvious he had skills, skills stronger than most of the people below him. Someone considered dangerous.

But to Bruce, he was just… clutter.

Aria staggered back, dagger trembling in her hand. Her voice cracked.

"Don't come closer… please…"

Bruce didn't move. Didn't even look threatening. And that somehow made it worse.

A tear slid down Aria's cheek as her voice broke.

"Monster…"

She turned and ran, sprinting as if hell itself had opened behind her.

Bruce stared after her, silent, then slowly looked down at his fist.

"Am I really a monster?"

He let out a tired breath, not regret, just a weary kind of reflection. Maybe killing Donn that way was a bit too much… but Donn deserved it.

Bruce hadn't forgotten what Donn said to Aria before the fight. The jealousy in his voice. The way he spat Sophie's name like he had some right to her.

Just like Ozai.

Guys like that didn't need mercy, they needed a reminder. A permanent one.

And if killing them brutally sent the message that Sophie was his and always would be, then so be it. A boyfriend was allowed to act dominant once in a while.

Bruce looked ahead again. Aria was already nothing but a fast-fading blur, having put an impressive distance between them in seconds.

He couldn't help but smile.

"Such a girl… and what great lines. I can't believe I fell for that," he murmured. "But it couldn't be helped. The way I killed Donn Chitt… completely not my style."

***

A/N:

We still haven't appeared in the Golden Tickets ranking, and it's slowing the book down badly. If you have Golden Tickets, please don't forget to vote! Every single one helps us climb. 🙏🔥

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.