"Alright, everyone's finished. Now Lilina and Lapi step up!"

"Little Dark, let's give it our all!" Lilina cheered Wu Yan on.

The catgirl also pumped up Wu Yan and Lilina.

Wu Yan's vanity swelled.

*Alright, watch me crush them later.*

Lapi sneered from the sidelines, "Still not giving up? Do you really think your trash Contract Beast can beat my Mandrake Snake? Hahaha!"

"The result isn't decided until the end!" Lilina shot back, unflinching.

"Stubborn to the last, huh? Don't blame me for holding nothing back!" Lapi strutted onto the training ground, smug.

The blonde girl only turned serious when she heard Lilina's name.

*Come on. Show me what makes your Dark Beast different.*

"Presi—President! Huff... huff!"

The black-haired girl had guessed where the blonde girl went and rushed over, panting.

"President, this meeting is critical! How could you cancel it on a whim?"

"Just wait a moment longer!"

The blonde girl didn't even shift her gaze, replying casually.

The black-haired girl turned to follow her stare and sighed.

*That incident still weighs so heavily on the President.*

She didn't dare drag the blonde girl away. Their power gap was too vast—and she'd always idolized her. Why risk upsetting her?

Lilina stepped onto the training ground, set Wu Yan down, and pulled out her worn Staff of Sorcery.

"Haha, Lilina! Your rank, your Staff of Sorcery, your Contract Beast—you're outmatched in every way. Where do you get the guts to challenge me? I'll win just by summoning my beast!"

Lilina stayed silent, but her grip on the Staff of Sorcery tightened.

"Quiet!"

Stephanie cut off Lapi's taunts. Seeing both sides ready, she shouted, "Begin!"

Lilina didn't hesitate. She started chanting spells, trusting her Contract Beast completely, pouring her focus into the incantation.

"Whoa! Lilina chants twice as fast as most of us!" a classmate gasped, seeing Lilina in a new light.

Alimi was surprised too. *She wasn't this strong before... Still, go for it!*

Lapi heard the murmurs and scowled inwardly.

*Chanting fast is useless. My Mandrake Snake shrugs off most first-level spells. And with it here, you won't cast a thing no matter how quick you are.*

"Go, Mandrake Snake! Show them your power!" Lapi commanded confidently, letting only her beast fight while she listened to Lilina's chants, utterly relaxed.

"Hiss."

The Mandrake Snake slid off Lapi and charged straight at Wu Yan, ignoring its opponent completely.

*Bring it! I'll crush you with my new spell. How dare you look down on me?*

Wu Yan's two Tentacles snapped into a boxing stance and beckoned mockingly.

The Mandrake Snake hissed in fury, speeding up.

"Hiss."

From afar, the snake hadn't feared Wu Yan—but up close, it realized its own mouth was smaller than his.

Wu Yan's anxiety spiked. He unleashed his magic.

......

*Damn. Nothing happened? Just a weird warmth.*

Wu Yan didn't know the beginner's spellbook he'd studied contained harmless magic—safe even with botched incantations. But his immense mana had forcibly upgraded it to a third-level spell. He felt only mild heat, while everyone else sensed the air temperature rise sharply.

Thinking it useless, Wu Yan stopped casting immediately.

Stephanie, the blonde girl, and the black-haired girl froze simultaneously, eyes wide with disbelief.

*A Dark Beast casting magic.* Their expressions turned grim.

The terror of spells fueled by near-infinite mana—they dared not imagine it. If weaponized, it could doom the world.

The Mandrake Snake had sensed a threat from the Dark Beast, but it vanished instantly. *Must've been my imagination.* It resumed crawling toward Wu Yan.

*Oh crap, oh crap! This is backfiring! I wanted to show off for the girls, but I learned the WRONG spell!!!*

This bloody lesson taught veteran Wu Yan: showing off is risky; tread carefully.

Wu Yan stared at the snake's gaping maw, fear creeping in.

*Uh, big snake bro... can we negotiate? Just swallow me whole—no biting?*

*Well... guess I'm getting a trauma today.*

But the Mandrake Snake suddenly halted......

"Gurgle?"

*Huh? Why'd it stop? Do I have some legendary "overlord aura"... or is it that "turtle aura" meme?*