A golden-orange light flashed across the night sky. The phoenix spread its wings, scattering the sun's blazing embers through the heavens. Thousands of spectators tilted their heads upward, jaws agape, as every beat of its wings shed glittering particles that rained gently to the ground.
The once-biting cold turned warm.
Nixie circled gracefully above the head of the brown-haired boy, facing the silver-haired girl whose colossal deer hung its head in fear.
"No waythere's no Legendary Beast that would let a kid take it into an exam!" Professor David, standing beside Witzany, exclaimed. The Headmistress, fingers resting lightly against her lips, replied calmly:
"It's already happened. Something must have made that phoenix chick acknowledge Ray's worth. Interesting, isn't it?"
"That's not the point! If the Pandora cult learns a phoenix exists, that boy's in danger. You knew this—and still?" The elderly professor stroked his chin, turning to Witzany.
"It's bound to happen sooner or later, Professor Kegel. We have to protect our students while helping them grow. If I never let him train the phoenix in battle, it would hold him back far more. And whatever move Pandora makes, it's our responsibility as teachers to protect these children."
The Headmistress spoke with confidence—no one could harm her students on school grounds.
"So you're saying he passes the exam?" David asked.
Witzany shrugged, glancing at the score sheets. Ray's duel had earned him an astonishing 95 out of 100.
"Let's just say—pass or fail—I'll take care of him myself. After all, he's a phoenix tamer too." The Headmistress smiled sweetly, and none of the other professors dared suggest the woman who had managed the Pandora Dragon couldn't protect one boy.
They all turned back to the fight.
"The reason you're making waves, huh, Ray? I'd say it's this little thing." Aria crossed her arms, smiling at the hawk-sized phoenix soaring proudly above.
Ray nodded enthusiastically. "That's right."
He flicked his hand to signal an attack.
"All right, Aria—Nixie, fire breath!"
The phoenix charged flame at its beak, then unleashed a blazing red torrent toward the giant moon deer below.
"Moon, hold it back! You can do it," Aria urged. The Mythic ArtemisDeer stomped the ground, summoning a colossal wall of vines shooting skyward.
Whooosh!
The searing heat roared across the arena. Flames ignited the massive plant wall, scattering fire in twin streams to either side.
Moon took cover behind the towering tree, replenishing its mana four times to withstand the phoenix's full onslaught.
When the inferno finally subsided, the deer stood in the only unburned patch amid the charred earth.
Spectators gaped—the juvenile phoenix had unleashed near-Mythic-level power with a single move. Truly worthy of its Legendary status.
Aria brushed her hair back, steadying herself. She dreaded thinking what would happen if they'd fought in daylight.
"Lucky it's a full moon tonight, Moon. Let's take down this phoenix." She smiled knowingly.
"Close in—don't let it attack again!"
Thud, thud, thud—thick green roots erupted from the ground, propelling Moon upward. The deer's antlers aimed straight for the phoenix.
"Nixie, dodge!" The firebird swerved, wings flaring.
"Gravity Control—slam it to the ground!" Aria commanded.
"Don't let it, Nixie! Wings of Light!"
Before Moon's skill could take effect, the phoenix blazed forward, golden wings flashing. The crowd watched in awe.
"Don't let it escape! Moon, vine assault!"
From the giant summoned tree, whip-like vines lashed upward from all directions, aiming to skewer the phoenix. Nixie rolled, dipped left, darted right—slipping past hundreds of strikes.
"Nixie, burn it all!"
The firebird dove, twin wings flaring in flame. Every vine turned to ash, the massive tree charred black to its base.
But when Nixie turned back toward Moon
The deer's body had vanished.
"Above you, Nixie at the moon!" Ray called. The silhouette of the giant deer floated before the full moon.
It hovered via Gravity Control, bathed in moonlight's power. Moon conjured an enormous wooden bow, drawing a violet magic arrow to its limit before releasing.
"Ultimate Artemis Arrow!"
Thwip fwish thunk!
Silent and deadly, the massive arrow speared Nixie through the chest.
Aria clenched her fist, triumphant. No one had survived Artemis Arrow under a full moon especially with Moon wearing the Night Bell, boosting ATK by 200% at night.
Ray was finished.
Or so she thought.
"Phoenix Heal."
With one skill, Nixie's HP shot from half back to a full 25,000. The phoenix's radiant healing shattered Aria's hopes.
"It's fine, Moon. If we keep shooting until their mana runs out, they can't heal. We'll win." Aria explained, and Moon nodded.
Ray's eyes lit with confidence. "Great strategy, Aria but this time, I'm taking the win!"
"Wind Dance!" A single wingbeat birthed a cyclone around Moon, the wind tugging at Aria's clothes.
"Gravity Controlroot yourself to the ground, Moon! Hold position!"
She still planned to let Ray tire himself out—then win with Moon's endless lunar mana.
But Ray refused. "Breathe fire into the cyclone, Nixie—Firestorm combo!"
Aria chuckled. "Hah! Think that'll work? Moon, vine shield!"
Flames swirled within the storm, tightening its ring to roast the deer alive. Moon raised dense vine walls around itself.
"Pointless! There's still the top—up, Nixie, and fire down!"
"Block above!" Aria cried instinctively.
A column of fire poured down like a molten waterfall.
Whoooosh!
They held safe.
But as the storm faded, Ray ordered another Firestorm—and another.
"Wait you… Ray! You planned this from the start, didn't you?" Aria realized she'd been lured into trapping herself.
Silver hair damp with sweat, she knew she'd lost—to Ray's cunning.
"Exactly. If you can keep regenerating mana, I'll lose. So I made you lock Moon in its own shield—no moonlight, no mana, no infinite casting."
Gasps echoed across the arena. Ray had turned the enemy's barrier into a moonlight blockade.
Enclosed in its charred wooden dome, Moon couldn't absorb lunar energy and without it, the deer's mana reserves dwindled to nothing.
Victory belonged to Ray and his phoenix.
"Finish it, NixieSacred Flame!"
The phoenix exhaled a torrent of golden light, flooding the arena.
The duel was over.
With Moon defeated and Arnol the ice bear poisoned, Aria surrendered. She wouldn't torture her beasts needlessly. Arnol lacked aerial attacks, and ice was weak to fire anyway. The professors awarded her credit for the decision.
That night, Ray and Aria were the talk of the academy.
Even with a Legendary Beast, no one could deny Ray's skill. He'd used both Kied Rogue and Nixie with perfect timing. No one dared call him talentless except stubborn Jason.
They deemed Ray worthy of the Golden Egg.
The arena slowly restored itself, gleaming as new.
Ray and Aria shook hands in thanks.
"Thanks for not going easy on me, Ray," she said with a smile.
"Heh, you told me to go all out couldn't have without that. Now, let's thank the Headmistress." He pointed.
If not for Witzany's approval, Ray wouldn't have dared summon the unregistered phoenix.
"Still, Aria thank you, for a lot of things." Ray grinned warmly.
Annoyed by his shy smile, Aria inhaled deeply, then exhaled, crossing her arms and giving him a shoulder check hard enough to nearly spin him around.
"Go on they've got your Golden Egg."
"Ow! Why'd you have to shoulder me like that?"
Ray rubbed his shoulder, glaring playfully as she replied, cold as ice, "Your smile's irritating, Ray."
"Come on, don't be a sore loser."
She sighed, then shoved him again twice until he nearly stumbled.
"Okay, okay! We'll have a rematch later!"
Ray headed toward the award table.
Witzany approached, the Golden Egg wrapped in red cloth. Ray bowed repeatedly in thanks as she handed it over.
The elegant woman, appearing in her early thirties, smiled with calm warmth, patting his head like her own child before playfully ruffling his hair. She pulled a candy from her pocket, popping one into her mouth and giving another to Ray along with the egg.
"Thank you!" he beamed.
The moment Ray accepted the egg, Nixie burst from his pouch, startling everyone.
Without warning, the phoenix breathed fire at the egg in a flare of sudden fury.