The prolonged battle was approaching its climax. Two imposing figures stood amidst the maelstrom. One figure was a young, suave, blonde man. His rooted legs were buried deep into the earth, and his humanoid figure was sturdy and sky-high as a mountain. Opposite of him was a young, handsome, crimson-haired man. In front of a mountain, he appeared to be insignificant. However, that man was not a regular mortal. Surging, powerful gale-force winds accompanied his presence. He did not even seem to recognise the mountain in front of him. Instead, what he saw was an insolent imbecile, impending needed discipline. That was a duty for a supreme expert.

(Be proud Melvin. Your endeavour was not fruitless. To be able to force my hand to my greatest extent, that is something commendable for a nobody like you.)

Hayate then weighed a troubling decision in his mind: to directly exhibit his attack or to carry on with his shameless ignorance.

The course of these events had unexpectedly sparked a fortuitous inspiration; an enlightenment. Never had he concentrated so hard to manipulate the natural wind to all converge to a single direction. In fact, he found it quite tricky, and it took a lengthy amount of time to conjure and apprehend a proportion of it. After all, the wind was virtually omnipresent. Controlling large movements in the wind was not much of a hassle but pinpointing and then compacting sections were in another league. Many of Hayate's attacks affected large areas. In gaming terms, it would be known as an area of effect. In addition, the attacks were objectively lacking in the accuracy department. Thus, Hayate, in normal circumstances, would almost always utilise the hidden technique gasify for greater manipulation and more condense control.

In the end, Hayate could not let the beneficial opportunity go to waste. It would be disdainful and ludicrous to even ponder the decision.

Hayate closed his eyes. His firm arms were lightened and raised outwards to embrace the tailwind. Gently and serenely, he flapped his arms like a pair of wings. The malevolent maelstrom dropped in ferociousness. In turn, the winds converged more smoothly and accurately. It was a huge drop in power, but Melvin felt even more incoming pressure than before as the winds were more aligned to strike him. The dispersed power drastically reduced.

Suddenly, the wind angel opened his eyes. The term gentleness could no longer be applied. That was not an angel: that was a supreme expert. A supreme expert with absolute power. Arms of the expert were stretched taut as though they were sharp pincer-like wings . . . he whispered,

"Hidden technique: Surging Wind Cannon!"

*WHOOOSH!*

*WHOOOSH!*

*WHOOOSH!*

*WHOOOSH!*

Melvin arrogantly stared down at the tyrannical gale-force tailwinds surging forth towards him. He roared inwardly and grit his teeth. Winds barraged without mercy, cutting and blistering his skin. Powerful winds forced Melvin to close his eyes and mouth to open, revealing his pearly-white teeth. "AGHRR!" Melvin crunched down the jaws of his mouth. Vomits of blood-soaked his glands and dyed his teeth blood red. He refused to reveal weakness! Stubbornly, he gulped the blood down as it churned his insides.

"MELVIN! STOP! STOP! DO SOMETHING!"

"MELVIN YOU IDIOT!"

Stilla and Dalis cried in horror.

Melvin was refusing to budge. He bitterly and recklessly persisted through the danger, accepting the baneful winds. There were no changes in Melvin's posture. Arms continued to be clasped behind their backs, his chin was still elevated, and though his eyes were closed, everyone could tell those eyes were looking down on Hayate.

It was official. Melvin's ego was above Hayate.

(YOU DARE CONTINUE TO LOOK DOWN ON ME?!) Hayate roared inwardly!

*WHOOOSH!*

*WHOOOSH!*

*WHOOOSH!*

*WHOOOSH!*

The gale-force winds answered Hayate's calls. Erratically and angrily, they gusted to their adversary. Hayate put an end to his controlled momentum to deliver a final hefty blow.

Melvin squinted open his eyes to meet the final wave. He understood that he was unable to take it. However, he had come so far! How could he abandon his conviction at this point?!

The distance between them appeared to be begrudgingly large. Melvin was forced with his bare eyes to not be ignorant. Truly, Hayate was worthy of his reputation.

They called him a prodigy . . . ?

Perhaps so!

However, just because he was well-known does not mean he was superior.

Melvin will prove this now!

Today will be the debut of Melvin Serven!

Melvin vigorously mustered his mana. He shall crush Hayate without turning back.

(A supreme expert? Hmph, so what? If you think you are so powerful, I will ascend higher than a mortal.) Melvin's scorn magnified a hundredfold, and his legs solidified even further into the ground.

(Impossible!) The eyes of the King widened as large as saucers. Webbed cracks were seen underneath the adamantine flooring under Melvin's feet. (How . . . who is this child? Only power on the scale of a hero can do such a thing.)

Melvin imagined himself, becoming one with the very earth itself. A visage of his homeland flashed into his mind. Countless scenes of humiliation, disgrace, pain, bitterness channelled within the memories. He was told after time, and after time, and after time again to endure the hardships. Every time he exploded, he was punished and ridiculed further. Even his very birth parents themselves were not on his side and reprimanded him.

Then, he saw a memory of a particular day. It was a day shortly after leaving Feeria. He was undertaking the infamous Feeria bearing and was about to be set off foot from the Feeria Mountain Range. Young Melvin gazed intently at the twelve skyscraping mountain peaks, penetrating the clouds. Longing, love, anger, many complex emotions were intermingled at the time. However, two emotions were more clear, palpable, and resonate than the rest: reverence and determination.

Melvin's eyes scorched open. The transient scenery was no more, but the mountain was there in his mind. Melvin felt his body muscle out in power like a Gigan body consolidator. Envisioning the very integrity of those mountains, he desired now to become as mighty as those mountains.

Melvin Serven will become a Mountain.

BOOOOOOOOM!!

Tyrannical gale-force tailwinds surged forth and collided with Melvin, acting like miniature bombarding tornados. Blood leaked from Melvin's gritting mouth, and his body was pushed back every second. Legs remained ingrained, unmoving, but his balance was faltering, and the back was bending. His pompous eyes were losing sight of their target as he was bent backwards. But, no matter how much force struck him, he repulsed and did not bend further. Hayate was reluctantly forced to meet the downwards eyes of an unyielding mountain.

Hayate felt his spine shudder as everything became clear; his preconceived thoughts held true. It was definitely no illusion.

A vague image of a mountain appeared to be coalescing and overlapping in Melvin. And it was only continuing to manifest. When his winds struck him, they were only whittling impacts as if it was a process of natural erosion. It could not stop the growth, and it was adapting to the weather, strengthening the mountain. It had reached the point that his winds could not cut further. Rising and rising, Hayate was left to stare right up at the mountain.

(My sense did not deceive me. The swamp child's head is unnaturally tilted up. He must be seeing something. Earthly aura? I feel a tinge of it.) Yamada peeked towards Apostle Farden. He saw that he had put his quill feather down and was wholeheartedly watching something. That did not need to be said.

"That Melvin pride is really too much. Look at him! He's still doing that snobby bearing while his back is pushed to the brink! Even in that powerful storm! What the fuck am I watching?!" Jessica was so flabbergasted that she had to curse her bottled emotions out.

"Melvin . . . Dalis . . . Stilla . . . Those three are just . . ." Sienna was out of words. Despite it being only the first day, watching all these battles have increased her resolve to train harder.

"I have to say our fellow internship student from Feeria has guts for a mage. It looks as though he is stretching and consolidating his body. It reminds me of the waterfall training back in Gigan," Rhaghav Babu praised. (Maybe he is doing this intentionally to work out his bones?! Truly admirable. Melvin, my eyes were not wrong about you!)

"That Serven boy Melvin is really dumb. I don't know what to say. What do you think Alexia?" Sang-jin Wi asked.

"Crazy level dumbass. That's for sure," Alexia scoffed and cracked a smile.

Eventually, the storm subsided. The gale-force winds were put to rest, and the weather returned to tranquillity. Hayate couldn't believe it. He had lost the tug of war. In spite of attaining enlightenment, putting his ego to the side, and inventing a new technique, he was unable to topple that irritable figure. Unfortunately, he had no right to say anything. Neither could he turn his gaze away from those gleeful, scornful eyes.