Clare’s eyes widened as she heard her partner’s claim.

She wanted to immediately reject this idea, but after thinking about it, she realized why Teresa claimed such a thing.

“A Dual Path Practitioner?!” Clare exclaimed as she recalled that only Half-Human, or an offspring from a Human and Spirit, were somehow capable of pulling this off!

If Vale was indeed Clovis like what Teresa claimed, then the question of why Clovis was a Holy Arts Practitioner and Vale was a Dark Arts Practitioner could be answered!

“A Holy Arts and Dark Arts Practitioner… What a weird combination… However, you can’t tell this to anyone else.” Clare added.

Teresa nodded at this, as it would complicate things even more if she tried informing the higher-ups about this possibility.

Their Arcane Path had done plenty of research about the existence of Half-Human and Half-Spirit, and it didn’t end well. They were either tortured or killed due to various experiments done by their Faction.

They didn’t want that to happen to Vale or Clovis since they weren’t holding a deep grudge against him anyway. At most, they were curious about his goals, his ability to remove the Divine Sense, and reason for practicing the two Arcane Paths.

“Well, there is still a slight chance that I’m wrong, so I won’t be informing anyone else. Let’s just confirm his identity later on.” Teresa added.

“That makes sense… However, the Seer mentioned that Clovis will do something big in this Roaring Summit… Is this what he meant? Turning the day into night and showing us the beautiful aurora?” Clare asked curiously.

Teresa shook her head at this. She wasn’t sure either, but since the Competition will commence in several weeks, it wouldn’t be surprising that it could happen on another day.

***

The highly anticipated Spectacle of Talents for the 4th-year batch had finally concluded with an awe-inspiring performance by Vale.

Then, the panel of experts passed the scores they had given to each participant.

During this time, the audience had already made their list of winners and shared it among their friends. Nevertheless, it didn’t take long before the score was tallied, and a result was made.

The crowd was filled with anticipation as the announcer, a female Arcanist with a sweet voice, prepared to reveal the results.

Before announcing the winner, the lady explained the awards that would be given for each place.

The third-place winner would receive a Mid-Grade Noble Rank Barrier Talisman, with their academy earning 50 points in the overall academy rankings. The second-place winner would be awarded a Mid-Grade Noble Rank Healing Talisman, and their academy would gain 100 points in the overall rankings. However, the first-place winner would receive both Talismans, and their academy would earn a significant 200 points in the overall rankings.

After clarifying the prizes, the announcer built suspense by announcing the third-place winner.

“Now… for the Third Place! Serena from Dorelts, Academy of Mystic Arts!” The audience erupted in applause, acknowledging Serena’s talent and achievement.

Her control with the toxic fumes was indeed remarkable, so it wasn’t surprising that she won.

With the third-place winner celebrated, the tension in the arena grew as the audience eagerly awaited the announcement of the second-place winner.

Since Serena was already called, the audience could already think of the two remaining winners.

“The Second Place is awarded to Vale from Vermont, Academy of Dark Arts!” The lady said with a cheerful voice. 𝙡𝓪.𝒄𝙢

“Ah?”

“He got second place?”

“He didn’t win…”

The revelation surprised many, as many of them believed that Vale should have been the contest’s winner.

However, realizing that the first-place winner was likely the Third Princess, the crowd refrained from voicing their opinions out loud.

After all, it would not be wise to offend a member of royalty.

As anticipated, the announcer proceeded to announce the first-place winner. “And now, the moment we’ve all been waiting for. The First Placer of our event is none other than our Princess, Ceres from Magrath, Academy of Holy Arts!”

The arena was filled with a mix of applause and respectful silence. Princess Ceres, being a member of royalty, had secured the coveted first-place position.

She was happy with this result as she immediately went to the panel of judges to give them gifts as thanks for their hard work before she received her awards.

The participants, though some of them were disappointed, displayed sportsmanship and offered their congratulations to Princess Ceres. They recognized her talent, status, and… wealth.

With the announcement of the winners, the Spectacle of Talents for the fourth-year batch concluded… In any case, there would still be a segment for the higher years, but Vale, Maya, Philip, Crystal, and Luna didn’t have the time to watch the event.

They were assisted by their seniors, who were basically their managers who came here with them, to move to the next location for their group event.

They would have to enter the group stage of the Labyrinth of Secrets.

The Labyrinth of Secrets Contest was a thrilling Maze Challenge that required teamwork and collaboration to navigate its intricate paths and reach the ultimate goal.

It could be filled with traps or even unknown creatures, and a battle could not be avoided.

While on their way to the next location, Vale received words of comfort and support.

Philip, with a lighthearted tone, reassured Vale.

“Winning second place was still a significant achievement. We earned 100 points for our academy, which is already great. I’ve heard that this competition doesn’t usually award points, so you’ve definitely made our seniors proud by securing those points for us… and you pressured them too. Haha!”

“That’s true… Even the Headmaster is probably not thinking that we’ll get a place in that contest.” Luna added.

Maya, on the other hand, expressed her discontent, suspecting that Princess Ceres had swayed the judges in her favor.

“Hmph! It’s obvious that the Princess used her influence to manipulate the judges. They were probably afraid to place her lower due to her royal status.” Maya bravely commented.

Perhaps, this was what everyone was thinking, but none of them was voicing it since she was still a princess.

Vale smiled at this as he replied calmly. 𝙡𝒆𝙖.𝙘𝙢

“It’s alright… Thanks for your support. Next time, let’s strive to surpass her. I hope I get the opportunity to challenge her in the Clash of Champions… I’m sure the judges won’t be able to help her at that time…” Vale declared with a very low chuckle, igniting a mixture of excitement and unease among Maya and the others.

“V-vale… Don’t kill her, okay?” Maya suddenly reminded.

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