The hulking figure of Vice Guild Master Hugo continued to eclipse Kieran as he stood over the young man quietly, not surprised by the fact that he was ready to challenge the Rank Up Ceremony.

Even just standing there, Hugo could tell that Kieran had grown multiple times stronger from their last conversation. In fact, it was hard for him to gauge just how much stronger Kieran had become.

Then again, that’s what made this entire situation… intriguing!

Hugo looked forward to testing Kieran through the Rank Up Ceremony. So much so that he bypassed all of the warning theatrics and gave it to Kieran straight.

“Follow me to the exclusive chambers of the Training Hall; that’s where we’ll conduct your Rank Up Ceremony,” Hugo said, turning around to return behind the curtain that separated the lobby and the inner portion of the floor.

After glancing at Sammy, Kieran gave a subtle nod before following behind Hugo since he understood there was a unique doorway connected to the Training Hall itself.

In fact, that doorway was how staff members quickly ended up in that area when some kind of emergency called for their intervention, whether it be personal or a system error that could lead to their members being severely injured.

Not long after, Kieran passed through it and came across a simplistic door, which Hugo stood in front of.

Soon after, radiant blue lines lit up on the door once Huge retrieved and pressed his identification badge against the doorway. With a series of clicking sounds, something reminiscent of large gears turned behind the door, resulting in it lifting a few seconds later.

Unlit, Hugo welcomed Kieran into a path of darkness.

Fortunately, Kieran’s eyes were remarkable, allowing him to somewhat peer into the darkness and regain a semblance of visibility.

After all, as the saying of the Shadow Dancers went, spend enough time embedded in darkness and eventually, that darkness becomes one’s kin, a welcoming member of a deadly part of the night.

Of course, in this case, it was simply Kieran’s powerful ocular prowess that helped him make his surroundings out in a less-than-favorable visual setting.

“This path is empty. Nothing to bump into or stumble upon. Walk, and we shall reach our destination without a hitch. This has been done multiple, if not countless, times before. There’s nothing to fear,” Hugo voiced out from the front, casually strolling through this darkened space.

“I do not fear the dark. Whatever you introduce me to is fine by me,” Kieran answered in response, catching a glimpse of the silver gleam his armor produced.

“Oh?” Hugo’s eyebrow rose in intrigue, though it was only after some time before he said another word. But when he did, it was somewhat surprising. “If it were a more difficult Rank Up Ceremony, it’d be conducted in this place where you must learn to adapt.”

In return, Kieran took a moment to genuinely try and perceive the entire place.

However, after a few seconds, realization dawned upon him that this path was much more vast than he previously thought it to be.

A few seconds later, a blue outline appeared in the darkness and, after opening at a deliberate pace, revealed the Training Hall’s setting on the other side.

The only difference was that this area looked like an arena platform with steps leading up to an octagonal stone platform with several small pillars erected.

Once they were settled atop the platform, Hugo continued to walk until he stood at least 25 paces away from Kieran. After reaching that place, Hugo extended his hand with a solemn expression, an expression that seemed more stony than usual.

“A typical Platinum Adventurer can battle with me for roughly five minutes before they fail to push on. I understand that you have yet to Advance, so I must ask—are you confident?”

“Confident?” Kieran parroted, his expression somewhat taken aback. Now that Hugo had asked this question, Kieran had to consider Hugo’s status. Though it was only a mere branch of the Adventurers’ Guild in an admittedly “rundown” place, Hugo was still a Vice Guild Master through and through.

To obtain that position, one had to at least complete their First Awakening.

‘He must be a First Phaser,’ Kieran thought, not caring to obtain factual information on Hugo. He felt that his eyes were a great judge of power because there was a subtle air of oppression roiling around Hugo.

“Correct. Are you?” Hugo asked again.

“Ah yes, I’m confident. Though, at the same time, I’m not. Nevertheless… this situation is perfect for me,” Kieran responded. Retrieving Crimson Ashrune a second later, Kieran brandished the weapon straight ahead, raising the edge toward Hugo.

“Very well. From this moment….”

All of a sudden, the space surrounding Kieran felt like it was compact enough to suffocate a person. “I’ll be your opponent. And you will either step out of this ring a failure… or a success!” 𝓫𝓭𝓸𝓋𝓁．𝓬𝓸𝓂

‘An Awakened Aura,’ Kieran inwardly muttered, his eyes now narrowed.

An Awakened Aura went beyond mere Advanced Pressure.

In a sense, an Awakened Aura could be considered a prelude to one’s Dominion forming since Awakened Auras had to carry a trait of one’s Aspect to manifest.

In Hugo’s case, the trait felt… mountainous, like a heavy mountain was being pressed down upon his shoulders.

After giving it some further thought, Kieran considered the concept of Hugo’s aura was related to gravity or, at the very least, a suppressive effect.

Unfortunately for Kieran, this wasn’t the time to consider what type Hugo’s Awakened Aura fell into. Mere moments after his aura appeared, a massive battle axe larger than Kieran appeared in Hugo’s grasp.

Despite the sheer weight and size of the thing, Hugo moved with exasperating speed, resulting in Kieran’s immediate activation of Blood Mania. However… the new activation before the technique was horrendous.

By the time Hugo’s hulking figure arrived before him, the Vampiric Blood Encrustation had yet to finish even half of its formation process.

Bang!

Vulnerable and unable to evade, Kieran watched as Hugo dexterously twirled his battle axe at the last moment, hitting Kieran in the chest with the weapon’s large haft.

As if struck by a telephone pole, Kieran flew back like a lifeless puppet, colliding with one of the small pillars a second later.

Despite his increased mass, the force with which Hugo’s attack sent him hurtling back, and the seemingly small stature of the pillar, the damage done to it was minimal.

The most change it saw was a slight rocking of the entire platform.

“Huah!” Kieran gasped deeply, eyes widened. A single strike had knocked the air out of him. Though, what made Kieran truly freeze was what he discovered. He was sure of it—Hugo had tweaked the strength of that attack at the last second when he realized Kieran was unprepared to receive it.

“Is this the fastest you can prepare for battle, Aatrox? If so, that won’t do on the battlefield. If you’re not ready for battle in an instant… you’re merely asking for death,” Hugo remarked, lowering his weapon to the side, though the subtle angle told Kieran he was always ready to strike again.

“It’s not my fastest. I am not proud of it, but it’s all I can muster currently,” Kieran said after wheezing, staggering to his feet. As he exhaled, the Vampiric Blood Encrustation finally finished forming, complete with a brief crimson sheen in his eyes.

After a pause, Kieran added: “That’s why this is crucial for me. I know my shortcomings will be better addressed against a stronger opponent.”

Silently, Hugo analyzed Kieran, noting the shocking fire blazing in his eyes. ‘That drive, that resolve… he knows this is the truth. I am much stronger than him, yet there isn’t a morsel of fear present in his gaze. Very well… I should honor his diligence.’

“I’m coming once more,” Hugo said soon after. This time, his body flickered, streaking against the platform before coming to what seemed like a standstill above Kieran’s head, his giant axe swiftly dropping toward the stage.

Noticing what was occurring, Kieran barely managed to raise Crimson Ashrune in time, feeling his arms go numb a second later once the impact happened.

Brought to one knee, Kieran grimaced as his blood churned inside him.

‘He’s barely pulling his punches. No… he must be some kind of assaulter-class. That heavy weapon, hulking figure. Attacking is his specialty,’ Kieran mused, painstakingly lifting his head afterward.

Kieran caught Hugo’s gaze on him, but he also realized from the body language that Hugo was about to strike again. As a result, Kieran placed his hand on the ground.

“Wrath… Eruption!”

A geyser of blood erupted from the ground in a violent sprout, but Hugo was nowhere to be found when it calmed down. Turning his head to the right, Kieran saw a large foot incoming.

Bang! Bang!

Kieran tumbled across the stage, using Crimson Ashrune to hamper the speed of his retreat until his sliding stopped.

“A nice skill, but it’s far too slow. The time between its activation and the effect… too long. Perhaps it’ll work against your peers. But to us—those with greater strength than you—it’s futile,” Hugo said. “Ten seconds, by the way.”

The last part of Hugo’s words made Kieran furrow his brow. All that had elapsed in this time frame was 10 seconds?!

‘This won’t do. Ranking up is nice and all, but it’s not the reason I came here. If not the badge, my goal is to battle until the activation instinct is beaten into me,’ Kieran thought.

If others were to see this, they would perhaps look at him as if he was crazy, seeing as he welcomed a beating.

However, Kieran was not scared of pain.

He understood that anything worth earning was accompanied by great pain, whether it was emotional, physical, or mental.

Sometimes the pain of loss outweighed the pain a physical wound could deliver.

Gradually, the color of the Vampiric Blood Encrustation deepened until it emitted a faint reddish glow.

Following this change, Kieran charged forward with a sudden Surge Step, kicking up a ring of dust from where he stepped.

“That battle intent has awoken,” Hugo said with a grin.