The loud command finally came.
"Stop!"
It echoed through the hall, sharp and final.
But Rhian and the girl, Nia, froze in the middle of something that didn't look like a clean ending at all.
Rhian stood low, his body halfway leaning in for another hit, one foot already off the ground, ready to move. Nia stood directly in front of him, one arm cocked back like she was about to swing straight at his head.
They both blinked.
Their bodies were locked in place like two wild animals caught mid-attack.
For a moment, neither moved.
They looked at each other, the adrenaline slowly catching up with reality.
Then they looked around.
Everyone in the hall had stopped fighting.
Every other pair had moved away from their spars, forming an unintentional loose circle around them. The other students weren't fighting anymore. They were just watching.
Some looked surprised. Some looked amazed. Others? A little terrified.
Rhian's eyes scanned the floor.
He realized quickly what happened.
They'd moved so much and so hard.
Pushed and crashed around the room without noticing that their fight had taken them right into other groups' space, forcing them to stop.
All because neither of them wanted to back down.
'...Oops,' Rhian thought plainly.
He stepped back slightly, finally lowering his arms, feeling the burn in his muscles catch up now that the rush was cooling down.
Nia stood upright too, casually rolling her shoulders, her grin calm but still wide like she wasn't embarrassed at all.
If anything... she looked satisfied.
At the front, Mr. Callor watched with what could only be described as the biggest grin anyone had seen on his face so far.
It didn't look like a friendly grin.
It was the grin of a man who just saw exactly the type of students he liked.
Mr. Callor didn't move for a moment. He just kept staring at the two of them, his arms crossed loosely.
In his eyes, while it was clear Nia had been holding back a good portion of her power, that was expected of someone like her, what caught his attention the most was Rhian.
He watched the way Rhian fought.
Rough and Unpolished.
But it wasn't wild swinging.
It was survival fighting, he definitely knew how to throw a punch... just not one that would win a serious fight, especially against someone better and stronger.
He saw how Rhian adjusted every time he was hit. The way he started moving lower. The way he aimed for off-balance points. How he took heavier blows and didn't crumble. How he pushed himself forward when it would have been easier to stay down.
Mr. Callor's grin didn't fade.
'This one…' he thought. 'He's not bad at all.'
What Mr. Callor loved the most about watching them… was simple.
It proved his words right.
From the very beginning, he had told them, in a fight, weak or strong, anyone can win. Power alone wasn't everything.
And these two just showed that perfectly.
Of course, he could tell Nia had been holding back. A girl like her, built and trained like that, wasn't even showing half of what she could probably do.
Her steps, her form, the way she moved, all sharp, all practiced. She was a fighter from the moment she walked in.
'Nia... Nia... mmmh never heard of her'
But Rhian was rough, untrained, raw.
Yet somehow, he didn't get crushed.
In fact, there were moments, small moments, where Rhian looked like he could actually turn the tables. And that wasn't luck... maybe a little bit.
Callor stared a little longer, wondering.
'If she stopped holding back fully... and if this boy was properly trained and grew a bit...'
He smirked slightly to himself.
'That would be one hell of a fight.'
Though... part of him wondered if maybe he was underestimating the girl too.
There was a reason students like her got into this academy without question. Strength wasn't everythin, but talent mattered too.
Still, seeing that raw stubbornness in Rhian?
It was rare.
On the sidelines, Ash stood frozen, his jaw practically unhinged like it was about to fall off.
He glanced between Rhian and Nia, mostly locking onto Rhian.
The same Rhian who always looked lost, always avoided people, always just followed him around like a quiet background character when they went to the shops.
Ash didn't even notice it, but a stupid proud smile was forming on his face.
The kind that older brothers, uncles, or maybe even dads got when watching a kid win his first brawl in the dirt.
He wiped a fake tear from his eye dramatically.
"My boy..." he whispered under his breath like an idiot.
Rhian just stood there, rolling his shoulder slowly, hiding the grin that was still threatening to return.
He didn't win.
He didn't lose.
Mr. Callor finally stepped forward, his boots tapping steadily against the ground.
The grin that had stretched across his face moments ago began to fade, or maybe he just hid it. His hard look returned as his eyes swept over the entire class.
He didn't miss a single face.
All the exhausted, sweaty, slightly beat-up students standing awkwardly around, waiting to be dismissed. Most of them were still sneaking glances at Rhian and Nia like they couldn't believe what they had just watched.
Callor exhaled slowly, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Alright," his voice cut through the air again, firm but calmer this time, "we're going to end class here today."
The moment he said it, most students relaxed visibly. Shoulders slumped, hands rested on knees, the relief in the air was almost funny.
But then he added—
"You all did amazing."
That sentence hung in the air heavier than it should've.
Because while he said all, no one in this room was stupid.
Everyone here knew exactly who he was talking about.
Two people.
The boy who fought like a cornered beast with nothing to lose.
And the girl who fought like she could break anything in front of her.
Right there in the middle of the hall, Rhian and Nia still stood facing each other. Neither moved to leave yet. Neither looked tired mentally.
They stared at each other not like classmates… but like fighters who hadn't finished yet.
Like there was still more left.