Ashe felt a danger that she had only felt from Cleo, the Captain of the Sixth Squad…

'Soul Drain? Vitality Suction? Death Channeling?' Ashe was confused as she tried to understand the Dark Spell being used against her.

Once she knows the specific Spell, she will have a better chance of escaping from the Spell… Unfortunately, she was running out of time.

She didn't expect that such a draining spell could work so quickly! She had never heard of this kind of Spell!

As she thought of just bursting with power to escape from Vale's clutches, it was already too late as she saw the darkness creeping up on her.

'I lost…'

Thud!

Ashe dropped to the ground, and Professor Lucius wasn't even able to react until Vale stepped forward to check Ashe's condition.

"She's breathing… Good. Good…" Vale was relieved as he sat on the ground near her.

At this time, Professor Lucius finally approached the two as he also checked the Vice Captain's condition. It was a good thing that Ashe was still breathing and seemed to have just passed out.

He has so many questions he wants to ask Vale, but he knows it's not the right time for that and it can also be inappropriate.

At this time, he only had a few things he needed to know.

"Is she cursed? Will there be a problem with her physical condition? I need to know what kind of ability you used, so I can tell the physician what happened. You don't have to tell me what kind of Spell you used, but I need to know if there could be hidden injuries caused by that Spell."

Professor Lucius said as he looked at Vale.

Luckily, Vale had already thought of an answer to it.

"First of all, she mentioned a while ago that I have to use everything in my arsenal during the duel… I just did that, so I hope that I won't be blamed if she was heavily injured."

Professor Lucius seemed to have understood Vale's concern, so he immediately replied. "Of course, I'm a witness of this duel and I'm sure that Ashe will accept her defeat. I just have to warn you not to spread this information, as the prestige of the Order will be tarnished. You don't want that to happen because the food you'll eat tomorrow might be poisoned."

"Ahem… Of course, Professor Lucius. I won't let this matter spread. I treasure my life." Vale replied. Being targeted by the Order of the Evanescent Vessels was out of his consideration when he accepted the duel.

He was too focused on getting that obsidian ring and getting to try his new Extraction powers.

After he saw Professor Lucius gently nod, Vale continued. "As for the adverse effects of what I did to her, it seems that some of her life force was expended because of that…"

Professor Lucius noticed that Vale was looking at something he wasn't seeing and it was quite odd. Nevertheless, he didn't point it out as he might just be being too sensitive.

"Alright… I'll bring her to the infirmary first and wait for me here. You still want to see the criminals, right?"

"Yes, Professor…" Vale answered.

Lucius then carried Ashe in his arms like a princess and Vale couldn't help but think that his Professor was being stingy. He could've summoned a Shadow Soldier to carry her, but he decided not to.

Anyway, Vale kept his mouth shut as he saw them off.

As soon as they left, Vale finally focused his attention on the notifications he had.

[ Extraction successful. Energy +20 ]

[ Extraction successful. Vitality +1.05 ]

[ Extraction successful. Spell Light +1 ]

[ Extraction successful. Complete Spirit Vision Spell Model  ]

[ Extraction failed. ]

[ Extraction failed. ]

After seeing the format of extractions he made, Vale realized that his Extraction seemed to depend on how long he was holding his target…

From the eight seconds or so that was holding the Vice Captain, he extracted a total of eight mystical properties.

Furthermore, the Extraction gets better and better!

The only problem was that the longer he extracted, the more difficult it could be. The Extraction seems to fail if he tries taking something compelling.

Vale then noticed that he could actually reject the extractions he made…

Of course, he ignored this option and just accepted all of them.

Soon, the Energy, Vitality, Spell Light, and Dark Spell were absorbed into his body.

He then checked his attribute panel to confirm the changes.

[ Name: Kyle Marshall ]

[ Attributes: Strength 29.65, Agility 23.82, Intelligence 51.17, Vitality 27.34 ]

[ Dark Arts: Spell Dispersion Lv4, Ghost Hand Lv7, Incorruptible Body Lv6, Darkness Manipulation Lv2, Spirit Vision Lv0 ]

[ Available Energy: 475 ]

[ Available Divinity: 4.78 ]

Vale smiled at these changes. For some reason, he didn't feel too bad about the Extraction he did to the Vice Captain.

First of all, she's the one who offered the fight, and he was told not to hold back. He even thought that Yvaine might die as well, and perhaps, the Messenger would already slap him if another Dark Spirit died in his hands again.

In addition to that, he didn't want to lose in such a battle. He may not seem like it, but once he made a decision, he's the type of person who'd do everything in his capability to win a fight... Well, he'd only consider accepting his defeat if he's really the weaker side, or losing means more benefits to him.

"Right… I'm only here to touch the criminals and not to fight… You've forced me." Vale muttered to himself as he erased any trace of guilt he was feeling.

"Are you injured?" Vale asked Yvaine after seeing her turning illusory.

"A little… That woman has an Artifact that can repel various Spirits." She answered.

"I see. If possible, I'll let you absorb the energy of some people that we'll meet later."

Yvaine didn't reply to this as she simply returned to Vale's shadow.

Soon, Professor Lucius returned to the training hall. He also brought the prize Vale had won, the obsidian ring that Ashe had shown before.