With the three of us battling, Cynthia, our training instructor, had us go to the ring to stop us from causing any destruction to the surrounding.
Standing on the opposite end of Maddison and Noelle, our fight was about to begin. Should I finish this fast or painfully slow?
"I will wipe your arrogance off that face of yours!" Maddison said one last word before we began our fight. On the other hand, Noelle had said nothing and stared at me.
Cynthia, the judge of the fight, began the signal. Maddison, who loudly yelled, charged toward me with her fist. Noelle used Maddison as a cover and ran behind her, aiming for a coordinated strike.
Letting them do as they pleased, I made a plasma barrier around me. Any attack that is below the third rank remains ineffective.
With the two of them attacking me, Maddison, whose strength increased a bit, had her hand burnt. On the other hand, Noelle tried to slash my body, but the katana hit my barrier and was reflected.
Their combined attack had already failed, and to make it worse, Maddison was already damaged from self-harm.
"Is that all the strength the both of you could muster?" Taunting the both of them, they began to get serious.
Maddison began to use her magic, and I could feel her power level rising. Her intelligence was lowered but letting Maddison me again.
Her fist was still unable to damage me. I couldn't let them get away unpunished. Maddison, who just so happens to be my target, would have a taste of my fist first.
Coating my fist with my magic, I let her have a taste of her own medicine. Launching a punch into her face, Maddison used her arms as a cushion.
Even if she tried her best to block my attack, my magic was vastly superior to hers, hurting her arms significantly.
'',
Unable to do anything else, I drilled my other arm into her face sending her flying back. After my attack landed, Maddison was out for the count. My punch had knocked her out.
Seeing that Maddison was down, I went to see where Noelle was. Noelle, who was behind me, tried to hit me from behind.
Swinging my arms behind slapping her, Noelle's figure had disappeared. I realized that I was already in Noelle's illusion.
There was only one way to beat her quickly. Erupting the mana inside my body, Cynthia stopped my move.
"That's enough. You have already won the battle." Cynthia had said, stopping the battle. The illusion cast by Noelle disappeared after the battle had already finished.
"Now, let me give you an assessment of the fight." She commented, giving her thoughts.
"Maddison, Noelle, do you know why you lost?" Our instructor questioned both of them, with Cynthia asking the question. Both Maddison and Noelle went quiet at that question.
"The both of you had greatly underestimated your opponent. That move that Charlie had down could have injured a fourth-rank magician." Seeing how Cynthia had told me my strength, everyone, including Serena, was shocked to see how strong I was.
"If by chance you have fought someone like her in the wild, you would have been killed without a thought." Cynthia continued to lecture both Maddison and Noelle on the battle.
"Charlie, next is you." Me? I don't think I did anything wrong.
"You're too careless, judging by how you fight. You had rarely fought anyone near your level." I nodded at the observation that our instructor made.
"Because of this, you don't keep track of your surroundings. You could have easily avoided the illusion that Noelle made, but you let it get to you instead."
"Do you know what is the weakness of a mage?" Cynthia looked at me and asked.
"Mages are vulnerable to any attack regardless of their rank." Cynthia nodded at my answer.
',
"With how much mana you hold, I want you to invest your mana into an extra layer of your skin. I want you to keep that extra layer without breaking it for the rest of your life." Was that even possible? I had never thought of doing it.
Keeping in mind what Cynthia had said, I coated myself in mana. "Instructor, is there a way for me to practice in the sun?"
"That's right. You're a Solaris." Remembering my family name, Cynthia had opened the top of the building letting out the sunshine. I didn't know how to think the building could do something like this.
Going into my corner, I began to absorb mana with my body coated in mana. My time in doing so was lower than most. Since I could automatically do it, I took it for granted. Concentrating my time, I began to train.
~
Hours had passed, and I had finished absorbing some mana. Looking at my other teammates, I could see Cynthia instructing Teresa and Caren.
In training, I could see Caren having a hard time. Her magic was random, so she had a more challenging time doing what she needed.
If our team had a weak spot, then it would be Caren. Caren was a variable to our team. You would never know what she could do with her magic.
Even if she had luckily won her matches for a team slot, her luck could change anytime. Thinking of this solution, I had a thought.
Looking at Serena, I could tell she was focusing on absorbing mana. After she was finished, I would speak with her.
Checking up on the other two, Maddison and Noelle were also absorbing mana. With the mana dispenser, it would be foolish not to use this chance.
After Cynthia had finished teaching Caren and Teresa, our instructor called everyone up. I don't know what she was planning, but I hope we all learn something from this.
"Before I begin my lesson. I would like to see your limits. The six of you would test yourselves against the machines used in this facility."