The entire Valenzia Arena erupted into cheers as a thunderous greatsword threatened to sever Carlos' neck.
Carlos was barely able to get up after struggling through immense pain, his face contorting in agony as he did so.
He tried so hard only to end up having a blade inches away from his neck.
Carlos was having internal struggles.
He refused to lose this badly, however, if he didn't surrender, although his opponent might not kill him, the crowd would jeer at him.
Not to mention, his teammate was already incapacitated so his chances of winning were truly feeble.
Thus, after a thorough consideration, Carlos decided to surrender.
"I...Surrender..."
Although the crowd somewhat expected him to do so, their mouths still went agape once he finished saying his words of surrender through gritted teeth.
Then, after a few seconds of dumbfounded silence, the ground violently shook as Carlos' surrender was met with thunderous cheers and a typhoon of applause.
The bettors were jumping for joy, the Colzen companion students and some of the instructors had tears streaming down their faces as they hugged each other, and the deans subtly struck victory poses.
Every person who was rooting for Colzen celebrated in their own little ways.
Meanwhile, the Amarantha supporters were silent as the depressing air of dejection lingered around them.
They were utterly devastated.
After all, their most respected and invincible senior, Carlos Andrade, was defeated in a single clash against the strongest representative of Colzen.
Very few things were harder to swallow than seeing the pride of your academy lose to the pride of another academy in a head-on clash.
They couldn't think of an excuse even if they wanted to.
They were simply outclassed in every way.
"Oh, hey, what is it?"
"I...I'm sorry for not being able to help you for one and a half years..."
After hearing what Wendy said, Shye raised his eyebrows in surprise and comprehension.
'So that's what has been bugging her all this time!'
He thought to himself as he slowly walked towards Wendy.
"Oh, that? No worries. I knew that help would come if possible so I understand your difficulties. I even gained lots of benefits in that labyrinth so stop blaming yourself for what happened in the past okay?"
Shye said as he gave Wendy a gentle downward chop on the forehead and warmly smiled at her before jumping down the stage.
The forehead chop seemed to untie all the knots in Wendy's heart as she stood still for a few more seconds, relishing the forgotten feeling of lightheartedness.
She was looking at the ground so no one knew if she was smiling.
However, one could be sure that she was crying as drops of glistening tears intermittently fell, creating a miniature puddle on the ground.
The other Colzen representatives, the instructors, and the deans smiled warmly at her, patiently waiting for her to sort out her feelings, not rushing her in the slightest.
Finally, after two minutes of being dramatic onstage, Wendy managed to take control of her emotions.
The usual cold look was back on her face but something was different.
Her usual ice-cold expression now had a hint of vulnerability due to her puffy eyes, making one want to protect her.
Naturally, most of the males who saw her current state felt their heartstrings tingle, making them lament their lack of ability to pursue such a beautiful and talented young woman.
After the short heartwarming moment, the Colzen representatives walked back to the academy station with proud smiles plastered on their faces.
Ceaseless chants of "Colzen" resounded as almost half of the total crowd population celebrated their glorious 3-0 underdog victory against a well-known powerhouse academy.
At long last, Colzen Academy...has entered the ranks of the elites.