My F-Rank Sagea is Secretly an EX-Rank Calamity

>>>GRAND ARENA — SEMI-FINALS<<<

"Wolveria, Flash Step—Glacial Sweep!" Seraphina ordered, her voice cutting through the rising wind.

Beside her, the massive snow-white wolf let out a bone-chilling howl. In a sudden flash of frost, Wolveria vanished from sight, leaving behind a spray of sharp ice crystals.

The temperature inside the ring plunged, turning the moisture in the air into jagged needles that hovered in midair.

Rowan didn’t even flinch. "Erebus... veil."

From beneath Rowan’s boots, a thick shadow surged upward, taking the massive shape of his nine-tailed beast.

Three of Erebus’s dark tails instantly fanned out, whipping through the air behind Rowan—

CLANG!

Wolveria reappeared directly behind Rowan, its ice-coated claws smashing against Erebus’s shadow tails.

Frost crackled across the dark material, trying to freeze the tails solid, but Erebus flared its mana, burning off the ice in a thick cloud of steam.

"Not bad, Seraphina," Rowan said, stepping smoothly to the side as Erebus lunged forward, snapping its jaw toward Wolveria’s neck. "But speed alone isn’t going to break through."

Wolveria leaped back with incredible agility, landing beside Seraphina. Its bright blue eyes burned with icy resolve, and heavy frost dripped from its fangs onto the stone.

High above in the VIP seats, a sudden hush fell over the stands. Nova Vesta walked into the arena, guiding Asher toward a private seat set far apart from the rest of the student factions.

Because Asher had automatically advanced to the finals after yesterday’s chaos, his presence hung heavy over the entire arena.

The surrounding students turned to stare, but not a single voice was raised in mockery this time. A wave of silent respect filled the air.

"He’s actually awake..." one student whispered.

"Thank goodness..." another added, keeping his voice down.

Asher sat down, his eyes fixed on the ring below. Something in him had shifted. This time, there was no nervous pounding in his chest, no sudden rush of panic or frantic adrenaline.

He was entirely calm.

’It feels good seeing everyone here again...’ Asher thought, his eyes scanning the stands until he spotted Remi watching the arena with focused eyes.

’Though... I’m definitely going to have to apologize to her later.’

Seraphina’s eyes gleamed as she reset her stance for another assault. "Wolveria, Shatter Back—Frostbite Storm!"

Wolveria slammed its heavy front paws into the arena floor. A wave of sub-zero cold rippled outward, snapping the stone beneath Rowan’s feet to ice.

A second later, thousands of glass-sharp needles shot straight for his chest, roaring like a sudden blizzard.

Rowan’s eyes narrowed. "Erebus. Shadow Wall: Nine-Fold Shield."

Erebus growled low, its dark fur bristling. All nine of its shadow tails shot forward, weaving tightly together in front of Rowan to form a heavy, reinforced barrier of hardened shadow.

CRACK-CRACK-CRACK-CRACK!

The barrage of ice needles slammed hard into Erebus’s tail-shield, exploding into clouds of white powder.

Frost rapidly spread across the dark barrier, trying to lock the tails in place, but Rowan channeled his own mana directly into his Sagea.

"Shatter it," Rowan said quietly.

Erebus flared its dark aura, flexing all nine tails at once. The outer layer of ice blew apart, throwing a cloud of sharp ice shards right back toward Seraphina.

"Why does it feel like he’s going easy on her?" a student in the audience muttered.

"Right? Is it because of what happened yesterday?" another whispered back.

"It doesn’t even look like a close fight."

Seraphina stopped in her tracks, her chest rising and falling as she caught her breath.

"All you’ve done is block my attacks so far."

Rowan stepped back a pace, Erebus holding position at his side. "Well, if you insist."

’Quasar Vesta, unlock Speed Flash and enable Fatal Claw.’

[QUASAR VESTA NOTICE]

[REQUEST RECEIVED]

[UNLOCKING SKILL: SPEED FLASH]

[SKILL ACQUIRED]

[YOU ARE NOW ABLE TO USE BOTH SIMULTANEOUSLY]

"Erebus. Speed Flash," Rowan ordered.

In a single breath, Erebus disappeared. The dark wolf blurred across the ring, closing the distance to Wolveria before anyone could react.

"Fatal Claw!"

With a deep growl, Erebus slashed at Wolveria mid-air, using Speed Flash to pop in and out of sight, leaving dark residual trails across the arena floor as it tore through the air.

’Quasar, unlock Shadow Pelt Bind.’

[REQUEST RECEIVED]

[UNLOCKING SKILL: SHADOW PELT BIND]

[SKILL ACQUIRED]

"Erebus! Fall back! This works from a distance—Shadow Pelt Bind!"

Erebus instantly reappeared at Rowan’s side and shed a cluster of dark, shadowy fur, sending it flying straight at Wolveria.

Seraphina raised an eyebrow in confusion.

The shadow fur wrapped around Wolveria in seconds, lifting the massive wolf off the ground and sealing around it like a heavy, spherical dome.

"What?!" Seraphina panicked as she watched her Sagea get trapped inside the dark sphere, completely cutting Wolveria off from sight.

Rowan held out his hand, palm wide. As he slowly pulled his fingers shut into a tight fist, the shadow dome squeezed inward,

shrinking the space inside until Wolveria let out a muffled howl of distress.

"I didn’t know Erebus could do something like that!" a student yelled from the front row.

Seraphina, completely thrown off balance, blurted out the first order that came to mind.

"Wolveria! Use lightning!" she shouted, hoping her voice could reach through the thick barrier.

A sharp horn sprouted from Wolveria’s forehead inside the dome, pulling down crackling lightning from the sky.

But Rowan tightened his fist even further, crushing the shadow sphere inward and smothering the spell before the lightning could strike.

"Is he going to kill it...?" a girl in the crowd whispered, feeling a wave of sympathy for the trapped wolf.

’I have to do something myself, or it’s over...’ Seraphina bit her lip, her teeth grinding together in frustration.

She drew a deep breath and let it out slowly. Her eyes flared with blinding white light, and her boots lifted a few inches off the cracked stone as bright magical circles lit up around her body.

"The Queen’s Blizzard!" Seraphina chanted, dumping her raw mana straight into the spell.

A towering icy tornado dropped from the sky, slamming into the ring and driving a freezing gale through the entire stadium.

"MAN, IT’S FREEZING!" a student yelled, pulling his cloak tight.

People in the stands could see thick clouds of vapor every time they breathed out.

Under the sudden drop in temperature, the Shadow Pelt Bind froze solid. Rowan felt his fingers stiffen as the sub-zero cold locked the shadow fibers into ice.

The ground beneath his boots turned into a sheet of solid blue glaze.

"Should’ve done that sooner," Rowan said, his voice steady despite the frost on his jacket.

Erebus growled beside him, its body tense. "Stay," Rowan commanded, keeping the beast back.

THUD!

Inside the frozen dome, Wolveria slammed its weight against the shell, trying to break through the icy crust.

Seraphina swung her arm, driving the full force of the blizzard straight at Rowan. The gale engulfed him completely, freezing him into a solid block of glacial ice on the spot.

"Damn! She actually caught him!" a student shouted, standing up from his seat.

With a loud SHATTER, Wolveria finally broke free of the brittle seal, bursting out and landing on its paws beside Seraphina.

The crowd broke into a roar, amazed by the sudden turn of events.

CRACK!

The sharp sound echoed across the ring, instantly cutting the cheers short.

’Wait... Rowan’s breaking out on his own?!’ Asher thought from the VIP box, his eyes narrowing.

A surge of hot, dark mana erupted from inside the glacier. The heavy ice surrounding Rowan shattered into dust, forcing him back a step as the pressure blew outward.

"Cold. Just like you," Rowan said with a slight smile, brushing ice off his sleeve.

Seraphina flinched, clearly not expecting him to walk out of a high-tier spell like it was nothing.

"Erebus, Pressure Glare."

The massive shadow wolf stepped forward, its claws scraping against the frozen floor.

Seraphina backed up half a step alongside Wolveria, her chest rising and falling fast.

"What... what are you doing?"

The entire crowd leaned forward, hands gripping the railings in suspense.

Erebus stopped right in front of them.

"Now," Rowan said.

Erebus’s eyes lit up with a deep purple glow.

A dark magic circle appeared directly over Seraphina and Wolveria.

A crushing gravitational force slammed down on them, pinning both master and Sagea straight to the dirt.

’No! No... it can’t end like this!’ Seraphina fought against the weight, her fingers digging into the ground as she tried to push herself up. But the pressure only doubled, driving her face into the floor alongside Wolveria.

"Seraphina. Just give up," Rowan said as he walked up to her.

Knowing she couldn’t move a single muscle under the weight, Seraphina forced the words out.

"I... I yield."

"That concludes the first match of the Semi-Finals! Rowan Flynn advances to the finals!" Lady Vespera’s voice boomed over the arena.

The silence broke, replaced by a wave of loud chatter that quickly turned into roaring cheers.

"We’re actually getting both brothers in the finals!"

"Man, I can’t wait to see how that fight goes!"

Down in the competitor seats, Remi took a slow breath, her hands resting tightly on her lap.

’I beat an Argentum student in the quarters. I can handle this too,’ she thought, lifting her chin and forcing her posture straight.

"Erebus, that’s enough," Rowan said.

Erebus shut off the purple magic circle, lifting the heavy gravity off the ring.

"Mhm—" Seraphina winced, pushing herself up into a sitting position and rubbing her sore wrist.

"Here," Rowan said, stepping over and extending a hand.

Seraphina looked up at him, a faint flush touching her cheeks despite her scowl. "I’m fine."

"I don’t think so. That pressure leaves a heavy strain on your body."

Seraphina frowned. "What do you mean?"

She tried to stand up on her own, but her knees immediately gave out. She slipped toward the ground, only for Rowan to catch her cleanly before she hit the dirt.

"See?" Rowan said, a small smirk playing on his lips.

"God... my head is spinning," Seraphina muttered, leaning against him as she tried to catch her breath.

"You never listen," Rowan remarked.

He pulled her arm over his shoulder and kept a firm hand on her waist, supporting her weight as he started leading her off the stage.

Erebus rolled its eyes at the display. Still, the dark wolf walked over to Wolveria, gently picking up the exhausted ice wolf by the scruff of its neck before following behind its master.

High up in the stands, Fang’s jaw clenched tight as he watched Rowan and Seraphina walk off together.

"Participants for match two!" Lady Vespera announced, cutting through the noise.

The massive Aetherscope above the ring lit up, projecting the next set of names in bright runes.

[FANG RICHTER VS. REMI FAYE]

"Remi’s really up against Fang, huh?"

"Hey, she took down that Argentum student earlier. Don’t write her off."

"This is going to be brutal."

Fang shook his head briskly, clearing his thoughts as he cracked his knuckles.

"Fang and Remi, please make your way to the arena!" Lady Vespera called out.

Asher shifted in his seat, watching Remi stand up.

"Hey Nova, can I use telepathy on other people?"

Nova turned her head, her expression dead serious before she looked back down at Remi walking toward the arena stairs.

"Umbrax students cannot use telepathy," Nova said.

"Well, I am an Umbrax student."

"You’re an anomaly," Nova said, her gaze steady.