Just as the horrific scene from the invasion day against Prince, Ari still panicking, he takes a step back, glancing in between Kevo and Prince,
He clutches his chest as the beating in his heart starts beating faster and faster, Kevo turns his attention forward and lunges at Prince,
'This is fake… this is fake…' He repeats in his head,
He watches as Prince effortlessly dismembers Kevo,
Ari's eyes widen in shock for a brief second before smiling mischievously,
"I win." He says blankly,
…
3 hours earlier…
10 minutes until nighttime.
'Perfect, 10 minutes until nighttime.'
Ari stretches and prepares for this night's battle.
'My Mana's been running low lately… if I continue like this, I'll die.' He thinks as he sits back on his bed,
'I'm gonna have to bet all in tonight… but if I do that, I might die…' Ari's hands start shaking,
'I don't wanna die… but at this rate I will…'
'This Is giving me a headache…'
'Fuck it. If it comes to it, I'll limit break myself.'
…
Earlier, just as Ari was falling under Ayce's ability, he completely gave up on defending against his illusions and instead used Viper Pulseon a wound he recently had gained.
Ari had gotten that idea from his earlier battle with Claire. Nullifying her Sound Style with his own. He realized, that it might come in handy in later situations.
'Show of hands… if this works…'
The timing had to be flawless. Ari wagered that his next Mana depletion would limit break him just before he completely twisted inside Ayce's Salem Style. He had completely drained his own Mana, causing him to Limit Break.
…
Present Time,
The air reverses into a black domain, Ayce finds himself alone, inside his own technique, the air is heavy, Ayce feels small, his heart is beating fast, there's nothing but darkness surrounding him. Until he sees a small light in the distance…
Ayce takes off running towards the light,
'I need to get out… I need to get out! I. NEED. TO. GET. OUT.' He thinks anxiously,
He arrives, he sees a big screen,
Ayce, the prodigy.
'W-what!? What is this?!' Ayce is in a state of panic as he re-watches his life from a third-person perspective.
He was always a talented child. He always ranked first in his prep school before Sangre De Reyes,
From a bloodline filled with powerful Mana users, he was seen as the perfect prodigy.
His parents had big expectations, confident that their son would become a big name.
Destined to be a legend enrolled at Sangre De Reyes, become a part of the Reiki Five, and later in life become a high ranked elite.
The Perfect Boy.
The black domain reverses back into the prison they've always been in, and Ayce finds himself in front of Ari in total shock.
Ayce dramatically steps back as his Salem Style technique just nullified,
"What?! How did you…?" He whispers brokenly.
'Ahh… this dopamine…' Ari thinks.
His wicked smile doesn't falter for a second,
"I've seen your soul too." Ari says,
Ayce falls to his knees, crying,
"You're only here because you were born to."
Ari walks up and grabs Ayce by his collar,
"Totally linear…"
Ayce looks up at Ari, teary-eyed.
"I'm here for a reason." He says coldly,
"Scorpio Style: Viper Pulse."
Ari's fists erupt in purple Mana, and he forcefully drains Ayce's Mana out of him.
"Fun fact, vipers only take fights they can win." He says sarcastically,
He then negligently drops Ayce's body before succumbing to exhaustion due to overexertion.
"4 out of 5… oh man…"
Ari stretches on the floor before jumping up off the floor,
'I need some rest…'
He puts his hands in his pockets and calmly starts walking towards his cell.
'Oh… it's pretty quiet right now… guess most of the students have been eliminated…'
…
In Taiho's office, he's been watching everything in the prison sequence on a small screen,
He's intently taking notes on every student, win or lose, he's writing down exclusive information and traits.
'Hmm… would you look at that?' Taiho picks up Ari's student ID,
"Ari '12' Star, the adaptability talent…"
…
Back in Chuq City,
"No! I'm not showing you! I can't trust you!" Ana yells,
Carmelo quickly snatches Ana's bag and takes a look himself, he gets shocked.
"Hey! You can't just steal my stuff!-"
"Your father… why did he hide this from me?"
"Hide? What do you mean?"
Carmelo continues scrolling through the papers quickly,
"Your father and I, we were working together… but he never told me he was writing anything down." He says with a frown on his face,
"You were? He never told me…" Ana replies, avoiding eye contact,
"Listen… I promise, I didn't send Saint there to hurt him on purpose, there's a bigger picture, but I can't explain right now. Help me find him, I'll explain on the way." He says in an honest tone,
Ana looks at Carmelo with wide eyes,
"I don't know… how will we find him? Do you have any ideas?" She asks hesitantly,
Carmelo points to the two instructors with him,
"Those two, one of them has the ability to trace Mana usage, and since Saint's Mana is rare, it stands out."
One of the instructors walk up to them,
"Sir, I've just hit a red Mana match, south-west from here just outside of Chuq City."
Carmelo looks at Ana,
"Are you coming with us?"
Ana nods firmly,
"I still don't trust you, though."
…