Headmaster Leopold smiled to himself. He appreciated Jedrek's way of doing things. Despite his grandfather being a General, he didn't take that as a path he had to take. Instead, he followed his own.
When Leopold said that a King's means were just as important as the ends, Jedrek took it to heart. So what if he wasn't a great commander? He could pay someone to command for him. So what if he didn't have the largest fist? He could hire the strongest warrior on the Plane.
Who here could waste Pulse Opening experts on the mere first tier of steps aside from Jedrek? No one!
Without needing to speak a word, his impact on the crowd was just as overwhelming as Ryu's, and unlike Amory's momentum, his was unstoppable.
It was at this point that everyone crossed Jedrek off their list of individuals to attack. They would simply be wasting their actions if they did such a thing and would be helping Jedrek advance ahead of them.
"Haha, it seems like it's the turn of this unskilled Lantes. In the face of the talented Tor Clan, the rest of us can only fight for the scraps, huh?" Atticus' lewd laughter filled the arena. With a wave of his hand, he called forward three scantily clad women.
Despite their appearance, these women were actually world-class warriors. Each stood at the Peak of the Awakening Realm, brandishing beast tendon whips. However, their fiery lingerie washed away whatever fear the crowd might have felt for their battle prowess. Spectating eyes couldn't help but be drawn to their outrageous curves and large assets.
Headmaster Leopold frowned at this display, however, he could do nothing. There was nothing against the rules saying that women couldn't be among the factions you used. It was just that Atticus' display spit in the face of the importance of this gathering.
"Take notes, Fourth Prince." Atticus sneered toward Ryu. "These are the kinds of women you should surround yourself with. Why you chase after those loose-skinned cougars is beyond me. Here, I don't mind sharing one of mine with you, what do you think?"
Before Ryu could respond, Atticus slapped his own forehead. "Oh, I forgot. You're blind, how could you possibly understand."
The three scantily clad women giggled as though Prince Atticus was the greatest comedian to ever exist. Their long eyelashes fluttered and their hands roaming Atticus' body without shame or discretion.
Without caring for Ryu's reaction or his response, Atticus disappeared, easily relying on his women to conquer the first step.
At this point, Headmaster Leopold found Atticus' actions difficult to understand. Even if he was already the Crown Prince of his Lantes Kingdom, the results of this competition would affect the confidence the Lantes Kingdom people had in their Royal Family. If this confidence fell too low, a Kingdom's Faith would also fall, leading to numerous rebounding effects.
However, it seemed that Atticus didn't care about such things or his image. He didn't mind his people seeing their Crown Prince as a debauchee. It didn't make sense.
In the end, Atticus conquered three steps, allowing Silas to follow suit and also do so. Finally, Prince Kwan relied on his own strength to conquer three steps, retrieving some of his lost glory from the first trial.
Like this, it became Ryu's turn once more. But, when the crowd saw that he once again stepped forward alone, they began to grow restless.
Cayden's battle prowess had long since become public knowledge throughout the Plane. Defeating a Second Order beast as a mere Awakening Realm expert was almost unheard of. Due to this, no one doubted Cayden when he attacked Ryu's step. However, this confidence wasn't something Ryu had earned just yet. After watching him struggle with a Middle Second Order beast, they had the right to be skeptical.
Still, Ryu didn't base his actions off the opinions of others. Using the most direct method, Ryu plowed his way through his opponents. In truth, hiccups like what occurred against the Tree Fairy Beaver happened again. However, Ryu seemed to escape death using methods others would have never thought of time and time again.
It was clear here just how important knowledge was in the martial world. After eight months fighting in the Natural Order Sect territory, Ryu had become used to a certain kind of beast. Due to the perpetual Winter they experienced, there were limited kinds of opponents to be fought. Obviously, here, there were no such restrictions.
Ryu was unable to use the knowledge of his past life here either because he simply wasn't used to dealing with Mortal Plane beasts. Their quirky habits and abilities were unknown to him, so he could only enter blind and adapt to the situation on the fly.
Without a doubt, this sort of performance would impact the score Headmaster Leopold would give him, however, whether this impact would be positive or negative still remained to be seen. After all, Leopold was well aware of Ryu's circumstances and thus understood why he didn't seem to have basic knowledge of beasts almost everyone did. It was possible he would thus choose to raise Ryu's grade for his ability to adapt so quickly and efficiently.
After two battles the audience would describe as close calls, Ryu stood firmly on his sixth step. And, once again, contrary to what was expected, he lifted his foot once more to take his seventh.
Headmaster Leopold shook his head. 'I have no right to look down on this youth after the mistakes I've made, but he's still too rash! He's passed by the skin of his teeth through this second tier of steps, but he still wants to enter the third tier alone!'
While those like Leopold, Yaana and even Amell were worried, there were still those that hoped that this would be the moment Ryu finally couldn't stand to escape at the final moment again. When those individuals saw Ryu appear in a very familiar land of snow, bright smiles colored their faces. Ryu had actually drawn the same challenge Cayden had, the Ice Eyed Bear! But, unfortunately for him, this was a Higher Third Order beast, nearing maturity! The difference was akin to Heaven and Earth…
Drastic changes occurred between the Second and Third Orders. The difference between realms was far more apparent. While it was still acceptable for Cayden to defeat a Second Order beast as an Awakening Realm expert, repeating this feat with his Pulse Opening Realm cultivation and a Third Order beast was impossible without help…
To make matters worse, the refractory period of this beast's Ice Pupils was drastically cut down after it evolved… Its weakness was practically nonexistent.