Phase Two began with a reshuffling of the stadium. Each performance tier—first, second, third, and so on—was assigned their own dedicated stage.
Naturally, Stage One was reserved for the first-place finishers of Phase One. The crowd overflowed on all sides, eager to watch the clash of the elites. Serena. Kain. Soren. Kairos. Dwayne. Addison. Lucas. Hailey.
But Kain wasn't fighting first.
That honour went to Serena and Dwayne. Kain had no doubts about the outcome. She had one thing no one else on the stage could match: a limitless supply of spiritual power. Watching her tear Dwayne apart, while satisfying, felt inevitable.
So instead, he turned his attention to the second stage on its right, where the second-placers from each group had begun their own fight for ranks 9 through 16.
Bridge's match had just begun.
Kain leaned forward in his seat.
He hadn't yet seen Bridge's new lineup in action—not fully. Especially since the timings of their matches during Phase One often overlapped. But despite not getting to watch, Kain had actually helped create it.
Behind the scenes, Kain had offered more help than anyone realized. Even Bridge himself hadn't fully understood the scope of the assistance—he just knew to trust the advice when Kain gave it.
Now, that trust was being tested on the field.
Bridge started by releasing Lady and Princess—his original two contracts from his very first days at the academy.
Only, they weren't the same.
Both had evolved into rare Platinum-species, their auras surging with Green-grade spiritual power. From the instability of their auras, it was obvious that they both hadn't broken through for long.
Lady—originally a small wind-attribute Huricanine pup, then a gold-quality wind and (minor) lightning dual attribute Tempest Wolf— was now a Platinum-quality Stormfang Alpha wolf with more balanced wind and lightning affinities.
Similarly, Princess—who was originally a Silver-quality Searing Wolf—has evolved into a Frostfire Wolf. It was a rare Platinum-quality evolutionary form with dual ice and fire attributes. This form was scarcely seen in nature, and nobody knows how to make Searing Wolves evolve into this form…except for Kain, with the System's assistance.
Both Platinum-quality, green-grade beasts took their places at Bridge's flanks like generals arriving for war.
Then, with a dramatic sweep of his hand, Bridge summoned a third contract—a Clear Spring Wolf.
At least, not the normal kind.
This one was a mutant, its fur shimmering with opalescent sheen and its eyes a vivid green rather than the typical blue. The signature healing water that Clear Spring Wolves were known for was still possible, but there was something else—something darker in the way it lowered its stance and snarled. A low rumble rippled from its throat, and when it leapt forward, crimson vapour trailed in its wake.
The moment its claws touched the opposing beast—a tanky, earth-type creature resembling a hedgehog—it didn't just scratch the surface. It corroded it.
Kain sat up straighter. "So it was an offensive mutation…"
He remembered it clearly—how that mutant River Wolf Pup had been born at the family's new estate. Kain had analyzed it through the System, before confirming it had a beneficial mutation, likely due to its mother eating one of the many spiritual plants Kain had grown around the estate.
Instead of converting water into a healing force only, this variant could instead choose to convert it into a powerful corrosive liquid. Therefore, its offensive abilities were greater than the average Clear Spring Wolf, while its healing abilities were intact.
Although Kain hadn't known 100% what the mutation's effects would be after evolving, but suggested that Bridge form a contract with it anyways.
And Bridge had listened.
One final contract emerged next: a rare wolf species with russet-red fur and thick bristles down its spine.
A Desert Fang Wolf—a native of the southern deserts, rarely seen in the Empire. Its eyes were a molten gold, and when it howled, the air shimmered. Most Desert Fang Wolves carried the Earth attribute. Bridge's one, however, was a mutant found by Kain within the Order, and it came with a surprise: Earth and Fire attributes.
Bridge's opponent had brought decent contracts—high-end yellow and green grades—but they were completely outclassed in terms of the uniqueness of Bridge's contracts.
The match was tilting toward a predictable end when something went wrong.
One of the opponent's spiritual beasts, a quill-backed snake, screeched and fired a beam of light. It missed its target.
But it didn't fizzle.
And struck toward Bridge.
Kain was on his feet in an instant. "BRIDGE!"
The blast was meant for a contract, not a human. And in a tournament setting, directly harming a beast-tamer was extremely frowned upon; after all, the re-ranking wasn't a life-or-death battle, but it was not a disqualification-worthy offence. The only instance when it was deemed okay to strike at the beast-tamer was unless they themselves engaged in the battle using gifts or spiritual skills.
Clearly, this attack had been an accident.
But Kain knew that didn't make it any less deadly.
He couldn't move fast enough. Couldn't get there in time.
The blast roared toward Bridge—who didn't flinch.
And in an instant, Bridge changed.
Where a young man once stood was now something else—a half-man, half-wolf figure with curved claws, glowing yellow eyes, and a hide like dense fur-lined armour. His limbs flexed with immense power as he raised one arm (claw?) and slashed the incoming attack apart.
The ripple beam shattered like glass.
Silence fell across Stage Two.
Even the referees froze.
Kain's mouth opened, but no sound came.
Bridge exhaled, nostrils flaring, then flexed his fingers as if checking his condition. His transformation wasn't unstable. Nor did Bridge seem panicked or surprised by the sudden transformation.
Clearly, Bridge had known about this gift for a long time, but had just never revealed it to anyone.
"He's had it this whole time…" Kain muttered.
Back in the first year, when they had entered the Academy's Enchanted Spring following the first re-ranking—back when Kain awakened Pangea—Bridge had said he felt something was different.
But months had passed.
And nothing happened.
Kain had assumed Bridge either didn't awaken a gift, and didn't bring it up so as not to upset him, or that Bridge still hadn't found a way to activate it.
Bridge standing on that stage knew exactly what he was doing.
And he had kept it secret the entire time.