Reborn: Apocalypse Ready. War Goddess by My Side novel Chapter 562

Chapter 562 Heavy Blow

The young man still hadn’t caught his breath from the shock of it all.

The elder who’d intervened turned to look at Bianca.

A warm smile crossed his face. “You have great promise.”

In truth, the hand he’d used to block the phoenix bore à faint scorch mark right in the center of his palm.

Shock rippled through him, though he kept his composure.

That single strike from a young girl had actually burned the skin of a Divine King.

That kind of power was almost unthinkable.

Bianca glanced at her opponent.

She muttered under her breath, “Guess I used too much force there.”

Every powerful figure in that arena caught those words clearly.

A wave of dry, disbelieving laughter rippled through the crowd. Unbelievable. She’d actually been trying to stall for even more time than that.

Bianca offered the elder a small, polite bow before turning and walking away.

Robby’s voice rang out.

“Match five, Bianca wins!

“Competitor number six, step forward!”

Thunderous applause rolled through the stadium.

As if being that beautiful wasn’t enough, she had to be that powerful too.

She’d fought a Four-Sigil opponent well outside her own rank and made it look effortless.

Bianca paid none of that any mind and returned quietly to Steven’s side, settling in without a word.

She didn’t disturb him.

Fiona asked, “Bianca, what’s going on with the vice captain?”

Bianca shook her head. “Something important must be happening. I should’ve dragged that fight out even longer if I’d known.”

Fiona laughed and shook her head. “That would’ve upset him even more once he found out. He’d have beaten that poor guy half to death out of guilt. This is fine as it is. We’ve still got two more matches before his turn comes up.”

Bianca nodded, though there wasn’t much else she could do about it now.

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Chapter 562 Heavy Blow

Competitor number six turned out to be Griffin.

That fight ended far faster than anyone expected.

Griffin stood as Oakridge Academy’s own SSS-rank prodigy.

For a place like Oakridge, an SSS-rank talent was a genuine rarity, the kind of once in a million discovery every academy dreamed of finding.

That particular year, Oakridge had gotten remarkably lucky, producing two such talents at once, with Fellaria standing as the other.

The moment Griffin stepped onto the stage, his face was all smiles.

But the second the fight began, he transformed into an entirely different person.

Ruthless. Precise. Utterly decisive.

A single strike was all it took to defeat an opponent who sat at level 31 in the Four-Sigil tier.

Once the fight ended, he offered his fallen opponent a polite, gentle apology.

The entire match hadn’t lasted longer than two minutes.

Watching that only made Bianca’s nerves worse.

Match seven came next.

Competitor number seven was Fellaria.

She too crushed her opponent with total dominance.

She was a striking young woman in her own right, her features sharp and beautiful, cool and quiet as the first chill of autumn.

She ended her match with a single decisive strike, just like Griffin.

No surprise there, given how long people had spoken of Oakridge’s two unmatched prodigies.

Bianca’s anxiety was climbing by the second.

Steven still hadn’t come back.

Robby glanced over toward Steven’s spot and cleared his throat awkwardly.

“Ah, well, perhaps we could take a short break here. Or maybe competitor number nine could step up first instead?”

An

le silence spread through the crowd.

nt as favoritism could get from a vice principal acting as head referee.

fest to object.

C

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Chapter 562 Heavy Blow

“Mr. Lane, that’s not exactly following the rules, is it? Order is order. When his turn comes, it comes. There’s no skipping around that.”

“Are we just supposed to let him dodge his turn indefinitely?”

“If he refuses to step onto that stage, then I ask you to rule fairly and declare the match decided!”

The Houston family could barely contain their delight. What they’d assumed was rotten luck had turned into an unexpected gift.

As long as Steven stayed off that stage, victory would fall into their hands by default.

That alone would guarantee their spot in the top ten.

Their young representative stood on the stage grinning from ear to ear, more than happy to let the dock

run out on Steven.

Robby said, “There’s no strict order required here. He’s clearly in the middle of some kind of breakthrough. Let’s show a little understanding.”

“Mr. Lane! I ask you to remain impartial!”

Robby nodded slowly.

“Fine, fine. Consider it a favor to him. Maybe he’ll go easier on your boy later because of it. No need to make this harder than it has to be.”

The Houston representative let out a short, dismissive snort, clearly unwilling to let an opportunity like this slip away.

“Since when does my family owe him any favors?”

“Three minutes. Give him three minutes. If he hasn’t stepped onto that stage by then, I expect you to declare the winner.”

Robby didn’t argue the point further.

Every eye in the stadium locked onto Steven.

Bianca and Fiona felt their nerves fraying. Was he actually going to lose this by default?

Even Lola turned to stare at Steven, utterly exasperated. Of all the moments to space out, why did it have to be now?

It wasn’t just Orroux watching this match unfold. Competitors and spectators from other mid-sized cities had their eyes locked on the broadcast too.

Three minutes felt impossibly short.

Everyone could count down the seconds.

ept closer and closer.

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Chapter 542 Heavy Blow

The Houston family had already started celebrating early.

Robby let out a quiet sigh. Why did he have to pick this exact moment for a breakthrough?

Sufl, it probably wouldn’t matter too much in the end. There was always the repechage challenge waiting for

hum.

The clock ticked down toward zero.

“Mr. Lane, render your ruling!”

Robby prepared to announce the result.

“Since competitor…

Right at that exact moment.

“Wait!”

Steven’s voice cut through the entire stadium.

Bianca and Fiona both let out a breath of pure relief.

Steven shot up from his seat and slammed his foot against the ground.

In an instant, he shot forward onto the stage.

Pain was etched across his expression.

A ripple of surprise passed through the crowd. He’d woken up. Was that some kind of aftereffect from cutting the process off early?

Robby’s brow furrowed with concern. What a foolish risk to take over something so small. Why put himself through that?

Steven, clearly uncomfortable, asked, “Sir, can we begin?”

The headmaster could read the urgency written across Steven’s face.

“Let the match begin!”

A flicker of hope stirred in the Houston competitor’s chest. Steven looked like he wasn’t at full strength. Maybe, just maybe, he still had a shot at this.

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11:21 Tue, Aug 1