Chapter 471: The Student Council Hunt (VI)

Kaedran slowly raised his head, his expression filled with disbelief and humiliation.

Gray pointed toward the notification.

"So, Senior, does this mean I get to return to breakfast now?"

The entire arena fell silent again.

Kaedran stared at him.

Gray smiled.

"Because I believe we had an agreement. If I lost, I would join the Student Council. But since I won..."

He tilted his head.

"...does that mean I get to leave?"

Kaedran opened his mouth.

No words came out.

Gray nodded as though he had received his answer.

"Wonderful."

He turned toward the exit, only to pause when the academy’s announcement formation suddenly lit up above the arena.

A new notification appeared.

[Hunting Week Notice!

Student Council members are permitted to issue new challenges following the conclusion of an official duel.

Students who defeat a council member remain exempt from recruitment by that individual for the remainder of Hunting Week.]

Gray stared at the words, and then slowly turned his head toward the stands, where Scarlett was still smiling at him.

"...Princess?"

Scarlett covered her mouth with one hand, but her shoulders were shaking with suppressed laughter.

Gray’s expression darkened.

"Don’t tell me you’re laughing."

She lowered her hand, her ruby eyes sparkling.

"I’m not laughing."

"You are."

"I’m merely appreciating the academy’s traditions."

"You’re enjoying my suffering."

Scarlett finally laughed.

It was a clear, delighted laugh that attracted the attention of several nearby students.

She did not even attempt to conceal it as she watched Gray look toward the registration desk with the expression of a man who had suddenly realized his peaceful morning was over.

"Come on, Gray," she called.

"You wanted to see what the Student Council had to offer, didn’t you?"

Gray looked at her for several seconds.

Then he glanced at Kaedran, who was still kneeling in the ruined arena, and finally at the countless students staring at him from the stands.

His smile returned.

Somewhere in the Student Council’s headquarters, several senior members were about to receive very interesting news about a freshman who had just copied one of their techniques and used it to defeat an Early Ruler.

Gray glanced at the notification floating above the arena, then looked toward the exit.

"Well, that’s settled. Let’s go, Princess."

Scarlett blinked.

"...Go where?"

Gray looked at her as though she had asked the most ridiculous question imaginable.

"Where else? Back to the dining hall, of course. My breakfast is probably cold by now, and I haven’t finished eating."

For several seconds, Scarlett simply stared at him.

He had just defeated an Early Ruler in front of the entire academy, copied the man’s signature technique after seeing it once, and reproduced it with enough strength to shake the main arena.

Hundreds of students were still shouting his name, while several instructors had begun discussing his performance among themselves.

Yet Gray’s greatest concern was apparently a plate of roasted demon beast meat.

She pressed her fingers against her forehead.

"Gray, do you have any idea what you’ve just done?"

"Won a duel?"

"You defeated a member of the Student Council!"

"Yes, I’m aware. I was there."

"You copied his technique in the middle of the battle and improved it to such an absurd degree that even the instructors were shocked!"

"That’s good, isn’t it? It means I made a favorable impression."

Scarlett opened her mouth, then closed it again.

For the first time in a long while, she genuinely struggled to find an answer to his ridiculous reasoning.

Gray, meanwhile, was already walking toward the arena exit.

"Come along, Princess. If we hurry, the kitchen might still have some of the roasted meat left."

Scarlett stared at his retreating back.

"Are you seriously leaving without saying anything to the instructors or the people who came to watch you?"

Gray stopped and glanced over his shoulder.

"Do I have to?"

"Of course you don’t have to, but most people would at least acknowledge the audience after a performance like that."

He considered her words for a moment before turning toward the stands and raising one hand.

"Thank you for watching. I hope everyone enjoyed the match."

A few students laughed. Others stared at him in disbelief, while several loudly called out questions about his sword technique.

Gray waved once more before turning away.

"There. I’ve acknowledged them. Now let’s go."

Scarlett looked up at the ceiling.

’I refuse to believe this man is serious.’

Nevertheless, she followed him.

...

By the time they returned to the dining hall, word of the duel had already begun spreading throughout the academy.

Students who had witnessed the battle were recounting every detail to their friends, often exaggerating certain parts as the story passed from one table to another.

Some claimed Gray had completely overpowered Kaedran from the beginning, while others insisted the council member had been caught off guard because he underestimated his opponent.

A few were already arguing about whether Gray’s copied technique had been a unique ability or the result of some extraordinary training method.

Naturally, the most popular version of the story was the simplest.

An Early Emperor had defeated an Early Ruler by copying his technique after watching it once.

It was the sort of tale that would have sounded ridiculous if there had not been hundreds of witnesses.

Gray paid none of it any attention.

He walked straight to the counter, ordered another serving of roasted demon beast meat, added a bowl of hot soup, and requested two freshly baked demon wheat buns.

Then he returned to his usual table with Scarlett.

"Finally," he murmured as he sat down.

"Now I can eat in peace."

Scarlett lowered herself into the chair opposite him, watching as he picked up his fork.

She remained silent for a while, apparently trying to decide how to begin the conversation she had been thinking about since leaving the arena.

Gray took a bite of meat.

Scarlett continued staring.

He took another bite.

Her gaze remained fixed on him.

After the third bite, Gray finally looked up.

"Princess, if you keep staring at me like that, the food will start feeling uncomfortable."

Scarlett’s eyebrows twitched.

"Must you ruin every serious moment with some ridiculous remark?"

"Not every moment. Only the ones where someone stares at me without saying anything."

She leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table.

"Fine. I’ll ask directly."

"How refreshing."

"How did you do it?"

Gray swallowed his food.

"Do what?"

Scarlett’s eyes narrowed.

"Don’t play dumb. I’m talking about the technique you copied from Kaedran."

Gray paused to take a sip of soup, giving himself a moment to consider his answer.

Scarlett noticed the delay immediately.

"You watched him use Dark Lightning Heaven Breaker once. Once, Gray! You saw him gather his mana, form the lightning, and release the attack. Then, a few minutes later, you reproduced the same technique with greater control and enough strength to break through his defense."

She gestured with one hand, her voice becoming more animated as she recalled the fight.

"And it wasn’t a crude imitation, either. I could tell the structure was different. You changed the circulation of the mana, improved the formation, and compressed the lightning into a much more destructive attack. Even if you had studied the technique for several months, I doubt most Emperors would have managed to refine it so quickly."

Gray continued eating.

Scarlett watched him with growing disbelief.

"Are you listening to me?"

"Of course. You’re asking how I copied the technique."

"Yes!"

He nodded and took another bite.

"Innate Talent."

Scarlett went silent.

She stared at him, waiting for him to continue.

Gray calmly picked up one of the buns and tore off a piece.

Scarlett blinked.

"...What?"

"Innate Talent," he repeated. "I saw the technique, understood how it worked, and copied it. That’s all there is to it."

She looked at him for several seconds.

Then her cheeks puffed out slightly.

"That’s your answer?"

Gray nodded.

"That’s my answer."

Scarlett’s eyes narrowed into thin slits.

"Gray, I am trying to have a serious conversation with you. I watched you perform something that would be difficult even for talented Great Rulers, and when I ask how you did it, you tell me it was your innate talent?"

"Yes."

"And you expect me to believe you?"

"Would you prefer me to say that I spent the last hundred years studying forbidden lightning techniques in a secret dimension?"

Scarlett’s mouth twitched.

"No, because that would be even more ridiculous."

"Then we’re in agreement."

She leaned back in her chair, her cheeks still faintly puffed with displeasure.

For a moment, she looked less like the proud Crimson Moon Princess who could silence an entire room with a single glare and more like someone who had been denied an answer after asking a perfectly reasonable question.

It was almost adorable.

’Cute....’

Gray quietly made a mental note of it before returning to his meal.

Scarlett noticed his expression, and instantly glared at him.

"Don’t you dare laugh."

"I’m eating."

"You’re smiling."

"I enjoy my food."

"You’re enjoying my frustration."

"Those things aren’t mutually exclusive."

Scarlett stared at him.

Then she let out a slow breath and turned her attention toward the window.

’There’s no point. I won’t get anything useful out of him.’

She had already learned that Gray answered questions in three ways.

Sometimes he told the truth, sometimes he gave an answer that revealed only a small part of what he knew, and sometimes he smiled so innocently that she wanted to throw something at him.

The problem was that she could rarely tell which method he was using until it was too late.

She had no reason to believe he was lying about possessing an innate talent. However, the explanation was far too vague to satisfy her curiosity.

What kind of talent allowed someone to understand and reproduce a technique after seeing it once? How much could he learn by watching another person fight?

Were there limitations, or was the entire process as effortless as he had made it look?

Scarlett had a dozen more questions.

Unfortunately, experience had taught her that asking Gray all of them would only result in more irritating answers.

She puffed her cheeks once more before reaching for her tea.

"Fine. Keep your secrets. I won’t ask again."

Gray smiled.

"How understanding of you, Princess."

"Don’t thank me. I’m only sparing myself the headache."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night."

Scarlett kicked him lightly beneath the table.

"Ouch... that hurts, Princess."

Gray looked at her.

She took a calm sip of tea, wearing an expression of complete innocence.

He chuckled and returned to his food.