The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　Read the full text for free here...

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　[It's past midnight, so I'm posting this now. The next update will be tomorrow morning or at noon.]

Chapter 383 Darkdemon Steps onto the Battlefield (16/233)

　那一瞬间，达克还以为「影鬼」并未死去。104;116;116;112;58;47;47;119;119;119;46;50;99;121;120;115;119;46;99;111;109;47;

　However, the increase in points indirectly refutes this conclusion.

　"He has two 'Shadow Ghost' cards?"

　The thought had barely formed when the lion's shadow spread outwards.

　It completely lost its shadow shape, turning into a pool of pitch black shadow.

　film.

　The lion suddenly felt its legs go weak, and its two feet sank into the groin.

　In the swamp of shadows.

　One twisted arm after another emerged from the shadows

　It emerged from the shadows and firmly grasped its ankle, rendering it unable to move.

　The lion's eyes flashed, and without hesitation, it drew its sword and thrust it into the ground.

　But before the sword tip touched the ground, that face...

　Yu, a third-year student, blurted out two words: "Shadow Killer!"

　As a "Shadow Ghost", this "Shadow Ghost" has three special moves: one is the inherent special move "Hidden Shadow", one is the "Death Coil" that was just used, and the last one is the same "Shadow Kill"!

　The shadow under the lion's feet

　Suddenly, the Shadow Swamp churned violently, like boiling water, with black bubbles rising to the surface.

　As the bubble burst, countless shadows formed blades that shot into the sky, momentarily suspended in mid-air, densely surrounding the lion beast!

　"Leomon! Swords Dance!"

　Almost simultaneously, Dark's shouts also rang out.

　"Roar!"

　The lion suddenly let out a fierce roar, and a faint, almost imperceptible bloodlust flickered deep in its eyes.

　Then, holding the sword with both hands, with one knee slightly bent, it raised the sword that had been thrusting towards the ground again, and then stabbed it down fiercely.

　In that instant, endless air currents emerged from its body, swirling around it and accelerating its rotation!

　Countless shadowy blades shot towards them in that instant.

　The effect of "Sword Dance" created a storm that protected the entire body, instantly blowing away a large number of shadow blades.

　Only a few shadowy blades managed to penetrate the storm's range, but they were quickly weakened by the constantly blowing air currents, leaving only thin cuts on Leomon's body.

　The lion beast felt a slight stinging sensation on its body and suddenly injected magic power into itself.

　The "single sword sheath" then once again emitted a sacred, snow-white light.

　"boom!"

　The entire "Death Coil" shadow

　The Shadow Swamp was quickly dispelled by the halo of light emanating from the sword tip, and the Lion Beast's shadow returned to normal in an instant.

　The second "Shadow Ghost" also fled amidst screams.

　The lion's feet moved with the shadows

　The Shadow Swamp disappeared and was forced out of the ground.

　It moved swiftly, chasing the "Shadow Ghost" like a heavy tank, to...

　Using the "Lion King Maru" style, he wielded the "single sword sheath" like a dagger, twisting it in a backhand motion.

　Hold on, run at high speed.

　As the "Shadow Ghost" trembled and regained its true form, the Leo Beast's towering figure appeared before it.

　Immediately afterwards, a backhand strike!

　Another sword!

　"Double kill!"

　With the blessing of "Sword Dance", the second sword directly pierced through the void, because the "Shadow Ghost" had been instantly killed by one sword!

　……

　[Points +1]

　……

　The two additional points have made Dark's ranking slightly more stable.

　With only two or three minutes left in the preliminary rounds, the remaining contestants are all quite strong, and defeating their magical spirits is no longer an easy task.

　Dark expressed his deep gratitude for the two "Shadow Ghosts" that had come to him so readily.

　This time, when the points increased by 1, Dark finally noticed that the second-ranked third-year noble student, Stuart Fern, had lost a little more points.

　The perfectly synchronized changes made Dark immediately realize that the man with the sinister face...

　Yu's senior is none other than Stuart Fowne!

　"So, who is he?"

　Stuart Fowne is the son of a meritorious baron and has no manor lands. He was granted the title of meritorious baron and baron because of his father's military achievements, but the title is not hereditary.

　Therefore, if Stuart Fowne wants to become a nobleman, he will need to work hard himself.

　Under normal circumstances, there are only two ways to become a nobleman.

　Buy or sell.

　Purchase with resources.

　Or sell yourself.

　In fact, as an outstanding third-year student, Stuart Fern will naturally become a high-ranking official mage after graduation, and becoming a noble will not be a necessary criterion for him to cross class boundaries.

　However, his family lost their ability to work due to the war, and his unemployed father hoped that he could become a nobleman.

　So after entering St. Mary's College, he tried every means to join the Noble History Research Society, which had very high requirements for the family background of its members—based on his grades.

　Nevertheless, the consequence of trying one's best to squeeze into a circle that doesn't belong to oneself is being marginalized.

　He belonged to the lowest rank in the Society for the Study of Aristocratic History.

　In order to change this situation.

　Stuart Fountain secured his place in the next round.

　With the full text available for free, they made a move against Dark Dimon!

　Logically speaking, his move was not unexpected.

　After all, the lion beast had been "arrogant" for quite some time.

　As competitors in the same arena, there's nothing wrong with teaching the "arrogant" junior a lesson.

　The problem is that his eyes are too sharp.

　So just focus on the Magical Spirits, why are you staring at the players?

　But Stuart Fern didn't do it on purpose.

　As a student who has always strived to transcend social class.

　Stuart Fowne valued class from the bottom of his heart.

　He actually couldn't stand a first-year student mixing in with a group of third-year students.

　Yes, he has a kind of "class fastidiousness" in this regard.

　As the saying goes, the more you lack something, the more you value it.

　Stewart didn't want Darko Dimon to advance from this audition.

　But he wasn't stupid.

　After his two "Shadow Ghosts" met with setbacks, he finally managed to suppress his urge to continue engaging in combat.

　It would be extremely unwise to provoke a duke's son.

　In reality, victory and defeat are common occurrences, and one's origins are irrelevant in a duel.

　Unfortunately, there are always people who pay special attention to these off-stage matters when they feel guilty.

　……

　But Dark had no idea who he was and had no interest in his situation.

　If he didn't glare at Dak, Dak wouldn't even pay him any attention.

　His glare actually left an impression on Dak.

　……

　The competition proceeded as scheduled.

　Zach Wilson's commentary gradually gained momentum.

　When Leomon fought the two Shadowmon just now, he was very expressive and passionate, and performed quite well.

　This made him feel like he had found his form, and he was sure he could perform even better in the upcoming main competition.

　A little over a minute later, when he turned his attention back to Dak, he said "excitedly": "There's less than a minute left before the end of the preliminary rounds. Let's take a look at the current rankings."

　"First place, still undisputed Winnie Skadi, second place... Tom Nixon!"

　"In this final moment, Nixon, a third-year student from the Fool's House, surprisingly surged ahead and surpassed Stuart Fern. It seems the defeat of the two 'Shadow Demons' had a significant impact on him. And Dark Dimon, the student who killed those two Shadow Demons..."

　"As the only freshman who could potentially advance from this audition, Dark Dimon has moved up one place to seventh!"

　"It seems his qualification is a foregone conclusion."

　"I never expected that a first-year student could break through in this chaotic preliminary selection where even third-year students were involved. Dark Dimon truly deserves to be the top student of the first-year noble academy and the recipient of the Crimson Star!"

　"Let's take a look at the other contestants."

　"Fourth place... Mike Irving!"

　"Mike Owen, a third-year student from the Noble Academy, has successfully secured fourth place with his steady and methodical approach."

　"Following in fifth place is Paul Dulles from the Knights Academy! 'Honored Knight' Paul Dulles, who successfully passed the Knight Exams last year and became a Honored Knight, has advanced to the top five!"

　"Sixth place... Elsie Kevin, second year!"

　"Although many strong third-year students did not participate in this Easter Duel Festival, Kevin's ability to stand out among the third-year students proves his strength. He is truly a top student among the second-year students and a promising star to watch."

　"Finally, eighth place... Harrison from the third-year Knights Academy... no, it's Mary Bond from the Noble Academy!"

　"Second-year student Mary Bond has overtaken Harris Barker by one point. With thirty seconds left in the countdown, let's see if Harris Barker can make a comeback and regain the right to advance?"

　"Oh no! Harris Barker's 'Triceratops' was taken down by Mary Bond's 'Martial Turtle's' First Fireball!"

　"No doubt about it, eighth place, second-year aristocratic college student, Mary Bond!"

　"Surprisingly, two second-year students have also successfully advanced! Let's give a warm round of applause to all the advancing students!"

　"Clap clap clap!"

　……

　The chaotic preliminary rounds finally came to a close amidst thunderous applause.

　Dac secured seventh place and qualified for the next round.

　Next up will be a chaotic preliminary round for students in grades four through six.