"Punch and kick it harder, Cass!" Oliver shouted. Cassandra did what he instructed; she punched and kicked the sandbag with force. Days flew quickly. Sebastian will come back tomorrow and the Battle of the Strongest will begin. "Last one hundred, Cass. Then we will stop this," Oliver encourages. Cassandra once again strengthened her punch on the sandbag. Earlier, Oliver made her shadowboxed. Yesterday, she had a sparring session with Jet while Liam was her partner every time she's in her wolf form. Cassandra's girlfriends also taught her what they knew. "Don't transform yet when you're in the arena," Oliver said. "Use what you had learned from us first," he added. Cassandra nodded her head. "We can do this!" her wolf said and cheered. Cassandra didn't even notice Oliver walked to her side as she was focused on the sandbag in front of her. Over the week that she had known Oliver, Jet, and Liam. Cassandra could say that they were kind and fun to be with. She doesn't understand why Joana's group would act oppositely and be mean to the students around them. "Good job, Cass!" Oliver praised her and smiled. Cassandra felt proud of herself for a job well done. She grabbed her towel and smiled back. "You ready for tomorrow?" Liam asked while crossing his hands. Cassandra looked at him and raised her thumb. Liam chuckled. "Do you have any news about Blood?" I haven't heard anything from him yet," Cassandra sadly said. Oliver and Liam looked into each other. "Likewise, no news from him," Liam said. "Don't worry, Cass. He won't fail you. He will surely be there tomorrow and support you," Oliver said with a smile. Cassandra heaved a sigh. She truly hoped that he would come. "Then we'll go ahead, Cass. We'll see you tomorrow," Liam said. "Good luck," he added and picked his bag up. Cassandra nodded her head. The two went out first while she slumped on the ground and closed her eyes. After minutes of relaxing, Cassandra stood up and grabbed her gym bag. She glanced around the training ground and walked away, locking the door behind her. It was a fine day in Academia, the weather is gorgeous, and the skies are blue. Cassandra woke up; a glint of excitement can be found in her eyes. Today is the start of the Battle of the Strongest. She hurriedly washed and picked a tracksuit appropriate for the event. "Is he already here?" Cassandra asked Abegail and Lisanna when they arrived at the venue of the event. The two shook their head. She sat on the chair and let out a sigh. "Where are you?" Cassandra whispered. "Don't worry. He'll definitely come," Abegail said and comforted her. "Yeah, he'll come because he made a promise." "Good morning, students of Academia. Welcome to 28th Battle of the Strongest!" the emcee said through the microphone. The crowd suddenly went wild. Cassandra watched on the screen and gasped; she couldn't believe the number of students who went to watch. The arena was almost full. It was a fantastic sight. "Let me introduce to you the twelve strongest rankers of Academia!" the students cheered. The emcee laughed. "Calm down, guys," he said and chuckled. "Rank 12th, Jessa Alyana Silvernia!" the students roared. A girl gracefully went out and smiled at the crowd. "She's a witch," Abegail whispered. Cassandra nodded her head and watched Jessa on the screen when she waved her hand. "Rank 11th, Darius Flincher!" the arena was filled with cheers and roars once again. A boy with sharp eyes got out. He is the same height as Jet. Darius winked, and the girls in the crowd almost faint. The emcee announced the 10th and 9th rankers, which are Logan Walker and Agatha Michella Smith. "Rank 8th, he's famous amongst girls. Let us all welcome, Storm Grim!" the emcee excitedly said. Cassandra stood up in her seat and watched Storm went out. He was emotionless, far from the Storm that she had known. "Storm," Cassandra muttered. Storm glanced around, searching for something. When he found the camera in the room where the contestants were, he smiled. Cassandra smiled back through the screen. She had already forgiven Storm for the ruckus that he did. He was a friend to her. Storm's smile vanished, and he walked beside the rankers. The emcee started calling the rankers again; the 7th and 6th rankers are Judith Lockhart and Krystal Knight. Cassandra looked at Abegail and saw her glaring at the screen. She grabbed her hand and gave a reassuring smile. "I'm fine," Abegail said. The emcee called Liam Wright and Jet Crane, the 5th and 4th ranker. "Let's all welcome the reigning Queen of Academia, Joanna Redwood!" the emcee shouted. The students roared. Joana went out while smiling. Cassandra couldn't help but frown at the sight of her. She wanted to strangle and pull her hair. Joana waved her hand and did a wink before going to the rankers' side. Cassandra made a face. "Finally, we are down to the 2nd strongest ranker, Oliver Hunt!" the emcee muttered. The crowd went wild again. Oliver went out and waved his hand, a smile plastered on his face. "Marry me, Oliver!" a contestant behind Cassandra suddenly said. When she looked at Abegail, she was already glaring at the girl. They heard different talk about him. Abegail blushed when Oliver winked at the camera where they were. "This is the moment we are all waiting for!" the emcee happily said. "Who's excited to see him!?" he added. The crowd cheered. Cassandra could feel her heart beats faster. She tightly gripped the hem of her shirt. "Let's all welcome the man who ruled for three years in the Battle of the Strongest," the emcee began. "The King is also known as First. He is Sebastian Alistair Blood!" he added. The students gave him a round of applause and stood up. Cassandra looked intensely at the screen. Sebastian went out; he was emotionless and was oozing with a powerful aura. The deafening sound coming from the students suddenly went silent. Cassandra could only feel Sebastian's eyes in her, even if she was still inside. She really misses him so much. Cassandra went back to reality when the emcee talked. "Wow! What a blast, King," the emcee said and chuckled. Sebastian didn't answer and went to the rankers. Cassandra's forehead crease. "What's with King and Queen!?" she whispered, yelled into Abegail's ear. "Don't mind it, Cassy. It's nothing," Abegail said. "What is the advice you can give to the neophytes that will fight today for ranking, King?" the emcee asked and handed the microphone to Sebastian. He took it and glanced around. "Good luck and do your best," Sebastian said and handed the microphone back to the emcee. "To all neophytes who will fight today, there's a Golden Rule in the Battle of the Strongest," the emcee announced. "It is not allowed to kill. Your opponent has an option, that is, to fight or to submit. Good luck, neophytes!" he stated. The door of the room opened, one by one, the contestant went out. There are one hundred of them that entered the arena, packed with full confidence and power. Cassandra doesn't really know the real purpose behind the ranking system, but she wants to win. "Are you guys ready!?" the emcee asked. "Let the battle begin," he added with a smirk. The arena went wild once again. Cassandra glanced at her enemies. Suddenly, ten large werewolves circled her like they were protecting her from any harm. Confused, Cassandra prepared herself to fight. Cassandra was in the center. Contestants began attacking, but they couldn't go through unless they fight the ones circling her first. The circle got destroyed as the werewolves attacked back. A girl rushed through Cassandra, but she was fast and threw a punch. The girl fell and was about to stand up, but Cassandra didn't let her and threw successive punches. The girl got knocked down and lost consciousness. The mark on her shoulder disappeared, causing her to lose in the fight. Cassandra breathed deeply. She was surprised when a boy jumped in front of her. She readied herself to defend against his attack, but it never came. A gray wolf bit him and the two fought. Cassandra froze in her place while watching the contestant fight. A whimper snapped Cassandra out of her daydream. She saw a werewolf lying on the floor. His body was covered in wounds. Cassandra rushed to the wolf's side, but it suddenly vanished together with the mark. It confused Cassandra more because she glanced around, and the defeated contestants were nowhere to be found. The arena suddenly felt spacious. Cassandra estimated they were only twenty-five left standing and fighting. "They're fine. They're being treated in the Academia's clinic. You have to focus," a wolf said. Cassandra looked at him and nodded her head. She saw a girl and a chance to attack. She ran to her, but she was shocked when the girl suddenly screamed and took a step backward. "I submit! I submit! Please don't kill me!" the girl said while crying. Cassandra's eyes softened. "Freak! To defeat her!" the crowd said. Cassandra couldn't help but glare at them. She looked at the girl again and examined her. The girl seems fragile that a little touch would break her. "I'm sorry, but how did you join Battle of the Strongest?" Cassandra asked quietly. "They hate me, so they made me join. They wanted to kill me," the girl answered and cried. Casandra pitied her. She waited until the mark from the girl's shoulder disappeared, so is she. Cassandra transformed into her wolf while the crowd was booing. She could feel her feelings getting heavier. No one deserves this kind of treatment. Cassandra howled, and the werewolves inside the ring followed her and howled too. She closed her eyes and felt the soft wind. When she opened her eyes, she attacked the two contestants and knocked them down at the same time. She could feel enormous power flowing through her body. On the other side of the ring, she saw how the two werewolves with her earlier lost. A vampire suddenly jumped at Cassandra and managed to scratch her. She whimpered and growled at him, but the vampire mockingly smiled. His smile irritates Cassandra, so she attacked him and tried to bit him on the shoulder. The vampire dodged it and threw a punch. Cassandra fell in the impact, but she quickly stood up. She lunged at him once again, the vampire was about to dodge, but Cassandra tilted her body and bit the vampire on the side. The vampire screamed in pain and punched Cassandra repeatedly, but she wouldn't let go and bit him hard. "I submit! I fucking submit!" the vampire yelled. Satisfied with the outcome, Cassandra stayed away from him. She sat while panting. She's sure that the punches she got will be bruised later. Cassandra looked at her mate and saw him looking at her too. His both hands were balled into a fist. She tried to stand up, but she was starting to get dizzy. "Please, not now! Hold on a little longer," Cassandra said. "I'll hold on. We will win Cassy," her wolf answered. There are traces of fatigue on her face. She tried to stand up again, and this time she did it successfully. When Cassandra looked around, she saw that they were only three remained in the ring. Two werewolves and one vampire. Slowly, she walked towards them. The black wolf glanced at her and nodded his head, which Cassandra did the same. They started circling their prey. With the black wolf's signal, they attacked the vampire. Cassandra jumped on his right while the black one jumped on his left. She got punched, but the vampire couldn't dodge the black wolf's bite. It gave him a fatal blow. The vampire tried to stand, but he had no strength left. Slowly the mark disappeared. The crowd cheered for the intense fight. Cassandra looked at the black wolf and readied herself, but she was surprised when he suddenly bowed his head. "I submit," he said. Cassandra heard different reactions coming from the crowd. Some of them were disappointed with what the black wolf did, but they couldn't do anything. No one is allowed to intervene in the fight. His mark disappeared, and he started to fade, but he spoke. "Congratulations, Queen" It left Cassandra confuse. She wanted to ask him what he meant, but he vanished. A woman went inside the ring with clothes in her hand. "Get dress into this," she said. Cassandra looked at her weirdly because she wouldn't do it, not in front of the students. The girl smiled at her and waved her hand. She felt like a barrier was created inside. "Cease your worries. They won't see you now," the girl said. Hesitant, Cassandra did what she has been told. She transformed back to her human form and get dress. When she was done, the woman went down, and the barrier was lost. "There she is! The neophyte who survive the Battle of the Strongest!" the emcee said and pointed her. "Cassandra Louise Reese!" he shouted. The crowd cheered. Cassandra forced a smile and uttered thanks. She waved her hands at the crowd. "The first part of the Battle of the Strongest is done! Let's see each other again in the next few days where our neophyte champion will face the rankers!" the emcee said. "Enjoy your day, Academians!" he added. Casandra went down the ring, and the students started leaving one by one. "Cassy! You did great!" Lisanna beamed. "I'm so proud of you," Abegail said. Cassandra smiled. "Thank you, guys!" Cassandra said. She saw Liam, Jet, Oliver, and Sebastian are walking in their direction. She rushed and jumped at Sebastian and ignored Oliver, who's talking to her. Sebastian caught her and smiled. Cassandra immediately wrapped her legs around his waist and kissed him wildly but passionately. Sebastian kissed her back with the same intensity. Cassandra put her arms around his neck. He gripped her waist tightly while his other hand was on her face. She moaned when Sebastian sucked her lower lip. "Hey, love birds! Stop it already!" Jet shouted. Cassandra rested her forehead in Sebastian while panting heavily. "I missed you," Cassandra said. "I fucking missed you more, love," Sebastian said and licked his lips. "But I won't mind leaving again then coming back to this," he said and chuckled. Cassandra rolled her eyes and smacked him. "Jerk!" Cassandra said while laughing. She went down and stuck her tongue out to Jet. Sebastian put his arm on Cassandra's shoulder and went to Oliver. "Don't forget the training, love," Sebastian reminded, which made her groaned. "Damn training!"