Silence settled between the two mage’s.

"I said...I’ll be on my way now." Moon said coldly, his eyes locked with the cryomancer’s.

The cryomancer’s expression darkened. He studied Moon for a long moment, his mind racing through the pros and cons of fighting the lightning mage.

’He’s strong. Strong enough that a real fight could go either way. I haven’t shown my full strength yet, and I’m confident I have an edge if I commit. But fighting him here, this early, with cameras watching and other competitors potentially circling the area...’

He let out a slow breath.

’If a powerful third party intervenes during our fight, both of us lose. It’s better to walk away. We’ll meet again later, when the field has thinned and the conditions are more favorable.’

Moon held the Cryomancer’s gaze.

The Cryomancer met it without flinching.

Neither of them moved for several seconds.

Then Moon turned and walked away.

The Cryomancer watched him until he disappeared into the treeline, then exhaled and turned in the opposite direction, heading toward his own next objective.

In the spectator stands and across the broadcast feeds, a collective groan rose from the audience.

"What?! That’s it?!"

"They didn’t even fight! I was ready for it!"

"They were both ready! Both of them had attacks loaded! Why did they walk away?!"

The disappointment was shared across the crowd. Two strong fighters meeting in an open clearing was the kind of moment everyone tuned in for, and the camera had captured every second of the buildup only for it to fizzle into nothing.

A young man in the upper rows of the stands shook his head and spoke loudly enough for those around him to hear. It was the same young man with square glasses perched on his nose from earlier.

"It’s because they’re at near-equal strength."

A few heads turned.

"Think about it." He continued. "Both of them realized the other was just as strong as they were. A real fight between them would take time, drain their mana, and leave them both vulnerable to whoever stumbled across the area.

There’s no benefit in burning resources against a near-equal opponent in the beginning of a free-for-all. They’d rather wait until the bracket narrows down and only the strong are left. If they have to fight then, fine. But not now."

The crowd murmured in understanding.

"Damn. That actually makes sense."

"Still though. I wanted to see ice versus lightning."

"Same. Hopefully later in the tournament."

The grumbling continued, but the frustration turned into something more patient. The fans understood now, even if they didn’t love it. The tournament was a long game, and the smart players were treating it that way.

Unknown to the audience, Moon’s real reason for walking away from the Cryomancer wasn’t purely from a strategic caution perspective. It was a scholarly perspective as well.

He had just copied a new class. And before he could use the skills effectively, he needed to comprehend them. That required seclusion from prying eyes in a quiet, isolated area.

Moon’s goal had changed entirely. Points, candidates, fights, none of it mattered until he comprehended what he had just acquired.

He needed a hideout.

Moon ran across the zones, ignoring the Evolvers he caught sight of in his peripherals. He passed potential targets without engaging, slipped around active fight zones, and avoided the open clearings where cameras tended to congregate.

It took roughly an hour to find what he was looking for. A natural cave tucked into the side of a rocky outcrop, partially obscured by overgrown vegetation, far enough from any allocated sections that the cameras likely hadn’t mapped this area yet.

Moon swept the cave’s interior carefully, making sure no one was hiding inside. Once he confirmed it was empty, he sealed the entrance with several large stones, leaving just enough space for air to circulate but not enough for anyone to easily push through without making noise.

He walked deeper into the cave. The natural rock formed a chamber roughly the size of a small room. Not cramped, but not spacious either. Perfect for what he needed.

He pulled a torch from his ring, lit it, and wedged it into a crevice on the wall. Warm orange light flickered across the stone, illuminating the chamber enough to see clearly.

Moon sat down and opened the first skill’s description.

[Cryomancy]

[Order: Second] [Rank: Epic]

[Proficiency: 0%]

[Details: You have mid affinity with the element of ice. +200% Elemental Control, +200% Elemental Damage.]

He read through it twice, frowning slightly.

’That’s not as strong as I expected. It’s weaker than my True Elemental Physique.’

Then he caught himself.

The comparison wasn’t fair. His True Elemental Physique was a fused skill, the product of two Epic-rank skills merged into a single, evolved Second Order foundation. Cryomancy was a standalone Epic-rank skill. Of course it would output less.

Held against a single one of his elements on its own, Cryomancy actually held its ground well when compared to his lightning element

What concerned Moon more was the lack of a special effect.

His purple lightning damaged souls. His blue fire reduced fire resistance and caused burning. Both effects had unlocked through evolution to second order. Cryomancy, by contrast, listed nothing beyond raw elemental output, like a normal first order skill would.

’Maybe the effect unlocks when I fully comprehend the skill.’ Moon thought, his fingers tapping against his chin. ’At zero proficiency, the skill might be hiding the secondary trait. Once I push it to comprehension status, it’ll probably reveal what ice actually does.’

He stored the information and moved to the next skill on the list.

[Ice Storm]

[Order: Second]

[Rank: Rare]

[Proficiency: 0%]

[Details: Unleashes a barrage of icicles above a target, covering a total radius of 10m. On hit: Frostbite --- 10% total damage per second for 5 seconds.]

Moon nodded in satisfaction, the skill was not bad. For a rare skill, it was pretty good, reminding him of [Explode] -- The evolved version of [Ignite].