Fierce Battle!

Absolutely! Here's your scene rewritten into a vivid, immersive, novel-style passage, keeping all your original story beats, dialogue, and progression intact — but making it flow like a tense, cinematic confrontation, packed with sharper emotions, richer atmosphere, and a more suspenseful buildup. I've kept "teach" as "teach," exactly as you requested.

✦ Novel-style rewrite ✦

✦ Sparks in the Arena ✦

The crowd's whispers had barely died down when Lucas finally snapped. His jaw tightened, teeth grinding with frustration, and his sharp glare locked onto Aether with venomous focus.

"Tch…"

Without a single word of warning, Lucas sprang to his feet. Mana surged around him, swirling into his palms as he wove a spell and unleashed it—straight toward Aether.

The entire arena fell into stunned silence. Even the breath of the wind seemed to halt.

"Lucas, what are you doing?!" Olivia shrieked, twisting in her seat, eyes wide with panic.

"Aether—watch out!" Claire's voice broke, raw with sudden fear.

But down on the field, Aether only exhaled, eyes half-lidded with almost bored amusement. "Argh, keep quiet for a while, Claire… this is all going so nicely," he murmured under his breath, watching the spell streak directly toward him—not his mechanism. Exactly as he hoped.

Except fate loved nothing more than chaos.

Just before impact, another student—one of Aether's own classmates—stumbled directly into the line of fire. Aether's eyes widened in shock. "Crap! Where the hell did he come from? I can't use my magic now… too many powerful mages watching—I'd be exposed instantly."

No time to think. Aether launched forward, grabbing the boy by his collar and yanking him aside. The spell slammed into the ground right where they'd stood, exploding in a spray of energy that knocked both of them off balance.

The other boy collapsed, unconscious but miraculously unhurt. Aether wasn't so lucky; lines of fresh bruises burned across his side from the blast.

Lucas scowled above, clearly irritated his spell hadn't finished the job. With a flick of his wrist, he fired off another spell—a concentrated fire burst that struck the earth and exploded into a billow of thick, blinding fog.

✦ The Boy Who Stood Back Up ✦

"Are you okay, Aether?!" Claire's voice cracked, panic clawing at her as she stood abruptly, fists clenched tight.

The entire arena had gone silent, every student, every instructor watching the haze below with bated breath.

Then, through the thinning fog, a figure slowly lifted a hand—and waved.

Aether's casual gesture pulled stunned gasps from the stands.

"Man… that was a hit," Aether thought, flexing his arm. Pain flared up his side, but he ignored it with a wry grin. "Lucky I pulled him fast enough. If that spell landed dead on him… could've been fatal. Even just brushing me left these bruises—hah, oh my, oh my. This is only getting more fun."

He glanced down at the unconscious boy to confirm there were no injuries, then gently laid him aside. Finally, he rose to his full height, cracking his neck, and slowly turned.

His eyes found Lucas—and instantly the entire stadium seemed to drop in temperature.

✦ Eyes That Could Freeze Blood ✦

Aether's gaze was no longer playful. It was cold, so cold that even the headmaster stiffened in his seat. The crowd went deathly still, struck by a dread they couldn't quite name.

"What… are those eyes?" the headmaster mounted, breath shallow.

Even Claire, who had grown up under the same roof as Aether, felt her stomach twist. "What's that? I've… I've never seen him look like this before. I'm actually getting cold."

All around, students shivered. Whispers filled the air.

"Who is this boy? How is he radiating this kind of dreadful presence… and without even using magic?"

The headmaster wrestled with himself. Should he intervene? Stop this before it spiraled out of control? But then his gaze fell on Aether's unwavering stare, and a different curiosity took hold. Against his better judgment, he decided to wait—just a little longer.

✦ Duel of Words ✦

Aether took in a slow breath. When he spoke, his voice was calm, yet it cut through the silence like a blade of ice.

"You there. What do you think you're doing?"

Lucas continued to walk forward, unfazed. He gave a cruel little shrug. "Huh? What does it look like I was doing?"

Aether's eyes narrowed, their cold intensity unflinching. "The spell you fired—it could have killed that boy if it hit him directly."

Lucas barely spared a glance at the unconscious student. He clicked his tongue. "Tch! Like I care. I was aiming for you. If he was dumb enough to get in the way, that's his problem."

The hush over the crowd deepened into something almost reverent, every spectator leaning forward to catch what might come next. Even Ryan was grinning in cruel anticipation. "That kid Aether is dead now, hahaha!"

"What's going to happen?" Olivia whispered, voice trembling.

"Why isn't the headmaster stopping this?" Lena fretted, her eyes darting nervously.

Meanwhile, Claire's breath caught in her throat. "Aether…"

✦ Aether's Judgment ✦

"Oh, I see," Aether said quietly, his voice dropping lower, colder still. "So you don't care if someone else gets hurt by your reckless magic. Figures. It's scum like you that's rotting this world from the inside."

Lucas's face contorted in rage. "Shut up!" he barked, and with a snarl, he unleashed another powerful burst of fire magic. "Die already, you worthless non-mage! Your pitiful mechanisms can't possibly block me!"

The blazing spell hurtled toward Aether. For a heartbeat, he stood perfectly still—then he smiled.

✦ The Mechanism Awakens ✦

In an instant, gleaming panels unfolded before him. Aether's mechanism spun into place with a soft, resonant hum. The spell struck it head-on—and fizzled out, completely absorbed, leaving only a harmless sizzle of residual energy.

The stadium erupted.

"Did you see that?!" students shouted, leaping to their feet. "He blocked it—he blocked a chosen one's attack!"

"Impossible…" Lucas hissed, his voice trembling as his hands clenched into fists. "How—how can a useless like you stop me?!"

Aether tilted his head, a mocking grin stretching his lips. "Oh, I think I heard you wrong. What was that again? That my puny mechanism couldn't block your spell? My ass. At most, you left a little scratch. So tell me, Lucas… are you weak, or am I just that strong?"

The disrespect was absolute. The crowd collectively winced. Even Claire felt a delighted shiver run through her as she burst into a wide, proud smile. "He did it!" she laughed, nearly bouncing.

Beside her, Lena, Zheny, and Hinata each exhaled in relief. "Impressive," Hinata whispered.

✦ Aether's Turn ✦

Aether's smile faded into something sharper. He slowly lifted a hand, fingers poised.

"Well then… now it's my turn. Let me show you what my attack looks like."

The headmaster surged forward, alarm flashing across his face. "What? His creation can also attack? Not good—I need to stop this—"

But before he could even rise from his seat, another voice cut through the tension like a blade.

"STOP!"

Aether's hand paused in midair. His eyes flicked sideways, narrowing as he searched for the speaker.

✦ To Be Continued

(Jojo'z Theme erupts, the camera swirling dramatically from Aether's halted hand to Lucas's sweat-slick face, to Claire's breathless stare—everything hanging in that single breath before the next blow can fall.)