“Phew…”

Miyabi touched her chest. She felt like she just survived a big surgical operation.

“Yeah, we did it. We Sublimated.”

“Yeah.”

Tomoe agreed.

“Looks like your efforts weren’t wasted.”

“Nn.”

Miyabi smiled brightly. She appears to be in a good mood.

Someone who didn’t raise her physical and mental state enough would have failed the Sublimation ritual.

Miyabi is happy precisely because she knew this.

Miyabi is the weakest among them. Her physical and mental abilities were terrible.

Even so, she succeeded and became a Rank II Exceed.

Miyabi is over the moon because she worked her butt off to get here.

The others also succeeded in their Sublimation rituals.

“Looks like we can all enter our second years without worry.”

Julie said.

“Nobody needs to drop out.”

There are requirements for entering the next study year.

In a year, the students must raise their ranks by one or be expelled.

In other words, only Rank II Exceeds can enter Year 2. Meanwhile, only Rank III Exceeds can enter Year 3.

Once they finish Year 3, they can all graduate and work for the Dawn Organization.

Assuming they can finish their courses and exams, they can make an easy transition to Year 2 since they already got Rank II Exceed designations.

Compared to when they first got their Astar Marks, the Sublimation was eerily serene.

They just felt their bodies warming up before the medical officers told them the operation was successful.

It’s hard to believe all that hype led to that scene.

Noah is the only one who clearly felt the changes.

Because he suppressed himself to Rank I powers, he could tell the augmentations worked as intended.

If Exceed Rank I had stat multipliers at 10x then his current stat multipliers felt like 30x than 20x.

In other words, they were several times stronger than before.

Noah finally understood how incredible it was that he defeated Usa-sensei at Rank I power when she is using Rank V stats.

The gaps increased the higher the Exceed Rank.

Rank V should have been at least 100x stronger than Rank I Exceeds.

Plus, Usa-sensei knew how to use her superhuman speed and strength. Plus, she also unleashed her True Blaze which made her a terrifying foe that not even 30 Rank II can beat.

Without his Leap and Annihilating Punch, Noah was sure he would have lost using Rank I stats.

Just like his physical powers, his mental and magic abilities got boosted too.

In particular, the magic he sealed using Limit grew more in the sealed state.

His Blazes also grew.

The durability of his Blazes grew while their potencies also increased.

Physical, mental, and magical abilities were strengthened. His unique physique also assimilated these gains. This means even if he somehow lost his nanomachines and Astar Mark, he would still be just as powerful.

The Sublimation definitely boosted his specs, assuming he keeps his Limit on.

At this rate, further Sublimation rituals will push Noah into an unimaginably powerful state.

No, this is assuming the Astar mark can continue boosting Noah’s sky-high potential.

“Hmm?”

Noah felt someone staring at him.

He paused before looking back.

Someone was staring at him through the glass window of the building he is currently in.

He looked out the window to see a lady standing at the top of a building. She was standing beyond the protection of rails and barrier meshes. If she fell, she would be hurt. However, she seemed to pay the height no mind as winds fluttered her hair.

She had glorious blonde locks that made her easy to spot.

She didn’t expect Noah to notice her. She changed her attitude instantly.

There is at least a distance of 100 meters but she still gave him a foxy smile.

However, Noah recognized that smile. It was the smile of a hunter who had found her prey.

Noah can just make out what she said by reading her lips.

Found you…

Then, the blonde girl turned around and left.

Noah narrowed his eyes.

“Noah?”

Julie walked to the window too. She wanted to see what had caught Noah’s attention.

“What’s wrong?”

Noah returned to his present situation before looking away from the window. He was still puzzled. He shook his head.

“No, it’s nothing.”

Noah followed the ladies as they left.

After a while, the blonde girl appeared at the entrance of the building she used as the vantage point.

She looked at the window where she spotted Noah.

“Noah Dreyar, huh?”

She mumbled like she was drunk on her encounter with Noah.

“Different from what I had imagined but he is definitely more intriguing than I had expected.”

She trained her finger pistol on where Noah used to stand. She fired her imaginary bullet.

“I am looking forward to the meeting between the Irregular and the Exception.”