[Arena Floor, at the Impact Sight]
After checking their pulses, Fumie sighed with relief. All three invigilators had been knocked out, but they were still alive. She quickly applied basic sealing incantations to temporarily ease the pain they were feeling.
“Hello? Is everyone alright?” a voice called.
It was B15 from the healer’s guild, joined by his crew. Two of the members began giving Fumie a hand in administrating aid, propping up the defeated invigilators onto incanted golden stretchers. The other three began scanning the area around the fog, disappearing from sight.
B15 walked over toward Fumie, who was now panting on the ground, sitting cross-legged. “They look pretty beat up, but they should be okay,” he confirmed.
“Thank goodness,” Fumie collapsed. “I-I barely had any mana left.”
“Take a much-needed rest. We’ll take over from here.”
“B15!?” Another voice bellowed.
Rurah came into view, joined by Ned. The two ran over quickly, with the former’s head whipping around wildly. “Have you seen a blonde-haired girl by any chance!?” he asked. “Her name is Nally.”
“Your companion?” the healer questioned. “Some of my teammates are currently surveying the area and assessing this fog-smoke. They’ll locate her if she’s nearby.”
“Thank you,” the giant bowed slightly. “Is there anything we can do to help?”
“No, we should be fine here. However, I believe Dr. Scale might require some help."
Rurah nodded. “Alright, we’ll check with him.”
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[Above the Arena]
The masked figure slowly retracted its arm from Hitto’s chest as blood and guts oozed from the gaping wound. The boy was completely unresponsive, lifeless, even. His skin was pale as ice, his lips charred, and his eyes dead. Not even a hint of struggle or pain escaped his expression as the last of the invading arm made its way out of his innards, revealing a jarring hole in his stomach. It was a grotesque sight.
The masked figure then raised the body by the neck, purposely showing the mangled figure to Snowl, who somehow remained unfazed throughout the whole ordeal. Realizing it wouldn’t get a reaction, the masked person released their grip on the boy, allowing him to plummet toward the ground. Surprisingly, Snowl did not budge to prevent the boy from falling. Instead, his gaze was still fixed on his adversary.
“I thought I told you to stop,” Snowl spoke sharply. “Why didn’t you listen?”
Mask refused to respond. Instead, they raised their bloody arm and pointed a finger at Snowl. Then, without any warning, they blitzed toward the leader of the guard. In mere seconds, they latched their fingers around Snowl’s neck, using the momentum from their speed to hold him in a tight grip.
The leader of the guard struggled against the grasp as he was pushed backward at an insane speed. Within seconds, he was smashed against the barrier, disintegrating upon impact.
…
Instantly, the masked figure began to look around, shifting their head in each and every direction. Then, out of nowhere, they raised an arm above their head as an ice blade came crashing down into it.
…
“Interesting,” said its wielder, wedging the blade deeper into his foe’s flesh. “I’m surprised you knew to continue looking around. Most would have assumed I was dead. As a result, I can safely assume you’re an individual who is aware of my ability, meaning you’re someone from the Association… the upper echelons at that.”
Mask retracted their arm quickly, darting away from the area as Snowl descended slowly to meet them at their level. “It’s been a while since I’ve had to use my powers,” the Head Knight stated, pointing his blade at his enemy. “You better make this worth it. Ice Incantation 40.” A blast of ice erupted from the blade's tip toward Mask, who shifted out of its path. Snowl used that opportunity to close down the distance, stating nonchalantly, “Ice Incantation 1.”
A ball of ice appeared in his palm, with sharp icicles emerging. Within seconds, he smashed the ball into the chest of the Masked individual. In response, Mask grabbed the arm, halting any possible efforts to drive the blow in. Snowl then decided to raise his blade once more with his free arm, but that two was quickly apprehended by Mask’s spare arm.
“This won’t do for you,” Snowl sighed. “You’ll lose at this rate.”
!?
The ice from his earlier Incantation was expanding, seeping into his foe’s stomach at an alarmingly fast rate.
“Ice Incantation 40 - expansion,” Snowl spoke. “When combined with Incantation 1 – energy, it creates a never-ending expansion of ice that can destroy a person’s internal organs. Truly devastating.”
A massive black pentagram with incomprehensible words then materialized beside the two fighters. It hummed and vibrated before something began to emerge from it slowly. It was shaped like a head… no, it was a head—the head of an eyeless black goat with four horns jutting from its crown. It was a beast of a figure, dwarfing the two fighters in size. Without warning, its mouth cracked open, revealing lines of jagged teeth drenched in saliva.
Upon seeing this, Snowl fought to release himself from the masked individual. He struggled and struggled, but the grip was far too firm.
A small, eerie whistle could then be heard coming from the head. It got louder and louder with each passing second, turning into an ear-deafening screech. Alarmed, Snowl turned to face the beast, realizing the sound was coming from a ball of black energy that was growing in its mouth. Without warning, it expanded rapidly before erupting out in his direction.
The blast beam hit him instantly, but surprisingly, the moment it subsided, he appeared once more… this time from below.
Mask was prepared, stretching out that same injured arm to parry the incoming blade as the head of the guard closed in. However, right before impact, Snowl slightly adjusted the tip of his blade, cleaving through the invader’s arm with a well-timed slash as blood erupted from the wound.
“It’s not over yet,” the head guard stated calmly, now above his foe. “Ice incantation 20.”
The wound froze over, with invasive ice stemming from the slash corroding its way to Mask’s chest. As a result, the assailant ceased all movement.
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“With that, you should be completely frozen on the inside,” Snowl spoke. “In other words, dead.” His eyes remained on his foe for a brief moment before turning to face the goat head. “Why hasn’t that incantation disappeared?” he questioned.
The moment his thoughts subsided, he once again heard the goat's whistle. Alarmed, the head knight braced for impact as another beam of energy erupted from the beast’s mouth.
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Just how powerful is Snowl?
Many in the Association wanted to know the answer to this question.
In modern times, he is the only person ever to be exempted from taking the Warrior Examination. Seemingly hand-picked by Ozo, the mysterious protégée accelerated up the ranks quickly to a newly created position known as ‘Head Knight.’
Ambiguous was the only word that could be used to describe the position. He performed no clear duties, seemingly waltzing his way through the Association at any given moment.
So why?
Why, then, was he given his own title and so much authority?
What did Ozo see in him to warrant this support?
Nobody knew the answer, and soon, none were interested because of his foolish nature… except for Dr. Scale.
Since being appointed, nobody has paid more attention to Snowl than the Research Guild Master. He made the protégée his right-hand man, second only to Ozo in his influence over him. During that same time, he learned about his powers yet never saw them in action…
Until today.
The ultimate test was at hand. A being capable of mass destruction versus an individual with unknown hidden potential. Truly, a spectacle worthy of dissection.
“Dr. Scale,” a voice intervened in his moment of intense thought. “Should we help Snowl?”
The Guild Master turned to his side. The sight of Rurah and Ned greeted him. “Ah, yes, you should probably help him. The fight appears to be in Snowl’s favour right now, but the assailant has already apprehended Hitto. I sent invigilators to retrieve the boy’s body.”
Rurah was right about to leave before the Guild Master extended out an arm to stop him. “Before you go,” he warned. “You should know what kind of threat you are about to face. That Masked person is clearly Guild Master level, so even you will struggle against it. As for Ned, I don’t think it is wise for you to help at all. You’ll just get in the way.”
“What!?” the boy scoffed. “So, I should stand here like you and do nothing?”
“Observation,” The doctor rebutted. “It is an important element of battle. Do whatever you wish, though; I won’t stop you.”
“That’s exactly what I’ll do,” Ned glared. “Let’s go, Rurah.”
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[Above the Arena]
The massive blast from the goat head finally subsided. Snowl materialized once more in front of it as the puzzling situation racked his brain. What on earth was going on? The masked figure remained unresponsive, still. Yet, its incantation was active, posing a serious threat.
If I charge into its radius again, the head knight thought. Will that same attack activate?
There was only one way to find out.
“Wait!” he heard Rurah call from below.
He was joined by Ned, with the two ascending to reach his level. The latter was struggling to maintain composure while in the air.
“I can launch a Lightning Incantation at it,” the giant began. “Let’s see how it reacts to that attack before doing anything else.”
“Alright,” Snowl agreed. “If that’s the case, we should all use a ranged Incantation. I’ll focus my attack on the perpetrator’s body while you two attack the goat head. If we time it right and hit both, it’ll limit any possible counters.”
All three got into position quickly. Rurah led the charge, pointing two fingers at the goat head before yelling; “Lightning Incantation 10!”
At the exact same time, Snowl released Ice Incantation 40 and Ned Wind Incantation 20. All three blasts hit their targets, with Snowl’s immediately freezing what remained of Mask’s body. The ice enveloped the attacker from head to toe before shattering into tiny shards the naked eye could not see.
As for the goat head, the Wind and Lightning Incantation created a massive amount of smoke that blinded the area in which it floated. Upon its clearance, the three fighters were annoyed to find that the behemoth of a figure still stood strong, seemingly unaffected by the attack.
But then, without warning, the creature's mouth expanded even further, alerting the men.
Snowl especially was on guard. He had already experienced the blast before and could tell instantly that something was different. That ear-deafening whistle was not present.
“Be careful!” he yelled to his companions. “Cast incantation 5 for defence or prepare to dodge.”
But nothing happened.
No beam, no attack.
Instead, an arm clothed in black emerged from the beast’s mouth… followed by another. They clasped onto the rows of jagged teeth, using them like pillars to pull their way out of the abyss. Soon, the all too familiar blank white mask could be seen.
Ned shook his head repeatedly. “No way,” he trembled as that same figure appeared before them. “We saw that person shatter into pieces… how is this possible?”
Their arm was back, fully intact, and their chest was clear of any and all ice. Nothing Snowl did earlier seemed to have damaged Mask. They were back at square one.
…
Before anyone could react, Mask made a move.
The figure was no longer hovering around the beast.
Instead, they appeared in front of Ned as if they had teleported.
Not even a split second had passed, and as a result, they were all still standing still, unaware of what was happening.
No one could comprehend the speed.
It was God-like.
Mask then released a devastating punch into Ned’s neck that caved in instantly upon impact. The rapier wielder went from being perfectly fine to having his windpipe crushed in under a second.
He could not breathe.
Gasping for air, blood swelled in his mouth as he choked and coughed out mucus.
What!? He winced in pain as panic filled his mind. What happened? What happened? WHAT HAPPENED!?
Ned clasped his eyes shut as the impact sent him flying back at an immense speed.
Is this it? He thought to himself as tears began to stream from his eyes. Will I really die here before accomplishing anything? Was everything I’ve achieved up to this point… for this?
As the thoughts continued to swell in his brain, his charge back suddenly halted. Soon, intense euphoria replaced the feeling of pain as his mind blanked.
…
“Close call,” B15 sighed while casting a Healing Incantation onto Ned’s neck. “We made it just in time. Any later, and he would’ve died from lack of oxygen.”
“Thanks for catching him,” Dr. Scale smiled. “He’s a one-dimensional thinker, but we still need him. I hope this lesson taught him well.”
“Lesson? Alright,” the healer chuckled. “Let’s get this show on the road!”
Immediately, Fumie appeared behind the masked assailant, joined by the other members of the Healers Guild. They pointed their staffs at the girl, sending rays of golden energy toward her. After around five seconds of absorbing the energy, the girl pointed her trembling staff at Mask.
“D-Divine Barrier!” she yelled.
A small golden box materialized out of thin air, trapping the assailant within it. Surprisingly, they put up no resistance at all. Instead, they simply stood still, directing their ‘gaze’ toward Dr. Scale.
At the same time, Rurah and Snowl rejoined the crew. The former was completely bewildered by the situation, speeding over toward B15.
“W-Will he be okay!?” he stammered. “I-I have no clue how that happened. One second, that thing was in front of the goat head, and the next, it attacked Ned…”
“It’s a Divine Art known as Blitz,” Dr. Scale answered, floating toward them. “Its usage puts a massive strain on its user’s muscles in return for immense speed. Like most Divine Arts of its calibre, it cannot be used often.” The guild master then turned to face their captured enemy. “But then again, we cannot know with this individual.”
“U-Uhm, guys,” Fumie shuddered while keeping an eye on the assailant. “Can we please take care of this first? Even with the Healers Guild’s assistance, it’ll be difficult for me to create another barrier…”
“Right,” B15 agreed while handing Ned over to one of his companions. “Let’s get rid of the enemy.”
Snowl was the first to act, charging toward the barrier with no hesitation. The moment he got close, a screech could be heard coming from the goat’s head. As It prepared for another beam, Fumie stepped forward, placing herself between the two of them. B15 joined her, placing his hand on her back.
“You’ve got this,” he stated calmly as golden energy flowed from him to her. “I know it's not your mana, but it's better than nothing.”
“Y-Yup!” the girl shouted. “Divine Barrier!”
The blast erupted from the goat’s mouth, travelling at a devastatingly fast speed. Thankfully, Fumie’s barrier was erected just in time, deflecting the beam in each and every direction.
As it began to subside, the girl sighed in relief.
“Close one!” she smiled.
At the same time, Snowl was now mere inches away from the Divine Barrier. The Head Knight materialized an ice blade, pointing it toward his target. “Fumie, now!” he stated.
“Release! “The girl shouted while pointing her staff at the barrier.
In a flash, the golden box vanished, clearing the way for Snowl's assault. His blade, poised to strike, aimed for his adversary's heart. Yet, as he closed in, their foe grasped for their mask, a hand landing on its white surface. This sudden move threw Snowl off balance, causing him to redirect his blade towards the being's torso. His strike landed, penetrating past Mask's skin as he came to a sudden halt. His opponent, still rooted, proceeded to take off the covering.
A tense silence fell over everyone, broken only by gasps that erupted from their lips. Concealed beneath the mask was a face both familiar and utterly unexpected—a beauty adorned with flowing blonde locks framed by piercing ocean-blue eyes.
…
It was none other than Nally Stenner.