A/N: Suprise! Here's a double release for the day. Also i would like to send a shout out to Aonte, CPT Ratchet, CynzFireFly, and Sharose for PRing this chp! Well I hope every enjoys the final battle!
“Ladies and gentlemen! It is finally time for the match everybody has been looking forward to! Over the past five weeks, these two freshmen have mesmerized and captivated our souls match after match with their awe-inspiring talent and graceful skills. We here at Sinara are truly blessed to have both of these fine young gentlemen lead our team and bring back the title of “Strongest” Academy in Xiosu by winning the Rising Star Tournament! Well then let us move on to the introduction of the finalists!
From the Rhostaz Kingdom: hailed as a prodigy dual elementalist who at the young age of nine has already has reached King Rank in both Earth and Steel elements: Zer Aiur!
His opponent today is a fellow nine year old freshmen that has caused an uproar throughout the academy with his mysterious status. Hailing from the Kingdom of Nifl, he is a mysterious enigma that is rumored but yet verified to be one of the legendary tri elementalist Azrael Celeste!”
As the two were entering the stage, a large outburst erupted from the stands. Chants for Azrael and Zer vied for supremacy as they grew louder with each chant, attempting to best the other. The two best friends, however, did not notice and just grinned at each from across the stage.
There was no need for words between the two. All that mattered to them was this highly anticipated battle. Unlike their spars, they would hold nothing back and aim for one thing: Victory. At that moment the referee entered the stage and once the crowd had silence went over the rules one final time.
“Alright gentlemen. You know the rules. The match will be decided if one loses their consciousness, surrenders, or the panel deems that the strength difference between the contestants is too high. If you hit your opponent in any vital areas, even if it was a mistake, you will be disqualified.
Contestant Azrael Celeste, are you ready?”
At the referee’s words, Azrael merely nodded his head, not allowing his gaze to falter from Zer.
“Contestant Zer Aiur, are you ready?”While he grinned in anticipation for the battle, Zer also nodded without breaking eye contact with Azrael.
“Okay then, at the end of the countdown the match shall begin. Five… four… three… two… one…. BEGIN!”
Contrary to the majority’s thoughts, instead of them charging at each other both Azrael and Zer walked toward each other at a slow pace. Twenty feet, fifteen, seven. With each step forward the two closed gap in between them. Once the gap was only five feet the two began their assault.
Having started the incantation as they approached each other, Zer launched his spell. A large earth pillar rose right in front of Azrael which blocked his path forward. He then took advantage of Azrael’s loss of sight as he headed to the left of the pillar and aimed an overhead slash toward his right shoulder. As he went around the pillar and saw Azrael, however, he saw that Azrael was grinning.
‘Shit!’
When Azrael had seen the pillar of earth rise from the ground. He sent an image to Chunyong. In a circular area around him that was only two feet in height, all the heat rapidly disappeared. The circle then pushed itself outwards, removing all the heat in the area it passed. As he noticed Zer come from the right side of the pillar, a grin broke out. Without even the slightest hesitation, Azrael gave Chunyong the go to release the magic.
With Azrael at its center, a circle of ice appeared around his midsection that rapidly expanded outward. Due to having jumped backwards immediately, Zer gained a valuable second which allowed him to jump over the ring of ice.
“Ho… that was quite the good intuition Zer, stepping back immediately. You wouldn’t have had enough time to dodge if you didn’t.”
“Haa…. I can’t believe you used my own strategy against me…. Who would have thought that you would use that area of effect magic Khione’s Ring there.”
Even though it had only been for a brief moment, the crowd couldn’t help but hold their breath and gaze at the contestants with admiration. Not only had Zer predicted that both contestants would explode into action and timed the spell correctly, he had also used his intuition to jump backwards and evade Azrael’s spell. Azrael, on the other hand, had seen through his plan and almost instantaneously released a spell to take advantage of Zer’s strategy. The action had been instantaneous and only lasted all of three seconds.
After the two exchanged a few brief words, Azrael began his offensive. Traversing the ten yard gap between them as numerous fireballs appeared around him. He then rushed off towards Zer. In response Zer improved his physical qualities by casting “Physical Enhance”.
Even though the spell was only a King Rank steel element, it is very helpful skill as it hardened the caster’s muscles for defensive use and improved his strength, speed, and agility. With his physical conditions improved, Zer rushed forward, dodging some of the projectiles while slashing through the others.
Although he was unable to avoid or destroy all of the fireballs, Zer wasn’t worried as they did minimal damage due to the strengthening of his skin and continued forward. As the two were in striking distance of each other, Zer was the faster one and was the first to send a thrust aimed toward Azrael’s right shoulder.
Using his spear, Azrael deflected the sword and pushed it outwards. Taking advantage of this, Azrael counterattacked by hitting Zer in the solar plexus with a thrust. As he attempted to press forward with his attack, Zer brought his knee up and connected with his chest. The unexpected strike caused Azrael to fall back, opening the distance between them once more.
The crowd finally went into a frenzy with the flurry of action. Even though the match had started not too long ago, the two had already exchanged many spells and physical attacks while trying to outsmart their opponent.
“….That was quite the bout to start off the match Rialesta.”
“I guess you could say “as expected” of the final match between these two, Kevin. Not only are they constantly attacking, but also trying to set a trap for their opponent. It almost feels as though I am watching a chess match. Oh they’ve began to trade blows once again! “
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
Just as Rialesta had stated, the two had charged at each other again. Unlike the previous time, neither Azrael nor Zer used magic and clashed solely with their weapons. A slash from the right shoulder to left waist, a parry then a counter with a slash arcing upwards. Both sides were focusing primarily on their skills with their weapons as they both attacked ferociously with a never ending rhythm.
To the spectators in the stands, the clashes began to look as though it was some type of weapon dance. With the sword and double-ended spear in a constant motion, the two would clash with each other, but would never reach their foe’s body.
“Why do you think that both contestants are only using their weapons and not magic, Rialesta?”
“In a fight at such close range, there is almost no time. The slightest mistake while casting magic could be the determining factor in who wins the match. At most these two could do only the simplest of magic; ones that are quick to cast and can give them even the slightest of advantages to tilt the battle.”
Just as Rialesta had predicted, even during this flurry of strikes the two were trying to think of ideas that could potentially turn the tide of battle their way. Although Zer still had his trump card “Steel Break”, he was hesitant to use it as it had already been shown in the previous match and Azrael must have already thought of methods to counter the spell’s main weakness.
Even though the spell did allow his body’s physical attributes to by several folds, it was only for a brief second and it caused serious after effects to the body. If Zer used it carelessly and used the skill to no avail, the match would be practically over.
Azrael, on the other hand, was contemplating whether or not to use his darkness element spells. Although Zer already knew he possessed the darkness element, Azrael had never used it in front of him. Even if he couldn’t overpower him with just the darkness spell, the constant barrage of three different elements should be enough.
The fight slowly began tilting in Zer’s favor. Azrael had known if it was a battle with only weapons, he would lose. Even though he had much more experience than Zer, he had only began training with the spear once again two months ago. Even if he knew all the movements and techniques in his mind, it would still takes years of practice for his body to accumulate enough muscle mass and finesse for him to execute them the way he wanted.
Zer, on the other hand, had already been training with the sword for over three years. His body had been tempered to wielding the sword. Azrael knew that although he didn’t have actual battle experience, he had trained against some of the top swordsman within the Rhostaz Kingdom so he could gain experience and insight.
While he knew that the battle was tilting in his favor, Zer refused to get overconfident. While he may be superior with his swordsmanship, he also knew that Azrael was superior in magic and would never admit defeat. He would remain vigilant and wait for the perfect opportunity.
That opportunity came a few minutes later. As Zer’s overhead slash struck down upon the spear, he noticed that Azrael had stepped on loose rock and momentarily lost his balance. Zer’s chance to finish the match had finally arrived.
‘Got to be now!’
Zer created a space between him and Azrael by kicking him in the chest, using the momentum to jump backwards. As he had already begun the incantation, by the time he had landed, the spell was already near completion.
“..come to my aid and give me the strength to defeat a thousand foes! Steel Break!”
As he completed the incantation, the spell activated. With the strength and speed that only warriors at the Saint level should have, Zer reached Azrael in the blink of an eye and was about to swing his slash his sword down… when he saw Azrael grin. Even though victory should have been guaranteed at that point, Zer felt as though something was wrong and with that grin on his friend’s face, Zer realized that he had been tricked.
At that moment, numerous chains of water began to wrap around Zer’s body. Even though they were not strong enough to fully bind him, they served their purpose admirably as the chains were able to slow him down enough for the spell’s time limit to pass before he was able to slash.
As Azrael jumped backwards to widen the gap between them, two javelins began to materialize above him. The first was created from ice while the other was made from fire. Although the two were created in the image of a javelin, the blade end had been shaped into a round shape so that they could not penetrate.
Having gained enough distance, the javelins shot forward and hit Zer in his chest and solar plexus, causing him to fly backward from the sheer impact. As he hit the ground, Zer kept rolling backwards until he lied on his back 8 feet away. Not taking anything for granted, Azrael remained in a defensive posture ready to strike at any time.
While Azrael awaited for Zer to stand up, a sharp whistle sound echoed throughout the arena.
“The panel have decided that contestant Zer Aiur can no longer compete. The champion of the Sinara Academy Representative Tournament is Azrael Celeste!”
At the announcement crowning Azrael as the winner, the crowd exploded into cheers. Even though the crowd had been divided over who they cheered for, at that moment both sides cheered for Azrael as he stood on the stage and for Zer who had put up an excellent fight.
As soon as he heard that the battle was over, Azrael ran over to Zer’s side. He had grown worried that he might have overdone it by using two javelins and injured him seriously.
“That was a little overkill at the end, Az.”
Hearing Zer’s unstrained voice, he couldn’t help but sigh in relief.
“Sorry about that man. Are you seriously injured anywhere?”
“Well, if my body didn’t ache so much, I feel as though I’d want to get up and punch you for that second javelin.”
Laughing to hide his embarrassment, Azrael carefully helped him stand up. Giving him a shoulder for support, the two began to exit the stage as the crowd continued to roar from the excitement of the battle that had just transpired, going on long after both participants had exited the stage.