CHAPTER 164
DOMINATING THE JUNIOR LEAGUE (2)
Chris was trying to calm his palpitating heart, but Hans playfully interjected into his conversation, wearing a smirk. "So, how are you feeling, coming to the dark side?”
"Mostly liberating, but I'll stay in the light," Chris replied, casting a quick glance at Delimira. "At least one of us has to stay sane; we already have two crazies among us, don't you think?"
Delimira picked up on the banter, "I'm not haemophilic like you two," she pointed out. She turned her focus to her opponent and declared, "But sometimes, it's only right to let them know who they're messing with."
Despite their playful exchange, Chris felt a sense of completeness when he let go of his usual moral restraint and allowed his energy to flow unrestrained. He pressed his chest, sensing his heart beating loudly. “Yeah, yeah, I know, but calm down a bit. It's not the time for your introduction.”
The next match marked Delimira's debut, and as she rose to her feet and gracefully made her way to the arena, her enchanting presence captivated everyone. Her rapier dangled elegantly at her side, a sight that intrigued many, given her mage background. Some in the audience were puzzled, but the astute and wealthy merchants who had placed bets on the contestants had already gathered significant information about them. They were aware that, following the former queen of Grimgar, another sword mage had emerged in this era, and she was precisely the dazzling figure before their eyes. Bets were flying, and the battle was declared: Delimira, a second-circle mage of Concordia, against Mannard, a knight of grade twenty-eight from the association. The match had begun.
“You see, what I hate the most is being a drag to someone and you people just have to do that —”
“Hey, we had no choice but to follow —”
“I was talking, cut me again and I’ll literally return the favour.”
“Look girl, I’m giving you a ch…choice…fuck…I surr —” he couldn’t even speak a word. His speech faltered, interrupted by an overwhelming fear that enveloped him. With a single gesture, her hand sent shivers down his spine. Her once-human eyes elongated into serpent-like slits, glowing with a captivating yet terrifying intensity. Her fingers transformed into menacing talons, gleaming like polished obsidian. Sinister scales, sleek and iridescent emerged, covering the entire length of her hand. They shimmered with a dangerous lustre, shifting between shades of deep blue and obsidian. These scales were not mere decoration; they were the armour of an otherworldly predator.
With a swift, graceful movement, she raised her hand, which now bore the unmistakable traits of her beastly lineage. As she waved her hand, it resembled the deadly swipe of a classless beast’s claw. The intense pressure she was emanating was something else but many who once felt this understood how she was using it. The air crackled with energy as the force originating from her single wave sliced through the atmosphere, leaving behind faint trails of smouldering sparks and colliding with the barrier that stood past her opponent.
The barrier, once a formidable defence between the audience and the bloodbath of the arena, quivered under the sheer force of her attack. A network of cracks spread like lightning across its surface, “Crack! Crack! Crack!” She fixed her gaze upon Mannard, his eyes bloodshot and his body seemingly oozing blood from every possible opening. He only took the attack by a margin and he was in his worst possible state. Towering over him, she spoke with her now modified voice, deep and reverberating, “Piss off.”
When the fear of her was gone from him, he realised the pain he suffered. He screamed in agony. Many didn’t understand what happened, some were expecting her to use Krosh art, not a beast transformation and Hans was also one of them. He couldn’t help but curse, “What the fuck am I - A side character.”
“And she called us haemophilic, right Hans?” Chris added, surprised.
“Hmm… I didn’t know she could do that.” Walter commented amid their conversation prompting them to turn back. “Do you know what she did?” Hans asked before Chris could do the same. So their knowledgeable professor, responded in kind, “She is a monster’s daughter after all.”
Both started finding Aredhel among the audience. “Not her idiots.” Walter remarked, “I’m talking about her father - the northern sea monster.”
“I know her father was not an elf but someone who came with red demons.” Chris responded, hesitating, “But… calling him a monster… isn’t a bit —”
“It is what it is, Christopher Bernard Holger, just like you. She can’t deny her lineage. Or your thumping heart is telling you otherwise.” It Shut up Chris but perked Hans’s ears, “What was that?” He asked, intrigued.
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“You’ll know in due time, it's not like me to disclose someone’s secret —”
“Unless there is a price, right professor?”
“I'm so proud of myself for raising you right.” He mused, ignoring the two staring at his shameless face. “What is he talking?” Hans asked, side-glancing at his friend, who was avoiding his eyes. “Oh come on, I cant’s hold my curiosity, you know, right?” Hans pestered further.
“In due time, Hans. In due time.” Chris imitated Walter’s tone irritating him.
“Agh…” Hans grunted at his response and shifted his attention to Delimira who seemed to be staring at him. He focused, trying to make sense of her gesture. “What is she doin’—”
With a firm and deliberate motion, she raised her hand, and using her thumb as a symbolic blade, she drew a swift, slicing motion across her own throat. Hans tried reading her lips, “You. are. dead. Hans.”
“Ohoho! Would you look at her, trying to act cute? Yeah! Bring it on Deli.” Hans shouted in excitement while others wondered why both teammates were showing animosity. However, Hans was wondering something else, “Even with the full VoidZone, I couldn’t dent that barrier, but her light swing of Palm cracked that darn thing. I thought I never had to use my hidden card here. But…” he paused his thinking, looking at Chris, and Delimira walking back, “I have some ridiculous competition here.”
“Zzzing.” The Examiner came, still baffled about what happened before, but the higher-ups wanted this incident to not to get any more attention. After all, it was their fault to lose the northern sea monster, their once powerful ally to the red demons for some stupid reasons. Nothing has made Norwin more anxious than this year’s glory wars, especially the junior league. First was Hans and now the elf girl exploring her paternal lineage. He wanted this darn thing to end quickly and fortunately for him, the next round was a normal battle between normal people, but two parties who were at each other’s throats forever were taking this more seriously. The awaited Knight Association vs mage tower; Guernier a grade thirty knight vs second circle mage Omar.
The match started with a bang, but the audience’s response was lukewarm. It wasn’t like these children lacked or anything but compared to the thrilling one-sided beating brought by Concordia had raised their bar of expectation very high. Meanwhile, both the knight and the mage were struggling on their own. They both lost against Concordia so the pressure from the expectation of their superiors was shackling them.
Guernier, much like Chris, was a grade thirty lightning aura knight, but now he faced a magma attribute mage. Since Omar was a single attribute mage, his control over his mana was perfect. He kept gaining distance while attacking him from the sides.
The knight captain didn't want to show any of his skill in this battle because frankly, the power Chris showed in the earlier round left him puzzled. He had cornered him before using Dispellium, but Chris showed what he was made of in his fight with the mage Obi. He wanted to preserve his aces to fight him, but the mage in front of him was not a piece of cake either.
Omar was well versed in battle tactics and experienced in fighting knights, after all, he was a descendent of a noble knight family from Sunfall, so all his life he had struggled to make his place in the family.
Guernier focused, as Omar began with creating a magma field to hinder his movement. It was the original version of what Vanir had modified for his use. While Guernier was taking steps cautiously, reaching Omar. The mage kept harassing him with many small, quick-firing spells, and upon perfect timing, he used his ace spell.
VolcanicShower
In a dramatic display of power, the spell unleashed its fiery wrath upon the battlefield. Initially, small stones, no larger than a clenched fist, ascended into the sky, and there, transformed. These once-harmless rocks metamorphosed into molten magma, glowing with a searing intensity, and the lava stones descended like a relentless torrent, casting a fiery veil over every inch of the battleground. There was no safe haven, no blind spot to escape their destructive descent. Upon contact, everything they touched succumbed to their scorching embrace, melting and warping under the blistering heat.
Even the knight's steadfast shield proved no match for the relentless onslaught, yielding to the unstoppable tide of molten destruction. The volcanic shower showed no mercy, sparing nothing in its path. As the magma rained down, the situation became dire, leaving Guernier with no alternative, but to unleash the full extent of his formidable skills in a desperate bid to counter the relentless inferno.
Skill- Thunderstorm
Aura surged from his very core, erupting outward in the form of a raging tempest. This ethereal storm expanded rapidly, a maelstrom of crackling energy that swept through the falling magma like an avenging force of nature. With sheer power, it wrestled control from the volcanic destruction, sending the molten rocks hurtling in disarray, their fiery potency confronted by the might of the crackling lightning.
Skill - Thunder Rush
With unparalleled swiftness, Guernier propelled himself towards the mage with the velocity of lightning itself. His movement imitates the Surge skill shown by Chris, but instead of putting himself in danger by letting the lightning coarse through his body, ThunderRush enveloped the knight in lightning. It was so rapid that it scorched the ground beneath, leaving behind a smouldering trail that marked his trajectory. A nimbus of crackling lightning enveloped him, serving as a protective barrier that effortlessly deflected the mage's quick spells.
In an awe-inspiring conclusion to their confrontation, the knight came to an abrupt halt right before the mage, his gleaming sword poised at the mage's throat. With an air of unwavering confidence, he declared, “I’m the captain of the Knight Association and You’ve lost.”
The outcome was clear; it was an indisputable victory for Guernier. The Examiner arrived to formalise the match's winner, and the verdict was proclaimed: Guernier had emerged victorious, but the winner was looking somewhere else, his eyes locked with the man he wanted to fight the most - Chris.
----------------------------------------