The days leading up to the semi-finals were uninteresting for Raphael. He observed all the recordings of the fights for his three potential opponents, paying extra attention to Carol’s videos. She had grown significantly since they last fought, especially when considering how much time had passed since they last had a proper duel. He did his best to increase his own capabilities, not wanting to lose to her.
Carol, meanwhile, had an extra member added to her own growing harem. Tania had taken a week off university, believing that she would at least pass to the semi-finals. That didn’t happen, of course, and she ended up helping Carol train for the face-off.
The two continued their routines separately until the fateful day.
* ••
The semifinal matchups were selected at random. Thanks to luck, both of them faced off against the dragons. As expected, both dispatched their opponents with relative ease, heading to the finals. It would be the first time in history that two humans faced off against each other in the Mount Moluart Tournament.
* ••
“Breathe in… breathe out…” Raphael tried calming himself down. The results had been confirmed. There was no denying it now.
He would be facing Carol soon. The trainee Ranger that had surpassed even senior Rangers and the best dragons, the dark horse of the tournament. The true beast, the true threat to his victory. He didn’t care that much about being the champion, but considering how far he had gotten, it would be a waste to not go all out. Added to that the weight he carried, entrusted by all the people that supported and fought him until this point, Carol included.
“Are you worried, Sir?” Koski asked from beside him. They were now in a private waiting room for contestants. It had been built with comfort in mind. Unlike the previous waiting rooms, which were pretty barebone in comparison, the changing room for semi-finalists and finalists had a large, comfy bed, some expensive sofas, and several other amenities. It even had a little bowl of candy on the side.
A carpet lay on the ground, separating his foot from the ground below. The walls that surrounded them consisted of white, sturdy, and thick boards. The semi finals had just ended an hour ago. They were asked to wait and rest as they prepared the arena for the finals. The finals would utilize most of the available space while keeping a safe distance from the spectators. A wide circle arena with a diameter of five hundred pebs. Surrounding it would be thousands of spectators, all keen on witnessing history.
For the first time in history, the winner of the match was guaranteed to be human. The last time something like this happened was centuries ago, when The Great Moluart Knight stood above the dragons, scoring top place for twenty years back-to-back. That didn’t count, though, as back then, the knight’s rivals were still dragons. This time, both sides were human.
“I guess…? … No, I am worried.” Raphael’s rival was Carol, after all. He had spent hours watching her matches, examining her movements from every possible angle. The match against Tania stood out, mainly because it was the only time when Carol mercilessly attacked. Others, Carol would try to be as efficient as possible, closing the distance while dodging her enemies’ attacks, before swinging in for the one-shot kill at point-blank range.
“Point-blank range…”
“Did you figure something out, Sir?”
“Maybe? I don’t know.” Knowing Carol, she could pull out something completely random and throw him off course. He needed to be on guard at all times, all while forming his own magic. It would require an intense amount of concentration.
Point-blank… point-blank…
Based on the videos he had watched, Carol's style involved getting up close and personal before unleashing an attack that couldn't be dodged. Said attack was always powerful enough that when it hit, it instantly took out the enemy’s shield, no second chances. To counter that, he would be forced to constantly keep his distance, no matter what. But he knew that Carol knew his tactics. He needed to spice things up if he wanted a chance.
Seeing Carol's movements, though, it was frightening, to say the least. Despite doing his best to train himself to fight properly, he still couldn't match her movements. He was now on par with some of the quickest of dragons, which only made Carol a much scarier opponent.
A knock came on the door. The door opened, revealing a dragon standing behind it.
"Excuse me, Great Mage, but it’s finally time."
"It's time, huh?" Raphael checked his watch. It was two in the afternoon. He stood up, heading for the door.
"Good luck, Great Mage Sir."
"Thanks.” He nodded toward Koski before heading out. He followed the dragon to the field. The dragon applied his shield, his body glowing in gold. Once ready, he made his way into the battle arena. Standing on his spot, above the white tile, he could see something in the distance. A dot. A dot much smaller than the foes he faced so far, but one much more powerful.
He squinted his eyes, the dot at the other end becoming slightly clearer. It could be no other person.
He clenched his fist. He could feel her stare coming toward him, even if her face was far too small for him to see.
"And now, dear viewers, both the ones watching in the stadium or the ones watching online!" the announcer spoke.
"On one side of the arena was the legend himself, The Great Mage, Raphael Kaski."
The audience went wild at the mention of his name. The sound of clapping, cheers, and excitement wafted into the air.
"And on the other side is the dark horse of the season. A name unheard before, but now a legend in Mount Moluart Tournament history, Carol Priya!"
The audience went equally as loud hearing Carol's name. Support-wise, it seemed that they stood on equal grounds. Raphael glanced toward the spectator seat. They stood quite far from the spectators, but among them, he could see familiar faces. His parents, Fraone, Niro the painter, and even some of his other university friends sat among thousands of other spectators. They sat in the front row, seats exclusive for smaller humans, with the dragons towering behind them. They waved to him, and he returned with a smile.
"Now, who will be the one to take the title of the champion, and be crowned the strongest of all Moluart? Keep your eyes on the arena, dear viewers, because this battle is something you won't want to miss!"
He started enhancing himself, using magic spells that would boost his movements. He concentrated, feeling the world around him. The wind, the rocks, the excited shouts of the spectators, filled with expectations for the show.
Urgh…
An image entered his mind, one of someone special for him. A lot of other things followed that image, things that didn’t matter. He filtered out his thoughts, looking for the things that could help him control his magic. The air above, the ground below, the world he lived in, the energy flowing around him, things that would help one in wielding magic, things that he never thought about, all crowded his mind.
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Yet he found his mind returning to the person standing across the arena. Carol. He knew he shouldn’t be thinking about her. He knew he should focus himself on the world that surrounded him, the thing that normal other magic users thought about. It felt awkward. He never thought of it before. Magic came to him as something natural. He tidied up his thoughts. The match would start soon. He needed to focus. Focus.
He prepared himself, thinking of a magic weapon. He wasn’t allowed to use any magic that had damaging effects before the match officially started, so he held both his hands to the side, preventing him from accidentally unleashing it.
His mind stirred, his brain forming the weapon. Carol would strike him the second the match started. She knew the extent of his ability. She knew that she would be at a disadvantage if she gave him time to create something. Thus, the only logical way was to subvert her expectations and charge forward.
And for that, he needed that weapon. He didn’t know Carol would be fighting in this tournament when he registered. Had he known, he would have carried a physical weapon with him. It was unfortunate that all gear must be registered before the tournament began.
On the flip side, this meant Carol’s equipment shouldn’t change from the thing she carried so far. Her Ranger armor along with her magic sword. She couldn’t pull any tricks equipment-wise, unless she was holding back in the matches before this.
Thus the image was formed, the spell ready. The thing he created should last him the entire match.
“With no further ado, we shall begin the countdown,” the commentator announced. It almost tricked Raphael, with him almost striking when he heard the word begin. He managed to hold his body back, waiting as the crowd started counting down from ten.
“Ten, Nine, eight, seven.”
Raphael took a breather, feeling the sensation in his right hand. He continued thinking about the weapon, something that wasn’t normally wielded in battles, an uncommon one.
“Six, five, four.”
Yet this weapon fitted his needs. He never used something like this before, but it should have similar principles to the thing he based it on.
“Three, two, one.”
“BEGIN!”
Raphael pushed all his remaining magic to his right foot, creating a crater as he leaped forward. Like a bullet slicing the sky, he traveled the five hundred pebs separating the two of them within seconds.
“!”
Yet Carol had a different idea. She leaped into the sky, flying vertically straight toward the shield that protected the arena. She twisted her body in midair like a skilled dancer, pointing her blade down.
Raphael leaped to the right, an explosion blew dust into the air on his left, where he should have been standing. The shockwave struck his skin. He planted his foot down, standing amid the dust. He materialized his weapon, light blue lines forming the image of a large circular shield with a sharp blade emerging from the shield’s face. A sword, but with a shield as a hilt.
Carol flew away from him, shooting magic in the form of fire spells, which dissipated the second they met Raphael’s round shield.
Flying like a dragon, Raphael gave chase, trying to get as close as possible. Carol didn’t give up on the spells, sending an array of different kinds toward him. Wind strikes, fireballs, water jets, various kinds of spells pummeled toward him, slowing him down. It had zero effect on his magic shield, however, all thanks to the sword-shield hybrid that he created. As long as the sword-shield remained, he didn’t need to worry about the shield on his body, the one he needed to protect.
The magic attacks were slowing him down, though, thus he dove down, straight toward the arena. He pulled up at the last second, traveling just a few pebs above the surface, kicking up dust as he traveled. Like a bullet train, he plummeted toward Carol, pulling up at the last moment.
“HYAAH!”
Raphael stabbed his sword straight for Carol’s chest, only for it to be deflected by Carol’s own sword. Sparks flew as the two blades struck each other. Carol’s sword glowed a bright silver, before plummeting toward Raphael’s sword shield. Raphael adjusted the sword shield, adjusting the shield’s face toward the incoming strikes, blocking all of Carol’s attacks. He attempted to counter with stabs, but Carol countered all of them. It became obvious that she was on a different level, someone trained to fight.
Raphael pulled his sword back, before pulling it in a diagonal strike. Carol pushed her sword forward, striking the shield’s side, stopping the sword. She pushed forward, forcing Raphael to fly backward. The two traded blows in the sky. A sweat ran down his forehead.
He increased his speed, making wild and unpredictable attacks on Carol. Slices and stabs, cuts and thrusts. Two humans fighting in the sky, beings with no physical wings, beings that forced the world to bend to their will. Their magic kept them airborne; the quick movements made it nearly impossible for the spectators to keep up. Each strike sent a shockwave, rippling through the air.
Raphael continued cutting. His blade kept Carol away, forcing Carol to be wary of the sharp weapon. The two blades clashed, and clashed, and clashed. The clanking sound of metal carried the intensity behind each blow, yet the two humans stood. The spectators had their eyes glued on them, no one saying a thing. Like hungry dogs fighting for food, they fought for the tournament, both eager to win.
Seeing Carol in front of him, the girl he loved, the girl he cherished. He looked into her eyes and saw the fire burning within. He wanted to talk, a casual conversation like what they always had, but he couldn’t. A lot of questions went through his mind.
How is she doing?
Why didn’t she tell him about this?
What does she want?
What did she hope to achieve?
How hard did she train for this?
How long?
So many questions. He wanted to know. He wanted to support her in everything. He set all these questions aside. He could ask them later. She would probably tell him later.
Questions for another day.
He dodged the sudden water spell she sent. She flew down toward the ground. He gave chase, not willing to let go. He wouldn’t let her out of his eyes. His childhood friend, his partner.
I always chased after you.
Yesterday, now, and tomorrow.
She sent another wind spell, trying to get him off her tail. He steeled himself, fighting the pressure coming from all sides. He needed to do this. He must do this. He would show her that he deserved to stand next to her. A person who could answer her hopes and dreams.
She wanted a proper fight; he gave her a proper fight.
He came here with the hopes of honoring the hopes placed on him, but all of that no longer mattered. Now, the Raphael that was airborne only harbored one thought, he would fight. He had trained. He did his best. He wanted to be the one Carol looked to when she needed help. He wanted to be there for her.
And now, he would come to answer her. Answer her hopes. Answer her dreams. She wanted to prove herself to the world, to him. He would give her the chance to do that. He caught up to her, and she was prepared. She twisted her body, bringing her sword in a downward slash, heading straight for Raphael’s neck.
Raphael pushed forward, just barely dodging the incoming attack. He felt something missed his foot, causing him to wobble. He straightened himself and flew upward, the wind under his command. He headed for the shield covering the top of the dome, before turning and dashing straight for her.
The two swords connect. The blows intensified. He struck, putting all his strength into his strikes, his very being into his attacks. He had defeated many other warriors to get to this point, people with their own hopes and dreams.
Those hopes were now on his shoulders, his burden. But they didn’t matter, not at this moment. Those hopes alone couldn’t fuel him to go this far. He had put on a good show, one good enough for his title, a title acquired from making medicine. No, they weren’t enough. What pushed him forward now was more than that.
Carol. Carol. Carol. Carol.
He understood her well. She didn’t want him looking down on her. She didn’t want him to go easy on her.
But that alone wasn’t enough to push him this far. He refused to back down. His own desire pushed him forward. He discarded the world below him. Now wasn’t the time. All he could think about was Carol.
As his childhood friend. As his girlfriend. As his rival. As his competitor. As his partner. Someone he looked up to. Someone he wanted to be with. Someone he wanted to protect.
Her smile, her joy, that was everything to him. At this very moment, only that mattered.
He couldn’t protect her smile if he wavered. Every time they clashed swords, their eyes gazing at each other, they saw each other’s determination. He wanted to be someone Carol could be proud of.
He wanted to make Carol happy.
He swore to see this to the end.
He continued stabbing, intending to overwhelm Carol. He needed to if he wanted his plan to work. He needed to buy himself time, while at the same time keep Carol from hitting him. Just a slight mistake would destroy his concentration, causing everything to go to waste.
Like a wild monkey he stabbed, he stabbed, and he stabbed, fighting as if there was no tomorrow. The blade on his shield clashed with Carol’s sword, over and over again.