Kai

Emil erupted out of the veil of sand. His movements were a blur as he sprinted across the watery terrain of the outcrops. His speed was blazing fast—far beyond the capabilities of an average Exalted. It took a glimpse of the faint blue aura surrounding his body for Kai to realize what was happening.

He’s using Mana Arts!

Within seconds, Emil had nearly closed the gap. Panicked by his sudden reappearance, instincts took over as Kai did the first thing he could think of.

“Sever!” he shouted as he desperately swiped with his arms. A blade of water swelled into existence at the apex of his swing. Shaped in a wide crescent, the blade sliced through the air at Emil’s approach.

Kai immediately realized his mistake.

Shit! I didn’t control the power!

Casualties at the Clash of Dawn weren’t rare. Despite that, Kai had no intention to become a murderer just to make a name for himself. Even the “lethal” attack that he demonstrated earlier against Emil was unleashed in a controlled manner—he deliberately slowed his cast time to give ample opportunities for Emil to evade. The attack was never meant to hit, but instead to terrify his opponent for daring to provoke him by tarnishing his background.

This water blade, however, was unrestrained. Kai’s composure had slipped at the sight of Emil’s relentless advance. His instincts compelled him to retaliate from lethal force. The sharpness of the blade was made to behead.

Emil inexplicably sped up. The trajectory of the water blade loomed—just inches of making contact with his neck. Kai wanted to scream. Terror gripped his heart as he imagined Emil’s head severed by his attack.

At the last second, Emil dipped his head to the left. Blood sprayed into the air. The water blade cleaved into the edge of his shoulder, ripping off a chunk of flesh. A nasty incision was left in the aftermath.

Oh!

Somehow, he managed to evade a lethal hit. Kai’s relief was short-lived, however. He expected Emil to collapse from the deadly attack, but the male student continued his advance unimpeded. His movements hardly slowed. He barely reacted—not even a protest or cry of pain. For a moment, Kai questioned if he was hallucinating. As Emil loomed closer, Kai caught a sinister smile crept along his face. Emil’s eyes radiated the glint of a savage beast as if he was almost invigorated by the attack.

What the hell? Chills rushed down Kai’s spine.

“Infusion!”

He conjured a ring of water around his body as Emil crossed into range. Stone gauntlets emerged around his fists as the male student lashed out with a right hook. Kai read the trajectory and ducked. A blast of air from the narrowly missed punch thundered in his ears.

Holy shit!

He had no time to be impressed. Emil immediately followed up with a quick jab from his left. Kai stepped back, tossing out his arm. The ring of water moved as if guided by the motion of his hands. A portion of the ring lashed out in the form of a whip—swiping to deflect the oncoming jab.

Emil’s fist was flung back by the elastic power of the water whip. But he remained unbothered, stepping immediately into the next strike to press his advantage. He continued his relentless assault like a famished beast desperate for prey. Kai grimaced, struggling to keep up. The pressure mounted. The speed and intensity of Emil’s strikes steadily increased as the exchange went on.

…He’s reading my movements!

Kai was aghast. Emil offered no openings and gaps to exploit as he began to anticipate what Kai was going to do next. Slowly, he was getting pushed back.

I can’t win like this!

Finally, Emil’s punch slipped past his water ring’s defenses. Danger slithered up Kai’s skin as Emil’s fist entered his view. At the last second, he tried to toss his head back.

Crunch!

Pain exploded from the right side of his jaws. He was too slow. His teethed rattled, almost shaken loose by the blow. Blood flooded his mouth. The insides throbbed. A ferric taste submerged his tongue. His head spun—stars clouded his vision as he was concussed from the devastating punch. Still, he refused to go down without a fight.

As he was sent backwards from the attack, Kai channeled mana into the ground. A geyser suddenly erupted beneath Emil’s feet. The scalding water surged, dousing his body in a jet of blistering heat.

Kai was expecting to hear a squeal of pain.

“Was that supposed to hurt?”

To his disbelief, Emil stomped past the heated waters unfazed—a chilling sneer etched on his face. Without warning, his hands lashed out like a snake, latching onto Kai’s neck. Suddenly, he was lifted off into the air. Before he could pry himself free, Emil slammed him onto the ground.

“Ngh!”

Kai gasped. His back screamed with agony. The air was knocked out of his lungs as he struggled to regain his composure.

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How did this happen?

The question resounded in his trembling head. He held the advantage for most of the fight. His opponent was struggling. Kai had him on the ropes. And yet, somehow in the span of a single minute, he suddenly found himself on the precipice of defeat.

Emil’s shadows loomed above. His mouth widened to a heinous grin as he raised his hands above Kai’s head. The sight of his face drove Kai insane.

This wasn’t supposed to be the plan.

He wasn’t supposed to be the one falling here. He was supposed to steal the undeserving spotlight shining over this bastard. He was meant to be the one standing atop of the stage, bowing to a thunderous applause.

He was supposed to be the hunter. Instead, he ended up becoming the prey.

If I can’t have the spotlight, then no one can!

Kai let out a guttural scream. Mana swelled from his body. The massive water tendrils he conjured earlier stirred with activity. He had been reluctant to use them due to Emil’s proximity, which would have placed himself in the line of attack. Now, he didn’t care. If he was going to be eliminated regardless, then he would rather drag the main character down with him.

“Slam!”

The water tendrils responded to his call. The construct ascended skyward before swinging down with vicious force. Kai watched as Emil spun around in horror. Seizing the chance, Kai sprung up from his spot, intent on grabbing Emil to pin him in place.

“…Not bad, Kai. You have my respect,” Emil muttered over the chaos.

Kai groaned as the student suddenly delivered a powerful kick. The attack threw him to the side, flinging his body off the stony outcrops—just as the water tendril smashed into the earth. A cloud of sand and stone was blasted into the air. Kai landed past the outcrops onto the slopes of a nearby sand dune. He coughed, gasping for air, his guts burning from Emil’s final attack.

Why did he do that?!

His head was still ringing as he strained his ears to listen to the commentator. There was nothing about Emil being eliminated. He definitely had enough time to jump out of the tendril’s descent. Kai’s confusion gradually wore off as he understood Emil’s intent.

…No fucking way, did he try to spare me from being eliminated?!

Emil was nowhere to be found. He didn’t pursue Kai despite having plenty of opportunities to knock him out of the competition.

What a fucking prick!

He didn’t like it. Heat swelled to his throat at the thought of being spared by his opponent. Kai was ready to accept his elimination. He lost despite using everything at his disposal. He felt no shame in that. But being pitied by his opponent with a second chance was beyond humiliating. Even as his body was on the verge of collapse, he wanted to sprint back up the rocky outcrop and demand a rematch.

I swear I’m going to bash his head in this time!

Kai pulled himself up. As his vision steadied, he suddenly locked eyes with another contestant stalking the area. A fight looked inevitable.

That’s great.

He spat out a mouthful of blood. The bitter taste lingered on his tongue. Kai cracked his neck and stretched his arms, ready to pounce. He found the perfect outlet for his rage.

***

EMIL

Emil took a deep breath as he sat down against a flat rock formation. The conclusion of his battle against Kai had transformed the craggy outcrop into a ruined mess. Puddles of water pooled along the crevices of the mountainous terrain. The rocky surface was mauled by deep gashes and incisions from the force of the water tendrils.

He was drenched from head to toe. Hot water clung uncomfortably in the airgaps between his skin and the unfolds of his uniform. It was from the aftermath of taking the brunt Kai’s geyser attack head-on. For most people, the scalding temperatures would have left them with intense burns. For Emil, the temperatures induced a mild discomfort—hardly something that he couldn’t handle. The heat of the geyser was nothing compared to the ravenous flames of Blaze.

What an interesting guy.

He smirked, recounting the finer details of their confrontation. Kai’s final desperate attempt to eliminate them both earned his respect. The guy was a bit of a bastard, but Emil admired his tenacity and resolve to win.

He’s definitely going to be a problem in the future.

Kai’s skill with his Gift was undeniable. The only reason Emil managed to squeeze out a win was because of Kai’s inexperience in combat. He was slow to identify his opponent’s weaknesses and exploit his own advantages. In contrast, Emil had immediately recognized the gap between their prowess in melee during Kai’s ambush and relentlessly sought to make use of his edge.

He was also too scared to take a hit. Emil thought as the wound on his right shoulder began to throb. When they were locked in melee, Kai had remained on the defensive for far too long. Sometimes the only way to create an opening is to concede and swallow a punch.

Emil turned towards the clock overseeing the Nautilus. There were fifteen minutes left before the conclusion of the preliminaries. The battles in the vicinity had died down. There probably weren’t many contestants left now. Even so, the Nautilus was strangely quiet.

Melody isn’t commentating.

Even the crowd had grown silent. No cheers. No screams. Not even faint murmurs or coughs of boredom echoed from the stadium. Emil looked upwards at the audience. Suddenly, he was conscious of the innumerable eyes peering at him intently.

It was as if they were waiting for something.

Something is wrong.

Wary, he perked his ears.

There was a faint shuffle of rocks directly to his left. He rose to his feet—just as the air cackled with a shrill pop.

Emil tossed himself to the ground. Something small shot passed him with a lightning speed, splintering off a piece of the rock formation that he was lying against. Sparks suddenly danced across the puddles in his vicinity, flickering dangerously with electricity.

“Hello, Emil.”

Oh, come on! I just want a moment to breathe!

Dread crawled up his spine as the familiar voice reached his ears. Emil turned to see Anna climb over the craggy outcrop. She landed onto the drenched earth with a solid splash.

“Seems like you’ve been busy. Mind if I join in the fun?” she asked with a bloodthirsty smirk.

“Look at that! The highly anticipated matchup that we’ve all been waiting for!” Melody’s voice suddenly blared over the Nautilus, “The Academy’s baddest delinquent against the honors student from the Seibert Company! The two have a history, being the first pair to cause a ruckus on the day of the opening ceremony. Since then, they’ve been on the hottest topic of discussion on campus. Who will finally emerged victorious from that inconclusive encounter?!”

The silent crowd roared back into life, screaming with a voracious fervor.

This is ridiculous. Emil frowned, shaking his head at the insane commentary. They knew she was coming. Anna seemed pleased, her eyes dancing with delight at the feverish excitement rippling through the stadium.

I rather not fight her here.

The craggy outcrop was soaked in water, making it the perfect environment for Anna’s Volt.

Nor do I want to be the one to take her out of the preliminaries.

Those were his geuine thoughts, but to be honest, he wasn’t exactly confident about his odds against Anna using only Bulwark. He didn’t have a choice, however, if she refused to back down.

“Hey, Anna. The preliminaries are almost over, so let’s just—”

His words were cut short by the violent shriek of electricity.

“Over?” Anna tilted her head. “I don’t understand what you mean by that.” A ferocious grin emerged on her face. “I’m just getting started here!”

Emil cursed his luck as he dropped into a fighting stance.