46TH GEAR - GUTS AND DEBUTS
Earthshatter is not considered a speed spell since it slows down the caster’s movements in exchange for disrupting the enemy randomly. Considering Cruzo’s situation earlier, it is his only way of escape.
Amaryllis was pushed away by the shockwave of the Earthshatter spell, but that’s it. She is still having the momentum and the speed in this fight!
“What’s wrong, fatso? You cannot move? Wohohohoho!” Amaryllis laughed like a rich girl once more.
“D-Darn it!” Cruzo cried. He tried pulling his right foot from the ground, but his sluggish movements makes it hard for him to draw strength!
“I’ll be scoring some points now!”
Amaryllis drove like a motorboat and went straight to Cruzo’s wide back!
Beep!
Another blue magical circle point indicator manifested!
Point to Amaryllis, now at 2:4!
Even when the opponent touched Cruzo’s back, Cruzo did not suffer from the repelling effect of the magical barriers colliding. Earthshatter operates by multiplying the weight of the caster’s foot, which makes it possible to be stuck on the ground. Since he’s anchored, he will stay in place until he draws his foot away from the crash hole!
“Wohohoho! One more~” Amaryllis sped up once again like a jet ski and struck Cruzo’s back!
Beep!
Another point to Amaryllis, at 2:5!
Cruzo is done for. I have no counter-strategy on how to get out of this situation. It’s not like I blame Cruzo for using the Earthshatter since it was his only way to retaliate, but that specific spell is going to be his downfall in this battle.
“Strike! Strike! Wohohoho! It will be better if you surrender now, fatso!” Amaryllis laughed.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
A magical circle point indicator kept on appearing on Cruzo’s back whenever Amaryllis swept around him. The score is now at 2:8, which is overwhelming my Speedmage.
“I will… not give up!”
Cruzo roared out loud. Then he gathered mana towards his diaphragm and shouted out loud.
“I have… GUTS!!!”
“Wohoho-uwah!”
A sonic boom was created which pushed away the about-to-strike Amaryllis. Cruzo just used a Shout Shockwave spell, which is not really a speed spell but a disruption spell. All it does is create a sound barrier around the caster and push the opponents away.
Cruzo was finally able to withdraw his foot from the crater. He stepped forward with his sluggish motion and then touched his Speedmage Shoes.
“Earth Accel!”
The Speedmage Shoes’ weight quadrupled, but it got his speed back once again. One step, two steps, three steps- He is racing towards the next Checkpoint Tower!
“I will score one more point!” Cruzo roared!
“Oh no, you won’t!” Amaryllis is boosted forward with magical water contrails! “Water Jet!”
I looked at the timer. Five seconds left before the match ends! Cruzo is certainly losing because of the overwhelming advantage, but it doesn’t matter. As long as he does not give up, his heart will never be defeated!
“Raaaaagh!” Cruzo cried.
Beep! The Checkpoint Tower was touched! He managed to get to the checkpoint before he got caught by the water Speedmage!
Point for Cruzo, now at 3:8!
As soon as the final Checkpoint Tower was touched, the whistle was blown!
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Fweeeeeeeeet!
“Match over! The winner is Amaryllis Vosconovitc!” The referee announced.
“Wooohohohoo! I knew it! I knew I would win! Woooohohohoho!” Amaryllis’ annoying laugh echoed throughout the arena.
I took a deep sigh. Having one of the Speedmage in my team lose is certainly a painful experience, but that’s how games are played. There are always winners and losers in a sport, and it is okay to lose sometimes. As the old people said, every day is not Christmas.
Cruzo and I went backstage to the arena where Ericka and Flu are waiting. Ericka has this satisfied smile on her face, while Flu’s eyes are dazzling in amazement.
“Hahaha! I’m sorry fellas, I lost.” Cruzo gave a dry fake laugh.
“Don’t sweat it, Panda.” Ericka slapped Cruzo’s chunky right arm. “You did your best. That’s what all matters.”
“Prez is right, Sir Cruzo!” Flu pumped her fists. “You are awesome right there! You’re like a kung-fu panda! That shout of ‘GUTS!’ had me fired up! And that awesome stomp to the ground was amazing! It was like this! Hiiiiyaaah!”
Flu stomped so hard on the floor that the impact was absorbed by her toes. Feeling the pain from the inside of her bones, the chills went up until they reached her skull.
“Ouchie!” Flu cried.
“Heeey, don’t injure yourself before your first match,” I said as I grabbed a spray potion to heal her aching feet.
Meanwhile, Cruzo started to sniff. I looked at him and saw that he was crying, but smiling. I mean, his eyes are producing tears, but his mouth is giving a peaceful smile. He gave a thumbs-up to the three of us.
“The battle is not over for the Merry Knights! I will continue as a support staff for you guys!” Cruzo said.
<>
Talking about support staff, Cruzo meant being in charge of snacks and other necessities. Right after his match, he went to buy bacon shawarmas and some fizzy drinks for all of us to enjoy. We had a break while we watched other Speedmages participate in the tournament.
One match we watched with full attention was the Speedmage Champion’s battle against Captain Haruka Firangel. They are both Speedsters. It was a one-sided race, having Vincent the Teleporter getting all three Checkpoint Towers first. Once he had set up his mana swords near the Checkpoint Towers, he could just teleport to score a point.
Flu was enjoying the whole time as she was able to see a lot of speed spells used by Speedmages. The contrail streaks of the participants are also eye candy to look at.
Finally, it was about time for Flu’s debut match.
Flu was sitting on the sidelines, psyching herself up. She is holding her white skirt so tight that it looked crumpled already. She’s also trembling due to nervousness, and her eyes are fixated on the ground.
“C-C-C-Coach, it is finally my debut match…” Flu muttered.
“Yeah.” I smiled. “I know you're nervous, but just keep calm and enjoy the game.”
Much to my surprise and the surprise of other people around us, Flu stood up and stretched her fists into the air!
“I am calm! I am a real Speedmage at heart! I-I can do this!” Flu shouted out loud.
She is not calm at all.
“Listen, your opponent is also an amateur Speedmage. Since you are a Counter Class, watch him reveal his speed spells first before making some big moves.” I said.
“Got it! I will counter him before he makes a move!” Flu said unwittingly due to nervousness.
I don’t even think she got my instructions right.
Fweeeeeet!
The sound of the whistle echoed from the Triangle, indicating the end of a match. Now, it is Flu’s turn to participate in an official Speed Battle!
“I-I will go now!” Flu pumped her fists, and then touched her Speedmage Shoes to cast a speed spell! “Wind Accel!”
Zoom!
“Hey, don’t go off wasting mana before the match!” I scolded. Too bad, she was no longer here when I said those words.
I took a deep sigh and relaxed my shoulders. Flu has amazing mana capacity, so it’s not like she will deplete it soon enough during the game. I’m a little bit worried about Flu’s nervousness, but I realized that Ericka had it way harder to confront her nervousness. Flu will be okay… I think.
I looked at the Triangle and saw both of the Speedmages positioned at the 1st Checkpoint Tower. Flu’s opponent is Kiryu Kisaragi, a student of Saint Paladin Academy. He seemed like an outcast with his dark brown hair and red draconic eyes. As a teenager with a medium build, his Speedmage Suit of a black jacket and pants with fire decals makes him look more like a delinquent of his school.
Kiryu Kisaragi’s Speedmage Shoes is Dragon King, which is pure black with spiky golden flame ornaments. Dragon King is widely used by Speedsters, so this is a good matchup for a beginner like Flu.
While waiting for the referee, the participants have this small seconds of talk.
Kiryu looked at Flu and clenched his fist. “Oi, oi, I am going to beat you!”
“Okay! G-Good luck!” Flu nervously said.
Kiryu has no comeback for that but a wry smile. Flu is too unresponsive at this point, and her mind is on jumbles. I wonder if she can still process my instructions once the match starts.
The referee finally arrived at the 1st Checkpoint Tower and raised his hand.
“On your marks… Get set… Go!”
Fweeeeeet!
Once the whistle was blown, Flu immediately activated her speed spell!
“Wind Accel!” Pink wind contrails were left due to her dashing at a full sprint!
“Fire Accel!” Kiryu also made his move and boosted like a rocket with his fire-enhancing magic!
Flu’s posture and breathing technique is much better than during our training camp. She was able to have a strong start against a Speedster Class Speedmage, so that is our advantage. Little by little, the gap between Flu and the opponent is widening.
I looked at Kiryu’s navigator, who seemed to be a sophisticated rich girl from the West. She has blonde hair and green eyes and is dressed in pure white. She even has a parasol that adds to her elegance. Is she a princess from another kingdom?
“Kiryu, use Dragon Drive.” the princess-like navigator said.
“Got it!” Kiryu said as he bathed in the magical flames of his casting.
All of a sudden, the flames became a transparent aura in the shape of a gigantic long dragon, boosting his speed tenfold!
“Hraaaah! Dragon Drive!”
Swoom!
Kiryu overtook Flu and he touched the 2nd Checkpoint Tower first!
Beep!
Point to Kiryu, at 0:1!