Tension was brewing as they both took to the centre of the arena floor.

"Please welcome them back to the arena for the first-year finals. On one side, we have Heavy Type Ryan Steele. On the other, we have our Commander Type, Ivan Alexander.

The announcer had been quick. Only introducing them both. It was clear that he was letting the fight speak for itself.

If Ryan was nervous going into the fight, then you couldn't see it. His stony face was clear to the arena. His eyes zeroed in on Ivan.

Ivan smiled and waved at the crowd on the other side of the arena. It starkly contrasted the seriousness he had shown in the earlier finals.

It was clear that he wanted to put on a show. He smiled at Ryan. He was saying something to him as the larger man approached.

Unfortunately, we couldn't hear what was said on the arena floor.

If it had gotten under Ryan's skin, he did a good job of not showing it and merely taking his place, activating his armour. Waiting with the warhammer resting in his hands.

Ivan wasted no time in activating his armour. Another cheer erupted from the crowd once the gold armour appeared once again. He was still very much the crowd favourite.

Ryan's journey to this point had been enjoyable for many people. But there was a clear consensus in the crowd that Ivan would come out on top.

After all, it was rare for a Commander to lose in their first ranking tournament. No matter how incompetent they were.

I wasn't so sure myself. Who I would prefer to win was warring inside of me, but we would all soon find out as the match began.

Both were hesitant to be the first to attack as they began to circle around each other. While Ivan had done a good job of mitigating attacks. I wasn't sure if there was much he could do against Ryan's overwhelming power.

Everyone waited to see who would be the first to attack. Ivan seemed content with letting Ryan be the aggressor. It had been something I had noticed in both his sparring and the finals so far. He was far more inclined to counterattack than be the one on the offence. It was only the spar he had with me where he was the aggressor.

While that trait was powerful in one-on-one combat, I wasn't sure if it was something I liked from a Commander. The great commanders of the past hundred years have always been those who had taken the fight beyond the human lands. Reclaiming what was once lost.

Those who acted more like Ivan were the reason why Almire City had been lost. Another reason to dislike the man.

Ryan seemed to know about this trait and was cautious about attacking. He wanted to measure Ivan's responses before bringing out Frenzy.

Of course, he also had to be careful of Ivan's Commander skills. Ivan hadn't had to use them in any fight thus far. But I didn't think this fight would end without him using one.

I also didn't think Ryan would have the Spirit to escape from one of Ivan's Orders.

I did not doubt that Ivan also clearly grasped Ryan's strengths and weaknesses. Ryan certainly didn't have the Spirit to stop Ivan's Inspect skill.

Those two skills alone could spell the end of the fight. I only hoped that Ryan's overwhelming strength could make a difference.

Ryan seemed to hear what I was thinking as he approached Ivan, preparing his first attack. The swing met empty air as Ivan easily dodged the blow. But it seemed that Ryan only used the blow to gauge the distance.

He continued with a few light attacks. Making sure to keep space between himself and Ivan. While I was convinced that Ryan's armour would be able to handle a few blows from the smaller man. I was also sure that he didn't want to risk anything.

His overconfidence had almost cost him one final. I didn't think he wanted a repeat of that.

Not to mention that Ivan wasn't hiding his skills. He only hadn't used them so far. After all, using those skills would mean a near-certain victory for Ivan.

Ryan continued with his varied assault. Using the momentum from the attacks to continue on the offensive. Whatever he tried seemed useless as Ivan continued to dodge every attack.

The only positive for Ryan was that he had managed to avoid the few counterattacks Ivan had tried so far. While they mainly had been feints. It was good to see that Ryan could react to Ivan's movements.

That didn't mean he got any closer to landing a blow. As the fight continued, Ryan gained speed and ferocity. Feeling a little more confident about attacking Ivan.

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As his speed grew, Ivan's dodging became a little more frantic. Ryan was giving less and less space around him as he continued his ferocious swings.

It was the most apparent his skill with the hammer had been. Since it was such a rare weapon to receive, I was surprised he was so skilled.

The crowd was roaring as Ivan seemed to be on the defensive. His even stats not enough to find the space to get close enough and deal damage to Ryan.

No matter how fast Ryan got, he couldn't seem to hit Ivan. It was only Ryan's endurance that was keeping him in the fight. But as the match dragged on, it became clear that his stamina wouldn't last much longer.

It seemed he had wanted to deal some damage before activating Frenzy. But it was clear that he hadn't been able to do so.

He finally decided to open up some space between them once again. The crowd was boiling with anticipation. This would be the moment that would determine the match.

Ryan's armour began to turn scarlet as he activated his skill. Ivan stood away, stony-eyed, waiting for the attack.

Ryan seemed to move faster than he had in the fight before as he appeared in front of Ivan.

A deep voice emanated from Ivan's mouth as the hammer began to fall. He had finally used his first Commander Type skill openly.

"Retreat."

Even from where I was, I could feel the Order take effect. Even in my seat, I felt like I had to fall back somewhere. Even if not directed at me, the Order was powerful.

I was the only one in the front row affected by the Command. The others had more than enough Spirit to withstand the Order from this distance.

Ryan no doubt had a more powerful spirit than my measly F8. Even then, It wasn't strong enough to disobey such a close and direct order.

Ryan immediately tried to retract his hammer and backtrack. He was nearly falling over his legs as he rushed back. That was more than enough to allow Ivan to attack.

A straight blow to the head was vicious enough to deal damage even without weapons. The punch sent Ryan reeling. Ivan was quick to follow it up with another blow.

By this point, Ryan had managed to escape from the Order. Allowing him to bring up his hammer in defence once again.

Ivan wasn't going to stop pressing his advantage. He was willing to take the minor damage from the hammer as he attacked once again.

Ryan still had Frenzy activated, giving him enough speed to duck under Ivan's swing.

Tackling into his body, he brought them both to the ground. Unfortunately, leaving his hammer behind.

I wasn't sure how skilled Ivan was at grappling. Still, there was little he could do in the face of Ryan's strength as he lifted Ivan from the ground before slamming him back into the arena floor.

Ivan tried to escape from his grip, but Ryan was too strong. Before Ivan could bark another order, Ryan placed his hand over his mouth.

The weakness of the most potent human skill. If they couldn't speak, they couldn't use the skill to effect others souls.

Ivan's hands immediately went to his face, trying to stop Ryan from covering his mouth and giving Ryan time to reach for his hammer with his other hand. While I didn't think I could lift the hammer with both hands. He had no problem lifting it with one.

Ryan wanted to end the fight quickly, as his Frenzy was beginning to run out.

He hefted the hammer in his off-hand, keeping Ivan still with the other. Ivan began to struggle with his body, but it was useless against the mountain that was Ryan.

The crowd watched on in horror as Ryan hefted the hammer above his head. He had to remove his hand from Ivan's mouth as the final blow began to descend. Giving Ivan one chance to retaliate.

"Stop!"

The Order had me frozen for a few seconds. So much so that I almost missed the end of the fight due to the Order.

The Order given under duress was far weaker than the one that came before. Ryan had also been expecting it. Even as his body began to slow, trying to stop itself, the momentum continued. Sending the hammer right into Ivan's head.

There was a moment of calm before the crowd erupted all around me. The others in the front row couldn't believe what had happened. Even I was having a few issues believing it.

It was clear that Ivan had been cocky. He would have come out on top if he had used Order more than once during the fight. It was simply too powerful a skill. No one would have faulted him too much for using it, either.

It was only the fact that Ivan wanted to beat Ryan with only one use of the skill that was his downfall.

Ryan looked up from the arena with an expression of disbelief. Making it clear that he was as surprised as everyone else. After all, there were few Commanders who lost their first-year ranking tournament.

No one had the Spirit stats or practised disobeying Orders at this point in the year. That would only come later. As long as the Commanders were willing to use those skills, the first tournament of the year was easily won.

I had to commend Ivan for not abusing those powerful skills. But it was clear on his face that he regretted it as he got to his feet. He looked a little bewildered.

According to the few who had fought, your first death in the arena's simulation felt the strangest. I imagine Ivan didn't think he would have to experience it anytime soon.

As the announcer called the first year's tournament to a close, there was another cheer from the crowd after all the finals had been quite a show.

The turnaround was quick as the second-year finals began. Unfortunately, most of their fighters were firmly in the B rank. Making their fights quite hard to follow.

I didn't think I would even be able to see the A-rankers going at each other with their full power.

It took some time for the number 1 ranked first year to return to the arena crowd. Ryan was met with cheers as he returned. Georgia and Violet had been waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs.

They happily followed behind him as he made his way to his rightful place. I could only nod at them as they passed. I could feel the frostiness from Emilia as Ryan took his place beside her. The cheers of the first years as he took his place were heartwarming.

The attendants were quick to force Georgia and Violet back to their seats. Violet returned my greeting as she passed me. While that got me a glare from the others beside me, it did make me feel a little better.

Ivan followed a few minutes afterwards. Another round of cheers met him as he took his place beside Aaron. A seat that had remained empty throughout the ranking tournament was now filled with a less-than-pleased Commander.

The first row felt awkward for the rest of the finals.

Even the exciting fights of the second and third-year finals weren't enough to lift the haze of awkwardness that had descended at the end of the row.

It was like that the ranking tournament of the 96th year of the Academy came to a close.