For the first part of the fight, Randidly had wanted to get a sense of how much of a difference in power the Nether Brawn made for his physical strikes. As it turned out, it made an extremely large difference. Even though Randidly could sense that the three-headed ogre with his huge crystal ax possessed almost a dozen Skills devoted to strengthening his body and attacks, Randidly was still stronger. Each strike knocked the Ogre Lord another step backward.

Randidly’s momentum continued to grow.

Even more than that… the more that Randidly activated his physical body, the more he could feel that Nether was starting to flow through his limbs like literal blood through veins. It didn’t strengthen his attacks much beyond his normal ability, but it did release a powerful suppression aura on other individual’s Skills that grew more powerful the longer they fought with each other.

But now, with the situation back on Earth…

Randidly pressed his lips into a tight line and no longer wasted time experimenting with his abilities. He was deprived of using his Grim Chimera images, but Ignition Essence surged up to turn the surrounding area into a sea of emerald and orange flames. The ground split in multiple areas as Talons of the Restless Immortal pierced upward and slashed at the Ogre Lord’s legs and back. The wounds didn’t even have the chance to bleed for a second before they were cauterized shut by the high heat. It was an onslaught of pain that was aimed to break the will of the opponent, rather than simply killing him.

But the Ogre Lord only gritted his teeth and endured; Randidly utilized the enlarged version of Acri to give him no time to respond to other threats. The pressure slowly crept upward.

BOOOM.

BOOOOOOOM.

BOOOOOOOOOOM!

The last strike sent the Ogre Lord skidding backward over the ground. His heavy feet dug deep trenches in the already shatter dirt as the Ogre Lord couldn’t control his own momentum. Stomping his feet, Randidly rushed forward and aimed toward the Ogre Lord’s heart with Acri’s pyramidal tip. It was a blow that would kill the Ogre Lord if he did not respond with more power than he had displayed so far.

Suddenly a powerful image billowed outward from the Ogre Lord. The oppressive and familiar aura of a crown filled the air. The corner of Randidly’s lip quirked upward. Seems he finally feels threatened enough to get serious. But it’s too late to finally realize the threat now. You needed to take this fight seriously ten minutes ago.

Nether continued to circulate through Randidly’s body. The vortex of suppression that resulted from the flow grew larger with each passing second, tugging at the edges of the Ogre Lord’s image. And as it grew larger, its effects grew more acute. Of course, the image that the Ogre Lord revealed was powerful enough to emerge fully despite the presence of the suppression. He hadn’t conquered an entire world for nothing. A towering figure that resembled the Ogre Lord manifested above his struggling body.

Rather than the bedraggled figure that the Ogre Lord cut right now, the image version of himself had luminescent eyes and was completely decked out in expensive finery. His clothes were studded with gems and woven with gold. His fingers were crowded with rings and each head had a unique headpiece that reflected their roles.

The towering image bellowed, the volume of the image’s voice blasting away that Ignition Essence that had charred the Ogre Lord’s back. In his voice was the purest image of dominance. It seemed that the Ogre Lord’s image was himself at his most successful, achieving complete dominion over his world.

But Randidly tsk’d inwardly. If your image is simply yourself in the past, how can you expect to grow stronger in the future… ? Besides… despite how powerful the image is, doesn’t it feel like you can’t wield it well? You already tossed aside your name and your finery to be a challenger today, likely because you sensed that this very image wouldn’t be enough to defeat me.

...therefore, can’t you feel you’ve already severed yourself from that image? Utilizing it as your last line of defense is serving yourself up on a silver platter…

Ignition Essence, even in its unevolved state, surged forward and shattered the aura of dominance the Ogre Lord tried to create.

With the illumination of Ignition Essence, Randidly’s eyes easily considered the Ogre Lord’s defense stance and understood where to strike. So he stepped forward and unleashed a thrust with Acri that contained all of the built-up momentum of Nether Brawn that he had slowly been circulating throughout the fight.

Still roaring in a pale imitation of the shattered image, the Ogre Lord brought his ax upward to meet the blow. But it wasn’t enough. The precious blue crystal blade shattered, large shards careening off away from the broken weapon and sinking into the Ogre Lord’s massive body. And then came Acri, domineering and unstoppable.

Without even empowering Acri with an image, it tore right through fading scraps of an image that had been crippled by the Ogre Lord’s earlier action. Acri tore a hole in the Ogre Lord’s chest, taking a chunk of his heart with it.

Randidly’s momentum continued to carry him forward so he landed ten meters behind the Ogre Lord. He turned around and watched casually as the huge figure swayed and then fell to his knees. Humming to himself, Randidly walked forward until the bottoms of his bare feet were soaked in the Ogre’s blood.

“It’s my win,” Randidly said simply.

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The Ogre Lord bowed his head and struggled not to die.

*****

Valor Rend watched from the sidelines as the opposing team’s quarterback, the famed Jake Tuck, surveyed the defensive arrangement of players with a vicious intensity. Despite his young age, it was clear that he took his job seriously. There were two minutes and eleven seconds left in the first half of the football game and Tuck’s team was down 3 to 10. It was also fourth down with only forty yards to the endzone, which would tie the game. Ignoring the signal from the coach on the sideline, Jake Tuck crouched down behind his center and prepared for the play.

When the ball was snapped, every player exploded into motion. The defensive and offensive lines smashed into each other with enough force to rip deep divets into the soft turf beneath their feet. Meanwhile, the wide receivers sprinted forward with breathtaking speed while the cornerbacks used their agility to hang like shadows across their backs.

As had been the case for most of the game, the defensive line won the initial conflict; one of the dominant defensive players shoved down a blocker and surged forward to tackle Jake Tuck and end the play.

In that tight press of bodies, the reason that Jake Tuck had been one of the most talented football prospects in years shone like a beacon. Rather than panic and force a throw into tight coverage, he utilized his patented ‘Tuck and run’. He executed several short steps quickly, moving fast enough past the people reaching to pull him down that even Valor was impressed.

Finally, Jake Tuck spun to avoid a tackle and stepped forward, seeming to have a clear field in front of him. Yet just as a flash of triumph could be seen on Tuck’s face, a figure shot in from the side and smashed him to the ground. Howling and flexing, Donovan Sikes leapt up after the tackle soaked in the cheers of the crowd with arms spread wide.

“Turnover on downs,” The referee announced to further cheers. Although this had originally been a relatively neutral crowd, because neither team had much time to build up a fan base, repeatedly seeing the Stallions offense crushed by the Vipers defense had pushed the majority of the crowd toward the Vipers. Everyone liked to cheer for the winners.

“Hey, Clark, you’re in.”

Valor Rend jumped to his feet and turned to look at the stoic offensive coordinator for the Vipers, who had glanced over toward him while barking out his order. Valor immediately flushed red. Half because he was annoyingly excited to play and half because of the pseudonym that Naffur had picked for him: Kent Clark. “Ah…? Now?”

Valor had been kept on the bench for the entirety of the game to this point. The team had decent field position, so they would try and secure points to bolster their lead before halftime. So why were they suddenly sending him in…?

The offensive coordinator snorted with all of the authoritative derision that Helen possessed while training the Order Ducis, with none of the power to back it up. “Relax, you’ll just be playing slot receiver. Don’t overthink it. Just run your routes and be where you are supposed to be. Got it?”

“Got it.” Valor nodded sharply and then jogged out onto the field to join the rest of the offense in its loose huddle.

The quarterback for the Vipers was named Robb Tutt, a tall man with a thick beard and even thicker arms. Unlike the quick Jake Tuck, Tutt generally stayed inside the pocket protected by his offensive line and tossed the football quickly out to the Vipers star running back. Or just handed it directly off to the man. But this time, as the group stood in the huddle, Tutt called a passing play.

“Let’s score another touchdown before halftime,” Tutt said lightly. The team clapped in agreement and agreement. A sense of unified purpose seemed to suffuse every player as they spread outward from the huddle. Everyone moved to their positions. Valor’s heart was pounding. After witnessing it from the sidelines, it was another thing entirely to be on the field in the game. The crowd was cheering. Everyone was on the same page, prepared to execute so as not to disappoint everyone who watched their actions. None of these people possessed image, but the raw desire oozing from each of them was certainly impressive. Valor knew that with a little refinement, that desire could easily become an image...

The ball was snapped. Valor briefly held himself in check. Then everyone exploded into motion. The heavy breathing of the linemen nearby filled Valor’s ears as he rushed forward directly toward the defender assigned to him. He was only moving at about three fourths his normal speed, but that put him decidedly middle of the pack in terms of physical gifts. But he didn’t bother to make similar restrictions on his Agility.

As he approached the defender, he leaned slightly to the right. Immediately the defender reacted and shifted to follow Valor’s broadcasted movement, but Valor had already planted his right foot and shot off to the left. For a split second, Valor created almost a meter of separation from the defender as he twisted around to look back toward his quarterback.

His eyes bulged when he realized that football had basically arrived at his hands before he had even realized it was coming. Reflexively, his hands tightened around the ball. His grip was firm and immediate. The feeling of the leather slapping against his hands was oddly satisfying.

I have the ball. The realization hit Valor only two steps later, as a defender rushed up from the side and leapt at him. He planted his foot again and dashed several meters upfield in an instant, avoiding the defender easily. However, with the speed limit he had set for himself, Valor quickly got surrounded and tackled at the exact middle of the field, the fifty-yard line.

It was extremely aggravating to allow himself to get tackled, but Valor supposed that there wasn’t any way to force his way forward without getting violent. Eventually, the press of bodies on top of him was removed and a teammate helped Valor to his feet.

As he tossed the ball away to the game staff, several teammates walked up to Valor and slapped his back. Tutt came over and gave Valor an encouraging headbutt.

The referee waved his hands, announcing the two-minute warning. The two teams trooped over to their benches to speak with the coaches. The head coach and offensive coordinator were brimming with smiles as they beckoned Tutt over. And then to his surprise, the coach raised his head and said, “Hey Clark, get over here too.”

Curious and still buzzing with his successful catch, Valor walked over.

The coach had a heavy gaze as he looked at Tutt and Valor. “I’ll be brief. I suspected this was the case, but this opponent isn’t well-coached; it’s time we stop playing so defensively. Clark, you’ll be playing every play you can from now on. It’s time we make use of the best player on the field.”

The best player on the field… Valor blinked and suppressed the rising tide of excitement in his chest. He was in the Order Ducis, this acknowledgment shouldn’t give him so much joy. Maybe he hadn’t hidden his physical abilities well enough? The coach’s compliment shouldn’t be making him flush. “...me? I’m the best player.”

The coach looked at him like he was an idiot. “You? How? You are barely fast enough to make the field. No, the best player we have… is the ball!”