Sero's words stung, and Liam felt a surge of anger course through him. He dashed forward, swinging wildly, but Sero easily dodged out of the way. He was faster than he'd anticipated, and his reflexes were honed to a razor's edge. Liam cursed under his breath and backpedaled, regrouping.

Amazed at himself, Sero couldn't help but feel a small grin spread across his face. His experiences had paid off; he could feel the power of the emulated abilities coursing through his veins, making him faster, stronger, and more agile than ever before. It was as if he was living out a dream, a fantasy of what it would be like to truly become the best version of himself.

Sero quickly forced the feeling down, less than eager to jinx his luck as the Demonic Enforcer's power began to plateau. Sensing that Liam couldn't reach any higher due to their prolonged fight at high intensities, Sero took this chance to push his limits, casting Undying Spirit alongside a doubled Inspiration.

Because all of the damage he had taken prior to emulating Harmony had been converted to strength, Sero used the excess power from the buffs to completely restore his stamina and energy. The only downside was that his mana pool had taken a huge hit, with roughly a quarter of magic left within him.

The Scholar cracked his knuckles, dashing towards Liam to engage in hand-to-hand combat once more. There was still a difference of strength between them, but Sero was now in perfect condition whereas Liam seemed to grow sluggish in his movements.

Sero's attacks were swift and precise, his movements graceful despite the frenzy of battle. He landed a series of powerful blows, forcing Liam back against the wall. The Demonic Enforcer's eyes widened as he realized that he was being outmatched, his mana and strength being drained away with every consecutive hit. He struggled to keep his footing as Sero continued to press the advantage.

Just as he was about to land a heavy strike, Sero wavered, feeling the effects of Harmony vanish from him. He gasped in shock as waves of pain rolled over his body, the multiple buffs he had casted now working against him.

Quickly dispelling everything but Undying Spirit, Sero realized he had missed his chance to deal the final blow as Liam gave an unearthly howl, beginning to fight back again.

"Holy... shit!" Sero thought to himself. Liam was just as tenacious, if not more than, he was.

As they traded blows, Sero tried to emulate the Harmony passive once more, feeling the same dull unresponsiveness as his body refused to do so. Did his Influence have a hidden cooldown? Or could it only use copied passives once? If it was the latter, then Sero might've wasted his only chances at saving them when he really needed it. He'd deal with that later, for now, he needed another desperate, outlandish plan if he was going to end the match soon.

A half-baked plan popped into his head. It wasn't well thought out, but it was something at least.

Keeping Liam at bay with a well-timed Fire Blast, Sero stomped his foot, casting a green runic Blast Zone that covered the entire arena floor. He immediately dropped to his knees, conjuring a dark jade cannon that he aimed at the sky, firing a volley of mana nukes into the air.

"Really?" The Demonic Enforcer suddenly appeared within view, aiming a low kick to Sero’s body. The playing cards around Sero exploded, summoning the court familiars and obstructing Liam’s attack. He snarled, obliterating the familiars to ashes with a deep red lightning storm.

But Sero’s Starfall Nuke was already completed, the sky reflecting the green hues of the mana in the air. While the green explosions began to rain down, Sero took the chance to cast Shadow Bind and Mana Lock to momentarily incapacitate Liam. He knew it wouldn't hold him forever, but it was just enough time for Sero to conjure the Jury in one hand and send it crashing down at Liam.

Just as he predicted, Liam broke out of the binds with a roar, quickly drawing the Order staff to block the Jury. But even as Sero's axe was blocked, he quickly summoned his own Order in his other hand.

"Holy fuck!" Sero gasped as the staff immediately fell on top of the axe, bringing Liam to his knees. Just like Enzo's Jury, the copied Order staff was immensely heavy, which explained why Liam was able to withstand the weight of the axe earlier.

"What in the world are you planning?" Liam snarled, a mixture of confusion and rage in his face. Despite the fact that he blocked both of Sero's weapons, it was enough that he couldn't move out from underneath them. Sero smiled dryly as his Starfall Nuke converged on the two.

"Honestly, I'm not sure myself," Sero replied, forcing his weight down on the golden weapons. Liam bared his teeth, desperately trying to inch away to no avail.

The barrage exploded upon them, beating them down with countless bursts of magic. Sero gritted his teeth, trying to endure the blasts from his own attacks as he kept Liam locked underneath. At some point, all he could see was green as he dispersed his weapons and shifted into shadows to try and mitigate some of the friendly fire upon himself.

Eventually, Sero sensed his attack had ended and reformed, immediately casting Recovery on himself. His mana pool had been completely restored due to Undying Spirit's bonus on his Starfall Nuke.

As the smoke cleared, he saw Liam on one knee with his face contorted in pain. It seemed as if his Harmony passive in conjunction with Provoke couldn't keep up with the unyielding explosions, finally dealing a significant amount of damage to the Demonic Enforcer.

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Sero launched himself forward, summoning Sting and his two pups to further weaken Liam. Moss and Lime seemed eager to take their revenge as they needed no encouragement to begin siphoning strength and debuffing. Meanwhile, Sero began to throw punches and kicks while Sting supported him with ranged-attacks.

Liam reacted quickly, giving another unearthly howl as he charged full-force against Sero and his summons. But it was clear that he was severely drained from tanking that attack, unable to block many of the attacks that came his way.

With a frustrated growl, Liam once again sent out a wave of red mana, going after Sero's pups as soon as there was an opening. However, Sero anticipated it, dispersing his summons and going after Liam.

The Demonic Enforcer turned around, clashing with Sero again. He caught one of Sero's punches and yanked him close.

"You are one annoying motherfucker!" Liam spat as he smashed his head against Sero's.

Even though the headbutt stunned him, Sero ignored the pain, relying on his instincts as he countered with a punch. Liam staggered back, surprised that the attack was so effective.

"What...?"

With a small smirk, Sero knew his plan had worked, even if not completely. Draining Liam's mana with the Starfall Nuke meant that he would soon feel the exhaustion, not to mention lacking the resources to cast his important skills. The Harmony passive would eventually restore his mana, but Sero wasn't going to let Liam get the chance to do so as he continued to attack.

Hit after hit, the two exchanged heavy blows, hurting the other with every impact. But as the battle continued, Sero could feel Liam beginning to slow down, his movements becoming less precise and more sluggish. It was the exhaustion from the mana drain taking its toll.

Sero wasn't better off either, his body screaming from prolonged exertion as his Undying Spirit continued to boost him to his limits. But he didn't stop; he couldn't stop. Every blow he landed on Liam was returned in favor, but Sero didn't care.

Liam was shouting in defiance as he punched and kicked, unwilling to lose to Sero. The Scholar himself became aware of his own voice crying out with every blow he sent.

I won't lose. | He can't win.

Sero coughed up blood as Liam kneed him in the stomach, but he retaliated with a hook to the jaw. He realized the clashing thoughts in his head were a side-effect of Lawbreak, which allowed him to hear the wills of others.

I will not give up. | I'll beat him within an inch of his life.

A spin kick to Liam's side was answered by an elbow to Sero's chest.

I need to show my father I can do this. | I need to show the world I am strong.

Sero could feel his nose gushing blood as Liam's fist broke it, but he pushed forward with an uppercut, feeling the Demonic Enforcer’s jaw crack. Over and over, the two inflicted severe damage to each other, but neither were backing down.

His body ached, his vision swam, but Sero didn’t stop, his instincts taking over. Both he and Liam were slowing down considerably, beginning to reach their limits. In the back of his mind, Sero couldn’t help but feel a reluctant respect towards his opponent, even considering his twisted perception of things. Strangely enough, through their attacks, he was almost certain that Liam felt the same respect for him as well.

Both of them had suffered hardships, and were stuck in similar situations prior to the apocalypse. However, despite both men having to crawl their way from the bottom, the biggest factor between the two was that Sero’s parents had cared for him, unlike the way Liam’s parents did not. While Sero remained adamant in his dislike for Liam’s personality, he had to admit that he could see himself ending up the same way had his parents not given him the love he needed growing up. What made it frightening was that Sero came close to that right after his mother passed.

But now, Sero had a chance to do better. He had a second life to pursue the things he abandoned in his depression. Things he had looked forward to. He had friends, true friends that had helped him through his difficulties. Sero’s father was back in his life as well. He wasn’t going to run away. Not again.

There’s so much I have to lose. | I have nothing to lose.

With a final cry, Sero threw a wild punch but missed, leaving himself wide open. Shakily, Liam seized the opportunity, drawing back his fist and sending it towards Sero’s face.

Sero could only watch as his body refused to listen to him, watching as Liam’s fist rocketed through the air. The bones that had healed felt broken again. Every nerve in his body felt frayed and burnt, his mind hazy and his vision blurry.

All of a sudden, Liam halted, his fist inches away from making contact. He dropped his arm, teetering unsteadily on his feet before coming to a stand-still.

Sero blinked in surprise, unable to comprehend what had just happened. To him, it felt like seconds, but then he realized that the medics had swarmed the two, checking them over. He could only register the blank look in Liam’s eyes as Sero felt the medics beginning to coax him to relax.

"...Match! It seems as though the Demonic Enforcer had long passed out on his feet!" Sero could hear the announcer’s voice fading in. "Ladies and gentlemen… your champion for this tournament and the surprising underdog of the year… Sero Kassel!"

It took a moment for Sero to register the victory as the crowd roared their approval. Slowly coming out of his stupor, Sero smiled faintly, agonizingly raising a hand above his head in triumph as he turned off all his skills except for Recovery.

"Did you see that, Dad?" Sero croaked out, his voice drowned out by the screaming cheers of the audience. "I did it. I won."

Exhaustion finally took over his body as he careened backwards, only to find himself caught in a pair of soft arms. Turning his head, Sero saw that it was Kit who had caught him.

"Oh, hey," Sero grinned weakly at the Paradox. "Are you proud of me?"

He didn’t know why, but even though Kit was smiling back, her expression was sad, almost pained. Her eyes were watering up, a look he never thought Kit would ever have. There was a slow, gut-wrenching feeling rising up within him.

"Yes, my little bookworm," she whispered, her voice barely audible to Sero. "But, we can talk about that later. Right now, I’m going to teleport and heal you, so please work with me."

"Ok." Sero’s brows furrowed slightly, but he was too drained to think properly. The medics were suddenly more interested in Liam instead of him, most likely due to Kit’s Cat Paradox. "Where are we going?"

The Paradox swallowed hard, shaking her head as Sero began to feel his body start to heal and his world blurring.

"I’m so sorry, Sero."