"Let's do this... 'Overdrive'."
The moment Veynaris activated his 'Overdrive', his entire presence changed.
His aura became chaotic. The air around him seemed distorted, twisting and warping at random moments. The calm and emotionless Dragonkind from before was gone. In his place stood someone far more dangerous.
Adrian tightened his grip on his sword.
Veynaris immediately raised his hand. 'Event Collapse'.
As he clenched his fist, the gravity around Adrian increased dramatically.
The sudden pressure forced Adrian onto one knee. His body felt heavy as if an entire mountain had been placed on his shoulders. Even standing became difficult.
But Veynaris was already moving. 'Ethereal Knights'.
Ten armored knight constructs appeared around Adrian.
Before Adrian could fully recover, one of the knights stepped forward and swung its sword.
At the very last moment, Veynaris released 'Event Collapse'.
The gravity vanished.
The knight's sword came crashing down.
With only a fraction of a second to react, Adrian redirected the blade with his own sword. Even then, the attack grazed his shoulder and left a shallow cut.
Adrian immediately jumped away.
The ten knights charged together.
One attacked from the side.
Adrian ducked beneath it.
A second knight followed with a vertical strike.
Adrian jumped onto the flat side of the sword, used it as a platform, and leaped onto the knight's head.
From there he jumped onto another knight.
Then another.
A fourth knight attempted to punch upward.
While still airborne, Adrian slashed downward and cut off its arm.
He landed and rushed toward another knight, avoiding an incoming attack before slicing through its neck and dismantling it completely.
Three more knights attacked at once.
Adrian dodged left.
Rolled forward.
Turned around and cut one apart.
He immediately jumped right and delivered a vertical slash that destroyed the second.
Then he sprinted toward the third knight.
Sliding beneath its legs, Adrian appeared behind it.
As the knight turned around, Adrian leaped upward and struck its neck, dismantling it as well.
He landed smoothly.
Six knights still remained.
Adrian took a deep breath.
'Golden Horizon'.
A brilliant arc of divine light swept across the battlefield.
The remaining six knights were instantly cut apart and collapsed.
But Veynaris did not give him time to rest.
A massive chunk of earth rose into the sky under Veynaris' control and came crashing toward Adrian.
Adrian turned and saw the enormous mass descending.
Instead of retreating, he jumped onto it.
Using the moving rock as a platform, he launched himself away from the impact zone while deflecting smaller debris with his sword.
Veynaris extended his hand again.
'Astral Impact'.
An invisible telekinetic strike exploded into Adrian.
He couldn't see it. Only feel it.
The force blasted him backward.
Then another came. And another. And another.
Veynaris continued launching 'Astral Impact' repeatedly.
Adrian took several direct hits before he slowly began adapting.
Little by little, he started predicting the timing.
The impacts still struck him, but he managed to reduce their effect.
It still wasn't enough.
This time Adrian spoke.
"Alright now... let's do this."
His eyes began glowing brightly.
Now he wasn't simply predicting.
He already knew.
Before the invisible attacks were even launched, Adrian was preparing for them.
At the last possible moment, he dodged.
Again. And again. And again.
Even Veynaris found it difficult to keep up.
Every attack missed by the smallest margin.
Frustration began appearing on Veynaris' face.
'Astral Burst'.
A violent explosion of psychic energy erupted outward.
Adrian could see it coming through his future sight.
But the explosion was simply too large.
Dodging at the last moment was impossible.
Moving too early would only alert Veynaris.
The first explosion caught Adrian.
Then another followed. And another.
He was forced to endure several attacks.
His body accumulated damage. But he continued adapting.
Eventually, he began escaping the blast radius just before detonation.
Veynaris stopped only for a moment before making another move.
'Heavenfall Spears'.
Countless psychic spears filled the sky.
Veynaris glared at Adrian.
"Now I won't give you space to dodge."
Adrian looked upward.
Then slowly closed his eyes.
'Praito Butham' shone brilliantly.
The spears began falling.
Thousands of them.
From every direction.
Yet Adrian moved through them like flowing water.
He twisted.
Stepped.
Turned.
Dodged.
Parried.
Blocked.
Every movement was smooth and precise.
The endless rain of spears continued, but none managed to strike him.
Despite the damage he had already suffered, Adrian showed no sign of panic.
Only calmness.
Then it became Adrian's turn.
'Sunlit Dominion'.
Sacred energy spread throughout the battlefield.
The falling spears disappeared one after another.
Veynaris grabbed his head in frustration.
He was supposed to be controlling everything.
Yet nothing was going the way he wanted.
Adrian had suffered throughout the fight.
And still... It felt as if Adrian was above him.
That thought irritated Veynaris more and more.
His emotions clouded his judgment.
Meanwhile Adrian remained completely focused.
Veynaris screamed.
'Astral Collapse'.
A massive amount of psychic force compressed into a single point before erupting outward in a catastrophic explosion.
Adrian responded.
'Silent Divide'.
A simple slash.
One that appeared harmless.
Yet its true cut manifested moments later.
In the next instant Adrian stood behind Veynaris.
A crack echoed throughout the arena.
The enormous psychic force split apart and collapsed.
Veynaris spun around.
He charged one final attack.
'Astral Collapse'.
But Adrian had already moved.
This time he took a different stance.
Then he leaped high into the air.
'Falling Star'.
A descending attack that accelerated continuously as it fell.
Veynaris released everything he had.
The psychic force surged upward.
But it wasn't enough.
Adrian sliced through it. Once again.
Then descended directly onto Veynaris. The strike landed.
Veynaris collapsed immediately.
Silence filled the battlefield.
Adrian stood beside him, breathing heavily.
His entire body ached.
Now that the fight was over, he could finally feel the weight of everything he had endured.
But none of that mattered anymore.
The match was decided.
Ifa's voice echoed across the arena.
"And your winner is Prince Adrian!"
The crowd erupted into cheers.
Shai nodded.
"Incredible display of swordsmanship and footwork by Prince Adrian. He didn't dominate the fight, and he didn't need to. He remained calm, adapted to everything Veynaris threw at him, and secured the victory. On the other hand, Veynaris allowed his frustration to take over, and eventually that cost him the match."
Ifa quickly followed. "And with that, the score between the Rising Heroes and Eternal Wings is now tied at 2-2!"
The crowd became even louder.
"This means the final bout will decide everything! Ladies and gentlemen, stay in your seats because the last fight is going to be one incredible battle!"
Adrian smiled.
Then he raised his sword and pointed it toward Drakar.
It was a simple gesture.
But everyone in the Rising Heroes understood what it meant. Drakar understood what he meant.
Now it was Drakar's turn.
The final bout would decide not only who advanced to the next round... but something far more important than that.