Alaric had never done it before. Not once. He had never been outmatched in any exchange he had chosen to enter against an opponent of similar strength.
Ace had done both today.
He had matched Alaric evenly for over half an hour. And now, through the bubble, he was ascending to something Alaric would never catch up to in time.
Alaric raised his eyes to the sky above the arena.
His voice came out cold and tired.
"Old man. I don't know how long you're planning to watch. But I'm leaving."
For a long moment, nothing happened.
Then a terrifying aura spread across the venue.
It didn't crash down like the master's had. It descended slowly, layering itself onto the atmosphere like frost forming on glass in a cold, stormy night.
Every fighter in the arena felt the difference immediately.
A figure appeared in the sky above the arena.
He descended slowly, his feet not quite touching the floor as he lowered himself down.
