Since I had nothing to do, I spent this time watching the battles as they were nearing their end.
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Chapter 110: Tournament (2)
"Because of the uneven number of contestants, Radeius will be battling once more. Is that okay with you, young lady?" Instructor Distal questioned.
Stepping onto the stage, she nodded.
"It's fine."
"Radeius versus Steinen!"
Jumping onto the arena, Steinen held his great sword tightly.
Unlike the amateurs he had faced so far, Radeius was one of the strongest in the entire academy.
She didn't claim herself as the rival of Incus for nothing, after all.
"Let the battle begin!"
Instructor Distal then disappeared to the sidelines and watched in anticipation.
'This is going to be very interesting. A spear against a great sword. I can't wait to see what the end result will be.'
Shrouding their weapons with [Blade Aura], the two began walking around each other in a circle.
They then disappeared with extreme speed as they attacked each other.
Sparks from their intense clash flew everywhere, as gusts of strong wind blew into the faces of the crowd.
Stomping on the ground, Radeius thrust her spear with all her might.
Shielding himself with the flat end of his great sword, Steinen was sent scraping back, his feet not leaving the ground.
Readjusting his grip, Steinen held the great sword over his head before lunging towards Radeius and slashing downwards.
Raising the pole of her spear above her head, she deflected the attack to the side and followed up with a jumping roundhouse kick at Steinen's head.
Deflecting the kick with his helmet, Steinen did a thrusting kick at Radeius.
However, his kick did not land because Radeius had stopped the attack with the pommel of her spear, dampening the force of the attack by stopping it before it was fully extended.
"Sky Severing Thrust!"
Spinning the spear, the inertia it carried was the equivalent of a mountain.
She then thrust the spear towards Steinen.
At the same time, Steinen did a horizontal slash.
However, his great sword ricocheted upward, leaving him wide open.
Taking the opportunity, Radeius stomped her front foot down.
"Thousand Spear Sky!"
An evisceration of countless spear thrusts engulfed Steinen.
Tightening his grip, Steinen slashed downward through the wall of attacks.
Being pushed back, Radeius took a deep breath.
'I won't be able to defeat him like this. Even if our difference in strength is too great, I shall not lose... I won't be able to use this skill for long, so this next attack will be the final one.'
Her mana then began to pulse throughout her body.
Radeius had activated [Limit Surge].
Having her body pushed to its absolute limit, steam began to appear from her body as her muscles tensed with absolute strength.
"I was saving this for Incus, so be thankful."
Chuckling slightly, Steinen looked into her pulsing golden pupils.
"May this battle burn into the eyes of the people, for they will remember my victory!"
He then adjusted his stance, getting ready to counter whatever was going to be thrown at him.
Jumping into the sky, leaving imprints on the ground, Radeius announced her attack:
"Raging Tide of the Sky!"
A barrage of thrusts then fell upon Steinen.
Switching his grip, Steinen decided to not counterattack but instead block the attack. He knew the effects of Limit Surge from Incus, and although it wasn't as great, it was still fearsome.
As he blocked the attack, Steinen began to sink into the ground but refused to bend his knees.
'I will surpass Incus! 'Radeius thought, continuing the onslaught of the barrage as her muscles began to rupture.
After finishing her attack, Radeius fell to the ground with barely any vigor left.
'That should have ended him… so why… why is he still standing?'
Steinen, in all his glory, was still standing.
His uniform was shredded into pieces, his helmet being the only thing remaining intact.
"Did you finish your tantrum?" Steinen lunged forward and slammed horizontally with the flat end of his great sword.
Not having the strength to stand up or raise her spear, Radeius accepted her fate.
But just before she was about to be slammed, Instructor Distal had stopped the attack with a steel sword that he had taken from a student.
"You've already won. Don't overdo it, boy."
Pulling back his blade, Steinen went to get a change of clothes.
Handing over the unconscious Radeius to a professor on standby, Instructor Distal announced:
"Our winner is Steinen! For our final match, it will be held tomorrow."
Walking off the stadium, Distal looked at the steel sword. His face grew sour since it had been dulled and cracks were clearly visible.
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That was an intense battle.
My only complaint was that my steel sword had been taken from me.
Alleus, who witnessed the whole ordeal, tried to hide a laugh.
***
Following Incus, she went to the training auditorium at night and took a spear. She then began to mimic what seemed to be the techniques that Radeius used. Slowly, she added more and more thrusts.
Before long, a wall of piercing thrusts had appeared. She had fully comprehended the technique.
"Geez, she's truly a hero." Alleus watched intently.
But once the technique had been done, the spear had been blown into smithereens.
"The spear that Radeius used must have been built to withstand her techniques, if this is the result," I deduced.
"I'm going to get some shut-eye. Good night."
"Hey, you can't just put me on sleeping duty—"
Ignoring me, she snuggled up in a sleeping position. Looking at her more closely, she was kind of cute.
Picking up another spear, Incus began to mimic the next technique, and once she comprehended it, the spear would crumble.
Soon only one technique was left to ingrain in her bones, and it was the Sky Severing Thrust.
But every time she tried to do the technique, the spear would blow up before it was fully thrust forward.
Alleus and I took rotations on who would sleep and who would stay awake to watch. Although her talent was extraordinarily high, this technique took a lot more than a few minutes for her to comprehend.
***
Yawning, the sun then began to rise as I watched over Alleus and Incus.
When she took the next spear, I felt a slight shift in her aura. It was much more refined, in a sense.
Spinning the spear, inertia gathered as the air was being absorbed around Incus. She then thrust forward.
Incus had done it.
Afterwards, she took a short nap before heading to the stadium.
***
Walking through a tunnel, the crowd cheered.
Alleus and I ran to the seats situated by the stadium.
As I was making my way there, I couldn't help but notice someone standing at the top of the stadium. He was very tall and muscular with a helmet over his head, despite wearing noble-like attire.
In the middle of the arena was Steinen. Unlike yesterday, he wasn't wearing the academy battle uniform but was clad in medium armor.
Which I found strange, since he was a tank. Wait, no—why was he wearing armor in the first place?
"What a weirdo, am I right?" Alleus commented, and I nodded in agreement.
"It is the time that you've all been waiting for! Incus versus Steinen!"
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Chapter 110: Tournament (2)
…
Raising his great sword, he pointed the blade at Incus.
"Don't hold back. Pity is for the weak."
Pulling a spear from her back, she pointed the tip at Steinen.
"I plan not to. Who knows, maybe I'll take that helmet off your head so I can see that face of yours."
"I see that you're not using your swords. Are you sure you can handle me with such a simple spear?"
Peering into Steinen's soul, Incus scoffed.
"This spear is merely but a bow, and my skills are its arrows."
***
Standing at the top of the stadium was Steinen's father. A long odachi hung behind his waist. His long blond hair flowed in the wind, which was funneled through a small hole on the back of his helmet.
"You best not disappoint me, boy."
Crossing his arms, he flexed his muscles. The fabric of his suit ripped apart.
"…Sloppy craftsmanship. Ripped so soon even though I didn't even do anything."
***
Lunging forward, they clashed.
Steinen released an onslaught of powerful yet quick slashes.
Incus, wary that she would destroy the spear, deflected the attacks as she walked backwards due to Steinen pushing forward.
Flexing his body all the way back, the sound of Steinen's muscle fibers being tensed crept out of his armor. He then whipped his body at Incus, doing an overhead slash.
Tapping the flat end of the great sword with the spear, Incus slightly moved its trajectory to the side, narrowly missing her.
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The author then published the chapter but almost immediately started to write again.
But at least I now know who that weirdo was at the top of the stadium, Steinen's father.