Ray was returning from the arena when he passed Derivan on the way.
"Nice fight" the teenager praised him.
"Thanks. Hopefully you won't lose either."
"Don't worry about me, I'll manage" Derivan was surprised to see Ray heading in a completely different direction. "Where are you going? There's no competitors' room over there."
"I'll be back soon, I need to check something" he replied as he left the arena.
Derivan just shrugged and returned to the competitors' area, still waiting for his fight. Minutes passed, just like the subsequent matches. Only after about forty minutes did it become Derivan's turn.
"The next fight will take place between Derivan and Januar Wolfer."
"Finally, my turn" said the excited teenager, jumping down into the arena and facing his opponent. "Yo, I'm counting on a good fight."
"Same here."
When the fight was about to begin, Derivan suddenly felt a sharp pain in his stomach.
"Damn it, at a moment like this?" the teenager thought, clutching his stomach.
However, that didn't stop his opponent from attacking. Januar rushed at Derivan instantly, and when Derivan lifted his head, he received a punch to the face that sent him flying to the other end of the arena.
"Hahahaha, look at this loser, what's he even doing here?" mocked one of the competitors in the stands.
"I'm surprised someone like him made it to the second stage. He must've been really lucky."
Everyone mocked Derivan except Nohara. She didn't like it, but she didn't want to show it. Hearing the jeers, Derivan clenched his fists and stood up.
"You'd better give up, I'm telling you for your own good" said Januar.
Derivan just smiled. "Me, give up? No thanks."
Januar attacked again. This time Derivan dodged by jumping up, but Januar grabbed his leg and slammed him into the ground.
"His gaze has changed" Derivan noticed, rolling to the side and avoiding another strike. "Shindo!" he fired a stream of lightning from his hand.
Januar leapt toward Derivan and, spinning halfway around, kicked him in the face, sending him several meters away. Borner was also watching the fight, smiling.
"What's wrong with this guy? Just a moment ago he looked normal, but now he's looking at me like he wants to kill me" Derivan thought, wiping blood from his mouth.
Januar created a magic circle in front of him, from which several energy projectiles shot out. Derivan tried to dodge them, but suddenly Januar appeared above him, concentrating choki in his hand.
"Januar, you're going too far! Killing is forbidden!" Doremin was about to intervene.
"Please wait and do not interrupt the fight!"
"What? But..."
"This is the end" Januar fired an energy beam.
"Time to demonstrate another new technique" in response to the attack, Derivan concentrated choki in his hand and created a sphere of lightning, which he hurled toward his opponent's attack.
When both attacks collided, they caused an explosion.A few moments passed before the smoke cleared. Januar was shocked to see Derivan had stopped his attack.
"You managed to counter my attack?"
"You shouldn't underestimate me."
Januar charged again, and Derivan began running sideways. At one point, he pulled some balls out of his pocket and scattered them across the arena. Seeing his opponent chasing him, Derivan smiled. When Januar stepped on one of the balls, it exploded, creating a smoke screen.
"Damn it, I can't see anything" Januar thought.
"I won't last much longer, I have to finish this fight as quickly as possible" Derivan was still feeling the pain in his stomach.
Then Derivan closed his eyes and ran into his smoke screen. Thanks to his training with Ronibo, the teenager had learned to locate enemies by sensing their choki. Once Derivan entered the smoke, he turned his back.
"Ultra fart of death!" — Derivan farted, stinking up the entire arena.
"What a stench!"
"I can't stand it!"
The smell of Derivan's fart was so powerful that Januar lost consciousness.
"It appears that Januar is unable to continue fighting. The winner is Derivan."
Derivan immediately ran out of the arena and started looking for a restroom. After a moment, it turned out the nearest one was in the school, so he ran there.
"Phew, I made it. I thought I was going to shit myself."
After several minutes, the teenager left the restroom, and that was when he noticed Ray searching for something.
"What is he doing here?"
Ray reached the forbidden hall, opened the door without any trouble, and moments later came out holding something that looked like a crystal.
"Is that the crystal the teacher mentioned back then?"
Seeing the crystal, Derivan suddenly felt a strange sensation and grabbed his head. A symbol appeared on his forehead, and his eyes turned red. Then he revealed his presence.
"Derivan, what are you doing here?"
"Ray, give me that crystal."