I stood there in front of Elliot Sivrax, the person whose perspective I had seen this world from.
I understood him… and I knew just how strong he truly was.
Honestly, even at my best, I didn't think I could defeat him.
A beautiful white light enveloped his sword… it was the Light element.
Then I felt it, and saw the aura in the air moving violently, interacting with his sword.
In the next moment, Elliot swung, forming an arc of light… the distance between us was several meters,
but the strike ignored the distance and appeared right in front of me… I had predicted it, so I was already moving and dodged it by a hair's breadth.
The light arc passed, continuing across the arena floor, leaving a deep scratch in the ground.
As I stepped to the side, Elliot appeared beside me, swinging his glowing sword. The sword moved at insane speed thanks to the Light element.
I also layered my sword with aura, just as I had done with Izel, and swung all my strength toward him.
Our strikes collided.
The place was flooded with intense brightness, the ground cracked and shattered beneath our feet.
Both of us were pushed back several meters, and a small crater formed between us.
Without wasting any time, Elliot appeared in front of me again, his sword swinging toward me, drawing another arc of light.
We clashed again, and I felt my body tearing, my bones trembling… he was unbelievably strong, even for Rank Two.
When I pushed him away, arcs of light formed and shot toward me… one of them could have sent me out of the arena.
I barely dodged, only for him to appear in the perfect position to strike me.
Even when I tried to imitate Rank Three, I could do nothing but defend.
"Honestly, I didn't expect to find someone here who could make me give my all," Elliot said with a cheerful smile on his face.
He looked like someone bored until he found something interesting.
I gritted my teeth and blocked his sword, which carved into my flesh and spilled my blood again.
Damn this Light element… it made him insanely fast, so much that I barely had time to respond.
Elliot vanished from in front of me before my sword could reach him and stood at a distance.
He swung his sword multiple times, sending numerous arcs of light toward me. Then I felt gravity intensifying around me, my body growing heavier and slower.
Damn… even my aura was nearly depleted.
I wasn't someone who could spend my aura without thought, especially since he had an amount comparable to Rank Three while he himself was Rank Two.
I gritted my teeth… I couldn't lose here, not when only a few minutes remained.
Three arcs of light reached me.
I stepped to the side, twisting my body to avoid the first, but the second was already on me. I condensed my aura on my sword and struck at the light arc… I felt my hand burning, the skin around my fingers melting before the attack shattered into sparks and dissolved into the air.
The third was far, so I avoided it easily… only for Elliot to appear in front of me again with his cursed sword.
I twisted my body to dodge his sword, but it carved a wound along my ribs. I ignored the pain and kicked toward him, forcing him to retreat to avoid it.
Ridiculous… he was ridiculously strong.
And I knew why he was this strong…
Because he was blessed… chosen by a powerful ancient entity like "The Devourer" to impose its will on this world.
At this stage, even he didn't know that.
But honestly, it infuriated me.
All the effort I had made, all the pain I endured…
My escape from the lab, killing everyone there without feeling a thing…
Just to lose here?
Was this world telling me that I was just worthless trash in front of this hero?
My power and will meant nothing when those who watch the chessboard from above move the pawns to their will.
I gritted my teeth hard until I was about to break.
I dodged the light arcs spreading destruction across the arena, blocking Elliot's enhanced strikes that cracked the bones in my hand.
I couldn't even heal myself again, and all I had left was a tiny bit of aura, just enough to reinforce my body and keep up with the battle.
My body, which had healed before, was now worse several times over…
But I refused… I refused to lose here.
Two lives…
Two cursed lives, each worse than the other.
A head filled with the ugliest memories and thoughts… and even with all of this…
I wanted to live.
Not live as a weak loser like my first life,
Nor trapped within the cold walls of an underground cage where you wake up to pain and hunger like this life.
I wanted to live free… free to experience all the things I had been denied in both my lives.
I wanted power… power to protect my freedom… to achieve everything I wanted…
So I wouldn't lose again.
I wouldn't feel weak again,
Nor bury anyone with my own hands again, like I did under that tree.
I didn't want this… I didn't want to lose at the very first step of my new life.
So I pushed myself beyond my limits… and plunged into the battle.
I forgot everything around me.
I stopped counting the time.
In my head, there was only one thought:
I cannot lose… I must not lose.
…
In the observation room, everyone sat in silence, eyes fixed on the final battle.
Even Daren, who couldn't stay quiet for more than a minute straight, was silent, his eyes glued to the fight.
Unaware, he found himself tense. His eyes caught the timer:
Time remaining: [00:00:54]
…
"More… more… more…" I screamed inside to keep standing.
Time stretched, I was being pushed back by Elliot, able only to leave him some superficial wounds.
Then, at a certain moment, things calmed, and Elliot stood at a distance from me, his sword glowing brighter than ever.
He spoke no words… yet I still understood him.
He was happy… happy to be in this battle, because he had found someone his age capable of enduring combat against him.
But I wasn't happy…
I didn't even know what I felt… maybe it was weakness.
Elliot's sword blazed so brightly it nearly blinded me. Clearly, he intended to finish the fight with this strike.
He twisted his body and prepared to swing his sword.
I felt the immense amount of aura in this attack.
Then, in the next moment, his sword moved, forming a giant arc of light that blocked the entire space in front of me.
There was no place to escape.
I knew that if I survived this, I would win.
[00:00:03]
I gathered every last drop of my remaining aura in my sword.
[00:00:02]
And when the attack reached me, I swung with all my strength.
The light engulfed my vision, blinding my eyes. I felt my body burning,
and the armor activated to carry me away.
[00:00:00]
Then the light in front of me vanished,
and darkness flooded my vision.
…
Final Rankings:
1.Caius Astroweild [10325]
2.Elliot Sivrax [5673]
3.Izel Ashvil [4573]
4.Leona Starlin [4485]
5.Ellen Asterval [2650]
6.Kyle Astro [2170]
7.Garon Blackfall [1923]
8.Ivan Rexel [1470]
9.Naira… [1345]
10.Valia… [1236]
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