Lucas stared at the scroll in his hands, still trying to make sense of what Sinan had just told him. "Forbidden?"
Sinan nodded, her expression becoming more serious as she looked at the scroll in Lucas's hands. "Yes... As a warrior grows, most of them learn to use Forms One through Ten and spend years strengthening those techniques. Only a very small number ever go beyond the tenth form."
She paused for a moment before continuing, her tone becoming more cautionary. "And even among elite warriors who manage to learn Forms above Ten, very few can master more than a handful. Eventually, they realize their bodies can't handle the power... or that they simply can't use the Forms properly, no matter how hard they try."
Sinan's serious expression slowly faded as her attention returned to the scroll. A spark of excitement returned to her eyes. "But that scroll..." She leaned slightly closer, studying it with renewed curiosity. "It never reacted like this to any Fire user before."
She looked at Lucas, almost unable to hide her excitement now. "That means maybe... just maybe, you can now use Fire Style Forms Eleven through Forty."
Lucas immediately looked down at himself. He formed a fist and flexed his fingers, then glanced over his arms and torso as though he might suddenly notice some obvious change.
"I don't feel any different," he said, sounding more puzzled than disappointed.
Sinan seemed surprised by that, but the excitement in her eyes remained. "Maybe you'll feel it once you fight. Let's go."
Lucas turned toward the door, but before following her, something on top of a shelf caught his attention. His scabbard was sitting there, almost hidden among the old belongings.
"There it is." He reached up and took it down, then slid his sword back inside with a familiar click. Holding it at his side again, Lucas gave a small, satisfied smile. "Like how it used to be."
Sinan started toward the exit before suddenly stopping. "Wait."
She raised her hand, and a small rectangular portal opened in front of her with a soft green glow. It gave off the strange hum of swirling energy as Sinan reached inside and pulled something out.
Lucas's eyes lit up when he saw it.
His jacket.
The torn fabric was completely restored, with none of the damage from his previous fight remaining. Lucas took it from Sinan and slipped it on, pulling his arms through the sleeves before adjusting the front and settling the jacket properly over his shoulders. Once it was back on, his old appearance began to return, and he looked at himself with a quiet smile.
Then his gaze dropped to his pants.
The white mending hall trousers looked completely out of place beneath the jacket, especially with the black belt tied around his waist. Lucas tugged at the fabric with a faintly dissatisfied expression. "The jacket looks good... but these pants still ruin everything."
Sinan gave him a sideways look, clearly amused. "You're still bothered by that?"
"They don't match," Lucas replied matter-of-factly, glancing down at them again. "My jacket has a certain look to it. These make me look like I'm a medic's servant."
Sinan let out a small laugh and shook her head. "You really care that much about your clothes?"
Lucas adjusted his jacket one last time. "I had a perfectly good outfit before all this happened."
"And now you have your jacket back. That's enough," Sinan said before a chuckle.
Lucas looked down at the white pants once more, unconvinced, but followed her toward the door anyway. "I'll still need better pants."
Sinan smiled to herself as they left the storage room. "We'll see about that."
Sinan and Lucas made their way back toward the Colosseum, climbing the wide stone steps that led up to the participating area. As they passed through the crowd, warriors and spectators alike noticed the Queen's presence and bowed respectfully as she walked by. Sinan acknowledged them with brief nods, continuing upward without slowing down, while Lucas followed quietly beside her.
They returned to the participating section and took their seats beside Elias. Down in the arena, Varn and Brutus had already taken their positions, standing several meters apart as they waited for the signal. The spectators settled down around them, and the noise of the Colosseum gradually died away as everyone's attention shifted toward the battlefield.
The announcer raised his voice, echoing throughout the massive arena.
"THREE... TWO... ONE... BEGIN!"
The moment the signal was given, Lucas leaned forward in his seat, his eyes fixed on the two anomalies below. He wanted to see everything—their movements, their techniques, and the way they used their abilities in battle.
The moment the announcer shouted "BEGIN!", Varn moved. "Ice Style, 5th Form—Glacial Spikes!"
The ground beneath Varn erupted with ice. Waves of jagged spikes began forcing their way upward one after another, growing rapidly from the earth and extending forward across the battlefield toward Brutus. Rather than flying through the air, the spikes continued growing directly out of the ground, rising higher and stretching farther as they advanced, creating a rapidly expanding path of ice between the two fighters.
Lucas's eyes widened slightly as he leaned even farther forward, following the advancing ice.
Brutus didn't move at first. He watched the advancing ice until it was just about to reach him, then raised one enormous fist above his head and drove it into the ground. The earth beneath the incoming ice suddenly cracked apart, breaking the path along which the spikes were growing. The ice stopped with the shattered ground, sending a massive chunk of broken ground outward while a thick cloud of dust exploded across the battlefield and Brutus disappeared behind the dust.
Lucas narrowed his eyes, trying to see through it. "Where did he go?"
But Varn was already moving. Using the dust as cover, he closed the distance between them. Brutus couldn't see him approaching, and by the time the dust began to settle, Varn was already right in front of him.
Brutus suddenly spotted him and raised his fist. Varn's expression changed the instant he saw the punch coming. He dropped to his knees and turned the ground beneath himself into ice, his body immediately sliding across the frozen surface and causing Brutus's fist to pass just above his head.
Lucas's eyes followed Varn's movement closely. "He dodged it..."
Varn slid past Brutus and quickly jumped back to his feet, restoring the ground beneath him to normal. Before Brutus could fully recover from his missed punch, Varn jumped into the air and swung his leg backward, striking Brutus with a powerful back-kick.
Lucas expected the hit to send the giant stumbling, but Brutus didn't move an inch. Varn landed and stared at him for a moment, clearly caught off guard by the lack of reaction. Brutus slowly turned toward him, anger showing on his face as he reached out to grab him.
Varn's confidence vanished as he saw the massive hand coming toward him. He tried to move, but Brutus caught him and closed his hand around his body.
The moment Brutus grabbed him, Varn's body suddenly lost its solid form. His entire body transformed into water, slipping through Brutus's fingers before splashing onto the ground.
Brutus froze, staring at the water left in his hand.
Lucas stared at the battlefield, his eyes wide with disbelief. "A water clone?"
Brutus turned around, and his eyes quickly found Varn standing much farther away. Varn had already adjusted his approach after realizing that physical blows weren't having much effect on Brutus. Keeping his distance would give him more room to use his techniques without putting himself within Brutus's reach.
"Spire Barrage."
The ground around Varn suddenly shifted as several sharp spikes began rising from beneath the earth. Each one grew taller and longer, their tips becoming increasingly pointed before they broke away from the ground and shot directly toward Brutus.
Brutus immediately raised his arm in front of himself, using his enormous strength to block the incoming barrage as the spikes struck against him. At the same time, Varn began running forward, slowly closing the distance.
Lucas looked surprised. "Why is he getting closer again?"
Varn didn't run close enough for Brutus to reach him. Instead, once he was at a safe distance, he suddenly jumped, launching himself high into the air. He raised one hand above his head as he continued rising and called out, "Ice Style, 6th Form."
A massive chunk of ice began forming above his raised hand. It continued growing larger and larger while Varn remained airborne, rapidly expanding into an enormous block that towered over him.
Brutus finally finished blocking the Spire Barrage and looked upward. His expression changed when he saw the gigantic mass of ice coming down toward him.
He didn't try to dodge.
Brutus planted his feet and drew back his fist, waiting until the enormous ice block was directly above him before throwing a powerful punch straight into it.
The massive block shattered on impact, breaking apart into countless pieces of ice that scattered across the battlefield.
The moment the ice shattered, waves of cold air spread across the battlefield. The wind became so strong that leaves, grass, and pieces of debris were lifted from the ground and thrown around at incredible speed. Elias and Lucas raised their arms in front of their faces, struggling to see through the sudden blast of wind, while Sinan remained seated beside them, completely unfazed.
The other spectators couldn't see much either. All they could hear was Varn's voice cutting through the storm, "Dust Storm!"
As the wind gradually cleared, the battlefield came into view, completely covered in a thick cloud of dust.
Elias looked toward the battlefield and repeated the technique's name, this time identifying it for Lucas. "Earth Style... 18th Form, Dust Storm."
Lucas quickly realized what Varn was doing. He had covered the entire battlefield in dust, taking away Brutus's vision and making it impossible to tell where either fighter was. All Lucas could hear now were the sounds of heavy thuds coming from somewhere inside the dust.
He leaned forward, trying desperately to see what was happening. "What's going on in there...?"
Slowly, the dust began to clear, Varn's technique finally wore off, allowing Lucas could finally make out the battlefield. His eyes widened when he saw Brutus restrained by a thick Water Style whip wrapped tightly around his body. Varn stood nearby, attacking him with fists made of rock, using the 13th Form of Earth Style. One after another, the stone fists struck Brutus as he struggled against the whip.
Brutus tried to break free several times, pulling against the water binding him and attempting to force his way out. But after struggling for some time, his resistance finally stopped.
"I lose."
Varn immediately stopped attacking. He released the Water Style whip and let it dissolve before landing back on the ground.
The announcer's voice echoed throughout the Colosseum.
"WE HAVE A WINNER! IT'S VARN!"
The entire crowd erupted into loud cheers, their voices echoing throughout the Colosseum. Lucas looked around in amazement, taking in the sheer enthusiasm of the spectators.
The announcer raised his voice again. "Get ready, because our next fighter is... ELIAS!"
Elias smirked and jumped down from the top of the Colosseum, landing directly on the battlefield below with ease.
Lucas turned toward Sinan, his curiosity growing. "I've never seen Elias use his power before... Now I finally get to see what he can do."
Before Sinan could respond, the announcer continued, his voice carrying across the entire arena. "AND the next contender is... the boy sitting beside the Queen! You may introduce yourself and come down to the battlefield, kid!"
Lucas's head snapped toward the announcer. He looked around at the people sitting beside him, then slowly pointed at himself with a completely bewildered expression. "...Me?"
The announcer's voice came again. "Yes, you!"
Lucas's eyes widened. "HUH?! ME?!"
Unlike Elias, who had simply jumped down, Lucas hurried toward the stairs with his sword in hand, clearly caught off guard by the sudden announcement. He made his way down toward the battlefield, taking the steps as quickly as he could until he finally reached the bottom, breathing heavily from the rush.
Lucas straightened himself and looked around at the massive crowd before raising his voice. "I AM LUCAS! I'm really grateful for the chance to participate in this fight. I'll do my best to put on a good fight!"
A few spectators reacted with clear excitement, seemingly curious about the unfamiliar boy who had been sitting beside the Queen. Most of the crowd, however, continued cheering for Elias, who was already a familiar and respected fighter.
Lucas stepped onto the battlefield, removed his scabbard, and placed it to the side before beginning to stretch. He lowered himself into a sideways leg stretch, loosening his legs and preparing himself for the fight.
Elias smirked as he looked across the battlefield at Lucas. "Are you ready, Lucas? I don't get to fight a swordsman often. I want to see if you can put up a good fight."
Lucas finished his stretch and rose to his feet, a confident smirk forming across his face. "You bet."