Volume 1: Path – [Academy Arc]
Chapter 33: Uriel Vs Sakura
Uriel stood beneath the glow of the late afternoon sun, the amber light casting long shadows across the arena floor. The golden hour wrapped her platinum hair in a halo-like shimmer, and the shafts of sunlight cut between the columns of the arena, painting fractured light across her form.
She wore the standard academy dress which is a dark navy, knee-length coat with a high collar and intricate geometric seam detailing. The bold hourglass emblem on her chest caught glints of sunlight. Black leggings and tactical ankle boots completed her sleek, practical silhouette.
Her expression was calm, almost gentle, but her almond-shaped eyes, glowing with vivid gold irises, held a piercing focus.
In her right hand, she held her spear loosely at her side, the shaft tilted diagonally toward the earth. Then, inhaling deeply, she closed her eyes. As she exhaled, she opened them again and, with a single, fluid arc, raised the spear above her head. It spun once with a soft hum. The motion caught the slanting light, making her silhouette shimmer like a dusk-born deity.
Across from her, Sakura stood in perfect contrast.
Where Uriel was sunlight, Sakura was shadow. Her jet-black hair framed her pale face, and her obsidian eyes narrowed with razor-sharp focus.
She wore the same combat uniform as Uriel.
Her stance was sharp, side-profile turned slightly toward her opponent, dominant leg set behind, left foot angled forward. Her left hand rested calmly on the sheath at her hip, fingers curled around the lacquered scabbard. Her right hovered just above the hilt, poised.
The whistle that signaled the beginning of the duel rang out.
Uriel moved one heartbeat later.
Her right foot slid forward, her body compressing like a drawn spring. The spear lunged forward in a smooth, lethal line not at Sakura's core, but at her dominant sword arm. It was a precise strike meant to disable, not to kill.
Sakura responded without hesitation.
Her left hand snapped the sheath upward, not to block the spear directly, but to deflect it just enough. The scabbard bent under the force with a sharp crack, the pressure vibrating through her arm. She had anticipated it.
That impact jostled the blade inside just slightly enough.
With her right hand, she yanked the hilt downward, letting the loosened blade glide free in a single, seamless draw. The hiss of steel rang clear as the tachi flashed into her grip.
Uriel's spear recoiled off the scabbard. She stepped back with her right foot, absorbing the rebound.
Without missing a beat, she switched to a one-handed grip, rotating her torso. The spear arced in a wide, horizontal sweep from her left side which was an attack not meant to hit, but to stall Sakura's advance.
Her face remained composed, but a bead of sweat slid down her temple. She hadn't re-established her full grip.
Sakura did not hesitate.
She lowered her center of gravity, knees coiling like springs. In a heartbeat, she launched forward.
As the sweeping spear neared her, she spun.
Her right leg crossed behind her, torso twisting as her tachi cut a spiraling arc, rotating clockwise with her whole body. The blade clashed against the spear's edge, not the shaft. CLANG! Sparks flew. The spear's tip bounced back again.
Still in motion, Sakura continued her spin. With a full-body rotation, her tachi now swept upward in a fluid arc, a blur of silver rising like a crescent moon.
Then, Uriel saw it. Her golden eyes widened ever so slightly. She tried to realign her spear, pulling bac,k but she was just a breath too late.
Just as the tachi was about to reach Uriel's neck, the world paused. Everything fell eerily still. No one could move, not even the teachers.
Uriel, having experienced this phenomenon once before, used the moment of stasis to pull back her spear and duck low.
It all happened within a single second. Then, time resumed. The tachi narrowly missed her neck, and Sakura, mid-air, landed with a shocked expression frozen on her face.
Before she could even process what had happened, she touched the ground, only to find the tip of Uriel's spear aimed directly at her throat.
Both girls were breathing heavily, their chests rising and falling with exhaustion. Though the battle had been brief, the mental strain of analyzing movements, reacting in real-time, and strategizing had drained their stamina rapidly.
But Uriel was beyond exhausted. Her body felt hollow, completely drained, but her face remained lowered, hiding her condition from the onlookers. The only thing visible was the unwavering spear pointed at Sakura's neck and the rough breathing sound.
"I lost," Sakura said, declaring her defeat.
"Uriel, that was a good fight," Sakura said to Uriel, reaching out with her dominant hand to help her up.
But there was no response. Uriel's hand remained limp, unable to grip Sakura's.
Noticing something was wrong, Sakura sheathed her tachi and called out, "Sir, she's fainted."
"Oh, uh, take her to the nurse's office on the third floor of the arena. The signs will guide you," the instructor replied, still visibly shaken by what had transpired.
And who could blame him? What had just occurred was shocking even for the teacher himself. Uriel's sudden repositioning was far too fast for a newly awakened, even for someone at Rank 2 or 3.
"Okay," Sakura responded to the instructor before lifting Uriel onto her back. Carefully, she followed the directional signs and made her way up to the third floor toward the nurse's office.
Caelus, having observed the entire duel, wasn't surprised by Uriel's victory. He had seen this before. Every time she was on the verge of losing, her position would suddenly shift as if she had blinked through space. It had even happened earlier during training. But each time she used that ability, she ended up completely drained, and Instructor Garron had to infuse her with Leym energy to restore her condition.
The moment she froze for that one second and then accepted defeat, Caelus knew, 'She used it again. That means she's either desperate for merits or trying to climb the rankings quickly.'
He mentally reviewed the merit system: 'For ranks 151 to 200, students receive 10 merits monthly. Ranks 101 to 150 get 15. Those between 51 and 100 are granted 30 merits. Rank 50 gets 50. And ranks 10 through 1 receive 100 merits each month.'
With her holding rank 50, she should've had more than enough. So what was driving her to push herself this hard?
'Maybe her parents are pressuring her to reach Rank 1, classic noble pride. Most nobles duel for one reason only: to uphold their family's name. Otherwise, why go to such lengths just to climb the ranks when you already have plenty of merits? Personally, I wouldn't step into a duel unless I desperately needed them.'
'At least she won. Losing would've cost her half of her current merits, which would be transferred to her opponent. Not to mention, the loser's rank is forfeited; if a lower-ranked challenger wins, they take the higher rank. But a higher-ranked winner doesn't drop down if they defeat someone below them.'
Caelus turned his gaze to Aiv, who was napping beside him, a white cloth draped over his face.
'He must be exhausted… He really is such a hard worker.'
Aiv helped out Caelus a lot from the morning till now. So, of course, that is hard work.
Caelus leaned back and let his thoughts drift, replaying the duel in his mind. He had gleaned a few valuable insights just by watching.
First, he picked up on several techniques from observing the girl named Sakura. Her movements, while elegant and precise, were naturally more suited to a female physique, agile, fluid, and light-footed. It made him difficult for him to replicate directly with his body build.
'But I think I can adapt them. If I tweak the stances and transitions to better suit my body, I could make the style my own,' he thought with determination.
Second, there was this strange tingling in his mind, which was a subtle but persistent sensation, like an instinct forming. 'It feels like my body and mind are aligning, like they're guiding me toward building my own combat style. If this continues, I might be able to develop something unique within six months.'
'But I still don't know what element I possess, and that's important. Creating a combat style that doesn't align with your element or your body only leads to setbacks. Without that knowledge, diving too deep into style creation is pointless, but one must create a blueprint of one's desired combat style so that one can modify it when one knows what type of element one has. But, for now, I should focus on mastering Leym energy proficiently, learning to use it smoothly and without resistance. Once I do that, I can at least handle basic techniques like Magic Bullet. It channels Leym energy to the tip of the finger and releases it in a focused burst, like firing a bullet.'
'It's simple, but it's better than knowing nothing.' Caelus had learned about Magic Bullet during a conversation with Aiv while exploring the academy.
Caelus glanced at the battle screen before rising from his seat. He made his way toward the elevator as he needed to splash some water on his face. Sleep was creeping in fast, and if he dozed off again, not even an alarm could jolt him awake.
He usually needed over 10 hours of sleep to feel normal, and with barely any rest over the past two days, his fatigue was hitting hard.
He pressed the elevator button. It showed it was on its way up, but paused briefly on the third floor. A few seconds later, it resumed, arriving at the fourth floor with a soft ding.
The doors slid open, revealing Sakura Yamaguchi inside.
Without hesitation, Caelus stepped in. He moved to press a button, but saw it was already lit. So instead, he leaned back against the wall of the elevator, lowered his head, and let his eyes close slightly as the elevator descended toward the second floor.
[End Of Chapter 33]