In the Arena, the exhausted Willa Martinez was a bit late to react.
An icy spear emerged from the now frozen ground, stretching a meter long.
Willa Martinez caught sight of it from the corner of his eye, but its speed made dodging impossible.
The best he could do was twist his waist in the opposite direction. This way, he would still be injured, but not critically.
And he did exactly that, pressing his toe into the ground and pivoting his body with a sharp jerk.
However, Edniot was not an opponent to be taken lightly.
The spear accelerated.
~Chra
The light armor was pierced, and warm blood splattered onto the ice, freezing instantly.
Willa Martinez suffered a deep gash along his side. On the bright side, his liver-the original target of Edniot, remained unscathed.
He had barely managed to shield himself.
The excruciating pain made him suspect that a few of his ribs had been broken—or rather, cleanly cleaved.
In the audience, Thane was bewildered. It was his first time witnessing the sheer power of a blessing beyond simple physical enhancement.
"How… can a commoner fight… against such power?" He was lost in thought, his eyes glued to the ring.
To his surprise, a familiar voice answered.
"There are several ways."
It was the same middle-aged man.
"How… Pervert Uncle, I don't see any way to fight against such an ability with just my body. Wasn't Willa Merrytimes gifted with a unique ability?
Even he couldn't beat him. High-class nobles are just… born different."
His voice carried desperation, sadness, and a flicker of anger.
Desperation to be as powerful as them, sadness that he lacked noble blood, and anger at the unfairness of it all. Weren't commoners human too?
The middle-aged man sighed. He seemed uninterested in replying but didn't want to let a young man's dreams shatter.
"Firstly, his name is Willa Martinez, not whatever nonsense you just said.
Secondly, there are many factors to consider. Not all nobles are as powerful as Edniot Quintess—he is a rare boon.
The difference isn't between nobles and commoners; it's the mindset and the ability to push one's gifts to the highest level.
Edniot lost his eye, yet the only thing that hindered him for a moment was the pain. But soon after, he evolved right in the ring."
Thane widened his eyes. For once, he was able to grasp the essence of what was being said.
The man continued.
"But Willa… he didn't evolve. After the recoil from his gift, he wavered. Maybe he wasn't familiar with severe pain like Edniot.
Now, the pressure is building up on him, and he has lost his momentum.
However… if he were up against a noble with a similar rank of blessings, he would win eight times out of ten."
Thane processed the words slowly.
"So it's not the type of blessing that matters, it's the rank!?"
The man looked at Thane and commented dryly.
"I thought you had a dying brain. Good job."
"Haha, of course not! I'm the smartest kid in my family." Thane guffawed.
The older man stared at him in confusion before asking, "You're the brightest kid in the family?"
Thane nodded like a trained horse.
The middle-aged man clicked his tongue and muttered, "What horrid sin your parents must have committed."
Thane scowled. "Why would they commit any sin, dumbass? They're the nicest people in town. They're famous."
"Are they?" the man teased.
And just like that, the naive Thane spilled information that any sane person would keep secret in a foreign city.
"Yeah, go to Borderstone City and ask anyone about Thomas Ironforge. Even a child will tell you about him—he's my pops."
The middle-aged man flinched at the name but masked his reaction, keeping his tone indifferent as he asked cunningly, "Ironforge? Sounds like a clan of blacksmiths."
"Hahaha, you're not that dumb. Yes, we're a clan of blacksmiths."
Thane grinned widely.
The middle-aged man returned an amiable smile before turning his attention back to the ring.
At the same time, numerous other discussions were happening in the audience. Among them was a conversation between two men in robes.
The white-robed man flinched slightly when he saw the ice spike form out of nowhere.
"Heavens… that's something else," he muttered.
The blue-robed man let out his usual chuckle. "I told you, some great powers are nothing but endless disasters."
"And that I'm about to witness one," the white-robed man added before pausing, then continued, "But how does he have two gifts?"
The man in blue shook his head. "It's just a single skill."
"One skill!?" The white-robed man shouted, but it went unnoticed among the clamoring spectators.
"Yeah, his first skill is called 'Frost Manipulation.' It's a unique active skill that functions almost like a passive one.
Don't underestimate the power of an Ascender's Blessing.
He can manipulate frost and create countless ice and frost skills, akin to separate gifts. And guess what… that lad is truly talented at it."
The man in the white robe struggled to find words. After careful consideration, he simply muttered, "Marvelous."
Inside the ring, Willa had barely steadied himself when Edniot raised his hand once more. In the very next moment, another wave of shards erupted from the ground.
"Damn it!" Willa spat, readying his daggers.
~Shwoof
The shards shot toward him. Willa dodged, parried, and blocked, but he couldn't avoid them all. A few punctured his light armor.
Blood dripped from fresh wounds onto the frozen ground as Willa took stock of his battered state.