The shouting match between Lyra and Ganriki was cut short as Master Vorn's amplified voice silenced the entire arena. "Enough! The next match is ready!"
Their glares at each other could have cracked stone, but they both sat down, their animosity simmering. The next fight was a blur of flashy spells and tactical maneuvering. A skilled wind-mage from Henry's class fought a formidable illusionist from Class 2-C. It was a close battle, but in the end, the illusionist managed to trap the wind-mage in a convincing psychic landscape, forcing him to surrender.
The win went to Class 2-C, tying the score between the two classes at two wins apiece.
"Hahaha! This is too easy!" Ganriki roared from his section, pumping his fist in the air. "Class 2-B is nothing!"
"You're still losing to a class with him in it!" Lyra shot back immediately, sticking her tongue out at Ganriki with childish defiance.
"That settles the score," Master Vorn's voice boomed, cutting off their renewed argument.For the next match of the day... Henry of Class 2-B versus Ganriki of Class 2-C!"
A wave of murmurs went through the crowd. This was the match everyone had been waiting for. The rumored anomaly against the loudmouthed brute.
Ganriki burst into laughter, pointing a thick finger at Henry. "Time for another win against some weakling! This is going to be my easiest fight yet!"
"You're going to get destroyed, you muscle-bound moron!" Lyra screamed from her seat, her face red with fury. She was defending him again, her pride apparently demanding that only she was allowed to insult or defeat Henry.
Henry sighed, tuning them out. He stood up, his legs feeling strangely light. He gave a nervous glance to Kaelen, who gave him a shaky but encouraging thumbs-up. Helia simply nodded, her golden eyes intense.
He walked down the steps and onto the hot sand of the arena floor. Ganriki met him there, cracking his massive knuckles and grinning like a predator.
"On my left," Master Vorn announced, "Ganriki, with an affinity for Geokinesis!"
"And on my right, Henry, with... conflicting affinities of Photokinesis and Umbrakinesis!"
The description hung in the air, a label that defined his entire existence here. Ganriki laughed again at the description.
Henry took a deep breath, the sunstone pendant warm against his chest. He tried to find his center, to prepare himself. But as he looked across at the sneering face of his opponent, he felt something else stir within him.
It was his other self. The darkness. It wasn't trying to take control. It was... watching. Eagerly. A cold, predatory excitement radiated from the depths of his soul. It was aching for this. Aching for a chance to prove its superiority. And in that moment, Henry felt a strange, terrifying sensation: the feeling of his dark side willingly lending its focus, its battle-lust, to him. It wanted him to fight. It wanted him to win, even if it meant using the light to do it.
The dark wanted to show everyone who was the stronger, even if it meant borrowing its power to the light.
"Begin!" Vorn commanded.
The command "Begin!" echoed through the arena, and Ganriki didn't waste a second. With a mighty stomp, the ground at his feet trembled. He thrust his hands forward, and a shotgun-blast of sharp pebbles shot across the sand directly at Henry.
It was a crude, brutish attack. Henry, his senses sharpened by the silent battle-lust of his other self, didn't even flinch. He moved with a newfound fluidity, his hands a blur as he deflected the incoming stones. They pinged off his palms and forearms, not with the force of magic, but with the simple, hard-won resilience from Joseph's training. He took no damage.
From the stands, Lyra's sharp, mocking voice cut through the air. "IS THAT ALL YOU'VE GOT, WEAK PEBBLE BOY?"
Ganriki's face turned a shade of furious red. The insult hit its mark. "WEAK?!" he roared. He slammed his fists into the ground, and this time, he pulled up not pebbles, but a massive chunk of rock, the size of a small boulder. With a grunt of immense effort, he hurled it at Henry.
Henry dove aside, the boulder crashing into the sand where he'd just been. But Ganriki was already pulling another one from the ground. This one came faster. Henry tried to dodge, but his timing was off. The rock clipped his side, sending him sprawling to the ground with a cry of pain.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING, YOU IDIOT?! ATTACK HIM!" Lyra screamed, on her feet now, her frustration palpable.
Her words, as insulting as they were, struck a chord. Henry pushed himself up, ignoring the throbbing pain in his ribs. He wouldn't win by dodging. With a yell, he charged forward, closing the distance to engage in close combat.
Ganriki grinned, welcoming the charge. He was slow, but his strength was immense. He didn't bother dodging Henry's punches and kicks, simply absorbing them with his muscular frame as if they were annoyances. He began to swing his own massive fists, while simultaneously causing small, sharp pebbles to erupt from the ground around them, forcing Henry to constantly dodge and weave.
Henry took a few glancing blows and realized he couldn't win a battle of attrition. He needed a plan. He dodged back, creating distance between them. He needed to break his opponent's guard.
He took a deep breath, the sunstone pendant flaring with a gentle warmth. He focused, and a stable, perfect ball of light formed in his hand. But he didn't throw it. Instead, with a flick of his wrist, he sent it high into the air above the center of the arena, where it simply stopped, floating and pulsing like a miniature sun. He smiled. He'd done it. And it was easy.
Ganriki stopped and laughed, a deep, booming sound. "That's all you can do? Now I know your fame is just for making a small light ball!" He turned his attention back to the ground, punching it to pull up his biggest boulder yet.
As Ganriki hefted the rock, ready to throw the finishing blow, Henry created a second ball of light in his hand.
The moment Ganriki threw the boulder, Henry hurled his light ball, not at Ganriki, but at the one still floating in the air.
The two orbs collided. The result wasn't an explosion of force, but of pure, blinding light. A flashbang.
Ganriki roared in pain and confusion, dropping the boulder and stumbling back, his vision completely whited out.
That was the opening Henry needed. He rushed forward, a blur of motion. With Ganriki blinded and unable to react, Henry's close-combat skills were devastating. A precise punch to the gut, a sweeping kick to the back of the knees. Ganriki fell to the ground with a heavy thud, disoriented and helpless.
"YEAH! GET HIM!" Lyra screamed, her voice filled with savage glee.
A few seats away, Kaelen jumped to his feet, his fists pumping in the air. "GO, HENRY! YOU'VE GOT HIM!"