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Sasuke covered his face with one hand, leaving only his left eye exposed. The scarlet Mangekyō Sharingan fixed its gaze on Hercules, who stood not far away. A single tear of blood slid silently down the Uchiha's cheek.
In the next instant, a pitch-black flame manifested on the battlefield. It did not roar, nor did it crackle; it simply appeared. Silent. Deadly.
First, a small ember latched onto Hercules' body. Then, with terrifying speed, it spread, consuming his entire form in a heartbeat.
An old trick, Charlotte sneered internally. She had expected Russell to reveal some groundbreaking new strategy, not a commonplace elemental attack like fire. Still, she had to admit—she had never seen fire this black before.
Up in the VIP tribunal, however, the atmosphere shifted the moment the flames appeared.
"This flame… it is peculiar," Archmage Alaric muttered, stroking his pale beard. "And the medium for casting the spell is the eyes?" As a Diamond-level cardmaker, he could distinctly sense the inherent, malevolent energy radiating from Sasuke's Sharingan.
Chancellor Valeron frowned, his eyes locked on the black-haired boy in the arena. "This Russell card… it has never appeared before, has it?"
The realization stunned the room. Russell had not used this card in any of the leaked battle footage. This meant one of two things: either Russell had hidden his true trump card during his duel with Wade, or he had crafted a completely new, high-level card in the short time since. Regardless of the answer, it demonstrated a level of suppression over his peers that was becoming impossible to ignore.
"Well, Chancellor," Alaric said, unable to hide the satisfaction in his voice. "What do you think now?" He felt the rush of a connoisseur recommending a masterpiece to a skeptic.
Valeron, annoyed by the old man's persistence, shot back, "I know you have a close relationship with Blake Whitmore, Alaric, but there is no need to be so biased. Aren't you the President of the Federation Mystics College?"
Alaric stiffened, the barb hitting a sore spot. His college had been eliminated in the previous round—a "respectable" Top 32 finish. After a moment of tense silence, he defended his students. "How can you call that a loss? We fell to Master Frank's direct disciples! That is called a narrow defeat!"
The air in the VIP box lightened as the dignitaries chuckled at the stubborn old mage, though a few other elders exchanged silent, knowing glances.
Back in the arena, the pitch-black flames were spreading across Hercules' body. Charlotte wasn't panicked yet; she didn't believe mere fire could destroy Hercules while he was buffed by her Field Card, but she couldn't let it rampage unchecked. That was her mental power burning away, after all.
The feminine man stitched onto Hercules' back stared at the black fire. Suddenly, a dripping rain of blood began to fall from the sky.
Charlotte smiled teasingly at Russell. "Speaking of which, I should thank your teammate. If he hadn't gathered such a dark cloud earlier, the Blood God wouldn't have been able to extinguish your flame so easily. What a shame."
In the Northgate preparation area, Lucian stared blankly at the clouds, now dyed a sickly crimson. ...Have I become a burden to Russell?
"Lucian, look!" Yuna's exclamation snapped him back to reality.
On the sidelines, Russell faced Charlotte's trash talk with an indifferent expression. "You're right," he said calmly. "What a pity."
Charlotte looked at his face—unbothered, almost bored—and a cold dread began to pool in her stomach. Why is he so calm? She whipped her head back toward the battlefield.
The black flames were not extinguished.
They burned silently, consuming everything in Sasuke's line of sight. They burned Hercules. They burned the Blood God. They burned the ground. They were even burning the rain of blood itself. Ironically, the only liquid not evaporating into nothingness was the blood weeping from Sasuke's own left eye.
Without the risk of permanent blindness, Sasuke unleashed Amaterasu without restraint, far surpassing the desperation of his original lore.
The black fire spread like a plague, following the spilled blood until it reached the barrier at the edge of the arena. Slowly, the translucent shield was coated in darkness, completely obscuring the view from the outside. The audience fell silent, stunned by the apocalyptic scene.
Seeing the field turn into a cage of fire that drained Hercules' vitality, Russell spoke softly.
"Your Field Card does more than just enhance recovery, doesn't it?"
Charlotte froze, cold sweat instantly prickling her back. As the ace of Capital University, she forced herself to maintain composure. "What are you talking a—"
"Let me guess," Russell interrupted, his voice cutting through the noise. "Your Field Card has a critical mechanic: it strengthens Hercules when he is watched. The more eyes on him, the greater his power. I didn't get that wrong, did I?"
Charlotte's face went pale with shock and fear. "How did you know!?" Her mind raced—had someone in her Battle Club sold her data?
"The Bloody Arena... what an apt name," Russell mused, shaking his head as if disappointed.
Charlotte stared at him, incredulous. Did he deduce the ability just from the name? Is he joking? If that's true, who can even compete with him? It's like playing against someone with wall-hacks!
Russell's lips curved into a vicious smile. He wouldn't explain, of course. He hadn't guessed it solely from the name. It was when Hercules had shouted, "Just like that! Look at me!" His aura had spiked immediately after.
Success and failure often stem from the same root. Hercules gained power from attention, but that mechanic was also his fatal flaw.
By having Sasuke coat the barrier in Amaterasu, Russell had physically blocked the audience's line of sight. The result was immediate: in Russell's perception, Hercules' aura had plummeted back to its baseline levels.
"It seems my guess was correct," Russell said.
Those simple words dealt massive psychic damage to Charlotte. The sudden reversal left her scrambling. She took deep breaths, trying to ignore Russell and focus on the match.
In the VIP box, the high-level cardmakers were unaffected by the visual obstruction. Their mental perception penetrated the barrier as easily as daylight.
Chancellor Valeron exhaled slowly. "The winner is decided. Russell takes it."
It was only now that Valeron understood the specific mechanics of Charlotte's card. It was obvious Russell had dismantled her strategy piece by piece.
Archmage Alaric, having completely forgotten his earlier grumpiness, laughed. "I told you Russell would win! But that black flame... it cannot be extinguished? Fascinating."
Looking at the barrier rippling with dark fire, Alaric teased, "Fortunately, the barrier cards used in the Nationals are top-tier. Otherwise, I doubt we could sit here so comfortably."
"Indeed," Valeron agreed. "In the first National Competition, we only used Gold-level barriers. I didn't expect students to be capable of destroying them. If we hadn't upgraded, the casualties in the audience would be catastrophic."
In the stands, the blinded audience grew restless.
"I paid for a ticket to watch a fight, not a wall of fire! Unbelievable."
"Forget it. Still better than a turtle match. Yesterday I fell asleep and woke up to two defensive decks staring at each other."
"True. But did you see Russell's fire? Charlotte tried to put it out with blood, and the fire burned the blood."
"...Is it reasonable for fire to burn liquid?"
"Is it reasonable to argue logic with a magical card? Go sprinkle some water on that barrier and see if 'reasonable' saves you."
Inside the inferno, Hercules' expression was twisted in agony. Sasuke stood protected by Fubuki's telekinetic barrier in the center of the blaze. The pain of the flames was excruciating, but it paled in comparison to the weakness Hercules felt now that the audience's gaze was severed.
Still, Hercules retained his tactical mind. A head-on attack was suicide; the silver-armored girl, the woman with the braid, and the telekinetic esper were too much to handle alone. His only hope was to clear the flames from the barrier and regain his power source.
There's still a fight to be had!
He stomped the ground, launching himself backward to create distance. But what he saw next made his eyes widen.
The pitch-black sea of flames on the ground suddenly parted, carving a straight, empty path. And at the end of that path stood Hercules.
"He can control it!?"
The revelation shattered Hercules' plan. He looked bitterly at the young man in the distance—left eye bleeding, expression unyielding.
Before Hercules could react, Artoria was upon him.
Her holy sword was no longer shining gold; it was wrapped in the same terrifying black flames.
Sasuke's right eye technique, Blaze Release: Kagutsuchi, allowed him to shape the Amaterasu flames at will. He had enchanted Artoria's blade with the unquenchable fire.
[Sasuke's Special Enchantment: Sword of Amaterasu]
The blade slashed toward Hercules with a shrill, burning whistle. Hercules retreated desperately. Against a normal weapon, he might have risked catching the blade, but his instincts screamed that touching this fire meant death.
Seeing him retreat, Artoria shifted her stance instantly from a slash to a thrust. The ground beneath her cracked under the force of her step. Hercules, caught off balance, had no choice but to tank the hit.
Squelch!
Like a hot knife through butter, the holy sword pierced Hercules' abdomen. The black flames surged into his internal organs.
As Hercules roared in pain, the Blood God on his back retaliated. The scarlet blood morphed into a sharp scythe, slashing at Artoria's exposed neck.
Artoria remained calm. She ripped the sword free and stepped back.
"Bakudō #81: Dankū!"
A transparent wall materialized instantly between Artoria and the attack. Retsu Unohana, the Captain of the 4th Division, had stepped in. Even without her hidden persona, her mastery of Kidō provided flawless support.
Crack!
The Dankū, cast without an incantation, shattered under the Blood God's rage, but it bought enough time. Artoria was already safely back within Fubuki's telekinetic shield.
Desperate, the Blood God swept a massive torrent of blood toward the barrier, trying one last time to wash away the fire blocking the view.
Whoosh!
A section of the black flame was washed away. But under the cold stare of Sasuke's Mangekyō, new flames surged forth, filling the gap instantly.
It was over. Hercules and the Blood God exchanged a silent feeling of resignation. Blinded, burned, and outmatched.
I'm sorry, Charlotte, Hercules sighed internally, preparing for his final, doomed charge.
Outside, the audience waited, bored and confused.
"Who do you think won?"
"I don't know, I guess—oh, damn, look!"
Under the gaze of thousands, the black flames covering the barrier began to fade.
The smoke cleared to reveal Russell's team. They were battered, and blood stained the face of the Uchiha boy, but they were standing.
Hercules was gone.
Russell had won.
(End of Chapter)
300 , 500 , 1000 Each milestone will have 1 Bonus chapter.