Chapter 17: Generation of Miracles
The grand stage of Daveron loomed beneath my feet like a blood-soaked altar.
I stepped onto the stage, cane tapping once, twice, mapping the vast circular platform in perfect echo clarity. The hair on my arms and neck stood on end, every nerve alive with the electric weight of thousands of eyes upon me.
The crowd roared in total excitement, cheers, whistles, and the low thunder of stomping feet rolled across the arena like an approaching storm.
I stopped at the exact center, mind perfectly calm, violet-black aura coiled quietly beneath my skin.
"What is that one with the scarf covering his eyes doing on the stage?" a voice rang out from the stands, sharp and mocking. "Does he think this is a fashion show?"
Suddenly I felt hundreds of gazes lock onto me, curious, scornful, amused.
Yet I kept a gentle smile on my face, unperturbed.
"Someone snap that smile off that fool's face!" another shouted.
The mockery spread like wildfire. More voices joined in, laughing, jeering, demanding my quick and humiliating death.
"Why do you all mock the blind like he doesn't have enough on his plate already?" one lone voice spoke up, quiet but clear, filled with genuine pity as it drifted toward me.
"Hahahaha! This is so funny!" Caleb's wild laughter exploded from the high seats above, loud enough to cut through the noise. He leaned forward, pointing down at the stage with manic glee. "They will all die! Hahaha!"
"Begin!"
The judgment drum boomed once, deep, final, shaking the very air.
In that same instant I moved.
My body vanished from my starting spot in a blur of motion. I appeared directly behind one of the candidates, arms snapping up to clamp his head in an iron grip. One sickening twist. Neck vertebrae shattered with a wet crack that echoed across the arena.
The body slumped lifeless to the ground.
The entire crowd went silent for half a heartbeat, then erupted in shocked gasps. Everyone stared, wondering when I had made such a move, how a blind boy in a scarf could cross the stage faster than sight itself.
A voice came from behind me, calm yet laced with dark amusement.
"I knew you were interesting!"
I turned my senses toward the speaker. Wild dark hair framed a sharp face. A long bow rested on his left side, a quiver of metal arrows on his right. From his aura flow alone I could feel he was different, sharper, faster, more dangerous than any Silver rank I had faced before.
I beat my cane against the ground once. Waves of echo spread outward, rippling across the stage in perfect circles, mapping every living body, every heartbeat, every shift of weight.
"I see you're assessing your current situation," the figure said, voice carrying a smile.
I stayed silent.
"Two Silver ranks with the potential of A-rank talent," I thought to myself. These two were far different from the previous fodder I had slaughtered.
"Fine," I said aloud, voice cold. "I'll take you out before that other monkey joins."
"Hahaha! Perfect, that's all I want anyway!"
Instantly his life signals vanished from my perception.
"Scoot Shot!"
Arrows erupted from every direction at once, dozens of metal shafts whistling through the air like angry hornets.
For a moment everything slowed around me. My body released a heavy pulse of violet-black energy.
"Echo pulse."
The archer staggered on his feet, momentarily thrown off balance.
I thrust my cane into the ground and spread my hands wide.
"Motion Palm!"
Aura flared in my palms like twin black stars. I moved with fluid grace, catching every incoming arrow mid-flight, redirecting them with precise flicks of wrist and palm.
"Ayeee, you crazy!" he shouted, regaining his footing and jumping lightly from foot to foot. "Tell me, blind friend, which technique are those you use?"
Before I could answer he burst forward like a streak of shadow. His bow spun in his palm, transforming into a whirling blade.
"Amagedon Slash!"
I retreated a single step, pulling my cane free from the stone in one smooth motion. I slashed upward toward his jaw. He evaded with a wide smile, already in perfect position for a heavy counter-shot.
"Ha, what do I call this?" I murmured, holding the cane like a javelin, aiming straight for his life signals before hurling it forward with explosive force. The cane met his shot in mid-air with a deafening clang in that moment of distraction I moved.
"Blind friend, why do you run?" he called, watching me move.
"Echo Steps."
My feet beat the ground in rapid rhythm. Vibrations spread outward, sensing the seven other contestants still alive on the stage. I moved with a soft spin, "gloo palm" I activated pulling my cane into my palm. With one quick slash, one contestant's head flew from his shoulders before he even realized I was behind him.
Another charged at me screaming "Die!"
"Abyss Touch."
I performed a series of confusing, fluid movements, left, right, feint, spin, before lightly touching his chest with two fingers. Dark energy pulsed from my fingertips into his body. His organs burst from within. His arms swung uselessly in the air as he collapsed.
"What is this force…?" he thought, eyes wide in final shock.
Immediately I felt a new gust of energy hurtling toward me. I dodged instantly. The arrow claimed the life of the last remaining contestant instead.
"Why do you focus your attention on trivial fools?" the archer spoke, voice amused.
But I only moved faster. With each stride my pace increased, closing the distance in a blur.
I jabbed several times in rapid succession. The crazed figure dodged every strike with a wide, joyful smile, his body moving like violent, wavy wind.
"My friend, I am truly having fun!"
He performed several back-hand spins, figure flowing like fast wind. I followed up, throwing fists and piercing strikes with the cane.
"Why are you two having all the fun without me?!"
A huge bulky figure leaped from the edge of the stage, landing between us with earth-shaking force. His axe slammed into the marble, cracking the stone.
"Yunku, you lunatic!" the giant smiled, calling the archer by name.
I spread my senses outward.
Only three life signals remained, flaring like wild flames in the night.
"Hahaha! Zion, you have finally joined us!" Yunku laughed, already raining arrows from every direction once more.
I embedded aura into my cane and moved, fluid, swift, countering the arrows with precise deflections. Beside me the giant embraced the arrows, letting them slam harmlessly against his body.
"Hahaa! Isn't that Zion,the child born with the Strength Talent, son of Sora of Power?" the commentator's voice boomed across the arena. "And the other, Yunku of Brea, son of Ianos, born with the Speed Talent!"
The speaker took a deep breath.
"But that blind one… I do not know him. His movements are fluid and filled with thought. On this stage, I deem him the most dangerous."
The onlookers focused intently on me.
Zion tanked the arrows with the massive shield strapped to his forearm. He turned his gaze fully toward me.
"Tell me, are you really blind?" he asked, voice booming.
Yunku laughed. "That's what I have been saying! He is definitely different."
"From the way he fight, it make it feel like he is blind… yet I feel nothing escapes his inner sight," Zion thought, staring at me.
"Blind friend, tell me, what is your name?" Zion asked.
I cringed inwardly. "These two are battle-obsessed. They want to know where I belong."
My lips parted. The entire arena fell silent.
"Why do you ask of trivial things?"
The crowd filled with discontented murmurs.
Caleb laughed from his high seat, sipping wine. "That cold bastard… I wonder what you will do against those two."