"Begin!"
The voice on the podium echoed, and the Minotaur hurled himself forward with terrifying speed, both hands gripping the massive axe overhead.
"Huh?"
Ren's eyes widened as instinct took over. He leapt back just in time. The axe slammed into the ground with a deafening crash, stone cracking beneath the force. Dust and fragments burst into the air, but Ren landed lightly several meters away.
He still didn't understand why he was suddenly thrown into this, but there was no time to question it. The words match to the death kept repeating in his head. If he hesitated, he was done.
Ren drew a deep breath, forcing a surge of vira into his legs. The energy burned through his body, sharpening his movements. The moment his feet touched the ground, he lunged.
Taurus was still wrenching his weapon free when his eyes snapped up, just in time to see Ren's heel cutting through the air.
The kick smashed into his face with brutal force.
The beast staggered back, his towering frame crashing against the ground with a thunderous impact, sending another ripple of cracks through the stone floor.
Ren wasn't about to give him the chance to get up. He leapt high into the air, arms brimming with Vira, raised above his head like a hammer. His intent was clear: crush Taurus before he could recover.
But Taurus rolled aside at the last instant.
Ren's strike came down like the weight of a truck, smashing into the stone where Taurus's chest had been. The ground split open with a violent crack, shards of rock bursting outward.
Taurus sprang up from his roll, spinning with a fist aimed straight for Ren's head.
Ren twisted away, his body flowing with practiced grace. He landed a few meters back, one hand pressed to the floor, legs bent and steady, eyes locked on his opponent.
But then something terrifyingly fast cut through his sensory field, aimed straight at him. Ren's eyes widened and he leapt, spinning in the air, narrowly avoiding Taurus's axe, which had somehow lifted from the ground where it was pinned and flew toward him. The weapon missed by inches, spinning through the air before landing back in Taurus's hand.
"Now this is a fuckin duel," Taurus bellowed with laughter as he lunged toward Ren.
'Couldn't they have at least given me a weapon or something?'
Ren pivoted to the right. Taurus swung the axe, but it missed him cleanly. In the same motion, Ren spun to deliver a kick to Taurus's gut. The blow connected, but Taurus only staggered a step backward.
Ren's eyes widened.
'What? I'm sure I put a lot of weight into that.'
Taurus spun again, swinging the axe in a low, wide sweep toward Ren's head. Ren arched backward so low he almost lay flat on the floor. He rolled to the right and came up on one knee. Taurus was already lifting the axe high, ready to strike.
Ren shoved a vast amount of Vira into his legs, boosting his speed, and lunged while Taurus's arms were still raised. His knee crashed into Taurus's jaw. The impact sent ripples rolling across the arena, but Taurus's head barely snapped back. Ren could have sworn he saw a grin on the Minotaur's face.
'Something's different.'
Ren leapt backward, putting as much distance between them as he could.
'Why does it feel like the heavier I hit him, the less impact he receives from it?'
Taurus shook his head as if shrugging off the impact.
"Hey kid… you pack a punch, you know that?"
Ren didn't reply. Sweat ran down his face. His mind raced, trying to form a strategy. He had no weapons, and worse, every strike he landed seemed to hurt Taurus less, even as he increased the weight and force behind each hit.
The cheers from the crowd grew louder. Some shouted "Taurus the Raging Bull," while others screamed "Abyss!" But the noise only made Ren more annoyed.
He gritted his teeth.
'Tsk… I don't see anywhere out of this with strength.'
Taurus raised his hands to the side, letting out a booming laugh.
"Come on, boy! Hit me as hard as you can!"
Ren tilted his head. He was not going to fall for that. He drew in a deep breath and exhaled a massive rolling stream of Vira into the arena. Blue droplets of water began forming in the air, suspended and glinting under the lights, spreading across the entire arena.
The voice on the podium, which had not stopped commenting since the duel began, echoed again.
"Finally, ladies and gentlemen. It looks like Abyss has realized he cannot beat the King of Brawls in a contest of pure strength and is finally using his derivative. Will we have a winner soon?"
Ren frowned. 'Tsk… shut up!'
Taurus took a step forward.
"Are you not coming for me? Fine… if you are not, then I am coming for you!"
'Shit, that's scary. What do I do?'
Ren's affliction was keeping fear at bay, leaving his mind sharp. His derivative wasn't explosive and wasn't inherently physically damaging, so he had to be creative with his options. Right now, those options were his Laws. Observing Taurus begin his charge, Ren whispered:
"Dread."
Suddenly, a chilling cold rolled out across the arena. The cheers of the crowd faltered, shrinking into uneasy murmurs. Taurus froze mid-step, his eyes widening as the cold sensation crawled over his skin.
Ren, upon seeing Taurus frozen, began contemplating how to use this law to bring down a creature as physically strong as Taurus when he suddenly heard the Minotaur laugh.
"Is this some kind of emotional attack? One that has to do with fears?" Taurus asked, a sly grin spreading across his face.
Ren frowned. 'What? Is he supposed to—'
Taurus cut off his thought.
"See, kid. Do you know why they call me the Raging Bull?"
Ren swallowed hard. He could already tell that things had just taken a turn for the worse.
"You see, I have the ability to override emotional attacks, especially ones as powerful as this. Wanna see how?" Taurus spoke again, as he took a step forward.
'No! I don't want to.'
But Taurus roared, the sound echoing across the entire arena:
"Berserker!"
Suddenly, his black eyes flashed red. Ren could feel a wave of raging, intense aura rolling across the arena, pressing against him from every direction.
'Something about him has changed.'
Taurus's body began to shift and grow, swelling until he towered five meters tall. His horns lengthened and thickened, curling outward like deadly crescents.
'No… everything about him has changed!'
Ren took a cautious step back as the ground trembled under Taurus's weight.
The Minotaur let out a terrifying roar and advanced, each step sending ripples through the arena floor.
"Your power of fear does not work on me because I fight with only rage! I fight with no regard for my own life and so… I am afraid of nothing!"
Ren gulped. 'Oh Shit!'