“Do you think he has a chance?” Richard asked his sister, Lisa, with a stern scowl – his youngest son had lost to a peasant, bastard child. The man was seething inside.
Though, Richard had known his sister to be the shrewdest when it came to scheming.
She pursed her full lips and lightly bit down on them – her green irises staring out the window and at Liam.
With a severe tone, Lisa spoke:
“I hate to admit it, but he’s grown incredibly powerful over time. Even though my nephew and niece constantly harassed them… the boy barely sleeps.”
Adrian quietly listened from the side. His face was grave, sweat dripping over his brow.
“We’ll see,” Lisa said after a tense pause, before her face grew cold. “If it comes to it… we can do something.”
///
Liam stood opposite to Jacob, blades relaxed parallel to his sides.
Meanwhile, Jacob’s stance was tense, the shaft of his spear slick with sweat.
There wasn’t the usual arrogance on the noble’s face like before, but one of valiant resolve.
To the untrained eye, it might’ve seemed like Liam wasn’t going to take the battle seriously.
Jacob felt the opposite, his stiff gulp drowned by the cacophony of cheers, boos and war drums.
Blood Demon’s aura was overwhelming.
Jacob could feel his unwavering gaze scanning his body.
‘What kind of monster is this guy? I only get scared like that with master Henry!’ Jacob grimaced, thinking of the senior cultivator that taught him how to fight.
‘No… don’t falter. Remember your training. Don’t stain your name more than it already has.’
It didn’t help that the mask Blood Demon chose to wear was downright frightening.
Jacob heaved a calming breath, assuming a passive stance with his spear pointed towards the masked Oni.
Inscriptions lit the ground.
“Begin!”
Like a heron finding prey, Liam began with lithe steps growing in speed, turning into a blur and smashing both blades against Jacob’s spear.
Clang!
‘He’s strong!’ Jacob thought as more blade attacks arrived from rare angles, which he used his inscribed spear to block.
Each swing held a distinct weight, pushing him back as he blocked with his spear.
Having a Rank 3 body wasn’t the only factor in deciding a person’s strength. After all, it was only a tool. Its effectiveness was only determined with how it was utilized.
Cuts appeared on Jacob’s robe and arms, which slowly festered with hidden darkness and consumed his flesh from within. Still, he was too focused and tense to pay those wounds any heed.
Liam made sure not to make his darkness too visible. It helped that his blades were black, but there was no way for him to keep his element hidden for the entirety of the tournament.
Jacob began using his martial art forms.
The inscribed spear burst into thick flames, creating arcs of orange that collided and managed to push back Liam’s attacks.
Roles had reversed, with Liam now focused on defense.
Yet, as Jacob continued to lung, swing and stab, he only grew more worried.
Liam hadn’t used his martial art forms the entire fight, and only defended using his sheer physicality, evading the harder strikes, and absorbing the smaller attacks.
The flames didn’t faze him – after all, he had boiled his insides to get to the second rank and get the heat-resistance that came with it.
At the same time, Liam’s footsteps didn’t make a single noise. He’d denied any supporting auditory cues for Jacob to predict his movements.
Jacob paused his offense and jumped backwards to create distance, but Liam followed and contested any opportunity for reprieve.
‘I have to use it now!’ Jacob grimaced in pain, thick flames gushing forth and engulfing his body.
Liam witnessed his fiery aura growing in intensity. He attempted to sneak in a killing blow, but was instantly pushed back by a burst of fire.
A pair of fire-made wings unfurled behind Jacob’s back, his body covered in a suit of flaming armor, leaving only his face uncovered. Moreover, his spear had turned into a blazing trident, resembling a Phoenix’s claw.
Jacob’s feet were no longer touching the ground.
Liam’s eye narrowed with a frown.
The wings on Jacob’s back suddenly fluttered, sending him shooting towards Liam while leaving behind a trail of hot flames.
Jacob’s speed was almost double that of Ivan’s. Liam witnessed the trident aiming straight for his stomach.
The claw had slit Liam’s side as he dodged, cutting through his clothing and pale skin, charring it not a moment after.
Jacob hadn’t relented, instantly turning around and starting a barrage of flaming, piercing attacks.
‘Survive. He can’t hold that form for long,’ Liam’s mind raced as he continued to evade and dodge, suffering wounds and burns.
Liam’s clothes were tattered like a war flag, but the mask and hood hung on.
In the span of ten breaths, the flames on Jacob’s body started to flicker weakly, his speed and strength regressing.
The wings of fire no longer held him up, lowering him. At the same time, he looked utterly exhausted.
From then on, it was brutally one sided.
Jacob wheezed heavily with each movement, his bruised eyes drooping from enervation. He couldn’t block the lethal slashes that shredded his muscles from within.
It was when his spear shattered entirely that the fight was finally stopped.
“Blood Demon wins again!”
After a tense pause, the crowd roared.
Although some booed (particularly Erivol), nobles loved entertainment… and the Blood Demon was much more than they expected.
Meanwhile, Liam scowled behind his mask.
‘I can feel Eve’s gaze on me… is this why they allowed her to come?’ he clicked his tongue in annoyance. It wouldn’t bother him as much as it would his mother, but it was still an obnoxious move.
The Sisters descended and wrapped Jacob’s wounds with a cloth corresponding to their color, before shifting their unified gaze to Liam.
With a series of smooth and rehearsed movements, they did the same process on his body.
The black and white cloth squirmed inside Liam’s wounds and melted, which grew back the lost muscle tissue.
“You’re not gonna take off the mask?” the Sisters asked in unison.
Liam shook his head in silence, sheathing his blades. 𝒃𝙚𝙤𝙫𝒆𝒍．𝙘𝒐𝙢
Everyone stared at his lonesome figure with awed gazes as he made his way off the stage.