"..."
The being referred to did not immediately respond, opting to watch the battle instead. The elders around him did not find fault with his behaviour, refocusing their attention on the fight.
"Come on, Lord Alexander. Fight back!" Andrew roared with his savage looking grin. "You don't want this fight to become one-sided, do you?"
It seemed his nerves all melted away in the heat of their fight. The apprentice constantly charged at Alex, dealing swift strikes and attacks. Yet, Alex would always counter with his own moves, flawlessly at that.
None of Andrew's hits managed to touch Alex. His expression was calm and collected, a gentle smile tugging at the corner of his lips. 'I guess I like playing defensively until provoked.'
Naturally, he was not taken off by Andrew's words. He recalled some of his old fights and realised this familiar pattern where he fought defensively.
'Let's change that…'
The spectators were at the edge of their seats, looking forward to what was to come next, when a sudden change occurred in the fight.
Alex finally went on the offensive, and the change was immediately noticed. The speeds at which the two fought came to a sudden stop when Alex caught a blow with his left hand, producing a loud, resounding boom.
Before Andrew could make another move, Alex pulled him in and thrust an open palm strike towards the chest. The suddenness of the change caught Andrew off guard.
However, he wasn't done just yet. As the strike blazed towards his chest, the apprentice's grin widened further as his eyes and body began to take a golden hue.
BOOM…!
An explosion of golden light erupted from Andrew's body, the force behind the eruption slamming into Alex before sending him flying across the stage.
'Of all the abilities he could use, he chose light.' Alex thought with a smile, making use of the explosive momentum to recompose himself mid-air before landing on his feet.
His senses caught Andrew closing in on him before he could even lift his head. He got to his feet and immediately bent backwards, dodging the arc blade that whizzed through the air and over his head.
At the same time, Andrew appeared several meters above Alex in a flash of light and swung another kick downwards, sending another arc blade at Alex. The blade arrived almost instantaneously, leaving almost no room for dodging.
Even then, Alex remained calm. His eyes flashed a bright white as he veered to the side, allowing the blade to fly past his face. He was cutting it real close, as there was barely an inch difference between the blade and his face.
BOOM…!
"It's a hit!"
The viewers cheered excitedly, watching as the blade exploded in a light show. The flare from the explosion forced many to look away. However, Andrew narrowed his eyes as the blade wasn't supposed to generate a flare.
Suddenly, four different Alexanders emerged from the flare, each with a weapon in hand, specifically a spear. Without hesitation, one of them spun around and hurled their spear at Andrew, who was still in free fall.
At the same time, the other three Alexanders spread out in three directions and then plunged their spears into the ground, creating a triangle with Andrew in the centre, swiftly flashing out of existence in sync.
Andrew, on the other hand, could not afford to pay attention to the other three as the spear was already upon him. The apprentice cursed and managed to dodge the spear by shifting to the side, allowing the spear to whizz past him.
But that was just the beginning.
As soon as the spear flew past him, he sensed a flash of light behind him, syncing with the ones below. He shifted his gaze to look, only to see Alex appear in place of the spear, his body positioned in a way to deliver a punch to the back.
Crack!
Andrew groaned as the unexpected attack landed, sending him straight to the ground. The apprentice stumbled and rolled a few times before managing to get to his feet.
Unfortunately for him, the attack was not over. Before he could regain his composure, the three spears plunged into the stage glowed and linked together, creating a perfect light triangle several meters high.
The versatility of what Alex could do with the limits of a Class B was limited. As such, he had to get creative with his skills in order to create the perfect environment for himself.
"What the hell is he doing?"
The spectators were intrigued by the triangular light prison. Fortunately for them, the answers came soon after.
The moment Andrew got to his feet, a flash of light caught his attention from his left, drawing his gaze. His heart skipped a beat when he noticed a kick closing in on his head.
'How did he…?'
Andrew was shocked at how fast Alex moved to his left. He didn't sense him appearing. The spectators, on the other hand, saw everything clearly.
Alexander didn't move from his position in the air; he simply reappeared beside the apprentice, literally teleporting with a kick heading towards Andrew's head.
"Holy shit, he changed positions with the photons!"
Those familiar with the principles behind that move exclaim in shock and excitement. That skill wasn't a simple technique a Class B awakened could casually execute. The least mistake and they could end up destroying their body.
Without a moment to waste, Andrew gritted his teeth and raised his hand to protect his head. The strike connected with a satisfying crack, flinging Andrew's head to the side. Then a knee strike followed on the other side, flinging his head back up.
'The hell…?'
Andrew's nose was bloodied from the consecutive strikes. Still, it wasn't over. A resounding crunch echoed across the arena as a blow ate into his face, then another knee struck from behind, breaking Andrew's spine without mercy.
A loud groan escaped his lips as the damage was more than expected. Finally, the last and heaviest strike came from above. A right fist drove into his face, slamming him into the stage with a loud boom.
"Hell yeah…!"
The spectators cheered even louder, many of them rising to their feet and calling Alexander's name. Through a series of perfectly executed techniques, Alex created a domain of light, granting him the ability to ignore his speed limits.
Inside the booth, Alex looked over to Andrew with a grin, "Want to continue?" he taunted.
The apprentice's lips twitched uncontrollably, unable to believe Alex's shamelessness. His choice of abilities had come to bite him in the backside. While he could do something similar, he couldn't overlay his domain over Alex's domain of light.
This was his loss; there was no comeback within the bounds of that domain. Left with no choice, Andrew could only do the one thing left.
"Fine, I yield."