(Quarter-Finals – Sky-God Arena, Match 2)
"Leo, you're up—" Yu Shen said the moment the referee declared Minerva defeated, his voice calm but focused.
Leo didn't reply.
He simply stretched his neck once, rolled his shoulders, and began walking toward the arena, his blue-gray combat attire rustling faintly with each step as he stepped into the blinding lights of the main stage.
As per Rodova's plan, if Minerva fell early, Leo was the designated clean-up man.
He was faster, meaner, and far more efficient at ripping back momentum with ruthless precision.
And considering the possibilities of who Nature Academy could send next… this was the most logical call.
There was no way they'd leave Orion in for another fight—not after he'd just unleashed [Primal Judgment] and torched most of his mana reserves. He was spent. He had to be pulled back.
That left only two real options.
Either they sent in one of their Shield Paladins to waste time and stall for recovery—
Or...
They sent their captain.
Their ace.
Jahong.
Had Su Yang gone out next, the Shield Paladins would've been the natural answer—suited to absorb his overwhelming power.
But because it was Leo who stepped forward, everything changed.
His speed, unpredictability, and relentless aggression made him a nightmare matchup for heavy defenders. So instead, Nature was forced to respond with force.
The crowd collectively leaned forward as Leo reached the center of the sand-grip field, his expression calm as ever, as if the pressure and expectations of the crowd did not bother him at all.
And then—
From the opposite tunnel, a tall, silver-haired elf emerged, his robe flowing behind him, and his sword slung across his back as if it weighed nothing at all.
It was Jahong.
Captain of Nature Academy.
And their strongest warrior.
"Here we go!" Derek's voice crackled through the arena. "That's Jahong stepping out! Nature Academy isn't pulling any punches now!"
"This isn't a stall round anymore, Derek," Lee added. "They're trying to knock Rodova off balance before momentum swings back. They want Leo gone."
Both fighters arrived at the center, standing at their designated starting spots—yet the distance between them did not feel anything much at all, as both fighters were known to have quick feet.
They were both predators.
Two fighters with contrasting philosophies.
As while Leo was the cold-blooded killer, Jahong was known to be the ever elegant swordsman, who did not so much as break a sweat in battle.
And the crowd cheered for them both, split down the middle, with banners waving high and voices rising in unison.
Then—
As both fighters drew their weapons and slid into battle stance, the referee raised a single hand, his presence steady.
"Fighters ready?" he asked.
As Leo's eyes narrowed.
While Jahong's grip tightened around his sword.
As they both gave the subtlest nod.
And with that confirmation, the referee dropped his hand, as he yelled.
"Begin!"
—---------------
As soon as the referee yelled "Begin!", both Leo and Jahong dashed toward one another in a blur of motion—
*CHING—!*
Their blades clashed mid-air in a precise, explosive strike, the impact sending tiny ripples across the sand beneath their feet as the crowd first gasped and then erupted.
But although their first exchange looked even to a distant onlooker, in reality only one fighter had drawn blood.
Leo remained unscathed.
While Jahong, the elegant Elven swordsman, now bore a faint red line running down his cheek—proof that even in a dead-even exchange, Leo had moved faster.
"Leo makes the first cut!" Derek shouted. "The Rodova underclassman's speed is too much for Nature's captain to handle!"
"They clashed once—and Leo already won that trade!" Lee added, leaning into the mic.
But Jahong didn't seem rattled.
If anything, the cut only brought a faint glint of approval to his eyes.
Without a word, the Elven swordsman shifted his stance—as his blade shimmered with wind-enhanced mana.
Then he vanished.
*ZING—!*
[Petal Step].
Leo barely tilted his head as a strike aimed at his neck missed by a hair. His instincts screamed louder than the crowd as he flipped backward, landing lightly on the heels of his feet as Jahong came again.
[Heavenly Arc].
A sweeping slash that cut the wind in a perfect crescent came towards Leo at blinding speed, as Leo ducked beneath it and immediately activated [Mirror World], producing five illusions of himself as he darted around Jahong in a blur.
But the Elf didn't hesitate.
He twisted his sword with a flick of the wrist and thrust it straight through the closest clone—then turned and slashed through another, ignoring the fakes entirely as he locked onto the real Leo with a sharp, knowing glare.
"He's not fooled at all!" Derek exclaimed. "The Elven Captain can see through the decoys with ease!"
Once Leo realized that [Mirror World] had failed.
He changed his strategy and moved again—this time vanishing entirely with [Vanish] and reappearing behind Jahong with twin daggers aimed for his kidneys.
However, Jahong spun faster than he anticipated and blocked both strikes with the flat of his blade—his timing flawless.
[Spiral Bloom].
A flurry of strikes erupted from his stance as he spun, each cut laced with wind energy that forced Leo to retreat again, deflecting two blows and narrowly dodging the third by backflipping over a swirl of kicked-up sand.
*CHEERS*
The crowd roared with approval.
As for the first time in this tournament— they could enjoy such an even and high level exchange, as neither fighter seemed to have the upper hand.
Leo was faster and was desperately trying to find a way through the Elves guard, by darting around his form, however, each time he lunged, Jahong met him clean.
Counter for counter. Rhythm for rhythm.
As the Elven swordsman seemed to have rock solid fundamentals, high perception and great instincts.
For the first time ever, Leo felt as if his opponent could read and predict him before he made moves, as fighting Jahong was by no means a walk in the park.
Jahong could see through the feints, the illusions, the flickers of movement meant to bait mistakes.
And Leo felt it.
His lungs burned, his muscles tightened, and for the first time in a long time… he felt pressure.
But even now, he wasn't afraid.
He was calculating.
Waiting.
As he decided to take bigger risks, if Jahong wasn't falling for the small ones.
And then—
As they exchanged blades once again, Leo stumbled backwards, pretending to be thrown off balance, as he provided his opponent a big opening that was too enticing for Jahong to ignore.
"I got you now—" The Elf said, as he rushed in with a devastating sword technique — called the [Crimson Lotus Descent].
It was a high-speed, vertically dropping strike, infused with wind and fire, aimed directly at Leo's chest.
However, although Leo baited the move by showing a wide stance, it was actually all a well calculated trap, as Leo knew the limits of his speed precisely.
The crowd stood.
The commentators leaned in.
And Leo smiled.
He didn't dodge.
He didn't flinch.
He caught the strike with crossed daggers at the last possible micro second—
And activated [Full Counter].
*BAAAAAAAAAAM—!*
The recoil was deafening. The redirected force, amplified by Leo's own mana, surged back through the blade and into Jahong's body like a hurricane compressed into a fist.
The Nature captain's body flew across the sand-grip field and crashed violently into the far wall, knocking the breath out of the entire arena.
Silence.
Then—
"WHAT?!"
"DID LEO JUST FLIP THAT ATTACK BACK?!"
"THAT WAS THE MOST RIDICULOUS COUNTER I'VE EVER SEEN!"
The referee stepped forward, staring at Jahong's unconscious form embedded into the wall, before raising his hand.
"Winner—Leo Skyshard of Rodova!"
The Rodova crowd exploded with thunderous applause, chants of "Skyshard!" echoing across the dome.
Leo, still standing calmly in the sand, slowly rolled his neck again as he turned and walked away without celebrating the win, as he just gave the cheering crowd a usual thumbs-up.
He'd taken a few bruises in this fight.
But he'd baited and timed his moment to perfection—ending the fight in a single move, as only he could.
As he has managed to show the universe once again, what his real potential truly looked like.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, Leo Goddamn Skyshard, remember this boy's name…. This is a kid that's destined for greatness.
What a fighter! What an entertainer! What a warrior!" Derek said, as he seemed to have lost his mind over Leo's performance, as the Jumbotron replayed the last moments of the fight, again and again.