Zeke found himself in the changing room for contestants. Even though his fight was about to begin, his thoughts were not on the upcoming battle. His thoughts were occupied by Leo. His friend had suffered severe injuries during his last fight. On top of that, Leo's core was exhausted and had even started to crack. It was anyone's guess if he would be able to fight at full strength in the final.
A cracked core was nothing to be worried about. However, it did mean that Leo would probably not be able to cast for a while. He had overstrained his core during his previous fight. Zeke hoped that it was only a light case and that his friend would recover in time. He had long wanted to have a rematch against Leo. It would be a shame if that match didn't come to pass because of his friend's injuries.
Zeke was brought back from his thoughts by three knocks on the door. The now familiar gesture was a warning that his fight was about to start. Zeke got up and put on his helmet. He brought his focus back to his own fight as he made his way to the entrance.
Edmund was by no means an easy opponent. Zeke would even put him above Felix in strength. The good thing was that unlike in Leo's case, Edmund didn't have a counter for Zeke's abilities. It was the other way around. Most elemental Mages didn't have an easy way to deal with the defensive strength of the [Stone Form].
Zeke couldn't be sure, but he suspected that his [Blood Whip] would be able to damage his opponent. So far, Zeke had not found a single spell that could match the damage potential of his signature blood spell. It was no wonder that the knights of Valor were so feared by the empire. If all Blood magic was this destructive then there was no wonder they would be infamous.
Zeke found that Blood Magic had two limiting factors that were holding him back for now. The first one was his range. Zeke could not extend his whip for more than a scant few meters before he would make the thread thicker for it to remain stable. This led right to the second weakness: Supply.
Despite being 1.76 meters in height and having a generally muscular frame, Zeke only had around 5 liters of blood in his body. His experiments had revealed that he passed out after losing about half that amount. That meant that he could freely use around 2 liters of blood in combat.
That was not a lot. A Water Mage would use more than that in every single spell. Zeke had worked on ways to combat those shortcomings. The technique for reabsorbing the blood used in his whip was one of them. The other way to overcome this weakness was to work around it. If Blood Magic was only really effective in close range then he only needed to find a way to stay in close range.
His [Mind Fog] and [Short Range Teleportaion] were made with that purpose in mind. His Mind Magic spell was able to slow an opponent down to the point that Zeke could keep up with opponents that were usually faster than him. His teleportation spell had a similar purpose, while also being a great tool for defense. Zeke could teleport out of the way of spells that would otherwise be guaranteed to land.
Zeke arrived at the gate and was waved through after only a minute of waiting. He entered the giant arena to the cheers of the crowd. He raised his staff in greeting as he made his way to the indicated starting position.
Edmund entered from the opposite side of the arena. The Earth Mage looked as confident as ever. Zeke couldn't see any signs of distress or nervousness on his opponent's face. Not that he had expected Edmund to panic, but his composed appearance was still a clear indicator of his confidence. Zeke knew that he had to be careful. It was entirely possible that Edmund had also kept a trump card or two hidden.
The announcer looked at them both for a moment, making sure they were both ready before making the announcement.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is our second to last fight. Ezekiel von Hohenheim against Edmund Steiner. Both of these contestants have already proven their strength. Were this any other year, such a matchup would be the final. However, this year you'll get to see this level of skill already during the semi-final matches. Who is going to advance and fight Leo in the final round? LET'S! FIND! OUT!"
With those words, he signaled the start of the fight. The moment the gong sounded, Zeke sprung into action. He could not give Edmund time to build his defenses. It was never a good idea to give an Earth Mage too much time to prepare.
Zeke strengthened his body to the maximum as he charged at his opponent. Edmund had already started to cast. One after the other, [Earth Spikes] rose out of the ground in order to impale Zeke. With minimal deviation from his course, Zeke dodged every single one. One of the things he had focused on in his training was his [Perfect Spatial Awareness]. His perfect perception in a several-meter radius combined with the reflexes and control from [Perfect Body Control] made it incredibly hard to hit Zeke with regular spells.
Edmund stopped his casting after only a second. He had a frown on his face. The ease with which Zeke ignored his attacks seemed to have thrown him off. Even so, it only took him a moment to decide on a new path. The ground under Edmund's feet sank. He was creating a depression on the floor four meters wide. The edges of the crater began to rise up. This was clearly meant to be some kind of trap. Still, Zeke had no choice but to spring it to get to his enemy.
Zeke took one giant lunge over the lip of the crater as he dove straight for his opponent. The sanguine threads of his [Blood Whip] extended from his hands while still in midair. He had imbued his spell with the intent to cut. This was the strongest offense he could bring to bear. Without a moment of hesitation, he swung his arms forward, attacking with all his might.
This attack would turn any other opponent into minced meat, were it to hit, but Zeke was certain that this would not be the case with Edmund. As expected, the moment he crested the edges of the pit, he saw that Edmund was already encased in his [Stone Form]. He had also created stone gauntlets around his fists and forearms. Zeke was certain that the Earth Mage could knock most opponents out with a single hit of the heavy fist weapons.
Zeke only created a single Whip in order to maximize its strength and not split its concentration in two. He had learned that diverting focus on too many things would produce only subpar results. Zeke focused completely on this single strike, willing it to cut through everything.
Edmund raised both of his arms as he turned sideways. He was preparing to receive the cut with his protected forearms. The string connected. Zeke could already tell that this was no regular stone. His spell could cut through normal stone without a problem. This was not the case for Edmund's gauntlets. He must have strengthened them with mana. Still, it only posed a slight obstruction. The whip still cut its way through them after only a moment of resistance.
Zeke could feel the resistance increase tremendously as the spell connected with Edmund's [Stone Form]. This was no mere conjured stone. If the Earth Mage's words could be believed, then it was his actual body. This could be bad. Zeke's own [Blood Whip] was also created from his own body. The fact that it was constantly nourished by his Blood core was what made the spell so strong. In a sense, it could be said that Zeke was charging his spell every moment of the day.
If the [Stone Form] spell worked on the same principle, then it could be a match for Zeke's strongest offense. Finally, the entire length of the whip had passed by. Its blade-like string had left a thin cut on Edmund's gauntlet. It could not be determined by eye how far it had cut into the body beneath. However, Zeke had gotten close enough to his opponent to use his [Perfect Spatial Awareness].
A smile spread across his face when he saw that he had cut deeply into both of Edmund's forearms. The whip had only been stopped when it met bone. A deeper scan of Edmund's body revealed that he had indeed turned completely to stone. Zeke did not understand how he was still able to function in this condition. There was no blood or organs to be found anywhere. His skin had turned to granite. His bones seemed to be made from a black gemstone that was several times harder even. Zeke was pretty sure that he would not be able to cut through them even if Edmund just stayed still and let him attack.
Zeke soon found something surprising. The wounds on Edmund's forearms were actually closing in real time. They seemed to just be filled in with stone. A frown spread across Zeke's face. This would complicate matters. Still, the situation wasn't too bad. He knew from his own experience that repairing the damage was much more costly than causing it. If he only used his Perfect affinity, then he was sure to outlast his opponent.
Zeke didn't want his opponent to have any time to count and swung his whip a second time. His control over the weapon had increased tremendously. The red string dance like a snake. The hissing sound it made while cutting through the air was also reminiscent of an enraged snake, ready to strike. Edmund was struck from every direction. The Earth Mage tried to block as many strikes as he could, but he was unable to keep up. In under a minute, he was already cut all over. The speed of his regeneration was nowhere near fast enough to keep up with the rate at which he was damaged.
A darkness fell over the pit as it closed completely over their heads. Zeke didn't care, he didn't need his eyes to see, after all. The darkness was only illuminated by the glowing red light coming from the whip that ceaselessly struck Edmund from every angle. Zeke was certain that the Earth Mage would collapse any moment now. It was impossible to endure this kind of damage for long.
Indeed, Edmund started to wobble. He fell forward, catching himself on his hands and knees at the last moment. To Zeke's surprise, there was a smile etched on Edmund's stone features. Something wasn't right. Before he could do anything else, the earth started to rumble.
"You almost had me," Edmund said. Before his words even registered in Zeke's mind, the ground around Edmund started to rise rapidly. Zeke took stock of the situation. The dome had closed over his head moments ago. It was this domed ceiling that Edmund was now heading for. Not good! Zeke realized in an instant what his opponent was aiming for. As an Earth Mage, Edmund could probably travel through the ground in the same way Roland could.
Zeke on the other hand had no such capabilities. Edmund would collapse the ground behind him and bury Zeke alive the same way he had done with Tanya. His [Blood Whip] was next to useless against such a massive amount of stone. Even if he cut the earth into a million pieces and he would still be buried under it.
Edmund had just been playing for time down here. He had never expected to be able to win in close combat. No wonder his opponent had smiled. This was such a well-executed plan that even Zeke was impressed. It seemed that Edmund hid a profound talent for the strategy behind his reticent appearance. But if the Earth Mage was this smart and perceptive, then there was no chance that Edmund didn't see Roland's betrayal coming as well.
"You sly bastard!" Zeke called after Edmund's rising figure with a smile on his face. Just a moment later, Edmund's pillar reached the ceiling. Expectedly, the Earth Mage dove right through the stone. The ceiling was only around two meters thick and he emerged on the outside only a moment later. Edmund released his [Stone Form] with a gasp. The numerous wounds all over his body started to bleed at the same time. Still, he had no choice. He needed all the mana he could get in order to bury Zeke for good. He could not risk the Blood Mage to escape. This would signify his loss.
Edmund was broken out of his concentrated state by somebody tapping on his shoulder. Surprised, he looked over. Had the announcer already called the fight?
"I think you can stop now," a smirking Zeke said. "There is nobody down there anymore."
Edmund just looked back at him with blank eyes. He seemed to not understand this situation. A moment later, light returned to his eyes and the gears start to turn.
"You can teleport?" Edmund asked.
Zeke merely smiled.
"Shit!" Edmund stated eloquently.
Zeke wiggled his eyebrows.
"How do you wanna do this?" Zeke asked. "I can give you a moment to return to your [Stone Form] if you want to."
Edmund looked Zeke up and down with a scrutinizing gaze. He seemed to still hold out hope that Zeke had been injured by the teleportation. After finding Zeke in peak condition, he frowned in disappointment before shaking his head.
"No need," the Earth Mage said as he turned and walked away. "I surrender. This is your win, Ezekiel. Next time, I will consider all the factors. Good luck in the final."