Everyone was surprised when they heard Zemiri's words. They hadn't expected the one automatically advancing to the final round would be everyone's favorite to win.
"Tch," Josh clicked his tongue upon hearing Reilly's name. "This guy is too lucky."
"Of course, I am lucky. Hahaha," Reilly felt overjoyed at being chosen. Now he would only have to fight one battle to secure his spot.
On the other hand, others were disappointed. Shuna, who had hoped to get that chance, sighed. Among the five people in the second round, she felt she might be the weakest, even though she had thought Ray was weak, only to find out he was incredibly strong. She had hoped, however slim the chance, to secure a ticket to the final round, but she failed.
Orion was also a little disappointed, but it was fine for him. He was determined to secure his spot one way or another, even if it meant fighting more.
Patrick seemed the least affected by all of this, remaining calm throughout.
"Reilly Raymond, you are indeed a lucky one. Now, please stand aside," Zemiri said to Reilly.
Reilly nodded and stepped aside, separating from Orion, Josh, Patrick, and Shuna.
"Now, I will choose the second name," Zemiri announced, reaching into the bowl and pulling out a parchment.
Opening it, she read aloud, "Ray Wiser."
Orion smiled upon hearing his name.
"Ray Wiser, choose your opponent wisely. If you are defeated, you will be eliminated. If you win, you'll fight another round to determine if you'll battle Reilly," Zemiri advised.
Orion nodded and turned his attention to Shuna, Josh, and Patrick. He considered who to choose as his opponent. It didn't matter much since he was confident in his victory, but he was intrigued by Patrick's talent and wondered if his curse would be as interesting. Hearing Reilly and Josh hype up the fight between Patrick and Luce made Orion think their talents should be very good.
Although he didn't need to fight Patrick to copy his curse, the opportunity was too tempting to pass up—he might discover something unique.
Alternatively, he could choose the easier route and pick someone like Shuna or Josh. Ultimately, it didn't matter who his opponent was; what mattered was whether they would challenge him enough to reveal more of his strength.
"I choose Patrick," Orion said to Zemiri, deciding to face Patrick and see what he had in store.
Zemiri raised an eyebrow, surprised by Orion's choice. She wasn't the only one; everyone seemed taken aback by his decision.
Orion, sensing the shift in the atmosphere, didn't hesitate. He immediately activated his Curse of Stormcaller, summoning a powerful gust of wind to propel himself away from his current position.
Just as Orion vacated the spot, the ground where he had stood began to ripple. A dark mass surged up, quickly expanding until it towered twice as high as Orion. The form was amorphous, shifting and writhing like a living shadow, but with a consistency resembling a giant slime.
It was a shapeless entity, its surface undulating as if composed of pure darkness, with no defined features other than its menacing presence.
"What the hell is this?" Orion exclaimed in shock.
However, he received no response. Instead, black shadow-like tentacles shot toward him at super-fast speed. Orion used his wind to move back in a zigzag manner, dodging them all.
But that was just the beginning. Hundreds of tentacles emerged from the shadow, moving toward him, intending to capture him.
Orion's eyes narrowed as he saw the encroaching darkness. Gripping his sword tightly, he unleashed the full force of the Stormcaller curse, pushing his speed to its limits. His body blurred, moving faster than the eye could follow. Each time the tentacles closed in, Orion was already gone, dodging with graceful, swift movements that made him appear untouchable.
To the spectators in the stands, Orion was little more than a flicker of light, appearing in one spot for an instant before vanishing and reappearing somewhere else. It was as if the tentacles were chasing a phantom, perpetually a step behind.
Any tentacle that came too close was met with a devastating counterattack. Orion's sword, enhanced by his curses, sliced through the shadowy appendages with ease. Each swing shattered the tentacles into wisps of dark energy, unable to withstand the force behind his strikes.
Despite the sheer volume of tentacles swarming him, Orion moved fluidly, dancing through the attack. Not a single shadow touched him.
While dodging the tentacles, Orion steadily advanced toward the main body of the shadows, where Patrick had transformed into a blob of darkness.
In just a moment, Orion appeared in front of Patrick, evading all the tentacles, and slashed with his sword.
"Wind Slash!"
He used the same attack that had defeated Rudy last time, concentrating all the wind around him at the edge of his sword and slashing toward the giant blob of darkness, intending to cut it in half.
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Also, I was hoping you could leave some comments or reviews to let me know your thoughts!
*Some gifts would be appreciated as well, but up to you.... *