Chapter 52: The Final Match (2)

Chapter 52: The Final Match (2)

The atmosphere in the stadium, where the expert competition was being held, was unusually quiet compared to the previous day. Karyl yawned and with a sluggish expression stretched his neck from side to side, warming up his body. He seemed uninterested in the commotion coming from the audience in the stadium outside the waiting room.

"What is this...?"

From the factory's bulletin board to the notices at the stadium’s entrance, the sudden announcement had left the audience bewildered.

"A final match out of nowhere?"

"Who organizes a competition like this? I want a refund for my ticket!"

The crowd voiced their grievances, each person with their own complaints. It wasn’t just about the ticket cost; what truly bothered them was the loss of the bets they had placed on their chosen contestants.

If it were just one or two contestants withdrawing, it could be understood. In expert competitions, it was not uncommon for top contenders to withdraw without any explanation. The audience, unaware of the organizers' manipulations, simply attributed such withdrawals to the eccentric nature of sorcerers. After all, such occurrences were not rare.

However, the current situation was far from normal. It was only the first day of the competition, yet dozens of contestants had simultaneously declared their withdrawal, with no explanation. They had all vanished, almost as if they had made a mutual pact to disappear. Only two contestants remained.

"Let's do our best."

"Ah, yes... of course," the sorcerer sitting with Karyl in the waiting room replied nervously.

The man quietly gripped his left arm, trying to hide the emblem of the Dawn Council embroidered on his robe, but it was too large to hide with just one hand. He was desperate to avoid provoking Karyl's displeasure.

Damn it...

The events of last night were something he couldn’t speak of, something that must never be revealed. Yet, he vividly remembered how effortlessly the young boy before him had overpowered a senior sorcerer with decades more experience in magic.

"How am I supposed to defeat someone who even bested the master..." The man felt an overwhelming urge to flee right then and there.

***

As the gates of the arena swung open, the audience erupted in cheers. Their excitement was incomparable to the swiftly concluded first match, and their voices rang out, directed at the two competitors.

"Since it's come to this, show us something spectacular!"

"The pride of the Dawn Council!!"

"Don't lose to a nobody!!"

It was expected that most of the support would be for the man in the robe. To the people of Azor, it made more sense to rally behind a sorcerer from the magic council than an unknown child from the empire.

Little do they know I come from a completely different tribe.

There was no way for them to know about his origins from across the continent. Especially the fact that Kuwell had brought him—a barbarian—during the issuance of the Heresy Extermination Decree, was a secret in itself. On top of that, he had changed the color of his hair and eyes using magic. A barbarian using magic? No one would suspect such a thing.

But perhaps it’s for the best. If they knew they lost to a barbarian, they would be too ashamed to show their faces.

Karyl adjusted his grip on the staff. The wand, previously belonging to Thomson, was old having seen its fair share of battles. It’s too good to be destroyed.

Humming softly, almost in contrast to his thoughts, he swung the staff in a wide circle above his head, as if wielding a spear.

Magic, huh... His repertoire of magic, aside from buff and support spells, was limited. However, he had a plan. Rather than a shoddy performance for the audience who came to watch his match, if they were here for a magical duel, he'd show them true magic.

“Let the match begin—!!!”

In an instant, flames erupted over the magic oil, transforming the small flame into a colossal fire demon, seemingly intent on consuming him.

"Aaack, aaaaah—!!" Zaken screamed in terror, desperately attempting to crawl away.

"If you're a 4th class sorcerer, you should be capable of using a 2nd class Barrier of Shadows."

Karyl, who hadn't reached even 2nd class, had cast both Flame Finger and Grease simultaneously.

"Though it might seem different, both are magic. And if both are 1st class, using a 2nd class Magic Shield would be better than trying to run."

Zaken realized the stupidity of his attempts to flee from the towering fire demon. But his realization was a bit too late.

"Is this all?".

Karyl prodded Zaken's buttocks using his staff—that had been lying on the ground—like a club.

"Eek...!" It was a humiliating sight.

As Karyl flicked his hands again, seemingly conjuring a breeze and extinguishing the flames that had risen from the Grease spell. Though he could easily dispel the magic with wind pressure, he instead used a Magic Shield. He contained the flames with the shield and compressed it to extinguish it in one go.

Using a Magic Shield to extinguish the fire?

Magic can be used in such a way?

How did he even come up with that? Even the masters of the Magic Council have never mentioned such a method.

The sorcerers in the audience marveled at Karyl's actions. The defeat was undeniable.

However, Zaken cried out in protest. "This isn't a duel between sorcerers!! I cannot accept this...!!!"

His outcry dripped with desperation. "This is a desecration of the sacred duel between sorcerers!!" Perhaps it had taken great courage for him to say those words.

"Even after all of this, to speak out... You have more of a backbone than those who scheme from the shadows," Karyl said, his gaze fixed on Zaken. For the first time since coming to Azor, Karyl’s lips curled into a genuine smile. "But..."

Swish—

Karyl drew his dagger—Agnel—from his cloak. The blade spun and flashed in his palm, before he thrust it into the ground, stopping a hair’s breadth away from Zaken’s cheek, sending shivers down his spine.

"I never claimed to be a sorcerer."

"What?"

"That's your thing. What’s more important to you: your honor or your life?" Karyl lightly tapped Zaken’s bewildered face. "War doesn’t wait for you."

He might not understand what it meant now, but the warning was clear: any further objections would not be tolerated. "In the end, death is all there is."

Even the lowest level of magic had the potential to take a life. Karyl's words pierced Zaken's heart like a dagger.

“The winner is... Karyl of the Ulkas Guild!!!” The announcer's shout rang through the air.

Karyl nonchalantly retrieved his dagger from the ground and tucked it back into his cloak.

As he watched Karyl’s retreating figure, Zaken finally realized his pants were soaked through.