“Red Magdaros and William Iss!”

Embla glanced over at her team leader. Yuki had a calm expression on her face. The look in her eyes screamed confidence. She sighed and relaxed a little. If Yuki had this much faith in Red to win, then she should place her faith in her teammate.

“Wow, Red versus William? A fight between two dragons. How ironic,” Cal said.

“Fire and Ice. I feel like someone set this fight up on purpose,” Pandora said.

“Red’s a Scarlet Dragonkin right? And from what Cal told me, William’s an Azure Dragonkin. This is basically a fight between two conflicting Dragonkin Tribes,” Embla said.

“The Dragonkin who claim to be descended from the Tyrant Dragon of Frost, Tiamat, and the Dragonkin whose ancestors claim to be able to ascend to the rank of Tyrant. Pandora’s right, this fight is very poetic and on purpose,” Yuki said.

“You guys are reading too much into too much. I just hope Red can win against this guy,” she said.

“Don’t worry about Red. He can handle himself. He received elite training from the Alfheim Royal Guard and served as my personal guard for a majority of our lives so it’s safe to say that Red has his opponent outclassed,” Yuki said.

“Unless if William finds a way to cheat somehow. Celestia may be a scummy team but Kaguya and the other members have their own code of honor. William doesn’t. He’s a coward who isn’t afraid to resort to tactics that wouldn’t fly in a match like this,” Cal said.

“Don’t worry. Red’s not going to fall for some trick. That ice pop with scales has another thing coming for him if he thinks that he can cheat Red out of a victory. Which should be a freebie for us. The only person we really have to worry about on their team is-”

“Kaguya,” Embla finished.

Pandora nodded and looked back down to the arena. “Looks like they’re almost finished with cleaning up Kaguya’s collateral damage.”

“Mizore. Your apprentice really did a number on the stadium. I’m surprised that you haven’t been charged yet for every year Kaguya decided to participate,” Samuel said, placing his feet on the table.

Mizore sipped her tea and placed the cup down. She sighed and looked out over the stadium. “I just hope Yuki doesn’t fight her.”

“Not very confident in your daughter, huh,” Lilim said.

“Not confident? I have every faith in Yuki. It’s just that before coming here, Kaguya spent a year training with me and improved leaps and bounds prior to what she was. Yuki may have a win-streak the size of Mimisbrunr but Kaguya’s gotten stronger over the past few years. I just don’t want to see her get hurt,” Mizore said.

“Wow, Mizore saying more words in a single sentence. How the wonders of this world never ce-” he coughed when Mizore dug her elbow into his side.

“I heard that Kaguya has an Arts.” Lilim took a bite of her bread.

“That she does…. That she does,” Mizore mused.

Embla walked down the steps towards their chairs. She had a paper food tray in her hand with three barbecue sticks on it. Yuki was still in her seat, eyes closed and arms crossed. While her earlier confidence was still there, her ears were slightly drooped. Embla had worked with her long enough to know that that meant she was worried about something. Stepping past her to her spot, Embla sat down and glanced over to her.

“You okay?” she asked, grabbing a stick.

Yuki cracked open one eye and sighed. “Yeah. Red’s match has me a little anxious. I know what I said earlier about Red winning but I can’t help but worry.”

“It’s fine. If it makes you feel better, I’m kinda worried too,” Embla said. She opened her mouth to speak once more when Azalea’s voice rang through the entire stadium, interrupting her mid-sentence.

“We’re so sorry about the intermission. We’ve just been informed by the arena staff that the arena has been fixed and is ready for the next match. We’d like to announce that all contestants keep collateral damage to a minimum and refrain from using skills or bursts that could jeopardize the lives of those watching with us here. Do not take the barrier surrounding the arena as an invitation to go crazy.”

“And with that announcement from General Hler finished, we bring you our much delayed upcoming match between Red Magadaros and William Iss. Will the contestants please come out into the arena,” Kvasir said.

“We’re back! Is the match starting?”

Embla and Yuki turned to see Cal and Pandora rushing in with a large amount of food. The two carefully made their way to their chairs, taking extra care not to trip on Yuki and Embla’s feet. They sat down and turned to the center of the arena.

“No, they’re calling the two out.” Embla took a bite of her barbecue.

“Look, I see Red! Hey Red!” Pandora waved her hand, hoping against all hope that her Dragonkin friend would be able to see her from this distance.

“You know he can’t see you, right?” Cal asked.

“Come on, let’s focus on the match,” Yuki said.

Red walked out onto the arena. The blinding light of the sun hit his face, causing him to squint for a few seconds. The two hours he had spent in the arena locker room meditating and preparing for this match had not helped in the slightest. Red had a slight knot of anxiety in his stomach. The pressure was on after all.

Red looked up to see his opponent entering from a door opposite to his. He remained stoic and gripped his sword. William huh? Even if he is kind of a pansy leech, I should keep my wits about me. Red eyed his opponent intently.

William walked, no swaggered his way into the arena. His strut resembled that of a male peacock in heat, attempting to attract every peahen in the arena. While it wasn’t effective, that didn’t stop the dragonkin from trying. William winked to the audience before reaching behind his back and pulling out a massive cleaver of a sword.

If swords were to be compared to kitchen knives, then William’s sword was a butcher’s knife. It was ornately decorated with gems and such at the guard. The grip and hilt were simple in nature, possessing a black pommel while the handle was covered in bandages. The blade extended at least two meters and had a black coating on it.

That sword looks to big for someone with his frame, Red thought as he stood eyeing his opponent.

“Alright! If you all need a refresher on how the tournament works, the winner is decided when the opponent is deemed to be no longer able to fight or if the opponent surrenders. No maiming or killing is allowed. Now, with that out of the way, the match shall begin on my mark!” Azalea announced.

Red shifted his stance, having a white knuckle grip on his sword’s handle.

William made no such instances to get ready, merely yawning and grinning at Red.

“Begin!”

The white-haired azure dragonkin wasted no time getting on with the fight. With surprising ease, he lifted and swung the blade, sending a massive compressed gust of air towards Red.

Red rolled to the side as the gust tore up the ground where he once stood. Using Enhance Parameter to enhance his movement speed, Red kicked off the ground and shot forth towards William.

He drew his sword and swung it, aiming for William’s arm. The boy jumped back, narrowly avoiding Red’s swing.

Lifting the sword over his head, William quickly infused it with mana, causing it to glow blue. “I told Kaguya I’d finish this in a single shot so here! Eat this burst you crimson bastard!” With those words, he brought the sword down on Red. In a quick flash of harsh blue light, a gust of cold wind swept over the lower areas of the arena before a massive series of ice spikes erupted from the ground before slamming into the barrier. The barrier glowed blue and shook slightly.

“Red!” Pandora called out, getting out of her seat.

Cal remained calm while Embla bit her cheek. She glanced over to Yuki, who had a calm look on her face.

“Is he…?” Cal trailed off.

William grinned cockily, lifting his massive sword and hefting it onto his shoulder. “Looks like I was right, he was just a whelp. Call the match! This fight is ove-”

“We just started. How can the match be over?”

“Huh?” William turned to see a gloved fist filling his entire vision. His vision turned white as pain shot through his head. He was sent flying across the arena before skidding to a halt halfway across.

Red stood, completely unscathed from William’s burst. “It’s a good thing I used Super Acceleration before you brought that meat cleaver you call a sword down on me. I would’ve taken some serious damage if that hit me.”

“Y- You bitch!” William said, clutching his nose. His face was swelling slightly on the right as blood trickled down his nose.

“Calling a match over when it just started is really dumb, William.” Red took a step towards him, gripping his sword.

“Hehe, you’re right. I was in too much of a rush. If you went down so easily, there’d be no satisfaction in beating you senseless myself,” William said, grinning wildly. Though, his eyes told a somewhat different story. He was slightly flustered.

“Well then, let’s kick this up a notch.” Red’s body glowed before he dashed forward with such speed, William almost never saw the attack coming.

The white haired dragonkin jumped back, avoiding Red’s swing by the breadth of a hair. He gritted his teeth as he swung his sword at Red.

Red twisted his body, flipping over the blade before jumping back at high speeds. Using Super Acceleration to stay out of his reach will be crucial to this match. But the skill uses a lot of prana so I have to make sure not to get tired, he thought, standing up and watching William.

His eyes narrowed when he saw William’s cheeks puff up like a fish. Without any warning, William opened his mouth and unleashed a torrent of harsh icy wind towards Red.

Red inhaled before opening his mouth and letting loose a cascade of harsh red fire.

The two attacks collided, shaking the arena and creating a mist cloud that engulfed the entire ring.

William narrowed his eyes as he tried to see through the mist. He gripped his sword tightly, waiting for any movement to appear out of the corner of his eye.

An ear-to-ear grin appeared on his face as he raised his hand. “Is that really it? A Fire Breath skill?”

A blue light appeared in the palm of William’s hand. “Avalanche Crash.” A wave of ice erupted from his hand, extinguishing the large ball of flames that hurtled towards Red. The subzero wave of ice and cold air collided with the arena wall, causing the entire barrier to shake.

“I know that wasn’t enough to get you out so…” he sidestepped as Red brought down his sword. A wave of fire traveled across the arena, leaving a blackened seared line. Wasting no time, Red swung his sword at William, performing a horizontal slash.

The azure dragonkin was caught off-guard by the sudden attack and was sent sliding back. His eyes widened as Red appeared in front of him. Flames wreathed Red’s sword as he thrust the tip of the sword towards William.

A Burst?

“Nova Ride!”

Red’s entire body transformed into a volcanic rocket and shot towards William.

William gasped as he barely managed to block the burst with his blade. The intense heat of Red’s burst began to burn William’s skin. The force from Red’s speed sent the two moving at high speeds across the arena. William roared as he used Frost to freeze his feet to the ground.

However, William’s tactic failed as the intense heat melted the ice instantly.

Red roared and swung his sword, fueling his attack with prana and breaking William’s guard. The azure dragonkin roared in pain as the flames engulfed his body. The force of the impact cracked the ground underneath and sent William crashing into the arena barrier.

The flames dispersed as Red landed on the ground. His guard was up. While William was not Kaguya’s top fighter, he was no slouch. Getting hit with a burst was not something that would bring William down instantly.

He jumped back as a towering spine of ice erupted from the ground. “You look like shit.”

William’s armor was burned and his skin had patches of red exposed flesh where the flames had managed to eat through his draconic skin.

“Heh, you Crimson Dragonkin. Always playing with fire,” William said. “But I’ve been playing around long enough.”

“...” Red narrowed his eyes as he solidified his stance. At the very last second, Red dodged an attack from William. However, William never moved from his spot. Red swept his leg under the William that attacked and swung his blade. The William that attacked Red shattered on impact. “Clones?”

“You know what they say. There’s strength in numbers.” William’s grin returned full force as three doppelgangers crystallized on the arena field.

Right… he can also use Virtual Body Doubles, He thought, eyeing each one.

The doppelgangers jumped off the ground and raised their hand in the air. Massive spears of ice manifested in the air before lightning crackled around them.

Dual Casting!? He gripped his sword in anticipation for the attack.

William grinned as he and his body doubles threw their hands forward, launching the spears at high speed.

Red moved quickly, evading the spears using Super Acceleration. He raised his sword and swung it, unleashing a swathe of flames towards one of the electrified ice spears. The two attacks collided, creating an explosion that blew them both back. However, Red did not back down and leaped into the air where William was hovering. He appeared above William and performed an ax kick on his head, sending William hurtling towards the ground.

As Red plummeted towards the ground, intent on knocking William out, an icicle spear the size of a knife jammed itself into Red’s shoulder, knocking him off course. Red landed onto the ground, rolling and shattering the spear upon impact. He gritted his teeth as he placed his hand on the wound. Blood poured profusely from the hole as he turned to see William standing there, hand outstretched.

“Looks like you let your guard down,” William said. He grabbed his blade and sauntered over to Red.

Red attempted to move but the pain limited his speed, allowing William to land a devastating kick to the jaw. He fell over, gasping in pain as his vision swam.

“You’re not looking so hot,” he said, looking down on Red. Red’s defiant face made William smile grow wider. He let go of his sword and spread his fingers apart. Talons made of ice grew on each finger in his right hand.

“No…” Embla’s eyes widened as she saw what he was about to do. “Yuki, he’s going to… Yuki?” When she turned to tell her leader, she saw that Yuki’s face was not one of worry. Yuki’s expression hadn’t changed since the beginning of the match when Red had the upperhand nor now. Her expression had remained the same yet the confidence she had was still there.

Embla turned to the others and saw that while they were worried, their expressions still held faith that Red would turn the match around. She grimaced and turned her attention back to the match.

Red watched as William brought his Ice Talons down with the intent of gouging his eyes out. Time slowed for Red as the talons moved ever so slowly. But that surge of adrenaline was enough for Red to fight through the immense pain in his shoulder.

William’s eyes widened as Red lunged forward, headbutting him in the jaw. The force sent him stumbling back. Rubbing his jaw with his non frozen hand, he looked up to see Red. The crimson dragonkin’s right arm hung at the side. Red’s left hand was still over the wound but now the wound began to sizzle.

“You…” That bastard is using Flames to cauterize his own wound… he thought. William dashed forward, using Frost to create jets that boosted his speed. In a burst of speed, William appeared in front of Red once more. This time, his talons were thrust towards Red’s chest.

Using the Super Acceleration skill, Red barely managed to dodge the attack. He took his left hand off his shoulder and slammed it into William’s side.

William’s eyes widened when a small fiery explosion blew him back a few feet. He looked at Red and saw that his left hand had traces of smoke wafting from it.

“Damn it!” William dashed at Red once more to vivisect his entire body with his talons. He formed Ice Talons on his other hand, determined to finish the job.

Red’s eyes narrowed. He jumped back, dodging William’s furious swipes but not all. Cuts manifested on his cheek, wounded shoulder, and some tore through his pants, cutting his thighs. He raised his leg, kicking William back as he attempted to slash his eyes once more. Kicking off William, Red jumped back and inhaled.

Using the oxygen, Red ignited the mana he gathered in his lungs and exhaled. A large ball of flames exited Red’s mouth and hurtled towards William.

“Really? Fire Breath? Didn’t you learn that wouldn’t work the first time?” William thrust both hands together and summoned an avalanche of ice and wind. The flames were extinguished and the cascade headed towards Red.

Red landed on the ground. He rolled to the side avoiding the cascade. My sword arm is a mess and he’s spamming Burst Skills now. He got up and ran, using Enhance Parameter to gain some distance.

I need to land a decisive hit on him. One that’ll knock him out. But how… I only know a few bursts. Nova Ride, Flame Crash, and Meteoric Burst. Damn it, if only I had a Signet, he thought to himself. Looks like I’m using Flame Crash but I need to make him weak enough to- An idea popped into Red’s mind. Red grinned and squeezed prana from every cell in his body. Dashing forward, Red appeared in front of William, catching him offguard.

He used his left hand and punched William directly in the sternum, sending the man flying into the air using his momentum. Not wasting anytime, Red grabbed William’s foot as he flew and slammed him back into the ground.

Red’s hand glowed blue as he pooled his body’s prana into his fist. William moved his body, rolling as Red’s fist slammed into the ground, creating spider web cracks in the ground.

William got up, tripping Red with his foot. He jumped up and brought his foot down on Red’s face. Red rolled out of the way, fighting through the pain in his right shoulder. William’s enhanced kick ruptured the ground. Wasting no time, William kicked towards Red, sending a wave of ice.

Super Acceleration! Red’s body flicked and moved, reappearing in the air.

William looked up to see Red covering his entire body in flames.

Nova Ride? Wait… no, he doesn’t have his sword. Even if he uses a Fire Burst, I can just dodge and then finish him off while he recovers, he thought. William grinned as he gathered blue energy into his hand. But… why start there?

Gonna have to… Red flooded himself with mana, creating a shroud of bright flames. Now for some forward momentum! He squeezed out his body’s remaining prana. Super Acceleration!

William fired the cold beam at Red, grinning psychotically. His eyes widened in fear when Red shot forward at blinding speeds. Red collided with the beam, effortlessly punching through it with his speed.

“W- Wait, sto-” he never finished his sentence as the bright red flaming bullet that was Red slammed into the ground, creating a large explosion that engulfed the ring.

Everyone grabbed onto their seats and covered their eyes as the stadium slightly shook from the impact.

“RED!” Yuki yelled. Smoke covered the entire ring as the explosion faded.

The smoke began to fade, revealing a severely wounded William standing along with a severely wounded Red. Red had an ice blade jammed into his torso while William had severe burns across his arms and torso. A large cut was on his left arm and blood dripped profusely from it.

William stumbled forward, gathering ice into his burned hand and created ice talons. He weakly raised his hand and swiped at Red, missing and falling to the ground.

Red looked down as William looked up at him weakly, exhaling and blowing a puff of icy wind up at him. That was the last thing the azure dragonkin did before passing out. Red stood there for a few seconds before falling onto his butt, sighing in relief and in pain.

“W- We have a winner! It was touch and go there for a bit but the winner is Red Magdaros! We need medical personnel inside the arena now!”

Embla and Cal cheered as Pandora sighed, closing her eyes in prayer. Red looked up to where his party sat with a bloody grin on his face. He winked at the white-haired foxkin sitting next to the black-haired girl he was sure was Embla.

Yuki saw the wink through the surveillance crystals zoomed in on Red’s face and blushed furiously.

“Looks like… it’s time for us to collect our first losers, Sigrun.” Hati sat lazily in her chair in the highest portion of the nosebleed section. She had a small toothpick in her mouth that she removed before flicking it towards the wall.

She got up from her chair and exited the arena with a bounce in her step as Red was carted away by medical personnel.