Chapter 37: The Book-Sword Moves

At that moment when Armad faced over twenty-five spears with a power of one year each and he ran out of pol, he felt a slight movement in his inner pocket. He couldn't have paid attention to something like that in his situation if it wasn't followed by a sharp pain in the same spot where he felt the movement. It was like the skin there was being burned by fire.

He was in pain and could barely remember keeping the book in his inner pocket. He tried to bring the book out, but before he could do that, he felt a foreign pol entered his body. It was like the pol he got from his miyura but more concentrated. It felt toxic and burning. He winced but still tried to overcome it.

He didn't know where the pol came from, but it wasn't difficult to accept in his situation, so he just reached out and channeled it to produce another lightning bolt. He was confronted with the fact that the bolt wasn't very large, but in it, there were three red lines like threads. It looked... different.

He didn't have time to think so much about what was going on, so he just fired the bolt at his opponent. When the bolt hit the first spear, it exploded to engulf the remaining spears, sounding like a real earthquake. The ring cracked and they lost their footing.

After it settled down, Armad stood tall with his sword drawn, while Niyashi laid on his feet unconscious. Looking back at it, there was only one lightning bolt from Armad and more than twenty spears from Niyashi, but Armad wasn't even injured. Everyone was looking at him, hoping he would tell them what happened. But Armad himself didn't know what happened. All he saw was the forty spears turning to dust as they met the bolt of lightning. The bolt went on to hit Niyashi in the chest, and he fell.

He was still trying to figure out how the Book-sword worked. He didn't even know it could act like his miyura and give him pol. But there was still something missing... Magical artifacts usually had one function, so the book could either serve as an energy source or as a sword. But it was currently acting as both. Did that mean it wasn't an artifact? Armad shook his head as he pressed the book through his pocket. It wasn't a normal book, that much he knew.

A triumphant shout was heard from the spectators, and Armad was declared as the victor. Niyashi was taken away by healers.

But something happened in the VIP room at the same time that Armad felt the movement of the book in his pocket.

In his pocket, Uznu Ururu felt a certain small board shake. It emitted a black light the same color as his eyes. Suddenly a happy smile appeared on the man's face. He got what he was looking for. The board in his pocket was designed to locate the Book-sword. He was told that if the book-sword appeared within two hundred meters from him then the board would inform him. And now the book he had been looking for for over 1,500 years had appeared before him. He turned his full attention to Armad. That was what brought him there.

Back on the ring, Armad went to Nusi, excited.

"Ah..." Nusi patted him on the shoulder with a sigh, "I seem to have been worried for nothing. You won spectacularly." Nusi ignored the old men from Mikironomada who escorted them from Khan, praising Armad for his 'heroism' in his confrontation with prince Niyashi.

"You have gotten a lot stronger in a short time, I'm so proud of you," Nusi said, thinking about the bolt Armad used last. Others might not have noticed it, but she knew Armad had run out. But somehow he was still able to fire a bolt equivalent to fifty years. She would inquire about it at a later date. For now, she didn't want to distract him from the fight ahead.

"Lord Armad, please, I want to be your student." One of the escorts grabbed Armad.

"Me too, please." Another came from the other side.

After defeating prince Niyashi, Armad was already popular.

Amid the commotion, commentator Ghalee asked the guards to bring the leaves so he could determine the order of the semifinals.

The audience was excited about the next match. Was it going to be between Armad and Ikenga, or between Bizaya and Han-Amuru?

If you excluded prince Bizaya, the next person with the most supporters was Ikenga. Even though Armad's supporters have increased significantly after his victory over Niyashi, he was no way as popular as the others.

Ghalee picked up a pen with the words Denizia chronicle written on it and wrote one name on each leaf. Then he put the four leaves together and threw them up in the air. When they reached their maximum velocity at about four feet, they fell back toward the ring. The audience focused on the leaves and followed them with their eyes. The first two leaves to touch the ground would be the ones to play first. Then the remaining two would follow. It was as simple as that.

The leaves were picked from a special tree called Safáha. It produced leaves at the same time and they grew at the same rate, so you would find out that its leaves were usually of the same shape, size, and weight.

The four leaves started falling at almost equal speed, but then the wind blew and two of the leaves sped up. The first leaf to hit the ground had the name Han Amuru on it. The other one was upside down with the name hidden.

The two guards watching the ring picked it up and disappeared from the ring long before the other two leaves landed.

The guard who picked it looked at Ghalee and the man nodded at him. Then he turned the leaf and showed it to the audience. It had Armad's name on it.

It had been decided. The next match would be between Armad Djinn from Mikironomada and Han Amuru of the third world. The audience erupted into commotion, everyone was discussing the possible winner.

Armad stood next to Nusi as they watched everything unfold. Then it came. A searing pain in his back like he was being burned alive. He turned around to see Han Amuru staring at him. His eyes were raging with flames. He was full of passion and desire for battle and he was telling Armad he was ready.

Armad didn't back down, fueling his gaze with a year of pol and giving the boy the same look that told him he, too, was also ready.