TW: Violence, gore

My heart flutters in my chest, it's time for the match to begin.

We're in a giant arena right now where a lot of events for the school typically take place. Students are packed into the stands raised about ten feet above the ground. According to Finn the dark grey stone surrounding the arena is supposed to be made of magic cancelling stones similar to how the magic testing crystals work by absorbing the magic so there is more protection for the spectators. The interior of the arena is pretty simple with a rectangular raised platform made of stone about the size of four olympic swimming pools with a field of well maintained grass outside the platform. I hear with magic the school is able to change the terrain, but for today we're fighting on the simple stone ground.

Nowhere to hide. Just wonderful.

Would have been better to have some cover to sneak attack him since I'm probably faster than him but I've learned fate never works in my benefit.

A burly man with spiky red hair and yellow eyes walks to the edge of platform where me and the teacher are situated on opposite sides of each other.

"Hello! I am Professor Strongman in charge of teaching combat and battle classes here at Rosewood Academy! I'll be the referee of this match! YOU READY TO SHOW EVERYONE WHAT YOU GOT?" he shouts.

Professor Strongman? Is that seriously his name? As usual Hal has no creativity...

"I'm ready. Feel free to start the match," I say.

"One sec," the teacher replies taking out a flask of something and chugging it before tossing it over his shoulder, "All ready now."

"LOVING THIS FIRE!!" he shouts, "1... 2... 3... FIGHT!!!"

Professor Strongman runs off back towards the exit door on one of the sides of the arena with a surprising level of speed where he stands watching the match.

Almost immediately a ball of bright blue energy is sent hurdling toward me. Even for me it's fast and I barely dodge away in time. There's a small crater and smoke coming off the ground where I was prior.

Before I can recover another blast is sent toward me. And another. And another.

I'm managing to avoid each one by a hair but after ducking under a blast that would have vaporized my head he sends another coming right at me. I manage to spin out of the way but it grazes my shoulder, and I quickly take a peak.

My stomach drops.

The flesh covering my shoulder has been burned off exposing bone underneath. It seems to have cauterized itself but the pain is unimaginable and I scream out.

He's unrelenting though and keeps sending blasts of his energy at me. I skirt around them, narrowly missing them, and getting closer to him.

Thank (not) god for my healing abilities that are already healing up the wound on my shoulder. Otherwise I don't think I would be able to continue this for long.

Anyway I need to get closer to him since long range fighting would only benefit him with his energy blasts whereas I don't have any good long range attacks at the moment.

One I'm about ten feet, I accelerate myself to maximum speed.

He's not expecting it and I send a kick to his side. It lands, sending him flying across the arena until he smacks into the wall.

If it was a normal human it most likely would have killed them, but magicians usually take potions to boost their strength, speed, durability, etc. a bit.

No match for my strength though.

I run toward him again, and punch him across the jaw.

That's when I feel a sharp, blinding pain in my stomach.

I look down, and see a large sword impaling me. I stumble away from him clutching the handle of it.

"A weapon..?" I ask coughing up blood. He didn't have that at the beginning of the fight or before I charged him just now!

Don't tell me he made that using mana in the split second I was punching him?!?!

"We never said no weapons allowed," he responds spitting out a mouthful of blood onto the ground.

"Fair enough," I rip out the sword from my stomach and blood gushes out from the wound, "I must admit I'm impressed."

"I can't really say the same," he replies and sends a ray of energy toward me. I stumble out of the way, my wound beginning to heal but still very much a painful hole in my stomach.

I take out the sword pendant and the small sword keychain on the necklace grows into a large double edged sword in my hands.

I charge at him with my sword, dropping the sword he made behind me (I can't really trust to use it since he might have put magic in it to work against me). I dodge all the energy blasts he sends my way and slash at him with my sword when I'm in range.

He's prepared though and throws up a shield I assume he made with his mana to block my attack. He lifts his hands ready to blast me, but I quickly jump back towards the edge of the arena.

He sends another ray of energy at me but I easily jump out of the way. It hits the wall uselessly, not even leaving a dent.

Suddenly I get an idea.

If the walls of this arena are made from magic cancelling stone then...

I rip off a part of the wall at super speed before he can aim at me again. Some of the students seated near that section of wall gasp or scream. I imagine it is probably frightening to see someone punch a hole through solid stone wall then rip off a portion of it by gripping the side of hole. That or they're not happy with the wall protecting them being weakened.

I hold the stone slab in front of me and start moving toward the teacher.

He responds by sending a ray of energy toward me. I hide behind the stone to avoid getting damaged. Of course, the stone absorbs the magic in the energy ray so I remain unharmed.

"VERY CLEVER! I'M IMPRESSED," he shouts, "I HAVEN'T FACED AN OPPONENT THIS STRONG FOR AS LONG AS I CAN REMEMBER! I GUESS I CAN STOP HOLDING BACK NOW."

STOP HOLDING BACK NOW?!?!? WHAT THE FUCK DOES THAT MEAN???

I'm sweating bullets right now in the stands. Just when I though Eve was going to turn this around.

No, I can't speak too soon. Maybe he's bluffing.

Plus, only an idiot would underestimate Eve.

"I CALL THIS MOVE PULSE. SINCE WE'RE HERE I THOUGHT WHY NOT TRY EXPERIMENTING NEW STUFF TODAY!" the teacher laughs.

He smacks his hand on the ground, sending a blast of energy through it. The floor of the arena cracks and breaks, but Eve is unhurt. It looks like she's flown up with her demon wings.

First time she's used her battle magic this whole time.

She lands back on the ground, still holding the stone in front of her.

"You can fly too?" the teacher asks, "No worries, I'm only just starting kid."

He lifts up his hand and stomps his foot on the ground. Blue energy bursts all around him, extending away from him in all directions, carrying debris from the floor with it at high speeds.

Eve hides behind the stone, avoiding the energy blasts but her shield is taking some serious damage as debris from the ground hits it.

I have idea what she do though since there's literally nowhere to run.

Luckily the energy pulse stops. I guess even he can't output that much mana constantly.

"THAT ALL YOU GOT OLD MAN?" shouts Eve grinning a bit scratched up from small bits of debris cutting her but relatively unharmed.

"I'm afraid not," he says.

Then behind Eve a chunk of debris starts glowing blue, then explodes. A giant wave of energy pours out from it.

Before I can blink the energy envelops Eve and in horror I watch her quickly get disintegrated as soon as the energy touches her, her bones and flesh turning to dust and blood, so much blood flying out, staining the ground.

I think I'm going to vomit.

Everyone's so silent.

And Eve's really dead.

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