Divine Beast Ascension

Hurman, on the other hand, kept quiet. When the bookie tried to approach him and ask about his prior bets, Hurman waved off the bookie with a slight smile and a nod. Accepting his winnings in a void ring, Hurman made no further bets. But his gaze seemed heavier than some expected as his gaze wandered and landed on the masked man. Shaking his head, he was anxious to witness the first match involving the young man.

An hour passed quickly as the contestants either chatted or meditated, depending on how confident they were in their essence reserves and skills.

“Everyone, your patience has paid off!” the announcer shouted. “It’s time we officially begin the second round. With great anticipation, let’s welcome the combatants of our first match!”

The masked man was the first on stage but the fourteenth seed made sure to grab the attention of the crowd.

“Wooooow, I’m truly blessed! To face a no-name and get a free ride to the quarterfinals? If I had known I’d be so lucky, I wouldn’t have tried so hard to conceal my strength before the match,” stated the fourteenth seed. “I’ll admit, you’re skills are the real deal. But if the Practor Family doesn’t recognize you and dare to put you forward, then why should I be bothered by you? With no backer, it’s obvious your few skills paired with luck to get you so far...

“Not going to say anything? Already speechless without a proper answer?”

.....

But to his surprise, the masked man bowed respectfully without a word. Then drawing his sword, the masked man nodded to the ref and waited for the match to become official.

“Are you ready–”

“Of course!” shouted the fourteenth seed, annoyed by the masked man’s lack of a response.

“BEGIN!”

“I may not be a family member, but at least I’m a proper student of the Forell Family!” The common cloak surrounding the contestant burst into flames, revealing a light armor similar to that of Trenk, albeit of lower quality. “I’ll do the Practor Family a favor by removing an imposter like you from the tournament, so you may as well give up!”

Fire sprayed out of the young man’s hands, pouring over nearly the entire platform and surrounding the masked man.

“Just going to stand there? Then I’ll come to you!”

Placing his hands behind him, the fourteenth seed jumped while using propelling flames to speed up. He lashed out with whips of fire and fireballs as he charged toward the masked man.

“Oh my! What a surprise! Showing strength beyond that of his evaluation, we may have another dark horse in the rankings!” declared the announcer.

That comment riled up the fourteenth seed, twisting his smile into a toothy grin.

But while the crowd was cheering on the fourteenth seed, they also noticed the unflinching stance of the masked man. Despite being surrounded by raging flames, he was unfazed and confident as he held his sword motionlessly.

Sidestepping the flaming whips, the swordsman finally made his first move. His soaked sword slashed forward to cut down the encroaching fireballs, not beyond expectation.

“You’ll need more than...”

The fourteenth seed laughed as he hurled more fireballs and whips at his opponent but his smile waned for a split-second.

Suddenly, glacial armor surrounded the macked man as he jumped into the surrounding flames. By the look of it, the masked man was unafraid of all fire and dared charge toward the reclusive fourteenth seed.

“You dare challenge me in my own turf? Idiot!” cackled the fourteenth seed, adding to his flames to stall the water-wielding swordsman.

Yet the swordsman always seemed to know where to go next while searching for his foe amidst the roaring fire. When any attacks dared fall on the swordsman, he would cut them down and continue his search for the missing opponent.

“How can you face me when I–”

Not caring for his foe’s commentary, the swordsman stabbed his blade into the stage for a moment. Just then, a frosty mist expanded rapidly and contested the flames of the platform. It failed to eliminate the fire but they were reduced greatly by the time the swordsman restarted his hunt for the hidden fire mage.

“Astounding! It seems this masked man is more capable than we had thought, even displaying some of the Practor Family’s more advanced battle arts,” commented the ref. “If our surprisingly strong fourteenth seed doesn’t come up with a counter, then we may be in for a larger upset than we’d anticipated!”

“I won’t lose to a no-name!” howled the fourteenth seed, forcibly growing flames across the stage. He didn’t want to be outshined, let alone appear incapable by someone of no reputation, not when he was already fighting to get more recognition from the Forell Family.

But that wasn’t enough to stop the masked man.

With increased flames raging, the masked man dropped his mist and focused his essence entirely on his blade. Now, he suddenly cut through the flames until his attack cleared the other side of the fire.

This left a sword attack leaving the ring while aimed at the audience. But no one seemed worried at all, and for good reason. Guards were placed on all sides of the platform who countered or repelled the residual attacks that dared threaten the audience. With elders protecting the standing, that stray sword attack was snuffed out in the blink of an eye.

However, the ref wouldn’t do anything to the attacks around the platform, leaving the fourteenth seed in shock. He had narrowly avoided the sword attack but failed to reconceal himself before the swordsman charged at him anew. His stealth tactic had been foiled far quicker than he had planned.