TBATE| The Walking Catastrophe

Chapter 18 - Acquire phase

Cordelia Aurelius Pov

Aryaan, with his aura of frost and flame, took slow, deliberate steps forward, but what was odd was that his opponent was still walking in a circle, now behind him.

'Can he not see him or something?'

Aryaan raised a flaming foot and kicked outward near the edge of the arena. It whistled through the air but struck nothing.

Seemingly realizing his attack was ineffective, he reeled his foot back and then slowly walked back to the center of the ring gazing around.

Eventually, the black-haired boy wielding the two swords dashed forward, making a beeline right to Aryaan who was apparently dodging some sort of invisible attack.

Using a burst of wind to force himself to go faster, Alister struck at Aryaan's back, but he wasn't close enough to land a decisive blow.

It seemed like the side he approached from was too hot, and the boy was afraid of getting burnt, thus his attack only left a shallow wound.

I could hear the click of his tongue echo through the silent stadium as he cradled his singed hand.

Aryaan however, stumbled forward slightly, the back of his uniform lightly stained red with blood.

I was a bit confused as to how the best close-quarters fighter in our academy was unable to dodge such a televised attack, but no matter what the boy did, Aryaan was never able to see the attacks coming.

This went on for a while with Aryaan seemingly confused as to where his opponent was. And Alister not being able to fully close the distance. However, it was becoming increasingly clearer that the two were both becoming fatigued.

The white-haired boy was panting heavily, both opposing elements flickering and fanning in the wind, all the while Alister's movements had slowed down drastically.

It was as if he too were keeping up some sort of powerful spell.

The two seemed to be locked in a perfect standstill.

Aryaan, using something I knew to be his last resort, channeled mana into his last and most recent rune, a crest.

He balled his hands into fists and held them close to his sides. All of a sudden, a barely visible wave of sound exploded omnidirectionally from him, causing me to have to plug my ears, despite my innate sound resistance.

The attack struck a wide-eyed Allister, who struggled back up to his feet. Although, when he did, there was an unmistakable feeling as if the tides were beginning to shift. Alister, the smug regalia wielder looked on in fear as the exhausted highblood advanced toward him.

No longer was his indomitable aura of heat and cold, but he was looking straight into his opponent's eyes for the first time since the beginning of the fight. Anyone here could tell who held the advantage in close range.

Aryaan took labored steps as he closed in on the fearful boy.

One after another, his steps left a trail of blood and sweat in his wake and when he was merely 10 feet away from the Bloodrock student, he collapsed in exhaustion. Ending the match anticlimactically.

I let out a disappointed sigh as I watched the half-conscious Alister hobble off the stage.

Aryaan, who had to be practically carried off by professor Britton shot me a defeated look that sent a pang of sadness in my heart.

He was then hoisted off to the medical station, and I now found myself with a few hours of downtime while my opponent regained his mana.

I decided that in a few minutes I would head down to see my friend, but for now, I idly chatted with my classmates about the match.