Vidal Takes the Field

In the arena, Vincent instantly used Soru to get behind Ogden and swung his leg, sending out a pale blue, crescent-shaped blade of air. The atmosphere erupted.

[Splurt]

The blue-and-white shirt and the bronze back muscles beneath it split open, sending hot blood spraying.

"Hngh!"

Pain twisted Ogden's angular, square-jawed face, and veins bulged on his forehead. He staggered forward two steps despite himself.

It wasn't that he hadn't used Tekkai to defend himself, but Tekkai wasn't invincible, especially when struck by Rankyaku at such close range.

At least, with his current strength, he couldn't defend against it.

"Rankyaku!"

But when Vincent saw that Ogden hadn't fallen, he switched to his left leg and unleashed another sharp Rankyaku. Ogden had only just regained his footing.

Once mastered, Rankyaku was devastating in a fight between opponents of the same level!

The key was that it had almost no windup and could be unleashed repeatedly.

Vincent's body couldn't yet use the same leg to perform it multiple times in quick succession. After all, creating a vacuum with a leg was no easy feat.

But he could simply switch legs, letting him fire at least two blades of air in succession!

He didn't believe Ogden could take two hits from Rankyaku!

In fact, he was right. At such close range, Ogden wasn't agile enough to dodge.

Rear Admiral Dewitt, who had been watching the fight from the sidelines, stepped in. He appeared behind Ogden in an instant and punched the blade of air apart!

But that also meant Vincent had won.

"Tsk, tsk. I didn't expect that kid Vincent to master Rankyaku, much less fire it off twice so quickly. Impressive!" the blond Colonel said with a laugh.

"He really is talented in that regard."

"Comil and Miles are next. I think this matchup will be even more exciting, since both of them are skilled with weapons."

"But it's more dangerous too. One careless move and something could go wrong."

"Hey, what Marine is afraid of danger? Besides, Rear Admiral Dewitt is watching."

In the arena, Ogden was taken away by the medical team, and Vincent walked to the sidelines, his face full of joy. Comil and Miles faced each other.

One had two swords at his waist, while the other carried a long sword on his back. Both were clearly Swordsmen!

"Swordsmanship... I've always wanted to learn it." Vidal watched enviously as the two men drew their swords and assumed their ready stances.

"Learning too many things without mastering many of them isn't good," Vice Admiral Cornell said calmly as he watched the arena.

"You should focus your energy on your Devil Fruit ability and physical techniques. Besides, you really don't have a talent for swordsmanship."

He was a powerful Swordsman himself and knew just how poor his son was in that regard.

It wasn't that Vidal was terrible; he was simply very ordinary, a far cry from how he performed in other areas.

Vidal wasn't angry. He merely sighed in regret, then focused on the fight that had already begun.

Miles, holding a single sword, crouched slightly and stomped down with a sudden burst of air. He vanished from the spot amid a resounding boom.

At the same moment, Comil vanished too, a sword in each hand.

[Clang—]

Three unremarkable long swords collided in the center. Though there was no exaggerated shock wave, the clash of the two men's sharp auras was just as dazzling.

The two became blurs of high-speed movement, fighting fiercely across the spacious open ground. Flashes of steel and the sound of blades cutting through the air came one after another, while metallic clangs rang out in an unbroken succession.

One or two jagged gashes appeared in the smooth ground wherever they went. A fight between Swordsmen was truly destructive.

And this was only a fight between two men who weren't Swordmasters and hadn't even mastered Flying Slash. Otherwise, sword energy would surely have been flying through the air in every direction!

The spectacle alone was several times more exciting than Vincent's earlier fight, and countless Marines watching cheered them on, their cries rising one after another.

"Those two are quite a bit stronger than Vincent," Vidal said softly. "Their mastery of Soru alone is no worse than his."

"That's only natural. An excellent Swordsman would certainly place great importance on speed training," Vice Admiral Cornell said with a nod.

"If strength were really the selection criterion, Vincent would have a hard time competing with them. But since we chose to hold a tournament, we have to follow the rules."

"Sometimes luck is part of strength too, huh?" Vidal sighed.

"Besides, can't the losers still challenge you?" Cornell teased shamelessly.

"Heh." Vidal merely smiled. He regretted losing talented men, but he wasn't saintly enough to give up his spot.

Of course, if someone really had the ability to defeat him, that would be another matter.

Fights between ordinary Swordsmen like these were often decided quickly. After barely twenty minutes or so, Comil knocked Miles's long sword away and held both blades to his neck.

"The winner, Comil!" Rear Admiral Dewitt raised his hand and announced loudly, drawing a great wave of excited cheers.

"You're up next, Vidal." Vice Admiral Cornell looked proudly at his son as he rose from his seat.

"Yeah. I'm looking forward to it too."

Vidal stood a full 3.05 meters tall. Wearing a white Marine cap, he slowly walked into the arena under everyone's gaze.

He was dressed as always in a dark green shirt, black trousers, and brown leather shoes, looking neat and clean.

Combined with the gentle smile he always wore, he gave a friendly impression and seemed easy to get along with. But the powerful muscles bulging beneath his shirt kept him from looking weak or easy to bully.

"Grandma! Grandma, look! It's Dad!" Little Enel, sitting in Lady Enid's arms in the stands, pointed at Vidal in the arena and cheered.

"Mm-hmm, I see him, I see him. Don't worry, Vidal is very strong," Enid said with a gentle smile.

"I know! I saw Father defeat 'God' and his entire army with my own eyes on Sky Island!" Little Enel looked proudly at Vidal.

In the arena, Vidal reached his position and calmly looked at Miles and Ogden, then glanced at Comil and Vincent, who made no attempt to hide their eagerness.

"Who wants to go first?"

Miles and Ogden, the two losers, exchanged a glance. One had just been through a fierce fight, and the other was wrapped in bandages.

To be honest, neither wanted to go first.

Just then, Vincent suddenly stepped forward and asked, "Rear Admiral Dewitt, may I test Senior Sergeant Vidal's strength first?"

"That will also give Miles and Ogden more time to recover."

Rear Admiral Dewitt looked at Vidal, who nodded politely and replied, "I think Lieutenant Vincent's suggestion is a good one."

"In that case, Vincent versus Vidal is next!" Rear Admiral Dewitt announced decisively.

A moment later, only the two opponents remained in the arena. Vidal stood on the right, looking down at Vincent from his considerable height.

"Please."

As for updates, since I have a few chapters saved up now, I'll release one in the morning and another in the afternoon or evening. I'm a new writer with a new book, after all, and I do need to use some update strategies and methods to give this book the best possible exposure. I hope everyone understands.