The Tournament (III)

In the fourth round of the Martial Magic Tournament, the final match to decide who would advance from the Top Sixteen to the Top Eight began.

Facing a High-level magic apprentice for the first time, Donald unconsciously tightened his grip on his Magic Staff.

"Alva said he never tried to bribe your companion with money." After the match began, Pas didn't move far enough away. Instead, he faced Donald and spoke slowly.

Donald knew he was talking about the Magic Apprentice who had been framed by Wesley.

"Your companion did something wrong," Pas continued.

Donald stayed silent. He didn't know why his opponent was saying all this. Was he trying to make sure Donald understood why he was about to die?

"Alva has always studied hard. This outcome was unfair to him... But none of that has anything to do with you, so I won't deliberately kill you."

Donald finally realized that his opponent was trying to reason with him. He liked people who reasoned with him.

"I apologize to Alva on my friend's behalf. I'll pass your words on to him. By the way, the one your professor keeps mocking is our academy's dean, and my friend's father, so..." Donald trailed off. His opponent should understand what he meant.

Pas nodded, turned around, and exposed his entire back to Donald. Then he walked far enough away before slowly turning back.

For a moment, Donald couldn't tell whether this Magic Apprentice named Pas was naive or arrogant. But he thought he rather liked this kind of opponent.

Across the arena, Pas slowly raised his hand. A dagger-sized Stone Spike whistled toward Donald, who immediately conjured an Earth Shield in front of himself. Not feeling safe enough, he added a Wind Wall as well.

The Stone Spike pierced the Earth Shield and slowed down. The Wind Wall then nudged it slightly off course, and it just skimmed past Donald before crashing into the ground far away with a muffled thud.

That was close.

"Wind and Earth elements!" someone in the stands exclaimed.

This was the first time Donald had used magic other than Earth Element spells in a Martial Magic Tournament match. Until then, the audience had thought of him only as someone with extraordinary power in Earth Element magic. Seeing him use Wind Element magic as well made them look forward to what he would do next.

Only after the Earth Shield and Wind Wall were shattered by the Stone Spike did Donald see more than a dozen Stone Spikes appear out of thin air in front of Pas and shoot toward him. They flew in a line, almost one after another.

Donald had no time to think up a counter. He could only retreat on instinct, conjuring one Earth Shield and Wind Wall after another in front of himself.

Even after his Earth and Wind Divine Elements were depleted, he could still hear Stone Spikes slicing through the air. Pas had just launched a volley, and only one Stone Spike remained—but it was already right in front of Donald. In his panic, Donald had time only to cast Frost Shield, then instinctively tried to block the attack with his Magic Staff.

The stands erupted in another round of gasps. "Triple-element Magic Apprentice!"

With a clang, the Stone Spike easily knocked Donald's Magic Staff away and struck the Frost Shield around him. It glanced off the shield and still landed some distance away.

Donald's now-empty right hand trembled uncontrollably. Even with Frost Shield protecting him, the blow to his ribs had hurt terribly.

He twisted his waist slightly and confirmed his ribs weren't broken. Only then did he feel a little relieved.

Like an Earth Shield, a Wind Wall could only defend against attacks from one direction, while Frost Shield protected the entire body. In exchange, its defensive strength was far weaker than that of the other two spells.

"Give up. I've only used a little over half of my Divine Element," Pas said earnestly. He had likely realized that Donald's Earth and Wind Divine Elements were depleted.

"Keep going. It's not over yet." Wincing, Donald picked up his Magic Staff and stood ready again.

Pas said nothing more. He raised his hand, and more Stone Spikes appeared.

Throughout the tournament, he had used the same attack spell in every match.

Donald tensed again. After casting Frost Shield, he followed up with a series of Fire Shield Spells.

"Four-element Magic Apprentice!" The stands erupted once more.

The incoming Stone Spikes struck the Fire Shields almost simultaneously. After breaking through two or three of them, their power had greatly diminished. Even when they hit Donald, they could only leave shallow marks on his Frost Shield. The situation was no longer as dangerous as before.

Pas's Stone Spike Spell was a thirty-two-unit high-level spell, while Donald's basic defensive spells used only twelve units. Because of the difference in the complexity of their spell models, the former was much slower to cast than the latter.

And since Donald knew few spells, he had become remarkably proficient with each one.

So once Donald had calmed down again, even though it took two or three Fire Shields to stop each Stone Spike, he could still find openings to cast one or two six-unit Ice Blades.

Pas had to split his attention and cast Earth Shields to block Donald's Ice Blades.

As the exchanges went back and forth, the two of them somehow ended up evenly matched. Donald was the first opponent in the tournament who could stand toe-to-toe with Pas.

Gasps and praise rose from the stands now and then.

Lucia looked relaxed. She wasn't worried about Donald at all. If he weren't deliberately keeping a low profile to avoid drawing too much attention, none of the opponents in the tournament could have lasted half a minute against his Magic Staff.

The bearded professor, however, looked grave. He could hardly believe that a student from Tris Magic Academy had managed to hold out against Pas for so long.

The two contestants cast their spells faster and faster. For Donald, battling Pas was the perfect chance to practice maintaining his rhythm while casting with all his might under the pressure of combat. Pas, too, suddenly felt the exhilaration of pushing himself to the limit.

In the Contestant Area, the Magic Apprentices who had been eliminated watched the two gifted apprentices unleash the full extent of their magical offense and defense, and could barely tear their eyes away. Whoever won this match would be the only Magic Apprentice among the Top Eight—and both contestants deserved that place.

Just as the audience watched in rapt fascination, the arena suddenly fell silent. The two contestants stopped casting almost simultaneously.

A shaky Earth Shield remained in front of Pas. Donald still had two Fire Shields in front of him, and the Frost Shield around his body was about to disappear.

"Your Water and Fire Divine Elements are depleted too?" Pas asked first.

"Yes. What about you?"

"Same here. You fought well. Let's call this one a draw." Pas still wore his usual earnest expression.

Donald didn't say anything.

Under the gaze of tens of thousands of people, he slowly raised his left hand and traced a semicircle in the air.

A sea of leaves suddenly shot out in the direction his hand had swept.

"Five elements!" The stands, which had just fallen silent, erupted with a deafening roar.

The Triple Flying Leaves surged into the sky, then drifted slowly back down. They fluttered through the air, bringing a hint of autumn to the Imperial Capital Arena in early summer.

Not one of the opponents this boy among the falling leaves had faced before had managed to make him show his true strength. Only now, in his battle against another gifted Magic Apprentice, had he begun to shine with astonishing brilliance.

He was a Five Elements Magic Apprentice!

The Magic Apprentices and professors seated in the Contestant Area were even more shocked than the ordinary spectators. The boy's true strength was likely far greater than the audience imagined. From beginning to end, he had used only the simplest basic spells for offense and defense, yet in his hands, even those simple spells had displayed incredible power.

If he used more complex spells—even just a single intermediate attack spell—his opponents would probably struggle to defend themselves.

The professor with the neatly trimmed mustache slumped in his seat, his face dejected and his heart utterly desolate. He couldn't accept that the most talented student he had ever encountered—the magical genius he had poured his heart into teaching, hidden away for three years in preparation for a spectacular debut—had been defeated by that thoroughly ordinary boy from Tris Magic Academy.

At last, a hint of respect appeared in Clark's eyes in the VIP box. Even King Auston looked pleased. He was immensely gratified that the great emperor's alma mater had nurtured such an outstanding student. But when he turned to look at Lucia, the undisguised adoration on his daughter's face gave him a new cause for concern.

"You won..." Pas said slowly. "Next year, I'll beat you... Uh, what year are you in?"

"Third year. Sorry, I might not come next year," Donald replied.

Pas finally looked troubled and confused. He was upset because Donald was two whole years below him, and confused because he couldn't imagine why such a powerful opponent might not come to the Martial Magic Tournament.

And so Donald made it into this year's Top Eight, giving Tris Magic Academy its best result in fifty years.

"Not bad. That last move was almost half as cool as me," Wesley said to Donald as he sat down.

"Still not as cool as you were when you gave up." Donald rolled his eyes at Wesley. Only then did he suddenly remember how unbearable the pain had been when the Stone Spike struck his abdomen. Why couldn't he feel any sign of an injury just a little while later? He immediately guessed that it might have something to do with Divine Grace.

"What do you know? I was being sensible. If you hadn't had that stick, you'd have had to give up too when you faced that Half-Orc."

Roger laughed at Wesley's remark. Quisar had a fierce appearance and did look a little like a Half-Orc.

"Right, Roger? If you faced that guy, wouldn't you give up?" Wesley asked, looking for someone to agree with him.

"Me? I might give up halfway through. I'd want to find out just how big the gap was," Roger answered seriously.

"Hard-headed," Wesley scoffed.

Roger shrugged and smiled, choosing not to argue.

In the arena, the draw for the next round was announced.

When they heard the Referee Panel announce Donald's opponent, Wesley said with a mischievous grin, "Well, there he is. Don't be stubborn. Either use the stick or give up. Be careful—he might beat you so badly even Kelly won't recognize you."

How unlucky could he get? He really had drawn Quisar. While lamenting his bad luck, Donald wondered whether he should just give up this time too.

The fifth round was the quarterfinals. By this point, winning wasn't just a matter of strength. With the matches scheduled so close together, contestants had to carefully consider the cost of every match, so that they could win while still saving enough strength for the next one.

This gave Magic Apprentices an extra advantage, since magic potions could restore their Divine Element's vitality. Knights, on the other hand, couldn't replenish their Battle Qi, stamina, and fighting spirit nearly as quickly.

Donald's daily meditation already helped improve the vitality of his Divine Element. After Dean Devis handed him a restorative potion and he drank a small sip, he was confident he'd be back in top form before his next match.

In the arena, Mino won another match. He fought with great efficiency, winning at the smallest possible cost.

The next two matches were both between Squires. The contestants in each pair were very evenly matched, and none of them could afford to hold back. Both matches ended with one contestant winning at a terrible cost. Unless something unexpected happened, both winners would be eliminated in the semifinals.

Donald stood up and smiled as he pushed away the helmet Wesley held out to him, ready to head into the arena.

Just then, Dean Devis, who had remained silent since the tournament began, finally spoke. "No one from Tris Magic Academy has made it into the Top Four in more than a hundred years."

Donald stopped and nodded silently. His usually calm dark eyes held a rare glimmer of seriousness.