Battle Competition

The last few days had been quite eventful for Seyric since he had finally come to understand the state of his core. It was the first week of spring at the time.

In the school hallway, Seyric waded across as kids bolted in opposite directions past him. One of them bumped his shoulder as he crossed the hallway, making him gaze over the kid's face, which now touched his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, I'm in a hurry," the kid said.

More kids rushed in the same direction, and Seyric squinted his eyes as he finally joined the crowd that led him towards the tall arena building structure.

A cheer filled the air, and applause from people echoed from outside. Seyric entered the tall metal gates and was welcomed by a large platform with two men standing on either side of it.

"Participants release your elemental power!" the announcer declared.

While Seyric examined the seats filled with audience members who watched intently from the platform, he blinked for a moment and scanned around, finding an empty terrace. He paced towards it and leaned forward as he glanced over to Damier's shoulder.

Damier's hair fluttered in the breeze as a white mist clung to his body, his hands extended towards the sky. Behind him stood a familiar spirit, towering over him in height.

Meanwhile, his opponent released a blue aura from his body, causing a pool of water to surround him. He glared at the wind spirit on Damier's back.

"A wind spirit summon? You're cheating," he grumbled, to which Damier raised his eyebrows.

"Just because you're the child of the Duke or the headmaster doesn't mean you can't abide by the rules," Damier retorted.

He glared at the spirit behind him as she fixed her stance and added, "You can't address my father that way. Besides, I was already pact with the Spirit from the moment I was born."

Both participants wore sour expressions as they prepared to face off.

Damier's opponent scowled. "A wind spirit summon? You're cheating," the boy accused, releasing a blue aura from his body as a pool of water surrounded him.

The wind spirit behind Damier fixed her stance as Damier spoke up. "You can't address my father that way," he said, adding, "Besides, I was already pact with the Spirit from the moment I was born."

Seyric watched from the audience as the two participants glared at each other, both with sour expressions plastered on their faces. Damier's hair fluttered as a white mist clung to his body and he extended his hands, summoning the familiar spirit that appeared behind him, much taller than him.

The announcer surveyed both of their faces as he scratched the back of his neck and cleared his throat. "According to the rules, there was nothing wrong with spirit summon and beast summon. As long as the participant didn't depend on the one's mana they summoned," he explained.

The student groaned as Damier's lips lifted, with his eyes squinted at the kid's way.

The kid's expression became darker as he glanced over the announcer who raised his hand.

When the announcer lowered his hand, he declared, "Let the competition begin!"

Damier began to chant under his breath as the mist around him gathered from both of his hands, gleamed white. "Gale Hands Fusion."

As a white crystal string connected his hand to the wind spirit body, he then moved his fingers as the wind spirit followed his motion. He gestured his hands forward as the spirit dashed towards the opponent's way.

The crowd erupted in cheers as Seyric glanced over the spectators relentlessly moved from their seats as they cheered Damier's name. They paid no attention to his opponent.

As more time passed the crowd gasped in awe at the clash of elemental powers.

Damier's eyes widened as he realized the kid's attack was stronger than he expected.

The wind spirit struggled to cut through the whirlpools, but they kept coming.

Seyric watched intently, feeling the tension rise in the arena.

But suddenly, Damier whispered a quick incantation under his breath, and the wind spirit's blade hands began to glow with a bright light. With a swift motion, she slashed through the whirlpools, breaking them into tiny droplets of water.

The crowd erupted in cheers once again.

The kid's eyes widened upon sight and gritted his teeth in frustration. He gestured his shaky hands in front of him and chanted. "Ocean Wall!"

As water rose from the ground and formed a thick pillar wall in front of him. He extended his hands and muttered, "Whip Splash."

A water whip particle formed as it appeared in his hands. The wall suddenly divided in half. This revealed the wind-spirit who glided in the air towards him.

He pulled his hands as the water whip passed by.

The wind spirit's blade shattered as she was left with a reddish patch on her arm. She glared at the kid who plastered a mock smile from his face.

Damier retracted his hands as the wind spirit took a few steps back, extending her hands in front of her. Damier began to chant, "Windstorm Blade!"

Two crystal swords emerged from the wind spirit's body, and she held them in both hands. Without hesitation, she lunged forward towards her opponent.

As the water whip came towards her, the wind spirit suddenly dashed forward a few meters, leaving a flash trail behind her. The Whip Splash broke into shards as it missed its target.

The kid gasped and extended his hands in front of him, chanting, "Ocean Wall Duplicate!" Another wall rose from the ground, bringing a brief moment of relief to the kid. However, a distinct swish sound echoed in the kid's ears as the Ocean Wall suddenly shattered in front of him.

The kid fell on his butt as the Windstorm Blade was pointed near his neck. The crowd erupted in cheers and applause as Damier emerged victorious. The announcer made his way across the platform and declared, "For the 10th battle of the competition, Damier L'virdawn won the match!"

The crowd continued to applaud as both parties left the platform, with Damier receiving praise for his impressive performance. Seyric, on the other hand, sighed and left the scene with a gloomy expression.

"I hope someday I can compete in school events like this...if only I were strong enough and belonged here," Seyric muttered to himself as he walked towards other parts of the school.