Chapter 27 - The Battle Royale III

Lancaster Academy Testing Grounds, Alterion, Therian Continent

Their blades clashed together, and the delicate dance began. Ulfric retreated ever so slightly and was slammed into the wall by Darius' full bodyweight. His already broken rib stabbed into one of his internal organs, and he spat blood out into Darius' face, using the moment to shove him away and counter with a narrow slash across the shoulder. Darius retreated, a bloodthirsty grin on his face. He moved in a half circle, waiting for an opening to pounce on Ulfric and push him further against the wall.

The moment came, and Ulfric could do nothing but cross his arms to block. He absorbed the impact of a fire punch identical to the one from earlier, this time breaking through the wall and into the house. His back hit the floor and he bounced, flipping over himself as his body contorted and impacted harshly with the floor. He coughed, lying on the cold hard ground in the middle of a vacant hallway, a broken arm hanging at his side. At the end of the hallway stood Darius, brandishing a sword.

"Train your body all you want, but it matters not," he said, stepping forward. "All natural human might falls under the even mightier magic. Compared to me, you are nothing." He sheathed his blade and breathed in, his body crackling with lightning. Ulfric knew the move very well, thunderclap, using lightning magic to enhance speed, and of course allow for the application of the famous sheath style, the art of an instantaneous drawstrike. At a range of about ten meters, it would be impossible for Ulfric to counter such a combination.

The more this guy fights, the stronger his magic seems to get, as if he's only just warming up. With his working left arm, Ulfric clutched his dagger, stabbing it into the floor and attempting to pull himself up as Darius prepared. Meanwhile, Darius had begun laughing while watching this transgression, building up all of the magic he could around himself. At a dead end, with an impossibly fast attack on the way, he had no doubt that this was the point in which the battle would end. Darius had won; he'd made it into the magic academy.

Clap, a smashing thunder's sound ricocheted down the hallway, and Darius moved after dashing on his front foot. He moved so fast in a single movement that contact with the ground was not needed, hovering toward the target in a blinding flash of light. The sword was unsheathed with a perfectly angled slash, except the target was no longer there when it arrived. Ulfric, who'd been writhing in pain on the floor only a moment before, had disappeared.

Above, an impossible leap. Ulfric was upside down, his arms crossed over his chest like an acrobat, one hand firmly clutching the dagger. His eyes met with Darius', dark and thirsting for blood. Terror overtook his enemy, but in that instant, time itself seemed to freeze. Ulfric was deep inside of his mind, a space that existed outside of the battle before him.

Ulfric reeled back after absorbing one of his father's slashes to the chest. Though they were just wooden swords, he was clutching at his chest and having trouble breathing. Ellis stood over him, filled with disappointment, practically radiating it. He shook his head, and then tossed his own training sword to the ground at Ulfric's feet, swiping his hands together.

"When is it that you'll understand, son?" He asked. "This is your limit."

Ulfric shook his head. "I can get better."

"No. You keep asking me out here to train with you, and yet you never do. Why is that?" Ellis set a hand on his chin, leaning back to sit on a fence post. It was a sunny day outside of the Englund Estate. At this time, Ulfric's mother was still alive.

"When I grow older, I'll be stronger."

"No," Ellis said immediately. "Don't give me that."

"I–"

"You're weak. You'll always be weak. Do you understand?"

Ulfric gritted his teeth. "That can't be the truth, father. That can't be the truth!" Tears built up at the corners of his vision.

Ellis frowned. "I love you, Ulfric… But it hurts me, too, to watch you follow this senseless path."

"I know, father." Ulfric looked at the ground frowning, digging a hand through the dirt. "I won't ask you again."

"Cease this foolishness. If I hear of you practicing, there will be a discussion."

"I'll give it up, father."

Ellis crossed his arms. "Right. Well, if you ever start thinking otherwise again, let me know. I'll happily beat some sense into you whenever you'd like."

Ulfric watched as his father turned his back on him and walked away. He sat there in the dirt, covered in mud and crying until his eyes were raw and utterly drained of tears. So much effort, and all for nothing. At that time, Ulfric Englund believed he was nothing compared to even the weakest of mages. The reality? He'd been comparing and training against an unattainable standard; in doing so, he'd become much stronger than the mages any average person would contend against. For someone who'd trained against the mighty Ellis Englund, students of the academy were just fodder.

All of those years holding myself back. All of those years believing I wasn't good enough. All of those years thinking I'd hit the limit. But what is the limit if not something to be broken? What is power if not something attained through your own belief? Right now, despite my limit, I believe I can win!

Ulfric pivoted his entire body and swung his foot to kick Darius in the top of his head. His body crumpled beneath him with the force, his knees giving out as he was forcefully pushed to the floor. The world spun around him, and he was cursing under his breath, wondering what had even happened, or how it was possible. Ulfric stomped down the hallway and picked him up by the lapel, slamming him against the wall and raising his dagger for the finishing blow.

Darius' eyes regained focus in that instant. "Water technique: tempest!"

"Shit!" Ulfric buried the dagger in Darius' chest, but failed to stop the spell. In a moment, the house was torn apart, and they were both blown away. A thousand pounds of water and hundred kilometer winds crashed down upon them. Bits and pieces of the house were whipped around and used as weapons. This was a spell far beyond Darius' paygrade, and as such, he'd quickly lost control of it. They were both in danger of being killed. Together, they stood in the safe zone at the center of the tempest, and the stage was set.

Darius stepped forward, his jacket torn off and sent flying away by the winds. He grabbed the dagger and wrenched it from his chest, discarding it to the floor. "What's wrong?" He asked. "Paralyzed in fear? This is what you wanted, isn't it? You've pushed me this far, so now you'll pay!"

"Come get it then, pussy!" Ulfric chuckled. Here it comes… Thunderclap!

Lightning built up around Darius' legs, spreading across the ground and electrifying the droplets that fell around him. The tempest was glowing with light, violently crackling. He dashed, and Ulfric rushed forward to meet him in the middle. He ducked under the sword slash preemptively and grabbed him at the waist, pushing the muscles in the lower half of his body to the absolute limit just to hold him in place until the thunderclap had ended.

A close range slash, and Ulfric's chest was cut open, though only shallow. As he fell back, he drew his pistol and fired. Darius deflected the first shot while the second passed straight through his shoulder. By then, he was close enough to grab the barrel and pull it away, slamming Ulfric across the face with the metal instrument. Ulfric reeled and caught himself on a piece of rubble. The situation reversed, and Darius took the gun into his own hand. Three bullets remained.

"I've never used an uncivilized tool like this one before," Darius said. He pointed the weapon at Ulfric and fired.

The vision in Ulfric's left eye vanished, but he was still alive, and that meant he could move. Pushing off of the rubble, he gripped the barrel of the pistol and punched Darius in the gut. They began wrestling over the weapon, and a bullet was fired into the air during the transaction. One bullet remained, and fighting to get it back was impossible against the ever growing magical strength of Darius. Ulfric found himself shoved to the floor once more.

Rain fell all around them, bits and pieces of rubble flying around their heads, remnants of electricity crackling through the water. Darius stood above Ulfric, gun in hand. "Honestly, I shot your eye out. You're impressively resilient. Look at you!" He wildly gesticulated. "Beaten to a pulp, yet still not giving in. If only the people who were actually qualified had your warrior's spirit." He cocked the pistol.

Ulfric reached behind him and grabbed his dagger from where it had fallen about a minute before. He kicked off some rubble, his body spinning on the wet ground to avoid the bullet as he simultaneously spiked the knife into Darius' knee. A grab of the pant leg and a pull suddenly had both of them on the ground, writing in the water. Ulfric clawed forward and finally climbed on top of Darius, holding him by the collar, fist raised in the air.

"What do you know about a warrior's spirit!?" Ulfric asked. "You're nothing but fodder!" He tried to punch Darius in the face, but the boy caught his fist with a shaky arm.

"You eliminate me here, you'll have to live your entire academy life being hunted down by the bigwigs. Is that what you want, Ulfric!?"

 Ulfric placed pressure down and broke through, striking him in the face. "Yeah! First it's you, then it's your brother!" He punched him again. "Like I care! Send them all!"

Darius' face was already bleeding. "Everyone is against you already! You intend to push them even further away!?" He tried to cover his face, but it wasn't doing much. "You're an anomaly! Anomalies exist to be purged! My family finances this damned school!"

Ulfric kept punching. "Your brother. Your father. Your mother. The whole world!" He paused one last time, his fist in the air. "You underestimate a man with nothing to lose. Meet me outside of this test, and I'll fucking kill you, rodent." He pounded down on Darius' face for the final time and ended it, sitting on top of his unconscious body in the continuous downpour of rain. He could see his own breath in the cold mist, his fists gradually covered in more blood as he kept punching. When the rain finally came to a stop, he was left alone in the darkness.

Except he wasn't alone at all. He'd been surrounded from every possible direction by contestants, all brandishing swords and wands. It seemed the test was nearing its end, and everyone had at last gathered at the center for the final battle royale. Ulfric released his hand from Darius' shirt, dropping his body to the ground, standing up on wobbly legs, dagger in hand. He wiped the blood off on his sleeve and spat on the ground; with this, he was ready.

Hundreds of angry faces, some already clashing amongst themselves. Many were focused on Ulfric though, being the one who'd just defeated the strongest. Against this many opponents, there was no reasonable way he could come out on top. The ideal strategy was to simply fight until the last breath, or until the final bell rang. Ulfric wrapped a bandage around his hand, essentially forcing it to hold on to the dagger even when his grip gave out. He gritted his teeth, and blood leaked from between them. He hadn't defeated Darius just to lose to a group of bottom feeders.

Let's begin.

"Lightning technique: thunder god's wrath!"

 "Flame technique: oni!"

"Earth technique: hellraiser!"

"Water technique: heart of the depths!"

"Wind technique: nature's respite!"

"Ice technique: arctic spikes!"

All of these magics combined into a gigantic whirlwind which paralyzed Ulfric just at the sight. A pounding headache prevented him from moving. Water shot upward, frozen by the ice and then melted by a torrent of flame. All of this was blown forward by wind and made more violent by spikes of volcanic earth. A handful of mages surrounding it were annihilated just from its presence, and now it was being hurled towards Ulfric, who could do nothing but watch.

He placed his arms out to either side and fortified his stance. His legs were not in a good enough shape to evade. It would take nothing short of a miracle to even survive such an attack, let alone remain conscious. That was what he was thinking until that girl leapt out in front of him. Her hair was brown and long, her eyes glaring and deadly. She held a wand in her hand, and when she looked at him she was smiling. Minerva Whiscourt, who, in this framing, looked like nothing short of the girl of his dreams.

"Barrier technique: threes!" She set her wand out in front of her, a barrier erected to block the combination of attacks. She was breathing heavily, her own stance affected by trying to uphold the barrier. Ulfric grabbed onto her, wrapping his arms around her torso and fortifying with his own legs. Together they stood stronger, but it still wasn't enough. Out of the three barriers, one of them cracked, and soon the second one did too. There was nothing but the final, glowing blue barrier to protect them from a violent mix of elements. Minerva began pushing out more magic.

"It's not going to hold!" She cried.

The final shield snapped in half and exploded into a brilliant shower of blue sparks. They were at the mercy of the magic, and Ulfric moved his body to shield Minerva. As he did this, everyone in the area was shrouded in blue light, and it was over. A brief flash of consciousness, in and then out. Ulfric opened his eyes and he was in a completely different place. Hundreds of people surrounded them, except this time they were giving shouts of celebration and hugging one another

Minerva and Ulfric's eyes met, and they took each other into a warm embrace, spinning around as if they were dancing. The room they were in was familiar, it was the room where they'd started. In other words, at the last possible second before annihilation, the test had ended. Sounds of cheer blotted out all available sound. Together, the new first years of Lancaster Academy were born. Nearby, Indra stood on the same stage where he'd left them, a gigantic smile on his face.

"Well." When he started speaking, his voice blotted out everything else, magic radiating. "You made it. Congratulations." He stepped to the front of the stage and then sat down on the edge. The students watched attentively. "No one died. This is actually a first for us," he continued, "I'd like to thank you all very much for that. A round of applause for you all!"

The cheer erupted once more. In the crown, Ulfric accidentally locked eyes with Maya. The girl went red, and then respectfully nodded. Thank you. Ulfric had saved her, after all. He nodded back. Having a princess owe you a favor was always good news. When the cheers stopped, she'd vanished back into the crowd. Ulfric had a pounding headache from his eye wound, but since the bullet had only grazed the side of his head, the bleeding was shockingly minimal, despite the fact that it had crushed his eye. If he hadn't received medical attention yet, he had to remain awake; this was probably a part of the test.

"Now. For the scoreboard. Of course, you'll naturally want to know who our highest scorers are leading into the tournament." Indra waved his hand, and a gigantic chalkboard appeared, writing on itself with another wave of his hand. "The rules of this are simple. If you eliminated someone else, their eliminations were transferred to you. This way, we can prevent eliminations from going missing!"

Ulfric's heart nearly stopped upon hearing those words. He knew very well what was about to appear on that board. He didn't realize it, but he'd gripped Minerva's hand. Shockingly, the girl did nothing to shake him off, instead watching alongside him with bated breath. The third name, Kal Lightswift, with thirty seven eliminations. The second name, Roy Hirsch, with forty five eliminations. Finally, in first place, Ulfric Arrowheart, with sixty eight eliminations.

"By the blade…" He whispered. As if the target on his back wasn't big enough. His face grew angry as an uproar started around him.

"Alright. Calm down now, everyone. At least save it until you're out of the building, will you!?" Indra gestured. "Now. If I may give a speech?"

The room obediently went silent at his word.

"This academy, for many years, has trained the best of the best. The one and only scourge of the gods, magicless Dalton Farrowsmith. Not just him, but many or all of this continent's influential figures. Even in the modern era, we can look to the enforcers who protect us. The famous Edward Whiscourt, elder brother of Minerva Whiscourt, who is in this very room. Lance Lightswift, grandfather of Kal Lightswift, who is also in this very room. Merrick Winchester, Morgan Nobura, Lena Leighton. Even other influential figures like the mighty Rion Aganata. The history of this academy is incredibly dense. Now, it's up to the brilliant lot of students I see before me to go forth, and to become the next to carve your memory into history. I have no doubt this will happen, because my academy only trains the finest!" Indra pumped a fist on his chest.

"From the bottom of my heart… To all of you in the audience. Welcome to Lancaster Academy!"