068 Spectacular Battle

Anyone who wasn't blind could see who the winner of this battle was.

Suddenly, the venue came alive again with cheers for Ronnel, along with angry shouts from the Sparka gamblers. The noise grew louder and louder until it filled the entire arena.

Ignoring the commotion, Ronnel walked over to Sparka, whose eyes were fixed on him.

"You... aren't a Manipulator, are you?"

Using the last of his strength, Sparka spoke each word carefully.

"I never said I was a Manipulator," Ronnel replied as he raised his sword. "Are you going on your own, or do you need me to send you off?"

"Hehehe…"

At that, Sparka laughed—perhaps at his own foolishness, or maybe at the irony of his situation.

After three short laughs, his head tilted, and the light faded from his eyes.

Ronnel watched as Sparka's final smile lingered, then shook his head. Using Nen, he gathered a few items from Sparka's corpse before walking off the stage.

When he reached the tunnel, no one noticed the state Ronnel was in—he finally allowed himself to relax. He grinned and shook his hand, the one that had landed a punch on Sparka.

It stung! Ronnel blew on his fist a couple of times to ease the pain.

Although he had dominated the duel, he'd had to exert quite a bit of energy. After all, Sparka had used Nen.

A straight punch infused with Nen is no small matter. Besides Gon and Uvogin, few could pull it off. Ronnel's vast aura reserves gave him the confidence to face Sparka head-on. Otherwise, he would've opted for more cautious tactics.

Still, brute force had its advantages—it let him finish the battle swiftly, while proving his current level of strength. Even though his physical prowess wasn't yet at its peak, it was more than sufficient against an Enhancer like Sparka.

When Ronnel and Sparka had clashed, Ronnel had felt some pain, but there was no injury. If Uvogin had faced Sparka, the outcome might've been different. Uvogin's super destructive punch, charged with Nen, could hit like a missile. He once claimed he would make it as powerful as an atomic bomb.

That's not to say Ronnel was weaker than Uvogin. Their abilities simply focused on different aspects. Uvogin was single-minded—his entire skillset revolved around Nen, physical might, and his Destructive Punch.

Ronnel, however, had unmatched speed, even surpassing Feitan's, and his mastery of Nen was impeccable. If Ronnel ever fought Uvogin, he could end the battle within a few rounds. All he needed was to evade Uvogin's attacks, find a weak point, and use his saber to break through Uvogin's defenses.

After adjusting his condition, Ronnel calmly left the tunnel.

With Sparka, the strongest of the participating fighters, dead, the remaining matches held little interest for Ronnel.

Just as Ronnel predicted, the explosive duel with Sparka had sparked unprecedented discussion, and the ratings had soared. But now the aftermath was setting in.

As people realized Ronnel had a high chance of winning the championship, the buzz surrounding the festival began to fade. After witnessing Ronnel and Spark's battle, the audience was no longer as invested in the other matches. Ratings plummeted, leaving the Heavens Arena in a desperate situation.

It's not as though they could stage a fake match, forcing Ronnel to lose just to stir up interest.

Besides, Ronnel would never agree to that. And do they think the global audience is full of fools? Even a hint of suspicion would ruin the reputation that the Heavens Arena had spent years building.

So, the festival officials could only look on in despair, watching the ratings drop like a stock market crash, while making futile efforts to salvage the situation.

In the semifinals and beyond, Ronnel easily dispatched his opponents, collected his winnings, and left the arena. The audience, already expecting such an outcome, offered nothing but muted applause—except for the gamblers who bet on Ronnel, who cheered every time.

Everyone else was numb to it by now. They had already resigned themselves to the predictable results.

To prevent this year's finals from becoming the dullest, most unwatchable event ever, the Heavens Arena officials approached Ronnel with a humble request.

There was no way they'd ask him to throw the match, but they pleaded with him not to finish it too quickly, to at least make the final entertaining enough for the audience.

Ronnel wasn't opposed to it, but if they wanted him to drag out the fight, there needed to be something in it for him.

And so, while the officials twitched nervously, a fake-loli with an innocent smile pulled them into a side room to negotiate terms.

---------------

+136 chapters on patreon.com/FanficsHub