Robert vs Thomas

"It's finally time, good folks! The final of the freshmen tournament is now underway, and I believe it will be a great spectacle for our eyes to witness! Also, even if this year's tournament might be a bit shorter than normal, there is no need for you to despair. Because tomorrow, we will for the first time get to witness the sophomores of Ainu fight!"

*Waaaa!*

"Now, before we get on with the match, let's get a few words from Bruce Denver! Bruce, what are your thoughts about the upcoming match?"

The red-haired man carried himself with the same composure as before, making sure he didn't step out of line as a public figure, "Well, Ms. Rose, although I can't for certain, I have to say that from what I've seen so far, Robert Evans should be regarded as the favorite. Even if Thomas is quite amazing, I don't think his unpolished way of fighting will be enough for him to take down Robert who seems to have a strong foundation in both tactics and technique. With that said, I can still see it going either way."

Looking at the screen up in the air, I couldn't help but think otherwise. Robert was absolutely strong for a freshman, but Thomas... Thomas was someone I could see becoming a lead figure in the future, someone who most likely would become a force to be reckoned with.

And that saddened me.

Because I knew that there was a world where I couldn't allow him to grow, a world where I would be forced to rip the seed out of the ground before it could take root.

Luckily, that world hadn't been realized yet, so I could just appreciate the man for what he was. Nice, caring, and strong. If I hadn't been extremely straight, I would probably not have declined the advances that he made as his personality was very appealing to me, much like the princess.

"Thank you, Mr. Denver! Now, give it up to our finalists! Thomas Everstone and Robert Evans!"

*WAAAAA!*

The crowd went completely wild this time, with a deafening clamor of voices and hands clapping enveloping the arena. In tune with this, the two contenders showed their faces in the arena, both of them walking toward each other, one looking a lot more confident than the other.

Needless to say, Thomas wasn't the confident-looking one.

Before we knew it, they had already shaken hands and gone to their starting positions. Then, a loud voice rang out, "5,4,3,2,1, FIGHT!"

*BAM!*

It didn't even take a second before the fighters were in the middle of the arena, their weapons clashing as they both shook when trying to push other back. "Argh!"

Robert was the one who couldn't hold on anymore, his sword flying into the air as he was thrown backward from Thomas' immense strength. Like a predator, the big man lunged after him, his right hand ready to smash the pretty face in front of it.

"No chance!"

*Tang!*

Somehow, Robert had managed to fix his posture just in time to parry the attack, making Thomas fall forward a bit, leaving his right side vulnerable. However, when the swordsman's blade was about to slice his back open, the brawler managed to spin away just enough to escape a lethal attack.

Standing up, I could see a shallow cut on his side and his blood slowly followed the orders of gravity.

With the whole crowd silent because of the insane fight they were witnessing, one could even hear when Robert opened his mouth, "Not bad", to which Thomas didn't say a word, just giving a nod as a way to say the same.

It didn't take long until they got tangled again, Robert using technique and fancy footwork while Thomas relied on his beastly instinct and insane movement.

*Bam! Tang! Clash!*

Like a whirlwind, both fighters were giving more than their all in this fight, desperately looking for the other to give an inch so they could take an arm. Finally, the big man was the one who decided it was time to increase the pace a bit.

"[Penetrating Fist]!"

His left fist started glowing bright orange as he threw a gigantic punch, the same skill that had made Stella fly through the air. Yet, Robert didn't even seem unphased, and sadly, I knew why.

'Thomas, you moron!'

"[Dance of the Swallow]."

*Don!*

A shockwave exploded out from the metal gauntlet that was launched forward, only for the attack to catch nothing. Instead, Roberts's body blurred and he instantly appeared behind Thomas, his sword already making its way toward his neck.

*Bam!*

"Gah!"

But what happened next was mind-boggling. Throwing himself down on the ground, not only did the gentle giant manage to react in time, but using his hands as support, he spun his legs like a break-dancer and kicked the blonde man in his gut.

Sliding backward from the impact, his body got bent over and the match was once again reset, with both fighters having to fix their posture.

*WOOOOO!*

This time, the audience cheered loudly at the amazing sequence they had gotten to see, and for some weird reason, I was too. I was also standing up, cheering for the big man who had just gotten out of an impossible situation.

But it was a bit too early to celebrate, as Robert's eyes changed, going from confident to resolved.

"[Song of Flight]."

A white light covered the swordsman's body, which I assumed was some sort of enhancement, but Thomas wasn't about to let him do whatever he was about to do.

As his big metal gauntlet was once again flying at the Arthur 0.6, Robert looked like he just casually took a step to the side to dodge it. *Slice!*

Blood sprayed into the air from the leg that Robert's sword had greeted, to which Thomas quickly retreated backward, knowing he was about to get caught in a bad situation.

"Ain't gonna happen."

The swordsman dashed after him, now a lot faster than he had moved before as a flurry of slashes threatened to mutilate Thomas's body.

*Tang! Tang! Tang!*

Though he was holding on quite well, parrying and dodging most of the strikes, it didn't take long until he was covered in small gashes and cuts. He just wasn't able to keep up with Robert's increased speed.

*Tang! Tang! Tang!*

The sword never let up either, continually flying at the big man in order to not allow him any time to recover, and I felt my heart grow cold.

'That Robert... How did he manage to learn such a skill in this short time?'

[Song of Flight] was an enhancement skill that specialized in increasing one's all-around speed, which in this world appeared to include reaction time as well. I was sure that if he had it in his arsenal during the dueling event, there was no doubt that he would have used it.

This meant that he had somehow managed to increase his understanding of his Manual during these last two weeks, something that should have been quite impossible for most people.

Though it was possible that he was already close to breaking through, I had a feeling that it had more to do with what happened during the duel event; that something awakened inside of him after losing to me.

"Huff...huff..."

Looking back at the fight, Thomas had finally managed to gain some distance, but his body was already in tatters. Blood was quickly soaking the ground under him as he took heavy breaths to try and recover as much as possible before his inevitable defeat...

"[Gladiator]..."

... or at least that's how it should have been.

Instead of waiting for his defeat, a red hue covered the body already red from blood, and just like with Robert, something changed within his eyes, something a lot more noticeable. From the brown color they usually had, they were now a dark red, mimicking the color of his internal liquids.

*BOM!*

His punch easily found its target this time, a target that barely managed to block it with his sword and, yet, still slid backward from the impact. *BOM! BOM! BOM!*

The roles had suddenly completely changed, with Thomas now looking as if he was in a trance while he was pummeling the poor Robert who barely managed to block or parry his attacks.

"You...! [Dance of the Swallow]!"

Once again, the swordsman's body blurred and appeared behind the frantic man, his sword ready to end the fight right there and then. However...

"What?!"

With a huge jump, Thomas quickly found himself above the sword, looking down at his prey. Then, he twisted his body, and with a kick that looked like it would tear Robert's head from his body, the poor man was sent flying.

*BOOM!*

A huge cloud of dust appeared where Robert had landed and when the dust settled, everyone could see who the winner was as the blonde man had been knocked unconscious.

"T-The winner is Thomas Everstone!"

Without me able to stop myself, my fist was raised into the air, and my vocal chords vibrated,

"Yes!!!"