272 Kane versus Laura
The fight between the top schools was on a whole different level. Even though they were nothing in Arthur’s eyes, he could already tell their level was worlds apart from the lower-ranked schools.
He watched every move from both the Phoenix Blood and the Burial Sand academies. They would be their opponents soon, so it would make sense to watch all of them.
What was strange about the tournament was that everything would happen within a day, as there were no breaks between fights.
Each school would go against each other once, so in the end everyone would have to fight while being tired from the previous fight.
Still, it was not a type of tournament Arthur was used to, but when he heard about it, he did some preparations. That was one reason he had focused on body training and conditioning in the ten days of training.
Arthur believed the reason there were no breaks between the fights was mainly to test the endurance of the students. It was not rare for mages to neglect the body training, but everyone knew it was an important part if one wished to become an extraordinary mage.
Not that mages with weak bodies could not go far, but you still needed to train it a little, or else it would be impossible to hold an exorbitant amount of mana inside of it, making it impossible for someone to reach higher levels.
Everyone knew that, yet some mages did not train it because of laziness. Those losers from the One Hundred Thunder Academy were just like that! Arthur worked hard for ten days using efficient training methods, as well as the help of potent elixirs to turn them into fewer losers.
Anyway, the fight between the Phoenix Blood and the Burial Sand was in equal terms. The Phoenix Blood academy focused on the fire element, and the Burial Sand on the Earth element.
These elements were neither weak nor strong against each other, so what would determine who was the winner of those battles was their skill!
Arthur did not know the people from the Burial Sand, but knowing that the Phoenix Blood had lots of assholes, he cheered up for the Burial Sand!
Even Laura, who did not had an opinion formed before, now was not that friendly with the Phoenix Blood Academy anymore after they acted rude with Arthur, and the other students.
“3…”
“2…”
“1…”
“Go!”
The judge said, making the fight between the ninth circle mages start! Arthur analyzed all of it, hoping that the Phoenix Blood lost it.
Well, sadly, things did not work as he planned, and the Phoenix Blood won all the three fights with the ninth circle mages. They even left the arena unharmed!
As for the fights of the tenth circle mages, they only won two out of three, but it was still an awesome result, making everyone from the crowd scream with excitement!
“They look so strong. Who will be strong enough to stop them?”
“Honestly, Phoenix Blood has a decent chance of increasing their ranking this year!”
“Now, a five-minute break, as the Phoenix Blood will fight again, now against the One Hundred Thunder Academy!”
~~~~
The time had finally come. Arthur would see his losers go up against the Phoenix Blood, and for him, losing was not an option!
They had to win and get a decent position in that tournament, but not only that, winning against the Phoenix Blood was the most important part of the tournament!
He called out all of them for a chat before the fight, sharing what he had analyzed about their opponents.
“You see one right there? He is good when fighting at a long range, but if you can get into a mid-range or even closer, his battle prowess will diminish.”
“So, whoever goes against him, try to use the speed of our thunder to get a better position.”
Arthur explained a few things, and then it was time for the fights. Just like before, the ninth circle mages would go first.
“3…”
“2…”
“1…”
“GO!”
Their opponent was precisely that mage Arthur talked about, which had a problem in fighting up close. So, the moment the judge said go, the loser Arthur trained cast a spell which created a pair of boots made of lightning, increasing his speed by a lot!
Then he went closer to the mage, dashing in like a thunderbolt. He cast another spell while running toward the youth from the Phoenix Blood Academy, and this time, it was a spell to cause great pain!
Two lightning gloves! Everyone did not expect for the One Hundred Thunder Academy to go all out in close-combat, as it was not their specialty.
A jab in the belly, followed by an uppercut on the chin! These two moves happened so fast most of the crowd could not see it! Even the mage who did it was shocked!
“When did I become so fast? I never focused on melee combat before!”
Not that he was fast, but the other mage was too slow. Just like Arthur imagined, most mages beneath the Official Rank had neglected their body training, making it a simple thing to exploit to achieve victory!
With that, the first win came to Arthur’s team, causing a great shock to everyone present, and that was only the beginning!
The three mages of the ninth circle from Arthur’s team got their win, making it 3-0 for them! A tremendous blow to the Phoenix Blood Academy.
“Fuck! Our only chance is to win the three fights of the tenth circle, and then we will have to fight another time!” The Official Mage Arthur, responsible for the Phoenix Blood, said.
It was not a situation good for them, especially after seeing the next fight. Kane versus Laura!
“You three, losers. Good job!” Arthur said. He was feeling good after seeing the performance of those three mages from the ninth circle.
Arthur wanted to give them some elixirs to help with the recovery, but it was also prohibited during the tournament, as a rank 2 mage and lots of rank 1 mages were closely watching them.
Now, the next fight was between the two strongest mages from both schools. Kane and Laura knew each other from the inheritance back when Arthur had saved them.
“Laura, we finally met in a fight. I will show you how much I improved these past months!”
“Oh? Really? Improved just like the other three from your school?”
“Shut up! These three were useless garbage. I will show you what true power looks like.”
Kane had a real burden on his shoulders. It was the first fight between the tenth circle mages, and it was between the two strongest!
If he lost there, then their situation would go downhill. Even if the other two won, they would still lose overall, which meant he had to win, no matter what!
As for Laura, she also had the responsibility of sealing their coffin. If she won there, then the clash between the two schools would be over, and the One Hundred Thunder Academy would come out on top!
The judge waited for the two to take a side in the square ring made of stone, and then he said, “3…”
“2…”
“1…”
“Go!”