The man walked powerfully toward the center of the arena, his expression filled with confidence but devoid of arrogance. His elegant yet imposing gait made his royal status immediately apparent, even more so than Caesar's, likely because, unlike the Roman general, he had consciously chosen to become a king again in his new life.
Lucas's eyes were wide open, not only because he had just discovered that Aurola was Agratà's teacher—something he had heard mentioned before during Agratà matches, but never truly expected, especially considering the image he had of Aurola—but also because a third Hero from his own world was participating in this tournament.
"King Demetrius. Our two kingdoms are on good terms, even though my daughter and I have never met him in person, but I am glad that he accepted our invitation to send one of his fighters, even though I never expected him to come personally to participate in The Tournament of Golden Trees," Sequoria said, surprised yet clearly pleased by this unexpected turn of events.
As he reflected on it, Lucas remembered that in recent days, in addition to his intense training to learn Alberia's Derived Magic, he had sent numerous letters to various countries. Some of them Sequoria had not yet had time to to explain to him, inviting those nations to send fighters to participate in the tournament, and evidently the Kingdom of Avoria had been among them.
"Sister, do you know anything about this hero?" Aislyra asked curiously.
Lucas was slightly surprised by the way Aislyra addressed him. After all, now that only people who knew his secret were present in the royal cabin, there was no longer any need for her to call him that. It was not the first time his new sister had done so, but it still gave him a strange feeling—though not an unpleasant one. Even so, he would have preferred to be called big brother, just as the little girl two years younger than him had done more than nine years ago. Regardless, a small smile naturally formed on his face.
Lucas shook his head. "His name doesn't ring a bell, but from that name, I think he comes from a country in my world called Ancient Greece, although I can't be sure," Lucas said. He had always been interested in history and in discovering fascinating historical figures, but it had never been more than a hobby for the former boy. The university he had attended before his death was focused on biology, not history, so it was only natural that he did not know every important figure in world history, or even just in European history.
Aislyra nodded and then focused her curious and intrigued gaze on the mysterious hero. However, that mystery did not last long.
As soon as Demetrius reached his position, he turned toward Chiacchera and immediately spoke in a gentle yet powerful voice. "We thank you for your excellent presentation, beautiful girl. However, we believe it is time to introduce ourselves..." He then turned to Aurola and declared in a loud, authoritative voice, "We are Demetrius Anicetus, former king of the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom and founder of the Indo-Greek Kingdom, and now king of the Kingdom of Avoria. We are undefeated in battle and have come here to find an opponent who can entertain us, and we believe you are the opponent we have been seeking."
As Demetrius introduced himself, a group of armored but unarmed soldiers standing in the stands rose to their feet and gave a form of military salute. They were likely members of Demetrius's army, or perhaps even his personal guards. The spectators seated near that group looked at them with confusion, strangeness, and unmistakable curiosity.
"As one of Yggdora's ministers, I thank you for deciding to participate in our country's tournament, but..." Aurola began in a gentle yet professional voice. Then, with a confident tone and a small smile forming on her face, she continued, "I'm not sure if I'll be able to meet your request, because my matches usually don't last more than two moves—one from my opponent and one from me." It was a side of Aurola that Lucas was seeing for the very first time.
The monarch replied with another smile. "Don't worry, lady. If you can't, we have already seen a couple of people participating in this tournament who will definitely be able to," declared the king, his expression filled with pure confidence.
"Well, I suppose there's nothing more to say then," said the minister, her face now showing nothing but pure concentration.
"We agree," said Demetrius, turning his gaze toward Pinusal.
The referee understood and nodded, but for the sake of formality, he asked, "Is there anything else you wish to say to each other before we begin?"
Both fighters shook their heads.
"Very well, then the match will begin on my signal!" exclaimed Pinusal.
"Ready..."
Demetrius drew his beautifully decorated, finely crafted sword, while Aurola watched him intently, her posture calm and focused.
"Set..."
"GO!!"
The moment the letter O left Pinusal's mouth, Demetrius immediately lunged forward with one hand, thrusting with his sword. However, Aurola effortlessly avoided the blow, then grabbed the king's arm and used the same technique Agratà had employed, throwing her opponent straight into the ground.
"Falling leaf," Aurola said calmly.
But unlike Agratà, who had relied almost entirely on his opponent's own strength—both because the king's initial attack had not been particularly powerful and therefore offered little force to redirect, and because she had wanted to prove her own words true—Aurola also poured a considerable amount of her own strength into the technique, the strength of the second most physically powerful person in the kingdom of Yggdora.
As a result, Demetrius did not merely end up stuck in the ground. He was hurled with such overwhelming force that his body pierced through the stadium floor, colliding in an instant with the indestructible foundation beneath the arena.
Seeing the depth of the hole she had just created, Aurola was surprised that his opponent's arm was not left in her hands.
'Maybe I went a little overboard...' Aurola thought as she stared at the massive crater she had created using the hero's body.
But before she could begin to feel guilty, a shadow leaped out of the hole.
That shadow was, of course, Demetrius, who immediately began applauding Aurola. "What incredible strength, even greater than we expected. Our sword, forged from the finest metals available in our kingdom, shattered like a twig upon its initial impact with the ground. What extraordinary power! As we believed, you will truly entertain us, lady." He then stopped clapping and added, "But unfortunately for you, it seems this will be one of those rare encounters that will not end on the second move," finishing with a regal and confident smile.
Everyone in the stadium, including Aurola herself, stared at the king in amazement. There was not a single scratch on his skin or clothing. The only indication that he had already been fighting was that, although his clothes were undamaged, they were lightly stained with soil from the arena floor.
Aurola quickly regained her composure and chanted, "Titanium Armor: Hand," as her right fist became coated in a shining light gray, almost white metal. In less than an instant, following the philosophy of the Falling Leaf style, Aurola immediately attempted to finish off her opponent, throwing a straight punch toward his stomach before he could react. And unlike her previous throw, she did not hold back her strength at all. While it was not the strongest punch the minister could unleash, it was certainly delivered at full power.
Struck by it, Demetrius was sent flying straight into the indestructible wall of the arena. Without a doubt, had that wall been an ordinary one, the king's body would have smashed through it and the structures behind it, only stopping after leaving the arena entirely and being hurled at least two kilometers away. The punch Aurola had just thrown was that powerful. Yet even this time, there was not the slightest sign of damage on the skin or clothing of the king of Avoria, and judging from his expression, Demetrius did not seem to feel even a trace of pain.
After colliding with the wall, Demetrius calmly returned to his feet, brushed some dust from his clothes with his hands, and said, "Yes, truly a fantastic strength. But since the last two were yours, lady, we would say it is our turn to make another move..." With those words, he moved at roughly the same speed Aurola had displayed when throwing her punch, instantly closing the distance between them.
"Electric Tusk," chanted the hero king, and his right arm became enveloped in incredibly bright, almost solid-looking electricity, giving it the appearance of a powerful, curved elephant's tusk. Then, moving as fast as lightning itself, he attempted to stab Aurola in the stomach. Had Demetrius' attack landed, it would undoubtedly have marked the end of the match for the Minister of Education, but—
"Earth Armor: Hands!" Aurola chanted at almost the exact same moment Demetrius activated his spell. Her fists were coated in a thick layer of hardened earth. In less than a fraction of a second, just before Demetrio's fang could reach her skin, Aurola grabbed his arm and gracefully redirected its trajectory, while simultaneously attempting to break it by applying all the immense strength her elegant yet rigorously trained hands possessed.
However, while she managed with relative ease to alter the direction of the ancient Indo-Greek king's attack, she failed to leave even the slightest mark on his arm, which remained in perfect condition after enduring a grip that would have cleanly torn off the limb of nearly any other opponent.
Realizing that she was currently incapable of harming her adversary, Aurola chose to buy herself time to think. She delivered a swift yet forceful kick, sending Demetrio backward. Unable to pour too much power into it, she failed to hurl him into the wall, but still managed to send him flying at least ten meters away.
Aurola immediately used this brief moment to reflect on her opponent's apparent invulnerability, noting that it was not only his body that was immune to damage, but also the seemingly ordinary clothing he wore. This "invincibility" could not simply be attributed to exceptional hardness granted to a homunculus body provided to the hero king. Therefore, the only plausible explanation was some kind of spell.
"King Demetrius, even though I haven't seen you activate it, it is your historical magic that prevents me from harming you, isn't it?" the Minister of Education said aloud, locking eyes with her opponent. Naturally, there remained the possibility that it was an extraordinarily rare and powerful General spell unknown to her, but given who she was facing, this explanation was by far the most likely.
A satisfied smile appeared on the king's face, and he began applauding once more. "That is correct, lady. This is the magic inscribed upon our soul after our death in the other world, our History Magic,Aniketos. This magic renders our entire body and the clothes we wear immune to any attack, regardless of its nature—be it physical, external, internal, mental, poisonous, or even a disease. As long as the spell remains active, nothing can harm our body or our mind. One particularly interesting aspect that surprised us when we first discovered this ability was that it revealed to us that, years after our death, we were granted the epithet which also serves as the name of this spell: Aniketos. Do not misunderstand us. It's not that we lost a battle in life. Rather, this title was never bestowed upon us while we were alive," Demetrius explained, his regal voice filled with satisfaction.
The idea that a History Magic could grant a hero knowledge about events concerning him even after his death was undeniably fascinating, and had she not been in a match, she would certainly have asked Demetrius to elaborate further. However, this was clearly not the time. 'In any case, if what he say about his magic is true, then I have no way to inflict damage upon King Demetrius... Yet I find it hard to believe that this magic truly has no weaknesses whatsoever, perhaps..." Aurola reasoned, only for her thoughts to be interrupted as Demetrius spoke once again.
"Obviously, as we imagine you are thinking, there is indeed a way to deactivate our historical magic. But we are magnanimous, not foolish, so you will have to discover that for yourself, lady. Therefore, we would say it is time to end the conversation and begin the real match..." he declared, his voice brimming with royalty and joy. Then his tone shifted completely, becoming far more serious and commanding. "Our great patron deity Heracles, grant us the power to defeat our adversary! Lightning Weapon: Club!"
At those words, a bolt of lightning descended from the sky directly into his right hand, and there, grasped firmly within it, a massive club composed entirely of pure electricity took shape.