For a while none of them moved an inch from where they stood.
Everyone was quite trying to understand if the dule between Malcon and cage was a mental fight rather than physical.
Cage slowly looked down on his shadow, he could sense a large amount of mana swirling inside.
VOOM!
Cage propelled himself upward, as two long black hands shot out of his shadow, But he reacted late. The shadow hands caught both his legs and with immense force slammed him back to the ground.
Cage slowly stood up from he ground. He knew he wasn't faster or stronger than Malcon, and the only possible chance he had of winning this fight was his eyes.
Although Malcon couldn't clearly see Cage through the thick veil of dust hanging in the air, he sensed the sudden shift in mana.
From within swirling dust, his gaze locked with a pair of glowing red eyes Which had two vertical dots.
"Shadow Blade," Malcon muttered, as a black, circular disc began to form in his hand. Without waiting for it to fully materialize, he threw it toward Cage, letting the blade take shape midair.
But Cage was ready. As if anticipating the attack, he swung his weapon, slicing the disc clean in two.
Or so it seemed.
The instant his blade passed through, the disc dissolved into shadow, allowing the strike to hit nothing but air.
"Got you," Malcon said with a smirk.
And from the shadow that surrounded Cage, he appeared behind him, swinging his sword towards Cage, who was yet to notice his presence.
CLANG!
Malcon's eyes widened in disbelief. Cage hadn't turned to defend himself. Instead, as if anticipating the attack, he effortlessly moved his sword behind him, blocking the strike with precision.
Malcon quickly took a few steps back, trying to reorganize himself before attacking again.
Cage slowly turned, his eyes still fixed at Malcon.
Leaving Malcon to attack was getting dangerous, because he could manipulate his shadow at will so he needed to attack, Cage thought.
Malcon quickly took a defensive stance as he saw Cage ruining towards him.
"shadow bomb" Malcon said, stretching out hand. A round shaped bomb slowly formed on his hand, he quickely shot it cage who was running towards him. but to no avail, as it seemed as though cage knew exactly what he wanted to do.
'Fighting in a hand to hand combat with someone who knew my next was dangerous, I have to go on defence.' Malcon said to himself.
"shadow armour" Malcon said.
His shadow crept up from his feet, enveloping his entire body in a dark, sleek armor, leaving only his glowing red eyes visible.
Malcon never wanted to use this skills in this dule, sience using shadow armour takes out a great amount of mana from his body, as it increases everything skill his has both his speed, strength and agility. The shadow armour skills was so powerfully that entering it automatically puts him the rank of a veteran.
But the cost after using the skill was brutal. Once activated, Malcon has only five minutes before his body starts to brakes down.
Cage sensed the sudden surge of mana, but he didn't flinch. He kept charging forward, his eyes locked on Malcon.
"Shadow Vortex," Malcon said, his voice low and chilling as he extended his hand.
A swirling vortex formed in the air, and with a sudden flash, it launched a crimson bullet toward Cage.
But Cage was faster. With a sharp sidestep, he dodged the bullet.
"It's useless, Malcon! I can see everything!" Cage shouted. "Mana Magic!"
His blade began to glow as his mana surged through it, surrounding the weapon with raw energy. Activating his ability, Cage saw clearly, Malcon wasn't moving. He stood perfectly still, as if he were waiting... inviting the attack.
"So be it, Eden!" Cage roared, driving his sword forward, aiming for Malcon's neck.
But just before the blade could land, Malcon slowly raised his head, his glowing red eyes locking with Cage's.
It looked as though time frooz in the battlefield.
"What just happened?" Bane muttered from the sidelines, his eyes wide and fixed on the battlefield.
Cage stood motionless, paralyzed, petrified, his arm frozen in mid air, his expression blank.
BOOM!
The sound echoed across the arena as Malcon landed a devastating blow to Cage's stomach.
Cage's body lifted off the ground, blood bursting from his mouth as he was sent hurtling backward.
"this children are quite skillfull" the king commented on Seeing what Malcon did.
"yes, very impressive"Daruis added.
'What happened' Cage asked himself, his brain orientating itself to the last event.
Through the dust, he felt a sudden surge of power.
"Dodge!" his instincts screamed, and his body obeyed without hesitation.
The swirling dust split as a shadow streaked past his head, clipping a few strands of hair in its deadly path.
He quickly activated his ability, but what he saw next wasn't encouraging, as he saw Malcon's fist on his stomach again.
Cage quickly covered his midsection with layers of mana, like a barrier.
As Malcon's fist made contact with Cage's stomach. The barrier took the blow head on, dulling its force and denying Malcon the satisfaction of impact, as Cage was only taken a few steps back.
Malcon couldn't help but smile at himself, his plan. Was working. Since Cage could see his next move, he relied solely on his speed. Even if Cage did see his next move, with his speed he won't give him any chance to react.
Cage was drenched in sweat, his heart threatening to beat out of his ribs. His mana magic wasn't as strong as Damian, so he couldn't completely reinforce his entire body with mana, only one patch at a time.
"Shadow Craft." Malcon said calmly, advancing one step at a time.
Cage instinctively stepped back, his instincts screaming.
Then he saw it, Malcon's arms stretching unnaturally, the edges twisting and sharpening into blade-like forms.
At that moment, Malcon no longer looked human.
To Cage, he looked like a demon sent to bring his downfall.
Then he saw it, Malcon's arms stretching unnaturally, the edges twisting and sharpening into blade-like forms.
At that moment, Malcon no longer looked human.
To Cage, he looked like a demon sent to bring his downfall.
Cage activated his ability. hoping to get a glimpse of the future, but the future seemed to have arrived faster. As he saw Malcon standing infront of him, his bladed arm moving towards his neck.
Cage quickly bent down avoiding the blade, but instead met Malcon knees, which slammed at his jaw, sending him up again.
Malcon's body was getting stressed out and he knew that was why he wanted to end the fight with all means possible before his body gave up on him.
Maintaining the pace between them, Cage was panting. His cloth was drenched with blood from the several cuts Malcon had given him.
'I should just yield.' he said to himself, looking up and was surprised to see Malcon standing still, panting, as the shadow slowly wore off.
"I guess the tables have turned," Cage said to himself, smiling."I'll make sure you bleed just the way you made me." he added, as he ran towards Malcon.
From the sideline Bane could see how pale Malcon looked. His legs were numb and could barely carry his weight, it looked as though he would stumble and fall anytime soon as he struggled to keep his eyes open. But Cage didn't seem to care, as he charged towards Malcon with his blade.
'No no no no!' mlaocn shouted at himself not admitting defeat.
"Shadow craft." he said, using the last piece of mana he could muster.
A small shadow pin slowly materialized in midair.
"Just yield," Cage yelled with frustration.
Pointing the shadow spike at Cage he shot it, but Cage swiftly moved his head allowing the spike to greze the air and pass him.
Malcon was knocked off his feet as Cage's fist crashed into his stomach.
The impact stole the air from his lungs, and his vision blurred. He felt his consciousness slipping.
"No, I can't lose, I can't…"he said to himself as his consciousness completely drifted.
When he opened his eyes, he was no longer in the arena. A dimly lit room surrounded him. The ground was damp, and the steady drips of water echoed in the silence.
Looking up ahead, Malcon could feel an intense, powerful energy radiating from the dark.
"You're weaker than I expected," a voice said from the shadows.