When Raze heard his name, his body instinctively tensed. He hadn't expected to be the first one chosen. And without an awakening that put him at a serious disadvantage. Still, he stepped forward.
As he approached the sparring platform, Raze glanced toward Ray, hesitation evident in his eyes. After a brief pause, he decided to speak up.
"Can I use a beast weapon?" he asked, his tone calm but careful. "I mean... I'm in the combat specialist division, so we should be able to, right?"
Ray blinked, as if realizing something. "Ah, right. I forgot the weapon rack." He gave a short sigh and turned toward the exit. "Wait here."
The students murmured quietly among themselves as Ray walked off, the sound of his footsteps fading down the hall. Raze stood in silence, his eyes wandering across the training hall before finally settling on the others watching him.
Moments later, the doors slid open again. Ray returned, dragging a weapon rack behind him. There were various beast weapons on the weapon rack such as swords, spears, gauntlets, daggers, etc.
"Alright," Ray said, pushing it into place beside the platform.
"Choose whatever fits your fighting style."
Raze nodded and stepped toward the rack, his hand hovering over the weapons.
He picked up the Grey Wolf Gauntlets, the same one he'd used yesterday in Beast Combat Weapon class.
[Grey Wolf Gauntlets Equipped]
[Strength: 16 (+4)]
[Agility: 16 (+3)]
[Stamina: 16: (+3)]
[Endurance: 15]
As soon as the gauntlets were on, Raze felt the boost the gauntlets gave. He then made his way towards the platform.
"Your opponent will be Saren Vel, a level 3 gravity awakening user." Ray declared.
Raze stepped onto the platform, his eyes scanning his opponent. Saren Vel, a level 3 awakening user, stood across from him, gripping a strange beast weapon in his hands. A jagged whip-like tail, barbed and coiling as if alive.
Then a quest screen appeared in front of Raze.
[New Quest Received!]
[Defeat your opponent]
[Reward: Instant level up!]
Raze took a slow breath immediately understanding what the system meant by instant level up. It meant that his opponent was strong enough to give him an instant level up.
'This won't be like fighting Jackson.' Raze thought.
"Begin!" Ray called.
The sound barely faded before Saren stomped his foot. The air trembled. Raze's weight doubled in an instant, gravity pressing down like an invisible hand trying to bury him.
His knees bent slightly, muscles straining.
'He's already using it… gravity awakening.'
Saren didn't give him time to adjust. The whip lashed out, a blur of metal and scales. Raze dove to the side, the strike grazing his sleeve and slicing the fabric clean open. The tip of the whip slammed against the floor, leaving a shallow crater.
Raze steadied himself, his eyes narrowing. 'He's fast.' Raze thought.
Saren smirked, his whip coiling back with a hiss. "You're slower than I thought."
"Guess you'll have to swing harder then," Raze replied, his tone calm even though his pulse was racing.
Saren obliged. Another crack echoed as he sent the whip flying, this time aiming for Raze's legs.
Raze sidestepped, grabbing the air mid-motion, and almost caught the whip but gravity twisted mid-way, pulling him off balance. The whip scraped across his thigh.
He gritted his teeth and rolled backward, feeling the sting of blood dripping down his leg. 'That could've torn through bone if I hesitated.'
Saren's grin widened. "Not bad. Most people can't even move under my gravity."
Raze didn't respond. 'He's enjoying this. He thinks I'm weak because I have no awakening.'
Raze then lunged forward, closing the gap between them. Saren tried to counter, but Raze feinted and slammed a punch into his ribs.
The impact forced Saren back two steps. For a brief second, Raze saw surprise flicker across his opponent's face.
Then Saren raised his hand. The air grew heavy again by three times.The platform's metal began to groan beneath them. Raze's breathing quickened as his body fought the invisible pressure.
'I can barely move... it's like fighting underwater.'
The whip came down again, this time with gravity amplifying the strike. It smashed against Raze's shoulder, sending him stumbling sideways. Pain shot through his arm, and Raze gritted his teeth again.
He staggered back but stayed upright. His vision blurred for a second before the pain started to fade. Raze blinked confused on how the pain faded. He then realized the bleeding had stopped. He looked down and saw that the wound was gone.
'What the hell?'
For a split second, he forgot about Saren. The other boy's grin returned. "What's wrong? Did I hit you too hard?"
Raze shook his head, regaining his focus. 'I'm healing... fast. The system? Is this new?'
He tightened his fists, ignoring the disbelief swirling in his mind. "You'll have to do better than that."
Saren's smirk vanished. He swept his arm wide, and the gravity field expanded outward. The entire arena began to tremble. Students gasped as cracks spider-webbed across the platform.
Chunks of the platform started lifting off the ground. Floating pieces rising into the air as if pulled by unseen strings. The platform detached and began to drift upward, rotating slowly.
Ray took a step forward but didn't interfere. His eyes followed the two carefully.
Saren leapt to one of the floating platforms with unnatural ease. Raze followed, crouching low as his platform spun slightly beneath him.
"Don't fall," Saren said, his voice echoing across the arena.
He suddenly lashed out again. The whip shot forward, cutting through air like it was nothing. Raze ducked, but the tail grazed his arm, this time deeper. He hissed, feeling the warm trickle of blood.
Then, within moments, the pain dulled and the skin sealed over.
A few students in the crowd gasped. "Did you see that? He…he healed?"
Ray's eyes narrowed slightly. 'Interesting.'
Raze flexed his fingers, the shock still lingering. 'What's happening to me…?'
Saren noticed his moment of distraction and pressed forward. He used gravity to propel himself like a bullet, appearing right in front of Raze. The whip coiled back, then slammed downward.
Raze blocked with his gauntlets. The strike cracked through the air like thunder. He was thrown backward, tumbling across his floating platform. The edge crumbled under his weight, and he barely rolled away before the entire chunk broke apart and fell.
'He's going to kill me if I don't fight back.'
Raze jumped onto another fragment as Saren advanced, each of his steps shaking the pieces of floor that remained. Raze's eyes flicked around, searching for an opening.
'He's strong, but he's burning through energy fast… if I can outlast him.' But before Raze could finish that thought, Saren whipped the air again, sending waves of pressure toward him.
The invisible force crushed down, nearly flattening Raze to his knees.
He growled through clenched teeth, his muscles screaming. Then, with a surge of strength, he pushed forward. His body moved forward faster than before. Raze decided to stop holding back.