"Oliver, what the hell are you doing?" Isaac muttered, a frown appearing on his face. Even if the cadet was stronger than expected, it shouldn't have taken so long for Oliver to win!
Half an hour after the battle had started, the two men were still exchanging blows relentlessly. Fearing the worst, the Grandmaster threw out every onlooker and locked the doors. Preventing anyone from showing up.
Michael's lower lip was busted, a crimson trail falling from the wound. His breathing had grown harsh, yet he still had control over his senses.
"You are one resilient son of a bitch!" Oliver roared, attacking with his cybernetic arm.
Since Michael didn't have any way to defend himself from the tough metal, he did anything to dodge.
During the entire fight he had been using Berserker. And the more he used it, the better understanding he got out of it.
[Berserker has leveled up!]
[Rank: Rare]
[Level: 2]
[Description: For every point of Mind you allow to be infused with madness, you will gain one in Strength, Agility, and Stamina. Current limit: 600 Mind points.]
Thanks to the level up, the amount of Mind he could use to increase his power had increased by 100 points. Without hesitation he pushed the technique to its limit, increasing his other stats by 100 more points!
"He got even faster?!" Chloe's eyes narrowed to the size of needles.
"Is it possible that he is using some kind of tool or technique to hide his real realm?" Austin suggested.
The Berserker technique was so overpowered in Michael's hands that it made those leagues above him double-take.
Usually no one would have so many mind points to spare. Pushing the Berserker technique to its limit, especially so early, was unheard of. That was why Michael's achievement seemed so monstrous to those watching from the sidelines.
"No, this is his actual realm." Isaac spoke, his playful demeanor long gone. "If he was using some kind of trick, I would have sensed it."
'If a Grandmaster says so, it must be true.' Chloe thought, observing Michael's fighting style closely.
"How did you get faster?!" Oliver grunted, seeing Michael's eyes glow brighter crimson.
"I was reluctant to use my full strength at first. It would have been bad if I embraced my superior in front of his superiors, right?" Michael lied as naturally as he breathed, trying to taunt his foe.
"YOU!" Oliver couldn't understand what was happening. Everything was supposed to go well for him. As a member of the Immortal Legion, he had been given the mission to court Victoria in order to improve their relationship with the Golden Vanguard.
At the beginning he wasn't willing to go with the idea. But when he saw her and her proportions in person for the first time, he had already fallen in love with her. There was no way he would let a beauty like her escape his grasp. Even better, his whole faction supported him!
'Yet no matter what I did to impress her, she never gave me a second glance. And now a fucking cadet gets her attention?! Not to mention the fucker is actually thinking he can overcome me!'
Activating his protective barrier again, he pounced on Michael.
"For the disrespect you have shown me, I will kill you! And I will not stop at you. I will find your friends, family, and loved ones. I will kill them all and end your whole bloodline!" Oliver shouted in rage.
Michael froze in place for a moment, his surroundings slowing down.
'He is… threatening them?' A halting flashback appeared in his mind. A vision of losing everything he held dear in front of his eyes.
Shudder!
Oliver's body halted momentarily, his back breaking out in sweat.
'What was this intense killing intent?!' He doubted that it had come from the cadet, so he thought that Isaac had released it.
"My Lord?" Isaac had an even more intense reaction. His whole body trembled, startled that his Lord had personally come to him.
'I must be overthinking it.' He shook his head a second later.
No one associated the intent killing aura with Michael. He was just a simple cadet. There was no way a person that was in the first realm could give off such an immense aura.
Once Oliver got his bearings under control, he focused on Michael. Who had been standing still like a statue.
'He must be too scared to move. Even if you regret coming here, that will not save you.' Oliver sneered, taking a step forward.
[Blink activated]
"...!"
In an instant Michael disappeared.
What Michael had done was activate his teleporting technique for the first time since the start of the match. No one had seen him use it, so no one could have been prepared for it.
'He is behind—'
Before Oliver could turn around, he was hit in the head from the side.
Thud!
His legs gave out as he fell to the ground. The protective barrier had shielded him, but the force was enough to knock him down.
"This is one annoying technique."
Before Oliver could stand up, Michael got on top of him. His eyes lacked any kind of warmth.
'He has killer eyes?' Oliver was shocked internally. Killer eyes were only found in those who had killed so many people that they could shut off their emotions, all in the name of obliterating their enemies.
Pow!
Michael's fist rained down like the guillotine of death, hitting Oliver square in the face.
"Let's see how long this protective barrier will last you." Michael muttered emotionlessly before releasing a rain of merciless strikes.
For the next few minutes the whole arena was deadly quiet. The only thing that echoed was Michael's fists hitting Oliver's face.
"Stop the match!" When Isaac got over the shock that his subordinate had lost, he stood up, ordering in a voice that didn't allow for disobedience.
Complying, Michael slowly stood up. His lower lip was still busted, and his two fists were painted red, both from his and Oliver's blood.
Meanwhile, the Expert was lying on the ground, struggling to not choke to death on his own blood.
'This fucking fool! He lost to an Apprentice!' Isaac was furious. If the word got out, the Immortal Legion would lose face!
'Thank goodness that I had the instinct that something bad was going to happen. Just in case my intention was correct during the duel, I threw out every spectator and locked the doors. I can simply get rid of the cadet and later say that it was Oliver, unable to control his strength.'
Having made his decision, Isaac was about to execute his plan when a powerful aura entered his senses.
'FUCK!' He cursed inwardly.
"Everyone halt in place!" Victoria's shout echoed in raw fury.