Rulthan rolled his shoulders, club humming with power, grin still carved across his face. "Come on, gutter rat. Let's hear you scream."
The bell rattled once as he swung.
A fresh shockwave ripped across the arena, the air itself splitting toward Kazuo.
Kazuo braced. His free hand snapped up.
"Water Magic: Water Wall!"
A wall of water surged into place. The vibration slammed into it—shuddering, hissing, steam blasting out in sheets.
For a moment, Kazuo thought it would collapse. But it held. The wall shivered violently, its roar clashing with the bell's shriek—sound crashing into sound.
Kazuo's eyes widened. It worked…but why?
The steam billowed around him, clinging to his skin. His chest heaved, ribs aching.
So that's it… if I block the sound, I block the magic.
But the thought twisted sharper. Then why couldn't Torrent break through?
He closed his eyes, forcing himself to listen. The hiss of steam. The roar of the wall still crashing behind him. And beneath it, the faint bell rattling at Rulthan's side.
Because his sound drowned mine out. The vibration shattered my Torrent before it even reached him.
Kazuo's breath steadied. But when I used Water Wall… it roared louder than his bell. For that moment, his sound couldn't cut through.
His grip tightened on the hilt.
That's it. If my water can scream louder than his magic — if I can make the sound itself overwhelm his — I can pierce through the wall.
His eyes snapped open, burning with new focus.
Rulthan dragged his club across the ground again, sparks spitting, his grin sharp. "Heh. Found some courage, gutter rat?"
Kazuo steadied his stance. His blade shimmered, water sliding along its length.
"Water of Resonance."
The coating hissed instantly, sizzling against the heat of the arena. Steam lifted from the sword in sharp bursts. Each time it cracked, the sound rang out louder.
Rulthan's brow twitched, the first sign of caution.
Kazuo's free hand swept wide.
"Water Magic: Torrent!"
The surge hit the ground instead of his opponent. It erupted in a violent hiss, flooding the arena in thick steam. The marble disappeared, the heat intensifying, vision blurring.
Rulthan blinked once, his grin faltering for half a breath.
Through the haze, Kazuo charged. His sword screamed in his grip, steam shrieking from its edge.
Rulthan swung. The bell clanged. Another invisible wall slammed outward—
Kazuo's blade cut through it. The sound of boiling water shrieked louder than the resonance, ripping the barrier apart as steel met iron.
CLANG.
The clash rang like thunder. Rulthan's grin vanished in an instant as he caught the blow with his club. The iron shrieked under the pressure, the heat searing into his palm through the handle. Smoke curled off his fist where the fire-hot metal bit skin.
His eyes locked on Kazuo's. Furious. Without warning, Rulthan's free hand shot out, clamping onto Kazuo's collar. With brute strength, he yanked him close—then hurled him back across the marble like he weighed nothing.
Kazuo hit the ground on his feet, but stumbled hard, boots scraping and knees dipping before he forced himself upright again.
High above, in the Captains' Gallery, murmurs stirred.
Zahari's arms stayed folded, but his voice carried clear. "He turned the handicap into a weapon. The lava was meant to make his water useless… now it feeds him steam to hide in, and boiling water sharp enough to scar Rulthan."
Idris tapped ash off his cigarette, smoke curling lazily from his lips."Creative little bastard. Most would've folded under that setup. He's twisting the rules on the fly."
His gaze narrowed, watching the steam hiss off Kazuo's blade. And he's already mastered Resonance. Back in the fight with Kaya it drained him with every swing — now it looks almost natural. Must've been Setsuna drilling it into him…
Setsuna was silent. His gaze remained fixed on Kazuo, unblinking, tracking every breath, every shift of his blade.
Vaskel was grinning like always.
Down in the squad stands, Tetsu's voice cut sharp, his hands gripping the railing white-knuckled. "He figured it out! The sound—he drowned it with his own. That's why he could cut through!"
Sora's ears twitched flat, her tail lashing anxiously. "Yeah, but look at him—he's already burned out half his strength just trying to stand up to that monster."
Tetsu shoved his glasses up, refusing to blink. "Doesn't matter. He's adapting. No one else has even touched Rulthan. Kazuo just did."
Lyria crossed her arms with a huff, voice sharp as she snapped, "Tch. Don't get the wrong idea. That doesn't make him impressive — Rulthan's just underestimating him."
Then, Aoi spoke — his tone calm, detached."…It does seem he didn't know the heat would end up working in his favor. The water's sharper because of it."
All three turned, staring at him.
Aoi said nothing more, eyes fixed on the haze where Kazuo stood.
Kazuo's chest heaved, every breath scraping his ribs raw. His blade trembled faintly in his grip, the steam rising off it like smoke after a fire.
It worked. He'd broken through.
But the cost…
His whole body screamed, and all he'd managed was a single shallow strike. He hadn't even unleashed his Arcane yet. I can reach him now — I can hurt him — but if it takes this much just to scratch him… then what the hell am I supposed to do to beat him?
Rulthan flexed his burned hand, the skin red and raw. His club had cooled, the furious heat fading back to dull iron, but his scowl stayed sharp. His gaze dropped — and for the first time, he saw it. The cracked bell lashed to his weapon had melted, warped beyond use. His amplifier… gone.
A muscle in his jaw ticked. The grin didn't return.
Then his eyes lifted — locking on Kazuo's face.
That look again. That same damned look.
Rulthan's lip curled, voice guttural."What are you looking at, gutter rats? How does it feel to—"
He stopped mid-sentence, jaw snapping shut like he'd bitten the words in half.
The words hung, incomplete in memory.
He shook his head sharply, as if snapping out of it.
Kazuo froze. …Gutter rats? Plural?Is he… seeing double? What was that just now? Even back in the Battle Royale, it didn't add up. Saving me just to crush me later already seemed out of character. Why go so far?
Rulthan's grip tightened on the iron. His lip curled. "Enough. You think just because my bell melted I can't reach you with my sound?"
He raised the club high, then slammed it against the marble.
The bell-less iron shrieked.
"Arcane of Sound: Dirge Breaker!"
The arena shook. Shockwaves erupted outward in a brutal ring, sound so sharp it split the air like razors. The vibration roared higher, sharper — until it pierced past pain itself.
Kazuo steadied his breath, forcing his stance firm. His hands snapped up, water flaring into a barrier. "Water Magic: Water Wall!"
The wall surged, roaring to life — but the sound ripped straight through it. The resonance didn't just shake him. It shattered him.
A razor-sharp pitch stabbed into his skull. White heat flared behind his eyes. Blood burst from his ears, hot trails sliding down his neck.
"AAARGH—!" His scream tore out raw as his hands clamped over his ears. His sword slipped, steel clattering across the ground. His knees buckled next, body convulsing as if every nerve had been set ablaze.
Immobile.
The crowd's roar collapsed into a single ringing note — high, endless, unbearable.
Through the haze, the last thing he saw was Rulthan's shadow looming closer, eyes burning cold.
And then the world was only sound.