Hao looked at the image of those two who were still fighting and sighed. He could not lie: after the winner of the battle between classes had been decided, even he had been disappointed. That fight between two prodigies had been too good to simply end.
"If both of them are continuing to fight, that means they agreed to it, right, Director?"
Virelle watched the image with shining eyes. Danyana was one of the two people who had awakened her interest, so this would be even better. She still did not know how Enrico had managed to evolve during the fight. She knew that he was not a prodigy and that, until then, the only things that could truly be considered above average about him were his intelligence and his ability to adapt.
"Yes. This fight will be considered outside the battle between classes and will be a battle for rank."
Without wasting time, Hao canceled the images of all the other fights that were still being broadcast, leaving only that battle on the screen. Before completely ending the broadcast to the other continents and territories, he left a few final words.
'It would be better if this fight were broadcast to Sanos Academy. Maybe then the other Rank 10s will hurry before their ranks are stolen.'
Yumeha, who had just become Rank 11, watched the broadcast excitedly. Beside her, Rina had defeated Rank 10 and was now one of the academy's best students. Grakka, meanwhile, had reached Rank 29. None of the three had managed to reach the finish line first because of a monstrous female student who had advanced ahead of everyone. Apparently, she was Rank 1.
"The human looks excited."
"But of course. My Ketsumei wants to become stronger. Besides, did you see how he evolved during the fight?"
"The master is amazing."
Meanwhile, Thalen, who was hiding behind a rock, approached close enough to follow the fight without completely revealing himself. Elowyn had ordered him to try to reach the finish line, but he had only managed to get that far after facing several difficulties.
'Well, according to my calculations, I defeated Rank 30... Let's see. From what I've seen so far, he is stronger than Elowyn, but I want to observe more.'
On the battlefield, Enrico landed three consecutive Zero Impacts on Danyana. The response came immediately: three blows charged with lightning and speed struck his body, tearing away much of the clothing on his right side and opening a cut in his skin.
Enrico did not retreat.
He created his fire bow again and fired an arrow directly at Danyana's stomach, sending her through a wall and making her disappear among the debris.
"Charged Impulse."
Without allowing her time to recover, Enrico advanced and landed a kick that sent her crashing into another wall. However, before he could continue, his foot was grabbed. Danyana spun her body and threw him to the side.
The battle had already moved to another area, passing through walls and structures without either of them giving the other enough time to rest.
"Thunder Punch: Level Three."
Like thunder falling from the sky, Danyana jumped and landed directly on Enrico. He managed to dodge by a very small margin, and the blow struck the ground with such force that several pieces of debris were thrown in every direction.
'What destructive power.'
Enrico took advantage of the opening and landed a punch, forcing Danyana to retreat. He was truly grateful for the pact he had made. Without that improvement, he probably would have already been defeated. But he needed something beyond that. During the fight, Danyana was beginning to become even stronger, and that was a problem.
A tiger formed from lightning crossed the place where Enrico was standing. He narrowly dodged it and began observing the surrounding battlefield, trying to find something he could use to his advantage. That was when he felt his strength decrease and immediately realized the reason.
'The ring's time is up.'
'Damn it. Now I only have the clone, and it will last only a few seconds.'
Without wasting any more time, he summoned the clone. He had discovered a way to prolong its duration: he could summon and unsummon it repeatedly, making it remain available for much longer during the battle.
Enrico stepped onto a rock and used it as momentum to reach Danyana, who was descending toward him. After striking her, he placed his palm against her body and summoned several fireballs, launching her upward.
Danyana landed on the ceiling. On her arms, Wind Magic appeared on one side and thunder on the other. She was evolving rapidly and, because of that, was beginning to use both magics at the same time, combining their physical characteristics with her magical powers.
Danyana jumped toward Enrico again. Her speed increased so suddenly that she managed to strike his face before he could react, making Enrico almost lose consciousness.
Landing a blow with his characteristic stance, Enrico managed to quickly push her away. Danyana placed a hand over her stomach and realized that two of her ribs were broken.
'He's good. Very good... I want more.'
An amused, almost insane smile appeared on her face. She was becoming stronger and wanted more. Much more.
Danyana disappeared from in front of Enrico and appeared behind him again, grabbing him by the head and throwing him toward the water flowing below the rocks. Her body became covered in thunder, while her palm began emitting a blue glow, as if she were turning her own hand into a weapon.
A tiger claw formed from electricity struck Enrico underwater. The combination of electricity, water, and an enormous amount of magical power caused an explosion that made the surrounding walls tremble.
'Come on... get up...'
Danyana watched the water below, patiently waiting for Enrico to appear so she could continue having fun. And, fortunately for her, her wish was granted. A blow struck her already broken ribs, sending her to the side. She crashed against a wall and immediately realized what had happened: he had switched places with the clone.
But what truly surprised her and made her even more excited was something else. Enrico was badly injured, but he did not seem to have suffered as much damage as he should have.
'Damn. I'm having to use my Water Magic too much... If I hadn't been sent into this current, I would be much worse off.'
He still could not truly control non-magical elements, but he could use them to improve his recovery since he did not need to spend magic to create the water. Even though the effect was not as good as his own magic, it had allowed him to take less damage and accelerate his healing. His eyes glowed red as the magic of the Crimson Eyes analyzed the battlefield, searching for the right moment to deliver a decisive blow.
'System, have you decided on the new pact yet?'
[Yes. We have one. Its effect is that you can only use it once a day. During activation, your body will become harder than steel, allowing you to withstand physical and magical attacks.]
Several tigers advanced at high speed, trying to hit Enrico. He dodged the attacks, but realized that the time of his clone had ended. Now he depended only on his own body and magic.
'What's the disadvantage?'
[During activation, you will lose tactile sensitivity and your agility will be reduced. After the effect ends, you will feel muscle pain that may leave you unable to fight.]
Enrico saw Danyana concentrating even more power into her fist. He had no other choice. Besides, it did not seem to be a Unique Skill, which left him a little confused.
'I accept.'
[All right. You gained a technique called Skin Beyond Iron.]
Creating his bow, Enrico fired several fire arrows at the tigers, destroying them before they could reach him. Then, thunder came from the direction where Danyana was.
Enrico concentrated and allowed the attack to approach. The ground was torn apart by Danyana's powerful footsteps as she advanced with her fist raised. The blow struck Enrico's face and smashed him into the wall behind him.
Danyana opened a satisfied smile. After having so much fun, it finally seemed that the battle was coming to an end.
"This battle was really fun, but I think it's over, so—"
"Yes, it's over."
Surprised, Danyana had her arm grabbed. Enrico pointed his bow directly at her ribs, while an enormous amount of magic began accumulating in the arrow.
"Flame Shot."
The shot struck Danyana and immediately sent her flying, scattering debris throughout the area. Even after receiving that powerful blow, which made her stomach bleed, Danyana still tried to stand. It was clear that she would faint at any moment, but even so, she looked at Enrico with a satisfied smile.
"You... evolved... again... incredible..."
'No. I didn't evolve... At least not on my own like you did.'
With those words, the battle finally ended. Enrico, however, had no time to celebrate. His muscles began to hurt violently. He tried to remain standing, but ended up falling to the ground, also beginning to lose consciousness.
'I'd better only use this at the last moment...'
He could hear footsteps running toward him. Just like Danyana, Enrico was satisfied. He had achieved exactly what he wanted.