There was no way Enrico would wake up in time for the fifth round to begin. Therefore, the other part of Saul took advantage of that moment, when his mind was completely confused after suffering the effects of Fire Cancer, the Vampires' Maximum Sacrifice Pact, and Lira's attack.
"He has practically entered a temporary coma."
The other part of Saul was still unable to completely cross the mental barrier separating them. However, now that Enrico was in a coma, he could temporarily take control of that body for a few minutes.
"I think I can take control for ten minutes... Maybe?"
Even if he could still take control, it wouldn't be long before he had to leave. Considering Enrico's condition, he should only wake up after the fifth round ended.
In the infirmary, all the girls—Yumeha, Valença, Serenya, Rina, Aoi, and Seraphina—were sleeping in different places around the room where Enrico had been placed to rest. The other part of Saul passed by them without making a sound, taking care not to wake them up.
However, when he reached the door, he raised an eyebrow upon finding Danyana sleeping right in front of it, curled up like a cat.
'What a weird girl.'
After leaving the room, he had to stop again. Kai and all of Enrico's other friends were leaning against the wall, sleeping. Caelan, in particular, was snoring so loudly that it was impossible to ignore him.
'You have a lot of companions, Saul... It's a shame they'll never be able to understand you.'
Ignoring everyone, he continued walking silently. When he passed a window, he saw his reflection in the glass and noticed that his eyes were black, with golden pupils, exactly as they had been the last time he took control.
'Apparently, this will always happen when I take control... Or whenever he uses the power of the Nartheis?'
Adjusting his hair so that it covered his eyes, he headed toward the place where the next match would take place.
He needed to intervene. He couldn't allow their plan to fail. Of course, they could enter the competition later by defeating someone who had already qualified before the battle between the academies began, but that wasn't why they had come all the way here.
'We came here to grow stronger and make these characters see us as an insurmountable wall.'
Upon arriving at the arena, Enrico noticed that both the referee and Sakura seemed surprised that he had managed to get back on his feet. The referee, however, simply nodded and flew away, preparing to start the fight.
Sakura, on the other hand, seemed relieved for some reason. She then assumed a fighting stance that somewhat resembled karate, a fighting style well known in Tsuyokuni. Therefore, considering the possibility that the girl was a reincarnated person would merely be an unfounded guess.
"I'm glad you came. I wouldn't want to win like this."
"Oh, how honorable. I suppose I should return that sentiment, then."
Enrico assumed a fighting stance, keeping one fist near his chin and the other slightly lower. He intended to face Sakura using only his physical abilities.
Upon noticing his stance, Sakura narrowed her eyes, showing some irritation.
"Are you underestimating me?"
"Underestimating you? I'd be an idiot to do that in my current condition. The reason I'm fighting like this is simple... It's the only way I can keep fighting in the state I'm in."
"If that's the case, I can wait until you've rested."
Enrico clenched his fist with a confident smile.
"I'm sorry, but that's not possible. I'll pass out in about ten minutes."
Sakura was surprised, but after observing Enrico's physical condition, she realized it would be difficult for him to recover so quickly. Even so, he had decided to show up for the fight.
At that moment, she began admiring him even more for being willing to go so far to fight.
'If I were in his place, I'd do the same. So I'll respect him.'
"That idiot!"
"Miss Virelle, we should stop this fight as soon as possible."
Virelle held her head with one hand, feeling exhausted. She had already struggled to convince Hao to withdraw Enrico from the competition and allow him to qualify by defeating someone from another academy. Now, after finally managing to get out of bed, the boy had decided to return to the arena on his own. Hao, standing beside her, had a huge smile on his face.
"Hahaha! It seems Enrico disagrees with you, Virelle."
"Shut up, old man!"
Angela watched the arena with growing concern.
"Miss, we need to stop the young master!"
The reason Hao didn't want Enrico to leave the competition wasn't merely that he believed the boy could still fight. His true objective was to ensure that all Astrong students ranked among the top five could advance to the battle between the academies.
"Hahaha! That's why I like this boy!"
"What the hell, old man! Shut your mouth!"
"Miss..."
Both Virelle and Angela were worried about Enrico's condition. Even so, deep down, they both wanted to believe he could win that battle, even in his current state.
"Angela, prepare to intervene if you notice that something is about to happen."
"Understood, Miss. I'll remain on standby."
Angela disappeared, positioning herself as close to the arena as possible so she could intervene if necessary.
The scenery, on the other hand, had not changed at all. This was because both Sakura and Enrico had asked the referee to keep the arena that way before the fight began.
"Are you ready?"
"Of course."
"Then, you may begin!"
The two charged toward each other.
Sakura opened with a straight punch, but Enrico intercepted the blow with his palm and gripped her fist tightly. Then, he spun his body and threw her over his shoulder, slamming her against the ground.
Without giving her time to recover, he raised his left leg and delivered a downward kick.
Sakura rolled across the ground, managing to avoid a direct impact. Even so, the power of the blow was so great that the air pressure pushed her away.
"Strength Magic: Muscle Enhancement!"
Sakura's body grew larger, and her speed and strength increased by twenty percent. With a powerful push from her legs, she shattered part of the ground and charged straight at Enrico.
Enrico raised his foot and landed a kick on her chin, sending her flying upward. He watched the girl with a certain degree of interest.
'Even if it's not the same as that red zombie's, I now understand why I'm so interested in her power.'
Sakura, on the other hand, fell to the ground several meters away.
'Damn it... I'll try to be faster...'
Enrico smiled when he noticed that the girl hadn't suffered any injuries from his attack.
"Hey, girl. I'd like to ask you a question."
"What kind of question?"
Confused by his behavior, Sakura stood up, remaining alert to any movement from her opponent.
"Do you understand how emptiness works?"
The confusion on Sakura's face deepened.
"I'm sorry, but I don't understand why you're asking me that."
Enrico seemed saddened by her answer. A black cloud even appeared above his head in his imagination.
"... Well, that's disappointing. You didn't even answer the most basic question."
"What do you mean, the most basic question?"
"Nothing."
Enrico lowered his fist, assuming a completely open stance, as if he had let his entire guard down. At the same time, a gray aura began to envelop his right hand.
Sakura realized something was wrong and decided to execute the move she had intended to use earlier, concentrating her strength magic in her legs.
'With this enhancement, it'll be difficult for him...'
"Void Fist!"
Before Sakura could react, Enrico charged forward.
A gray line, accompanied by white and black trails, cut through the air as his fist struck the area above her stomach.
Sakura felt as though her internal organs had been destroyed by the impact. The force of the blow was so absurd that her body spun through the air before her head struck the ground, sinking into the arena's surface.
"Even though you failed, I'm still interested in your power. We'll talk later."
Enrico displayed a confident smile as he walked away from the arena.
The referee, still surprised by the result, declared the winner upon realizing that Sakura couldn't get back up.
"Winner of the battle: Enrico Solcren Ferreira! With this, the sixth round will be decided by points!"
The spectators applauded the result with considerable surprise, and among them, Jago wore a sinister smile.