The arena held its breath.
Following Arwen's victory and mounting tension on other battlefields,
the audience's attention was focused on one place — where Kael and Hisagi were stood opposite each other, like two opposing poles.
Hisagi raised his two-handed sword.
The metal blade trembled as if it were no longer steady.
— We'll see if you can do it. — he said calmly.
Kael narrowed his eyes.
— A weapon is a weapon. It doesn't matter what it's made of.
Hisagi smiled to himself.
— In that case... watch carefully.
He stuck his sword into the ground.
— HAAAAAAA!
His scream broke the silence.
The blade shattered into hundreds of pieces.
They have not fallen.
They swirled.
Green, sharp as steel, they swirled around Hisagi, forming a long, undulating blade composed of whirling nature.
Each leaf trembled with energy, each capable of cutting like a blade.
The stands erupted.
Commentator:
— WHAT A TECHNIQUE! HISAGI TRANSFORMS HIS SWORD INTO A BLADE MADE OF LEAVES! IT'S A LIVE WEAPON!
Kael took half a step back, but did not lower his sword.
The blue aura around his blade pulsed calmly.
Kael:
— The magic of nature... No. It's more than that.
Hisagi set off.
The leafy blade cut through the air without a sound.
Ael blocked — and felt hundreds of tiny blows rain down on his sword, like a shower of steel.
Kael:
— It cuts from every side...
Hisagi:
— The forest does not attack with a single blow.
Series.
Leaves entwined Kael, attempting to cut him from the sides and rear.
Kael retreated, blocked, turned the blade, until finally one leaf cut his arm.
Blood splashed onto the stone.
Hisagi:
— Tired?
Kael did not respond.
His breathing quickened.
And then he fell to one knee.
The sword plunged into the ground, and the blue aura faded.
The stands fell silent.
Kael (in his thoughts):
The Black Guard. Azrok. Burning walls. Screams...
My people looked at me as they died.
I told him the truth.
He didn't believe it.
I swore.
The leaves stopped in mid-air.
Hisagi:
— Get up. I do not want victory over a shadow.
Kael raised his head.
His eyes were not empty.
They were heavy.
Kael:
— I'm not a shadow.
He grabbed the sword hilt with both hands.
The blue aura exploded—not like a flame, but like a wave.
It concentrated along the blade, dense and stable.
Kael stood up.
Kael:
— I am the one who survived.
He set off.
Not quickly.
Not violently.
Confidently.
The leaves hit.
Kael cut them with one controlled movement.
Aura did not lose focus — she pulled the blade toward its target.
Hisagi stepped back for the first time.
Hisagi:
— What...?
Kael:
— The aura of a commander.
One cut.
Second.
Third.
The leafy blade began to lose its rhythm.
The swirl weakened.
Kael entered range.
CUT.
A blue light cut through the whirlwind of leaves.
The magic of nature vanished like the wind.
Hisagi fell to his knee.
The leaves fell lifelessly.
Hisagi looked up and smiled weakly.
— Now I understand... It wasn't hatred.
Kael:
— No. It was responsibility.
Hisagi lowered his head.
Commentator (after a moment of silence):
— HISAGI ELIMINATED!
KAEL OF DRAGON'S PURSUIT WINS!
The arena exploded with sound.
Kael stood motionless for a moment, then lowered his sword.
Kael (quietly):
— Azrok... not yet.
Mira and Valdor stood facing each other.
Her sword reflected light in a way that made the air around the blade seem empty.
Mira:
— This sword... is truly a dragon's sword.
Valdor:
— And yours really cuts through magic.
Mira:
— In that case, there will be no room for tricks.
Valdor raised his sword.
The flame appeared only after a moment, subdued and controlled.
Valdor:
— I never fight with tricks.
Mira went first.
Her swing was quick and clean.
Valdor blocked and he felt it immediately.
The magic around the blade vanished, as if someone had erased it.
The flame of the sword dimmed.
Valdor narrowed his eyes.
— Interesting.
Mira:
— In the forest, magic does not belong to warriors. It only allows them to survive.
They exchanged a series of blows.
Steel, sparks, no magic between the blades.
Commentator:
— AMAZING! MIRA'S SWORD LITERALLY EXTINGUISHES VALDOR'S AURA!
Valdor took a step back.
He smiled slightly.
Valdor:
— In that case... I'll use what you can't cut.
The aura of dragon blood stirred beneath his skin.
Mira raised her sword higher.
— Try it.
***
Yla struck the ground with her staff.
The roots broke free from the stone, writhing like snakes.
Mayuri jumped, spinning in the air.
Her weapon flashed briefly.
Mayuri:
— Seriously? Plants?
Yla:
— They are listening.
The roots started moving again, faster.
Mayuri cut through two, missed the third, but the fourth wrapped itself around her ankle.
Yla:
— Your steps are too light.
Mayuri smiled broadly.
— And you think too slowly.
She disappeared.
Literally.
She appeared behind Yla and struck her shoulder with the hilt.
Yla hissed, but the staff struck the ground once more.
The earth shook.
A green aura spread across the arena.
Yla:
— The forest does not fall from a single blow.
Mayuri stood up straight, stretching her arms.
— Okay. Me neither.
They looked at each other with smiles that lacked any trace of humor.