Knox didn't answer, and instead of stepping in again, he stopped just outside Jule's reach and raised his sword once, the blade pointed straight at him, his posture steady and quiet as if everything had settled for a brief instant.
Then he swung.
The motion was simple and direct, and from that single cut, a wide blue arc surged forward, cold and bright, stretching far beyond Jule instead of stopping at him, carrying the exact line of the blade through the air.
Jule didn't try to block, because the moment he saw it, his body moved on instinct, twisting to the side and shifting his footing just enough for the slash to pass by him, close enough that he could feel it without being touched.
The arc continued past him and carved into the ground behind, leaving a long, clean mark across the arena floor, sharp and precise, as if the surface had been cut open without resistance.
Jule's eyes caught that mark for a split second, and in that same moment, Knox was already moving again.
There was no pause this time, no posture, no reset, because his arm simply moved and another slash followed immediately, then another, then another, each one identical in path but faster in timing, forming a continuous wave of blue arcs that rushed forward and filled the space in front of him.
The color stayed the same, cold and clear, and the lines overlapped as they traveled, creating a dense stream of cutting paths that gave Jule no room to stand still.
Jule's expression tightened, and instead of raising his sword, he chose to move, stepping sideways, then changing direction mid-step as another slash passed where he had been, forcing him lower as the next one came, and then into a roll to avoid the one after that, his movements becoming sharper and faster as he tried to keep ahead of the incoming wave.
Each time he avoided one, another followed, closer than before, leaving him less space to breathe, and behind him the arena floor filled with long, straight cuts that marked every line he had narrowly escaped.
Then Knox raised his sword again, the same posture as before, the blade aligned forward, and for a brief instant everything seemed to settle into place before he swung once more.
This time the slashes came heavier, the blue arcs brighter and thicker, and his arm moved so quickly that the strikes appeared almost stacked on top of each other as they surged forward in rapid succession.
Jule kept moving, but the space he had was shrinking too fast, and no matter how he tried to adjust his footing, every path he took was already being cut off by the next incoming slash, forcing his body to react again and again without any chance to properly recover.
"Urgh—!"
One of the blue arcs passed too close, brushing past his shoulder as he twisted out of the way, and that slight delay made it clear to him that he could not keep avoiding this forever.
Another wave followed immediately, brighter and heavier, filling the space in front of him in a way that left almost no gap to slip through, and this time, even moving felt late.
Jule stopped.
Not because he wanted to, but because continuing like this would only push him further into a corner.
His chest rose and fell as he steadied his breathing, his eyes still fixed forward while the next set of slashes approached.
"…Tch…"
His grip tightened.
"…so it's come to this…"
A voice answered him.
[...I agree. At least for now, we should deal with this monster first.]
The sound came from the sword in his hand, low and echoing, as if it had been waiting for this moment.
Jule did not look surprised.
"…fine."
There was no hesitation left.
His hand rose to his face.
Srr…!
The bandage loosened and fell.
At the same time, the magic circles carved across his body began to light up, one after another, spreading outward as if something sealed beneath his skin had finally been released.
His eye opened. No longer human. Dark. Cold.
Something else was looking out through it.
[Jule Original - Magic Offering]
The sword in his hand trembled, then steadied, and a red-black aura began to seep out from the blade, wrapping around his arm before gathering along the edge, growing denser with each passing second.
For a brief moment, his body stiffened, as if resisting.
Then it gave in.
His stance changed slightly, not forced, but guided, and the aura around the blade condensed further, forming a thick, jet-black layer with a faint crimson glow running through it.
Jule stepped forward.
The incoming blue slashes were already closing in, filling the space ahead, but this time he did not try to avoid them, and instead raised his sword and swung, sending a dark arc outward to meet them head-on.
"Break!"
The voice came out deeper and sharper than before, no longer fully his own, and at the moment the word was spoken, the force behind his swing surged, the red-black aura expanding outward as it collided directly with the rest of Knox's flurry.
The impact spread through the space between them in a single violent release, blue and red-black energies crashing together and bursting outward, filling the arena with a dense cloud that carried streaks of cold blue light that had not yet faded from Knox's attacks.
The ground beneath them trembled slightly under the force, and the air itself seemed to ripple as the energy scattered and began to settle.
As the smoke slowly cleared, Jule stood in place with his sword still raised, the red-black aura lingering along his arm and blade, thinner than before but steady, his posture no longer strained, but held together by something that felt far more controlled and dangerous than before.
Across from him, Knox remained where he was, the last traces of blue light fading around him as his gaze stayed fixed on Jule, watching the result of the exchange without moving.
Above the arena, the display shifted.
[Jule Vincere: 50%]
The reaction from the stands was immediate, not in the form of shouted voices, but in the way the spectators froze, leaned forward, or tightened their expressions as they processed how much damage had been dealt in such a short span of time.
Knox's eyes flicked briefly toward the display before returning to Jule, and a small change appeared in his expression, not concern, but curiosity, as if the result had been slightly different from what he expected.
"Hoo… interesting."
Jule didn't answer, and the aura around him pulsed once before he moved, his body cutting forward through the remaining haze as he closed the distance, his sword coming down in a direct strike that carried the red-black energy with it.
Knox shifted his footing and avoided the first attack by a narrow margin, his body turning just enough to let the blade pass before bringing his own sword up to meet the next swing, the sound of steel colliding ringing out as Jule continued pressing forward without pause.
Each of Jule's attacks came heavier than before, driven not only by his own strength but by the presence now guiding him, and Knox answered each one with precise movements, redirecting, parrying, and stepping out of range when needed before returning a cut of his own, maintaining control of the exchange even as the pressure rose again.
Their blades met once more in a direct clash, and this time the force of the collision pushed both of them apart, their feet sliding across the ground as the distance between them widened again in a single motion.
Jule was the first to steady himself, but the way he stood now was different from before, the red-black aura still clinging to his body and blade, moving in uneven pulses as if it had a will of its own, while his breathing remained rough and unstable.
"[Dammit…!]"
The sound came out low and strained, more like something forced through him rather than spoken, and even as he lifted his sword again, the movement carried that same wild edge that hadn't been there earlier.
Across from him, Knox stood still.
There was no rush in his posture, no sign that the previous exchange had shaken him, and as the last traces of blue light faded around him, a small smile slowly appeared on his face.
He tilted his head slightly, eyes still fixed on Jule, clearly noticing the change.
"Heeh…"
His voice came out light.
"Not bad."
The smile stayed. He adjusted his grip on the sword, the blade lowering slightly at his side as if he was about to move again.
"Then let's take it a step further."
His eyes sharpened just a little.
"You're not the only one who can enter phase two."
Knox didn't move after that, and instead of stepping in again, he let the pace slow on its own while his sword lowered slightly at his side, the faint smile still there but the feeling around him clearly changing.
The blue light along his blade began to gather, staying close to the metal as it thickened, and as he raised the sword, the shape of it started to change in a way that was easy to see.
The blade grew larger.
Not longer in a stretched way, but wider and heavier, the edge thickening until it looked closer to a greatsword than a normal one-handed blade, while the color stayed the same cold blue, now more solid and clearer along the entire surface.
The weight of it showed in its presence, but Knox still held it with one hand.
Behind him, a pale blue crescent appeared, large and steady, hanging in the air like a quiet moon, its light soft but clear enough to outline his figure and the new shape of the blade.
The air around him turned colder, and frost spread from under his feet across the ground in thin lines that followed the space around him, matching the calm and steady flow of energy now surrounding his body.
Across from him, Jule reacted right away, the red-black aura around him pulling tighter toward his sword, his stance shifting without thought as the sense of danger rose sharply.
"[—!]"
The sound came out rough and low, more like a reaction than a word, his eyes fixed on Knox as he took in the change.
Knox finished raising the sword, now clearly in its new form, the larger blade held at an angle while the crescent behind him remained still, and even without moving forward, the distance between them felt heavier, like the fight had just stepped into another phase.