199 KILLING THE TOP RANK
Damen was in a desperate situation.
Thick vines constricted him from top to bottom, wrapping around his arms, legs, and torso. He smashed and tore at them, but the roots were too tough. Even when he broke a few, others sprang up to replace them.
"Damnit… how do I get out of this bloody plant?" he muttered, frustration creeping into his voice.
He didn't know how. Then he had an idea.
He took out his phone and texted the referee of the match…Yes, he owned the auditorium and also the match…. And so, he waited.
Outside the dome, the three challengers watched.
"How long do you think he can last in there?" Kooma asked.
"Well, air still gets through the gaps between vines. He won't suffocate," Rela replied calmly.
"Does that mean he can stay inside forever?" Carl asked impatiently.
They waited. And waited.
"Hey! Are you fighting or not?" the crowd screamed.
"Imprisoning him… does that count as a win?" another shouted.
The challengers exchanged uneasy glances. "Now what?"
Suddenly, the bell rang. A short announcement followed:
"End of Round 1. Challengers, remove your powers, otherwise you shall be disqualified from the duel."
"Hey, that's unfair", Rela screamed.
"Those are the rules", the referee replied.
Reluctantly, Rela released the vines. Damen opened his eyes and smiled.
"Not bad…" he said, before adding, "…but it's not so easy to defeat me next time."
The recess ended.
Damen had studied their techniques, understood their coordination. He wouldn't be caught off guard again.
The bell rang.
Carl conjured enormous water elephants, charging toward him with tremendous force. Damen didn't evade this time. The meta skill was Rank B at most, while his Rank AA armor made him untouchable.
He dashed straight through the elephants.
At the same time, Kooma fired a laser from above. Damen didn't dodge that either.
"Mere water elephants and lasers won't kill me!" he shouted.
Both Carl and Kooma were stunned.
Their powers had been enhanced by special techniques, reaching Rank B intensity. Few could endure them without harm … but Damen did.
Then he reached Rela.
She was mid-preparation, trying to summon her entrapment power.
"I know your bloody weakness", Damen said.
Concentration and time were required to conjure the plant dome. That was the reason Rela didn't make a move until very late during the last round…she was preparing the move.
This round though, Damen wouldn't give her the luxury of time to execute her move.
Damen's hand closed around her neck, squeezing. She coughed in pain, her defenses nullified.
He turned slowly to Carl and Kooma.
Stunned, they unleashed their ultimate combination: a tsunami of water and blazing beams of light, like falling suns. Damen didn't flinch.
His body absorbed the attacks.
Only Rela had felt their impact.
In a single dash, Damen struck Kooma with a powerful kick. Kooma was lifted into the air. Inside his chest, a kinetic force from Momentum Collapse rippled and fractured him. A second strike, then a third, and finally a fourth sent him crashing out of the arena.
Damen threw Rela out as well.
Both were rushed to the infirmary.
Only Damen and Carl remained.
"Well," Damen said, smiling, "it's just you and me now."
Carl stammered backward. He hadn't expected this level of power from Damen. None of his calculations had prepared him for this.
The crowd gasped.
"Who is this boy, who can withstand a tsunami and falling suns?" one whispered.
"He must have some super artifact," another guessed.
"No… maybe it's a time-based invulnerability. He becomes untouchable for a short period," a third speculated.
Damen ignored them.
He dashed at Carl. His hand closed around Carl's neck, snapping with unstoppable force. The kinetic power of Momentum Collapse crushed Carl's skull.
"Argghhh", Carl screamed, but it was too late. Damen was determined to make an example of him otherwise there would be no peace for him.
"One must die…to make a point."
Carl Nuralith collapsed to the ground… dead.
"Damen Dark wins."
The crowd was stunned.
Killings in the arena were not unheard of …. but this was an heir of a major family.
"Is that even legal, killing Carl Nuralith?"
"The Nuralith will fall on him like a plague."
Chaos was coming, and no one could deny it.
-----
Keris burst into the dean's office, breathless. "Have you heard? Damen Dark won again!"
"What? How… how can he defeat our top four?" Liric asked, panic rising in his voice.
"It was only three of them. Luna Trionix quit before the fight," Keris corrected.
"Still… three against one? That's impossible," Liric muttered, shaking his head.
Dean Aelion, however, wasn't focused on that. "Are any of them hurt?"
Keris's chest heaved. "Both Kooma and Rela are in the hospital. Their conditions… similar to the others."
Aelion exhaled, relief briefly softening his features. "At least Carl Nuralith and Damen Dark are okay…"
Keris's expression darkened. "Damen Dark is fine… but Carl Nuralith is dead."
"What? Dead? Carl Nuralith? The former genius of our college?" Aelion's voice cracked, a mix of disbelief and anger.
"Yes. It's true," Keris said flatly.
Liric sank to the floor, stunned. "Carl Nuralith… is dead? Will they blame this on me?"
"They very well should," Aelion muttered, his fists clenching.
At that moment, an assistant rushed in, bowing slightly. "Dean Aelion, the guardians of the wounded students from the ranking competition are here, seeking answers."
Aelion slapped his forehead, his mind racing. "Damnit… what am I going to do now?"
----
[The Veyran residence]
"Father, I'm not marrying Carl Nuralith…no matter what." Eryn's voice was steady, but defiant.
Valtor Veyran's jaw tightened. "You're being stubborn. This is for your own good. The Nuraliths are one of the major families in Silver City. An alliance with them is how we prosper."
"I don't like him," Eryn said simply.
Valtor's face darkened. "It's about that boy again… Damen Dark. I'll kill him if that will make you marry Carl."
Eryn didn't flinch. "Father, you no longer hold the patriarch's power in Melrose. In Silver City, your threats don't reach Damen."
Valtor's hand shot up angrily, but before it could fall, Belgore, his brother, burst into the room. "Brother, I have bad news."
Valtor sneered, "What news could be worse than my daughter's disobedience?"
"It's Damen Dark." Belgore's tone was flat.
"Damen? What happened?" Eryn demanded.
"What about that bastard?" Valtor barked.
"He's…. he murdered Carl Nuralith." Belgore's words landed like a stone.
Valtor collapsed to a chair, pale. "What? How is that possible?"
Eryn's face changed … not with fear, but with something like relieved triumph. "This is the best news I've heard since I came here."
Belgore's voice turned urgent and businesslike. "This is serious, Eryn. It's not a child's squabble anymore. Without the backing of the major families, our business will suffer. Even the main Veyran family considers us as burden."
Valtor suddenly coughed; blood spattered his hand.
Eryn rushed to his side. "Father, are you…? You don't have to worry about my marriage now. Carl Nuralith is dead."
Valtor's eyes flicked between defeat and calculation.
There was nothing he could do—Carl was gone. Proposing another match would meet the same stubborn refusal.
Then, slowly, an alternative formed. "I can stop forcing marriages," Valtor said, voice thin, "but…"
"But what? I'll do anything." Eryn's resolve was immediate.