The arena trembled as lightning sparks danced through the air.
Seraphine stood calmly in the center of the battlefield, electricity flowing around her body like a living storm.
Across from her, Kael rolled his shoulders slowly.
Golden Origin Energy pulsed through his veins.
Both fighters had now tested each other.
Now the real battle was beginning.
Seraphine smiled slightly.
"You're stronger than I expected."
Kael shrugged.
"You're faster than I expected."
Lightning crackled around her arm again.
"Then let's raise the stakes."
She lifted both hands.
"Lightning Field."
Electric currents spread across the arena floor like glowing veins.
The air itself began humming with power.
Kael instantly felt the difference.
The environment had changed.
Lightning Aether filled the battlefield, amplifying Seraphine's speed and attacks.
"Another domain-like technique," Kael thought.
Seraphine moved.
"Lightning Step!"
Her body vanished again.
This time she appeared behind Kael.
"Thunder Blade!"
A sharp arc of lightning sliced toward him.
Kael reacted instantly.
"Origin Step!"
His body flashed sideways.
The lightning blade barely missed his shoulder.
The ground behind him exploded.
Kael turned quickly.
But Seraphine had already moved again.
Lightning streaks appeared across the arena like flashes of blue light.
She attacked again.
And again.
Each strike faster than the last.
Even with Origin Step, Kael was beginning to feel pressured.
The audience leaned forward anxiously.
"She's overwhelming him!"
"That lightning technique is insane!"
High above the arena, Elder Taron watched carefully.
"Kael needs to evolve his movement technique," he murmured.
Back in the arena, another lightning strike shot toward Kael's chest.
He blocked it with crossed arms.
BOOM!
The impact pushed him several meters back.
Seraphine stopped moving.
Her silver eyes studied him carefully.
"You're adapting."
Kael exhaled slowly.
"That's kind of my specialty."
Inside his chest, the Origin Core spun faster.
The golden energy in his legs pulsed rhythmically.
The structure of Origin Step began changing.
Refining.
Improving.
Kael closed his eyes briefly.
Then he stepped forward.
And disappeared.