The standoff between Jack and the platinum-ranked instructor continued, the two glaring into each other's eyes. Then Jack moved. Lightning surged through his body as he blitzed forward, appearing behind the instructor in a flash and catching him off guard. But the instructor reacted instantly, spinning to his left and raising his shield just in time to block Jack's slash.
The instructor thought himself. "A lightning user, huh?"
The instructor shoved Jack's sword aside with his shield and immediately followed with a downward slash toward Jack's head. Before the blade could fall, Jack formed an ice shard in his left hand and hurled it at the instructor's chest, forcing him to stagger backward.
"A-a ice??" The instructor was shocked.
Before the instructor could react further, he lifted his shield and intercepted Jack's downward slash. The force of the blow nearly drove him to one knee as an icy chill spread through his chest. The two warriors continued with frenetic slashes and parries. The instructor then thrust his sword toward Jack's chest, but Jack spun to the left, weaving past the attack.
The instructor was slow to realize that Jack had already dodged. When he turned his head to the right, he saw Jack with an elemental infusion prepared in his sword. Reacting quickly, he raised his shield to block as Jack unleashed an icicle slash at him.
"Ah, crap." Jack muttered as he noticed the lion's eyes glowing brighter and its mouth snapping shut, just in time to block and absorb his slash.
The instructor raised his sword and unleashed a burst of flaming pressure toward Jack. Seeing the attack, Jack rolled to the side, narrowly dodging the blast as the swing struck the arena wall instead.
The impact made the arena seating tremble, leaving the audience momentarily shaken. Frozen for a moment, the crowd exploded with excitement. Even Caelus was fired up by the display, grinning and applauding as he watched the fight. Alette then flew back and hovered beside Caelus after finishing her interview.
"Ugh, finish...now what did I miss?"
"Something great!"
"Really? Aww shucks!!"
"Don't worry, it's only just a start. Oh look! There it is!"
Alette and Caelus continued to watch the fight. Jack lifted his head and widened his eyes as he saw the instructor leap into the air. The instructor raised his shield, its lion jaws opening as a freezing breath poured from it. Jack knew what was about to happen, so he leapt back to the side, escaping the attack's range. The instructor crashed down in a powerful slam, releasing a burst of medium-sized ice crystals in a tight radius around him.
Jack landed lightly on his feet. The instructor immediately swung his sword, sending three flaming projectiles hurtling toward him. Jack reacted instantly, he flipped to the side to evade the first, ducked low to avoid the second, and dragged his sword along the ground, raising a line of earthen spikes that smashed through the third.
Without slowing down, both fighters rushed toward each other. Jack stepped onto the earthen spikes, vaulted over them, and brought his sword down at the instructor. The instructor raised his shield to block, allowing the lion's maw to snap shut around Jack's blade and hold it fast.
"I have your sword! Now what are you going to do?!"
"Heh." Jack smirked. "Planning to scold the lion to let go."
Jack released his sword from his grasp and blitzed behind the instructor, wind and fire colliding in his right fist. The instructor anticipated the move and quickly raised his shield to block Jack's attack. But at that moment, the sword tore free from the lion's maw. As it flew out, its guard struck the instructor's arm, knocking his shield aside, at the same time, and leaving him slightly exposed.
"What!"
Jack's fist, wrapped in a blazing whirlwind of fire and wind, drove straight into the instructor's gut. The force hurled him across the arena and into the wall. The impact cracked the stone, and a cloud of dust burst outward from the shattered surface.
The arena erupted in stunned murmurs as the audience realized what had just happened. Jack had just overwhelmed a platinum-ranked instructor. Jack stood calmly, raising his open hand to catch his returning sword by the handle. He watched as the instructor emerged from the shattered wall and fell to one knee, breathing heavily after taking the hit, before lifting his head to look at Jack.
"Well fought." The instructor pushed himself to his feet using his sword for support, then slid the blade back into its sheath at his waist and strapped the shield onto his back.
"Hope I didn't break any bones." Jack said as he sheathed his sword on his back.
"Nah, just a minor bruise, and..." Clicked his tongue. "A bit cold."
Jack chuckled as the crowd erupted into applause for his victory over the platinum-ranked instructor. Soon, murmurs spread through the arena as people began wondering if Jack himself might be platinum-ranked, or perhaps even higher. Nearby, Alette and Caelus cheered and celebrated his win.
"Wow, your friend is strong!"
"Hehe, I know, right!"
"You and your fairy friend may stay inside the hub and await the result." the instructor said to Jack.
"Alright, thanks for the spar."
"Indeed, I had fun. Now I'll take a seat and let someone else have their turn. Farewell."
Jack waved goodbye as the instructor made his way back to the bench beside the healer. As he sat down, another platinum-ranked instructor stood up from the bench and walked toward the center of the arena.
Jack walked toward Alette and looked up, waiting for her to follow. "Alette, you coming?"
"Oh! Coming!" Alette called as she flew toward Jack.
"Hey, Jack! Hope you don't mind waiting while I finish this." Caelus said as he vaulted into the arena.
"Sure thing."
"Good luck, mister Caelus!"
Caelus turned his head toward the other platinum-ranked instructor, a witch in her thirties. She wore a light blue robe and a flower-decorated witch hat, while a spellbook floated quietly beside her.
"So." The platinum-ranked witch said with a faint smile, her floating spellbook drifting beside her. "Ready for a spar?"
"You betcha!" Caelus slammed his fist into his open palm and flashed a confident grin, clearly eager for the fight.