Leon casted [Lightning Armor] over his own body. His draconic armor immediately flared. The air around him began to shimmer with intense heat and crackle with lightning sparks.
When the starting gong resounded, Crimson Shark sent hundreds of blood needles toward him.
But Leon didn't even bother evading. Even without evasion, the blood needles couldn't hit him. They evaporated instead. The heat coming off Leon's charged armor was too intense. The liquid component of the blood magic turned to steam before it could touch his skin.
Crimson Shark's eyes widened to see that. The magic he relied on was so easily countered. He tried to draw more blood from his own wound.
But Leon didn't give him the chance. His grimoire glowed and a pillar of thick lightning descended from the clear sky. It struck the pirate on the arena with the force of a falling mountain.
Crimson Shark screamed as the electricity paralyzed him and disrupted his spells.
Leon didn't miss the opportunity. He sprinted and moved into close range. His armored fist was crackling with raw lightning charge. He sent a straight punch to his opponent's face. Delivering a charged strike.
The fist coated with pure electric energy slammed into Crimson Shark's face. Ihe impact reverberated through the arena. Crimson Shark let out a guttural scream as he was thrown backward.
Leon dashed forward. Quickly grasped one of his opponent's legs before he was thrown out of the stage. It obviously wasn't to help.
He stepped hard and pivoted. Swinging Crimson Shark's body in a full rotation before slamming it hard to the ground.
The warlock, who had just recovered from the paralysis, spat blood. He was internally injured. But he managed to use his injury. Utilizing his blood control to shape the blood into blood bats, he sent them to attack Leon.
However, the armored mage ignored the bats. He slammed his lightning charged fist onto the warlock's face once more.
The blood bats charged and crashed against Leon's dark armor. However, they couldn't penetrate it. Instead they were sizzling. Cooked by the high degree of heat emitted by the [Lightning Armor] on the draconic plates.
Leon, meanwhile, grabbed Crimson Shark and forced him to stand... before slamming lightning-coated hook punches onto his ribs. Making the warlock screamed in pain.
Crimson Shark tried to retaliate feebly with a punch. Leon easily blocked it and headbutted the pirate warlock's face. The sound of a metal helmet hitting flesh and skull was... terrifying in a way.
Leon had controlled his power. He had made sure that the pirate wouldn't accidentally die from his attack. His aim was to hurt and injure. Not to kill. Not just because it would make him disqualified, but also because the pirate warlock would likely turn into a demon upon death.
Leon kept assaulting his opponent. This time, the duel was more like one-sided beating than a fierce duel. The armored mystic scholar was too powerful compared to the blood controlling eldritch warlock.
Finally, when Leon pulled back, Crimson Shark lay still. Unconscious, bleeding, and swollen all over. His bloody aura dimmed to a faint ember. He was very much alive, not even seriously injured. But, he suffered many moderate, yet painful damage all over his body.
The arena fell silent for a heartbeat before a loud cheer and applause exploded. Leon Drake was the victor of the match.
"Effective and efficient." Reina remarked. "Leon is getting better at controlling his power."
Jack nodded. "At least, he no longer needs to read that ridiculous long chant to cast his spells."
There was an hour break after the match. It was technically the time required for the combatants to heal and recover their strength. More than enough time for Lion Fist, Fuuka Chain, and Leon Drake to do so. Not so much for Crimson Shark though.
...
An hour later, the third-place battle was held. It was definitely a quick affair.
Fuuka Chain was completely recovered and clearly annoyed by her loss to the martial monk. She took out her frustrations on Crimson Shark.
The pirate warlock hadn't been completely recovered from Leon's assault in the previous match. And, Fuuka Chain didn't give him a chance to recover.
The shapeshifting sorceress used her kamaitachi speed to shred his remaining blood-powered defenses. She basically tossed him out of the ring within just two minutes. A quick affair indeed.
She took the third place announcement with a bored, unsatisfied expression.
...
Finally, it was the final. The match to decide the King of Battle Duel. The match between Leon Drake and Lion Fist.
The atmosphere in the arena had changed. Both combatants wore serious expression. They stood twenty paces apart.
Leon's draconic armor had already been fully manifested. Dark plates covered his chest, arms... practically his whole body. His grimoire floated on air beside him. Its pages were rustling in a wind only it could seem to feel.
Lion Fist stood on the opposite side. Wearing his simple, torn gi. His now bare hands, no longer wrapped in blue cloth, were open and relaxed.
The signal for the start rang loudly.
Leon didn't start with lightning strike. He started with [Lightning Armor]. A spell from his grimoire struck himself. His draconic armor immediately flared again. Intense heat was radiated from it and lightning sparks crackled all over it.
Lion Fist lowered his stance for a second. He took a deep, resonant breath that sounded like a bellows, and surged forward. His explosive speed this time could rival Fuuka Chain's top speed.
But Leon was ready. He met his opponent's fast charge without hesitation. He didn't use long ranged magic. Instead he infused his fists with the lightning enhancement power.
He struck back at the martial monk. Each punch was a calculated explosion of lightning.
Lion Fist deflected the strikes with his forearms. The sound of their collision was even louder than hammers hitting anvils.
"They're well-matched." Reina commented. Her eyes were fixed on the movement.
"Only because Leon wants a fair fight." Jack simply replied. "Leon has the edge in versatility. If he used his wings and rained lightning bolts at the monk, well... even I would be in trouble facing that."
Reina nodded. When unleashing all of his abilities, Leon would indeed be much stronger. If they had to rank him in their crew related to combat power, he would probably be in the second tier along with her and Baroness Artheim. Directly below the devastating Jack in his rakshasa's form.
Leon did prove his combat power in this tournament. The battle, even with him limiting his own abilities, was intense. He could compete fiercely in melee against the martial monk, a master of close quarter combat.
A loud magic enhanced roar exploded from Leon's mouth. A concussive wave that combined his armor's internal furnace with a the paralysis power of lightning slammed into Lion Fist's chest.
The heavy impact knocked the martial monk backward. Sweeping his feet off the ground. Lion Fist flipped in an acrobatic move backward. As he landed, the earth beneath him cracked. His martial art flat shoes struck the ground with a powerful force.
The monk was unfazed. He sprinted back to his opponent with weird gaits. A swift movement speed that combined a disciplined martial art with a burst of ki explosion from the sole of the feet.
He reached Leon in a fraction of second. Delivering an open palm filled with concentrated energy of ki power.
Jack recognized the attack. It was a famous martial art strike in this world. Often told in many tales. The [Storm Strike]. A single, powerful blow that sent chaotic ki energy. And it was aimed directly at Leon's torso.
Leon raised his arms to block. The [Storm Strike] met the arms. The collision created a near-blinding flash. And the sound was akin to a thousand battle drums struck together. The impact trembled the whole arena.
Both warriors were thrown back for a moment. But they all pushed forward. Each was unleashing their advanced techniques. Leon, drawing from his arcane knowledge and battle experience, charged his gauntlet with self generated lightning enhancement. Sending a spiraling electric energy aimed toward his opponent's chest.
Lion Fist, with a calm manner, extended his hand. Unleashing unadulterated flow of ki energy that met the electric energy. The clashed formed a dazzling whirlwind of crackling sparks and howling wind.
Leon seized the moment. Channeling two common mystic spells [Lightning Strike] and [Thunder Enhancement] into his draconic armor's plates simultaneously. The plate armor flared in a deep silver color. The latent thunderstorm within was spiking drastically.
He threw a punch forward. A spear of lightning-infused arcane energy pierced through Lion Fist's defensive, storm striking palm. The power embedded itself into martial monk's palm. The point sparked and puffed a brief plume of black smoke.
Lion Fist winced in pain. But his martial monk training quickly compensated that. He re-activated his inner ki. A calming aura of tranquility traveled down his spine. Bringing his body into its perfect alignment.
He retracted his injured palm with a single fluid motion. His bare hand glowed in dim golden color. The wound closed rapidly. Healing in just a matter of seconds.
Leon didn't stay still though. He charged in a full speed and threw a punch.
Lion Fist responded with [Earthquake Strike], slamming his palm to the ground with a force that sent fissures snaking across the arena. Removing the physical balance Leon required to keep charging. The key move he used to defeat Fuuka Chain.
Leon had read the move though. The martial monk had used it before after all. Detecting that the terrain shook wildly, he stepped hard and used the moment to leap. Somersaulting in the air, he dropped his boot's heel as an attack. A flying heel drop maneuver. Straight to the opponent's head.
It might work against other people. But, Lion Fist is different. He was a martial art master. The move was easily evaded. And he quickly retaliated with a ki-enhanced low kick. An attack easily blocked by the armored mage.
The two were now locked in a battle of resistance and adaptation. Each strike was answered with an equally potent countermove.
The crowd was a sea of motion. Shouting. Waving banners. And screaming the names of the two dueling combatants. Aura of excitement rippled through the air. Carried by the electric storm both duelists had shown.
The duel was much longer than the previous fights. Thirty minutes passed quickly and both combatants were still equally matched. The intensity of the battle changed though. It got more and more heated...
Mid-combat, the lines on Leon's draconic armor glowed even brighter. As if recognizing the decisive moment.
Jack's [Eyes of Judgement] informed him that Leon had entered the state called the 'Heart of the Dragon'. The awakening process for a dormant power lying deep within Leon's armor's core.
The state resonated through Leon's existence. Enhancing his senses and inflating his physical output. His armors and gauntlets became the bridge connecting his energy and the storm of raw magical energy unlocked by the awakening.
Simultaneously, Lion Fist's whole body radiated a powerful golden light now. The golden aura subtly merged with his head, torso, and limbs. The resulting effect created an aura of enhanced senses and significantly improve his resistance toward lightning.
Jack knew what was going on with the monk. His [Eyes of Judgement] had shown him. The martial monk experienced the state of 'Great Martial Resolve'. A status effect bloomed due to his discipline and talent.
At this juncture... both combatants locked eyes. Each recognized the other as an equally worthy opponent. The arena held its breath...
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