Chapter 111: Awakened Tournament Crisis (17)

Meanwhile, the participants’ lounge was considerably more peaceful.

Eden walked through the room, when suddenly the sound of the tournament’s live broadcast on a wall-mounted screen caught his attention.

The footage was currently showing highlights from the previous matches, including the moment Lucy had unleashed her V8 mode and the terrifying instant Eden had activated Malicious Spirit.

He had already seen those moments once.

He wasn’t particularly interested in watching them again.

Instead, he was looking for someone.

"Found you."

Jax sat near the opposite end of the lounge, one leg crossed over the other. His red wolfcut was slightly disheveled, and the expression on his face suggested that he was enjoying the break far more than anyone who had participated in the previous round had any right to.

The moment he noticed Eden approaching, his crimson eyes brightened.

"Oh? The tournament’s resident monster has come to visit me. Should I be honored?"

"Depends. Are you going to be useful?"

Jax smiled.

"Straight to business. I like that."

Eden took the seat opposite him.

"I wanted to ask you about Elio."

"Elio?"

"More specifically, his purple Essence."

Jax’s smile didn’t disappear, but his expression grew a little more thoughtful.

"I figured someone would ask about that eventually."

"You seemed to avoid it pretty desperately during your match."

"Desperately?" Jax placed a hand over his chest. "That’s a rather uncharitable way to describe my tactical brilliance."

"You spent half the fight trying not to get touched by it."

"Exactly. Tactical brilliance."

Eden stared at him.

Jax eventually sighed.

"Fine, fine. You’re right. That stuff is dangerous."

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

"At first, I thought it was some kind of attribute-draining ability. Whenever those purple snakes touched me, I could feel my Strength and Agility weakening. My movements became heavier and even my reactions slowed down."

Eden listened without interrupting.

"Then I realized something else was happening. The attributes I was losing weren’t simply disappearing. It felt like they were being transferred to Elio. Every time he landed a hit, he seemed to get stronger, faster, and more efficient with his Essence."

"So a debuff for his opponent and a buff for himself."

"That’s how it felt."

Jax’s eyes narrowed as he recalled the battle.

"But even that wasn’t the whole story. There were moments when I managed to avoid his attacks entirely, and he still seemed to gain something from the way he fought. His Essence was unusually dense, and his physical abilities fluctuated in a way that didn’t make sense."

He paused.

"Especially whenever he got back up."

Eden’s gaze sharpened.

Jax continued.

"You saw what happened during our match. I hit him with attacks that should’ve put him down for good. I shattered his jaw. I used my strongest technique. And every time, his body rose again."

His fingers curled slightly.

"It wasn’t normal. Sometimes it felt like his attributes surged the moment he should’ve been losing strength. His Essence seemed to recover just enough to keep him moving, even when his body had no business obeying him."

Eden fell silent.

He remembered the footage of Elio rising after the final blow, his body battered and his consciousness apparently gone. The image had been strange enough to stand out even among the ridiculous things that happened during high-level Awakened combat.

But hearing Jax describe it firsthand made it considerably more concerning.

"So his skill can weaken his opponent, strengthen himself, and possibly help him keep fighting when he’s already exhausted."

"That’s my best guess. I can’t tell you the exact mechanics. Whatever that purple Essence is, it’s not a simple offensive skill."

Eden leaned back, his expression becoming contemplative.

A skill capable of simultaneously weakening an enemy and enhancing its user was already troublesome. But if it also allowed Elio to continue fighting beyond his body’s natural limits, then the real danger wasn’t simply his raw power.

It was the fact that every exchange could gradually shift the battle in his favor.

The longer a fight continued, the more dangerous he might become.

A soft voice suddenly echoed inside Eden’s mind.

[You should be careful, Master.]

[That is a powerful ability. Even without understanding its full nature, we can tell that it serves as both a debuff and a buff. Skills like that are exceptionally troublesome in prolonged battles.]

Eden kept his expression unchanged.

’Don’t worry about it.’

[I’m serious.]

’So am I. Devour can absorb any kind of debuff. If his purple Essence tries to weaken my attributes, I’ll simply consume the effect.’

There was a brief pause.

[That is assuming your skill can absorb it before it affects you.]

’And even if it can’t, I’ll find another way.’

Eden’s lips curved faintly.

’I’m not planning to lose.’

Sylvia didn’t seem particularly reassured.

[Your confidence is admirable. Your tendency to treat every unknown threat as a personal challenge is less so.]

’You make it sound like those two things are unrelated.’

[They are, in fact, very closely related.]

Eden ignored her.

Across from him, Jax tilted his head.

"Something funny?"

"Just thinking."

"About Elio?"

"Among other things."

Eden returned his attention to Jax.

"Anything else I should watch out for?"

For the first time since their conversation began, Jax’s expression lost its playful edge entirely.

"Yeah."

He leaned back against the sofa.

"There’s one mistake you absolutely cannot afford to make."

Eden waited.

Jax looked directly into his eyes.

"Don’t assume he’s finished just because you knock him down."

The words were simple, but the seriousness behind them made Eden’s attention sharpen.

Jax continued.

"Even if you land a clean hit. Even if you break his bones. Even if he looks unconscious and stops moving. Don’t turn your back on him until you’re absolutely certain he can’t get up again."

His crimson eyes hardened.

"I made that mistake. I hit him with everything I had, and I thought I’d finally put him down. Then he stood up again, like his body didn’t understand that the fight should’ve been over."

Jax let out a short, humorless laugh.

"And you did the same thing against Lucy."

Eden raised an eyebrow.

"You’re comparing Elio to Lucy?"

"I’m comparing the mistakes, not the fighters. You knocked Lucy down, assumed she’d lost consciousness, and turned away."

Eden didn’t argue.

Because Jax was right.

He had made that exact mistake.

And although Lucy had ultimately lost, the moment she rose from the crater had been a significant advantage for her.

Jax pointed at him.

"Don’t repeat it against Elio. He might be unconscious. He might be barely breathing. He might look like he’s about to die."

His voice dropped.

"But if there’s even the slightest chance he can stand up again, assume he will."

For a moment, Eden said nothing.

Then he smiled.

Not the relaxed, faint smile he often wore when speaking to acquaintances, but something sharper.

"That’s good advice."

"I thought you’d appreciate it."

"I do. Though I can’t promise I’ll be gentle enough to give him the opportunity."

Jax burst out laughing.

"That’s the spirit! Just make sure you’re not the one lying in a crater when the announcer starts declaring victory."

Eden stood.

"I’ll keep that in mind."

As he turned to leave, Jax called after him.

"Hey, Eden."

He glanced back.

"Fighting is ultimately a sport. One about acknowledging each other, and enjoying yourself to the fullest."

"So don’t be too serious and enjoy yourself, yeah?"

Eden’s smile widened slightly.

"Sure. Thanks, Jax."

With that, Eden left the lounge.

His thoughts, however, remained fixed on Elio.

His silver eyes narrowed.

’Let’s see how many times you can get back up against me.’

---

By the time Eden had checked up on Lucy inside the infirmary, the medical staff had finished treating Elio.

The young man stood inside the arena, his silver hair falling neatly around his face. His purple eyes were calm, and there was little visible evidence of the punishment he’d endured against Jax.

Across from him stood Sonne.

The blonde-haired girl rolled her shoulders, her amber eyes fixed on the battlefield ahead. Unlike Elio, she had spent the break resting rather than recovering from a near-fatal beating, but the tension in her posture suggested she understood the scale of the challenge awaiting her.

She wasn’t intimidated.

If anything, she seemed eager to begin.

The stadium lights brightened, and the announcer’s voice thundered through the speakers.

"Ladies and gentlemen! Thank you for your patience!"

The crowd responded with an enormous wave of cheers.

"After a short break to allow our competitors to recover, the time has finally come for the last match of the semifinals!"

"On one side, the young prodigy who pushed Jax, the Martial God, to his absolute limit! An Awakened whose talent has already captured the attention of the Association and the nation’s greatest guilds!"

Elio stepped forward.

"ELIO!"

The stadium erupted.

"And on the other side, the Ice Princess of the tournament! A warrior who defeated the Lightning Prodigy through sheer determination and the overwhelming might of her Ice Magic!"

Sonne’s expression remained composed as she walked toward the arena.

"SONNE!"

The cheers grew even louder.

Eden watched from the participants’ area, his gaze moving between the two fighters.

The final semifinal was about to begin.

The announcer raised his voice one final time.

"ELIO VERSUS SONNE! LET THE MATCH BEGIN!"