Chapter 98: Awakened Tournament Crisis (4)

Thirty minutes passed before the arena was ready again.

The destruction left behind by Lucy and Luvian’s battle had been considerable.

Nearly a kilometer of the arena floor had been reduced to fractured stone. Several massive sections of reinforced flooring had been completely blown away, while scorch marks and craters covered the battlefield from one end to the other.

Yet by the time the next match was ready to begin, most of it had already been repaired.

The Awakened Association had spared no expense preparing for the third round.

Specialized restoration relics had been embedded beneath the arena, working alongside modern technology to reconstruct damaged structures. Broken stone rose from the ground, cracks sealed themselves, and destroyed sections of the battlefield were rebuilt almost seamlessly.

It was almost as if the previous fight had never happened.

Unfortunately, the scars left behind by Lucy and Luvian’s battle were far too deep to disappear completely.

The audience certainly hadn’t forgotten.

They were still talking about it.

"That Lucy girl was insane!"

"Did you see those explosions?!"

"She was only a C-Rank in the first round!"

"How many more monsters like that are there in these tryouts?"

The announcer eventually returned to the center of the arena.

"Thank you for your patience, everyone!"

The crowd gradually quieted.

"Our next match is about to begin!"

The giant holographic screen above the arena flickered.

Two names appeared.

The reaction was immediate.

A wave of murmurs spread throughout the stadium.

Then the rank indicators appeared.

Sophia - C-Rank

Eden - A-Rank

For a moment, the entire stadium seemed to freeze.

Then the crowd exploded.

"A-RANK?!"

"Wait, he’s an A-Rank?!"

"That Eden guy?!"

"How the hell is an A-Rank in these tryouts?!"

"Is that even possible?!"

Even some of the guild representatives sitting in the VIP section leaned forward.

Eden could hear the commotion as he entered the arena.

He scratched the back of his head.

"This is sort of annoying."

Inside his mind, Sylvia giggled.

[You should be proud, Master. Everyone is amazed by you.]

"I didn’t particularly ask for their recognition."

Eden sighed.

He had already experienced enough attention during his first round.

He didn’t particularly want thousands of people staring at him like he was some kind of rare specimen.

Unfortunately, there was no hiding it now.

A-Rank.

That single letter had completely changed how everyone viewed him.

Eden walked toward the center of the arena.

Across from him, Sophia entered.

Unlike Eden, she looked incredibly nervous.

She kept glancing toward him.

It wasn’t difficult to understand why.

They knew each other.

They were friends.

But standing in front of her now, wasn’t her Friend Eden.

It was an A-Rank Awakened that she was supposed to fight.

Eden’s eyes softened slightly.

"Hey, Sophia."

She looked up.

"Y-Yeah?"

Eden smiled awkwardly.

"So... nothing’s going to change between us after this, right?"

Sophia blinked.

"What?"

"You know."

Eden gestured between them.

"Regardless of who wins."

For a brief moment, Sophia stared at him.

Then she smiled.

A nervous but genuine smile.

"Of course not."

She raised her hand.

Purple Essence began gathering around her.

"So don’t worry about it."

The Essence condensed.

A massive purple spear appeared in her hands.

[Amethyst Spear]

Eden stared at it.

Then smiled faintly.

That was all the confirmation he needed.

She wanted to fight him.

And she sure as he’ll didn’t want him to hold back.

’Fine.’

Eden rolled his shoulders.

Inside his mind, Sylvia suddenly spoke.

[Master, would you like me to strengthen you with Dark Matter?]

’What?!’

’Hell no!’

[Are you certain?]

’Sylvia, that would be an overkill.’

Sylvia sounded slightly disappointed.

[I thought perhaps you wanted to make sure you won.]

Eden narrowed his eyes.

’Do you have some kind of grudge against Sophia?’

There was a brief silence.

[...No.]

’Are you sure about that?’

[Of course, Master.]

Eden could practically hear the innocent smile in her voice.

He sighed.

’I’m an A-Rank now.’

He looked across the battlefield.

’Sophia is still a C-Rank.’

There was no reason for him to use Dark Matter.

Their difference in rank alone was enough to determine the outcome.

Even if Sophia possessed an exceptional skill, she couldn’t bridge the sheer gap in attributes.

The announcer raised his hand.

"Both contestants are ready!"

The stadium became quiet.

"Begin!"

Sophia immediately moved.

She thrust the Amethyst Spear forward.

A gigantic purple spear of Essence shot toward Eden.

It was fast.

For a C-Rank, it was exceptionally fast.

The attack ripped through the air with enough force to create a visible shockwave.

Just as the spear got closer, Eden disappeared.

Sophia’s eyes widened.

"What?!"

Eden crossed the entire distance between them in an instant.

He didn’t even need Burst-Step.

His raw Agility was simply too high.

He appeared directly in front of Sophia.

Her eyes met his.

Eden smiled apologetically.

"Sorry."

His fist moved.

He didn’t use any of his buffs or skills.

He simply punched.

The impact was enormous.

Sophia’s body was launched backward.

A massive shockwave tore across the arena.

The ground beneath Eden’s feet cracked.

Sophia flew nearly a hundred meters before slamming into the ground.

Dust filled the air.

The audience fell silent.

Eden lowered his fist.

"...Did I hit her too hard?"

Sylvia answered immediately.

[Yes.]

"Ah..."

"Crap."

[You should try containing your strength next time, Master.]

’Containing my strength...?’

’That’s a first.’

Eden stared at the cloud of dust.

A few seconds passed.

The dust slowly settled.

Sophia lay unconscious inside a small crater.

The announcer stared at the battlefield.

He looked at the unconscious Sophia.

Then at Eden.

Then back at Sophia.

His mouth opened.

Nothing came out.

Finally, he raised his microphone.

"...The winner..."

He swallowed.

"Is Eden!"

The stadium erupted.

Some spectators cheered.

Others were simply stunned.

The entire fight had lasted less than five seconds.

Eden walked toward the exit.

He scratched his cheek.

"That was probably a little excessive."

Inside his mind, Sylvia answered gently.

[She will understand, Master.]

"I hope so."

He glanced back at Sophia.

"I’ll make it up to her regardless."

He hoped the punch hadn’t caused more damage than necessary.

He had been careful.

At least, he thought he had.

But after becoming A-Rank, the gap between himself and ordinary C-Ranks had become absurd.

It was easy to forget just how much stronger he had become.

As Eden returned to the participant area, Lucy was already sitting there.

She gave him an amused look.

"That was fast."

Eden sat beside her.

"I didn’t exactly have many options."

Lucy raised an eyebrow.

"You could have let her hit you at least."

"I did consider that."

"And?"

"Holding back like that would have been insulting to her efforts."

Lucy sighed.

"I guess you have a point."

Eden leaned back.

A strange feeling settled in his chest.

He didn’t enjoy fighting people like Sophia.

He didn’t want to hurt people he considered friends.

But this was a tournament.

And Sophia had chosen to fight.

He had respected her decision.

That was all he could do.

The announcer’s voice suddenly rang through the stadium several minutes later.

"Our next match is about to begin!"

Eden looked toward the arena.

The holographic screen changed.

Two new names appeared.

ALEXIS

SONNE

The crowd immediately became excited again.

Both were C-Ranks.

But neither was an ordinary C-Rank.

Alexis was known as the Lightning Prodigy.

Sonne was the Gatewalkers Guildmaster’s younger sister.

Two exceptionally talented Awakened.

Lucy leaned slightly toward Eden.

"Who do you think will win?"

Eden looked at the arena.

"Alexis."

Lucy nodded.

"I thought so too."

"He’s faster."

"And stronger?"

"Probably."

Lucy smiled.

"But?"

Eden glanced at her.

"But Sonne has that Domain."

Lucy nodded.

"That’s what I was thinking."

The two contestants entered the battlefield.

Alexis walked casually.

His long cyan hair swayed behind him.

His shades remained firmly over his eyes despite the enormous stadium lights.

His Hawaiian shirt looked almost absurdly casual compared to the seriousness of the tournament.

Sonne, meanwhile, walked silently.

Her expression was calm.

But Eden noticed something immediately.

She was focused.

More focused than during their previous fight.

She wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice.

The announcer raised his hand.

"BEGIN!"