Novel Full Chapter 378: Renna’s Loss
Chapter 378: Renna’s Loss
Cael approached him slowly. “So…”
Elias glanced sideways.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Cael asked.
“No.”
“You know he won’t fight like last time. Kellen won’t test the water again. He’ll come at you full.”
“I want him to.”
“Why?”
Elias looked back at the cracked stone seat he’d left behind.
“You already saw why.”
Elsewhere, Kellen Drein stood quietly behind the Wyrmere prep zone, his eyes fixed on the board.
He didn’t smile.
Didn’t blink.
But his aura stirred.
A slow pressure building like a tide behind a dam.
Not excitement.
Preparation.
Behind him, Dean Oryll finally spoke to his assistant without taking his eyes off the board.
“Notify the record keepers.”
“Of what?”
“That the match between Elias Verdan and Kellen Drein…” He paused.
“…will not follow precedent.”
The crowd waited.
Healers stood at the ready.
The barrier teams whispered among themselves about fortification reinforcement.
Not because they feared Elias or Kellen would lose control.
But because one of them eventually might.
As Renna stepped forward for her match, passing Elias, she caught his wrist briefly.
“Don’t hold back.”
He blinked.
She stared. “Don’t you dare. Not after what he did.”
He didn’t answer.
He didn’t need to.
A soft chime rang out — and Renna’s match began.
Back in the stands, Damon leaned forward again.
“She’s going to win.”
Miss Leana didn’t respond at first.
Then she responded with an exhale. “She has to. Or Elias won’t be able to stay calm.”
Damon frowned. “You think it matters to him that much?”
“No,” she said.
“I think they all matter. That’s what makes him dangerous.”
And behind them all — the crystal obelisk pulsed again.
An ancient heartbeat in floating glass.
A promise of what was coming next.
Not a duel.
Not a trial.
But the quiet collision of two power houses.
Renna stood at the edge of the platform, breath slow, eyes sharp.
Across from her, Cedric Van waited with both hands folded behind his back, his weapon — a slim, single-edged dueling blade with a bone-pale handle — resting at his side like a polished fang.
He didn’t move.
He didn’t blink.
He was already set.
And that’s what made him dangerous.
Cedric wasn’t like Kellen.
He wasn’t mimicking.
He wasn’t overwhelming.
He wasn’t waiting.
He was simply… executing.
A swordsman bred for tournament combat.
Perfected for it.
The announcer’s voice rolled like thunder across the Colosseum.
“Semifinal Match One: Renna Velmira versus Cedric Van. Combatants, ready… Begin.”
Renna didn’t rush.
She learned that lesson long ago.
Instead, she opened with an angular magic spell — one meant to spin and wrap midair like a twisting net.
Cedric flicked his blade once.
The magic spell sliced neatly in half.
The cut was clean.
Not forced.
It was designed to do that.
Renna’s brow creased.
Not a problem. Just information.
She began casting another spell. This one a shatter-trap meant to detonate on pulse trigger.
Cedric advanced without fear and she triggered it.
Boooom!!
It blew.
He stepped through the smoke and carved a half-circle in the ground — one that left no mark on the stone, but disrupted the essence path under her boots.
Renna stumbled.
Just for a heartbeat.
He didn’t follow up.
He just waited.
“Damn,” Cael muttered from ElderGlow’s viewing quadrant. “He’s reading her two moves ahead.”
Reiz, sitting upright now and partially healed, nodded slowly. “He’s countering spells he hasn’t even seen yet.”
Elias stood behind them, silent.
Watching.
Still.
Renna adjusted.
She stopped using mid-tier spells and returned to her base.
Raw force.
Targeted bursts.
Compressed angle shots, not traps.
She drove Cedric back.
He ducked. Parried. Let one graze his shoulder.
Then, with a twist of his foot and a shift of his blade — he drew a spiral line midair.
A disarming pulse.
Renna dropped her casting focus.
Reflex caught it before it hit the ground, but she was off rhythm.
Cedric came in.
One cut.
Then a second.
Clean lines — no blood.
His strikes didn’t aim to injure.
They aimed to break concentration.
And they did.
Renna staggered again, this time to recover spacing.
He followed. Closed. Slipped a trap line into her wake.
She dodged left—
Straight into a ward spell.
She saw it too late.
Crack.
A stunning pulse raced up her side, locking her right shoulder.
Cedric moved in again.
Not fast and not fierce.
Just… perfect.
A reverse-slash caught her across the thigh — disabling, not cutting.
Then a spin, a barrier pulse to the knee, and a final sweeping blow across her back shoulder.
Renna fell.
Hard.
But she didn’t pass out.
She pushed herself up with one good arm.
Blood at her lip. Breathing rough.
She summoned one last spell with her left hand.
Charged it.
Held it.
And stared up at him.
Cedric didn’t raise his blade again.
He just waited.
Because he knew she knew.
She wasn’t winning this.
Not today.
“Combatant unable to continue. Victory: Cedric Van.”
The crowd offered polite applause — respectful, muted.
No cheers. No chants.
This wasn’t a show.
It was a lesson.
Renna slowly dispelled the spell.
Let it fade from her hand.
Then stood on her own, even as the healers rushed forward.
She waved them off.
And walked off the stage without a limp.
In the prep zone, Cael stepped forward and met her halfway.
Said nothing.
Just touched her shoulder.
She nodded. “That was a machine in human form.”
Reiz exhaled. “You did well.”
Renna looked past both of them.
To Elias.
He met her eyes.
Didn’t speak.
Didn’t nod.
Just… watched.
And when she passed him, she whispered, “He’s colder than you.”
Elias didn’t reply.
But she saw the faintest twitch of his brow.
That was enough.
High above, the Dean of Thornevale didn’t smile.
She simply crossed her arms and leaned back.
“Efficient,” she said to no one in particular.
Dean Oryll said nothing.
His eyes were on the obelisk.
On the names.
On the duel about to begin.
Because now… it was time.
The arena’s light changed again.
The sigils around the main platform deepened, flaring brighter than before.
Extra layers were added.
Triple-seal containment.
Essence dampening.
Friction dampening.
Special.
Prepared.
“Semifinal Match Two: Elias Verdan versus Kellen Drein.”