There were more cameras than usual—all of them shuttering and floating around the arena. Del was flung left and right by the excited crowd as he pushed his way through. The clamor almost drowned out the emcee's words, "That's right, esteemed Magicians! It has finally happened!" his voice was amplified by a loudspeaker spell, "You know who's gonna fight today, don't you?"
The audience went absolutely mad at that. Whistles and claps flew out. And to Del, who had never been to a big event like that, it was fascinating. Magicians were known to be scholars, composed, and raffinate. Clearly, AUC matches turned them into mindless animals. Interestingly enough, someone aptly named that phenomenon the 'AUC fever'. However, at the moment, Del couldn't bring himself to feel any of that delirium. And the reason was pretty simple.
He had been replaced.
The AUC reasoned that someone of Jered's caliber and fame needed a manager of higher standing and experience. He did receive a severance package worth 50 thousand dollars, but it was a pitiful sum compared to his friendship and closeness to Jered. As much as it was unfair, he couldn't afford to complain—not if he didn't want to lose his money, and then his life. The higher-ups were more greedy than wise, and anything that threatened their plans had to be dealt with.
Del gritted his teeth and pushed harder, until he managed to slip through a couple of outraged Magicians and reach the railings of the arena.
The magical, floating flood lights almost blinded him. A frenzied chorus of "Jered! Jered! Jered!" went off like fireworks all around him. Magicians competed with their own spells to make their voices louder and louder, hoping to be heard through the deafening cacophony.
On the opposite side of the arena, the crowd chanted a different name. A name that Del used to hold in reverence long ago—before he met Jered. And it just reminded him how far they both had come, though now, he had been left behind.
"Eldwyn! Eldwyn! Eldwyn!"
His hands balled into fists, his heart thudding like the furious stomping of a Titan.
Everything was so perfect, but he wasn't there, next to him.
Even so, he had to show his support.
Del heaved a deep breath in, stretched over the railing, and cupped his hands around his mouth, "JEEEEREEEED!" his raw scream continued until the lack of oxygen gripped his lungs.
And when he recovered his breath, nothing had really changed, but Jered briefly eyed his direction and smiled.
"He noticed me!" Del gushed, "Jered noticed me!"
The Magicians around him promptly ignored him
"He noticed me..." he breathed out, though a hint of sadness made it in his voice.
----
Eldwyn was a delicately handsome man, and quite young too. Jered had been informed that he was a mixed blood. The offspring of a human and an Elf, hence a tricky opponent. More importantly, he was an Elder Magician that ranked 150 in the Global Ranking. 'Be careful,' he had been told. And for good reason too. Anyone in the top 200 was extremely close to unlocking their fourth vein. The only difference between them was that Eldwyn was 72 years old while Jered had yet to hit his 20s.
Naturally, that stirred a whole cauldron of shit since few people dared to believe that such a young Elder Magician existed.
After it was confirmed, someone raised the question of whether Jered was capable of besting an older Magician of the same tier. Some fancy spells couldn't make up for the gap in experience.
Some still held their doubts while Jered's fanbase grew at a ridiculous rate.
Eldwyn eyed Jered up and down, an easygoing smile etched on his pretty face, "Pleased to make your acquaintance, young Jered," he even slightly bowed his head.
"Likewise, Eldwyn," Jered returned with a dip of his head.
Basic courtesy. He didn't mind it. Actually, he preferred it over obnoxious trash talk.
The audience burst into applause at their brief interaction.
"Jered von Jacobs versus Eldwyn Woodcraft! Come on, guys! Make some noise for these two amazing talents!"
And so, without further ado, the emcee signaled the start of the match.
Jered probed his opponent's spellwork by casting 'Fireball'. A simple spell. The sphere of fire swirled in the air, growing bigger and bigger, until the heat began affecting the surrounding audience. Thankfully, there was a golden shimmer at the edge of the arena that protected the spectators. With a flick of his fingers, the 'Fireball' darted forward. Eldwyn frowned at the intensity of the flame, but didn't panic. With a grandiose wave of his hands, he converted the humidity in the air into water, and swiftly enveloped it around the incoming attack.
Eldwyn's frown deepened when Jered's 'Fireball' easily vaporized his screen of water and sped off at him undisturbed.
"This is rather troublesome..."
He had no time to cast another counter-attack, so he imbued copious amounts of mana into his feet and ghosted out of the way.
The 'Fireball' blasted into the ground he was just in, swelling up into a storm of heat and embers.
Eldwyn erected a 'Mana Barrier' to ward off the sweltering shockwaves.
It was then that he was alerted of a burst of wispy smoke behind him.
'A teleport spell?!'
Eldwyn had obviously done his homework regarding Jered's abilities. A teleport spell—even a short-range one—would consume a staggering quantity of mana. He didn't think Jered would randomly, and so nonchalantly, use it when their match had barely started, "Don't be so surprised, pal," came the smooth, confident whisper. There was no hint of exhaustion in his tone. Instead, when Eldwyn whipped around, he was met with a wild outpouring of mana.
In a desperate struggle to put some space between them, Eldwyn summoned a cluster of pointy shards of ice and lashed them out at him.
"I usually don't humor myself in long speeches during fights," Jered said as he augmented himself with 'Physical Enhancement' and danced his way through the icy barrage, "But I'm glad. I'm glad that this is easy. I was looking forward to this match, to see how much stronger I am than all of you."
"..."
Eldwyn gritted his teeth. The shards of ice slowed down to a halt a few inches from the barrier. Then, they made an abrupt u-turn and whizzed back at Jered—faster, stronger. However, a crimson wall of fire curled out of the ground with great momentum and swallowed the shards.
A faint mist dispersed from the collision.
Jered pumped so much mana into his 'Firewall' that the flickering flames fattened up like a pimple ready to burst.
He visualized a rose; for some reason, it had become his favorite shape. Probably because of Lucy—she had insisted on multiple occasions to use that shape. He didn't know why, but she seemed to like it. And now it stuck with him.
The 'Firewall' slimmed down, its tip stretching into a bud where burning petals danced around.
Eldwyn lifted a hand up, fingers spread wide open as he siphoned water vapor off the air and froze it. A long, thick, icy spear formed, levitating above him. With his other hand, Eldwyn conjured a swirling cluster of water whips and meticulously wrapped them around the spear. And to ensure the dual spell combination didn't crumble under his poor control over them, he added a burst of 'Telekinesis' to glue them together.
The level of concentration, effort, and skill it took left the majority of the audience baffled.
"H-How is it?!" Eldwyn demanded, panting, a sheen of sweat coating his forehead, "Can you do something like this, huh?!"
"It took you two more spells to replicate the power of mine," Jered commented, his hand swaying down. As if on cue, the fire petals arched down through the air and rained towards Eldwyn.
The sizzling heat bothered Eldwyn, but he powered through it and flung his hand forward.
A burst of mist went off as the spear of ice met the scorching corolla of petals. A series of hisses followed as each petal wrapped around the frozen shaft.
A beautiful sight unfolded as the spear seemed to be trapped by the vine of the rose, their colors meshing and glowing, radiating waves upon waves of mana.
The entire arena was covered in a layer of fog.
Eldwyn frowned, his breathing ragged as he struggled to catch the silhouette of his foe.
Usually, he would have used a wind spell to clear out the mist, but all of his mana was being redirected towards keeping his spear together.
A hand touched his shoulder.
"No!" Eldwyn's delicate face twisted as he turned around, just in time to breathe in the tendrils of black smoke. He choked, bursting into a fit of coughs. His control over the spells slipped, and the backlash sent painful jolts throughout his Mana Circuit, "Damn..."
Jered cloaked his other hand in 'Physical Enhancement' and plowed it into Eldwyn's back, through his stomach.
"Your downfall is going to make me filthy rich."
And when he pulled back, a jet of blood spilled out, falling down the frozen ground in thin, crimson streamlets.
Eldwyn had a hazy look of disbelief as he staggered back. There was a reluctant glint in his eyes, a resolve to keep standing despite the fatal wound—'fatal' because he was close to being mana-drained, and any more resistance would have led to his death. And contrary to his pitiful condition, Jered had yet to consume a third of his mana pool. There was no wound or sweat on him. Not even his clothes were ruffled. With a sigh, he let his knees give in, his body tumbling down, "...fuck..." he croaked out, slowly bleeding out.
Darkness encroached on his vision, tugging him into unconsciousness.
There was a stretch of silence as the crowd registered the waning flames, the thawing ice, and the blooming pool of blood underneath Eldwyn.
".... Aaaaand we have a winner!"
The emcee's words woke them up.
A tumult of applause, chants, whistles, and love confessions went off.
"Jered von Jacobs did it! He fucking did it!" the emcee cried out excitedly, spittle flying out, "Come on, guys! Show some support for this future powerhouse!"
"Jered!"
"Jered!"
"Jered!"
Del held his heart as he watched him, feeling his heart thrumming against his hand. Each throb sent a shiver down his spine. The scene in front of him was dreamlike, a figment of his fantasies, something he had only imagined and hoped in his mind. Only, he was not part of it. And that was fine, but he wanted to share a bit of that success, to be recognized by Jered. He deserved it. Because no one else but him had been there for him from the beginning.
He bit his lip and swallowed his pride.
'Fuck the Arcane Underground Combat.'
Del shouted out loud, though his voice was lost within the maddened chorus of fans. He hopped up and rolled over the railing. A few Magicians noticed him, but he bolted into a sprint, his hand elongating, reaching for those beautiful green eyes.
"Catch him!"
Someone yelled, though even that was outsounded by the loud cocktail of noises.
A team of Magicians ran after him.
Del was not physically fit, so there was no hope for him to stay in the lead for long. Still, he wanted to at least greet Jered.
And tell him how spectacular of a fight it was.
And, that, even though he wouldn't be there at his side, he'd be watching him.
Always.
Del grunted as a spell hit his back. His vision turned upside down, and before he knew it, he was down on the cold ground, rolling forward in an undignified fashion.
Tears welled up in the corner of his eyes.
"So unfair..."
He was surrounded.
"Leave him alone," a voice spoke up, scattering the guards like frightened animals, "He's a friend."
Del smiled, feeling the urge to sob, but he squelched it down. He had to show his 'cool' side to him.
"Del."
"Jered..."
"You look unsightly."
"Hahahaha... right?"
"You run like a girl," Jered sighed.
Del pouted, "I don't..."
"Let's get out of here, Del. I have big plans for you, my friend."
"W-Whaaat?"
Jered grabbed him by the collar and yanked him back up, "Have a bit more pride. Don't stay on the ground like that, it makes my stomach lurch."
"..."
"Also, stop crying... it's pathetic."
"I'm not crying..." Del averted his gaze, sniffing for good measure.
"Haah," Jered bowed to the crowd, clapped his shoulder, and 'Shadowport'ed away.
A plume of smoke was all that was left in the arena.