Our shadows casted from light orbs floating up above the arena platform. The workers deployed magical lighting for their viewers to compensate for the heavy overcast.
My right arm was bent in an irregular position, left arm riddled with cuts and bruises, hands inflamed after being stepped on and face disfigured, making it hard to even recognize myself in a mirror. My legs were in similar conditions but thankfully nothing was broken. I could only hold on to a dagger in my left hand, the other kept sheathed.
The bald opponent pulled out several throwing knives leaving them intertwined between each finger. Whenever someone used weapons other than to support their magic, it usually meant they practiced and possibly strengthened the ki in their bodies. Mages that honed both their ki and magical abilities were definitely rarer than most, but I knew it was only a matter of time until I ran into one.
I made sure to pay attention to every little detail. This guy was different from my previous opponents and belonged to a sect, judging by the winged emblem pinned to his uniform.
"Commence match!" The announcer acted on cue, flying in the air with an umbrella unopened in one hand.
Instead of running forward preemptively, I stayed still waiting for his first move. Silver aura engulfed each throwing knife. It looked like he had at least twenty of them to choose from wrapped around his body. The knives in his hand glowed silver then vanished. I cursed under my breath as I figured out this bald guy's specialty. Invisibility. Maybe not strong enough for himself but enough to completely hide any small object.
He charged at me with a similar speed to my own when I was in stable condition. As long as I watched his movements the throwing knives should be predictable, regardless if they are invisible. Just as I said that, my initial analysis was proven wrong.
From the knife-wielding hand to his feet and up started to turn invisible as well. His shadow disappeared at the same time and out of fright, I threw my dagger where his body should have been. My dagger still held a decent amount of oomph as it soared through the air hitting the arena wall below the spectator stands twenty feet from our platform.
An invisible blade slashed the skin on my right shoulder, but nothing was there when I tried to counter-attack with a kick. Turning and looking in all directions I couldn't find any traces of baldy. Thunder caused me to look up at the clouds as a droplet of water fell on my nose. 'Rain!'
On that thought praying for it to shower, I jolted in pain. There was a four-inch-long throwing knife stuck in my forearm. Based on where the knife hit, I roughly figured out the direction he threw from and slashed at the spot without much success. Same result as my first try. He was no longer at the same location.
I cried in pain as the second throwing knife made me fall to one knee. Lodged deeply into my calf. I felt like a cow awaiting the slaughterhouse as he continued with ranged attacks.
The crowd felt mixed emotions watching the match. Some were bored only able to see one person with no actual fighting being displayed. Others were excited by my cries of pain. A portion of the ones bored went indoors to get food and beverages as they preferred not standing out in the rain for next to nothing. Whereas those that stayed did so as the rain pounded increasingly harder. Most got wet, some erected mana shields if they could, and others had umbrellas prepared.
Arisa and her group of friends stayed seated unaffected by the rain as their personal guards acted as umbrellas for them by using magic.
"Lucky brat, the rain is helping him spot our fighter." "It won't make a difference." Another bully snickered in response.
I grabbed hold of the knife in my calf and tossed it aside and pulled out the one stuck in my forearm. This one I held onto noticing the blank space of rainfall. A pool of blood grew around as the rain forced my wounds to continuously stream.
Now that I had a target, I threw as hard as possible. 'Yes, it connected!'
My moment of victory changed into a nightmare as two knives stabbed into me at the same time. One in my foot and left hand. He disabled my throwing arm. I ignored the pain to look up at the knife I threw. The mid regions going outwards appeared first. His invisibility wore off whether intentionally or not, I could finally see him again.
There was no blood or impact wound as the knife laid stuck in his mana shield. It levitated in the air, not strong enough to fully penetrate his barrier. The bald man eyed the knife, surprised it had enough force to get stuck and furiously threw several more knives. All missing vital parts as if to torture me till death.
Blood trickled down my skin as I fell to the ground with everything fading to darkness.