What I saw in my future was a foot in my face. My head would be struck like a soccer ball, and it would surely hurt.
Thus, I did all that I could to negate such a hit:
I hurriedly pulled my hands close to my face.
Thud—!
I could hear my bones crying out. If not for the viscous mana that protected them, they would have surely gained some cracks right then and there. Despite my hasty attempt to block my head, the kick forced me to face the front once more.
A fist came flying at me and I dodged it just barely. I had to use my palm to push it to the side as it grazed my cheek. I then stabbed into the arm that crossed my vision, drawing blood and letting it splatter in the air.
A huge slash appeared on the arm as my foe reeled back in haste. He then sent his other fist towards me, brimming with rage.
I saw the future and the flow of mana. Using the data they provided, I then predicted the fist's trajectory with my Hyperfocus. It was headed straight for the side of my head at the rate it was going, so I pulled a fake dodge that I had done once before.
It was a success.
The fist zoomed past the back of my head as I leaned forward. It was a perfect dodge this time.
I crouched low with my hands grasping at the floor. With my legs as a spring, I then shot up like a rocket. My dagger was glowing with bloodlust.
Tiger stepped back in a hurry and turned what should have been a lethal attack into one that could easily be healed with enough potions. My dagger dug into his uninjured hand, finally drawing blood from it.
In the next moment, mana programs appeared around my wrist. Tiger's eyes dilated in panic as he tore his hand away from my curved dagger, worsening the wound and creating a large splotch of blood on the floor.
BOOM—!
An explosion rocked the stage, engulfing Tiger in flames but dealing no real damage. I used this window to pull away and disengage.
I had to catch my breath and regenerate my mana. I was using quite a lot with my frequent usage of Explosion (Conical).
Aventine was savouring the taste of human blood. His hisses were audible throughout the stage.
Blood dripped from Tiger's wounds and onto the arena floor. I, on the other hand, had to spit out the blood that leaked out of my bleeding gums.
This was a harder fight than I expected. An extra who was Rank E was still a Rank E. Even without special abilities, he outclassed me in pure capability.
If not for my visual prowess, Tiger would have unloaded combo after combo onto me. I would be helpless.
A peculiar movement of mana then caught my eye.
"Damn—!"
I realised then that I shouldn't have created space.
A phantom gorilla had formed around Tiger, getting ready for a powerful punch. I had given him the opportunity to charge up a powerful attack.
BOOM—!
A shockwave that was clearly superior to Explosion's flames was unleashed from Tiger's fist. The air rattled and shook. A conical blast burst forth and sent me flying. I neared the edge of the stage, feeling like my organs had been rattled.
—Hiss!
I heard Aventine suddenly call out to me. His blade glowed a light green haze for a single breath.
"Finally," I muttered, gasping for breath.
My little serpentine friend had unlocked one of his abilities. A key part of being a lethal snake.
Venom.
I thus had a way to end things. This was what I had been waiting for, and it was the reason why I did not waste energy aiming for Tiger's vitals.
I needed his blood to supplement Aventine. The baby serpent needed nourishment. He needed mana and bits of a living being's spirit.
"Hoooooo," I breathed as Tiger looked at me with a terrifying expression.
He was outright murderous at this point. His aura was full of black and red wisps that indicated killing intent. His sheer wish to tear me apart was working in tandem with his Charisma substats.
I could feel an invisible pressure restrict me, causing my heartbeat to hasten in instinctual fear.
"The Halgen Family will never forget you, Caelum Phricius."
I said nothing in reply as I heightened my focus even further. I only saw my opponent, and only him.
I was going to systematically force him into submission.
Fwoosh—!
I broke into a sprint in one fluid motion, turning into a vague blur as Aventine glittered in the golden afternoon sunlight.
Tiger sent his fist flying once more, completely ignoring the wounds that I had dealt him. I aimed for his arms once more as I slashed in a wide arc while skidding to a halt. I turned my head, allowing Tiger's fist to just barely hit its target.
I then stabbed into his arm as I did before, completing one exchange.
Two... three.. four... five... six.
We made several more such exchanges, and each time, I stabbed into Tiger's limbs. Whenever he kicked or punched, I minimised the damage I took and maximised the damage I dealt.
Eventually, I got the hang of Tiger's mana rhythm. I could read him even further. He was like a book, and I had reached chapter two.
My dodges became more fluid, and the damage I was taking lessened. Patches of a foul, vile green tinge had begun appearing around Tiger's skin, but the student himself had no idea of it.
So...
As time passed...
His movements grew sloppy.
Until finally,
Thud—
He fell to the ground, unable to move. Under the incredulous gazes of the crowd that had formed, I snatched victory from a second year.
I glanced at the wizard refereeing the duel.
"My dagger is laced with venom. He needs treatment."
If Tiger died here and it was my fault, then whoever that Halgen Family was would truly come after me in full force.
"I can tell." The wizard chuckled as he announced to the crowd, "The victor is Caelum Phricius."
He then turned to me and passed me some kind of card via Telekinesis.
"For your victory, I will award you with 5 merit points, then 8 points for winning against a stronger foe, and 7 points for doing so with negligible damage received. In total, that would be 20 points that you may use to avail of the school's limited access services and products."