[Levi's Pov]
*Tang, tang, tang!*
Once again, my flurry of attacks was parried by the large claws on Aarick's hands, with his body seemingly able to produce power and speed that should be impossible for someone who should have just become [E]-rank.
Even if I knew that I wasn't fighting to the best of my abilities due to the absurdity of this situation, it was still a fact that Aarick was performing a lot better than I expected.
'But he won't last for much longer.'
The disparity between our ranks was still making itself known as he could still just barely keep up with me, and judging from how his hands had begun trembling, the difference in power would soon make him unable to keep going.
Naturally, there were still other options rather than pressuring him like this, but I just didn't want to hurt him more than necessary. If I used anything other than my basic abilities, I was sure that he wouldn't be able to walk out of here on his own two legs.
It already hurt enough seeing the wound that I had inflicted on him continuing to pour out blood as he desperately tried to fend off my attacks.
And then, it happened.
'Finally...'
*Tang!*
As another one of the stabs was parried, I could see his body slowing down, most likely stiffening due to either pain or as a result of his stamina having finally been emptied. Therefore, there was no doubt that the next thrust I threw at him would be the last, making sure that I would penetrate his body without hitting any organs.
Even though it did make my attack a bit slower, as a result of concentrating on the accuracy of the strike, it wasn't to the point where the white-haired man would be able to dodge it.
Therefore, I felt like I could finally breathe again, knowing that even though I had stumbled a bit, I would at least not become the shame of my household, losing against a nameless orphan just because I had been careless.
But then, I saw it. I saw the face belonging to my opponent, and instead of the desperate face that he should have worn, he made a completely different expression.
He was smiling.
'Shit!'
Everything after this happened so incredibly fast that even though I could see it, there was no way for me to stop my attack.
Aarick simply lifted his right hand, lifting the dark claws into the air. Then, as my spear was just about to make contact with his abdomen, it came crashing down. Not in the sense that he swung his arm down, no, it literally just fell, similar to a rock that followed the laws of reality.
*BAM!*
A microsecond later, I was unable to hold onto my spear when a force that felt impossibly strong hit it downwards, making it roll away on the wooden floor.
At the same time, a smiling man with blood-red eyes dashed forward, having somehow created an opportunity to attack again. Without the slightest hesitation, he sent the claws on his left hand forward, eager to rip my throat out.
But he was thankfully still not as fast as me.
With a quick step back, I felt the wind created by his attack lick my neck, reminding me that if I hadn't dodged, I would have instantly lost this match. And maybe even my life.
'He... he truly doesn't care about me at all, does me?'
This time, Aarick was the one to keep going on the offensive, alternating trying to gouge my flesh with his claws and filling in the gaps in his attacks with kicks. Kicks that were somehow enhanced to the point where I felt like it would be lethal if even one of them connected.
Yet, now that I understood the situation, I didn't feel nervous anymore. I was just incredibly sad.
Even my memories felt like they started to lose meaning. As if his current actions more than proved that even the past had merely just been my own fantasy.
Right now, I didn't care about the stern face of my father in the audience, nor did I care about the multiple people most likely criticizing my performance in the audience.
'Then... I shouldn't care either...'
Circulating my mana, I decided to throw away the lingering sense of hope that I had clung to after Aarick's return, the small seed of hope that maybe things could go back to how they were. That maybe there was a future where the old Aarick would come back, and a future where I could find a way to live like the fairytales I read when I was a kid.
Then, as he threw out another kick, aiming it at my face, I activated my ability, the ability that I had gained when I became a [D]-rank, the ability that symbolized the difference between us.
'[Aqua Serpent]'
*BAM!*
This time, I allowed his kick to connect, and although I could feel the bones in my forearm breaking a bit from blocking the absurdly heavy attack, I didn't care much. Because after that, I allowed my ability to come out from my other hand.
A huge stream of water, with a reptile-like head, emerged from it, not wasting any time in understanding its purpose. A purpose that it fulfilled in an instant by launching itself at my enemy.
Even with Aarick noticing that something was up, he had already committed himself to the kick, which meant that he wasn't in a position to do anything about it.
"Shi..."
*BOOM!*
The mere sound of the impact was more than enough to make everyone understand just how stronger this ability was than my lances, sending Aarick flying through the air as his mouth spewed out blood. Unable to do anything to stop his momentum, he crashed into the mana barrier that surrounded the stage, only to fall to the ground shortly after.
*Thud!*
And so, I walked forward and picked up Gentle Blue with the arm that wasn't broken.
With Aarick not moving at all, I knew that it was finally over. I had won, yet it felt like I had lost a lot more.
Walking up to the stage again, Alexander had also made the same conclusion, raising the microphone to his mouth to announce the victor. Simultaneously, another wave of applause came from the audience, even though I could see that a lot of them seemed quite disappointed in me.
"After a great fight, with both parties doing their absolute best, we have a winner! And the winner is..."
"Ku...kuku...hahahaha!"
Then, out of nowhere, it was as if all of the oxygen was sucked out of the atmosphere as a certain white-haired boy stood up, not caring about the broken body that should have been completely demolished after my attack.
'What is happening...'
Even with one of his arms pointing in the wrong direction, and with the wound on his side having emptied enough blood to make most men faint, he still stood up. With a smile.
But this smile was not like the smiles he had shown me in the past. This was not a smile that would struggle to move forward. This was merely a smile of joy, of excitement. A smile that showed emotions that he had never shown me before.
*Thump...thump...*
Hearing my own heart beat louder and louder, the eerie feeling inside of me could only grow when I noticed that the blood-red eyes were now glowing. As if they were hungering for something, wanting to devour everything.
'Aarick...'
*Crack!*
Out of nowhere, and suddenly enough that Alexander wasn't sure how to react, he flew forward without even having taken a single step. Akin to a ghost, his body just moved forward, appearing to not carry a single care of the rules of reality.
In less than a second, his smiling face full of blood was right in front of mine, and I felt my legs weaken. For I knew... I knew that I would now lose my life. Because below that smile, the dark claws now soaked in his own blood were making their way to my heart.
"For fuck's sake, Aarick! Just go to sleep!"
*BAM!*
"...huh?"
A fist suddenly fell onto his head, blowing his body to the floor and instantly knocking him out.
Turning my eyes up from the now unconscious Aarick on the floor, I saw our teacher standing there, wearing a tight-fitting purple dress and a very annoyed expression.
No more than a second later, not only my father, but Will's father as well had arrived at the scene, seemingly having wanted to do the same thing as Ms. Zito. And because of the fact that she had been the first there, both of them now looked a bit lost for words as well.
Not caring about the two guild masters that had come up to the stage, however, she just lifted Aarick in her arms and excused herself.
"We thank you for a great evening, but I'm afraid that we will have to take our leave now."
Then, just before she walked away, she turned her head to me.
"Congratulations on your victory, Levi. It was a good match."