Before Victor completely left the arena, Sol tried to use [Analysis], but the results weren't very informative.
Name: Victor
Race: ???
Talents: [Blaze Mage], [?? Master], [Passion ???]
Level: 1??
HP: ???
MP: 2???
Str: ?0
Vit: ???
Agi: 1??
Int: ?6? (+??)
Wis: ??? (+??)
Talent Skills:
[???] Lv MAX, [??? Theory] Lv ???, [Heart Fire] Lv 8
Passive Skills:
[Sagely Wisdom] Lv ?, [???] Lv 4, [???] Lv ???, [???] Lv MAX, [Increased Mana Regeneration] Lv ???, [???] Lv ?, [Mana Perception] Lv 5, [Spell Concentration] Lv ?
Active Skills:
[Advanced Fire Magic] Lv ?, [???] Lv ?, [???] Lv 5, [???] Lv 4, [Mana Ward] Lv 3, [???: Rage Fire] Lv 1
'Above level 100…'
The only real information Sol was able to obtain from the [Analysis] was that Victor was above level 100 and that his fire magic was at the advanced level. Two things he could already tell from the fight he witnessed.
Victor noticed the attempt to peek into his status page and ignored it because Sol wasn't the only one to do so. Hundreds of spectators who had [Analysis or items with similar effects used them on Victor so many times that he lost count. Most weren't even able to see what Sol saw, as few had a high enough level of [Analysis] to make up for the level gap.
Sol sighed, "He's almost or even already A-Rank. How am I supposed to even win against that…"
After Victor left the arena, the announcer introduced the next two fighters. Sol considered using [Reinterpret] to further practice as the matches went on but decided against it. It was best to see what the other competitors were capable of even if he doubted they would be anywhere near Victor's level.
The resounding voice of the announcer echoed in the room, "Let the fight begin!"
…
"In the end, they were all within expectations."
Sol just witnessed the second-to-last fight of the day that ended in a victory for the 4th place fighter. She was against the 13th place swordsman, and with the skillful use of her spear, she was able to attack out of his range as she riddled him with injuries.
'I guess it's my turn.'
A knock came from the door. It opened to reveal an arena employee.
"Sir Sol, you are up next."
"I'll head over now, thank you."
Standing up from the couch, he walked to the arena where he would be pitted against the 15th-ranked fighter.
As Sol made his way to the arena, Oeser was wrapping up his analysis of the fight.
"With Lapis' agile movements, Ulmar was completely unable to retaliate! Once she wounded him enough, she finished him off with the skill [Long Sweep] into [Pole Slam]! I gotta say, folks, I don't think anyone in this tournament can match her in pure speed! But remember! Speed is not the only deciding factor here!"
Oeser moved towards the center of the arena.
"We have seen a wonderful display of abilities and talents today, but we have one more fight for all you fine folk! On one side we have the 15th-ranked contender, Wayland!"
A mage sauntered into the arena with a relaxed smile.
"On the other side, we have the 2nd-ranked contender, Sol!"
Sol walked in stiffly as if he had a bad leg.
'So many people are watching…'
Sol walked awkwardly because he was trying his best to walk normally, which in turn became abnormal. It hadn't dawned on him until this moment that he would be fighting in front of so many eyes, and the realization unnerved him.
'Just focus on the fight, nothing else.'
He took a deep breath, calmed himself down, and focused solely on Wayland, who stood not far away from him. Sol used [Analysis] on the man and discovered it wasn't going to be a hard fight, which helped him relax. He managed to recover just in time as Oeser took out his wand and pointed it to the sky.
"Let the battle commence!"
"[Wind Cutter]!"
A sharp blade of wind was immediately released and flew towards Sol. In response, Sol chose to meet the basic wind spell head on and activated his Lipon, releasing an elemental fire sword. With a wave of the sword, the wind was easily dispersed.
Oeser commented, "What is that sword?! It appears to be some kind of elemental weapon, but it's different from others that normally have a metallic blade that the element is enchanted upon!"
Sol charged forward towards Wayland, who had no intention of letting him get close and cast another spell.
"[Soaring Winds]!"
Wayland soared into the air and flew far enough away to not be in danger of Sol's fire sword.
"Masterful play by Wayland, this puts him not only safe from Sol's blade but also in the perfect position to rain down spells."
"[Gale Blades]!"
Large blades of wind descended upon Sol, who made no attempt to move out of the way. The wind blades landed upon him, creating a large cloud of dust.
Oeser exclaimed, "Could this be it for our fighter?! No! It's not!"
As the dust settled, a large dome of stone covered the area of impact. Underneath the dome, Sol stood safely, untouched by even a single wind blade. The dome parted, and one could hear him chant from within.
"[Water Cannon]!"
A blast of concentrated water ejected out of the opening in the dome and traveled at frightening speeds towards the mage in the sky.
The radius of the water was too wide to fly out of as [Soaring Winds] wasn't the fastest flying spell. Wayland hastily cast a spell to get himself out of harm's way but was unable to finish casting in time.
"[Wind Bu-!"
The water blasted the poor man directly in the face, knocking him out of the sky and sending him plummeting towards the ground.
Though Wayland was hit, because Sol didn't attack in full force in fear of accidentally killing him, he was still conscious and able to fight.
"[Glide]!"
Gentle winds carried the mage as he glided away from Sol, hoping not to be hit with another [Water Cannon].
"Incredible! What an amazing counterattack from Sol and a good recovery from Wayland! The fight ain't over yet!"
Sol smirked at Oeser's commentary, 'It already is.'