Chapter 28: Fool
Forced onto one knee, Greg pulled his right arm while his left arm was still blocking Vincent's blade. With a loud grunt, his [Fire Gauntlet] suddenly seethed with crimson fire before he hurled it towards Vincent with full force.
"Die!"
When Vincent saw the flame taking the form of a gauntlet hurling straight at him, he skillfully tilted his head to the other side, making the flame pass by him.
And while his feet were still covered with origin power, he quickly gave Greg a roundhouse kick!
Which, of course, could not be blocked by Greg at all, and landed straight in his guts!
"Urgh!"
Once more, Greg was blasted backwards, struggling to stand up, agony evident on his face. He felt one of his ribs had been fractured, causing him to cough out blood.
After brushing off the blood seeping out of the corner of his lips, he furiously roared, "Vincent Magnus!"
"I WANT YOU DEAD! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!"
The pain he was feeling began to cloud his mind, as though he could not see the difference in power between them.
Staring at his raging opponent, Vincent suddenly caught Greg's action, taking out a crimson-orange vial and quickly drinking it in one gulp.
Vincent frowned, wondering what Greg had just drank.
Soon, Greg began to roar, his muscles bulged, his skin began to tear, and flames slowly rose out of his body, making him grunt in pain and excitement as he felt his aura slowly increase.
From Tier 1 - 3 stars, it began to climb.
4 stars...
It then reached the peak of Tier 1. However, it still did not show any sign of stopping. Realizing that his situation might turn bad if he did not stop him, Vincent no longer held back and used his armament's second skill while keeping his Origin Power Enhancement talent to increase his force attribute.
"Duskedge Wave!"
A crescent-shaped dark-purple energy immediately projected out of his blade, fiercely flying straight at Greg, leaving a dark trail of cracks on the arena floors.
Boom!
A loud explosion occurred when his attack landed, and a thick cloud of purple smoke instantly devoured Greg's figure.
Vianne, who could not understand what was happening with Greg, continued her enthusiastic hosting, "Another direct hit to Greg Malcolm! Is this the end of the fight?"
While the people who had understood what was happening, especially the influential figures at the high podium, were keeping their silence.
And when the cloud of smoke slowly cleared, Greg's standing figure appeared before his laughter reverberated.
"Haha. That's all you can do? Then you're pathetic, Vincent Magnus!"
Greg was now standing almost 3 meters tall with bulging muscles and torn skin while flames occasionally seeped out of his body.
His physique became stronger, but his looks turned grotesque.
And as Vincent expected, Greg's power had reached Tier 2.
The crowd and Vianne were stunned, wondering, "Is that Greg Malcolm?"
One of the audience members who had keen sense suddenly muttered, "He broke through to Tier 2?!"
Hearing him, someone close to him immediately questioned, "What are you saying? Did Greg really break through to Tier 2? Just by drinking that unknown potion?"
While the crowd was in shock and heated conversation, Vincent wasn't bothered at all.
He was not stupid; although Greg broke through to Tier 2 and the gap between them hugely increased, he still had an option.
The rules stated that he only needed to win 3 times in 5 battles. Therefore, even if he forfeited this round and lost his spot, he still had a chance to challenge another top contender to take their spot and secure his slot in the finals.
"This Greg is really stupid..." he thought and felt slight pity for the idiotic Greg. His hate had definitely clouded his decision.
Now the question is, should I test my strength against a Tier 2 Origin Warrior, reveal my strength, and risk my life?
Ah... what a stupid question.
I love life...
This is not the right time or place to risk my life for a simple tournament.
While he was having his thoughts, Greg's voice once again reverberated, "Vincent Magnus! Now, prepare for my wrath!"
Greg, who had already started imagining beating Vincent with his upgraded power and was about to attack, suddenly halted, frozen by Vincent's following words.
"Ah, no. I forfeit this round, have fun on your own. I'm good."
He did not wait for Greg's or the referee's response and jumped off the arena.
When Greg came back to his senses, he hysterically bellowed, "No! No! I don't accept this! Come back here and fight me! VINCENT MAGNUS~"
Shocked by the sudden twist of the situation, Vianne uncertainly announced, "V-Vincent Magnus, forfeited? Victory for Greg Malcolm..."
Although she had already announced who the winner was, the crowd was still in shock and silence.
"Did he just quit like that?"
"What would you do if you were in his position? Would you fight against that grotesque human? I'm not even sure if you can still call that appearance human."
While at the high podium, Dean Thorne and the influential figures were also caught in subtle surprise and could not help but let out uncharacteristic giggles.
On the other hand, Arnold, who was getting bored of watching the battle below, burst out in laughter.
"Hahaha. Good, good. I like that kid! Having the knowledge of his limits and knowing when to retreat and advance is very rare to find nowadays."
Dean Thorne's lips broke into a subtle smile when he heard Arnold complimenting one of the students from his school.