The first bout had ended in defeat for the Rising Heroes. The pressure on the team continued to grow. Now, it was time for the second bout.
Ifa announced loudly, "And now, for the second bout between the Rising Heroes and Hands of Karma! Introducing first, from the Rising Heroes, the Fourth Prince of the Cero Kingdom, Prince Adrian! And his opponent from Hands of Karma, 'White Comet' Sarenya!"
The crowd erupted with cheers.
Shai smiled as she spoke. "A swordsman against an archer. Both are extremely formidable fighters. Let's see how this battle turns out."
The referee signaled the start of the match.
The fight began.
The moment the battle started, Sarenya began firing arrows from a distance.
She carried no quiver. She never did.
Every arrow she fired was formed entirely from pure energy. From the very beginning, she refused to let Adrian close the distance between them. Adrian was able to dodge the arrows without much difficulty. However, the arrows were never meant to hit him directly. Every time Adrian attempted to move forward, he was forced to step back instead. It wasn't just the incredible accuracy of her arrows that made approaching difficult. It was also the incredible speed at which she fired them.
Even when Adrian chose to block or parry an arrow instead of dodging, the slim energy arrows carried enough force to halt his momentum and push him backward slightly. Realizing he couldn't simply charge forward, Adrian changed his approach.
He began running in wide circles, constantly changing directions with unpredictable movements.
Meanwhile, Sarenya continued firing one arrow after another.
Little by little, Adrian closed the distance by making his movements increasingly difficult to predict.
Before long, he had crossed more than half the battlefield.
Then... The arrows suddenly stopped.
Adrian immediately halted.
Even if this looked like an opening, he knew better than to rush in carelessly.
Sarenya was clearly preparing something.
And he was right.
"Nova Shot."
The tip of her energy arrow crackled violently before she released it. The arrow shot toward Adrian at incredible speed. Adrian stepped aside just in time. This arrow was much faster than the previous ones. It passed only inches away from him, blowing strands of his hair aside.
The instant it struck the ground behind him...
BOOM!
A massive burst of energy erupted from the impact.
Adrian smiled.
Then another "Nova Shot."
This time, he had no choice but to move backward.
Adrian quickly realized what Sarenya had done.
She had intentionally allowed the first arrow to miss by a safe distance, forcing him to witness the devastating explosion. Then she fired the second much closer to his feet, leaving him no option but to retreat.
But Adrian also noticed something else. The time between firing the first Nova Shot and the second was noticeably longer than her normal arrows.
That... Was his opportunity.
He waited.
A third "Nova Shot."
As Adrian stepped back to dodge it, he immediately pushed off the ground and sprinted straight toward Sarenya.
His sword was finally close enough to reach her. More importantly, he had closed the distance so much that another Nova Shot would also threaten Sarenya herself with its explosion.
Recognizing this instantly, Sarenya abandoned Nova Shot and switched back to her normal energy arrows.
Adrian maintained the same distance between them.
Once again, he circled around her, constantly changing directions, making sure she could never comfortably widen the gap again.
Sarenya then raised her bow upward.
"Photon Volley."
She unleashed a barrage of energy arrows at extreme speed.
Left. Right. Front.
There was nowhere obvious to escape.
For a brief moment... Adrian stood completely still.
His sword began glowing brilliantly. So did his eyes.
Cling!
Cling!
Cling!
The sound of steel echoed repeatedly throughout the arena.
One after another, Adrian perfectly parried every incoming arrow.
A small smile appeared on Sarenya's face.
"Pulse Arrow."
She fired another shot.
Adrian instinctively parried it as well.
But this arrow was different. The moment it was deflected, a powerful shockwave burst outward. His entire body absorbed the impact. His momentum was completely disrupted.
Sarenya had already prepared her next move.
"Nova Shot."
By the time Adrian regained his balance, the arrow had nearly reached him.
Acting purely on instinct, he raised his sword and blocked. The blade absorbed most of the explosion. Even so, the tremendous force blasted Adrian far across the battlefield.
When the dust finally settled... The distance between the two fighters was exactly the same as it had been when the match first began.
Adrian slowly stood back up.
He brushed the dust from his clothes. His grip tightened around his sword. Its glow had reached its brightest point yet.
Across the battlefield, Sarenya lowered her bow slightly.
For several silent seconds... The two simply stared at one another.
Then both of them smiled.
The crowd watched in anticipation.
Everyone in the arena could feel it.
The real battle had only just begun.