"「Breeze」"
Whoosh—
Wind exploded beneath his foot, compressed and twisted by the magic circle, and Soren's body shot forward along the ice like he had been kicked by the air itself.
Alex's blade cut through the space where Soren's head had been an instant earlier.
'It's unstable…'
His balance wobbled, his centre of gravity thrown off by the improvised technique.
He had taken what Carlen had shown him and forced it into [Breeze], using the circle at his foot as a makeshift launchpad.
It was sloppy and inefficient; his muscles screamed in protest as he strained to correct his posture mid-slide.
But it worked.
For once, Alex looked surprised.
Soren's handaxe glowed as he drew it back.
「Einhardt Axemanship - Crescent」
It was an axe technique he had learned from a distance.
As an Arcane Studies student, Soren wasn't allowed to join Martial Studies lessons.
But from time to time, he would pass by their training grounds and catch glimpses of their drills.
He would watch from the edge, memorising the arcs of their swings, the twist of their hips, the sharp turns of their feet.
Then, later, he would find an empty space and copy every movement he could remember until his body refused to move.
This was one of those techniques.
It wasn't perfect.
It wasn't clean.
In fact, this was the only technique he could reliably use.
But for now, it was enough.
The glowing handaxe sliced through the air in a sharp arc.
Alex gritted his teeth and tried to bring his sword up, but this time he was a moment too slow.
Realising that, he attempted to twist his body away instead…
Swoosh—
For once, Soren's blade connected.
Steel grazed flesh, carving a shallow line across Alex's side.
It was not a deep wound.
But it was proof that Soren wasn't completely useless.
His heart leapt, and then the thought came anyway.
'It's not enough.'
Even though landing a hit should have been a victory, his mind dismissed it as insignificant.
A scratch on the Hero might as well be nothing at all.
"「Ignition」."
Flames erupted from Soren's palm, exploding outward in a burst of heat.
Fwaaa–!
Alex swung his sword, cutting through the flames, scattering embers.
But the fire wasn't the real attack.
The moment [Ignition] left his hand, Soren was already moving, sprinting forward behind the blaze, fully expecting Alex to cut it down.
Alex's eyes widened as Soren burst out of the thinning flames.
"!"
He tried to leap back, but Soren was already within reach, handaxe swinging down.
Clang–!
Axe and sword collided, sparks flying.
Soren's arm shuddered from the impact, but even as the weapons ground against each other, a faint smile tugged at his lips.
"「Shock」."
Yellow light flared at his foot as he lifted it slightly from the ground.
Crackling–
"Keuk!"
Electricity surged through Alex's body, crawling up through the contact point of their weapons.
His muscles locked, his grip faltering as his body froze from the inside out.
Wooooonggg—!
Soren's handaxe began glowing again, mana thickening around the blade as he shifted his stance to strike.
This time, he aimed to end it.
Just as he drew breath to move, Alex spoke quietly.
"I… still need to rely on it…"
The words were barely above a murmur, almost swallowed by the sound of crackling mana.
Golden light spilt from Alex's body.
Suddenly, a cold sweat broke out along Soren's back.
He tried to form a new magic circle in his palm, forcing mana into his hand.
'What is this feeling?'
He looked up at Alex, desperately trying to understand.
That was when he noticed it.
'Why is everything moving so slowly?'
The circle in his palm, which should have been completed in seconds, dragged out, every line of light drawing itself at a crawling pace.
The world thickened around him.
The crowd in the stands, who had been a blur of motion and noise, seemed to slow to a near standstill.
Frozen expressions, half-finished gestures, mouths stuck midway through a cheer.
Even his own breath felt heavy and sluggish in his chest.
'No…'
When Alex's eyes opened, they burned gold.
Soren's heart froze.
Shudder—
A chill ran down his spine.
The atmosphere around Alex had changed completely, as if the air itself recognised him as something different.
'No way… Is this [Divinity]?'
He had known it would be strong.
He had read the descriptions.
He had seen the numbers, the modifiers, the skill effects.
He knew that [Divinity] was the protagonist's unique skill, the thing that set Alex apart even among heroes.
But knowing something and standing in front of it were different things.
Soren couldn't help but despair at the sight.
His breath caught in his throat.
'This… this is what makes him the protagonist. This is what I can never be…'
His knees wanted to buckle, but even that felt delayed, trapped in the thick, syrup-like time.
He couldn't see a single possibility where he could win against the person standing in front of him.
It wasn't a gap.
It was a wall.
"Sorry about this,"
Alex's voice cut through Soren's thoughts, sounding oddly clear in the warped time.
"I really don't like relying on this."
Soren tried to speak, to curse, to deny it, to say anything, but his mouth moved too slowly to shape the words.
'Damn it!'
Step…
Alex moved.
Each step echoed in Soren's chest like a slow drumbeat.
Step…
Carlen's lessons.
His desperate, narrow victory against Amelia.
Lilliana's endless praise and gentle encouragement.
All the things he had clung to as proof that he was improving, that he had a place here.
Step…
Compared to the wall of golden light closing in on him, it all felt laughably small.
He had told himself he had grown, that he had earned something with his own hands.
But in this frozen world, with time stretched thin and Alex at its centre, it felt like all he had done was crawl forward while others had soared.
Step.
By the time Alex stood in front of him, sword raised, Soren couldn't even convince himself to try anymore.
"I'm sorry, but I need to win," Alex said quietly, a bitter smile on his lips as he glanced to his side momentarily.
Soren let the half-formed spell in his palm fade.
Slash!
Agony tore through his body, drawn out by the distorted time.
It wasn't just physical pain.
It was the sharp, undeniable confirmation that his strength wasn't enough.
He couldn't even scream.
— — — — — — —!
Alex stabbed his sword into the ground, and the golden light snapped away, shattering like glass.
"Arghhh—!"
Sound rushed back into the world all at once.
Soren's body was launched backwards, blood scattering across the arena.
Thud!
He crashed onto the ground, the impact knocking the air from his lungs.
"Cough! Cough!"
Blood spilt from his lips, hot and metallic on his tongue.
'Fuck, it hurts!'
His vision blurred.
He forced his shaking hand toward the wound, fingers glowing faintly.
"Stitch… thy flesh, I… end thy agony… 「Heal」."
Purplish-silver light spread beneath his palm.
The pain dulled, the bleeding slowed, but the deep cut remained, an angry line of torn flesh beneath his clothes.
The incantation did nothing for the pounding in his head.
The audience stared, wide-eyed, at the scene before them.
Some were terrified.
Some were thrilled.
At the centre of the arena, Alex stood in the same pose as his first mock duel, sword planted in the ground, wearing that sheepish, almost boyish grin that didn't match the devastation he had just caused.
Soren's jaw clenched.
'What the fuck was that?'
The power Alex had just unleashed was nothing like the [Divinity] from the game.
There should've been no way for him to slow down time.
And yet he had.
'It doesn't make sense.'
Frustration tangled with the pain.
He had thought he had a chance.
Not to win, maybe, but at least to stand his ground, to prove he could reach out just a little further.
He had tried his best.
It hadn't been enough.
Alex finally turned his attention back toward Soren.
"Thank goodness," he said, sounding genuinely relieved. "I was worried I'd hit you too hard."
He scratched his cheek again, still wearing that awkward, apologetic smile.
"Are we still going to fight, though?"
He was covered in sweat and breathing heavily, but Soren barely noticed.
His thoughts spiralled too fast for him to process Alex's condition at all.
Soren's lips trembled.
For a brief moment, he wanted to scream.
To stand up again, even if it meant collapsing a second later.
To say he would keep going, no matter how pathetic it looked.
But the words wouldn't come.
He was too tired.
Too aware of the truth.
"...I forfeit," Soren said.
His voice was quiet, but the defeat in it was unmistakable.
The announcement rang out a second later, and the arena erupted into cheers.
None of them were for him.
He staggered to his feet, swaying slightly. Alex said something, maybe his name.
Someone else called out too, a familiar voice, high and worried.
Olivia, maybe.
Or Amelia.
Soren didn't look back to check.
He ignored Alex, ignored Olivia, ignored everyone watching from the stands.
He couldn't stay.
Not here.
Not standing opposite Alex, with that golden light still lingering in the back of his mind.
He left the building in silence, jaw clenched so tightly it hurt.
Each step felt heavier than the last, as if the arena itself were trying to keep him there, to force him to stand on that stage a little longer.
But Soren knew better.
He knew that no matter how hard he tried, no matter how much he struggled, he couldn't stand on the same stage as those he cared for.
And he likely never would.
————「❤︎」————