Merito vs Javier
The Void That Erases Everything Against the Blade That Cuts Everything
The arena fell into complete silence.
For the first time since the beginning of the friendly battles, even the other candidates stopped discussing strategies and simply watched.
This was not a battle of greater energy.
Nor was it a battle of overwhelming speed.
It was a confrontation between two concepts that challenged the very foundation of existence.
Javier.
The man whose blade could cut anything.
Matter.
Energy.
Space.
Laws.
Even concepts.
And Merito.
The candidate of the Eternal Nullified Physique.
A being capable of rejecting the existence of things themselves.
A power that could cancel space, time, perception, and even the very meaning of a phenomenon.
The two men stood facing each other.
Neither moved.
Because both understood a simple truth.
The first mistake would be the last.
Javier made the first move.
His sword left its sheath.
The movement was so simple that most ordinary beings would have considered it insignificant.
But everyone present knew the truth.
That small motion carried enough power to split worlds.
A transparent slash traveled across the battlefield.
There was no light.
No sound.
Only a division of existence itself.
The slash reached Merito.
And disappeared.
No explosion.
No collision.
No resistance.
It simply ceased to exist.
Merito had erased the attack itself.
A small smile appeared on Javier's face.
"Interesting."
His sword moved again.
Then again.
Then again.
Thousands of invisible cuts flooded the battlefield from every possible direction.
Merito slowly walked forward.
Each step was heavy.
Each movement was inefficient compared to the speed of the other candidates.
Yet his reaction was terrifying.
Every slash that entered his range vanished.
The concept of being cut was denied before it could reach him.
But Javier was not a warrior who relied only on brute force.
He observed.
Analyzed.
Adapted.
He noticed something important.
Merito's nullification was not instantaneous throughout the entire battlefield.
It had a process.
A range.
A moment where his consciousness had to recognize what needed to be erased.
That tiny delay was enough.
For someone like Javier, a fraction of a fraction of a second was an opportunity.
His eyes sharpened.
For the first time, he released his true killing intent.
The image of the giant swordsman appeared behind him once more.
The same phenomenon that had defeated Kashmir.
But this time, it was more refined.
More concentrated.
The sword did not simply cut toward Merito.
It cut the very possibility of escape.
The entire battlefield was divided.
The spectators felt a chill.
Even William narrowed his eyes.
If he were standing there, he would have been forced to interfere with the connections of the attack immediately.
Merito looked at the incoming strike.
For the first time in the tournament—
he stopped walking.
He raised his hand.
A black silence expanded around him.
The giant sword entered the darkness.
And the entire arena trembled.
For several seconds, neither power won.
Javier's cut continued trying to divide the void.
Merito's nullification continued denying the existence of the slash.
The collision was not between attacks.
It was a battle between two truths.
Can something that cuts everything cut nothing?
Can nothing erase something whose nature is to cut all things?
The answer came through exhaustion.
The darkness around Merito began to shake.
His expression changed slightly.
Javier's attack was too absolute.
It required far more power than usual to nullify.
But Javier's body was also trembling.
Maintaining such a perfect cut consumed enormous energy.
The two monsters had reached their limits.
Suddenly, Javier moved.
He appeared behind Merito.
A final slash descended.
But before it could land, the world around him disappeared.
Not the attack.
Not the sword.
Javier himself.
For an instant, Merito removed his existence from Javier's own perception.
The greatest swordsman among the candidates lost awareness of his position.
That single moment was enough.
Merito placed his hand on Javier's chest.
A wave of nullification spread.
Javier reacted instantly and cut his own connection with the effect, retreating before complete erasure.
However, the damage was done.
His body had received a direct hit.
He dropped to one knee.
Silence filled the arena.
Javier looked at Merito for several seconds.
Then he smiled.
"Your ability is troublesome."
Merito answered calmly.
"And your sword is dangerous."
Javier dropped to one knee, his breathing heavy, while Merito remained standing a short distance away. His expression was still calm, but the slight tremor in his hand revealed the enormous burden of maintaining such a level of nullification.
The battlefield remained frozen.
Both warriors still possessed the will to continue.
Javier could still raise his sword.
Merito could still unleash his power.
But everyone watching understood the truth.
One more exchange would no longer be a test of skill.
It would be a gamble where either side could fall.
The judge observed both candidates for a long moment before finally raising his hand.
"Enough."
His voice echoed throughout the arena.
"This match ends in a draw."
A wave of whispers spread among the spectators.
A draw.
Yet those with sharper eyes noticed the subtle difference.
Javier had suffered the more serious injury and had been forced into a defensive position during the final exchange.
Merito had consumed an extraordinary amount of energy, but he retained a slightly greater capacity to continue.
Therefore, although the official result was a draw, the hidden advantage belonged to Merito.
Javier slowly stood up and looked at his opponent.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Next time, I will cut through even that void."
Merito turned away calmly.
"Then I will simply erase a sharper blade."
The two warriors left the battlefield under the silent gazes of the other candidates.
No one underestimated either of them anymore.
The one who could cut all things.
And the one who could deny the existence of all things.
The third round had finally come to an end.
The names of the fourth round slowly began to appear above the arena.
The third round had finally come to an end.
The candidates looked toward the sky as the names of the fourth round slowly began to appear.
The true clashes between the monsters of the tournament were far from over.