Sylviana smiled.
Even while trapped, even with the naga-tail binding her movement, even with pain spreading through her side—she didn't break.
She kicked.
Her heel slammed into Draco Jay's torso with explosive force, sending him flying backward across the crystal arena.
The impact cracked the ground beneath him.
Before he could recover, Sylviana moved again.
She stomped.
Two blades formed beneath her feet, forged from condensed mana, locking into existence like extensions of her will.
Then she flipped.
Mid-air, she twisted her body and slashed downward, forcing Draco Jay to block while sliding across the arena floor.
From the observation space above—
"Go, Sylviana," Leeroy said firmly.
Sophia nodded once, eyes locked on the fight.
Sylviana landed lightly.
Her breathing was controlled.
Her expression sharpened.
And then—
she danced.
Not in hesitation.
But in combat rhythm.
Every step became a strike. Every movement became pressure. Her body flowed across the battlefield like motion itself had learned to fight.
Her long black hair shifted suddenly.
Then changed.
Dozens of strands hardened and elongated, transforming into spear-like projectiles that shot forward in a violent burst.
Draco Jay raised his arm.
A turtle-shell-like defense manifested instantly, blocking the incoming barrage as sparks of mana exploded across the arena.
The clash shook the air.
Sylviana didn't stop.
She smiled.
And moved faster.
Then she changed again.
Her legs ignited with power.
"Rage Kicks."
A sudden burst of acceleration—she launched Draco Jay upward with a violent kick combination that distorted the air around them.
For a moment, it looked like she had won.
But Draco Jay adapted.
His body twisted mid-air.
And then—
his counter came.
A brutal strike landed directly on Sylviana's right leg.
The sound of breaking bone echoed through the arena.
Her movement stopped instantly.
Her expression froze.
Her body collapsed as the damage overwhelmed her stance.
The dance ended mid-step.
Silence fell.
"WINNER… IS DRACO JAY."
The system voice echoed across the arena.
Sylviana lay on the fractured crystal floor, breathing unevenly, her body refusing to respond properly.
Draco Jay stood above her.
Unshaken.
Unchanged.
The crowd noise faded into distant silence.
In the observation area, Jhonathan stood still.
Jessabelle stood beside him.
Neither of them spoke at first.
But both of them remembered.
Not the fight.
Not the arena.
But the past.
A rainy day.
A corner of a broken street.
A girl sitting alone, watching something she shouldn't have had to watch.
Her mother being abused by a landlord who thought no one would interfere.
Ria, the mage, watching from a distance… then stepping forward and giving the girl the Star of Envy.
A promise attached to it.
"If you eat this… Jhonathan will help you."
The girl believed it.
She always had.
She ate it.
And they laughed.
Because in that world, help only came to those who didn't take power first.
Only those who didn't "become something."
Then—
Jhonathan arrived.
He didn't understand everything.
He didn't ask questions first.
He just punched the greedy landlord and broke the cycle in one moment of instinctive anger.
Then he gave the girl bread.
Nothing special.
Nothing grand.
Just food.
But to her—
it was everything.
The only kindness she had ever received.
Back in the present, Sylviana's body was carried out of the arena.
The next announcement echoed immediately.
"NEXT MATCH: LEEROOY VS THE REINCARNATION OF LUST."
The arena lights shifted again.
The tournament moved forward.
Unstoppable.
Unforgiving.
And Team 5… was still not done bleeding.