BOOM

[You are engaging in a challenge where the odds are overwhelmingly against you.]

[You have gained experience toward your class.]

Elio stumbled back, and he brought his fingertips to his nose. His eyes twitched as he saw them dyed crimson. Slowly, he lifted his head and looked up to Verity with his outstretched fists in front of him.

Verity wore an arrogant smirk. "So predictable. Regardless of what you say, you always immediately go for the kill."

That was what he was saying, but inwardly, Verity was sighing with relief. 'Phew, what a gamble that was… thankfully he really wants to see me dead.'

Elio wiped his nose. "What… was that? This isn't what you showed me before…"

Verity shrugged. "Sure it is. I just wasn't taking you seriously."

That wasn't entirely true, but Verity was indeed using the same hand-to-hand combat style he had first used against Elio, no matter how different it seemed now.

Heresy - A spear less spear technique, or in other words, a hand-to-hand combat stance.

The basics of this stance centered around rudimentary self-defense using the body when one was disarmed, but what truly made it worthy of being among the nine other stances of the Nine Hells style was in its name.

It was truly a spear less spear technique.

When Elio had been hit, he felt as though something was wrong. As if Verity's reach had suddenly extended far past what it should have been, as if he was… holding a spear.

He took a good look at Verity, and now that he took the time to analyze him, he could almost see it. Merely with his fists raised in front of him, Verity's stance emulated that of a spearman. As a man who had nearly reached Body-Sword-Unity, Elio could glimpse into the intent in Verity's fist.

Elio quickly understood that Verity had far from mastered it, but as he stood, he could equally see that Verity currently embodied the three guiding principles of the spear.

Always point the tip forward.

Keep the enemy at bay.

And never forget–

Elio scoffed. "Hmm, that's nice… but what if I do this?"

Without so much as a warning, Elio disappeared, and with a crack of displaced air, he reappeared behind Verity, or at least that's how it appeared to the audience.

Verity's master was much faster, and so, he could follow Elio with his eyes.

The blue eyed man re-appeared behind Verity with his fist ready to collide with the back of Verity's skull. "If I'm not in your Danger Zone, what can you do?"

–The third principle. A spear had two ends.

In a flash, Verity hit Elio with the back of his elbow, but to Elio, space seemed to distort as Verity's intent struck him. To him, it was although the end of a spear was trying to collide with his chest, threatening to pierce through it.

Elio sighed. "So what?"

Casually, he caught Verity's elbow with his palm.

Verity twisted his body and responded with a sweeping leg kick. Heresy used every part of the body to keep the opponent at a distance.

Elio, in a display of skill, kicked Verity's foot away before it could gain momentum. Then, he curled his hand into a fist, and he struck Verity square in the jaw.

Verity was unable to respond and he fell to the ground, but he recovered quickly, intentionally tumbling away and springing back to his feet.

Elio once more appeared behind him. "Is that really all you had prepared to face me?" he said as he kicked the back of Verity's leg, forcing him to one knee.

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Verity clicked his tongue. 'Damn..! I can barely react…!!'

Just in time, he was able to turn and form a guard against Elio's incoming kick. It wasn't a technique, or anything fancy, just a lazy forward kick.

But it sent Verity flying a few meters away, gasping for breath.

This time, Elio's face was filled with disgust. "I don't know how you did it… but you managed to have the Spear of Hell teach you personally, and yet, this is the level you're at…?"

As if erasing the space between them, Elio closed the gap in an instant, and he clutched Verity's hair. "Look at Marco, Hoshino, and Felicia, can you even compare yourself to them?"

He shook Verity's head, as if playing with a disembodied doll. "Don't you understand? I do not know what you are, nor whose place you stole, but you should just leave through the hole you crawled out of, don't you think?" He said with eyes devoid of light.

Verity huffed in Elio's face. "I… don't know what you're talking about…"

Elio clicked his tongue. "Still pretending I see, or perhaps you erased your own memories… who knows, but it doesn't matter."

He shaped his hand into a blade, and a soft viridescent hue enveloped it. "I'll just end you he–"

'Now!!'

[The skill -Beyond Reason- is being activated. Your stats have been increased accordingly.]

Fire bloomed in Verity's eyes, and his stats surged, increasing all his physical capabilities. In the midst of manifesting his aura, and in his complacence, Verity moved at a speed Elio could not respond to, and he was hit with a crushing uppercut that sent him flying at least two meters in the air.

The audience cheered at the sudden turn of events, and Verity's master, who had remained silent until now, nodded with approval.

Beside her, Senna rolled her eyes. "You can't ever just be honest, can you? Congratulate the boy!"

Evangelina did not even spare her a glare.

A few seats to the left, Virgo did his best to hold in a laugh.

Elio flipped in the air and landed on his feet, rubbing his now reddened chin. "You and your weird skills…"

Verity scoffed. "Says the guy who can teleport…"

Elio's eyebrow twitched. "It's not– Ugh, never mind." He fixed his coat, and he exhaled slowly. The expression in his eyes faded, his body relaxed, and he lowered his stance. He brought both of his hands up in a way that resembled, but also was quite different from Verity's.

Verity clicked his tongue. 'Ah, so he's getting serious now… Still, two solid hits isn't too bad I must say…'

Felicia's lips tightened and she muttered to herself. "You better be careful now Verity… or you might really die here."

Verity took his stance, and he exhaled sharply. The real battle was starting now. He knew that he was nowhere near Elio's level in terms of skill and that even in terms of raw power, the annoyingly handsome man probably had him beat, but somehow, he felt that he could do this.

He had trained with his master, and by himself, relentlessly for months. He had been beaten, again and again. He had swung his spear until the muscles in his body spasmed, and even then, he continued until they refused to respond. He had not slept, he had not rested and he had not indulged in any type of distraction in those months.

As if he was a mindless robot with a single directive, Verity had trained like a madman, with only one hope, to compensate for his lack of talent. All this time, for a reason he could still not explain, he had worked so hard because he had wanted to be strong.

So, even if Elio was an unparalleled genius, one on Felicia's level, Verity believed that at least… At the very least, the blood sweat and tears he had shed would help him stand before that man.

Verity shook his head, and he grinned. 'Yeah… as if–'

"[Shift]."

The air split apart, space was distorted in front of Verity, and the next thing he knew, a fist had sunk into his stomach. He was not able to react, or even perceive the attack. It was more than just fast, it was instantaneous.

Verity spit out a mouthful of blood, and he stumbled back, utterly disoriented.

Elio slowly stepped toward him as Verity tried to regain his footing. "Do you feel dizzy? Is the world spinning?"

Without being able to answer, Verity's bottom hit the ground, and he still couldn't understand what was happening to him.

"Stand."

Verity struggled to rise to his feet.

BOOM.

This time, Elio hit Verity's side so hard he broke one of his ribs. However, there was no disorienting effect to the blow, just pain, and barely at a level Verity could bear since he possessed the [Painkiller] skill.

Still, Verity coughed a few times, and he tried to create some distance, crawling away.

There was no mockery from Elio, nor any snarky words. He simply slowly stepped toward Verity, and as the latter tried to crawl away, the sole of Elio's boot slammed into Verity's back.

"AHHH!!" Verity cried out.

"Does it hurt?" Elio asked, twisting his heel into Verity's back. "It should."

Verity tried to twist his body to free himself from the pain, but Elio's foot was inescapable. Verity only managed to release some of the pressure by turning around and lifting it with his hands.

The lines of Elio's face seemed to deepen. "If you really don't know what you did wrong… then this must be confusing for you, right?" Elio said as he applied more pressure. "Speak... Do you know what you did wrong?"

Verity… scoffed. "I… didn't do anything wrong you insane bastard…!!"

Verity used the principle of Violence to increase his physical power and squeeze Elio's leg. This only earned him a wince from the man, and it came crashing down ten times harder.

"AHHH!!"

Elio looked down. "Frankly, I could have killed you at any moment, even without my sword. Whether it was here, in the forest, or when we first met, I could have made your head roll without anyone being able to help you, and yet you are still alive… Do you know why?"

Verity groaned in pain as he spoke. "Heh… Could have… would have… but didn't… Isn't it just because you're a liar…?"

Elio stayed silent for a moment. "No… At first, I was just curious. I was convinced you were hiding your strength. I wanted to know where you'd come from. Whether to do with 'them' or something else entirely… I wanted to know."

Verity smirked. "You know… I've been wondering since back then, but the way you speak… are you trying to sound cool and mysterious? Is this delayed eighth grader syndrome…?"

Elio frowned and he tilted his head. "I… don't even know what that means…"

…

Verity took this as his chance. He used both the sudden activation of [Beyond Reason] and Violence to exert as much spontaneous power as possible, and he completely lifted Elio's foot. He then ran, he ran away, no- he ran toward something.

He ran toward his spear.

The audience, understanding what he was doing, booed him. He had suggested the unarmed duel, even throwing crude taunts, and now Verity was running back to his spear. The Emperor himself couldn't help but scoff at the shamelessness while both the participants and the six strongest stayed silent, different expressions on their faces.

Elio stared at Verity with an indiscernible expression, and just as Verity's fingers brushed the shaft of his weapon, a blur of motion and a gust of displaced air slammed into him. Elio was already there. Instantly, he kicked Verity's Spear in the opposite direction several meters.

Verity's outstretched hand trembled, his mouth quivering with despair. He was about to say something when–

CRASH

Elio's leg slammed into his chest and sent him crashing into a wall of the arena.

"Now I'm even more curious. How long will you be able to keep up the jokes… or how long will it take for you to reveal yourself?"

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