Her body flew through the air in a tangle of limbs as her sword went flying below. To the caster's credit, a second barrier sprung into existence, flowing from his staff as the slingshot band flattened out. It rose to defend them, catching the woman's body in a swirling sheet of water.

She spun and tumbled then veered to the right as she rocketed across the slab.

Zog started to fall but he leaned forward, and activated his movement skill. Flames jetted from his feet and he zipped toward the noble with his fist cocked.

Culzac shoved his staff in the ground and the blue flower expanded rapidly with thick vines twisting down the sides of the shaft.

Zog's fist met the water barrier with an explosive punch. It held for a moment before he pulled back and thrusted with his other. Flames coated his hand and condensed around his fingers.

He punched again.

The mana compressed then jetted through the water. It created a baseball-sized hole that caused the caster to recoil, shattering his concentration.

Zog grunted. His feet touched the ground and he crouched, flames building underneath. His grin escaped the hood. As he breathed in, he jumped forward. His fist sliced upward, toward the caster's chin, but Culzac intercepted. The blue flower sprouted from his staff and caught Zog's fist. Behind it, two of the petals weaved together. They expanded to engulf the noble and the caster, draping them with the blue curtains.

I leaned closer, watching the mana go dead to my senses. Despite knowing where they were, and the booth's enchantments being able to capture how mana flowed across the screen, it was as if the two disappeared. Visually, I saw Culzac's skill cover their bodies with its petals. Logically, I knew they were inside. But my mana sense formed a hole in a net where I knew there shouldn't be.

What the heck?

"Interesting. That's an unusual defensive skill," Teddy commented.

"Haven't seen many nature based shields before," Sereza said.

"Let's see how he responds."

Zog growled. He slapped his free hand against the petals and released flames from his palm. It spilled between his fingers and scorched the sides in a star formation. The petal resisted the heat at first then it shrunk. Once the first of the blue fibers began to crumble into black flecks, Zog cut off his mana and yanked his arm free.

His arm pulled back and he punched. His attack broke through the petals and caught a second layer. A second punch crushed the petal, revealing a third and then a fourth layered atop each other.

He responded by raising his leg and sweeping upward. The skill collapsed, and the petals gave way.

"Got you, cow-"

Culzac shoved his arm outside the walls of the flower and snapped.

The screen flashed white. Zog recoiled, stumbling backward. He managed to block a water dart by raising his arms in time. It crashed against his meaty limb, drilling a thin line across, near his wrist.

Another dart flew toward him but Zog ducked. He raised his knee and sent a wave of fire from a snap kick. The water barrier appeared, growing large enough to tank the hit before dispersing in a cloud of steam.

On the repositioning, a third dart hit his bicep, drawing first blood.

"Told you, no way he was finishing it in one punch." Isaac leaned back, drink in hand. "All that talk and he's barely better than the rest."

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered.

Teddy shook his head. "He's holding back. Watch."

More of the darts continued to assault the orucan while the last of the petals fell. Even while seemingly blinded by the bright flash from Culzac, he managed to dodge every second shot. Those that he failed to dodge landed against his arms, leaving a crosshatch of cuts.

Purple blood dripped onto the stone below, slowly coating the slab.

It didn't look good for the fighter, but Teddy was right. A scion wasn't nothing, and from how he showed himself–the confidence he exuded–what he displayed inside the tourney couldn't have been everything he had in his kit.

I refused to believe it.

However, as if to defy my thoughts, when the next dart zipped out, it curved around his arms and cut a chunk of flesh off his shoulder.

"Ignorant, fool. You face the might of house Phyltomen!" Culzac sneered.

Between his hands, a rotating ball of purple roots and green petals scraped against his skin. A heavy concentration of mana pulsed outward, shooting the tendrils as spearpoints into the stone. The caster jumped back, creating another water barrier behind them while keeping his sling ready with a bead waiting to be launched.

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Zog kept still, blood continuing to puddle beneath him. His hood covered his face just right, preventing me from seeing his expression. Still, he held his arms up in a turtle guard, muscles taught as mana swirled around his limbs.

Culzac must not have liked what he saw. His derision morphed into fury backed by a cautious paranoia. His legs shifted, ready to jump back as he continued to pour mana into the strange green flower.

"Is he pulling a Cyrus?" Khrem cut in. "From what we've seen, he should have been able to up the aggression and prevent the skill from taking place."

"What does that mean?" I complained.

"Exactly what he said," Isaac laughed. "Oh Mordred, you have a terrible habit of letting your opponents use their skills."

"Bite me."

"Sure!"

"Keep your flirting to yourselves," Igas groaned.

Isaac flustered and whirled on the oni in a tirade of false anger and sugary projectiles. It was all for show, his eyes never left the orucan even as Igas dodged the pieces of candy.

"I think he is like Cyrus, in that he wants to test himself. Albeit, more for the sake of combat then skill experimentation. Either way, we'll see how he reacts. Culzac's skill is nearly ready," Teddy said.

The flower that had impaled the stone blossomed upward while growing in size. Along with it, the purple vines thickened as the stone started to crack. Culzac twitched his pointer and pinky before dropping into a crouch.

He slammed his arms against the stone but what should have been hard material gave way and parted before his limbs. Elbow deep, a vine sprouted from the back of the flower and wrapped itself around his wrists.

"Now!" Culzac shouted.

Zog dodged the first volley of darts, moving to the side and leaping off a stumbling beastkin.

The dart pierced the wolf's unguarded back causing him to stumble into another tearing a piece off his thigh. His opponent took the opportunity and shoved his sword into the wolf's shoulder, pinning him in place. Sure enough, the bracelet changed color and signified his defeat.

The elf started to pull his blade free when Zog's foot smashed into the side of his head. Like a puppet with its strings cut, he dropped bonelessly atop the other combatant.

Zog flipped, dropping forward as flames launched him off the ground. He barreled through another dart and landed a foot away from the caster. To his credit, the man responded by jumping back, summoning a barrier between them.

When Zog's elbow tore it apart, the caster activated a new skill. From his staff, the water band snapped in two and flung itself around his arms and legs. Zog attempted to push forward but remained bound.

"Secured," the caster shouted.

Culzac kept silent in concentration as he closed his eyes.

From the flower's center, it unfurled revealing a set of razor-sharp thorns. The glistening maw dripped sickly yellow sap that sizzled upon contact with the stone.

Zog cocked his head as five vines sprouted from below and wrapped around him. Twice bound, when he bulged against the restraints they rooted him more securely and tightened with gripping force.

Culzac opened his eyes and turned to the caster. "Do it."

The caster stilled, extending his arm. Instead of upward, and summoning bands for the slingshot, a single stream of muddy water oozed out of the wood and spiraled over the staff. It collected into a spinning egg, increasing its speed.

Two more joined the rotation, and the caster arm began to shake.

"Is this your strongest attack?" Zog asked.

He responded by switching his grip to two hands and funneling more mana into the head-sized eggs.

As the caster's legs started to buckle, he widened his stance and exhaled. The eggs rocketed toward Zog, the two slightly smaller projectiles rotating around the bigger. At point blank, there wasn't much room to dodge.

So Zog didn't.

Faster than I could blink, the eggs met a wall of flames. They pushed forward while the two skills collided, creating a jet of steam to billow out.

I smiled and examined the spectral arm sprouting from Zog's back. It was twice the size of his own, with the fingers ending in thick claws. The eggs drilled into the palm, trying but failing to penetrate through.

"Adequate. Good power. Excellent speed. But not enough," Zog said. His hood slipped back revealing a toothy-grin. He lowered his chin and licked the band of water around his arms before snagging a piece of vine with his tusks. As he chewed, his eyes blazed orange. "Not bad. Definitely not the worst taste in the world. However, still disappointing."

Culzac's eyes bulged and his jaw slipped open. Zog shrugged against the restraints and fixed his gaze toward the struggling caster.

"It was a good try, but now that I've tasted the best you have to offer, I must move on. Know that it was enjoyable to see a unique fighting style. Rejoice in lasting longer than your companion," he said while pointing his chin toward the still unconscious warrior woman a few meters away.

The caster's frown turned viscous but Zog cleared his throat. The spectral fist closed and crushed the eggs together. They continued to spin but slowed by the second. As the smaller eggs began to lose form, Zog's skill flexed and intensified in brightness.

Backlash hit the caster and he dropped to his knees. The bands trapping Zog's legs and biceps crumbled, joining the small puddle of blood below him. He had enough strength to look up before Zog's bare fist took him in the jaw and sent him backward. His head bounced once, then came to a stop near Culzac's feet.

I whistled softly. "That was cold."

The noble shifted into a half-standing crouch, his arms still in the stone. The flower squeezed, attempting to prevent Zog from moving but the fist grabbed at the first vine and snapped it in two.

Zog yanked his shoulder loose, and tore another vine away. "As for you. I have no use for a defensive fighter. Surrender now, and I'll spare you."

"You think your threats will work on me?!" Culzac growled. "Don't confuse me for someone lesser!"

Suddenly, orange growths sprouted over his shoulder. They ballooned outward before bursting, creating a cloud of thick spores around them. A new flower started to form by his feet, and glowing light flashed underneath Culzac's arms.

The orucan sighed. A cloak of flames flowed over his skin, covering him from head to two. Crackles and sparks flashed around him as the flames burnt away the spores, creating a black smoke that drifted into the air. It burnt away the remaining flora and he moved closer, looming above the noble.

"At least I tried."

Wham!

Before Culzac could activate his skills, Zog's palm caught him in the jaw. His mouth slammed shut and his head rocked back. The flaming ghost fist caught the noble and lifted him into the air.

His eyes fluttered open, and he weakly raised his arm and attempted to pry the fingers loose but stopped as his flesh started to blacken. The pristine silky hair atop the noble's head shriveled and curled inward, creating more smoke above them.

Zog raised his fist but the bracelet around Culzac's wrist flashed. With a casual shrug, he flung the noble's limp body atop his henchmen. The skill dissipated, leaving the orucan standing alone amidst the mayhem.

He turned, facing the booth and looked directly into the screen.

"I hope this excites you. When we fight, I want you to hold nothing back," he declared.

He nodded once and spun around. In a blazing leap, he launched himself into the melee and landed atop a fighter's shield. The man screamed but it was too late, and a sharp thunk brought him low.

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