Up in the royal stand, Silas spoke again. His voice was calm. "If he's truly your brother down there, I believe you're both equally strong. He should carry the power of a Lorde,just like he was previously leading the Royal Army during the First World War."
King Augustus said nothing. He just stared down at the arena. His expression was unreadable.
Down below, Aldrich looked at Sylvester. His face was completely masked.Only those cracks with red light leaking through.Aldrich's mind was racing. "I don't know what his abilities are. So I'm going to test and see what they're capable of doing."
He gripped his IceKing Breaker Sword tighter and then he moved.He blitzed forward. One second he was standing in his original position. The next second, he was behind Sylvester. His speed was incredible. The crowd barely saw him move.
Aldrich swung his blade. A horizontal slash aimed to cut his opponent in half at the waist. The sword cut through the air with a whistle. Ice trailed behind it.But to his surprise, Sylvester didn't attempt to dodge the attack. He didn't block. He didn't move. He just stood there. His masked face turned slightly toward Aldrich. And he smiled. His teeth came forth from behind the mask.
The IceKing Breaker Sword slammed into Sylvester's waist.But something was off.The sword began to sink into Sylvester's body. It wasn't cutting. It was being absorbed. Like pushing a blade into soft clay. The surface of Sylvester's body stretched and bent around the sword. It was extremely soft.
Aldrich's eyes widened. "What the"
Sylvester, who was staring down at him, launched his hand downward. A punch aimed directly at Aldrich's head.But Aldrich's Danger Detection ability kicked in. His body reacted on instinct. He moved his head to the side. The punch missed by inches. He could feel the air pressure from the strike pass by his ear.But his sword was stuck. Trapped in Sylvester's body.
Aldrich quickly made a split second decision. He let go of the sword. His hands released the hilt. Then he twisted his body mid air and launched a kick toward Sylvester's stomach.His foot connected. He used the momentum to push himself away. He leaped backwards through the air, flipping once before landing on the ground about twenty feet away.
The moment his feet touched down, his system prompted. Only he could see it.
[System Notification: Scanning Opponent…]
[Analyzing Physical Properties…]
Analyzing Essence Structure…]
[Processing Data…]
[Scan Complete]
[System Alert: Opponent Analysis]
[Name: Sylvester]
[Library Type: Transformation/Physical Manipulation]
[Library Name: Library of The Mad Mask]
[Current State: Rubber Properties Active]
[Body Composition: 100% Rubber Based Material]
[Physical Attacks: Ineffective]
[Cutting Attacks: Ineffective]
[Piercing Attacks: Ineffective]
[Blunt Force: Minimal Effect]
Aldrich smiled. "Hmm. No wonder the sword couldn't penetrate him. His body is made of rubber properties."
From the distance where Sylvester stood, Aldrich stretched out his hand. He focused his essence. And then he pulled.The IceKing Breaker Sword, still embedded in Sylvester's body, suddenly yanked itself free. It flew backwards through the air. Straight toward Aldrich's outstretched hand.
He grabbed it. The cold metal felt reassuring in his grip.Sylvester tilted his head. "It seems you've figured it out. What my body is made of."
His voice was distorted, Like multiple people speaking at once.
"That sword would have no effect on me," Sylvester continued. "You're just going to lose completely today."
As he said those words, his body began twisting. It rotated like a tornado. His torso spun faster and faster. His arms wound up like springs being compressed.And then the punches came.They flew toward Aldrich in multiple rapid sessions. One after another after another. The punches were enhanced in size. Each fist was as big as A Titan fist. They slammed into the ground one after the other as Aldrich dodged.
He moved left. A fist crashed into the dirt where he had been standing a split second ago. The impact created a crater.He moved right, but another fist and another crater.
He jumped backward two more fists slammed down simultaneously.The ground was being destroyed. Dust and debris flew everywhere. The sound was like continuous thunder.
Aldrich kept dodging. His Danger Detection ability was working overtime. Every punch that came near him, he sensed it just in time. His body moved on instinct. Left, right , Forward, back , Jump, Roll,Duck.
But he couldn't keep this up forever. There were too many punches. With one final leap, Aldrich distanced himself even more. He flipped through the air and landed about forty feet away from Sylvester.
The moment his feet touched the ground, he moved. He grabbed his IceKing Breaker Sword with both hands. And he drove it down hard.The blade pierced into the ground.And then the ice began spreading.
It started from the sword. A wave of freezing cold that energy outward in all directions. The ground turned white. Frost crawled across the dirt like living vines. The temperature dropped rapidly.The ice spread fast. Faster than anyone expected. It consumed everything in its path. The craters from Sylvester's punches. Everything froze solid.And it was heading straight for Sylvester.
The wave of ice reached him in seconds. It climbed up his legs. Up his torso. Up his arms. Up his neck. Up his head, covering him completely.
Within moments, Sylvester was encased in a massive block of ice. His twisted tornado form was locked in place. Completely immobilized.The crowd went wild. People jumped to their feet the noise was so deafening.
The commentator grabbed his microphone with both hands. "INCREDIBLE! ALDRICH HAS FROZEN HIS OPPONENT! SYLVESTER IS COMPLETELY TRAPPED! WHAT WILL HE DO NOW?!"
Aldrich pulled his sword from the ground. Ice still clung to the blade. He began walking forward. His footsteps crunched against the frozen ground.He was going to finish this. One clean strike while Sylvester was immobilized. That's all it would take.
But he was basically walking into a death trap.With one step forward, then two, Aldrich got closer to Sylvester's frozen form. The ice around the statue was thick. There was no way Sylvester could break free.
Or so Aldrich thought, A crack appeared on the frozen ground beneath Aldrich's feet. Just one small crack, it was barely visible.
Aldrich stopped. His eyes looked down and then the ground shattered.Beneath the ice, a hundred masked faces appeared. All identical to the mask on Sylvester's face. White fearless. But these ones were glowing. Red light poured from the cracks in each mask. They covered the entire area beneath Aldrich's feet and then they exploded.
All at once simultaneously. A hundred explosions erupting from below fire and force consumed Aldrich's form. The explosion was massive. It threw him into the air like a ragdoll. His body spun. His sword flew from his hand. Smoke and debris filled the arena.
The crowd gasped. The commentator was speechless and at the same moment, the ice around Sylvester's frozen form began to crack. Small fissures appeared on the surface and then larger ones. The cracks spread like spider webs across the entire block and then it shattered. The ice exploded outward in a thousand pieces. They scattered across the arena like broken glass.
Sylvester's body was freed. His twisted tornado form released. He returned to his normal shape. He landed on the ground with barely a sound. His feet touched down gently.He looked up at Aldrich's falling form. That smile was still on his face behind the mask.
"Ice has no effect on rubber," Sylvester said. His distorted voice echoed through the arena. "Like I said. You're going to lose here today."