—AFTER THAT INCREDIBLE VICTORY OF KAEL, WE MOVE ON TO THE FIFTH ROUND OF THE TOURNAMENT.
—FLOCH VS ARIEN VALKAEN.
Arien was surprised to hear his name.
—Oh—he looked at the other marks—That is right. It is my turn.
He stood up from his seat, raised his arms to the sky and began to look around for Floch.
—Floch, it is our turn, it is our turn!
When he found him, he jumped from his seat with his excited smile.
—Let us go! Let us go!
Floch rolled his eyes at him.
—Why... Why of all the opponents there were, did I get paired against him...
He grabbed Terrmomix by the shoulders and shook him gently.
—Because...!—he said dramatically. Terrmomix said nothing.
—Well, even if it is him, I cannot give up—he stood up from his seat—Who knows, maybe I will impress a monster just like Eliot did.
Inside the fighting arena, Arien was already warming up, throwing punches at the air.
—Yap, yap.
Floch stepped into the arena and Arien looked at him with excitement.
—Ah, Floch!
—Hello... Arien.
—Are you ready?!
—Yes... Well, I think so. And you?
Arien nodded his head repeatedly.
—Yes! Yesterday I ate all my fruit like my mom told me to! Because my mom has told me I must eat lots of fruit to have energy and
While Arien kept talking, Floch looked up at the sky in resignation.
—Why me.
—But... To be honest with you, I really want to know what your technique is. You never used it in your previous fights.
—It is no big deal.
—If you have not used it yet, it must be a very big deal. Do you know what my technique is?
—Yes, the great light technique.
—Exactly. And what do you think of it?
—Well it is a very rare technique and one of the most powerful. Worthy of the strongest promise of this generation.
Arien's cheeks turned slightly red.
—Oh! Do not say those things, I will blush—his face showed clear excitement at the praise.
—I did not mean it like that.
—BEGIN!
Arien rested his chin on two of his fingers.
—Uh, should we start or talk a little more?
—Well today all the winners of the third round must be decided. If we keep talking we will only drag out the fight and that could make the matches last until nightfall.
—Oh right, you are completely right. And that would be bad. Then let us begin, Floch.
Floch drew his sword, took a deep breath and took his defensive stance, gripping his katana with both hands.
—Yes... Let us begin, Arien.
Arien slowly moved his right hand toward his katana. Floch tightened his grip on the hilt, ready for a direct attack.
Arien grabbed the hilt of his katana and... A huge cut appeared from Floch's right side all the way to his left chest. His mouth filled with blood which he then spat out.
In a single second, his eyes and gaze filled with so many emotions—confusion, disbelief, surprise, awe and shock.
The students in the stands did not even know how to react. Naeris, Kenzo, Varek in the infirmary and the promises all stared in confusion—even Kael looked fixed at that cut.
The only ones who were not surprised were the other promises and Terrmomix. Terrmomix did not change his blank expression at all.
Rika gave a small smile.
—I thought he would save that for his fight against Kael.
—Yes, I thought so too—Haruki said with a smile as well.
—You know how he is—just like Kael showed off in his match, Arien wanted to do the same—Kaien explained.
Haruki looked at Rika and Kaien.
—Do you remember our very first training session when the three of us fought Arien, how that same attack cut all three of us at once?
Kaien nodded.
—Yes, we had exactly the same look Floch has right now.
Naeris turned his head to look at Kenzo.
—Kencito, do you understand what just happened?
He shook his head.
—No...
The commentator spoke over the microphone.
—H-he c-c-cut him... He cut him without drawing his sword?
Up in the balcony, Director Lion opened his eyes wide then let out a short laugh.
—Ho, ho, ho. I have not seen something like that in many years.
The teachers around him turned to him.
—What?! What are you talking about, director?!—Professor Elion asked, confused.
The director stood up and walked over to the commentator to ask for the microphone.
—Well now, well now. This truly is interesting.
Arien looked up toward the balcony.
—That is something I have not seen in more than sixty years. A cut without drawing the sword... It was thought to be impossible, even I was doubting if what I remembered was real or just something I made up—but this proves it was real. The last user of a technique that could do something like this was also a Valkaen. That family really is full of surprises.
Arien winked at him. Floch drove the tip of his katana into the ground and leaned on it for support.
The commentator stepped closer to the director.
—B-but w-what was that?! Please explain!
—Of course. We all know that to create an attack with your technique you must draw your katana—but... There also exists a state of maximum concentration and physical and mental effort that allows you to land a cut without ever drawing your blade. Very few—almost no one at all—is capable of reaching that state. The last person I remember who managed it was more than sixty years ago.
The stands remained silent, listening to the director's explanation.
—It is said that to reach that state you need years and decades of grueling training. Even if you dedicated your entire life to reaching it, you might never succeed. Not everyone can do it.
Arien smiled broadly and burst into loud laughter, spreading his arms wide and lifting his gaze to the sky.
—AND I DID IT IN JUST ONE AND A HALF YEARS!
—... Impressive. One could expect nothing less from the strongest promise of this generation and many before it.
—FLOCH! NOW THEN, LET US GIVE THIS FIGHT EVERYTHING WE HAVE!—he shouted with a huge, beaming smile.
Floch readopted his stance, this time an offensive one.
—I suppose I have no choice but to give it everything I have as well. I will surprise a monster too!
Floch charged forward, Arien gripped his still-sheathed katana with both hands and ran to meet him.
As they drew near, both struck directly. Floch's blade slammed against the scabbard of Arien's katana; the force knocked Floch's arm sharply back and for a moment he felt his sword would fly from his grasp—though he held on tight.
—Come on! Show me your technique, Floch!—he shouted excitedly.
—You are that eager to see it?
—Yes, I want to be the first one you use it against.
—Fine. Then I will show you!—he raised his katana toward Arien—Time Technique...
—TIME.
—TIME DEAD.
In an instant, in a single second, in the blink of an eye, Floch was already a meter away from him. Arien reacted with incredible speed and leaped back—but a thin cut appeared across his abdomen.
From the stands rose shouts:
—HE CUT HIM!
—ARIEN GOT CUT TOO!
—BOTH OF THE TWO GREATEST MONSTERS HAVE BEEN WOUNDED!
—TIME TECHNIQUE: TEMPORARY PARALYSIS!
An invisible cut extended from Floch's blade, struck Arien and froze his body from his feet to his neck. Arien's eyes went wide with shock.
Floch raised his katana slightly to the side.
—Relax, it does not stop blood flow, only your movements—he said, now fully fired up.