"The match arrangement is complete!"
On the gigantic central screen, thousands of names scrolled rapidly and finally froze.
[Match 12: Lucas (F-Rank Necromancer) VS "Iron Bear" Marcus (C-Rank Berserker)]
The stadium erupted in laughter instantly.
"Hahaha! Is the system broken? Putting a trash Necromancer against Iron Bear?"
"Marcus is famous! He reached Level 4 yesterday! His skin is as hard as steel!"
"R.I.P. Lucas. Somebody call the ambulance already."
[Betting Odds]
Marcus Wins: 1.05 (Safe bet)
Lucas Wins: 50.0 (Nobody believes in him)
Lucas looked at the odds on the screen and shook his head lightly.
If only I could bet on myself... I would be a billionaire.
He walked slowly onto the arena floor. The ground was made of reinforced concrete, stained with dried blood from previous fights.
Opposite him, a burly student almost two meters tall cracked his knuckles. Marcus, the "Iron Bear", grinned cruelly.
"Hey, F-rank," Marcus taunted. "I'll give you a chance. Jump off the stage yourself, and I won't break your ribs."
The crowd cheered. "Kill him, Marcus!"
The referee raised his hand. "Ready... START!"
Boom!
The moment the command dropped, Marcus charged like a raging tank.
"Die!"
His fist glowed with metallic light [Skill: Iron Smash]. He intended to end this in one hit.
Lucas stood still. He didn't summon a skeleton shield. He didn't dodge.
He just put his hands in his pockets.
The audience screamed, thinking Lucas was frozen with fear.
In the VIP spectator seats, Elena (The Ice Princess) frowned. "Is he giving up?"
But in the next microsecond—
Lucas's shadow distorted.
"Too noisy."
A cold, feminine voice whispered in the arena. It wasn't loud, but it pierced everyone's eardrums.
From Lucas's shadow, a black, claw-like hand materialized. It wasn't the full Seraphina, just one hand formed from darkness.
Slap!
The black hand swung casually, like swatting a fly.
It met Marcus's charging Iron Fist.
CRACK!
The sound of bones breaking was crisp and loud.
"ARGHHHH!"
Marcus let out a pig-like scream. His 200-pound body was slapped away like a ragdoll. He flew twenty meters through the air, spun three times, and crashed into the energy barrier at the edge of the arena.
Thud.
Marcus slid down the wall, foaming at the mouth, completely unconscious.
The Iron Bear... was one-shotted.
Time elapsed: 1 Second.
The cheering stadium instantly turned into a library. Dead silence.
Someone dropped their popcorn.
The commentator's jaw hit the table.
Lucas yawned and recalled the shadow. He looked at the stunned referee.
"Ref? Is it over? I'm hungry."
The referee snapped out of his trance. "W-Winner... LUCAS!"
ROAR!
Belated shock swept through the crowd.
"WTF just happened?!"
"Did you see that? A shadow hand?"
"I thought Necromancers summoned skeletons? Since when do they summon shadow demons?!"
In the VIP section, the geniuses stood up.
Elena's ice-blue eyes narrowed, locking onto Lucas's back.
"F-Rank? No... That shadow... it carried the aura of a Ruler."
She licked her dry lips.
"Interesting."