[Valeria PoV]
That was a very good match ...
I did not expect that female archer would win ...
If I am not mistaken, she is one of Raul's subordinates in the disciplinary committee. I had seen her fight during the second stage exam last month. However, I did not pay much attention to her because she did not stand out much in terms of strength or speed.
I still do not understand how her shots could not be detected by Senior Mariana ...
Could it be because she has already awakened her Codex?
I think the ability of the students who managed to enter the main Tournament is indeed far above the ordinary students of this academy.
I cannot underestimate them.
"The second match today will begin!"
Hearing the words of the Promoter, the spectators then fell silent who previously were heard discussing the previous match.
Will this be my turn?
My opponent is Prince Vlad from the Kingdom of Draconia. Their family has a unique blood Nature Mana.
Fire, wind, water, and earth are the Nature Mana most commonly possessed by humans who can use magic in this world. For that reason, these four Nature Mana are the easiest to predict because information about those four Nature Mana is very easy to obtain.
This means, the rarer the Nature Mana someone possesses, the more difficult it is for others to know that person's strength.
However, there are only few records of information regarding blood Nature Mana users like Prince Vlad; even in the academy library, there is no detailed information regarding the magics of blood Nature Mana.
"Valeria de Artagnan!"
I heard the Promoter mention my name.
"Will fight against, Prince Vlad mel Dracus!"
I rose from my seat then glanced toward the black-haired man sitting beside Elena. He looked like he was smiling as if already anticipating this.
Alright, let us defeat that man and advance to the next round.
***
[Raul's POV]
Valeria and Vlad were already in the middle of the arena. Soon the fight between the two would begin.
"Look, look! Is that Prince from another country not very handsome?"
"Miss Valeria also looks very beautiful just like last year's Tournament!"
The spectators began commenting on the two participants.
This will be an interesting fight ...
It is true, Valeria has developed far compared to before the survival exam. However, Vlad's mysterious magics will certainly make Valeria surprised later.
She must quickly adapt to Vlad's combat style which is quite unnatural.
Prince Vlad mel Dracus is someone with an Assassin combat style. However, many of his magics have long and medium range which make him like a mage.
During the qualification round, he only used bare hands during fighting which made many people think he was a Brawler.
"Both participants, are you ready!?" asked the Promoter to both of them.
Both nodded; Valeria looked like she would raise her hand, preparing to release magic as soon as the match started. Meanwhile, Vlad looked relaxed with a confident smile.
"The second match of the first round of the Grunbelt Academy Tournament ... Begin!"
As soon as the Promoter started the match, the cheers of the spectators echoed in this arena.
Valeria stretched her hand then began shooting Vlad with Wind Blow magic.
A usual beginning for the Mage to start shooting her opponent with long-range magic. However, Vlad could avoid two magic shots of Valeria; his face was seen still smiling.
The Prince then began running closer toward Valeria.
The Mage again stretched her hand; this time she shot three Fireball magics at the Prince. However, the Prince again avoided Valeria's magics by running in a zig-zag.
He has quite good Agility.
The distance between the two was close; Vlad used the Charging technique to dash toward Valeria then launched an attack. However, suddenly the body of the Mage was lifted upward; a large Earth Wall appeared from Valeria's soles, making her distance with Vlad move away again.
The Mage then again shot the Prince with magic from atop that high dirt wall.
Vlad avoided again; he then used Sartaxio magic to perform a super jump so he could reach Valeria.
Seeing this, the Mage jumped backward then collapsed the Earth Wall she built, hoping Vlad would be hit by the destroyed dirt debris.
A loud rumbling sound was heard when the chunks of earth fell to the arena surface; dust began rising upward slightly blocking our sight as spectators.
"I am curious, what is that blood magic owned by the Draconia Royal Family like?"
"Will Prince Vlad show it this time?"
"Of course he must! His opponent is Valeria! One of the strongest students in the second year!"
The other participants began commenting on this fight.
It is true, without using his unique Nature Mana, Vlad would certainly not be able to fight Valeria.
Back to the fight, the dust blocking the view had disappeared; the Prince was seen standing on the ruins of the Earth Wall Valeria created; his body was not injured at all.
The Prince then held his right wrist with his left hand then aimed it at Valeria.
Suddenly a clump of blood came out from Vlad's palm dashing toward Valeria.
The Mage could avoid it again by creating an Earth Wall under her feet which made her go up.
The blood magic that Vlad shot then hit that Earth Wall and pierced it. However, he did not stop there then raised his hand upward, making his shot begin splitting that dirt wall and start approaching toward Valeria who was on top.
Valeria jumped to the side to avoid; the Earth Wall she manifested was seen split into two parts by the Prince's magic.
"A blood shot that can cut anything, huh?"
"Not only that, he can bend his magic at will, making it quite dangerous from a long distance."
The participants in these stands again commented on the course of the match.
In the game, Vlad mel Dracus indeed is a fighter from all distances. Therefore it is a mistake if you think you can defeat him easily using long-range magic.
A green magic circle appeared in front of Valeria's palm; it seemed she would use her strongest magic.
Both aimed their palms toward each other.
"Rayo del Verde!"
"Bloody Burst!"
Both shot magic at each other; Valeria with a green laser while Vlad shot a stream of blood with high pressure.
The magics of both collided, creating a phenomenon called Spell Clashing. This is like two characters from Dragon Ball pitting a kamehameha against each other.
The difference is, Spell Clashing in the Path of Destiny game will not last long.
- Bomb!
The center of their magic collision exploded, making both fighters thrown backward due to the Backlash effect of that Spell Clashing.
Valeria tried to get up; her mouth was seen emitting blood due to that attack earlier.
On the other side, the Prince already stood with a burn mark on his right hand.
"By Goddess Diana! This is the first time I see a Spell Clashing!"
"This can only happen if two strong magics pit against each other!"
The spectators and participants watching looked amazed seeing a fight that should only be created by these high-level fighters.
The key to winning Spell Clashing is Mana Control.
When two magics with different mana meet, the magic they shoot will start to become unstable, causing a Backlash to occur like what just happened to each fighter.
Back to the fight.
Vlad was seen doing something; the blood all over his body lifted into the air then formed several solid objects similar to red shurikens.
He then dashed toward Valeria using Acceleration magic followed by those several floating blood shurikens.
Seeing this, Valeria shot several Earth Missile magics toward Vlad who was running.
The Prince then created a blood sword originating from his body then began slashing one by one the earth chunks that came approaching.
Now he was closer to Valeria.
The Mage again muttered something; suddenly four golems two meters high formed in front of her. Those four Earth Guardians began running to block Vlad who approached.
The Prince then sent the blood shurikens floating around his body toward Valeria, passing those four golems.
Seeing this, the Mage began activating her magic to move away from the approaching blood shurikens. However, no matter how far Valeria evaded, Vlad's blood shurikens kept following Valeria like a guided missile.
This showed Vlad's good Mana control ability.
On the other side, Vlad was fighting with Valeria's four Golems blocking him. He was seen successfully cutting the arm of one of the golems Valeria created with his blood sword.
Seeing this, Valeria again created an Earth Wall then went up to move away from the blood shurikens chasing her. She then shot all those shurikens with the same green laser magic she shot previously.
- Bomb! Bomb! Bomb!
All Valeria's magic shots hit the targets accurately; all those shurikens were seen destroyed into small blood pieces. However, those blood pieces turned into liquid blood then merged back into a large shuriken chasing Valeria.
The Mage was surprised then tried to avoid. However, that large shuriken managed to slash her shoulder.
That large shuriken was seen flying back toward Vlad who looked like he was having difficulty fighting three golems at once.
The Prince managed to cut the leg of one golem but that made his defense slightly open so another golem could hit his body hard.
Vlad was thrown far backward; his mouth was seen emitting blood due to that golem's punch.
The cheers of the spectators again echoed in this fighting arena seeing the two participants exchange attacks in different places.
However, I knew this was the end of everything ...
Vlad caught the large Shuriken that managed to slash Valeria's shoulder earlier then smiled.
He then licked Valeria's blood sticking on that Shuriken.
The Mage looked confused with what Vlad did while holding her shoulder which began pouring blood.
Valeria's two remaining golems began chasing Vlad again.
The blood shuriken held by Vlad was destroyed into liquid blood grains which now entered back into the Prince's body.
He then began avoiding the attacks of Valeria's two Golems casually.
Meanwhile, the Mage was seen muttering something. It seemed she would again shoot her ultimate magic.
Vlad was seen starting to be cornered by the attacks of Valeria's golems, making him have little space to avoid Valeria's magic shot later.
Seeing this, the Mage aimed her palm to target the Prince, waiting for the right time to finish him.
Vlad then got a chance to attack then cut the leg of one of Valeria's golems. However, the maneuver used by the Prince to destroy that golem made his defense open.
Valeria's last Golem then caught Vlad's body then locked his movement.
Seeing this, the Mage then began activating her mainstay magic.
A green magic circle was created; a green laser appeared from that magic circle then dashed toward Vlad who now would not be able to avoid because he was held by that golem.
However, the Prince looked not panicked and instead smiled.
- Bomb!
An explosion was created; the green laser shot by Valeria missed and hit the arena wall behind Vlad.
The spectators and participants watching here looked surprised at what happened; even Valeria herself looked surprised why her magic did not hit her opponent.
Utilizing this, Vlad escaped from the last golem's grip then destroyed it.
He then aimed his palm toward Valeria.
The Mage refocused, seen preparing to react toward Vlad's next attack. However, her face again looked surprised when her body moved by itself walking closer to the Prince.
"Huh? What happened? Why is Valeria walking casually approaching toward the Prince!?"
"I do not know! She should keep her distance, right!?"
The participants watching here looked confused by what Valeria was doing.
The Mage tried shooting magic at Vlad but everything missed; her body kept walking closer toward the Prince.
Both fighters now faced each other; Vlad then began beating Valeria with a combo of attacks until it made her body thrown far.
"What is she doing!? Letting the Prince attack her easily!?"
"This is strange ... Surely Prince Vlad is using some kind of magic or something on Valeria! It is impossible she intentionally approached like that!"
Valeria tried to get up, but it was clearly visible on her face that she was confused with what happened.
Prince Vlad was seen starting to laugh out loud in the arena; he then played his fingers like a puppet master.
Valeria's body was seen starting to be lifted into the air and flying here and there like a child's toy.
Not long after, Vlad lowered both his hands quickly.
Instantly, Valeria slammed into the ground hard from the air.
The Mage could not even do anything. Her body was seen covered with wounds; her right hand was like turning in a direction it should not be.
It seemed ... Her hand experienced dislocation and some of her bones were broken.
Vlad began torturing Valeria by lifting her back into the air then slamming her into the ground repeatedly.
He again laughed out loud like a maniac.
The spectators watching this began to fall silent; they no longer saw this as a match but rather a torture.
The Prince again lifted Valeria's body which now was already covered with blood and wounds then slammed it back into the ground.
This time, a red magic circle surrounded Valeria's body which signified her body had already reached the limit and must lose in this Tournament.
"The winner of the second match, Prince Vlad mel Dracus!"
Today, all the students of Grunbelt Academy and the citizens of the Imperial Capital saw the true strength and horror of The Bloody Prince.