The respected Nebezial, who had not yet used any Gene Skills and no Weapons during the entire Tournament, was now using two sabers. The saber he was using in his left hand had average size and seemed to be made of obsidian. The saber in his right hand was a little smaller than the other but not quite the size of a dagger.
Luke couldn't tell at that moment if they were from Panspermia or if they had been forged by an excellent blacksmith.
"We weren't lucky enough to meet before, like we wanted to." Nebezial spoke, looking into the half-wolf's eyes with a cheeky smile.
"We wanted to? Ah! Yes... you are posing for your fans. That's a great tactic to win the audience." Luke could only remember being snubbed by the man after Shiro's defeat.
"Tsk! You're very bold for someone so young."
The half-wolf raised his Behemoth Axe a bit and replied, "Ann... my boldness is synonymous of my confidence."
Everyone present in the stadium could tell that the mood on the battlefield was different from earlier in the night. Thirty competitors had ended up in the infirmary, without exception, and now the two strongest competitors were going to face each other.
One of them was just an anonymous half-beast, who people gradually discovered to be a Strogueher employee. The other was a former champion of the Tournament of Legends, who spent many years training and returned even stronger and more famous.
"Are you guys ready to start?" Mikaela's hologram inquired to the two men.
"Yes!" Luke answered aloud.
"Whenever you're ready..." Nebezial spoke as he shook his shoulders a little.
"START!"
As in all his previous matches, Nebezial did not move a muscle in the first few seconds of battle. Luke knew his opponent's strategy; after all, he had watched two comrades being defeated by him, so he copied that same strategy.
The two finalists stood for a few moments without staring. Soon, Nebezial had his patience full and started to run towards Luke. Seeing his enemy move, Luke also began to run towards him.
Nebezial's first sword swing was frightening to the audience. His left arm rose slowly and seemed to stand frozen in time for a second, but by the time they realized it, the cut had already taken effect. Thanks to his trained reflex, Luke managed to dodge the larger sword and also the blow from the other saber, which was almost disguised by the first saber's stop in time.
Luke slightly bent his spine backwards to dodge both blows and put his left bracelet to the test to bypass the third. The more enormous sword hit the brown bracelet and went back, proving that this sword was less sharp than Serena's, which managed to cut through it with ease.
One more time, Nebezial tried to strike from below, and Luke was ready to deflect however the former champion was strong, very strong.
"<Mineral Handling>!" Nebezial shouted, and his smaller blade doubled in size just then, hitting Luke's stomach.
The half-beast retreated several steps quickly. For some reason, Nebezial did not press his opponent on the battlefield, even after hitting him.
Luke put his left hand over the pierced part and found that the cut was not as deep as it seemed at the time.
Initially, Luke's plan was to analyze his opponent's abilities. What was the result of that idea? He was wounded. Although he discovered one of his opponent's abilities, Nebezial could have more than a dozen of Gene's abilities, depending on his capacity.
Still, the half-beast couldn't attack him without thinking because he might end up losing the match, and all he wanted least was to lose that.
"You know half-beast, you must be wondering why I returned for this competition, right? In fact, I believe all of you present are wondering that." Nebezial spoke while raising his arms and turning his back to the half-wolf.
"Oh come on, wasn't that to gain fame again?" Luke teased him.
"Ha! Maybe you're right in the end, half-wolf.... Because I plan to use this Tournament only as a stepping stone, for my ascension as a Secular."
Nebezial's revelation surprised many, but it also made sense. He was one of the champions of the Tournament of Legends, and he was also undeniably stronger than most young men under thirty.
"So... you mean that if I defeat you, I will be able to consider myself at the level of a Secular? This is something that never crossed my mind..." spoke Luke, after using the man's speech for drinking a simple healing potion.
Nebezial looked at the half-wolf over his shoulder and frowned, irritated.
Luke saw the sword coming toward him and had an idea. Instead of dodging it as he usually would, he held his saber in the air. Then he hurled the smaller knife toward Luke's face, which was still raised.
Since the half-wolf was not an idiot, he took advantage of the fact that his potions had run out and put the man's sword away in the <Normal Inventory>, which surprised his opponent.
"What the fuck do you think are you doing?"
"Oh! You threw your weapon away. I thought you were throwing it away."
Nebezial again frowned; furthermore, he started to run towards the half-beast, furious. At that moment, Luke understood what his opponent's weakness was. Calmly, Luke dodged the first blows of the blue-haired man's sword; however, the man was still too fast.
While dodging, Luke had to manage his footwork. This made him realize the difference between learning a martial art or not. The essential fencing he learned from Yoelona, his advanced strikes and ways of killing were not as useful in head-to-head battles as the many forms of attack that a martial art provided.
The Kristofer's brother was living proof of this, because he was moving in a majestic manner. Basically, Nebezial was combining his advanced fencing with his martial art techniques, and this created a style of his own, a unique style.
Gradually, Luke was learning about this style while getting some cuts and kicks. The audience thought that Luke couldn't even think of attacking, when in fact, he was studying his opponent.
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