At first, Kim Jin Seok had confidently concluded that Satoshi was relatively weaker than him, and because of that, he made one fatal mistake— he fought on the same level as him.
There were plenty of chances wherein he could've taken the opportunity of beating Satoshi down, not letting him have a moment's rest while he pretended to be weak. But he chose not to. Somehow, his subconscious defaulted into fighting on even ground as Satoshi. It wasn't in terms of underestimating or overestimating him, but leveling himself with Satoshi as if that would give him the victory.
As for Satoshi, he was doing better than Kim Jin Seok despite acting like he was inferior to him. The reason for that was— he already knew how strong Kim Jin Seok was as a beast tamer, which is why he never underestimated him. Of course, one could debate that the two of them were approximating each other's strength, but it was apparent Satoshi did better than Kim Jin Seok in that regard.
Kim Jin Seok had already used everything in his arsenal in hopes that he would defeat Satoshi. With the mistaken thought that victory was well within his grasp, he had gotten too excited, and it brought about his downfall.
As for Satoshi, he had been keeping his pace while hiding his strength. If it were any other beast tamer, they wouldn't have been able to pull off what Satoshi just did. Satoshi was far superior to any beast tamers out there regarding skill and instincts in actual combat.
This was probably why beast integration was well-suited for him right from the start. After all, beast integration utilizes a tamed beast's combat abilities and uses them as one's own. Satoshi was known to be a genius in terms of his physical prowess, and this never failed him even when he didn't have a superpower back then.
After weaving through the countless lasers that mercilessly rained down on him, it was time for a counterattack. Satoshi wielded the ice lance and pointed it at Kim Jin Seok, who was still floating atop the grand stage.
Previously, Satoshi's ice spikes couldn't even rival the beams that shot out from Kim Jin Seok's wings. But now, such wasn't the case. Not only were Satoshi's ice spikes stronger than before, but they also completely shut down the beams as they bounced off of them. The ice spikes whizzed through the air like missiles aimed to put down the airborne target.
Just like before, Kim Jin Seok thought that he'd be able to shoot down the ice spikes. He was wholly mistaken, and by the time he realized that he couldn't counter the ice spikes, it was already on his face, and he couldn't dodge them no matter how fast he was. Well, he could circumvent some of them because of his speed, but hundreds of ice spikes flew toward him.
"Aghk~!" Kim Jin Seok groaned before he slowly descended to the ground. If long-range doesn't work anymore, he would have a better chance at short-range.
But then again, he had already been shut down by Satoshi plenty of times while they were in close-quarters combat. The only reason why Kim Jin Seok attempted another brawl was that he couldn't accept his defeat.
Wielding the lightning bolt a second time, Kim Jin Seok slashed at Satoshi's head.
With a sidestep, Satoshi strained his ankle, using it as a pivot point so he could turn around. To an untrained eye, it seemed like the lightning bolt had passed through Satoshi's body. But in reality, he had dodged it by spinning. Before Kim Jin Seok could prepare for another attack, Satoshi didn't hesitate to lunge at Kim Jin Seok, aiming his spear at his other shoulder.
Because of the frost inflicted by the ice spear, Kim Jin Seok's left hand was still out of commission. That's why this time, Satoshi aimed at his right shoulder. He'd freeze both of Kim Jin Seok's arms if his attack succeeded. He wouldn't have a chance in close-quarters combat if that happened.
Kim Jin Seok had sensed what Satoshi was planning to do. That's why he leaned back before the attack connected. However, his reaction was too late. While he could've managed to steer clear of the attack, he completely underestimated Satoshi's reach, and Satoshi was able to stab him anyways.
The stab should've been deeper, but Kim Jin Seok caught the ice spear's blade with his bare hands out of desperation. Well, it was more like an impulse than a desperate attempt to avoid getting frozen.
"You used your right hand. Are you sure you won't freeze because of that?" Satoshi asked. To begin with, he was already aiming for Kim Jin Seok's right arm, so him catching the blade with his right hand had done what Satoshi sought to do.
"Not yet... I'm not yet done. I'm just getting started." Kim Jin Seok gritted his teeth as the helmet that covered the upper part of his face tightened, causing him to flinch. He jumped backward, trying to widen the gap between himself and Satoshi.
Sensing that Kim Jin Seok was up to something, Satoshi didn't allow him to distance himself. He charged at him, this time aiming the ice spear at his heart while shooting countless ice spikes at him. His tentacles also worked overtime, slamming on the ground to give Satoshi the needed speed boost.
Nevertheless, Kim Jin Seok was a step ahead of Satoshi and activated his skill before Satoshi could catch up to him.
Fwoooosh~!
The ice spear was about to pierce Kim Jin Seok a second time, but before it could, a pillar of flame, ice, and lightning covered Kim Jin Seok. The skill instantly broke Satoshi's ice spear, and he had to manifest another one with the help of the Ice Empress's skill.
"AND KIM JIN SEOK ERUPTED INTO FLAMES!" The commentator screamed while the audience started cheering for Kim Jin Seok.
One moment, they'll be cheering for Satoshi. Then they'll be rooting for Kim Jin Seok to win the next moment. At this point, both of them had no idea whose side the audience was on.
"I guess it's thanks to you, Satoshi. Because you've driven me into a corner, I gained insight into beast integration and managed to draw out the real power of my tamed beasts." Kim Jin Seok said.
As the fire dissipated, Kim Jin Seok stepped forward, his body glowing a mesmerizing shade of blue. Three shades of blue shrouded his entire body, representing the blue flames, ice, and blue lightning from his tamed beasts.
"So you were able to level up during the fight? That's nice." Satoshi returned, trying to brush off the fact that Kim Jin Seok had gotten stronger while he was on the verge of expending a good chunk of his energy.
There was also the scene when Kim Jin Seok broke his ice spear, which shouldn't have been possible at his power level. Right now, Satoshi could tell that Kim Jin Seok really did get stronger. This time, there was a good chance that he could go head-to-head with him.
Every single injury that Kim Jin Seok received had also been erased, thanks to this power-up, and it's as if the fight had reset back to square one— with Kim Jin Seok and Satoshi as good as new.
"I'm looking forward to this match." Kim Jin Seok muttered. Somehow, he thought it would be fitting to repeat their greeting right in the middle of the match.
"Likewise." Satoshi nodded.
Instead of his usual laser beams, Kim Jin Seok now utilized the innate abilities of his tamed beasts. Ice, fire, and lightning danced in his palms, pulsating and shifting into different shapes as he charged at Satoshi. Meanwhile, Satoshi just wielded an ice spear.
There was still one more card hidden under Satoshi's sleeves. At the moment, he had no intention of using it. He would leave it for the finale when he's already sure he'll defeat Kim Jin Seok.
A trident appeared on Kim Jin Seok's hand, and he brought it down. To deflect the attack, Satoshi swung his ice spear.
Once again, it broke instantly, but it deflected the trident, which could've decapitated Satoshi in a flash. Without a moment to spare, Satoshi created another ice spear before Kim Jin Seok struck him. He blocked it again, and the ice spear dissipated in the air.
This happened who knows how many times, with neither side backing down on attacking and counterattacking. With Kim Jin Seok receiving an untimely and lucky power-up, Satoshi was at a disadvantage once again— or so that's what the spectators thought since his ice spear kept getting destroyed.
But Satoshi had not revealed why he kept using such a fickle weapon. He was looking for a single opening, and then he'll strike.
While the clock ticked and a beautiful orange-colored hue filled the skies as the sunset approached, both Kim Jin Seok and Satoshi were still at an impasse, with neither side forfeiting.
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