TU28. Competitive Competition
The warhorn blared throughout the colosseum, accompanied by the thundering roars and cheers of a crowd that overfilled the grand oval stands. It was a cacophony that signalled the greatest fight of the heavenly realm.
Aurora spun around, watching the sea of people heave like a hypnotising tide. Every seat was packed with immortal souls, the witnesses to the grand spectacle of a martial duel.
There must have been hundreds of thousands of spectators, and all their cheers were directed at the Wildren beside her.
"Hey-hey! Ease up, you guys!" Achilles waved, flashing a charming smile.
The crowd went wild. His gold-clad cuirass glinted blindingly in the sun. His muscle-toned shoulders and bulging arms were on full display, a shameless exhibition of peak masculinity. The modestly dressed beauty from yesterday was nowhere to be seen; Achilles clearly knew exactly what he was doing. Strolling across the yellow earth of the colosseum, Achilles continued to greet his adoring audience with sweeping bows. "Thank you, thank you," he chuckled.
Aurora watched as women literally swooned when his golden gaze swept dangerously close to their section.
Bathing in glory, she thought. If I didn't know better, I'd think he was a superstar.
She chuckled, then frowned. It was unthinkable for someone to possess such immeasurable charisma. She could argue that her prime disciple, Zetius, came close, or perhaps his elven friend, Friederich Eir Regis, the White Guardian of Solis Aeternum.
No wonder Terissa's eyes were always drawn to that young elf; he clearly lived rent-free in her head. So much so, he was the first person to come to her innocent mind when she was asked about a potential candidate for the Champion of Gaia. Thinking back on it now, Aurora chuckled fondly at the memory.
When the crowd died down a notch, a strange figure in bright red-and-white jester attire bounded sideways into the fray.
"Wait a minute… I have seen this jester before." Aurora blinked, quickly searching her memory.
Five floppy points hung down from her scalp, forming a traditional jester's crown that resembled donkey ears.
With a sudden realisation, Aurora's lips parted into a soft murmur. "Impossible, she was at the party. How did I never question such bright attire in the midst of distinguished guests?"
The arena grew quiet, and the jiggling of bells broke the stillness. The jester strolled with balled fists, one leading another with a noisy sceptre, mocking the proud stride of a lord or a gangster or a combination of both.
The bells jiggled at the downward tips of her hat and along the ridge of a rooster crest on her shoulder. Somewhere in the crowd, a chuckle escaped.
"Empress, may I introduce the host for this—er—clash of silver and gold?" Achilles said, giggling behind his hand.
"You might have heard of me," the jester announced with a deep, authoritative voice.
A girl? It was clearly a feminine voice, but the cadence was so similar to Aurora's that she had to narrow her eyes at the jester. She stiffened then, glaring at the new arrival without blinking.
The jester performed several exaggerated bows to the spectators, dipping her torso completely horizontal to the ground. Then, with a tap of her finger, she extended her sceptre into a long staff, struck it into the dirt, and cartwheeled near the two combatants.
The crowd laughed hysterically at the acrobatic fool.
"The name is Jana Foole at your service, Silver Empress." Jana dipped low and took off her hat.
Aurora was left dumbfounded by the shiny bald head of the jester. If that was not bizarre enough, her ghastly white forehead was also missing half of its eyebrows.
"Do my foolish eyes deceive me, or are you truly not dead?" Jana asked, equipping her jester hat.
"How perceptive of you. How did you know that?" Aurora asked frankly.
"Nothing magical, Your Eminence." She brushed the hanging tip of her hat aside, revealing her ear. "Yesterday, it was. I simply eavesdropped while you were enjoying your time."
Clearly not expecting such a response, Aurora sighed.
Swiftly, Jana turned to Achilles. "My Golden King, you look gorgeous as always. Except those fake nipples on your breastplate could blind any of us, heaven forbid."
"Oh, you," Achilles flicked his wrist in mock embarrassment. Everyone laughed, though Aurora could only manage a sneer.
Nothing escaped the fool's eyes, Jana quipped. "No jester in your court, I see. The strange look in your eyes tells a thousand stories." Then, impetuously, she was shaking and jiggling her bells.
It was true. Aurora's silent nod was the only response. She had never kept a jester in the Borealis Castle, and a female jester was even more eccentric.
When their gazes met briefly, Aurora knew these were not the eyes of a fool. There was something deep within those crystal-blue irises. The fact that Jana's very presence had gone undetected made her a higher threat than any known foe.
"Did my attire strike you so terribly, Empress?" Jana sang, wearing a creepy smile. Her thin lips were so pale it was uncanny.
When Aurora didn't respond, Jana inspected Aurora's plateless chiton and added, "No armour, I see. A word of advice, my beautiful Empress. The pinnacle of the arcane would be absolutely nothing against the best spearbearer in history if…"
Her echoing words prompted a collective gasp from the crowd. "This duel forbids spellcasting! Might shall be decided by might."
"I know that. I accepted the conditions of the fight." Aurora's eyes twitched, her expression rigidified. Jana glanced down at Aurora's fist, forcing the Empress to consciously uncurl it.
Jana gasped, her blank eyes enlarging. "Why? Confidence? Glory? Or… foolishness?"
"I don't need to explain myself to a jester," Aurora growled with displeasure.
The fool slapped her thigh and laughed in mock fright. Then she abruptly squealed, "Please don't hit me! I was just fooling around!"
She showed her empty hands before backflipping away, her movements impossibly fluid.
"Jana!" Achilles intervened as he looked at Aurora, making a spinning gesture near his temple. "Don't mind her. She's far from normal, you see."
Aurora sighed deeply. "It's fine. I hold no grudge whatsoever," she said, shaking her head before puffing out her chest. "A simple distraction will not hold me back."
"It's not what you think!" Achilles groaned. "I don't know why she's like that."
"My esteemed guests! Behold! There are two weapon racks at the edge of the arena!" Jana bellowed, her voice reaching the furthest crowds. "May the combatants pick one weapon now, and the fight shall begin shortly after."
Aurora strode forward, brushing her hands past the racks. The razor-sharp edges of various weapons gleamed at her.
Should I go for a longsword? she pondered, eyeing a curved blade that extended to a beautiful two-metre length.
"Oh, my, my! One second of eternity, and the Golden King has selected a spear!" Jana announced, riling up the crowd.
Achilles stomped the butt of his spear into the dirt, his smile spreading from ear to ear.
"Of course, he'd pick that. Best spearbearer in the history of mortals! None has ever come close," Jana emphasised to the crowd. "Except when some genius brought a bow to a spear fight. Life is hardly fair; even a fool recognises that."
A ripple of light-hearted chuckles swept through the spectators. Achilles winced at the remark, scratching his cheetah ears, but eventually shrugged it off.
"I shall go with the same weapon." Aurora spun to confront her combatant, a long spear radiating a golden sheen in her grip.
The balance of the armament was exceptional. This was forged by a master craftsman, she mused.
"Will this weapon hold against our strength?" Aurora asked, her silver gaze tracing from the blunt butt to the razor-sharp edge of the spear.
"It will last for the duration of the duel, I believe," Jana replied.
"That's right. Don't you worry. These are imbued with high-tier Atramnéon from the finest arc smiths," Achilles added, balancing his spear effortlessly on two fingers. "Although this is nothing completely indestructible like Adamantine, it shall serve us well enough."
"Excellent." Aurora turned to confront the jester, resting the spear at her side.
"It's decided then—a spear fight! How utterly exciting!" Jana remarked, though her tone brimmed with sarcasm as she mockingly stabbed the air with her long staff. She then gestured for the two combatants to take the middle of the field.
"The rule is ever so simple; even a fool can explain it," Jana announced, pointing her fingers at the lively crowd. "Whoever takes the other out of the fight first wins. Be it through unconsciousness, death, or injuries so great that one can no longer continue the duel. All count."
Aurora stood fifty strides from Achilles, both spears pointed skyward as Jana recounted the rules of their upcoming clash.
Sweeping her glance across the arena, she spotted her mother seated inside the elevated platform reserved for the highest-ranking guests. A bearded painter with a canvas flanked her left side, while Tachyon sat in the opposite chair with her family.
"Empress Aurora!" Tachyon bellowed.
Her voice was buried beneath the surrounding roar of faithful myrmidons in full gold armour, screaming for blood just below the platform, but Aurora could read her lips just fine.
Meeting her mother's gaze, Austria waved and smiled, offering a boost of encouragement and confidence. Aurora knew it now. Out of all the shades in this establishment, only those two cheered for her.
An outsider who doesn't belong. A mortal among souls, Thanatos whispered in her head with a deep chuckle.
I'll leave this to you, Silver Empress. His rich voice waned into the ambience.
In the middle of the battlefield, Jana Foole exchanged a nod with each combatant before bouncing away wildly. The bells all over her body resonated in a sharp, metallic jingle.
Aurora's hand tightened on her spear as she fell into a thrust stance, aiming the tip at her opponent. In kind, Achilles mirrored her movement, crouching low with a charming smile fixed on his face.
"Without further ado, let the fight of gold and silver begin!" Jana raised her staff and struck the ground sharply.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.
The audience's murmuring faded into silence, replaced by a thunderclap as metal collided an eye-blink later.
The intense vibration of the impact shuddered through every bone in Aurora's body. She grunted as their spear sockets locked and ground against one another, feeling like they were being crushed by the pressure of the deep sea.
"Fantastic!" Achilles bellowed. He planted his feet, and his bulging arms guided her spear downward.
The Empress winced as the spear in her stumbling hands became uncontrollable. She rolled her grip in the opposite direction and swung into a vertical slash.
Achilles stepped to the side, angling his back toward the ground. The air swooshed as her attack missed.
Immediately, he countered with a blinding swing.
Aurora ducked, feeling the air cleave past her head, and leapt back into a full-speed retreat.
"Hey!" Achilles shouted. His playful smile flashed as he lunged, thrusting his spear straight at her heart.
She pivoted on her left foot, quickly pulling her chest parallel to the direction of the attack.
A barrage of blinding thrusts followed, unleashed with relentless will and murderous intent. Aurora was nimble on her feet, dodging left and right to evade the incoming attacks. There is a rhythm to it all, she realised, reading his movements.
"Face me!" Achilles shouted through gritted teeth.
Aurora huffed as she ducked. Suddenly, the spear stopped short of its full reach. A feint? She gasped. She had overly committed to her dodge; her feet were off the ground, making further evasion impossible.
"Gotcha!" the Wildren exclaimed, lunging with all his weight.
"Not that easy!" Aurora grunted, launching her own thrust.
The spear tips clashed in mid-air, emitting a shower of sparks. The impact sent Aurora flying backward, her boots skidding through the dirt.
A droplet of sweat trickled down her cheek. She was overexerting her physical strength to compensate for the lack of arcane power.
Not good.
Yellow smoke kicked up into a thick cloud, but before she could recover, Achilles emerged from the dust with his booming shout, "Ha!"
He loosened his grip, allowing the spear shaft to extend to its butt end. The Golden King flicked the shaft upward before hurling it down in a devastating hammering strike.
"Tsk!" Aurora raised her spear into a guard, her knuckles turning white.
The shaft slammed into her defence. The metallic clank echoed with a massive shockwave. The brutal force travelled through her muscles and bones, releasing into the earth and creating a shattering tremor.
Chunks of dirt launched themselves into the air.
The ecstatic spectators went wild, roaring and shooting to their feet. Aurora's knees buckled from the sheer monstrous power of the blow.
Achilles's golden eyes stared at her through the dark shade of his socket. The smirk of a ruthless warrior played on his lips.
"You didn't even need a Bloodwrath…" Aurora hissed, finally understanding the gravity of her situation. His spear skills were sharper, his strength far greater, and his weapon was a flawless extension of his very body.
"Of course, I do." Achilles retracted his spear and placed it casually over his shoulder, allowing Aurora to rise to her feet. He repositioned himself, his movements calculated, yet prideful like a victorious lion as he put distance between them to remain safely out of her attack range.
It was a display of absolute dominion, but it also served as thrilling entertainment for the spectators. In the far stands, the myrmidons stomped their feet in a ritualistic rhythm, shouting their ancient Hellenic dialects into a collective battle cry. The spirits of the warriors still lived on, from their last fall on the battlefield to this very day.
With golden strands whipping in the soft breeze, Achilles swept his gaze across the crowd, singling out Austria. "I told you, Ashen Oracle! I shall honour my opponent, and I have committed to such!"
Achilles pointed at Aurora, his spear tip glinting in the sunlight, and snarled, "Yet, she holds back! Not once has she launched a strike with the intent to end me!"
The crowd fell into a hushed murmur; even Jana Foole scratched her head with her staff.
Austria rose to her feet, rushing to the balustrade. Her lips parted. "Fear not, Golden Achilles!" But that was Aurora's voice. Rich and strong.
Achilles turned, arching an eyebrow at her.
"I did not intend to offend you, Golden Achilles," Aurora bellowed, her voice resolute. "I was merely measuring my strength against yours." Her lips twisted into a light smile. "Wouldn't that be entertaining for the crowd? Surely, they would be mad if the fight ended too soon."
A hysterical laugh echoed from the jiggling fool. "Magnificent! Fantastic! Superb!" Jana exclaimed, clapping her hands like a madwoman.
Arching an eyebrow at Aurora, Achilles's lips formed a wicked smile. "That's what I like to hear. I hope you're not bluffing."
With his spear held parallel to the ground, the Golden King coiled his knees into a thrusting stance. His spearhead seemed to glow with malicious intent.
"Absolutely. Let the war we bring speak for itself!" Aurora crouched so low that the hemline of her skirt brushed the earth.
For a few seconds, she watched his unmoving form. Her grip relaxed as she sucked in a deep breath of air. Then, her fingers clenched tightly, and her legs sprang like a viper's. Her body accelerated at a sheer speed that shattered the air with consecutive sonic booms.
"Charge!" Achilles screamed. His jaw opened wide, and his canine fangs caught the light.
The two combatants closed the distance in an eye-blink, the earth trembling beneath their sprinting boots.
Aurora thrust her spear forward, extending its reach in a beautiful, lethal strike aimed directly at Achilles's head.
Anticipating the move, Achilles rolled his head to the side, letting the razor-sharp edge graze his temple just below his cheetah ear. Before Aurora could retract her weapon, his spear pierced toward her sternum.
"Heh!" Aurora grunted, spinning on her heel to let the spear slip through the gap under her armpit.
She could see Achilles's eyes glowing blood-red. "Don't tell me…" she murmured as she was spinning away to prepare another strike.
It was too late. Embracing the Bloodwrath, Achilles stepped into her inner circle, his fist flying toward her.
Instinct flaring, she faded back and sidestepped, her retaliating swing still arching through the air. But it was Achilles's weapon-hand — the one that had never let go of his spear — that used the shaft to guide her back into his trajectory.
"Take this!" Achilles shouted.
A loud clap echoed as his knuckles smacked into her cheek, sending her spiralling into the air before she tumbled into the dirt.
"Grandpa used the tang of his spearhead to pull her back?!" Tachyon gasped, springing to her feet. She had never seen a technique that utilised every part of the spear.
Stars sparked in Aurora's eyes now. The taste of iron flooded her gasping mouth. Recovering immediately, Aurora sprang back to her feet, anticipating a follow-up attack from Achilles.
Instead, the golden duellist stood with both palms open, as if embracing the surrounding audience. The shades in the stadium showered him with applause and whistles. He was delivering exactly what they craved. The spectacle of him winning.
"Hey, that worried me for a bit there!" Achilles bellowed to her. He smeared the blood from his head wound and offered her a crimson thumbs-up. "I could have died then, and there, you see?!"
"That's… awfully risky. But then I remember you will not die twice," Aurora said, her voice monotonic. She spat blood onto the ground, still feeling the burn on her cheek.
From the edge of the battlefield, Jana shouted through hands cupped like a cone, "Another round already? Or do we need a break, my king?"
"No breaks!" Achilles replied with a grin. "We fight until one of us falls! Is that right, Silver Empress?" He flicked his head toward his opponent.
Nodding, Aurora held the spear at her side, its tip pointed at the ground. "Right. I agreed."
"Acknowledged! Acknowledged!" the fool cried before shaking her body and staff, creating a cacophony of jingles.
"Heheh, she's so foolish, I don't know how she got past the strict judges," Achilles commented, jerking a thumb over his shoulder.
"Focus, or that smack will cost you greatly," Aurora said with a grin, offering a mock threat. She fell into a basic thrust stance once more, beginning to circle him.
Achilles mirrored her movements. "Ah! Didn't you draw first blood?" He sighed with an exaggerated shrug. "Women are truly hard to please."
"Haha," Aurora chuckled, feeling her heart pumping and her body warming up.
"You're enjoying this, are you not? Told ya, it'd be fun!" Achilles winked, looking even more charismatic in crimson and gold.
Boots thumping against the ground, kicking yellow dust into a cloud, the two combatants clashed in a barrage of attacks. Like a dance of death, Aurora jabbed at the air, and Achilles returned with lightning-speed thrusts. The Empress backstepped with perfect precision.
It was a clash of range. With neither willing to stay inside the other's striking distance, their aggressive attacks landed on nothing but air.
The crowd gasped in awe, gripping the edges of their seats. A curtain of dust enshrouded the battlefield as the fighters continued to hurl attacks at one another. Suspense boiled over, reaching the roof of the colosseum.
For a long moment, the clank of metal, the thud of collisions, and the shuffle of feet echoed off the guard walls, soon joined by grunting and wheezing as the fray grew more frenzied. Their speed surpassed normal human tracking, but seasoned warriors could still follow the action, their unblinking eyes darting side to side.
Sweat beaded on Aurora's skin as she evaded a sweeping blow. "I understand it now," she heaved, her drenched chiton clinging to her skin.
"Understand what?" Achilles growled as he lunged forward. His spear stabbed at nothing. He was soaked in sweat, and hot steam seemed to radiate from his exposed muscles.
"Your spear play," Aurora said before launching three quick jabs. The attacks missed, but she already knew they would. If he never entered her inner circle again, she knew it would be his end.
"Oh, you've barely scratched the surface!"
The Golden King thrust, his spearhead leading the charge. A trailing leg extended fully to maximise his reach. He quickly switched his footing, stomping the earth. The stabbing attack shifted as the shaft of the spear cleaved skyward. His grip loosened, letting the polished wood slide through his fingers until he caught the very end of the weapon.
"A drop strike? That's not a spear technique," Aurora exclaimed as a looming shadow drew a long line across the earth.
With a powerful hurl, Achilles brought the spear down in a devastating vertical strike. The air screamed as the dust was pushed aside.
Aurora sidestepped. The spear missed, but the sheer force of the tempest knocked her off balance, causing her boots to hover over the ground.
"Haha!" Achilles laughed hysterically. His bloodshot eyes sparked again as he leapt forward.
The spear pierced through the air like a blinding gold ribbon. Still struggling to find her balance, Aurora swept her spear in a crescent arc, knocking his weapon aside with a teeth-clenching clank.
Gliding smoothly from one motion to the next, Aurora grunted, retracting her spear like a coiling viper. Then, she launched a thrust at the incoming beast.
In a split second, Achilles twisted his torso. Her spear ground against his breastplate, spitting a shower of sparks, but the razor arc still bit into his skin. The bloodshot opponent surged forward, one hand gripping the throat of his spear.
He roared and stabbed his weapon forward like a dagger. Aurora raised her arms to guard, the spearhead stopping mere inches from her eye. Elbows and arms wrestled with violent shaking as Achilles pressed his entire weight over his opponent.
"Perish!" Achilles screamed as Aurora collapsed onto the floor. She struggled to move her face away, but the crushing impact forced the sharp edge to dig into her cheek, red blood seeping out.
With her face disfigured, Aurora groaned through bared teeth. His strength was incredible — almost twice what it had been when they started.
Growling like a savage beast, Achilles jerked and slammed his weight against her crossed arms in a desperate attempt to break her defences. Sharp fangs hissed, bloodshot eyes stared down, and his golden locks plastered against his skin. Beads of sweat dropped into Aurora's unblinking eyes. The blade tip wavered back and forth, waiting for a moment of weakness to plunge into her eye socket and exit through the back of her head.
Might against might. Flawless against flawless. For what felt like an eternity of mutual struggle, her muscles and bones screamed under the strain. With gravity working against her, she couldn't overpower him. Her palms opened as mana rushed through her veins, but she gritted her teeth, forcing it down. Without her arcane abilities, her options were extremely limited, but the rules of engagement had to be honoured.
"Fight like a warrior!" Aurora groaned, biting down on her molars as if they might shatter. Not as an arcanist who spent hundreds of years practising.
A maniacal, rasping laugh burst from Achilles. "I AM!" he snarled, responding to words not meant for him.
As Achilles heaved back for another smash, Aurora seized the microseconds of opportunity to jam her knee upward. A meaty thud echoed as the collision hurled Achilles back several metres. Free at last, Aurora curled her legs into a pendulum motion, swinging them back to spring into a standing position.
"What a beast!" Aurora hissed as she kicked the shaft of the spear into her palm and hissed at the ever-fierce combatant, falling back into a thrust stance.
"This is just getting started…" Achilles smiled with a wicked grin as he stormed forward.
In a clash worthy of the millennia, seconds bled into minutes, and minutes bled into hours. Their relentless exchange continued like a stormy rain.
The audience had cheered until they had no saliva left. Their quietness was a testament to their dry throats, and deep frustration lingered in their eyes as they realised this was no longer a cheap thrill, but a long, intensive psychological game. Using their bodies and spears as extensions of their minds, each attack ended in disengagement, cycling back to where they started. Aurora had already learned every possible move he could make, and Achilles had done the same.
"Owww, I wish I could be the one wrestling with the Golden King!" Jana hugged herself in a tight embrace, meeting Tachyon's eyes on the platform. With an unnatural grin, the fool blew a kiss at her. Tachyon quickly snapped back, exchanging a nervous glance with Austria.
"I don't think she's supposed to keep toying with the Bloodwrath," Austria said with displeasure, her nails digging into the twisted fabric of her skirt. "I can never fathom why she keeps the show going for this long."
"Yeah… I wouldn't do that either," Tachyon nodded, her shoulders slumping like a cowering kitten.
As someone who shared that same essence, Tachyon had never seen such control over the growing strength and agility the Bloodwrath offered. She watched as Achilles slowly and steadily outpaced his opponent. He was like a raging bull, becoming more ferocious against an Aurora who gained nothing but dwindling stamina. But this so-called mad bull was sentient and cunning.
"Will—will Aurora win?" the cheetah girl asked, shifting uncomfortably in her chair. A flicker of doubt was clear in her golden pupils.
Austria hummed fondly and offered her a soft headpat. "Of course. I have never seen her lose a single fight. Never!" she repeated with a simple smile.
Tachyon bounced up, arching her spine. The faith in Aurora's heroic spirit swelled in her chest. "Then she must win at any cost!" She raised her fist in the air, a bit too loudly, earning a hard glare from the painter on the opposite side.
"Sorry," Tachyon whispered, and Austria chuckled softly into the back of her hand.
Comments