Looking at his opponent, Ryan knew what he had been doing wrong, but his position was less than optimal.
Slowly circling her, Ryan touched his cheek and brought his hand away to see a crimson stain.
'That bitch cut me!' he thought angrily, shaking the blood from his fingers. 'Well if I can't use energy...'
Ryan abruptly sat on the arena floor and activated his bloodline.
"Given up?" Crimson Grate asked with an amused smile. "Don't worry. This will would have been over either way."
"Shut your fucking mouth," Ryan growled as a red aura surrounded him. His blade, lying on the arena floor, quivered and rose, flying toward Ryan's opponent's back.
Crimson Grate tried to dodge the oncoming assault but the blade ran through her like water through a sieve.
[Winner Emerald]
As the woman was teleported out before she hit the ground, Ryan unsteadily got to his feet, his bloodline having drained him more than he thought.
[Next Match In 30 Minutes]
Thankful for the respite, Ryan didn't bother retrieving his sword. Instead, he sat on the ground and tried to meditate. He needed to recover what little bloodline energy he could with the scraped-together recovery technique he had invented.
===
Aurora's POV...
Changing the hologram to watch 'Emerald vs. Crimson Gate,' Aurora saw a burly female warrior and a handsome... 'Are they handsome? Or are they beautiful?'
'Either way, they are neither my boy nor the previous man who set off the aura alarm.'
Pausing for a moment, Aurora thought the most likely scenario was that this genderless person and the man who had previously set off her aura had the same employer, the human empire.
'Kheaweth probably somehow knew about my aura alarms and sent people with fake signatures to throw me off. Although they could never have known I was trying to find my son.' Aurora sighed as she continued watching the duel, "It's a good thing the empire doesn't know about my son surviving the school fire. If they did know, they certainly would use him against me."
"Penelope!" Aurora called.
A second later, the maid entered, bowing to Aurora, "Yes, mistress?"
"Go and-" she faltered as she was about to give Penelope an order. She drew closer to the screen and saw that Ryan, who had been losing the fight, suddenly sat down.
'What's that person doing?' she thought, but her confusion quickly gave way to awe. "This person has the power of the originals!" Aurora exclaimed, watching as Ryan used his bloodline powers.
"I haven't seen someone use the power of the originals in a thousand years!" Aurora murmured, turning back to the confused Penelope.
"Ah," Aurora said, realizing Penelope wouldn't know who the originals were. "Originals have power that activates without the heavens intervention."
Penelope nodded. "Thank you for the explanation, Mistress."
Waving her hand, Aurora said, "Go bring me Queen Tree Vine. I have a person to handle."
'If the human empire thinks they can send someone to trick my sensors and win the tournament, they have another thing coming.'
===
Ryan wiped the sweat off his brow at his narrow victory. 'Hopefully, bloodlines are at least common enough that someone knows what's happening and doesn't think I'm cheating,' Ryan thought.
The pride that kept his back straight and chest puffed out, also demanded perfection in everything he put his mind to.
Thus, if he entered a competition, he would win it. No matter the cost.
'Only the weak need to bow in defeat,' he recited his mantra in his mind.
Ryan realized that since coming to Ravier, he had been afraid. Afraid of the human empire, fearful of this world, and most of all, petrified of the unknown.
He still didn't know why the human empire was using him, although some pieces were slowly coming together.
He still didn't know who he truly was, and why he was able to cultivate Ravier.
He also didn't know why he could manipulate the elements, specifically the element of space.
Ryan continued to meditate, sitting on the arena floor, waiting for his next opponent. Waiting gave him time to think.
'I still haven't been able to touch on the element of time, so I'm not sure I'm a First One. But, on the other hand, I can easily bend space to my will, freezing it when I'm only in the first tier.
Ryan had figured out that there were tiers to his bloodline, like ranks, and he had just barely nudged over into the first tier when activating his bond with Yoko.
[Time Is Up]
[New Round Start]
[Emerald vs. Queen Tree Vine]
With a small warp, which Ryan could sense coming, even before anything visual appeared, a woman that seemed to be made entirely from plants entered the arena.
Ryan tilted his head as he tried to get a better look at her features.
Her head looked like a Venus flytrap. This aroused curious feelings inside Ryan's nether regions as he thought of all the possible ways that could both be a blessing and a curse.
[30]
[29]
[28]
As the timer started the countdown, Ryan took out his blade and walked toward his opponent, waiting for the barrier to drop.
"May your soul burn in hell for eternity," she said calmly.
"I'm sorry. What did you say?" Ryan asked, confused, thinking he might have misheard.
ραпdα nᴏνɐ| сom The only response was an icy glare and silence.
Shrugging it off, Ryan waited for the timer to hit [3] before charging toward the barrier, trying to time his attack.
Falling to the ground after passing through the barrier, Ryan felt dread wash over him as he again heard the calm voice, with a hint of disdain, say, "May this sword end your life."
Dodging the sword's strike, he thought, 'You can't even kill me. So what are you whining about?'
He felt a sting on his side, 'She cut me!' Am I out-skilled?'
'No, she's using energy!' Ryan realized in alarm.
Flicking his sword, Ryan managed to stop the tip of the attacking blade from piercing his ribs. However, blood seeping from his side made it hard to keep a grip on his sword, and as he went in for a counterattack, his blade slipped from his hands and clattered to the floor.
Whirling around him, the queen prepared to swing at him with all her might, but she stopped when she heard a whisper in her ear. "We can't kill him, Queen!" the little creature hidden in her hair said.
"What do you mean?" Queen Tree Vine whispered, "We've been tasked by Aurora to slay this person. Her words are law."
"He is of the protected, the sacred, I can feel it!" the little creature said, getting desperate as the Queen pulled back her arm to strike at Ryan.
Lowering her blade, the Queen stared at Ryan in shock.
Ryan used the momentary pause to his advantage, activating his bloodline and stabbing the girl through the heart with his flying blade.
'Fuck,' Ryan thought, expecting the blade to pass through the Queen.
But to his shock, the blade pierced the Queen's chest, puncturing her heart.
A little tree creature exited the Queen. He slowly trekked toward Ryan, hobbling and staggering, his body failing him after his life source was destroyed.
"Oh, Sacred One," the little creature croaked. "Thank you for showing us your light, if only for a brief moment."
"We will die happy, knowing our actions might have saved you today."
"Sacred One, leave now before it is too late. For there are those that want to steal your fate."
With his last words, the little creature collapsed to the ground, dead.
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