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　　Just three matches left in the first round of this tournament, and it was finally my turn……I have to admit, I was getting a bit impatient, having to wait so long. True, all the previous matches were resolved within a couple of minutes at most, and barely half an hour has passed since the tournament began, but still. 

  　　Seeing all those fights got me feeling restless and antsy, I wanted to get into the action too. Still, the competitors representing Abyss are absurdly powerful, several times more powerful than I am. As someone who never gained additional powers through monsters or whatever, I'm probably a bit out of my depth here. 

  　　I could barely keep up with that Jhin guy's movements in the eleventh match. The twelfth match was a lot more even, between Zave, a fellow Adventurer from the Rustlands, and an Elf from Liberty. It was a close fight, with Zave coming out victorious and progressing to the next round. 

  　　And then, the previous fight, match number thirteen, was between Rai, one of my former classmates at the Adventurer Academy, and a Dwarf from Liberty. Rai won the fight in a matter of seconds, it wasn't even a contest. He's much, much more powerful than he was back when we were classmates. If I make it through this match, he'll be my next opponent……yeah, really not looking forward to that. 

  　　It's my turn now, and it looks like my opponent is an Elf. He's got a sword on his waist, but no bow or arrows……assuming he can fly, I should be on the lookout for sudden teleportation. My clothes are cast with the anti-infliction spell enchantment, so I don't have to worry about stuff like paralysis spells. 

  　　And while he may not have any arrows on him, that doesn't necessarily mean that he doesn't have any long-range attacks up his sleeve. Wind blasts might actually be more troublesome than arrows. 

  　　"We're almost to the end of the first round of this competitties! It's time for the fourteenth match, Niski of the Rustlands versus Zalfer of Idyll!" Declared Belia, before signalling the start of the match, "Aaaand……BEGIN!"

  　　As I activated Lightning Boost and shot towards my opponent at top speed, he responded by flying up and gaining some distance in height, before suddenly swooping down towards me rapidly as I halted. 

  　　I drew out my narrow, piercing sword and parried his slash to the ground, before whipping the tip of my blade at his eyes swiftly. But before I could connect, he teleported back up into the air, letting out a slow exhale and narrowing his eyes at me. 

  　　That strike was pretty heavy, but it was too direct, I could see it coming and was therefore able to parry it. But if it had been too much more powerful, it probably would have overwhelmed me and knocked me down. 

  　　It's a bitter pill to swallow……in the face of absolute power, skill is often rendered irrelevant. Fortunately, my current opponent is not so powerful that I'm helpless against him……far from it, in fact. 

  　　He's undeniably stronger and faster than I am, but I can beat him for sure……I knew that I'd be at a significant disadvantage right from the start of this tournament, so I've equipped myself with a handful of Spell Cards, strapped to my belt and hidden beneath my top. 

  　　But I need to hold off on opting for them for as long as I can, until I have a definite opening that I can exploit. The element of surprise is going to be key, so I can't afford to waste it. 

  　　He then swooped down at me again, this time slashing down at a slight angle, preventing me from parrying it again. I quickly brought my sword up and blocked his strike as he closed in on me, the force knocking me down onto one knee as wind swirled around his blade. 

  　　As he began to apply more strength into his grip, I opened my mouth, a blast of lightning crackling inside it. Before I could fire, he quickly flew back up, teleporting right as I fired it at him, my attack dissipating after a few meters. 

  　　My lightning blasts don't have much of a range, but I think his Wind Magic has an even smaller range……he probably expected to end this fight in that last strike, and hadn't prepared to use teleportation this time, that's why he couldn't teleport immediately, he needed an extra couple of seconds to formulate the spell. 

  　　If he swoops down at me again, I need to block or parry again, and then……use one of my spells to launch my counter. 

  　　Sure enough, he swooped down towards me for the third time, but this time, he held his blade across to his right instead of straight up……I see, he plans to slash at my left side instead of straight down at my head. Big mistake. 

  　　As he closed in and swung the blade across at the left side of my neck, I swiftly raised my own sword defensively, while I simultaneously slipped under the line of his slash and off to my left, before driving my blade straight at his throat. 

  　　This time, he was prepared, as he teleported away, but with a slightly annoyed look on his face……now's my chance! 

  　　I arched my arm back and flung my blade straight at him with a rapid spin, his eyes widening in surprise for a moment……that's right, this is just a foolish, desperate attack out of frustration……that's all it is. I need him to be thinking exactly that. 

  　　And then, the moment he casually flew out of the way of my spinning blade, I reached for my belt, touching one of the Spell Cards and running my Mana through it……and switching places with my blade, right as it whizzed past him. 

  　　"What-!?" He blurted out in shock, as our eyes met while I was right behind him……along with a powerful mass of lightning charged up on my right hand. 

  　　Before he could fly away or teleport, I drove the lightning towards him as fast as I could, brushing the back of his chest……and that's when the safety barrier activated, teleporting him out before I could zap him. 

  　　Uh-oh……I'm kinda high up in the air, it's a long way down to the ground……and I'm already starting to plummet. To avoid putting too much strain on my legs, I twisted my body till my front was facing downwards, and landed on my palms and feet, wincing as my left palm hit a small piece of broken floor. 

  　　Ow……that sucked. And more importantly, I probably can't use that move in that manner again, it won't be nearly as effective if my opponent knows that it's coming. 

  　　"Hey, now, that was pretty creative!" Grinned Belia, as cheers rang out across the crowd, "The winner is……Niski of the Rustlands!" 

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　　Point-of-View: Rion Xester 

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　　Gotta say, this tournament is off to a pretty good start. Sure, some of the fights were kinda one-sided, but that was unavoidable. The crowd sure seems pumped up, if nothing else. And from what I can see, the concession stands are proving to be really popular.

  　　The previous match, number fifteen, was between an Adventurer from the Rustlands, Lonfi, and an Elf from Liberty, with the latter winning. She'll also be my next opponent……well, assuming I win my first match. 

  　　But considering how much higher my power level is than my opponent's, it'd be pretty embarrassing to lose this match. Jhin's the only one with a higher power level than me in this competition, and I know that power levels aren't all that matters in a fight, but still. 

  　　"At long last, we've finally reached the end of round one of the tournament! With this match, half the participants will have been eliminated, while the other half will move on to the next round. The final and sixteenth match of round one is Rion of Abyss versus Foluna of Idyll!"

  　　So far, four participants representing Liberty have made it to the next round, but only one from Idyll has managed the same.

  　　Sorry, but I'll be making sure that number doesn't change…… 

  　　"BEGIN!" 

  　　My opponent, a Dwarf, immediately charged towards me with their weapon, a large hammer, poised to strike. 

  　　I almost feel bad for trying to end this as soon as possible, but it's better than holding back and simply toying with my opponent, I guess.

  　　"Sorry about this……Labrys Devastation!" I exclaimed as I swung my axe straight down at the ground, activating the weapon's finishing move. 

  　　A massive, devastating shockwave burst forth towards the Dwarf, who halted as her eyes widened in alarm, before getting teleported out as the powerful shockwave closed in on her, tearing the arena apart before the impact slammed onto the wall of the barrier, causing the whole thing to shake violently. 

  　　Not too bad, if I do say so myself. Just a boom, and I win…… 

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  　　Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to vote, and feel free to leave a comment, I appreciate any and all feedback and criticism!

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