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　　"Just two matches left in round two, and the seventh match is Rai of Abyss versus Niski of the Rustlands!" 

  　　Man, the previous two fights were really one-sided, and this one might be the same……she's certainly skilled, but her power level is too low. It's actually kinda impressive that so many people without any power boosts made it this far into the tournament. 

  　　Based on Niski's expression, she definitely gets it……she doesn't stand much of a chance against me. That said, she does look determined, so she probably plans to give this everything she's got. 

  　　As for me, gotta make sure that I don't screw up. I'm going to use Mjolnir in this fight, I did consider using my scythe instead, but that might come off as me not taking her seriously. 

  　　"Fun fact, these two were once classmates, and here they are, about to face off! Without any further ado……heh, it really is a funny word……let's BEGIN!" 

  　　Niski zipped towards me with Lightning Boost as she drew out her rapier, running lightning through the blade as she closed in on me and unleashed a rapid barrage of thrusts and slashes at me, which I dodged and parried with the handle of my hammer. 

  　　She's avoiding a direct clash between our weapons, since hers would shatter if that happened……her technique is impressive and fluid, but she's too lacking in speed right now. 

  　　As I parried another slash, I then drove the base of my handle towards her midsection, to which she responded by swiftly spinning her blade around and using the base of her sword handle to block my thrust, but the force still sent her flying back a few meters, managing to keep her balance as her feet slid back upon landing. 

  　　I then shot towards her and leapt forward as I neared her, swinging my hammer down with all the force I could manage while unleashing a blast of lightning from it. 

  　　She sprang back in alarm, just barely evading the downswing, but the shockwave that burst out upon impact sent her rapidly flying back as a streak of lightning zapped her, before her back slammed onto the barrier wall with a loud thud, eliciting a sharp gasp of pain from her. 

  　　As she fell onto her knees, she struggled to get back on her feet, her body stunned by the lightning that had struck her, and the impact from slamming onto the barrier wall probably rattled her bones. 

  　　Time to end this, prolonging this fight will only make the sting of her defeat all the more painful. I dashed towards her while charging lightning into the hammer, and as she grimaced and fired out a lightning bolt in response, I absorbed her attack into my hammer, increasing the charge.

  　　With this weapon, her Lightning Magic makes her a bad match-up for me, even without the difference in power levels. I then closed in on her and swung the hammer down at her……she began to raise her blade, before halting and dropping it, probably wanting to avoid breaking it unnecessarily. 

  　　As she got teleported out, I halted my swing right before the hammer could slam onto the ground, the force created by the abrupt halt kicking up a small dust cloud around me, the air around the hammer crackling as I dissipated the charged up lightning. 

  　　"And it's yet another one-sided victory in Abyss's favor! The winner is……Rai of Abyss! And now, onto the final match of round two!" 

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　　Point-of-View: Rion Xester 

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　　Finally, my turn again! Though, well, it wasn't nearly as long a wait as it was during the first round, not to mention that the last three fights in the second round all ended pretty quickly, so there's that. 

  　　"Time to wrap up round two, it's Rion of Abyss versus Lyrei of Liberty!" Announced Belia, enthusiastic as ever. 

  　　My opponent's an Elf, huh……she's got a spear with blades at both ends, interesting. She's also got a power level of around 30,000, so she should be able to put up a decent fight. It's cool that so many of Abyss's participants are winning so easily, but that doesn't really make for great viewing. 

  　　That shouldn't really be a problem in the remaining rounds of the tournament, but we should at least try to end this round on a good note. Here's hoping my opponent is up to the task…… 

  　　"Alright, time to BEGIN!" 

  　　The Elf fired out a couple of sharp wind blasts at me, which I blocked with my axe, before she suddenly teleported straight above me and slashed down at me while swirling slicing streaks of wind around her double-edged spear. 

  　　I sprang back to evade it, a few scratches appearing on my arms as the streaks of wind around it suddenly spread out and struck me, but didn't do too much damage. 

  　　As I backed away while firing out black flame blasts at her, she zipped across the ring to evade them and then flung her spear at me in a rapid spin, like a disc slicing through the air towards me. 

  　　I leapt off to the side to evade it, before she teleported in close and grabbed the spear as it spun past me, and then driving it straight at me rapidly. I just about managed to block it with the handle of my axe, the spear's blade cracking severely and then shattering at it struck my handle. 

  　　She then clicked her tongue in annoyance before opening her mouth to reveal a charged up wind blast……I quickly sprang back to get some distance, before letting out a surprised gasp as my back hit something……crap, she formed a barrier wall right behind me! 

  　　I flew up as fast as I could the moment she fired the charged up wind at me, wincing as it brushed past my left ankle. She followed after me, propelling herself into the air and zipping towards me as I tried to get some distance. 

  　　I then fired out several wind-enhanced fireballs at her, which she countered with her own wind blasts, but she couldn't do much more than slow my attacks down a bit and then narrowly evade them. She can't counter. 

  　　I flew up higher and then swooped towards her rapidly, continuing to fire out several wind-enhanced fireballs at her as I closed the gap between us. 

  　　She formed a barrier to defend herself, before teleporting behind me as cracks began to appear in her defense. She then drove the remaining blade of her formerly-double edged spear straight at my midsection……before a look of surprise appeared on her face as she struck me but failed to pierce through. 

  　　"What!?" 

  　　"Hehe, sorry, but I've got pretty thick skin," I grinned, as I grabbed the handle of her spear and swung my axe across at her head. 

  　　She let go of the spear and teleported back down towards the ground, to which I responded by flinging her spear straight down at her like an arrow, followed by a barrage of fireballs. 

  　　She fired out a short but intense burst of wind, canceling out her spears momentum, before grabbing it and forming a barrier to buy herself a bit of time, and then using teleportation just in time, as the barrier shattered under the force of my attacks.

  　　As she reappeared a few meters away, I swooped down at top speed and swung my axe down as I closed in on her. She sprang back and raised her spear defensively, my axe striking the wooden handle and breaking it in half, before gashing her left shoulder, eliciting a stifled cry of pain from her. 

  　　She then teleported again as she gritted her teeth, reappearing directly behind me. As she drove the blade of her broken spear towards the left side of my head from behind, I flicked my wrist and spun the axe, shattering her blade. 

  　　Suddenly, I froze, as I realized that she was driving the other half of the spear handle at the right side of my head……I quickly turned my head around and caught the broken handle between my teeth and chomped down……owww, that was a big mistake, I think I've got a bunch of splinters in my mouth! Goddamn, that stings! 

  　　Oh, well, time to end this. As she let go of the broken handle and teleported away in alarm, I arched my arm back and flung my axe towards her the moment I spotted her. A look of distress appeared on her face as began to try and form a barrier……but it was too late, as the axe reached her……and teleported her out, as the safety barrier kicked in. 

  　　Whew, that was fun! She really kept me on my toes, not a bad challenge at all. Ow, but seriously, the inside of my mouth really hurts…… 

  　　"And to close out round two, the winner of match eight is……Rion of Abyss!" 

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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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