*SWOOSH*
*SWOOSH*
*SWOOSH*
Leo dodged every dagger thrown his way through instinct alone, as he utilised [Sixth Sense] to its maximum potential.
The daggers sang through the air, slicing past him within inches, but each missed by a hair’s breadth, as though he had already seen their trajectories before they were even thrown.
His blindfold was soaked through with sweat now, his skin sticky, the chains on his wrists clinking faintly with every movement.
He could hear nothing, feel nothing, smell nothing, yet the world was still there, alive around him. Not in form, not in sound, but in pulse, a vibration that existed just beneath the surface of reality.
As that became the sensation which he moved to.
Casio’s movements, though invisible to him, painted ripples in that field of rhythm, ripples that he could feel even through his dulled senses.
’Left. Three more incoming.’
He gauged, as he tilted his head to the left, stepped back, and twisted his torso slightly, avoiding the barrage of flying steel as though dancing to an inaudible melody.
*SWOOSH*
*SWOOSH*
*SWOOSH*
The thought seemed to have surfaced in his mind, even before the daggers even left Casio’s hands, as he went a step beyond intent, and predicted his opponents movements, before they even made them.
It was like, he had a phantom version of Casio in his head, where he predicted the kids movements based on the vibrational data he collected via [Sixth Sense] and his experience fighting millions of opponents throughout his lifetime.
As with a combination of both, he created a mental model of what his enemy was trying to achieve and moved accordingly, unlocking a whole new level of combat proficiency.
*Hop*
*Hop*
Leo moved in closer, his decision already made on closing in the distance to his opponent to try and end this fight, as Casio nervously staggered backwards, his mind still unable to accept just how easily Leo evaded his attacks.
’The Lord wants to close in on me... but do I let him do that?’
Casio wondered, as he hesitated for a while, before eventually letting out a deep sigh and deciding to risk it all, as although he could potentially keep evading the Lord for quite a long time if he kept circling around aimlessly, he could not hope to win that way.
And hence, after letting out a deep breath, he stopped running away and charged towards Leo instead, deciding to risk it all.
"Here I come!"
He announced, as he closed in on Leo, his movements sharp and desperate, as he moved with his daggers raised high.
*SWOOSH*
*SWOOSH*
His twin daggers sliced through the air in precise arcs, each blade glinting faintly under the pale arena lights, however, Leo did not move to block or parry them.
Instead, he simply tilted his body, letting instinct take over as his head shifted an inch to the left, then an inch to the right, as he let each strike miss by the narrowest margin possible.
To an observer, it looked unnatural—almost supernatural. Like watching a blind man perform a perfect dance in a storm of blades.
While to Casio, it simply looked terrifying.
"The hell? What kind of monster are you..."
The young kid muttered in disbelief, as he panicked and activated two of his best skills simultaneously.
[Cloud Step].
[Rapid Barrage].
His body blurred. The distance between each step contracting as he appeared and disappeared from view, each movement as light as vapor.
His daggers struck in a flurry, dozens of attacks per second, every swing leaving afterimages that would confuse even the most seasoned fighter.
But Leo no longer relied on what the world offered him.
Having entered a space beyond sensation, a void where time, distance, and fear all blended into one continuous motion, he no longer needed external inputs to move.
He dodged the first sequence cleanly, then the second, his upper body weaving effortlessly between the strikes.
His arms moved just enough to shift his balance without breaking his rhythm, and the chains that bound him rattled like the percussion of a silent song.
But then—Casio changed tempo.
He cut his motion halfway through a strike, twisting mid-air, and brought his right dagger in low from the opposite side.
Leo turned his hips to evade, but the angle was too sudden, the movement too unconventional, as—
*SHING*
The dagger tip brushed against the very edge of the balloon tied to his abdomen.
*SPLAT*
The balloon burst, the cold splash spreading across his torso like a sudden wave, as even with his numbed senses, Leo could feel the faint shock spreading through him.
’Well Shit,’
He thought, as he froze momentarily, his breathing faltering as a single thought thundered through his mind.
’No... not now... not at the end...’
For a heartbeat, panic clawed at him, the image of his streak resetting flashing through his mind like a nightmare.
A single pop, a single failure, and twenty-five years of effort would vanish.
But he forced the thought down.
*Inhale*
*Exhale*
"Stay calm," he whispered beneath his breath. "It’s not over. You’re not done yet."
He reassured himself, as Casio, seeing the opening, pressed forward with renewed ferocity.
[Cloud Step]
[Rapid Barrage]
He unleashed another storm of slashes, faster, tighter, deadlier. His daggers moving like falling rain, as they cut through the air in a relentless pattern.
But unfortunately for him, Leo had already regained his composure.
’No more mistakes.’
Leo told himself, as his focus sharpened to a needlepoint.
At this moment, every flicker of Casio’s presence came alive in his perception field, as the phantom in his head perfectly mirrored Casio’s every strike.
’Left foot forward, Right hand thrust, left hand slash–’
He envisioned, as real and the imagined blurred together, allowing him to perfectly predict how to dodge, as he moved like the wind.
*SWOOSH*
*SWOOSH*
Each attack passed by harmlessly, grazing only empty air as Leo bent and pivoted through the chaos with uncanny precision.
Casio’s breathing grew heavier, his pace faltering, as he felt as if he was slashing at a shadow, an opponent who existed both everywhere and nowhere.
As in that desperation, he made a slight mistake, overextending, as he gave Leo an opening to counter.
*CLIP*
In one clean, deliberate motion, Leo caught Casio’s wrist between his forearm and chain, halting the kids momentum completely, as Casio’s eyes widened in disbelief.
The kid tried to Yank himself free, however, before he could retreat, Leo lunged forward, driving his forehead straight into the younger man’s face.
*THUD*
The sound of impact rang through the chamber, followed by the sharp crack of bone, as Casio stumbled backward, clutching his face, as his red hot blood splattered across the floor.
"Huh...?" he mumbled weakly, blinking as his vision split into three. His knees trembling.
Leo’s own breathing was ragged, his entire body trembling from the strain and potion still clouding his system. Yet his stance held firm. He took a single hop forward, then another.
Casio barely managed to raise his blades, his voice trembling. "L-Lord Skyshard... please... wait—"
*CRACK*
Leo’s second headbutt struck true, slamming into Casio’s forehead and sending him crashing to the ground.
The young warrior’s daggers slipped from his hands as his body went limp, collapsing onto the cold floor.
For a long moment, silence filled the arena.
Leo stood over him, chest heaving, his body shaking from exhaustion. The faint scent of iron and sweat filled the air, and somewhere, far beyond his dulled hearing, the referee’s voice cut through.
"Victor, Lord Shadow Dragon!"