With a loud thud, the match was over. All eyes turned to the Dark Elf, who stood with clenched fists, her expression taut with barely contained rage.
"You worthless piece of trash...!"
"Ahem! I did win, you know," the pioneer declared smugly.
"Fine, you win! Now get out of my sight!" the Dark Elf snapped, visibly irritated.
The two duelists, now acting as though they had just finished a friendly match, shook hands and left the arena together. The Dark Elf gritted her teeth and snapped her fingers once more.
"The designated leaders, send your champions forward! Now!"
As the white circles appeared above their heads, the leaders hurried to send out their next duelists. The two chosen champions exchanged glances before speaking.
"Marcus."
"Grayson."
"Ring out?"
"Deal."
"Enough talking! Fight!" the Dark Elf shouted, her voice full of frustration. The two warriors engaged, and once again, the fight was just as lackluster as the previous one. Slow, half-hearted strikes dominated the match.
The Dark Elf, disgusted with the lack of intensity, shut her eyes tightly, as though she couldn't bear to watch the pitiful spectacle any longer.
After what felt like an eternity, the fight finally ended, with Marcus pushing Grayson out of the circle.
"I won!" Marcus declared triumphantly.
"...Just leave," the Dark Elf muttered in an exhausted tone, waving her hand dismissively. "Next."
At this point, even the title of "champion" seed pointless, and the Dark Elf was losing interest in the duels altogether. Her third snap of the fingers was barely audible. A white circle appeared above Justin's head.
"Derek, you're up."
"Right away," Derek grinned, stepping forward confidently.
As Derek entered the arena, his opponent, William, visibly flinched. Derek, with his massive hamr and intimidating stature, looked every bit the part of a seasoned warrior. William's eyes widened, and although he tried to regain his composure, his fear was evident.
"W-William," he stamred, nervously introducing himself.
"And?"
"What?"
"I don't care what your na is. Just fight," Derek replied coldly.
William blinked, taken aback. A few seconds later, the aning of Derek's words sank in, and his face twisted with frustration.
"You cocky bastard! You have to act tough even here?"
"Tough? Is that what you think?" Derek shrugged. "Enough talk. Are we fighting to a ring-out or to the death?"
"To the death?! What? No! Ring out!"
William's face turned pale as he finally understood Derek had no intention of holding back.
"Are you insane!?"
Derek grinned wickedly, swinging his massive hamr with ease. "Draw your weapon and brace yourself. Unless you want to die without even defending yourself."
"You...!"
Panicked, William hastily raised his mace and shield, just as Derek lunged at him.
"Hrrrrraaaaah!"
"W-Wait, wait...!"
Boom!
The sound of Derek's hamr crashing into William's shield echoed like thunder. William was sent sprawling across the ground from the force of the blow, his shield splintering into pieces.
"Ugh! That hurts!" William groaned, struggling to stand.
"Of course it hurts. Don't worry—I'll end it soon enough."
"...!"
William's face drained of color as he rolled to the side just in ti to dodge another crushing blow. Each strike Derek made seed like it would pulverize him into dust.
"Aaaah!" William scread, not from pain but from pure terror. Derek's hamr kept striking the ground where his head had been just monts before. He wanted to scream his surrender, but Derek gave him no chance.
'I have to get out of the ring! If I can make it out, I'll lose, but at least I'll survive!'
With that thought, William scrambled to roll toward the edge of the circle, desperate to escape. Just a little more, and he would be safe from death. But just as he thought he had made it, a heavy boot slamd into his stomach.
Thud!
"Gah!"
The kick knocked the air out of him. For a mont, the thunderous hamr strikes stopped, only for Derek to co rushing in with a brutal kick. William lay gasping on the ground, unable to move. A shadow lood over him.
Through blurred vision, William watched as Derek slowly raised his hamr high above his head.
"S-Spare...!"
Before William could finish his plea, Derek's hamr ca crashing down.
Crack!
William's head shattered under the weight of the blow, and his body went limp.
"...!"
"...!"
The atmosphere in the arena was heavy with shock and terror. No one dared to speak. The pioneers around the ring exchanged horrified glances, their eyes flicking between Derek and Justin. Half of them looked too stunned to process what had happened, while the other half regarded them with fear and disbelief.
Derek calmly shook the blood from his hamr. "I won."
"Hahaha! AHAHAHA!"
The Dark Elf, who had been watching closely, erupted into laughter. Her laughter was wild, almost crazed. After a long mont, she composed herself and shouted.
"Well done! A glorious victory! Return proudly, warrior!"
With a shrug, Derek slung his hamr over his shoulder and walked back to the group. Justin clapped him on the shoulder approvingly as he returned.
As they celebrated, Emily approached them, her face pale with disbelief.
"Are you insane? What the hell do you think you're doing?" she hissed in a low voice.
"What do you an? We won the duel, didn't we?" Justin replied, calm and composed.
"You've just made yourselves public enemies! Do you have a death wish? Everyone here will see you as a threat now!"
"Public enemies?" Justin smiled, the cold glint in his eyes unmistakable. "I think we're not so much public enemies as objects of fear."
"What...?"
"If you don't understand now, just wait. You'll see soon enough," Justin said with a dismissive wave. With no more to say, Emily bit her lip and backed away, retreating to her group.
Though one person had died, an unspoken rule seed to take hold afterward. The pioneers were even more careful, their fear of losing too many mbers outweighing their desire for blood.
After several more duels, it was ti for Derek to fight again. As soon as the white circle appeared above Justin's head, Derek's next opponent threw up his hands in a panic.
"I-I forfeit! I forfeit!"
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