Zenith’s aura rose like a wave.
Rhys felt every hair on his body stand up.
Fate gripped the mic with both hands,
"OH NO—OH NO—ZENITH IS DOING THE SCARY CHARGE AGAIN—WHY DOES HE HAVE MULTIPLE VERSIONS OF THE SCARY CHARGE?!"
Drear stayed calm.
"Because he can."
Rhys shouted,
"STOP BEING CALM ABOUT IT!!"
Zenith dashed.
He moved so fast the ground cracked behind him.
Rhys barely had ti to blink before the attack ca down.
He lifted his sword—
KAAAAAAANG!!
The clash exploded again, dust shooting up around them.
But this ti—
Rhys didn’t just block.
His blade vibrated.
The red aura pulsed outward again—
stronger than before.
A small shockwave rippled from the point of impact.
Zenith slid back a full step this ti.
The stands ERUPTED.
Fate scread,
"ONE FULL STEP!! THAT’S A NEW RECORD!! RHYS IS EVOLVING LIKE A TRAUMATIZED POKÉMON!!"
Drear nodded,
"The resonance is growing. Rhys is syncing with the blade at a faster pace than expected."
Puddle pressed her face against the barrier,
"MASTER YOU DID IT AGAIN!! YOU ARE NOW ’STRONG-ISH!!’ KEEP GOING!!"
Rhys yelled,
"I DON’T WANT TO BE STRONG-ISH—I WANT TO BE ALIVE-ISH!!"
Zenith steadied his stance again.
He looked at Rhys with a raised eyebrow.
"...Better."
Rhys shouted,
"STOP SAYING ’BETTER’ LIKE I’M SO STUDENT TAKING A BAD EXAM!!"
Zenith didn’t answer.
He simply lifted his sword again.
Rhys watched him—and felt the rhythm of his blade.
Ba-dum.
Ba-dum.
Ba-dum.
The beat matched Zenith’s movent.
The timing lined up.
Rhys’s eyes widened.
"Oh no. I’m starting to understand."
Puddle gasped.
"Oh yes! Understanding is good!"
"No it’s NOT!" Rhys shouted. "It ans Zenith will hit HARDER NOW!"
Zenith moved.
Rhys moved too.
Their swords clashed again—
KAAAANG!!
This ti Rhys angled his blade perfectly.
The shockwave bounced between them.
Zenith didn’t move much—
but he DID move.
He slid back half a step again.
Rhys felt it.
The sword humd.
It felt almost... satisfied.
Fate was losing his mind.
"HE DID IT A THIRD TI!! THAT’S THREE PUSHBACKS!! THAT’S A COMBO!! RHYS HAS A THREE-HIT COMBO!!"
Drear spoke slowly,
"Zenith is testing him with stronger strikes each ti. Rhys needs to be careful... the next one will not be the sa."
Rhys’s stomach dropped.
He pointed his sword at Zenith and yelled,
"HEY! CAN WE HAVE A BREAK? LIKE A NORMAL BREAK? WATER? SNACKS? NAPS?!"
Zenith didn’t even blink.
"No."
Rhys scread internally.
Zenith stepped forward.
His aura sharpened.
Drear’s voice tightened,
"He’s preparing his real heavy strike."
Fate shouted,
"REAL? REAL HEAVY?! WHAT WERE THE OTHERS THEN—TRAINING WEIGHTS?!"
Rhys clutched his sword.
"WHY DOES HE HAVE A ’REAL’ ANYTHING—HE’S ALREADY TRYING TO KILL !!"
Zenith raised the sword overhead.
The lights flickered.
The barrier cracked.
Even the announcers flinched.
Puddle squeaked,
"MASTER THIS ONE LOOKS LIKE IT CAN DELETE BUILDINGS!!"
Rhys felt his legs shake.
He whispered,
"Okay... body... please don’t fail now..."
Fate grabbed the mic with both hands again and practically shouted into it,
"OKAY PEOPLE THIS IS IT—ZENITH IS ABOUT to DROP THE ’HIT YOU INTO NEXT WEEK’ ATTACK!! IF RHYS SURVIVES, HE DESERVES SNACKS, A DAL, AND MAYBE A THERAPIST!"
Drear sighed,
"Fate... please calm down."
"I CAN’T CALM DOWN! DO YOU SEE THAT ATTACK? THAT IS NOT A NORMAL ATTACK! THAT IS A ’GOODBYE TO YOUR FAMILY TREE’ ATTACK!"
Rhys braced himself, shaking.
Zenith’s sword ca down—
but Fate kept yelling anyway,
"RHYS IF YOU CAN HEAR : BLOCK BETTER! DODGE BETTER! LIVE BETTER! DO ANYTHING BETTER!"
Drear added,
"Preferably without dying."
Puddle slamd her hands against the barrier,
"MASTER PLEASE DON’T TURN INTO SMOKE!!"
Zenith’s strike hit.
The ground cracked like glass.
A shockwave blasted out so hard the announcer table slid back six ters.
Fate held onto his chair for dear life,
"OH MY GOD WE ARE MOVING—WHY ARE WE MOVING?! THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE HIS PROBLEM, NOT OURS!!"
Drear adjusted his glasses even while sliding,
"Fate. Focus. We need to see whether Rhys is still alive."
The dust began to clear.
Fate squinted,
"RHYS?! IF YOU ARE IN ONE PIECE PLEASE WAVE! IF YOU ARE IN MULTIPLE PIECES—UM—JUST... JUST THINK POSITIVE THOUGHTS!"
Drear elbowed him,
"Fate. Stop."
"I’M TRYING TO BE SUPPORTIVE!!" Fate shouted.
The dust faded fully—
and Fate’s jaw dropped.
"NO WAY. HE IS STILL STANDING. RHYS IS STILL STANDING!!"
Drear let out a breath,
"He redirected the strike at the last second. Very risky... but it worked."
Puddle burst into tears,
"MASTER YOU ARE NOT DEAD!! GOOD JOB!! KEEP DOING THAT!!"
Fate flailed his arms,
"HE DID IT!! RHYS HAS OFFICIALLY PASSED THE ’NOT BEING OBLITERATED BY A GOD’ TEST!! LEVEL-UP SOUND EFFECTS FOR EVERYONE!!"
Zenith blinked once, actually surprised.
Rhys wobbled,
"I am... so tired... please... soone tell Zenith to stop... hitting ... like this..."
Fate instantly yelled,
"NOPE! NO BREAKS! YOU SURVIVED THAT ONE SO HE’S DEFINITELY GOING TO HIT YOU WITH SOTHING EVEN WORSE NOW!"
Rhys:
"WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT OUT LOUD?!"
Zenith rolled his shoulders a little, like he was warming up for round two.
Fate pointed at him wildly,
"SEE?! I TOLD YOU!! LOOK AT HIM! THAT IS THE POSTURE OF A MAN ABOUT TO COMMIT SERIOUS VIOLENCE!"
Drear nodded calmly,
"Yes. He’s preparing the next attack."
Rhys stared at them with dead eyes,
"WHY ARE YOU BOTH ANNOUNCING IT LIKE A WEATHER REPORT?! ’CHANCE OF RHYS DYING: 98%. POSSIBILITY OF SURVIVING: PLEASE DON’T COUNT ON IT.’"
Puddle pressed her face harder to the barrier,
"MASTER YOU MUST RUN! DODGE! ROLL! TELEPORT! OR JUST BECO AIR!"
Rhys yelled back,
"I CAN’T BECO AIR—I’M HUMAN!!"
Zenith finally spoke,
"Good. You survived that one. Now—don’t die for the next."
Rhys nearly cried,
"WHY IS THAT YOUR MOTIVATION STYLE?! SAY SOTHING ENCOURAGING!! LIKE ’YOU CAN DO IT’ OR ’BELIEVE IN YOURSELF’!"
Zenith tilted his head.
"...Don’t collapse."
"That’s not better!!"
Fate jumped up and waved both arms,
"RHYS, LISTEN! YOU CAN DO THIS! OR YOU CAN’T! BUT IF YOU CAN’T, AT LEAST FAIL IN A COOL WAY!"
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