"....That was a wonderful performance."

Atlas gazed down at the platform below, where several mages dressed in white tunics were

busy cleaning up the aftermath of the fight between Julien and Kaelion, their hands extended as they worked.

The next match was about to start.

It was the highly anticipated match between Leon and Amell, one of the big four, and the one closest to the big four.

Well... used to be.

There was now someone new in the big four.

A thin smile formed on Atlas's lips as he thought about the previous match.

'His rate of improvement is even better than I expected.'

Atlas had already been satisfied with Julien's success so far, but what Julien displayed to him far exceeded his expectations.

It made him eager to see more.

Ba... Thump! Ba... Thump!

For the first time in a very long time, Atlas felt the beat of his heart quicken.

It was a refreshing feeling.

One that made Atlas confused for a split second, struggling to understand why he was behaving like this.

But he soon understood.

'Expectations.'

Right, he was looking forward to Julien's next match.

He wanted to see more.

Was this his limit, or...?

Atlas felt the corner of his lips pull up even higher.

'When was the last time I had such expectations...?'

He mused for a second before raising his head, fixing his gaze on the figure that sat opposite him. Her lustrous black hair shone beneath the white sun that hung in the sky, while her features made her seem more dazzling than it.

Her attention appeared to be fixed on a small book.

She was so immersed in the book that she didn't even notice his gaze.

'Right, it was her.'

How did she turn out?

With her delicate brows locked into a tight frown, Delilah appeared to be in deep thought. Circling several things over the notebook, her lips opened slightly as unknowingly started mumbling to herself.

"...One or two?"

One or two...?

What was she talking about?

Atlas blinked his eyes in confusion. However, his confusion was short-lived as he quickly lost interest. It didn't seem like anything important... Just as he was about to turn his head away, he heard Delilah again.

"He did well so two..."

With a pained expression, her pearly white teeth bit onto her lips.

Then, taking out a small bar from her pocket, her eyes shook as she broke the bar into several pieces, only leaving two cubes inside.

Atlas stared at all of this with visible confusion.

His confusion only grew as Delilah stopped, her lips twitching slightly as her finger traced over one of the chocolates.

"Maybe I can try that again?"

"?"

***

Clank-

"Huaaa...!"

I slumped down on one of the benches in the changing room, exhausted. The metallic door closed, and the world around me turned quiet.

Well, more or less.

Leon was the one who broke the silence.

"It was a nice fight."

Evidently, there was still some time left before his fight started.

The staff was most likely trying to fix the broken platform.

"Kh."

I wanted to reply to him, but the pain made it hard for me to talk.

"Oh, right."

Thankfully he seemed to get the message as he closed his eyes and adjusted his mind for the upcoming fight.

The room fell silent shortly after that.

Clenching my teeth, I brought my hands down and steadied my trembling legs.

"....!"

But it wasn't a really good idea.

I soon realized that my arms weren't faring that much better.

The pain pierced right through my mind, freezing my body due to the shock. While I could withstand the pain, my body evidently couldn't as it jerked on its own.

"Hooo."

It took several seconds for me to regain control of my body.

By the time I was able to control my body again, the door to the room burst open as a woman dressed in white, holding onto a leather purse entered the locker room.

Clank!

The disturbance brought Leon out of his meditative state as he turned to look at the

approaching woman.

Her black hair was tied into a ponytail that was tucked over her right shoulder, while her green eyes scanned my body up and down. Her overall looks were quite average, and as she scanned

my body, she clicked her tongue.

"Tsk."

I was taken aback.

Did she just click her tongue...? Or did I mishear?

Her appearance didn't surprise me. I knew she was the nurse in charge of checking up on me,

but her attitude seemed a little...

"...Your body is in a worse state than I thought."

With a sigh, she walked over to me and took out several items from her purse.

The items consisted of a body ointment and a few pills.

"Here, apply this yoursel—"

The nurse stopped after realizing something. Her left eye twitched, and she let out a small

breath. She then walked over and lowered her head a little.

"Take off your shirt."

Instinctively, I tried to hold onto my chest but realized that I couldn't.

As if sensing my intentions, the nurse's expression changed.

"Are you taking it off or not?" "I..."

How could I tell her I couldn't?

I turned my head to look at Leon. He looked back at me, his expression abnormally calm.

'You can't take off your shirt?'

'You can tell...?'

'She can tell too.'

"Uh?"

A weird sound came out of my mouth as I felt two cold hands press down on my torn blazer

and shirt.

I wanted to protest, but my body refused to listen to me.

Button by button, my shirt was slowly being pulled off. As if the world around me slowed

down, my head turned to face Leon who bit his lips.

'Help me...?'

'I'm getting ready for my next fight.'

'It'll only take you two seconds.'

'That's two seconds too long.'

'Aren't you my knight? Are you okay with seeing my bare body?'

'I'd love t-' Leon's face stiffened, realizing what he was about to say. The same was true for me as my

mouth slowly opened.

The two of us looked at each other, quietly.

11

Then..

"Urkh."

"Uekh."

We both gagged at the same time, unable to withstand the cringe.

"What are you doing? Stop moving."

The nurse seemed less than pleased but I couldn't help it.

It was a reflexive reaction from my mind. Leon wasn't faring any better. Pressing his hand

against the side of the wall, he held onto his stomach as his face scrunched up.

"What?...Are you also sick?"

Leon rapidly shook his head.

"I-I'm okay."

"Are you?"

The nurse didn't seem to buy it, her eyes squinting as her cold hands ran over my body,

applying the lotion over my wound.

Leon rapidly shook his head

"Yes, I'm-"

"There's no need to be shy Leon"

"....!"

Leon's head flicked in my direction, his eyes slowly turning bloodshot.

I looked back at him and closed my eyes.

"Didn't you say that your chest was hurting lately?"

"No."

Leon hastily shook his head.

But I persisted.

"It's okay."

I turned to face the nurse who raised her head to look at me as her hands ran over my chest.

"Please, help him out. He's got an important match and he needs to be in top shape."

"Tsk."

Clicking her tongue, she took her hands off my body.

Then, turning her head toward the horror-stricken Leon, she slowly approached him.

Shake. Shake.

"No, actually-"

"Take off your clothes."

"Ah, but-" "Now." "....!"

'Kyaa!'

He never said that, but it was funny to think about.

***

Verdan Empire locker room.

In stark contrast to the Nurs Ancifa locker room, the atmosphere in the locker room was eerily

quiet and tense. A lone figure sat on the bench, head bowed, with a towel draped over him.

Amell was lost in his own thoughts.

His legs repeatedly tapped against the ground as he tried to calm his nerves.

"The evidence is all there...'

In his mind, he was almost certain it was him.

A lot of the information that he managed to dig up was in line with what he knew about the

incident.

The fact that he had appeared in a different Empire also made him understand how they had such a hard time finding him.

Their scope of search had only been within their own Empire.

While the thought that he may have possibly gone to another Empire had crossed their mind,

it wasn't as though they could look. Instilling spies in another Empire was extremely difficult

and with the number of people present, it was like searching for a needle in a haystack.

Still, he had finally found something.

...And he was soon going to face him as an opponent.

The thought made his heart beat faster.

Amell wanted to see how strong he was. He believed that if they fought, he'd be able to tell

better if it was him.

"Right, right."

Recalling something, Amell took out a box from his pocket.

It was only about the size of a small ball and was entirely planted in black.

While all evidence pointed to the fact that Leon was possibly his brother, there was no better

way to test this than through the object in his hand.

"...I just have to make him bleed."

So long as he made him bleed, then he'd be able to prove it once and for all.

"Right, I just have to make him bleed."

Repeating the same line, Amell slowly stood up from his seat.

His expression gradually started to freeze, and all his emotions started to calm down. A

mirror appeared within his mind, casually reflecting an image of himself. Within that image was a reflection of all of Amell's insecurities and anxiety. Amell brought his hand forward and pressed it against the mirror, a small ripple forming. All

thoughts about Leon dissipated as his head cooled.

[Ice Mirror]

His natural innate ability.

It was an ability that sealed all negatives and unwanted thoughts away for a short period of

time and was Amell's go-to skill.

Moving his hand away, Amell's mind cleared.

Taking a small breath, he turned around and made his way toward the door of the locker

room.

Clank!

Walking past the tunnel that led to the main arena, he could hear the muffled cries of the spectators in the distance.

Their voices grew louder and clearer with each step that he took.

The tunnel was narrow, barely illuminated by strange gems that were placed atop the tunnel.

"Amell!"

"Amell...!"

"Amell!"

The cheers of the crowd became clear.

A certain fervor hung in the air, and Amell's steps paused right at the exit of the tunnel.

His eyes soon fixed on a figure that stood at its center, his gray eyes staring in his direction

with unprecedented seriousness.

As if sensing his gaze, Leon's gaze lifted slightly and their eyes met.

Sparks seemed to fly in the air as Amell's lips curved slightly.

"Very well."

He took a step forward, his hand fiddling with the object in his pocket.

"...Let's see if you can bleed."

Boom-!

The audience roared at his entrance.

Amidst the cheers of the crowd, Amell slowly stepped up into the platform.

He stopped on the opposite end of where Leon stood.

The world grew silent shortly after that.

But the silence was short-lived. Breaking the silence, the referee sliced his hand down.

"Begin!"

The Quarter-Finals of the Four Empire Summit and the second match between the two representatives of the two biggest Empires officially began.

Second round, Leon Ellert of the Nurs Ancifa Empire VS Amell Mantovaj of the Verdant

Empire.