The Villian Who Broke The Story

Zion lowered his stance, both swords held firmly in his hands. The confidence on his face had not disappeared despite the small cut Kael had managed to land on him moments ago. Instead, it had only sharpened his focus.

A faint smile appeared on Zion’s face.

”Fourth Form... Astral Crossing.”

The instant those words left his mouth, Zion disappeared from Kael’s sight.

Kael’s pupils constricted.

”He’s gone!”

He immediately spread his senses across the arena, trying to pinpoint Zion’s location. Before he could detect even the slightest fluctuation—

A voice echoed beside him.

”First Form... Guiding Light.”

Kael reacted almost entirely on instinct.

He spun around, his sword intercepting Zion’s blade.

CLANG!

The clash rang throughout the stadium.

Instead of disengaging, Kael stepped into Zion’s range.

His free hand shot forward.

BAM!

A punch landed squarely against Zion’s chest.

The unexpected counter caught Zion completely off guard.

His body was launched backward, skidding several meters before he regained his footing.

The spectators gasped.

”He punched Zion?”

Zion steadied himself, placing a hand over his chest where Kael’s fist had landed.

”When...”

”When did he become this strong?”

Before Zion could gather his thoughts, Kael was already upon him.

Using Vanishing Step, he closed the distance in an instant.

His body spun gracefully through the air.

A powerful kick descended toward Zion’s head.

Zion calmly lifted one of his swords.

CLANG!

The kick struck the flat of the blade, sending a ripple of force through the arena.

Kael landed lightly.

A grin spread across his face.

”Second Form—”

The moment Zion heard those words...

His body instinctively tensed.

He immediately prepared himself to receive the incoming sword technique.

Instead—

Kael cancelled the stance.

His fist shot forward.

BOOM!

The punch buried itself into Zion’s stomach.

Air escaped Zion’s lungs as he was launched backward once again.

Dust exploded behind him when he landed.

Kael slowly lowered his fist.

A teasing smile remained on his face.

”Come on, Zion.”

”Have you forgotten?”

”I’m just a copycat.”

”You can’t always expect me to use that technique now, can you?”

A few students couldn’t help laughing.

”He tricked him!”

”He used the form as bait!”

Kael rolled his shoulders before lifting his sword once more.

”At the same time...”

”I’ve always asked my opponents one question before every fight.”

He slowly entered the exact same stance Zion always used.

The familiarity of the posture made several students widen their eyes.

Kael looked directly at Zion.

His grin widened.

”Tell me...”

”Have you ever fought yourself?”

For a brief second...

Zion remained silent.

Then his expression hardened.

Without another word—

He vanished.

Vanishing Step.

Kael’s eyes immediately tracked the faint disturbance in the air.

”So you’ve chosen speed...”

Kael muttered.

Steel collided once again.

CLANG!

Zion’s sword met Kael’s almost the instant he appeared.

Neither of them gave ground.

Their blades slid against each other before separating.

Another clash followed immediately.

Then another.

And another.

Their movements became increasingly difficult to follow.

To Zion...

The rhythm of the fight felt strangely slow.

Every exchange seemed familiar.

Every reaction from Kael mirrored his own habits.

It was almost like looking into a distorted reflection.

What irritated him most...

Wasn’t that Kael had copied his techniques.

It was the fact that Kael had managed to recreate enough of them to force him onto the defensive since the beginning of the battle.

From the very first day Kael copied his techniques...

Zion had wanted to prove one thing.

Copying movements...

Was not the same as mastering the sword.

And now...

He intended to show Kael exactly what that difference looked like.

A sharp glint flashed across Zion’s eyes.

His footwork abruptly changed.

Instead of continuing to exchange blows at the same rhythm, he allowed Kael’s next strike to slip harmlessly past his shoulder.

Kael’s eyes widened slightly.

”He deliberately let that attack miss?”

A faint smile appeared on Zion’s face.

”I guess...”

”Playtime is over.”

Before Kael could react—

Vanishing Step!

Zion disappeared once again.

The pressure around the arena immediately intensified.

Kael instinctively twisted his body.

Too late.

”Fifth Form... Meteor Shower.”

Zion’s voice echoed from behind him.

Kael barely managed to bring his sword up in time.

CLANG!

The first strike landed with tremendous force, nearly knocking the weapon from his hands.

Before Kael could stabilize himself—

Zion moved again.

”Third Form... Constellation Dance.”

The elegant sword form that Kael had previously used transformed completely in Zion’s hands.

Instead of flowing gracefully...

Every strike became aggressive.

Each slash carried enough force to force Kael backward.

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

Their swords collided repeatedly.

Sparks erupted with every impact.

Kael attempted to retaliate between the openings.

But every counter was intercepted before it could fully form.

”He’s completely changed the flow of the technique...”

Kael realized.

”This isn’t the Constellation Dance I copied...”

To everyone watching...

Zion appeared almost motionless.

Only his arms moved.

Only his swords danced.

Yet every attack somehow arrived from impossible angles.

The audience struggled to follow the exchange.

”I can’t even see their swords anymore...”

A second-year student muttered.

”They’re too fast.”

Master Crawford folded his arms with satisfaction.

”Good.”

”Now he’s finally showing him.”

Below...

The distance between Kael and Zion shrank until barely a meter separated them.

Without warning—

Zion’s stance shifted.

His expression became completely calm.

”Sixth Form... Celestial Orbit.”

The moment those words were spoken...

Kael’s instincts screamed.

Danger.

He immediately retreated.

But it was already too late.

A sharp pain spread across his shoulder.

Then another.

His side.

His thigh.

His forearm.

Tiny cuts appeared across his entire body almost simultaneously.

Kael jumped backward several meters before finally escaping the range of Zion’s sword.

Blood slowly dripped onto the damaged arena floor.

The audience fell silent.

”What...”

”What just happened?”

”I didn’t even see him attack.”

Kael lowered his gaze.

Several shallow wounds covered his body.

None were fatal.

But together...

They painted a frightening picture.

He wiped a streak of blood from his cheek before looking back at Zion.

Across the arena...

Zion remained standing exactly where he had been.

His breathing hadn’t changed.

His expression remained calm.

Yet the pressure surrounding him had completely transformed.

The playful exchange from earlier had vanished.

This...

Was the real Zion.

Kael slowly tightened his grip around his sword.

The corners of his mouth lifted slightly despite the cuts covering his body.

”So...”

”I’ve finally forced you to stop holding back.”

Zion pointed one of his swords toward Kael.

”I told you before.”

”I wasn’t going to hold back.”

”You simply weren’t worth it yet.”

The words hung heavily over the arena.

Kael let out a quiet laugh.

”I’ve got to admit...”

”Hearing that from the original, stings a little.”

”But...”

His crimson eyes sharpened.

”I’m not done learning from you yet.”

Chapter 93: The True Meaning of Speed (Part 3)

Zion grinned as he stood opposite Kael.

”I guess this is your lucky day since you want to learn.”

”I won’t hold back anymore.”

”The same way you’ve been observing me...”

”I’ve been observing you.”

Zion slowly reached for the heavy bracelets wrapped around both his wrists and ankles.

Click.

One after another, he removed them.

The instant they left his body, he dropped them onto the arena floor.

BOOM!

The stone beneath them cracked from the impact.

A wave of silence swept through the stadium.

Kael blinked.

”...Wait.”

”So this whole time...”

”You haven’t even been using your top speed?”

He instinctively face-palmed.

”I can’t believe I’m helping him enter his Aura Farm.”

Even so, Kael never relaxed his stance.

His sword remained raised as he carefully watched Zion.

Zion took a single step forward.

Only one.

Yet Kael’s pupils contracted violently.

He couldn’t even see Zion move.

All he caught was a fading afterimage.

”Second Form—”

That was all Kael heard.

A sword flashed across his chest.

Slash!

A long cut opened across his shirt as blood slowly trickled down.

When Kael looked again...

Zion was already standing behind him with his sword lowered.

The entire arena fell silent.

No one had even seen Zion move.

Kael stood motionless for a few seconds.

Then...

He slowly smiled.

”I have battled you under five times gravity...”

”...and that’s the first time I’m seeing this trick.”

”I guess the Academy’s Simulation System is due for an upgrade.”

Zion frowned.

”What are you talking about?”

Kael turned around to face him.

”And now...”

”I think I know why I’ve always been slower than you.”

He pointed his sword toward Zion.

”Don’t get me wrong.”

”I never defeated you.”

”But every single time I fought you inside the simulation room...”

”I always entered the fight carrying a permanent handicap.”

”A handicap that forced me to compensate.”

”I was always battling you under five times gravity.”

”So no matter how much I adapted...”

”No matter how hard I pushed myself...”

”I was still fighting while slower than you.”

Kael’s smile widened.

”But not anymore.”

He slowly rolled his shoulders.

”We’re both standing under the same gravity now.”

His crimson eyes gleamed with excitement.

”So...”

”Let’s see our true top speed.”

”Don’t you think?”

Before Zion could answer—

Kael vanished.

His figure disappeared completely.

Zion’s eyes narrowed.

Then vanished as well.

The next instant—

CLANG!

Their swords collided at the center of the arena.

Shockwaves erupted in every direction.

Neither stayed in place.

They disappeared again.

Clang!

Another collision echoed from the opposite end of the arena.

Then another.

Then another.

Every strike happened faster than the audience could process.

Only flashes of steel remained visible.

”Fifth Form!”

Both voices echoed simultaneously.

”Meteor Shower!”

Dozens...

Hundreds...

Thousands of sword strikes collided within seconds.

Neither swordsman gave the other even a moment to breathe.

The arena became nothing more than streaks of silver light.

From the spectators’ perspective...

It looked as though two storms were colliding.

Master Crawford slowly leaned forward.

A grin spread across his face.

”Well...”

”Well...”

”Well...”

”This is becoming interesting.”

His eyes never left the battlefield.

Garrick, who was normally the loudest person in the room, remained completely silent.

For the first time since the tournament began...

He simply watched.

Even Madam Voss’s emotionless gaze sharpened.

Below them...

Kael and Zion continued to disappear and reappear across the arena.

Every clash shook the stadium.

Every exchange pushed both swordsmen further.

Neither intended to retreat.

Neither intended to lose.

And everyone watching understood one thing...

The true battle between Kael and Zion...

Had only just begun.