Chapter 187: Ch187: Best of Two

Zushio fought hard, his face bruised near one eye, while his arms and legs were covered in dark welts — the kind of raised marks left by hard blows from a quarterstaff.

"Are you sure you don’t want to yield?" Pietro asked, resting his staff at his side while gripping it tightly.

"I..." Zushio hesitated. His ragged breathing echoed across the training grounds as he glanced back at his comrades.

"...I yield."

Hearing those words, Pietro lowered his staff and extended a hand, helping Zushio back to his feet.

With that, the first round came to an end.

Zushio was immediately handed a healing potion. *Glug~* Warmth spread through his body from the red liquid as the potion began to take effect.

Queena stepped forward and cast a healing spell on both of them. A soft purple magic circle bloomed beneath their feet, radiating a gentle glow.

The bruise around Zushio’s eye, the welts across his body, and the burn marks on Pietro’s arms and back gradually began to fade.

"You did well, Zushio," Marco said, his tone warm as he looked at his student. "Bernard, you’re next. Fight like your life depends on it."

Bernard answered with a firm nod. "Yes, Master. I won’t let you down."

As he turned toward the field, his gaze briefly met Daniel’s.

In that instant, a memory flashed through his mind.

...

"Is your mother’s name Pristine?" Zane asked, his eyes fixed on Bernard.

Bernard’s eyes narrowed in surprise at the mention of his mother’s name. "No," he answered.

"My mistake. I thought... well, never mind," Zane said before turning away into the darkness.

"It’ll be morning soon. We need to hurry," Daniel urged.

...

"Natasha, you know what to do," Beck said, his tone filled with confidence as a proud smile spread across his face.

"Yes, Master. I’ll end this match quickly," Natasha replied, her voice brimming with confidence. "Come on, cheer for me, guys."

The Earth-element shamans erupted into cheers as Natasha strode to the center of the field, her staff resting across her shoulder.

Bernard walked forward in silence, his eyes locked on his opponent with unwavering determination.

"He looks tough. What’s his name?"

"Pfft... that’s just his appearance. I bet he’s only tough on the outside."

"Haha!"

"Hehe..."

Small conversations broke out among the spectators as Daniel kept his ears open. Yet he let their words go in one ear and out the other.

’These people... They’re too quick to judge,’ Daniel thought, his eyes remaining fixed on Bernard.

...

"The way you’re staring at me makes me want to spare your life," Natasha said, resting her staff across her shoulder like a baseball bat. "It seems you’ve never battled a woman before."

Bernard kept his expression calm. "If you’re expecting me to go easy on you, then you’re going to be disappointed."

"That’s exactly what I like to hear. Don’t disappoint me," she said with a confident smirk.

Beck glanced at both contestants.

"Ready?"

After receiving a nod from each of them, he raised his hand.

"Start!"

Suddenly, a thick stone wall erupted from the ground in front of Natasha, forming a shield that concealed her entire body.

Bernard narrowed his eyes in confusion.

Then, with a forceful shove, the top half of the stone wall broke away and shot straight toward him like a massive slab.

"Hmph!"

Bernard reacted just in time, taking a swift sidestep to evade the incoming projectile.

Without missing a beat, Natasha stomped her right foot, sending the remaining half of the stone wall skimming across the ground toward his legs.

*Swoosh~*

Bernard leaped into the air, narrowly avoiding the sweeping slab.

"Wow... so you can dodge. Impressive," Natasha said with a grin. "But it ends now."

She tossed her staff aside and pressed her palm against the ground.

*Rumble!*

Stone walls burst from the earth all around them. Not one. Not two. Dozens rose in rapid succession, twisting into a maze that trapped Bernard at its center.

Then, from every direction, huge stone slabs rose into the air, layer upon layer, poised to surge inward and crush him between them.

Natasha closed her eyes and extended her senses through the earth, tracking Bernard’s every movement like a hunter pursuing its prey. ’There you are.’

A confident smile spread across Natasha’s face. "Got you."

At once, the stone walls surged toward Bernard from every direction, closing in to crush him.

Then—

*BOOM!!*

Natasha’s smile vanished almost instantly.

In the next instant, the layered walls exploded apart, sending chunks of stone flying in every direction.

A fierce bolt of lightning tore straight through the maze, smashing through wall after wall before striking the ground directly in front of Natasha.

Dust and shattered stone burst into the air, forcing Natasha to shield her face as she stumbled back a step.

"Woah!!"

"That was awesome!!"

The crowd erupted into stunned cheers. Many of the spectators had thought Bernard was already trapped, only for him to shatter Natasha’s layers of walls with overwhelming force.

*Cough-Cough*

However, before the dust could settle, a barrage of lightning bolts shot straight toward Natasha, giving her no time to react.

*Zap! Zap! Zap! Zap!*

Her entire body convulsed as the lightning struck her one after another, leaving her no chance to raise another stone wall for protection.

*Thud-Thud-Thud-Thud*

Bernard burst through the fading dust like a bolt of lightning, closing the distance in an instant. Gripping his staff with both hands, he went for a vertical strike.

Natasha reacted just in time. She threw herself to the side, rolled across the ground, snatched up her staff, and immediately launched a counterattack.

*CLACK!*

Bernard met the strike head-on.

*THWACK! SNAP!*

Natasha’s staff split cleanly in half under the force of the blow, the broken pieces clattering to the ground as she collapsed to one knee beside the broken halves.

Before Bernard could deliver a horizontal strike to her arm, Natasha quickly raised a hand. "I yield!"

Bernard immediately stopped his staff mid-swing, leaving it hovering inches from her.

A moment of silence fell over the training grounds until Beck broke it with a round of applause.

*Clap! Clap! Clap!*

Natasha extended her hand, expecting Bernard to help her up, but he simply ignored it and turned back toward Marco.

Several Earth-element shamans frowned at the cold response, while Marco simply watched in silence.