"Why do you need to test your affinities?"
Nick replied, not wanting to give Carla much information:
"I just want to make sure of something. I can't explain it even if you ask me."
Carla gave a heavy sigh over the phone.
"Can't or won't? Anyway, it doesn't matter. Meet me at the first floor's hall and I will hand you a hand held testing device and then we will go to the arena for the final stage."
Nick noticed the stern tone in Carla's voice so he gave no objections:
"I'll be there in five minutes."
(She must really be annoyed by my secrecy considering her status and mine are worlds apart but she still needs me to compete so she isn't willing to be forceful right now.)
The more Nick interacted with Carla, the more he realized how shrewd she was. Nick left the room and arrived at the first floor's hall within a few minutes; Carla was sitting at the corner of the hall on one of the sofas, seemingly waiting for Nick. As soon as he walked up to her, Carla handed him a smart phone sized device that consisted of a screen and what seemed like a finger print scanner. Nick looked at the device for a few moments with some uncertainty so Carla clarified:
"That is a recent model of a portable affinity tester, you're looking like you've never seen one before. Well, I suppose that they are very expensive and you need to be a licensed Magician to purchase one so considering your circumstances, this might be the first time that you're using one since the academy doesn't use these, am I correct?"
Nick silently nodded his head to affirm Carla's guess.
"Well then, you just have to place your thumb on the pad, funneling your magic energy into it and wait a couple of minutes for the results. The tournament is about to start so don't waste any time."
Nick got right to it, he placed his thumb on the device's pad and made his magic energy flow into it; a loading screen appeared and at the end of two minutes, the results from the device's analysis was displayed on the screen:
-----------------------------------------
Unknown magic affinity: 42%
Soul magic affinity: 22%
Space magic affinity: 19%
Blade magic affinity: 17%
------------------------------------------
Nick looked at the results with wide opened eyes.
(My affinity for rule magic was diluted and somehow my affinity for blade magic has returned. Slade, what the hell is this situation?)
Slade spoke with uncertainty:
[This affinity must have originated from your now cursed bloodline and that is why you are now able to use blade magic. Usually, affinities originate from the laws engraved on the soul at birth but for some extremely powerful Magicians, the laws that dictate their affinities are etched into various parts of their body. That being said, the Magician that cursed you must be very powerful so it's a good thing that we acted when we did to resist the curse but my wisdom path intuition is telling me that the only way to truly resolve the danger of your curse is for you to get stronger, enough to resist that mysterious Magician.]
Nick's mood became terrible, to him this was like misfortune falling from the sky while he remained in his own house.
(Note to self, beware of using strange spells just because they seem powerful. Sigh, I can only move forward from here. It's either I get stronger or eventually die as meat on someone else's chopping block.)
Carla noticed the change in Nick's mood and asked:
"Is something the matter, did the device not work as expected?"
Nick internally kicked himself for not keeping a straight face in front of this powerful Magician and quickly deleted the results on the device and handed it back to her with a now indifferent expression.
"The device is fine, I just remembered something unpleasant."
Carla got up from her sitting position and instructed:
"Since you are done, let's go to the arena."
Nick nodded his head in agreement and began to walk to the arena with Carla leading the way. When they arrived in the arena, Carla went to sit among her relatives while Nick went into the arena where a battle stage had now been erected. Nick stood among the competitors but he paid them no attention as he was wrapped up with his own thoughts:
(I can't only think about the negatives of my situation. The good part is that now with my change in affinities, I can use blade magic. How strange, I initially had an affinity for blade magic and now because of a 'curse', I've regained it, my luck really is weird.)
Nick was snapped out of his thoughts by Vaughn Jenner's booming voice.
"Thirty competitors are set to compete in today's matches and each pair of fighters will be chosen at random and each fight will take place one after the other. Invigilator Wong will act as the referee for each match."
"The winner will be decided by knock out or elimination if one of the competitors fall off of the battle stage; Wong also has the right to stop the match and declare a winner if one of the competitors falls into a clear and possibly fatal disadvantage. In the spirit of real combat and considering that not all competitors attend a Magician school, I've already spoken with the academies of the students involved in this tournament and the various deans have already decided not to pursue the matter if any of their student's die in this competition after participating willingly, so do your best."
Nick's right eyebrow raised in surprise.
(The academy actually waived responsibility just like that without even notifying me?)
Slade chimed in:
[What are you so surprised about? It is normal for organizations to break their own rules for influential members of society, don't get hung up over it.]
Nick felt slightly annoyed but calmed himself down because Slade was right when he said that it was a normal thing for organizations to do. Suddenly, Nick felt someone staring at him from the side so he turned to look and saw the young man that he had 'dealt' with previously looking at him menacingly.
(I think his name was Drew Gordon. It looks like he did not learn his lesson.)
Nick was in no mood to be the target of other people's bullshit so he ignored Drew.
Drew Gordon watched Nick turn away from him and snickered internally.
(Do you think that it's going to be that easy to ignore me after you embarrassed me before. Hmph, you should be more careful about who you offend!)
Drew looked at invigilator Wong who caught Drew's stare and Wong discretely made a winking motion with his eye, thinking:
(This dumb kid actually paid me £25,000,000 just to set up a match. I've heard stories of students from Raylam Priest Academy being vengeful but they don't do them justice, this boy is extremely petty.)
Invigilator Wong spoke with decisiveness:
"The first match will be between Nick Capitol and Drew Gordon. Both competitors should go to the battle stage immediately."
Nick squinted his eyes in suspicion after hearing that.
(A coincidence? No, coincidences like this don't happen. It looks like I'm going to really have to deal with this Drew Gordon.)
Nick thought that with obvious malice contained within his eyes; he fixed his expression to an indifferent one soon after and made his way to the battle stage. Drew Gordon also walked onto the stage with a confident grin, saying:
"You got one on me before but do you really think that a rank 1 Magician could ever be superior to a rank 2? Let me give you the answer, No, and you are about to witness why."
Nick replied:
"You talk too much."
A vain bulged on Drew's forehead when he heard that but then he relaxed his expression, saying:
"You should have been more respectful."
Invigilator Wong walked to the side of the stage to keep a watchful eye and to give instructions, observing both participants for a while and then shouted:
"Begin the match!"
That shout was like a gunshot to Nick and so he didn't waste any time, Drew was within ten feet of him so he cast his spell to quickly immobilize him.
(Soul Pressure.)
Drew was about to move but suddenly, he became stuck in place like what he had experienced during his first interaction with Nick. Drew spoke through gritted teeth:
"That won't work this time."
The next moment, a bright green light could be seen emerging from behind Drew's long sleeved shirt; he became able to move again and so he put his hand into his shirt's neck opening and drew out what seemed to be a glowing necklace.
Nick squinted his eyes.
(A magic tool? He's resisting Soul Pressure and seeing how that thing is radiating some kind of magic, it must be the source of his resistance.)
Drew reached into his pocket and took out two metal, brass colored objects and placed one on his left hand's knuckles and the other on his right hand's knuckles. Nick raised both of his eyelids this time.
(Those are brass knuckles and I'm definitely sensing a weak trace of magic energy from them.)
Drew bent his right elbow and shot his right fist into the ground, thoroughly cracking the surface of the battle stage a few inches deep as the crack expanded as it moved towards Nick. Nick sensed the danger so as the crack approached him he activated his spell.
(Blink.)
Nick disappeared and reappeared two meters from his last position and he witnessed a stone spike that was nine meters tall and twenty inches thick rise from the ground exactly where he had been standing. Nick knew that if he hadn't dodged, that attack would have at the very least skewered him.
Among the spectators, Carla looked at the scene and frowned, directing a reprimand at one of her relatives:
"Miles, you actually gave an outsider the earth breaker knuckles. Are we in the business of arming children with dangerous weapons? That is a magic tool with the power to perform peak rank 2 attacks."
A middle aged man wearing a yellow robe and sandals countered:
"Carla, you are actually reprimanding me after you brought a student from Richter Order Academy here despite the grievance between that academy and many of our family members. Don't you dare accuse me, I've already recruited that young man and even intend to marry him to my daughter so he is practically family, besides, there is nothing wrong with using magic tools in this tournament. It's not my fault that you brought a rank 1 Apprentice Magician here; he may have done well in the other stages but this is combat and no amount of skill can overcome raw, overwhelming power. I know it's early but let me just say, I am sorry for your loss. Ha, ha, ha..."
Miles Jenner laughed outrageously as Carla scowled at him but Carla could do nothing as it was indeed legal to used magic tools but she herself had never intended to give Nick magic tools to use because she did not need him to win these battles as he had already done well in the last two stages in addition to the fact that she found him to be a little arrogant and wanted to humble him but this situation could result in his death which would not be good for the relationship between her and Richter Order Academy which was already strained.
(Wong should stop the match if things get out of hand. Damn this bastard, not only did he give this child the earth breaker knuckles, he also gave this Drew the soul repelling chain to wear around his neck. Were they targeting Nick from the start, knowing that he used soul path spells?)
As Carla became concerned, Drew Gordon continued to speak:
"I'll give you the chance to surrender, less than. Don't take too long."
Nick's expression became one of extreme rage and his thoughts were filled with malice at this moment.
(Less than. Why do I keep being called that. I'm was chosen to compete just like you and I've even done better than you and yet you are targeting me because you think that you are some elite and I am not. I'm so sick of these people and their bullshit.)
Nick remembered how Alicia had attacked him at the entrance of the mansion and did not even glance at him or even say that she was sorry, like he wasn't even human, deserving of even a little decency.
(I've had enough.)
As Drew bent his right elbow, about to launch another attack, Nick stared at him with extreme malice and folded both of his hands into each other, magic energy flowing to him in a frenzy; Nick was also exuding a great amount of magic energy.
"Huh?"
Drew noticed the change and stopped his actions to observe what Nick was doing. A sinister aura started to fill the stage and Drew observed that the look on Nick's face revealed his turbulent emotions.
Nick spoke to Drew with hatred in his tone:
"You actually stopped attacking just to stare at me? You are an idiot and have no business being a Magician."
At this moment, Nick cast his spell.
(Malevolent Shrine.)
The whole arena, including the spectator stands became filled with a darkness that each person could still see through. In the middle of the arena, piles of bones appeared scattered all around and an old run down temple stood erect behind Nick as Drew looked at the scene in fear, paralyzed by the aura that he was feeling.
(This has to be at least a rank two advanced grade spell, how is he casting it? What kind of spell is this anyway, the whole arena has been affected?...)
Before Drew could finish analyzing the situation, his whole world became dark, different from the darkness around him, his vision filled with darkness that he could not see through no matter what.
The spectators watched silently as Drew was cut vertically into three pieces that fell to the floor in a bloody mess with Nick standing a few meters away watching the scene with a rage filled gaze. After Drew's blood had formed a pool, the darkness enveloping the arena and the stands dispersed and the bones and temple also faded away as if they were never there.
Miles Jenner stood up without thinking, looking at the scene angrily and then cursing at Nick like he had lost his mind:
"You little bastard. How could you kill that young man so ruthlessly during a friendly tournament!"
"Miles, where is your composure!"
Vaughn retorted with a louder reproach that sent shivers down Miles' spine. He quickly bowed towards Vaughn, saying:
"I was wrong, uncle. I should have instructed Drew in defending himself better."
Miles said this and then took a seat, clearly upset; Carla smiled lightly at his misfortune. Nick looked at the situation with indifference and simply walked off of the stage. Wong who was at the side and still processing what just happened snapped out of his stupor as soon as Nick walked off of the stage and then declared:
"Nick Capitol is the winner of the match."
Nick stood among the other competitors but they all distanced themselves from him, whispering:
"He killed Drew just like that. Although Drew was unreasonable and annoying, this guy is even more unreasonable and absurd."
"Drew was the adopted son of one of the administrators of the Raylam Priest Academy, I wonder how they will react to his death."
"That Nick Capitol has some serious issues, why is he taking this so seriously? What was that spell that he used, was it really rank 2?"
....
All sorts of chatter emerged but Nick paid no attention to it, he just stood in his spot, feeling somewhat satisfied while Slade spoke:
[Actually, your spell was the equivalent of rank one advanced grade but it just looked more terrifying than it actually is. Although its overall power is nothing to write home about because you are still rank 1, the spell's complexity and killing precision make it formidable. An inexperienced junior like the one that you killed would never be able to defend against it despite his higher rank.]
Nick said nothing as he waited for the tournament to continue. Invigilator Wong had Drew's corpse cleaned up and called up the other participants in pairs and everyone competed without an incident as gruesome as what happened in the first match taking place.
When Nick's next match came around, his opponent this time was a dignified looking youth who wore an all white tunic and had a head of golden blonde hair; they stood and faced each other on the battle stage. As soon as Wong announced that the match was to begin, the young man raised both of his hands in surrender, saying:
"I don't really intend to die today so I admit my defeat."
The young man said this and walked off of the stage; Nick was a little surprised that his opponent did not even try to fight him but he thought for a moment and understood the decision.
(Malevolent Shrine does look scary. It seems that I've frightened these people.)
Nick stepped off of the stage and waited for his next match. The tournament went on with the only oddity being Nick who had killed his first opponent and every other opponent that he had, surrendered with no actual battle occurring.
Eventually, after many battles, the ultimate winner was declared by invigilator Wong to be Nick because all of his opponents surrendered without a fight. At the end of the tournament, Vaughn instructed everyone to leave and that they would hold a banquet in honor of the winner tomorrow morning. Carla walked into the arena and pat Nick on the shoulder saying:
"You sure gave me a surprise, that spell that you used seemed to be similar to the one that you used on the magic power gauge device in the second stage but different somehow. What kind of spell was that?"
Nick thought it was unnecessary that hide that information from Carla at this point so he answered:
"It was a blade path spell."
Carla nodded as she had already suspected that.
"Soul path, space path, an unknown path and now blade path. You weren't joking when you said that you were a magic fanatic but now I'm even more confident that you have a mentor. Don't worry, I won't pry but since I don't want to make enemies out of another Magician with such methods, I'll have to ask that you choose to explore one of the less dangerous of my family's private realms as your reward. We can access two such small realms from this estate. I'll have a gate opened for you to enter after the banquet."
Nick shook his head with a firm resolve rooted into his eyes.
"I would like to start exploring the realm now. I have many other things to do and so I cannot afford to waste time on a banquet."
Carla looked at Nick for a few moments, feeling that this junior of hers was very interesting despite his bland personality.
"Hmmm...my uncle wanted to meet you but I guess he'll have to be disappointed. Go take a shower and rest a little. I'll come get you after I've made some preparations so that you can enter one of our realms."
Nick nodded his head silently with tired eyes and returned to Carla's room. Surprisingly, all of the furniture and fixtures had been replaced with new ones and you could not tell that the room was used as the testing ground for a powerful spell before. Nick went into the room's bathroom and got into the shower; he stood in there for a while thinking about his circumstances:
(Sigh, it looks like I have a little anger within me.)
Slade laughed:
[A little? You murdered that boy with intent.]
Nick's eyes quaked at Slade's comment.
[Don't get the wrong idea, kid. I'm not criticizing you as I have killed millions more for far more insignificant reasons. All I'm saying is that feeling bad about what you did is pointless because your opponent would have had no problem doing the same to you.]
Nick nodded his head.
(I'll get over it.)
[That's good. Now, I seriously don't recommend that you use that spell or similar spells in front of people while you are attending your academy. Civilized society tends to frown on rampant murder and whoever created that spell seemed to design it for that specific purpose. The rules of darkness is darkness and the rules of light is light. Let's not give the authorities any reason to watch us warily. Understood?]
Nick thought for a moment then replied:
"I get it, spells that reek of blood lust should not be used openly."
Nick spent the next thirty minutes showering and slept for an hour. When he woke up, it was already dark outside from it being the middle of the night. At this time Carla came into the room and spoke to him:
"I've made the preparations, follow me to your reward."
Nick got up from his sitting position and left the room with Carla leading him.
(Finally, another realm to explore.)