"Shadow Void!"
To Eckhard's astonishment, a swirling vortex of darkness appeared, swallowing the bullet like a black hole.
It seemed as though everyone in the arena turned to Malcon including the king and Darius, who seemed as though he wanted to propel himself into the arena.
A sudden large shadow cast above Silas, raising his head, his eyes interlocked with Eckhard's underworldly blue eyes.
"You have violated the first rule of this duel, Silas Grave," Eckhard declared, his deep voice sending a chill down Silas's spine.
"And because of that, you'll be punished," he added.
Slowly he raised his hand to Silas forehead and effortlessly flicked his finger on his head.
Malcon's jaw dropped open as he saw the impact caused by Eckhard's finger.
A loud bang echoed throughout the arena, followed by a massive shock wave. Silas was sent crashing through the sand clearing the road as he went.
"That was too much, I didn't know you were that weak" Eckhard said, his face void of any expression.
Two medics appeared immediately and left with Silas.
Eckhard slowly raised his head, allowing his eyes to interlock with Malcon blood-red eyes.
"Shadow magic, that an Eden's ability" Darius said, his eyes still fixed at Malcon.
"What's Eden doing here?" he asked, a little frightened.
"You should take a deep breath," the king suggested.
"Did you know he was an Eden?" the king asked the captain, allowing Darius to calm down.
"Yes, your Grace," the captain answered.
"You should've reported to me the moment you found out"
"forgive me" the captain pleaded.
He turned back to Darius, who seemed to have calmed down.
"After the duel, find out everything you can about Eden…"
"Eden Malcon" the captain added.
"Yes, Eden…Malcon" the king said, "of course your Grace".
Number 13, and number 24 the king called out.
"Let's see what you have, Eden," the king said.
Malcon could feel the king's cold gaze on him as walked into the battlefield.
The wall of weapons appeared and Malcon picked a sword, as he walked into the arena.
His opponent was Nicolas Cage, a boy with black hair that fell neatly on his head. He had a well curved oval face and a pale skin. His pitch-black eyes fixed on Malcon as he walked into the arena carrying his sword.
Cage, like Adrian, rarely talked. But unlike Adrian, he had one of the most feared ability.
Cage eyes allow him to see his opponent's next move, and Malcon didn't know how he was going to fight against someone who knew exactly what he wanted to do.
'I may as well forfeit' he said to himself, looking at the crowd and sighed as he saw Bane laughing at him.
"Fight" Eckhard shouted, commencing the duel, with his gaze still on Malcon.
For a while, none of them moved an inch from where they stood.
Everyone was quite trying to understand if the duel between Malcon and cage was a mental fight rather than physical.
Cage slowly looked down on his shadow, he could sense a large amount of mana swirling inside.
VOOM!
Cage propelled himself upward, as two long black hands shot out of his shadow, But he reacted late. The shadow hands caught both his legs and with immense force slammed him back to the ground.
Cage slowly stood up from the ground. He knew he wasn't faster or stronger than Malcon, and the only possible chance he had of winning this fight was his eyes.
Although Malcon couldn't clearly see Cage through the thick veil of dust hanging in the air, he sensed the sudden shift in mana.
From within the swirling dust, his gaze locked with a pair of glowing red eyes Which had two vertical dots.
"Shadow Blade," Malcon muttered, as a black, circular disc began to form in his hand. Without waiting for it to fully materialize, he threw it toward Cage, letting the blade take shape midair.
But Cage was ready. As if anticipating the attack, he swung his weapon, slicing the disc clean in two.
Or so it seemed.
The instant his blade passed through, the disc dissolved into shadow, allowing the strike to hit nothing but air.
"Got you," Malcon said with a smirk.
And from the shadow that surrounded Cage, he appeared behind him, swinging his sword towards Cage, who was yet to notice his presence.
CLANG!
Malcon's eyes widened in disbelief. Cage hadn't turned to defend himself. Instead, as if anticipating the attack, he effortlessly moved his sword behind him, blocking the strike with precision.
Malcon quickly took a few steps back, trying to reorganize himself before attacking again.
Cage slowly turned, his eyes still fixed on Malcon.
Leaving Malcon to attack was getting dangerous because he could manipulate his shadow at will so he needed to attack, Cage thought.
Malcon quickly took a defensive stance as he saw Cage ruining towards him.
"Shadow bomb" Malcon said, stretching out a hand. A round shaped bomb slowly formed on his hand, he quickly shot it to cage, who was running towards him. But to no avail, as it seemed as though cage knew exactly what he wanted to do.
'Fighting in a hand-to-hand combat with someone who knew my next was dangerous, I have to go on defense.' Malcon said to himself.
"Shadow armor" Malcon said.
His shadow crept up from his feet, enveloping his entire body in a dark, sleek armor, leaving only his glowing red eyes visible.
Malcon never wanted to use these skills in this duel, since using shadow armor takes out a high amount of mana from his body, as it increases everything skill his has both his speed, strength, and agility. The shadow armor skills was so powerfully that entering it automatically puts him the rank of a veteran.
But the cost after using the skill was brutal. Once activated, Malcon has only five minutes before his body starts to breaks down.
Cage sensed the sudden surge of mana, but he didn't flinch. He kept charging forward, his eyes locked on Malcon.
"Shadow Vortex," Malcon said, his voice low and chilling as he extended his hand.
A swirling vortex formed in the air, and with a sudden flash, it launched a crimson bullet toward Cage.
But Cage was faster. With a sharp sidestep, he dodged the bullet.
"It's useless, Malcon! I can see everything!" Cage shouted. "Mana Magic!"
His blade began to glow as his mana surged through it, surrounding the weapon with raw energy. Activating his ability, Cage saw clearly, Malcon wasn't moving. He stood perfectly still, as if he were waiting… inviting the attack.
"So be it, Eden!" Cage roared, driving his sword forward, aiming for Malcon's neck.
But just before the blade could land, Malcon slowly raised his head, his glowing red eyes locking with Cage's.
It looked as though time froze in the battlefield.
"What just happened?" Bane muttered from the sidelines, his eyes wide and fixed on the battlefield.
Cage stood motionless, paralyzed, petrified, his arm frozen in midair, his expression blank.
BOOM!
The sound echoed across the arena as Malcon landed a devastating blow to Cage's stomach.
Cage's body lifted off the ground, blood bursting from his mouth as he was sent hurtling backward.
"These children are quite skillful" the king commented on seeing what Malcon did.
"Yes, very impressive" Darius added.
'What happened' Cage asked himself, his brain orientating itself to the last event.
Through the dust, he felt a sudden surge of power.
"Dodge!" his instincts screamed, and his body obeyed without hesitation.
The swirling dust split as a shadow streaked past his head, clipping a few strands of hair in its deadly path.
He quickly activated his ability, but what he saw next wasn't encouraging, as he saw Malcon's fist on his stomach again.
Cage quickly covered his midsection with layers of mana, like a barrier.
As Malcon's fist made contact with Cage's stomach. The barrier took the blow head on, dulling its force and denying Malcon the satisfaction of impact, as Cage was only taken a few steps back.
Malcon couldn't help but smile at himself, his plan was working. Since Cage could see his next move, he relied solely on his speed. Even if Cage did see his next move, with his speed he won't give him any chance to react.
Cage was drenched in sweat, his heart threatening to beat out of his ribs. His mana magic wasn't as strong as Damian, so he couldn't completely reinforce his entire body with mana, only one patch at a time.
"Shadow Craft," Malcon said calmly, advancing one step at a time.
Cage instinctively stepped back, his instincts screaming.
Then he saw it, Malcon's arms stretching unnaturally, the edges twisting and sharpening into blade-like forms.
At that moment, Malcon no longer looked human.
To Cage, he looked like a demon sent to bring his downfall.