Chapter 65: The Soaring Hawk Magician
When those words rang out, the stadium suddenly became quiet until the sounds of several whispers could be heard. Inside the arena, Chris was glaring at Sandra with vicious eyes; in return, she gave him a glare of her own.
By the side of the arena, the host turned to Chris with a displeased look. To question the victory of the match was to question his judgement. Plus, this was a clear victory that anyone could call. What was the purpose of a rematch?
"Why should there be a rematch, don't think just because you hold a high status that you can just have your way, turning defeat into victory at your whim!" The host asked with a hostile glare. Several people in the audience nodded their agreement to those words, including Andria, who took great pleasure in the brat's scolding.
Unperturbed by several glaring eyes, Chris Farhawk pointed hatefully at Sandra as he growled. "There's no way I would have lost if she hadn't viciously hidden such a trump card! Who could have predicted that she could have actually gained the inheritance of one of the Five Legendary Beast's! If we were to fight again, I could definitely beat her!!"
"Those reasons are insufficient, holding secret abilities are valid methods in matches, in fact, they are expected." The host didn't falter in his response for even a second.
"But..." Chris couldn't dispute him and also didn't expect anything to come out of his complaints. He had spoken out in his anger and indignation. He also wanted to put into the heads of the audience that if they were to fight again, he wouldn't lose!
Though the truth was, even he himself knew that that wasn't the case. The power of the Volcanic Eagle attack was way too powerful, and beyond outmanoeuvring it, he had no spells on hand that could counter it.
But to his shock, Sandra spoke out words that both surprised and scared him. "If he wants a rematch, then lets do it. I'll show you I can kick your back to your fancy mansion any day!"
'This wasn't how it was meant to go!' Chris' eyes bulged and he gritted his teeth in frustration. There's no way he could go back on his words now, he would look like a coward who barked worse than he bit!
In one of the VIP rooms in the audience, the blissful laugh of Andria's could be heard as she took enjoyment in every word spoken by the girl in the arena.
"Andria has new role model!" Andria's eyes lit up in awe and her eyes looked at Sandra as if she was her idol.
"..." When Lexa looked upwards and saw her partners gaze, she felt a strong displeasure for some reason.
Inside the arena, Chris finally responded in a growl. "See, even she wants a rematch!"
The host was a little befuddled with what he should do and was just about to speak out when a gruff and masculine voice sounded out throughout the whole stadium. It was a rough voice that commanded attention and respect.
"Enough!!"
Everyone in the stadium's attention was drawn to the source of the voice and lead their sights on one of the VIP rooms above. Behind the clear glass of the room, people could see several people in this room. They were mainly middle-aged men sitting in luxurious seats, even more-so than the ones in similar VIP rooms, like Andria's for example.
Out of all these men, the one that immediately drew the people's attention was a man who had stood up and walked up to the edge of the room, his phoenix eyes gazing over the whole stadium. Everyone in the stadium felt a sudden chill when those eyes looked in their direction and they felt an immense pressure push down on them.
When Lexa felt this pressure, she automatically compared it to the gazes of the Hidden Blade Magician and Mist Step Magician back at the Thunder Mountain Hunt. This was the pressure of a Sky Magician!
The man had long brown hair and a trimmed beard, the cold and sharp eyes of a predator and wore a brown and gold trimmed cloak that covered even his feet. This man looked like an older, hardened and more mature version of Chris Farhawk!
Despite the pressure the felt, voices of various emotions began to resound around the stadium as members of the audience began to speak out in excitement, awe, fear...
"Its the Hawk Academies principal!"
"To think I would actually see a Sky Magician! Caesar Farhawk, the Soaring Hawk Magician!!"
"Isn't he Chris Farhawk's father?!"
"Marry me!"
"Is he going to speak up for his son, so that the rematch will happen?"
"There's no way he can show such blatant favouritism, right?"
Suddenly, all chatter ceased when they felt the pressure increase a notch and everyone returned their attention to the man in question, who simply stood there, hands behind his back in a casual but imposing manner.
"There will be no rematch." His words were simple, but drew the praise of most of the crowd in their fairness. No one noticed the displeased gaze he sent towards Sandra in the arena, for he only held it for the briefest of seconds and intentionally held back any presence of it.
In the arena, no one also noticed the briefest look of excitement and relief on Chris' face before he masked it, showing a solemn and discontent expression instead. No one noticed but Lexa that is, who had long suspected something fishy was going on.
"So that's how it is." Lexa mumbled knowingly, confusing Andria as she had failed to notice any of it.
"What is it, little fang?" Andria tilted her head.
Lexa didn't hold back anything as she told Andria about the clever play this father-son duo were putting on, causing Andria to frown in deep displeasure.
"Chris' father is not doing this out of fairness, but is only saving his son from embarrassing himself any further. Its likely Chris didn't actually want a rematch in the first place, only wanting to make everyone think he could beat this Sandra girl; which he likely can't."
"How thick their faces are, like father, like son!" Andria grumbled, a dissatisfied frown forming her lips.
"Your grandfather sure taught you some phrases..." Lexa giggled.
"No, that one was Mummy, she says it to us all the time." Andria responded promptly.
"..."
With the matter resolved, Chris Farhawk and Sandra Button promptly left the arena, heading for their separate exits. Though Chris didn't forget to send a hidden malicious glare at Sandra, who simply scoffed it off.
In the principal's VIP room, The Soaring Hawk Magician, Caesar Farhawk took one last look at Sandra's disappearing figure before returning to his seat, no emotion displaying on his face.
"*cough* sorry about all that folks. But with all that out the way, lets move onto the second and final match of this evening... The 10 year old Jared Lolan Vs..." The host began.
"Oh they're starting the next match!" Andria beat her fists in the air, her past grievances seemingly forgotten instantly.
"How fickle..." Lexa rolled her eyes jokingly. 'Ah well, I don't want to be hung over such frustrating matters as well.'
"...The 8 year old Seph Farhawk!!" Hawk finished the announcement of the second match participants to the excitement of the crowd. One could notice the increase in excitement for the secondly named participant in particular, Seph Farhawk.
In contrast to the surrounding excitement, Andria's previous excitement was instantly doused in cold water.
"Another Farhawk?..." Andria was dubious, at best.
Lexa looked on with curiosity as well.
Out of one of the exits, the first to appear was a blond haired boy who looked rather tall for his age of 10. His eyes were surprisingly soft and anxious despite his looks and he walked onto the ring cautiously.
Followed shortly after, the second participant entered into view, to the excited cheers of the audience. Like the two other Farhawk's Lexa and Andria had seen, this boy had brown hair and eyes. Except his were noticeably lighter in colour, bringing out his fair features. While his eyes held a coldness and sharpness, one also couldn't find arrogance and contempt in them. He was also noticeably younger than the other three contestants. His shorter height and calmness made a funny contrast when he stood in the arena across from the shaking and anxious, much taller and older child.
Lexa felt like this was a person who wore their heart on their sleeves, much unlike his two other relatives, who hid it behind a shallow mask. And while this emotion that he portrayed was one of indifference and confidence, it also didn't look down on the other, giving her an overall positive view of him.
"Looks like maybe not all of the Farhawk's are so bad..." Lexa reasoned. 'Also, presumably this Seph is an Early Stage Foundation Rank Magician. Two years younger than his peers, that's a true genius! No wonder the audience is so excited, there must be quite a few eyes on him.'
"Andria still prefers opponent, look it him shaking. Its so cute!" Andria pointed at the taller child standing on the arena, Jared Lolan as she giggled. His shaking was like an adorable overgrown pup.
"Its a good thing he can't hear you, else he'd really faint from embarrassment." Lexa shook her head and laughed lightly.
In the arena, as the two participants were readying up, Seph Farhawk surprisingly spoke some encouraging, if not arrogant words towards the shaking opponent across from him. "Jared, don't worry about anything and just try your best. All you need to do is show off some of your best moves and it will be sufficient, don't worry about losing."
Jared knew Seph quite a bit and knew this was just his way of talking, and took no offence towards his confidence in winning the match; simply responding instead with a smile, his shaking calming somewhat. "Thanks!"
When Caesar Farhawk heard these words with his enhanced hearing, he sneered before quickly resuming his usual emotionless expression.
Seph Farhawk was the Fifth Young Master of the Farhawk family and the second son of of the Head of the Farhawk family, and Caesar Farhawk's brother, the Inferno Hawk Magician Stephen Farhawk.
Chapter 66: Sportsmanship
"Let the second match begin!!" The host's voice resounded around the large stadium and was closely followed by the sound of the eager cheering of the audience.
Shockingly, it was the anxious and nervous looking Jared who charged forth first, barging forward like a rocket, his each step shaking the ground.
"Looks like his physical strength is quite frightening." Lexa couldn't help but be surprised. The only other Magician she could compare this boy to was Uncle Kil, though the boys strength was obviously not on the same level.
On the other side of the arena, Seph Farhawk looked on at the quickly incoming attacker with a calm exterior. Narrowing his eyes, he began to chant a spell that was quickly completed.
Five flaming sparks appeared around his body, lighting up and taking on the form of five birds before they shot off towards his opponent. A simple but effective move.
Not daring to underestimate these small flames coming at him at great velocity, Jared was forced to slow down his pace as he moved to manoeuvre around the fiery birds. Chanting a spell of his own, solid rocks began to slither like liquid as it formed around his two fists, taking on the shape of a sturdy pair of gloves.
Seph had already begun chanting his next spell amidst all this, and he had just finished it as Jared was getting closer and closer in range. This spell was much larger than the previous one, and when released, orange flames lit up behind his back and jutted outwards as they began to coalesce around his two arms until eventually taking on the shape of fiery wings!
Jared's eyes flashed knowingly when he saw this but he didn't react otherwise, not holding back in throwing a strong right fist towards Seph Farhawk's direction, the power of earth empowering his fist and an azure glow pulsing around it, signalling the further empowerment of aura.
This was a punch not to be taken lightly!
With arms crossed, the fiery wings enveloping Seph's arms combined as they changed form, turning into a sort of barrier.
Lexa was shocked as she actually knew of this spell somewhat, only that it was in a different form. The barrier form of these fiery wings was rather similar to one of the spells available in her own Crimson Iris bangle, the Crimson Glaze spell, which would coat the user in a burning hot barrier. The only difference here was that Seph's version only covered his arms, but at the same time, is was only one feature of this ongoing spell of his; so it couldn't be said to be weaker than her Crimson Iris Bangle's Crimson Glaze spell.
Both sides having activated their individual moves, the only thing left was for the two to clash!
Bang!
Jared's fist made contact with the fiery wing's barrier and the sound emitted due to the clash resounded throughout the large stadium. At first appearance, the clash seemed to be a draw as neither side seemed to get one over the other. While Seph's barrier was still standing strong, Jared's rock empowered fists were also in perfect shape. However, after several seconds of Jared trying to break through this barrier with brute strength alone, people looked in surprise as Jared suddenly leapt backwards as he cried out in pain.
The heat of the barrier had passed through the rock covering his fist, burning his skin.
"Seems like I can't get through those damned wings of yours with my usual methods..." Jared grumbled. Now that he was fully concentrated on the battle, it seemed his nerves were long gone.
"As to be expected by the Magical Art created by the head of the Farhawk family, the Inferno Hawk Arts is truly a magnificent sight!" The host praised.
"I thought his Magical Art looked different from the one used by Chris Farhawk. It would seem this Seph Farhawk has been learning the Art personally crafted by his father." Lexa was quite impressed with this Inferno Hawk Arts so far and looked forward to what else it had up its sleeve. She was also interested to see how Jared Lolan would break or manoeuvre around those flaming wings of Seph's.
After a deep breath, Jared's eyes narrowed in concentration and he began to chant his next spell. Seph didn't react at all, simply holding a martial pose, those flaming wings flickering in a melodious rhythm, looking threatening and majestic in contrast to his small form.
On completion of his spell, the rocks covering Jared's two fists suddenly went through a drastic transformation as it slowly mutated into a dark metallic form. It not only changed into the more solid metal material, but enlarged greatly until they were double the width of his arms in diameter. They also held several runes which lit up in an azure glow. The dark metallic gloves gave off a large "clang" as he touched fists. The weight and strength of these metallic gloves could only be imagined.
"Lets see how these work!" Jared Lolan shot forward once more, his right fist wound back in preparation for its powerful release.
Bang!
In repeat of the scene from before, Jared's fist met the solid frame of the fiery wing's barrier. But in contrast to that time, a noticeable crack appeared in Seph's wings. Noticing this, Jared didn't hold back the grin forming his lips, not letting up on his strength for a second. Seph meanwhile showed off a strong front, but his arms were shaking as he held off the strength of this punch which felt like a 2 ton boulder crashing down upon him.
The destruction of his spell was inevitable at this rate, so he transformed those fiery wings into their normal state without hesitation. With no barrier holding him back anymore, Jared's fist proceeded forth, threatening to strike Seph straight in his face!
Click!
Seph clicked his fingers, quickly forming a spark of fire which assaulted Jared's eyes. This attack would do nothing to damage him, but it was successful in its goal. Blinding him!
With his opponent unable to see him, thus not being able to redirect his punch accurately, Seph quickly acted when he had the chance. With lithe footsteps, he manoeuvred under the incoming punch of his opponent and with his left arm, directly struck Jared in the side of his stomach with the fiery wing, which seemed to sharpen at its edge, causing a cut to form on Jared's body.
Jared let out a guttural cry as he felt the sharp pain of being cut piled with the aching pain of burning surrounding it. Forcing his eyes open, he used aura to quickly revive his sight so that he could act against Seph immediately.
With surprisingly supple movement, Jared sent his left fist careening down towards his opponents crouched form as Seph attempted to pass him by.
Unfortunately, his punch was too late and Seph was already behind him leaping to create some distance, his punch only blasting apart the ground below with the force of his strike. Understanding the abilities of his opponent, Jared knew if he let Seph recover, he was truly doomed. He couldn't let him escape so easily!
'No time to cast a spell, can only push myself to the limits!' Clenching his teeth, Jared spun his body, sending his right fist swinging backwards with built up momentum. The fist was just seconds from striking the fleeing Seph when he shockingly vanished!
The grin that was forming on Jared's lips as his fist got closer and closer was instantly doused in cold water. He instantly knew what had happened, that fleeing Seph was only an illusion created by magic!
'But I didn't hear him chanting... A chant-less illusion... How formidable...' Jared could only sigh in defeat. In the end, his loss was his own fault. If he had not been so caught up in other matters and paid more attention, he could have easily figured out the other party was but an illusion through various methods. It was only that he had never heard of Seph practising illusion magic. Though he should have known that most Magician's study a bunch of miscellaneous spells, only to be brought out at the right occasions.
"T-the victor of the second preliminary match is Seph Farhawk!!" The unprepared host's voice announced the end of the battle.
In the audience, while they had a better view of the last several seconds, they still also found it difficult to follow what had just exactly happened, as it had all happened to quickly.
In the arena, Seph had been holding his inflamed arms hovering over the back of Jared's neck. Time hadn't stopped as he had stopped his momentum himself. With his victory announced, he lowered his arms, the flaming wings dissipating in the meanwhile.
It was only at this time did the audience suddenly erupt into applause and shouts of congratulations, with Andria joining in too.
"Andria's a little sad the big pup lost, but hawk boy was pretty okay, for a Farhawk." Andria clapped her hands in rhythm with the audience.
"Now the big guy will really faint if he heard you calling him "big pup"..." The side of lexa's feline mouth twitched.
Back in the arena. Surprisingly, Seph was breathing a little heavily.
"D-did you use up a lot of aura on that c-chant-less spell?" Jared asked as turned to face him. He had begun to shake nervously once more now that the match was over. He could constantly feel the thousands of gazes on him, making him incredibly anxious and nervous.
"Yeah... It took a lot out of me... More than I thought it would..." Seph's voice was a little croaky, seemingly due to how little he talks. But it was soft and humble.
Just as the two were talking, Seph suddenly stumbles, nearly falling to the floor if he were not caught in Jared's hands. Slinging his arm around his side, he crouched down to match his height.
"W-we're both pretty beat up, why d-don't we help each other out." Jared gave him a bright smile.
Looking at that expression for several seconds, Seph eventually hummed and nodded in agreement. Holding each other up, the two stumbled out of the arena to the cheers of the audience. Behind them, the host praised their sportsmanship.
It had become quite late in the day when the semi-finals of the Hawk Academy Youth Tournament finally came to an end. In the end, one of the biggest topics besides the excitement of who will win in the finals, was a topic comparing the two Farhawk brother's. Both in their abilities and personalities...
Needless to say, Chris and Caesar's hatred for the main branch of the Farhawk family didn't improve this night...
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