Chapter 6: Flash done
A devastating hurricane of wind almost pushes the redhead off the stage before she plunges her spear into the ground and even uses a bit of her Polarity semblance to keep her from being pushed off.
The strong breeze also succeeds in reaching and slightly baffling the crowd.
I grit my teeth hard as the move I used not only removed a good bit of my aura, but my health as well.
[Name: Grayson Heartvale]
HP:938/1385
Aura Capacity:816/1749
Without the fabled [Gamer's Body], the health bar was only a brief estimation of my overall vitality and didn't contribute the factor of pain I felt at the moment.
My right arm just felt like it exploded and was being reconstructed right now, and it wasn't that far from the truth. Most of the muscles were torn, but aura was helping a lot in recovering it, which was lowering my aura by a substantial amount. The tendons were thankfully still intact, though.
I didn't have time to waste, as I fake grabbed more powdered Wind Dust from my "pouch" and sprinkled it around again while I dash to Pyrrha, who was almost done with collecting her bearings.
Luckily, this next move won't be as self-destructive.
A small pace away from my dazed opponent, I cross my arms and raise a knee diagonally from the ground. The Wind Dust in my left shoe being left almost drained for this one move.
"Kick of the Red Phoenix!"
The next attack came with the force of a raging cyclone and the appearance of a horizontal tornado heading straight for the redheaded warrior.
Even with those two moves I did and through the growing headache I was getting, she was still holding on to her spear that was stabbed into the ground.
Sure enough, she was dazed even further and was forced back a few more meters away, but she still held strong.
Her sense of balance must have been very hindered at this point as she stumbled trying to stand up. The guard she kept was almost gone.
My chance to strike was too clear now.
I then grabbed Wind Dust with both of my hands threw it all over the stage in a flamboyant gesture of 'Are you not entertained!?' without speaking the line.
I could see that many looked confused right now, and I was ready to give them a show.
With the Dust floating at a certain range from me, I controlled the particles to draw closer to me in a form of pseudo-telekinesis.
Once around a quarter of the total Dust I flung into the arena was around me, I stared at my still dazed opponent and closed my eyes to ready myself for the next action.
It had only been 3 seconds since I used the Kick after all, and it was time to use my semblance.
My perception of time was already botched thanks to my Perception stat, but I got used to the huge change in eyesight and awareness after some time. With an A10 for PER, from grinding Grimm at the age of 15, I could even clearly see the flapping wings of a fly and catch it with my two fingers without killing it.
Then came my semblance which I appropriately dubbed [Golden Eye]. And I don't care if BOTH my eyes looked like weak car headlights.
With [Golden Eye], my level of perception goes even FURTHER. And it didn't stop with my eyes, it affected and drastically increased my other senses as well.
With the flick of a mind switch, my perception skyrocketed, I could easily hear Pyrrha's heart beating fast from the intense battle. I could feel each individual speck of regular dust being blown around the stadium. And the exaggerated bullet time, that I could choose to focus with, would've made me feel like Quicksilver if not for my limited speed of motion.
I was right in front of Pyrrha and so close to my goal. I loosened my focus from bullet time to shout my attack.
"Dance of the White Tiger!"
My perception went back to it's focused state and I released a barrage of indiscriminate punches and knees, stunning the redhead even further out of balance.
Punch after punch, knee after knee, I continue to unleash upon her. She mustered enough to block a few hits with her shield, Akoùo, but that didn't last long.
I utilized the Wind Dust around me as a sort of thrusting force to propel my onslaught of blows. With each reel of my fist, I trigger the floating Dust on the point of my elbow to push it forward in quick repetitions. The same could be said for the knees.
The only reason I could effectively use this attack, was thanks to my heavily accelerated perception of time. I could only imagine the [Dance of the White Tiger] looking like a complete blur of blows on a screen. Speaking of the screen, I could see Pyrrha's Aura bar drop fast.
60%…50%…40%…30%…
By the time I stopped, we were already around 3 to 4 meters away from the edge. My limbs felt exhausted and I felt a slight headache setting in.
But I wasn't done yet.
I used around a quarter of the Dust I spread around the arena for my third move, but now it was time to properly honor Han Daewi with the fourth and final one.
With all the focus from my semblance I could muster, I drew all the Wind Dust to myself and cupped my hands near my waist in a sphere.
The sparkling lime green particles around me almost gave off a mystical feel.
Pyrrha was looking dazed, battered, and bruised, but presentable thanks to her aura protecting her from the attacks. Her semblance was indeed very useful when it came to anyone wielding a weapon. And what weapon was made out of metal? Not our bodies, that's what.
I know that if she could control the iron in blood, she could practically invincible in a one-on-one fight, but it turns out that she can't, she can't YET, or she hasn't figured it out. The last one was completely unlikely thanks to her being a top student though.
The glimmer of green around my body wisped around like an open flame. I tried this with fire Dust once, and I praised the Gods for Aura again. This version was by no means as cool as a spiralling pillar of flame, but as I decided, I'd rather save it for a later date.
I closed my eyes for a second and inhaled, as my hands, along with the Dust, was triggered and shot with my arms opening into a jaw like gesture to properly direct the wind.
I felt a slight shred of guilt for her as I follow through with…
"Wave of the Blue Dragon!"
If my [Kick of the Red Phoenix] showed itself as a tornado, this showed itself as a blasting tidal wave of force itself.
My vision was extremely distorted thanks to the extreme speeds of the wind I conjured.
Once the roaring in my ears was mostly gone, I turn off my horribly draining semblance and take a look at the damage.
The ground in front of me looked slightly hollowed in a cone shape, and Pyrrha… was not there.
All according to plan.
"I'm sorry, but you should never take your eyes off the opponent."
I delayed myself before turning around, playing myself as if I'd already exhausted my energy, only to be hit by a shield to the gut and knocked very close to the edge. I only somewhat struggled before something else happened.
Right there and then, we both hear a loud sound of a horn.
"Grayson's aura has reached the red zone! Pyrrha Nikos is the winner!"
Oh man, the crowd went absolutely WILD.
'Status'
[Name:Grayson Heartvale]
[Status]
Level:43
Exp:5,860/11,000
HP:478/1385
Aura Level:B8
Aura Capacity:245/1749
STR:B3(A3)
DEX:A1
AGL:A2(S2)
END:B3(A3)
PER:A10
Stat Points:36
Ah, the pain. Everything still hurts. Why didn't I put more in endurance?
And is that Pyrrha walking towards me?
"That was a good fight. Where did you learn to use Dust like that?" She prods. Thankfully, she wasn't able to see through my act.
"At my backyard, and with SO MUCH practice. You think I'd have learned the first time I got a third degree burn- but nooo, I just had to go ahead and shock myself a few times as well."
"I see… but don't you think it has too much recoil? You're still clutching your arm."
"Then thank the Gods for aura. Right? Plus, I think I can get the technique down-" 'Cause spare points for Endurance are right there. "-by the next few months."
Before she could be given the trophy however, we took the time to shake hands.
"I hope we can meet again… Theia." I think that was a Mistralian(Greek) goddess of sight? She's really well-read.
"You too, Achilles."
…
I entered the Mistral regional tournament again in the following year, having already won the one in Vale with little competition.
Vale dubbed me as 'The Cyclone', winning 2 regional tourneys and getting 2nd place for the third due to… brotherly pity.
I eventually forfeited mid battle when I 'fought' the 'Invincible Girl' in the quarter finals of the Mistralian tournament, much to many people's dismay.
Now, we both stand and stare at each other for a few moments of silence. I even used this time to check her stats.
[Name:Pyrrha Nikos]
[Status]
Level:41
HP:2187/2187
Aura Level:A2
Aura Capacity:1026/1026
STR:A5(S6)
DEX:A4
AGL:A4(S5)
END:A3(S4)
PER:A1
"I-It's nice to meet you again Gray." She nervously said.
The nervousness wasn't without reason. The only times we've conversed at all was during the tournaments, which was kind of counterintuitive considering we could have just exchanged scroll contacts.
"Well, I'll be. The girl on fire has joined the fray." I jokingly said.
My casual demeanor successfully banished some of her unpleasant thoughts. Even only after meeting two times, I already sensed a rivalry coming from her emotions- the rivalry of champions. A challenge to both ourselves who aspire the same goal in heart, though with slightly different paths.
Thanks again to my metahuman perception on being able to catch arrows out of the air and, more importantly, social cues, I easily felt and saw from her facade that she didn't exactly know whether to be sorry or not.
So, seeing past her subtly agitated expression, and considering that I have to break another silence, I decided to raise a subject.
"So… what made you join Beacon?"
"It was… a split choice between here and Haven, really. Both academies were held in very high regard compared to the other two. In the end, I merely… felt like it." She said.
"…So…" I started, until my lips formed into a grin. "How about a rematch? Heck, we're gonna be attending this academy, so I can show off all the neat tricks I've learned."
"Well, first we have to pass initiation."
"No matter. We definitely have more than enough training to deal with a bunch of Grimm." As I waved her off, I couldn't help but think that I was tempting fate… badly. But I ignored it instead and continued. "Now as I recall, we were tied 1-1 right?"
"What do you mean? I remember you losing both times." My eyes somewhat widened at that.
"The first victory was a fluke and you know it." I shot.
"That wasn't what the rules decided." She kindly smiled.
"Pffft. Yeah, right. Like I didn't hold ba-"
My response was cut short when the headmaster walked up on stage.
Alright, either aura was a REALLY efficient way of slowing down the effects of aging or being a wizard had it's perks 'cause the only sign of age that "old" man had was his grey hair. He looked closer to 40, and I was to believe he trained the main cast's parents? I call magical BS on this one.
Dressed in a mixture of a dark green and black suit, Headmaster Ozpin stood closer to the mic, adjusting his glasses, more aesthetic than practical, then spoke. An almost hollow yet wisdom sown voice echoed through the speakers.
"I'll… keep this brief."
I furrowed my brows at his opening remark. It didn't really give off a totally hollow feeling. It felt more… disappointed.
[Name: Ozma]
[Status]
Level:1119
HP:6058/6058
Aura level:S7
Aura Capacity:5719/5719
Magic Level:B8
Mana Capacity:918/918
STR:S5(SS9)
DEX:S6
AGL:S3(SS7)
END:S1(SS5)
PER:SS6
Wait a moment.
1119? Then why are his stats so low?
I know that low S stats are extremely hard to come by, even among huntsmen, but those people were - AT MOST - at level 120.
Maybe it has something to do with his soul hopping thingy? Yeah, I think I'll leave it at that. I wont complain about how my system can't display status effects and whatnot right now.
But more importantly, there was that extra bit of info right under Aura.
Magic.
From all the knowledge I retained and wrote down until Volume 6, I can probably say that magic in this world's past was, combat-wise, just as applicable as Aura if not more efficient. But then there was the problem of mechanical and electrical energy.
If there was a way to convert a person's aura into a universal energy source, "huntsman/huntress" would've been an occupation people flocked to, just for the sake of renewable energy.
Maybe I should let my perception of time resume and stop my inner monologuing. I wouldn't want to miss this "old man's" speech.
"You have traveled here in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you,"
Did it really sound this… low key condescending? Behind that empty aspect in his voice, I could feel dampened expectations in his expression.
"and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose… direction."
A series of whispering in the crowd followed. Pyrrha and I looked to each other and I shrugged.
"You will assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far."
I definitely know that was very much ripped out of the script, but I can't help but feel some of that directed towards me.
"It is up to you to take the first step."
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