Chapter 26 Reality is always cruel
“So I heard you are quite the restless one,” Hutrar said with a small smile. “From beating up guards to walking around with Sabine as if she is your arm candy. Have you no shame for misleading such a clueless girl?”
“I’m not a deceitful person, and I don’t mislead anyone,” Vandal replied. “Are you going to attack, or should I?”
Vandal could feel a hot and oppressive aura radiating from Hutrar, like standing too close to a roaring flame. He did not care. He had trained for this moment, and he refused to let fear weaken his body.
“I will go easy on you because I respect Matron Clara,” Hutrar said in a matter-of-fact tone. “I will not beat you to death.”
“Quite a tone you have there,” Vandal shot back. “Since you like to talk so much, let me show you who is really going to go easy on who.”
Vandal stopped talking and attacked instantly. With blinding speed, he closed the distance in the blink of an eye. He spun his body and whipped a powerful kick toward Hutrar’s face.
“Hmph.”
Hutrar snorted coldly and barely seemed to regard the incoming kick as a threat. He raised his right arm to block it with ease.
Bang!
The moment the kick connected, Hutrar’s arm felt as if it had been struck by a five-kilogram hammer. The force sent his entire body flying backward through the air.
Father Duncan’s expression darkened. He had not expected Hutrar to be pushed back so soon.
Hutrar twisted in mid-air, performing a clean flip that canceled out the momentum. He landed steadily on the ground.
“You-” Hutrar began.
“Take this!”
Vandal was already in front of him again. His fist flew straight toward Hutrar’s face.
Kpooo!
Everything happened too fast. Hutrar never saw the follow-up coming. A sharp pain exploded across his face as his body flew backward once more. He crashed hard into the ground, rolled twice, and finally stabilized himself.
Shocked murmurs rippled through the watching crowd.
“How is that boy landing hits on Hutrar? He is a powerful enforcer!”
As long as I keep the pressure on him, he won’t have time to fight back. That was Vandal’s strategy. He still did not know the full extent of an enforcer’s power, but so far the fight felt far easier than he had expected. Maybe all the talk about Hutrar’s talent had been nothing but hype.
At this point, Hutrar’s face had begun to swell.
Vandal closed the gap again and was already winding up a right hook when he noticed the change. The small smile had vanished from Hutrar’s face. His bright eyes now burned with savagery.
A boundless aura suddenly erupted from Hutrar’s body. Waves of intense heat rolled off his skin. The surge was so strong it blew Vandal backward.
“I will show you why I am an enforcer, little ant,” Hutrar growled.
His arms and legs instantly thickened to twice their original size. Muscles bulged powerfully beneath his robe. The extreme heat from his skin burned away the entire top half of his clothing. His skin turned a shimmering golden color. Even his hair became golden. His eyes glowed bright red, and his breathing grew heavy with raw power.
Father Duncan smiled. This was exactly why he had chosen Hutrar. Unlike Vandal’s berserk state, which only displayed raw force, Hutrar’s carried the dangerous echo of fire.
The once athletic boy no longer looked human. He now resembled a flaming beast.
Some male sect members immediately began placing bets that Vandal would be defeated, or even killed. They felt a sense of satisfaction. They had never liked Vandal’s closeness to Sabine or his arrogant attitude.
The female sect members had been quietly admiring Vandal’s courage and fighting skill. But when they saw Hutrar’s transformation, even they believed Vandal was finished.
“My turn,” Hutrar said. His voice came out thick and powerful, like the roar of a lion.
“Bring it,” Vandal replied. His blood boiled with excitement as his body responded to the rising pressure.
Hutrar charged. The ground cracked and burned beneath his feet with every step. He cocked his fist back and fired it forward like a cannon.
Vandal blocked the punch, but the force launched him tumbling across the ground until he crashed into a small boulder.
“Vandal!” Sabine screamed in worry from the enforcers’ section.
Waves of force blasted outward from Vandal’s body. A vacuum-like aura enveloped him. His muscles swelled and tightened over his frame, turning him into a bigger, more compact version of himself.
Father Williams’ expression turned serious. This aura felt different from the first time Vandal had used his force echo. He looked smaller now, with only a slight reddish tint to his skin instead of the deep red he had shown before.
“This aura… it is thicker, more violent than before,” Williams muttered.
Whoosh!
In an instant, Vandal flash-stepped forward. His fist slammed into Hutrar’s chest.
Bang!
Hutrar had been expecting it. He instantly wrapped his arms around Vandal in a crushing bear hug. His body flames flared violently, showering the entire arena in a blazing inferno of extreme heat. Bright flames erupted rapidly from his skin as he laughed viciously.
“Ahhh~~~~~~”
Painful cries rang out from the stands. The entire arena was engulfed in bright flames, making it impossible to see what was happening. Only the vicious laughter and the agonized screams echoed through the blinding blaze.
Boom after boom shook the arena as violent explosions tore across the fighting platform, sending clouds of dust and shattered stone flying into the air.
“Vandal!”
Sabine shot up from her seat, her heart slamming against her ribs. She sprinted down the stone steps, robes whipping behind her, pushing past startled disciples without a second glance.
“Hutrar! Stop!” she screamed, voice cracking with desperation. “Don’t kill him! Please!”
Her mother’s sharp voice cut through the chaos from behind.
“Sabine! What are you doing? Get back here!”
Sabine didn’t slow down. She ignored the calls, ignored the stares, ignored everything except the terrifying scene unfolding ahead. By the time she reached the edge of the arena entrance, her lungs were burning and her legs trembled.
She skidded to a halt, eyes widening in pure horror.
Through the swirling dust and flickering flames, she saw...