"Begin."
The word didn't echo.
It settled.
And then—
Brix moved first.
Not forward.
Down.
The tip of his staff struck the ground once.
A dull, controlled impact.
The arena responded instantly.
The white stone beneath my feet shifted—not physically, but structurally. I felt it through my Spirit Intuition (S).
Tremor Sense.
He wasn't attacking.
He was mapping.
"…Annoying," I muttered.
Then the attack came.
No chant.
No flourish.
Stone Bullets (AA).
The ground behind him rippled, and dozens of compact, compressed stone projectiles shot forward in a tight, disciplined formation.
Not scattered.
Layered.
Frontline pressure.
Backline correction.
Delayed impact.
His Logical Magic.
I stepped.
Not back.
Sideways.
Spirit Instinct (S) flared—not as panic, but as warning clarity.
The first volley passed where I was.
The second adjusted where I would have been.
I shifted again—half a step, rotation, weight transfer.
The bullets skimmed past my barrier, grazing it lightly.
---
BARRIER DURABILITY
Augustus – 97%
Brix – 100%
---
"…He's not aiming to hit," I murmured.
[He is measuring.] Nova replied.
Of course he was.
Every dodge I made—
Every step—
Every correction—
Data.
I exhaled.
"Fine."
I pushed forward.
Aura flowed.
Not explosive.
Not wasteful.
Flow State.
Every muscle aligned.
Every motion efficient.
The distance closed quickly.
Another tap of his staff.
Earth Wall (B+).
A slab of dense earth rose instantly between us, angled—not to block, but to redirect.
I didn't slow down.
Ironhowl Blade came up—
Strike.
The impact traveled through my arms like hitting a reinforced pillar.
The wall cracked—
But didn't break.
At the same time—
The ground beneath my foot shifted.
A spike erupted upward.
Point-blank.
I twisted mid-step, letting it graze past my barrier.
---
BARRIER DURABILITY
Augustus – 91%
Brix – 100%
---
"…Damn, that was dangerous," I muttered.
[You entered his domain.] Nova said.
Right.
Close range didn't weaken him.
It activated a different layer.
Brix didn't retreat.
He stepped forward.
Staff low.
Weight balanced.
No panic.
No rush.
His eyes tracked me—not where I moved, but where I intended to move.
Tremor Sense.
He wasn't watching.
He was feeling.
Falsification (A)
I feinted left.
He didn't react.
I shifted right.
The ground answered.
A ripple.
A correction.
A counter.
"…Tch."
I pulled back.
Distance again.
The arena reset.
For half a second, nothing moved.
Then Brix spoke.
"You're fast," he said calmly.
I shrugged.
"You're slow."
A few observers outside probably laughed.
Inside—
Nothing changed.
He tapped his staff again.
This time—
Not bullets.
The ground around me sank slightly.
A quagmire spell, maybe.
Subtle.
Almost imperceptible.
My footing—
Unstable.
Falsification (A)
"…Oh, that's clever."
[Control field.] Nova said.
Of course.
Limit movement.
Predict paths.
Reduce variability.
He wasn't trying to hit me.
He was trying to simplify me.
The next volley came.
Stone Bullets (AA)
Tighter.
Faster.
More precise.
I moved—
And felt it.
My steps were half a fraction slower.
My angles are slightly unstable.
The bullets clipped my barrier again.
---
BARRIER DURABILITY
Augustus – 84%
Brix – 100%
---
"…Yeah," I muttered. "That's not sustainable."
I needed pressure.
Not defense.
I pushed forward again.
This time—
No direct approach.
I zigzagged.
Irregular.
Breaking rhythm.
Breaking expectation.
Spirit Instinct (S) guided the gaps.
Not where attacks were—
Where they wouldn't be.
I slipped through the next volley.
Closed distance again.
This time—
No wall.
Good.
I stepped in.
Blade moved.
Low angle.
Not at him—
At the ground beneath his stance.
The stone cracked.
Destabilization.
For half a second—
His balance shifted.
That was the opening.
I stepped in fully.
Strike.
Direct.
Clean.
Iron Guard reinforced the motion—
The blade connected.
Not with flesh.
With—
Iron Skin.
And something else.
Dense.
Layered.
Unyielding.
The impact didn't break.
It stopped.
My arms vibrated from the recoil.
"…That's ridiculous."
Brix's staff moved.
Short distance.
Minimal motion.
Maximum intent.
Point-blank strike.
I barely twisted in time—
The staff grazed my barrier.
---
BARRIER DURABILITY
Augustus – 72%
Brix – 98%
---
I jumped back immediately.
Distance.
Breathing steady.
Mind clearer.
"…So," I said, "I can hit you."
He adjusted his grip slightly.
"You can try."
I smiled faintly.
Good.
Now we understood each other.
Long range—
I could easily evade.
Close range—
I couldn't break his defence, but he could.
Mid-range—
He nearly controlled everything.
Balanced.
But Annoying.
Very annoying.
I rolled my shoulders once.
Aura settled.
"…Alright," I murmured.
"If structure is the problem…"
My grip tightened slightly on the sword.
"Then let's stop playing by it."