The moment stretched.
White stone.
Blank sky.
Two figures standing inside a perfect lie called fairness.
Then—
Aura shifted.
Not outward.
Down.
Into my legs.
Flow.
Not through my arms.
Not into the blade.
Into my feet.
For the first time—
I didn't just use aura.
I aligned it.
Every muscle.
Every joint.
Every shift of weight.
The difference was immediate.
The world didn't slow.
But the moment I moved.
I accelerated.
Brix's eyes narrowed.
Just slightly.
Not Good.
He noticed.
I stepped.
And vanished from where he expected me to be.
Not faster than thought.
But faster than his calculations.
[You've reached your stat limit.] Nova said.
"I know."
But this—
This wasn't just speed.
This wasn't raw stat advantage.
Brix still had higher AGI.
Higher STR.
Higher everything.
But—
Stats were potential.
Aura Control was utilization.
A punch only carried the weight of your arm.
But if your entire body moved with it—
That was different.
Aura Flow wasn't increasing my stats.
It was letting me use all of them.
I vanished from where I stood.
Not actually.
But close enough.
Brix reacted instantly.
Staff struck the ground—
Tremor Sense (S)
The arena answered.
Ripples spread.
Prediction recalculated.
Stone Bullets (AA)
But—
They were late.
For the first time—
Late.
I slipped through the first volley.
The second volley adjusted—
But my path wasn't where it should be.
Not anymore.
Distance collapsed.
Close range.
Again.
Brix didn't panic.
Of course he didn't.
His staff shifted.
Iron Skin (A) activated.
That layered density returned.
That wall disguised as a body.
Good.
That's exactly what I wanted.
Falsification (A)
But this time—
Not on me.
On the strike.
My shoulders shifted.
My hips aligned.
My sword moved—
A clean diagonal arc toward his left shoulder.
That's what the world saw.
That's what Tremor Sense (S) read.
That's what his reflexes prepared for.
The trajectory—
Split.
To perception, it moved Low.
In reality—
High.
It was a perfect lie.
For him.
Mid-swing—
The path suddenly changed.
Not physically.
Perceptually.
The blade dipped.
Rotated.
Redirected—
And struck from the higher angle.
For half a fraction—
Brix's guard was wrong.
Not slow.
Wrong.
Impact.
The sound cracked across the arena.
Not metal.
Not flesh.
Something denser.
His barrier dropped.
---
BARRIER DURABILITY
Augustus – 72%
Brix – 69%
---
His eyes sharpened.
First real reaction.
But I didn't stop.
Aura flowed through the blade.
The Sword's runes flared—
A low metallic howl vibrated through the air.
Ironhowl Blade (A) - Reverberation Strike.
The first hit had already landed.
The second—
came from inside.
For a split second—
Everything aligned.
Position.
Timing.
Structure.
The reverberation detonated.
Inside his defence.
The strike reached his head.
And for a fraction of a moment—
I knew—
That would have killed him.
The arena intervened.
The barrier flared violently.
Light compressed inward.
The lethal threshold intercepted.
A fraction slower—
That would've ended it.
---
BARRIER DURABILITY
Augustus – 72%
Brix – 17%
---
I froze for half a heartbeat.
"…That should've—"
It didn't.
My eyes narrowed.
Iron Skin (A)
Active.
But not alone.
Lines.
Faint.
Layered.
Almost invisible—
Magical inscriptions.
"…So that's it," I muttered.
Stacked defense.
Not just durability—
structure reinforcement.
"Arena must have judged that he could have survived it, maybe with a fatal injury but still alive."
And that moment—
That single, stupid moment of confusion—
Was enough.
Brix moved.
No warning.
No setup.
His staff was already in motion.
Short distance.
Maximum efficiency.
Point-blank.
Spirit Intuition (S) screamed.
I twisted.
Barely.
Iron Guard (A) surged—
Aura reinforcing the blade—
Clang.
The impact exploded through my arms.
My barrier flickered violently.
---
BARRIER DURABILITY
Augustus – 51%
Brix – 17%
---
I slid back.
Boots grinding against white stone.
Distance forced.
Breathing steady—
But tighter now.
Brix didn't chase.
Of course he didn't.
He adjusted his stance.
Calm.
Composed.
But—
Different.
His gaze sharpened.
Not analyzing movement anymore.
Re-evaluating.
"You changed something," he said.
I rolled my wrist once, shaking out the impact.
"…You noticed."
He didn't respond immediately.
His grip shifted slightly on the staff.
More stable.
More deliberate.
"…That wasn't just raw speed," he said quietly.
I smiled faintly.
"Then what was it?"
A pause.
"…Aura: Flow Step," he said with surprise in his eyes.
Correct.
Silence stretched between us.
Two fighters.
Same arena.
Same rules.
Different understanding.
His structure had cracked.
Not broken.
But cracked.
And now—
He knew it.
Behind my eyes, Nova spoke.
[You have disrupted his predictive model.]
Falsification (A)
"…For not long?" I replied.
A pause.
[Until he adapts.]
Of course.
I exhaled slowly.
Adjusted my stance.
Aura still flowing. Precise.
And steadily burning through my focus.
"…Then I just have to win before he does."
Across from me—
Brix lifted his staff.
The ground beneath him shifted.
Denser.
Heavier.
More controlled than before.
Ah.
My Spirit Intuition (S) twitched, the danger warning kind.
Looks like he's going for one devastating spell.
To level the playing field or end it, full and final.
He looked at me—
Not as a stepping stone.
Not as an easy win.
But as a problem.
Good.
That made two of us.