Hunter Academy: Revenge of the Weakest

"Huf…."

Letting out a long breath, Wilbers emptied his lungs.

And then, feeling the familiar surge of energy from his skill, tightened his grip on his sword.

The air around him shimmered as his mana concentrated, ready to propel him forward with devastating speed and power.

Blade Charge.

Astron, noticing the subtle shift in Wilfred's stance and the gathering of mana, swiftly drew another arrow from his quiver. With a practiced motion, he nocked the arrow and aimed, his eyes narrowing as he noticed that his enemy was charging for his skill.

SWOOSH!

The arrow flew straight and true, aimed directly at Wilfred's chest.

However, Wilfred had anticipated this move. He had faced enough archers to know their tactics, and he was well aware of this particular vulnerability in his skill's activation.

'Not this time.'

He quickened his skill's activation, his body blurring as the mana surged through him. At the last possible second, he deflected the incoming arrow with a swift flick of his sword, sending it spiraling off course.

CRASH!

With an explosive burst of speed, Wilfred charged forward, leaving a trail of afterimages in his wake. The ground beneath his feet cracked from the sheer force of his launch, sending debris flying. Astron's eyes widened in surprise as Wilfred closed the distance between them in an instant.

Wilfred's blade gleamed as he swung it down, aiming for Astron's midsection. The speed and precision of the attack left little room for error.

CLANG!

Yet, Astron managed to draw his dagger just in time, deflecting the blow with a desperate parry.

The force of the impact sent shockwaves through his arm. His body shook a little.

'Ho…He withstood that.'

Reina was impressed, seeing he didn't fall down immediately. It was a natural response; after all, in general, most dagger users relied on agility.

CLANK! SLASH!

Wilfred's relentless assault continued, each strike faster and more powerful than the last. From Reina's eyes, it was evident that he had the upper hand.

'So, he realized he was not a match against him in terms of strength. And now he is using his speed, and pretty effectively at that.'

He weaved and dodged, narrowly avoiding each lethal strike, looking for an opening.

'He's fast, that he must be thinking now. Yet, his eyes are analyzing for a weakness.'

Wilfred pressed his advantage, his blade a blur of motion. Each swing was aimed to overwhelm and incapacitate, his technique refined through countless battles.

Yet, despite his fury, Astron managed to stay just a step ahead, his instincts and training guiding his movements.

Then, Astron saw it—a brief hesitation in Wilfred's movements, a momentary lapse in his relentless assault. It was barely noticeable, but to Astron, it was enough.

SLASH!

Seizing the opportunity, Astron feinted to the right, drawing Wilfred's attention. Then, with a swift, fluid motion, he switched directions and lunged to the left, his dagger aimed at Wilfred's unprotected side.

'Nice feint.'

Wilfred, caught off guard by the sudden change in direction, attempted to recover, but it was too late. Astron's dagger found its mark, slicing through the fabric of Wilfred's uniform and drawing a thin line of blood.

"Urgh!" Wilfred grunted in pain, stumbling back.

The crowd erupted in a mix of gasps and cheers, their excitement palpable as the duel reached its peak.

Astron took a quick, steadying breath, his eyes locked onto Wilfred.

'Now, what will you do?'

Wilfred, clutching his side, glared at Astron with renewed determination. The pain only seemed to fuel his resolve, and he quickly adjusted his stance, preparing for another assault.

"You won't get lucky twice," Wilfred growled, his voice filled with both anger from pain and respect for his opponent's skill. However, he still maintained his cool, his eyes focused.

Astron didn't respond verbally; instead, he maintained his focus. And then, he instantly switched to his bow.

'Huh?'

Wilfred was momentarily surprised, as they had been clashing blows in close quarters for a while now.

SWOOSH!

The arrow instantly flashed, aiming right towards his face.

'Wind psions for swift and precise attack? If you were capable of doing this, why did you let him charge with his skill?'

The arrow was faster than it was supposed to be. Something that Wilfred couldn't react to.

Double Register.

Even though he had used his skill [Double Register], which was a common rank skill that enabled him to increase the speed of his skill's activation.

He hadn't used it previously since he didn't feel the need to.

It took a lot of mana to use, after all, and most of the time, he did it to surprise his enemy and finish them. He was planning to do the same now as well.

That was why he was a tad bit late using his skill even if he had activated his skill and then utilized his trat.

Circular Blade.

SWOOSH! THUD!

The arrow went past through the circular blade formation that had just formed, and then, in an instant, it pierced through his shoulder.

"Argh-!"

With his right shoulder dislocated, blood splattered everywhere across.

"Gasp! Brother!"

"Wilhelm."

His family, who was watching him, gasped, especially his little brother, with his eyes wide open.

SWOOSH!

Astron instantly appeared right before Wilhelm, his dagger shining.

'No! I must not lose!'

Yet, Wilhelm refused to lose his family in front of him. Even if he was ranked 1500 across and it was middle, he still had the ambition to be better than now.

And he couldn't afford to lower his rank.

Blade's Fury.

Thus, he activated the strongest ability he could use. The ability that originated from his trait [Blade's Attachment].

Stage 3 of his trait. He had just recently stepped into the territory of stage 3, and his control over it was still lacking.

Yet, Wilhelm knew he couldn't afford to think about those things right now. The mana surged through his body, psions enhancing his fibers. He felt like even his cells were feeling angry, and the blade in his arm was shaking.

Despite the pain in his shoulder, he refused to back down.

Astron, unfazed by the sudden increase in Wilfred's power, launched into a relentless onslaught. His movements were fluid and precise, each strike of his dagger aimed with deadly intent.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

Wilfred's sword met Astron's dagger with a series of rapid, powerful clashes. The sound of metal striking metal echoed through the arena, the audience on the edge of their seats.

Each time Astron pressed the attack, Wilfred countered with a forceful parry, his blade movements enhanced by his trait.

Seeing it, Reina realized.

"So, that was why. You knew about his skill. Talk about being cautious." Reina mumbled. As she was watching the kid's prowess, she started liking him more. Not because he was strong or anything but because he felt like a professional.

Someone committed to his occupation and serious about everything. There weren't any childish movements in his fighting style.

"….." She threw a quick look at Garrett to gauge his reaction, only to witness that he was frowning with a serious face. Though, there was a small smile in his eyes.

"But well, I guess it will end now." In front of her trained eyes, what Astron was doing was obvious.

On the scene, Astron weaved and dodged, narrowly avoiding each lethal strike, looking for an opening.

Wilfred pressed his advantage, his blade a blur of motion.

'Only thirty seconds is left.' Each swing was aimed to overwhelm and incapacitate, and his technique was refined through training.

Yet, despite his fury of attacks, his opponent didn't fudge at all.

'Why? Why can't I hit him?'

He was doing his best, yet he couldn't hit his opponent, not even once, as if his attacks were being read effortlessly.

'Come on, focus. He is lower than you. You mustn't lose your calm.'.

Yet, over the course of the semester, if there was one thing he learned, it was to keep his cool no matter what. However, that was proving to be harder than ever before, with adrenaline rushing through his body and his trait affecting him.

'Analyze.' As he analyzed his enemy's posture, he saw it.

'An opening.' His left shoulder was open when he attacked, even though it wasn't easily visible.

Seeing the opening, he didn't miss the chance. He couldn't. After all, he knew things were bound to get troublesome if he did.

SWOOSH!

He attacked instantly.

'Huh?'

Yet his attack met with nothing. Instead, something else happened.

It was a faint! Once again!

Astron feinted to the left, drawing Wilfred's attention, then quickly spun to the right, aiming for Wilfred's exposed side.

'I knew it.' Yet this time, Wilfred anticipated the feint, bringing his sword up just in time to block the dagger. The force of the block sent shockwaves through both of their arms, but neither combatant wavered.

SWOOSH! "You're good," Astron admitted, his voice calm and measured. "But not good enough." For the first time today, he was speaking.

'He is even utilizing psychological attacks.'

Reina could see where he wanted to go with this.

'What a crafty kid.' Then, with a sudden burst of speed, Astron dropped low, aiming a sweeping kick at Wilfred's legs.

Wilfred jumped to avoid the kick, but Astron was already moving, using the momentum to propel himself upwards, his dagger flashing towards Wilfred's midsection.

Wilfred twisted in mid-air, using his enhanced agility to narrowly avoid the strike. He landed awkwardly, his wounded shoulder protesting the movement, but he didn't let it slow him down. He charged forward, his blade blazing with energy, and launched a powerful overhead strike at Astron.

Astron sidestepped the blow, his dagger coming up to deflect the sword. The impact sent sparks flying, the force of the collision momentarily pushing both fighters back.

That was how it was supposed to play, yet Astron did something unexpected. Utilizing his flexibility, he twisted his ankles, pushing his mana into his legs. Then, he rotated his body, using it as an anchor to the ground, and he used the force of the sword as the torque.

Wilfred's eyes widened.

SWOOSH! Because, suddenly, an attack occurred from his side!

'Another dagger?' His eyes had been tracing the dagger Astron held in his hand, yet that made him miss the other dagger.

'When?'

Wilfred noticed this too late, and his reflexes kicked in. In an instant, his sword was on his right side, aiming to deflect the attack.

Yet it was too late.

Wilferd didn't manage to pick his posture up to the utmost efficiency.

THUD!

That particularly forceful strike from Astron sent Wilfred stumbling back, his grip on his sword faltering.

Astron seized the opportunity, lunging forward with his dagger aimed at Wilfred's heart. Wilfred, using the last of his strength, brought his sword up in a desperate block.

CLANG!

The force of Astron's blow sent Wilfred's sword flying from his hand, the blade skittering across the arena floor. Wilfred fell to one knee, clutching his dislocated shoulder, his breathing labored. Astron stood over him, his dagger poised for the final strike.

"Yield," Astron commanded, his voice steady.

Wilfred looked up, his eyes filled with a mixture of defiance and resignation. He knew he was beaten, but he refused to let the fight end without dignity. With a slow, deliberate movement, he bowed his head.

"I yield," he said, his voice barely audible.

The arena fell silent for a moment, the tension thick in the air.

[Winner, Astron Natusalune.]

Then, the crowd erupted into applause, their cheers a mixture of relief and admiration for the combatants' skills.

For the first time today, they witnessed such a good fight. None of the other ones could compare to that since most of them ended rather quickly.

Only this one was this toe-to-toe.

Astron stepped back, his expression calm as he lowered his dagger.

Garrett and Reina watched from the stands, their expressions thoughtful. Garrett's eyes shone with a mixture of pride and concern as he observed his protégé.

"He's grown stronger," Garrett said, his voice tinged with approval.

Reina nodded, her gaze still fixed on Astron. "Indeed."

And then she touched the necklace on her chest.

[The record has been sent.]

After hearing the notification, she turned his head to Garrett.

"Then, should we go greet him?"

"….Indeed, we should…."