Nameless King

Gael didn't expect Ereg to show such speed in his attacks, which was actually beyond his expectations. In just a few attacks after the purple ghost appeared, the situation had completely changed, and now Gael was above the colosseum, amongst the clouds.

The past two blows straight to his stomach had failed to do him any serious damage, however, that was Ereg's goal. He wanted his opponent to lose his balance for a while, without knowing exactly what was going on in this fight. Ereg made sure that Gael didn't know how to react, in fact, he didn't even have time for that.

"Here we go!" Ereg exclaimed, passing through a layer of thick clouds while purple energy gathered at his right foot, completely enveloping it in multiple streams. 

Gael's eyes came back to normal as he quickly looked up. It only took him a few moments to realize the danger of the situation. His instincts and experience told him that if Ereg's attack came at him in full force, he might not even be able to withstand it.

'Shit! It's too fast! I don't even have time to come up with a plan of action! I just don't have time for this!" Gael internally exclaimed, annoyed by the situation, but he had no choice but to hastily defend himself.

His sword flashed, very brightly like a star before it exploded. Then, the blade disintegrated into tiny particles, turning into a practical white ash, different from the usual gray one.

"What...? What is that?" Nitra muttered in confusion. As the Progenitor of the Constructs and one of the strongest beings, she had spent a lot of time learning the trump cards and characteristics of each race.

She did so not only because of her research interest but also because the information could be useful in battle. Not only to her but to everyone in her world. Information in itself was a formidable weapon.

"Practical white ash... Is such a thing possible?" Nitra looked at Gael in disbelief.

"Hm? Is there something strange about that?" Krana asked, tilting her head.

Nitra nodded, "Sure. The color of the ash is always the same since it is an indication of the skill of an Ashen. However, that is not the correct definition, the color should not be the same but uniform. If the ashes of an Ashen are simultaneously gray, white, or silver, combining different tones, then it means that an Ashen has failed in the path of the ashes." 

"Yeah. I've heard of that too." Liang agreed, "It's quite difficult to find out since only a small fraction of the Ashens follow the path of ashes rather than flames, about 1 in 1000."

Krana nodded puzzled, "And...? Does that mean Gael failed? Is that possible?"

Liang shook his head, "Nah, his ashes are still homogeneous, although the color did change and it only happened when the blade of his sword disintegrated. I think that's what surprised Nitra, isn't it?"

Nitra nodded, "Sure... ash shouldn't have that color, no one does, however, if Gael did, especially in a situation like this, then it's something important. Hmm... Looks like scars aren't his only feature."

Alucard remained silent the entire time. He just smirked, enjoying the way Liang and Nitra were trying to solve this mystery. In his case, it was crystal clear.

'Hehehehe, Gael, Ereg was able to take you by surprise. You even had to show some of your ashes. Well, either way, it would have happened sooner or later.'' Alucard inwardly said.

The white ash, quickly turned into a dense barrier right above Gael, in an attempt to defend against Ereg's crushing attack.

All Gael had left was the hilt of his sword, so now he put everything on his defense, not trying to attack at all.

Ereg's eyes went wide since he too had not expected to see another ash from which emanated an unusual aura - as if from something sacred and created to protect or help.

"I don't know what it is, but it won't help you!" Ereg exclaimed, putting all his power into his next attack when his foot collapsed against the ash shield.

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

Purple streams of energy spread outward, tearing out particles of ash one by one. Slowly, the barrier weakened and collapsed, but there was no alarm on Gael's face, instead, he got a slight smile.

Perhaps the ash shield wouldn't be able to protect him completely, but it wasn't necessary. It would be enough for Gael just that Ereg's attack had become significantly weaker. The ash shield had already absorbed about a third of the force as well as energy.

'Ereg, you surprised me, but you won't be able to get through this. When you break the barrier, your attack will already be so weak and slow that I will have no trouble dodging or blocking it.'' Gael pondered, completely confident in his plan.

Ereg frowned as he clenched his teeth, realizing that Gael had surpassed him.

"Gael... I don't know what this ash is, but you underestimated me again, though... it's more like you overestimated yourself." Ereg muttered as the purple streams of energy dissipated, and the pressure on the ash shield ceased.

"Agh...?" Gael was puzzled.

"Do you really think that's all purple one can do? I've been able to use energy to attack before, so... if you're protected from above, then all I need to do is attack you from the other side." Ereg uttered before vanishing like a shadow.

Before Gael could realize anything, Ereg appeared to his right as his fist came down on Gael's face.

White Ash tried to defend his master, however, Ereg was moving too fast. When the white ash reached Ereg's fist, gradually covering it, the loud crunch of Gael's cracked jaw was already spreading.

Whoooooooooooooosh.

The impact, threw Gael aside followed by the white ash like a loyal ally that would never leave his partner in trouble.

'Shit! What was that!" Gael internally exclaimed, trying to regain his balance, however, Ereg was already right on top of him.

"Speed and strength are all you need to defeat someone arrogant!" Ereg said confidently, before bringing his foot down right into Gael's stomach, top-to-bottom.

"Argh!" Gael's mouth opened wide in pain, as many clots of blood came out.

Then, the impact, with a powerful shockwave in a wind circle, threw Gael back down, plunging him into the ground at tremendous speed.

In any other situation, Gael would have taken damage only from a direct attack, since ordinary earth, or even solid stone, was too soft for him to do damage to his back.

However, given the unusual properties of the granite covering the entire arena, it proved to be a difficult and painful landing for Gael.

Crackle. Crackle. Crack.

There were cracks in the dark granite, spreading from where he had fallen in a web pattern, while a new portion of bloody clots came out of Gael's mouth.

"Ouch... That was hard..." Nila muttered with a gulp. She realized how hard the fall would have been if the solid granite had sustained such damage.

It seemed that Gael had pretty much lost this round already and there should have been a pause between them, but Ereg didn't think so.

Bam.

Without hesitation, right after he landed, Ereg brought his fist down right into Gael's stomach.

The white ash rushed towards the point of attack, managing to create a barrier, but this time Ereg was easily able to break it, and Gael took most of the damage.

"Hah, come on! Show me the power of your big scars! Or do I have to practically kill you first to get you going?" Ereg smirked contentedly as he continued his attack, unleashing one fist after another at the already seriously injured Gael.

In fact, everyone realized that Gael wasn't succumbing or anything, he even summoned white ash, but that didn't help him. Ereg started this round very well, overwhelming his opponent with an endless hail of attacks.

'Damn... This is bad... Well, Ereg did well, I didn't really expect his purple ghost to give him this much power.' Gael internally muttered as the white ash returned to the hilt of the sword, transforming into a blade.

Whoooooooooooooosh.

Gael swung the sword, aiming straight for Ereg's neck. It took Ereg a split second to get his head out of the dangerous trajectory, so the blade passed right next to his skin.

However, it was enough for Gael to take advantage of the small gap and get out from under the hail of massive blows. In a heartbeat, he found himself a few meters away, quickly approaching the edge of the colosseum.

Ereg didn't follow him this time, as the ash particles flying off Gael's sword hovered in the air like trap blades waiting for someone to come within range.

Ereg could have taken a chance, but there was no point, he had already accomplished much more than he had originally hoped for.

"Running away? That's not like you at all." Ereg looked at Gael seriously, narrowing his eyes.

Gael shrugged nonchalantly, "You just didn't leave me any other choice, or your fists would have dug my grave right here."

Ereg was wary, he sensed there was something wrong, and his instincts were telling him.

"Hmm... Looks like Gael finally decided to start their round in earnest." Liang uttered, looking at the smirk on Gael's face.

Alucard nodded, "Yeah, it's going to be beautiful. One of the best abilities Gael has."

At the same moment, Gael's sword began to quiver, and ash rose from the ground in a whirlwind, about to become something big, perhaps a battlefield just for him.