“Are you sure you wish to carry on?” Olivier asked indifferently after Arianna floated away. “You should already know that I won’t hold back, even if I am now a saint…”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Ace replied with a hint of anticipation suffusing his voice.

As he said that, Olivier and everyone else in the audience were taken aback by the mutation that happened to Ace’s glaive.

Golden vein-like markings suddenly appeared, running across the obsidian shaft and blade, giving it an overwhelming celestial-like aura.

Olivier’s eyes narrowed when he saw the glaive’s transformed state, not because of its appearance but because the aura it gave off made his heart palpitate, something he didn’t believe was possible after his breakthrough.

It wasn’t just him; all the saints present were able to sense the dangerous aura Ace was giving off; they just had no idea how a mortal child at the sixth rank was capable of such a feat.

The only one able to understand what was going on was Arianna, and even then, it was only a vague understanding.

She could clearly sense the aura Ace was radiating at present was similar to his [Conqueror’s Haki], only far more refined and pure!

That’s right, just as death loomed when facing Olivier’s last attack, Ace was struck by a moment of realisation, allowing him to finally grasp [Conqueror’s Haki Infusion].

She had no idea how he was able to do it, but he knew that this was the real reason behind his renewed confidence.

‘It really is one surprise after the next with this brat.” Arianna sighed to herself as she waited patiently for their battle to restart.

“This power… It’s incredible!” Ace marvelled, feeling stronger than ever before.

In his last life, Whitebeard had once told him that [Conqueror’s Haki Infusion] would give the user a drastic increase in power, but this…

He knew it was impossible, but in that moment, he felt as though the world was at his beck and call, as though if he so chose, he could force the world around him to bend to his will.

“I should warn you,” Ace said as he looked back up at Olivier, who was currently hovering in mid-air. “This is my first time using this attack, so I can’t completely control it. If you fail to block it, you might die…

I suggest you give up now.”

Ace words grated on the ear of all those of the O’Brien Empire, but none more so than Blumer. He didn’t care about the optics of his saint-level brother killing a mortal teenager younger than himself; he wanted nothing more than for Olivier to kill Ace before he could mature.

Though for different reasons, the thoughts of many of his fellow countrymen were pretty similar. Ace’s arrogance was getting to be too much to bear, but Olivier was different.

He could sense Ace’s sincerity, and as he could also sense the dangerous aura he was radiating, he understood Ace wasn’t just being arrogant. Still, for the sake of his warrior’s heart, he couldn’t afford to take a step back.

“Come,” Olivier replied succinctly as a familiar white-golden aura coated his body and sword.

Ace immediately felt how not only had Olivier’s battle-qi improved after becoming a saint, but also, with the infusion of his insight into the Law of Light’s Profound Mystery of Lightspeed, his energy had also become far more powerful.

Still, his grin only widened as he adopted a crouching stance, holding his glaive in his right hand, willing what was left of his fiery mageforce to coat the butt of his polearm.

Unfortunately, even though he had also made a breakthrough in realm, his mageforce had almost comple run dry – not that it mattered. Just using [Infusion] on his weapon was difficult enough; he had no idea how long it would take him to learn how to use it on his flames as well.

For the first time in a long time, his flames would have to take on a much more passive role, providing nothing more than support as he returned to basics.

The moment he saw that, Olivier took off, moving like a flash of light, he appeared directly in front of Ace at a speed that many of the saints gasp in shock.

He had just become a saint, yet his speed had surpassed many mid-staged saints.

Even so, Ace remained unhurried as he calmly performed what could only be called a perfect [Thrust].

As his glaive pierced through the air, it felt as though if he pressed any harder, he’d be able to pierce through the fabric of space. It was an incredible yet incomprehensible power that he couldn’t put into words, even if he tried.

Everyone watched with bated breaths as the edge of Olivier’s icy longsword approached the tip of Ace’s glaive, which was being propelled by a jet of flames that many realised was faintly approaching the saint level in power.

But what really shocked them was what happened next. Before their weapons could even come into contact, Olivier’s weapon appeared to be hit by an invisible shockwave as arcs of black lightning flickered around Ace’s weapon.

Before they could truly come to terms with what was happening, Olivier’s sword – Icedream – shattered, sending Olivier hurtling through the air, spitting a mouthful of blood, directly losing consciousness.

“BROTHER!” Blumer roared as he jumped to catch Olivier’s body before it fell off the mountain; unfortunately, with Olivier being sent flying in the opposite direction and his current speed, he was never going to be able to save his last remaining family member.

Thankfully, Talore was standing next to him. The headmaster of the Academy took off like a bolt of lightning, catching his best friend just before he fell off.

“How is he?!” Blumer asked frantically as he hurried to Talore’s side. “How is my brother?!”

“Your Majesty,” Talore said as he turned to Emperor Johann, not bothering with Blumer’s worrying. “Olivier’s injuries are severe; he’s in desperate need of medical attention.”

Like the rest of the audience, Emperor Johann was still reeling from his shock. After all, it wasn’t every day one would get the chance to see someone of the sixth-rank jump four whole ranks to defeat a saint – newly promoted or not.

But when he heard the Headmaster Talore’s words, he immediately snapped out of his daze and sent one of his men – a light elemental mage of the eighth rank who specialised in healing.

Whilst Olivier was being treated for his injuries, Ace wasn’t doing too well himself. He had already been pretty drained from their first round, but that last clash had pushed him beyond his limits.

But his current condition didn’t have as much to do with his dwindling energy levels as it did with his use of [Infusion].

After using it only once, he had shattered most of the bones in his arm, forcing him to use his left hand to hold his glaive as a crutch.

Speaking of his glaive…

As he looked down, he couldn’t help but smile bitterly as he saw the numerous cracks running along his weapon. It had to be remembered that his glaive was made of materials so precious that many saints would kill for a weapon of that quality.

For his [Infusion] to not only do so much damage to his arm but also to his weapon, it was clear that, for whatever reason, it didn’t appear that he was ready to be wielding that power, but that in and of itself made no sense to him.

If the use of [Infusion] was such a double-edged sword, he was certain Whitebeard would have warned him, but since he hadn’t, the only thing he could think of was that his conqueror’s haki operated in a slightly different way in this world than it had in his previous.

Still, that was of little concern at that moment. Whether it was those of his group or the audience, everyone was staring at him with expressions filled with shock, awe, and disbelief.

When Ace and Olivier clashed, just now Ace’s Conqueror’s Haki spread like never before. Although everyone present was far too powerful to directly lose consciousness, the aura Ace projected made many feel a hint of reverence, as though they were in the presence of a genuine deity.

The aura was so overwhelming that it managed to spread right throughout the mountain range surrounding the College, attracting the attention of all those in the vicinity – including a certain deity who was sitting in secluded meditation deep underground.

.

.

.

Thousands of miles away, deep within the Forrest of Darkness, was a large, almost lifelike metallic castle that looked distinctly out of place.

Inside the castle was a tall, middle-aged man with a long black beard and even longer inky black hair, donning a jet-black robe that almost appeared to meld with the shadow by his feet.

Despite being so far away, the moment Ace’s [Infusion] erupted, the man’s head snapped in the direction of the O’Brien Empire. His small beady abyss-like eyes seemed to be able to see through everything in its path, falling directly on the child who created such an effect.

“That boy,” the man mused aloud. “Did he just use the power of will?”

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Book 10: Part 15 – Planar Wars (Finale)