Chapter 66: Impasse
After the initial probe, Ain decided to confirm his hypothesis. Nox rushed towards their opponents while purposely staying out of Blinding Flash’s estimated range.
Blinding Flash’s range was short, but once one was in range, it was difficult to block or dodge it. The skill didn’t emit rays aiming at the target’s eyes but caused an entire area of space to flash. Closing one’s eyes or turning away couldn’t stop one from being blinded and disoriented.
When the distance was sufficient for Nox, Ain commanded, “Use Hex: Cursed Lullaby!”
Hex: Cursed Lullaby had a larger range than Malicious Gaze, making it more suitable for his purpose.
Nox immediately looked ahead and began warbling. “Wooooooooooo… Wooooooooooo…”
Under the effects of Hex: Cursed Lullaby, the Brilliant Fae paused for a second before immediately snapping out of it. Frans, on the other hand, remained unfazed, with no apparent change in his expression.
Seeing this, Ain narrowed his eyes. His guess was correct; the second spell was a spell that could resist mental attacks! Spirit tamers were mentally connected to their spirit pets. Although the effect of the spell didn’t carry over, as long as Frans remained unaffected, he could instantly rouse his spirit pet.
Frans only began using the spell after Ain’s match against Elias, where Nox first used Hex: Cursed Lullaby. Before that match, Frans was confident in winning, but Ain’s multiple control skills clearly made him wary, prompting him to also keep his guard up in his previous match against Elina, in case she also possessed similar skills.
Having confirmed his guess, Ain began to strategize using Analysis and Deduction, causing his thoughts to race at tremendous speeds. So far, he had revealed all his cards, except for Possession. Frans had also revealed many cards, but just like Elias’ case, his innate talent was still unknown.
Ain couldn’t count on his innate talent being unsuitable for combat, thus he had to take it into consideration.
Frans had revealed three spells: Invigoration, Shield, and the unknown spells to protect his mind.
Invigoration boosted his physical abilities, allowing him to dodge and potentially engage in close combat. Shield could protect him at disadvantageous moments. The unknown spell could resist some mental control abilities.
His spirit pet, the Brilliant Fae, had also revealed four skills: Blinding Flash, Light Bulwark, Radiant Bolt, and its innate skill, Brilliant Beam. Of course, Ain didn’t know their exact names, or which one was the innate skill.
He lacked the relevant knowledge pertaining to light-attribute skills, but from the previous matches, he was aware of their effects.
Blinding Flash was a control skill, Light Bulwark was a defensive skill, Radiant Bolt was a fast offensive skill, and Brilliant Beam was an even stronger offensive skill.
Frans’ own spell repertoire was inclined towards survival, and his spirit pet was relatively well-balanced.
Using this information, Ain made some estimations of Frans’ hidden trump card. There was no lack of offensive or defensive abilities in his arsenal, and his control abilities were also sufficient. With the reasonable assumption that the hidden card brought balance to his overall combat system, it was likely to be a support ability.
Of course, this wasn’t all that supported Ain’s conclusion. One important thing that almost everyone, except himself and the teacher, overlooked was Frans’ last attack during his match against Elina. The Bluefrost Leopard had used Frozen Spirit, which temporarily boosted its physique and ice skills. Yet, the Brilliant Fae’s last attack had defeated it instantly, as if the leopard’s increased physique didn’t exist.
This made Ain fairly confident that Frans’ hidden trump card was a support ability capable of somehow boosting his spirit pet’s damage. Moreover, this ability was likely his innate ability, and just like Hugo’s, it was difficult to detect.
All these thoughts only took less than a second, and the match continued.
After Ain’s failed attempt at stunning them, the Brilliant Fae used Radiant Bolt and aimed at Ain.
Ain preemptively used Shield, and the speedy Radiant Bolt impacted the bright golden shield. Unlike his previous matches, Ain didn’t immediately move towards his opponent. It would be difficult if he were to get affected by Blinding Flash.
The match hadn’t started for too long, but Ain already realized one of his shortcomings. It was his overreliance on close combat. Now that he was wary of approaching his enemy and his control abilities were nullified, only Spirit Blast was a viable attack. But it wasn’t difficult for Frans to dodge or block it.
For the next half a minute, the two stayed in place as Spirit Blasts and Radiant Bolts sometimes collided in the middle, while at other times, they reached the opponent but were blocked by Shields.
The students discussed amongst themselves, unsure of why the battle seemed a little lackluster.
The teachers, on the other hand, saw things more clearly.
“Hmm, Ain is at an impasse.”
“Frans is wary of whatever it is that Ain is still hiding. He wants Ain to make the first move and reveal all his cards.”
“Exactly, they’re both playing the waiting game. Ain is mostly likely waiting for Frans’ Invigoration and Tranquil Thoughts to wear off. That’s the perfect opportunity to disrupt the balance.”
Teacher Turner also watched the match attentively as he thought, “Tranquil Thoughts, a Rank-1 core spell that can clear one’s mind while also providing some resistance to mental effects. It’s not really a combat-oriented spell, but rather a support spell for craftsmen professions. It seems Frans is learning a craftsmen profession on the side.”
Sitting amongst the crowd, Hugo was a little worried about Ain’s current predicament. But after seeing Ain’s calm expression, he felt a little relieved.
On the arena, Ain cast another Spirit Blast, nullifying the Radiant Bolt before it could impact his Shield, which was covered in cracks.
Nox remained motionless behind him. The Brilliant Fae would sometimes aim at it, so it just hid behind Ain.
This was an exchange between Ain and the Brilliant Fae, while Nox and Frans just stood aside, ensuring their own safety.
Of course, Ain wasn’t only using Spirit Blast but also mentally counting down, waiting for his opportunity, “nine, eight, …, five, …, three, two!”
Just as his count reached two, he made his move!
Nox, who was floating behind his shoulder, immediately latched onto him, holding on firmly.
Ain brought his hand forward and cast Spirit Blast before dashing towards Frans at an incredible speed. He was so fast that he overtook the Spirit Blast he just cast.
The moment he saw Ain move, Frans was once again surprised, specifically at his precise timing. He knew Ain was waiting for Invigoration and Tranquil Thoughts to wear off, but he didn’t think that Ain accurately remembered their durations and moved right before he recast them. By the time he arrived, Frans’ spells would’ve just worn off.
That being the case, he wasn’t completely unprepared. He just had to bring forward his counterstrategy. He commanded the Brilliant Fae to use Blinding Flash when Ain got into range. But right as he did so, he noticed that the Spirit Blast Ain cast was heading straight for the Brilliant Fae.
The Brilliant Fae had no choice but to move towards Frans, who had just cast Shield. As long as Frans could delay for a second, his sprit pet could use Blinding Flash.
After casting the shield, Frans’ spells finally wore off, and he immediately began casting Tranquil Thoughts again. Against Ain, its priority was higher compared to Invigoration.
At the same time, Ain had already reached the Shield, and there was only a meter between him and Frans. The Brilliant Fae was once again about to use Blinding Flash.
But instead of attacking the Shield or trying to circumvent it, Ain raised his hand towards the incoming Spirit Blast he had just cast, as if clutching it from afar. Just as the Spirit Blast was about to fly past him, Ain focused and used Telekinesis!
The Spirit Blast, which was supposed to miss, suddenly curved around the Shield, and connected with the Brilliant Fae.
Boom!
An explosion sounded behind the shield, and the Brilliant Fae flew out due to the impact.
“Nox!” Through their connection, Ain immediately called out to Nox, who had hitched a free ride on his shoulder. On cue, it left his side and zoomed towards the Brilliant Fae that had been knocked away. It only had one job, and that was to stall the flying fish!
With Nox chasing after the Brilliant Fae, Ain immediately circled around the shield and directly attacked Frans!
Frans saw his spirit pet get blasted away, and a hint of dismay appeared on his face. But thankfully, he had already finished casting Tranquil Thoughts, making it difficult for Ain to catch the small period of vulnerability. However, that wasn’t Ain’s intention in the first place!
Now, at this range, the battle was in Ain’s element, close combat!
Without holding back, Ain used Spirit Impact and threw a punch at Frans’ chest. But unexpectedly, a golden glow flashed on Frans’ body briefly, a sign of Invigoration, and he stepped to the side, dodging the attack. But that wasn’t all. He actually grabbed Ain’s arm, leveraging the force of the punch, and attempted to throw him!
‘He’s also good at martial arts!’ Ain immediately realized and blocked the throw before returning a kick. Once again, Frans countered while dodging the kick.
In the next few seconds, the two fought using martial arts, with Ain attacking, and Frans focusing on nullifying the attacks or dodging.
“Such a powerful physique!” This thought simultaneously appeared in their minds, but their intent was different. To Ain, it was just a surprising discovery, and something to take note of. But to Frans, it was another matter.
Ain’s physique was comparable to his own physique that was boosted with invigoration. Furthermore, Ain could use Spirit Impact, forcing Frans to avoid a direct impact.
This was Ain’s edge over him!
Tftc....