Chapter 118 - No Hiding?!
Theo couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow as he watched.
’Owen’s got a new trick,’ he thought. ’Or... is he just partially adapting that rock figure ability?’
It was plausible... but he had no idea when Owen had even picked something like that up.
Finally, his gaze fell on Lyra.
"She isn’t half bad either," he mumbled.
Beside him, Iris also nodded.
"That tiger gave up its tail just to create distance," she said, her eyes focused on the arena. "And now..."
She paused for a brief moment.
"...she’s got both summons out."
Theo nodded slightly.
The main weakness Owen had been aiming for was that Lyra couldn’t summon her beasts before the match started.
But now...
She had both of them active.
And just like that, the advantage had shifted in her favor.
Inside the arena, Owen frowned slightly.
’That one second was all it took?’ he thought. ’How unfortunate...’
Slowly, a grin spread across his face.
’Well then... I can kick it up a notch now!’
He jumped up immediately, his sledgehammer back on his shoulder.
Lyra’s eyes widened.
She stepped back immediately, her arm snapping forward.
"Now!"
The tiger jumped forward without hesitation, planting itself directly in front of her.
Above them, the harpy shot even higher into the air, mana gathering around its mouth instantly.
Just as Owen landed on equal footing with them, a large sound wave shot down.
SHRREEEE—!
The sound wave tore through the air, distorting everything in its path.
Owen’s eyes shot up.
Without hesitation, he jumped forward.
BOOM!
The sound wave hit the ground behind him, shaking the ground and even pulverizing smaller stones.
"Too bad!" Owen shouted, dashing forward again. "You’ll have to hit me first!"
Right away, several thick earth spikes formed around him.
His gaze locked onto the tiger standing just in front of Lyra.
"Go," he mumbled, shooting the spikes off.
The tiger let out a loud roar.
It didn’t retreat, instead even taking a step forward.
BOOM!
Both of its paws slammed down, carving through spike after spike.
Yet... it couldn’t stop all of them.
SLASH! SLASH!
Two deep gashes tore across its shoulder and hip, spilling blood on the arena floor.
It staggered for a moment—
But didn’t fall.
Lyra’s expression shifted slightly, biting down on her lip.
A white light radiated from her hands and began flowing toward the beast.
Owen’s eyes narrowed slightly, but he didn’t slow down.
That’s when he noticed it.
The beast’s wounds were regenerating slowly. Even its figure seemed to be growing larger at a rate visible to the naked eye.
’Is this a buff?’ he thought. ’Didn’t know she could do that.’
Suddenly, a loud noise echoed out above him.
His head snapped up immediately, eyes widening.
There, another sound wave was heading for him.
This time, it was even larger than before.
’Did that get buffed too?!’
Just as he wanted to jump away, he found ice crawling up his legs, freezing him in place.
His eyes widened even further as he realized.
The tiger had been hiding its element the entire time, all for this moment!
The sound wave landed on him, rattling his brain in an instant.
"Fuck!" he cursed, dropping his hammer.
He covered both his ears immediately, but already felt a warm liquid rushing through his fingers.
’’Look at that!’’ Lyra taunted, smiling. ’’All that talk just to end up losing?’’
Owen’s eyes widened. His jaw clenched so hard his teeth nearly cracked.
’I won’t lose!’
’Never!’
Gritting his teeth, earth mana began gathering around his hands.
Dirt and rock appeared on his head piece by piece, forming a sort of helmet.
The ringing noise didn’t stop, only lessening slightly.
But... that was enough.
’’It’s pointless,’’ Lyra shouted, still grinning. ’’You should stop before you suffer actual brain damage... if you even have one that is.’’
Owen’s eyes locked onto Lyra, seeing her still buffing both her creatures.
He calmly reached for his sledgehammer, lifting it up from the ground.
His fingers tightened, tilting it slightly.
ROAR!
The regenerated tiger began sprinting toward him again.
But he didn’t pay it any heed.
’Theo was right,’ he thought, eyes narrowing. ’Fighting them like this is annoying.’
The tiger closed in fast.
It had grown to nearly twice its size after receiving its buffs. Five large ice crystals formed around it, each pointed at Owen.
But... he didn’t pay it any attention anymore.
"Fuck this," he muttered, shaking his head. "I’m not dealing with this shit at half power anymore."
In the stands, Theo already shook his head.
"The match is over," he said, chuckling lightly.
’Understandable though,’ he thought. ’Owen’s spent most of his time improving that ability. Not being able to use it practically removes 70% of his strength.’
Even for him, it wasn’t that bad, since he could rely on one element with everything he had.
Finally, he closed his eyes to continue his recovery.
Iris just looked at him, utterly confused.
That’s when the entire arena let out gasps.
Owen had raised his sledgehammer, pointing it up to the sky.
His jaw tightened, dark earth mana flowing into the ground around him.
The tiger that was approaching him stopped dead in its tracks.
Its instincts screamed at it to move, even forcing it to recklessly shoot off its ice crystals.
But the ground around Owen had already begun to crack, massive chunks of stone loosening.
The ice crystals shot through the air.
Then—
The chunks of stone ripped themselves free, rising into the air around him.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The crystals slammed into them one by one, shattering instantly.
But Owen wasn’t close to being done.
The large chunks of stone shot through the sky toward him.
They slammed into his body.
Layer after layer covered his body.
A low groan escaped his mouth as his body grew and lifted him off the ground.
The cracks between the stones sealed instantly, dense earth mana binding everything together.
His frame expanded even further, showing no signs of stopping.
Even his sledgehammer became coated in thick, jagged rocks.
Finally, the last piece of rock shot through the sky, placing itself in Owen’s chest.
Lyra’s eyes were wide, her mouth open.
The crowd had a similar reaction, each falling deathly silent as they looked at the stage.
Each of them held their breath at the sight.
A towering, armored figure with horns had completely replaced Owen.
It didn’t move, as if still getting used to the new form
But then... the harpy recovered.
It immediately screeched, sending another massive sound wave down at Owen.
No one paid attention to it though.
Owen’s massive figure had began moving.
it lowered it’s stone sledgehammer slightly, letting it rest beside it.
Lyra’s breath stopped for a moment.
"...No..."
Her voice barely came out as her face grew pale.
The tiger stepped forward instinctively but froze.
It didn’t dare move closer.
Just then, Owen pulled his arm back slightly.
The air around him changed.
Even the ground underneath his feet cracked.
Then—
He threw it.
BOOOOOM!
The sledgehammer vanished from his hand.
It tore through the air in an instant.
The harpy didn’t even have time to react.
THUD!
The hammer smashed into it mid-air.
CRASH!
Its body exploded against the barrier, bursting into a bloody mist.
The impact echoed through the entire arena.
Then... everything went silent.