Chapter 77 - 75 — Density
Jerom and the other four stood together. They had relaxed smiles on their faces as they spoke among themselves.
The next second, Zephyrion’s world fell into a muted stillness.
"You may begin."
Kastor’s deep voice cut through the coliseum, silencing the crowd in an instant. A moment later, an instructor stepped into the arena.
"I will now announce the terms."
He gestured toward Jerom and the others.
"If they win, Lord Zephyrion relinquishes his title as First Steel. If Lord Zephyrion wins, you forfeit both arms. Do both parties agree?"
"Yes."
""Yes.""
The instructor gave a brief nod.
"For fairness, the match will proceed in five rounds. You will each face him one on one—"
"No. Send all of them."
"...what?"
The instructor’s eyes narrowed slightly, but the moment Zephyrion’s cold gaze settled on him, he froze.
"All at once."
"Y-yes."
He swallowed, then nodded quickly.
’What the hell is this kid...’
"The match will proceed with all five opponents at once."
"What...? All five?"
"That’s insane."
"He had a chance one-on-one... like this, he’s finished."
"This won’t last long."
Low murmurs spread through the crowd, many shaking their heads in disbelief.
"Haha... I love this kid!"
In contrast, Garrick laughed openly with a wide grin. The excitement in his eyes was unmistakable.
Meanwhile, the expressions of Ingrid, Garaxe, and several others expressions darkened. Of them all, only Kastor remained completely unmoved.
A moment later, the instructor stepped back.
"...both sides ready?"
"Tch."
Jerom clicked his tongue, rolling his shoulders slightly as he glanced at Zephyrion.
"...his funeral."
Though it irked him to stand alongside the others against trash like this, he would make up for it by ending it quickly.
"We end it fast."
The others gave short nods.
"...we’re ready."
The instructor turned to Zephyrion, who gave a curt nod in response.
"...alright. Begin!"
"Dense armor! Dense blade!"
Metal surged around Jerom and the others, condensing into smooth, fitted armor that encased their bodies, even their faces.
The air grew heavy as the density around them increased, pressing faintly against everything in the arena.
As a blade formed in Jerom’s grip, he lifted it and leveled the tip at Zephyrion.
"Surround him."
The others moved instantly, closing in from every side and boxing Zephyrion in.
"..."
Jerom gave a slight nod toward the one positioned behind Zephyrion, and the trainee instantly surged forward, his blade thrusting straight for Zephyrion’s back.
A blur.
Bam!
Zephyrion’s leg slammed into the side of the trainee’s face and sent him spinning across the arena.
"What!?"
Eyes widened across the arena. The trainee had moved at mark four speed, yet Zephyrion had outpaced him completely... but that wasn’t what stunned them most.
Just before the kick connected, the metal around the trainee’s face had... shifted. In that fleeting instant... had he really taken control of the trainee’s armor?
Jerom’s expression darkened as he signaled sharply to the remaining three, their eyes now fixed on Zephyrion with caution.
They burst forward in unison. Their strikes converged on Zephyrion, but met nothing but empty air. Another blur.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Three heavy blows crashed into their chests, lifting them off their feet and sending them skidding violently toward the edge of the arena.
Jerom’s eyes snapped wide. He hastily thrust his sword forward.
"Compression ball!"
An orb of metal gathered at the tip of his blade, condensing rapidly into a tiny, dense sphere. The next instant, it shot forward, its speed so great that concentric ripples trailed in its wake.
"Barrier."
The orb abruptly halted just before reaching Zephyrion.
However, Jerom’s lips curled.
"Explode!"
The sphere shuddered, then burst apart. A violent explosion ripped outward, shaking the entire arena and cracking the ground beneath.
Thick smoke and dust swallowed the scene as the shockwave rolled through the coliseum.
As the haze began to clear, Jerom’s smirk deepened.
’It’s over.’
He had packed hundreds of tiny shrapnel into that sphere. Released at that speed, there was no way Zephyrion’s barrier could withstand it.
By now, he should have been torn apart, if not dead, then grievously injured.
"...he’s done for."
"...yeah, that’s it."
"...it’s over."
The crowd shook their heads, letting out quiet sighs.
A second passed. Then the haze thinned.
"What!?"
Jerom’s eyes snapped wide, and the crowd was no different.
Zephyrion stood where he had been, completely untouched. Hundreds of tiny shrapnel hung motionless in the air before him, halted just short of his body.
"H-how’s that possible?"
Feeling the weight of countless gazes, Jerom’s expression twisted as his fists clenched.
"The hell are you all doing? Move! Attack him!"
"Y-yes!"
"...on it!"
The four trainees, having recovered from the earlier blows, steadied themselves and surged forward once more.
"Rotating sword!"
"Compressed edge!"
"Phantom edge!"
"Collapsing blow!"
They closed in from every direction, their attacks flooding the space around Zephyrion. Yet he didn’t move.
"Increase gravity."
A crushing force descended instantly.
The trainees were slammed down, driven hard into the ground.
"Wha—?!"
"Argh—!"
"...I can’t—move!"
Jerom fared no better. Even from where he stood, it felt as though the world itself had dropped onto his shoulders.
"What!?"
The ripple of shock that went through the crowd was palpable.
On the platform, Ingrid shot to her feet with such force that cracks spidered across the stone beneath her.
Even Grand Marshal Garaxe leaned forward, staring at the scene with wide eyes.
Their reaction was justified. To increase gravity meant manipulating the density of metal within the air. But that was a feat reserved for those who had reached mark four!
Less than a week... less than a week had passed since Zephyrion had been revealed to be mark three. Had he... had he truly broken into mark four in that time?
Ingrid’s throat suddenly felt dry, and her fingers curled into her palm until her nails bit into her skin.
"H-how is this possible...?"
"Haha! What else did you expect? The kid’s a monster!"
Among them all, only Garrick had a wide grin across his face as he watched the scene.