Abyssal Awakening

Silence filled the arena as Alice slowly turned her head towards Bo who was slumped against the shields.

The spectators weren't sure what happened as Egil was on the back foot until that last moment.

Collapsing on his knee, Egil looked at Bo before turning to Torgeir.

Gritting his teeth, he slammed his fist into the ground.

"F*CK!!!" He roared in anger, confusing the people around him including Alice.

*Ahem!

Clearing his throat, Torgeir stepped into the arena and calmed the crowd down.

"The winner of this duel, Alice Agnelia!" He announced.

Upon hearing his proclamation, the crowd broke into confusion as Alice stood up and recalled her shards with doubt in her eyes.

"While Egil indeed managed to land a strike against Bo, he did so after I called the end of the duel. It was his shout that caused the announcement to go unheard."

With the decision being reinforced, Egil could only sit down on the ground in fatigue.

He felt it the moment attacked Bo.

Torgeir was the reason why all of them were stopped mid attack! If it wasn't for the fact that he managed to break out of the imprisonment the moment it was cast, he would've been frozen right before he could punch Bo.

However, what's done is done. He lost the Warrior's Honour fair and square and there was no room for him to complain.

Yet a bitterness filled his chest.

"I don't agree with this." Alice's voice rang out, surprising Egil as he thought she would be happy with this victory.

The sudden change in Bo's movements was her doing after all. But at the end, even if he wanted to go for her, he wasn't able to. He could only keep his attention on Bo who was darting around the arena.

"What do you mean?" Torgeir furrowed his brows.

Alice won fair and square. It was his fault for miscalculating Egil's strength at the end. He didn't think Egil had the power to break out and once he did, he landed the hit against Bo. Thus, causing the misunderstanding within the crowd.

"Do I really have to say it?" Alice scratched her hair in annoyance.

Through a technicality, she won this fight. She managed to protect the two of them for the entire duration before Egil could land a hit.

But a fraction of a moment after the match ended, Bo was hit. Hell if it was 2 minutes and 30.3 seconds, Alice would've lost.

That was how close it was.

However, if she were to put this into the perspective of a war, she would lose. No one can predict the variable that may suddenly manifest on the battlefield. It was her fault for letting down her guard the moment she felt something restricting his body.

If she had kept up her guard and moved the shard in front of Bo, would he have been hit?

The answer was uncertain but there was a chance Bo would've managed to dodge. Yet because she dropped her guard, that uncertainty became certainty and Bo was hit a fraction of a second after the end.

In this regard, she lost.

"Anything can happen in the middle of a fight. The enemy won't stop just because time is up. If this was a real fight… Well I'm sure you don't need me to say more." Alice glanced over at Bo who was knocked out of his Resonance.

Blood dripped from the corner of his mouth while healers rushed to help him.

There were many things Alice could improve on and she knew this herself. The mistakes that she made during this duel could cost the life of her next comrade during battle.

Therefore, Alice couldn't accept this win.

Furrowing his brows, Torgeir massaged his eyes.

One side is frustrated that he lost but accepted the result. The other won but is angry because of how the duel ended.

*COUGH!!!

Coughing up a mouthful of blood, Bo dragged himself onto his feet despite the warnings of the healers and turned to Egil.

Veins bulged on his neck but Bo held himself back and turned to Torgeir.

"I lost. If it wasn't for Lady Agnelia assisting me during this fight, I would've lost at the first counter. I held her back. And…" Biting his lip, Bo let out a frustrated sigh.

"Egil won his chance."

He didn't like Egil but he had no choice but to admit that Egil surpassed all of them during that moment.

Not even Torgeir could stop the warrior and he could only watch as the fist crashed into his chest, knocking him out with one punch.

"This…" Torgeir was stuck on a choice as this was the first time this kind of thing happened during a Warrior's Honour.

Neither side seemed satisfied.

"I will compensate Lady Agnelia's reward with my own money." Bo tried to bargain but Torgeir remained silent.

"Why don't you just call it a draw?" Alice suggested, walking up to the duo.

"Oh? A draw for the Warrior's Honour? Since you're a foreigner, you may not understand our tradition. However, draws aren't an option. You either win, or you lose." Torgeir raised an eyebrow.

Sounds of discontent could be heard amongst the crowd but Alice couldn't care less. She wasn't a northerner so these traditions meant nothing to her. However, she was willing to respect them to a certain degree.

"What do you suggest then? I'm not satisfied with my win and Egil isn't satisfied with his loss." Alice asked.

Since he was the overseer of this duel, it was up to him on how they should settle the outcome.

"A rematch. I'll postpone the results of this duel for the second round. The conditions for the rematch will be the same only this time you'll be partaking in it once your body has healed. A fair one on one battle to prove a Warrior's Honour." Torgeir suggested after a brief pause.

Throughout the match, there were hints of Alice's true power. Especially at the end.

To begin with, the Warrior's Honour was meant to be fought by oneself, for oneself. Not by designating a representative.

With this arrangement, the two get the rematch they wish and the tradition isn't broken.

Crossing her arms, Alice contemplated it for a moment before nodding her head with a smile.

"I'm fine with that. What about you big guy?" Alice turned to Egil who wanted to say something but stopped himself and nodded his head.

"I'm… Fine with this arrangement."

Tilting her head, she wondered what else was bothering him when it clicked in her mind.

"Say, Torgeir." Alice called out as he glanced down.

"What do you say about giving Egil a chance? He's proved himself to be a capable warrior and he did keep things fair. I don't see the sign of his previous misdemeanour records except maybe when he was heated. Plus, didn't Bo say it earlier? Egil won his chance when he broke out of that restriction." She suggested with a chuckle.

With both of the winners suggesting such an outcome, Torgeir sighed before turning to Egil.

"One chance. I'll keep an eye on you."

Hearing this, Egil's eyes trembled as he bit his lip and nodded his head.

With the results of the match being postponed till a later date, most of the spectators lost interest and began to leave. Some ridiculed both Alice and Egil but Alice didn't care about their words.

After all, if they had someone like Egil charging at them, they'd probably die in one hit. The weakest people talk the most.

"Why?" Egil asked, walking up to Alice.

Conflicting emotions swirled in his chest as the girl in front of him granted him the reward he asked for even though he lost.

"What do you mean why? I don't see why he should limit your participation in the first place. Plus, you're pretty desperate for that spot, right? With your strength, there are many things you can do.

"I won't ask why you want it that much but everyone gets a second chance. Just don't waste it okay? Ah! But I fully expect my share of the bet too. After all, I did get your spot in the military." Alice grinned as Egil froze for a moment before letting out a slight laugh.

"I'll get the gold to you as soon as I can. And don't worry, I won't forget this favour that you've done for me. Thank you."

Watching the big guy walk away, Alice scratched her cheek.

Contrary to his appearance and history based on the reports, he was a pretty chill guy once things calmed down. He was simply prone to emotional outbursts it seems.

Once Egil left, Bo approached.

"Lady Agnelia." He called out, causing Alice to let out a laugh.

"So formal all of a sudden. What happened? And how are your injuries?" She asked, glancing at his tattered shirt.

"My injuries will recover. As for the formality… Simply put it's the respect shown towards great warriors. How did you manage to understand what I wanted to do at the end? And how were you able to make that many footholds? If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were using an ability to control the entire arena." Bo asked with a glimmer in his eyes.

"It's nothing fancy like you think. Simply doing my best to understand what you wish to aim for during the fight and make some educated guesses. Though if I didn't make any changes, my artifact wouldn't have been able to cover the entire arena." Alice chuckled.

Splitting her artifact into smaller fragments, she continued to divide them until they looked like large grains of sand.

"Simply put, I spread these fragments across the arena and assign them into grids that cover the arena. Each fragment is responsible for one grid and I made predictions based on your speed and direction.

"Once I have that down, I simply move the fragment and focus on making a foothold that lasts just long enough for you to change directions."

Hearing her explanation, Bo felt a chill down his spine.

With the way she was putting it, it felt as though she had completely grasped his fighting style in the brief cooperation they had! Not only that, but the calculations required to move these tiny fragments precisely in order to accommodate his movement.

And she was doing all of this while keeping an eye on Egil, making sure he couldn't attack her!