BXBX NOVEL Chapter 171: Championship Stage, First Match
"I haven\'t paid any attention to them during the tournament so let\'s see how strong they are…"
A commotion started just from them coming out of their academy station.
It looks like all their efforts finally paid off and they\'ve become one of the most talked about teams in the entire competition.
As they walked towards Large Arena 2, the designated arena of their first match, two people stared at them with sneers on their faces.
"Heh, Damien, who would\'ve thought that the guy you talked down on was their strongest representative? How laughable."
"Hahaha, right? He did stare back but he didn\'t even dare start the fight. Such a wuss wouldn\'t make it big, destined to be a third-rate adventurer for eternity."
Naturally, Shye didn\'t know that someone was talking about him but if he had a chance to see the guy\'s face, then he would recognize the man named Damien as the Aslan representative who tried to stir up trouble in front of their academy station during the knockout stages.
It seems that after dominating Amarantha Academy, they entered the radar of these representatives from the top three academies.
Still, it didn\'t mean that these representatives acknowledged them.
In their eyes, Colzen Academy was simply a prancing clown.
Meanwhile, Shye\'s representative squad finally arrived in front of Large Arena 2 where they were greeted by wary and apprehensive stares from the Oboni Academy representatives.
\'Oh? Seems like we\'re finally deemed as a dangerous opponent huh?\' Shye inwardly thought, feeling slightly giddy upon realizing that more and more people were starting to respect them.
\'Aihh…Why am I feeling happy about becoming famous and respected? Have I always been like this?\'
He pondered as their squad made themselves comfortable on the luxurious ringside seats.
Once everyone was seated, the referee brought out a small mana-powered random selection jar and pressed a small button to start the match theme selection.
A small blue circular holograph which contained words that were changing too fast for the eyes to see and comprehend then appeared on top of the small jar.
After a few seconds, the word rotation stopped, displaying the selected theme of the match.
"One-on-One"
Seeing the words displayed on the small jar in the huge holographic screen above the stage, Shye smiled.
A one-on-one battle is a direct comparison of strength and skills between two fighters so there was no way for the Oboni representatives to cheese their way out of this match theme.
\'We got lucky…I guess…\' Shye thought to himself before looking in the direction of their opponents.
His eyes widened upon realizing that the enemy priest representative initiated the casting of buff skills on their selected fighter, a scout student.
"Referee! Is casting buff skills before the match allowed?"
The referee turned his head and looked at Shye after hearing his question.
He then looked at the Oboni representatives before tapping some sort of apparatus attached to his right ear, seemingly asking for guidance from his superiors.
"Sir Alex, I have something to report. The chosen theme of the match is a one-on-one duel and I would like to ask if casting buff skills before the match is allowed. Or shall I disqualify Oboni Academy?"
Alex, Blas\' assistant, subtly clicked his tongue in annoyance.
It was already the championship stages yet these Oboni representatives were still trying every little way possible to get an unfair advantage, just like in the knockout stages.
His first impulse was to ask the city lord for instructions but after remembering that the city lord was giving him an opportunity and a test, he clenched his fists tightly and said:
"Allow it"
Hearing the words of his subordinate, a shadow of a smile crept in the corners of Blas\' mouth.
\'You\'re finally daring to make bold decisions.\'
Meanwhile, the referee looked at the Colzen representatives and told them that the organizers allowed it and gave them a bit more preparation time before starting the match.
Shye almost couldn\'t suppress a laugh upon hearing the referee\'s words.
These Oboni representatives really shot themselves in the foot this time, after all, he was confident that no one could defeat Wendy when it came to buff skills.
He then descended from the stage and walked towards Wendy who already knew what to do.
She then placed her life staff on Shye\'s shoulder, closed her eyes, and started casting buff skills.
The life staff glowed in various colors of red, blue, and green, and this time, an additional yellow glow as Shye felt the familiar overwhelmingly comfortable warm sensation from Wendy\'s [Contact Casting]-empowered buff skills.
Subsequently, once both sides were done with their preparations, both fighters jumped up the stage, ready to fight.
The Oboni representative looked very confident in winning.
Shye checked the guy\'s attributes just to be sure and upon seeing that although the buff skills of the Oboni priest was top-tier, it was no match compared to Wendy\'s.
\'Hmm…seems like I wouldn\'t encounter any problems here…no need to show my trump cards…\'
He thought as took out the Nightbringer from his inventory.
Small purple glittering sparks lingered around the greatswords periphery as a purple lightning snake coiled around the body of the blade, making Shye look extremely menacing as he assumed his battle stance.
Astoundingly, it seems that the Oboni representative had no idea that he was in for a world of hurt.
Heck, there was even a slight confident smirk on the guy\'s face.
This match was a best-of-one match so whoever loses this round will be eliminated from the tournament.
A fair chance for underdogs to snatch a win through sneaky means.
"Begin!"
Unfortunately for Oboni\'s scout representative, he wouldn\'t even be given a chance to do so as Shye immediately appeared in front of him using [Dash Lv.3], leaving a slight crack on the ground where Shye previously stood.
Shye then slapped the Oboni representative hard with the blunt part of his sword, aiming to knock him out instead of killing him.
\'Crap!\'