Chapter 36: C36 – Championship

"Dirk! Finally! Where have you been?"

Upon arriving at the arena, Dirk and Ava ran into Rita. Although she asked a question, she didn't wait for an answer as she walked them straight to the check in. After that, Rita took Ava to the stands while Dirk went to the ground floor.

'So this is my opponent.'

Dirk looked at the boy he saw yesterday who had already been waiting in the staging area. Today he was in blue clothes with his silver sword that hung from his waist and his swept back golden hair. He was a good looking kid, valiant not unlike Duke Hillshire. Maybe that's who he was trying to resemble. 

As usual though, Dirk was apathetic to everything except for his actions and abilities. Around the boy, he could see the fire element, as well as another element that he didn't recognize. This other element was bright, full of vitality and structure. After a bit of thinking, Dirk recognized it as the light element. He was surprised.

Dirk had come to understand how rarity worked among the attributes. Earth was the most common attribute, water was the second, air the third, and fire the fourth. Each successive element was rarer than the last, and fire was a very rare attribute to have. He heard that only 14% of mages have the fire attribute, while the rest had the other attributes. And this was only among the ones with a single attribute. 

Having only a single attribute was obviously most common, with over 85% of all mages only having a single attribute. Then, only 14% had two attributes. That last percent was made up of all mages with 3 attributes. As for those with 4, they were counted individually, and those with more than 4 attributes were nothing more than legends. 

For Dirk to have three attributes, he was already in the top 1% of all mages. The reason more attributes was so amazing was because it allowed many more spells to be used. The combat ability and versatility of the mage would increase countless times. Plus, some believed that having more attributes was an indicator of superior talent. Although there were studies to dispute those claims, many accepted it as truth. 

And not only did Dirk have three attributes, but the fire and dark attributes were two of them. The fire attribute was rare enough, but the dark attribute was even rarer, standing at the top couple percent of all mages. The only thing that surpassed the dark and light elements in rarity was having 3 attributes.

From the words of Dirk's eccentric teacher, Garel, his combination of attributes along with his ability to train anima was possibly the most destructive combination that one could be given. Should he train everything, nobody would be able to beat him in the ability to kill or destroy. Garel had shivered at the thought of Dirk mastering all his attributes. He likened him to a god of destruction in training.

While Dirk didn't understand Garel's thoughts, he had to acknowledge how rare his skillset was. However, with his knowledge of his previous life and how he had gotten here in the first place, he had an idea that this wasn't much of a lucky draw. He felt that there was something else to his situation that he didn't quite understand. Otherwise, he wouldn't have retained his AI and cybernetic enhancements.

"Dirk Strider and Alec Desmodious, to the arena!

Suddenly, Dirk snapped out of his thoughts. His battle was the first one of the day, and he was being called. He glanced at his opponent before walking calmly to the arena. 

"Hey! Dirk! Let's have a good fight!"

As he walked though, Alec, his opponent, caught up to him. He put his hand out, a sign of his sportsmanship. Dirk didn't think too much before shaking his hand with a nod. The two then walked to their corners and prepared for battle. 

"Fighters ready?"

The referee raised his hand. All around them, crowds were chattering or cheering. While the whole colosseum wasn't full, many of the early year students were present and watching the two fighters with interest. Especially the first years. They had all arrived and were excited to see who would take the championship. This person would be the strongest in their class. Rankings had already been formed, so this battle would complete it. 

This was why Ava couldn't understand how Dirk didn't care about the tournament. Social hierarchies were huge in this school. Dirk was antisocial, but she wasn't. She had come to understand how the school worked, and being strong gave you many things. The tournament was the way to prove yourself, to establish your place among your peers. It earned you respect and gave you influence. If Dirk took the championship, he would be the greatest in the class, and even the students of the upper classes would need to show him some respect. 

But he just didn't care. It absolutely baffled her. Even as she watched him from the stands, she couldn't help but think about how little he thought of the battle he was in. She knew that for him, it was just another training session. He didn't even want to be there in the first place. 

And she was right.

"Fight!"

The hand went down, and the battle started. Alec drew his sword and cast some fire spells. Dirk cast a spell of his own, and a pillar appeared underneath his foot. The anima in his body also activated. 

Alec smiled.

"I've seen this before! You use this move a lot!"

He shouted, but Dirk ignored him and dashed. Soon, Alec's fire spell completed, and 7 fireballs appeared above him. Dirk didn't stop moving though, only casting a spell above his palm. 

Alec threw a few of the fireballs, but Dirk responded with a rock wall. The fireballs exploded in front of it, destroying the wall. But Dirk was already gone by the time the dust settled. He continued closing distance. 

Alec continued to throw fireballs, forcing Dirk to keep creating walls. Alec could cast spells fast, so Dirk never rested. However, after he kept flying around using his pillars, Dirk eventually got close enough. He swung his staff at Alec.

"Hah!"

*Clang!*

Seeing him swing his staff, Alec swung his own sword. The two collided, and it was then that Dirk realized that Alec could train anima too. He had strength on par with Dirk's. 

"You're strong!"

"Mhm."

Dirk hummed in response to Alec's surprise before backing up a bit. The two then swung their weapons a bit more, both colliding quicker and quicker. Dirk was able to swing his staff faster, but Alec merely had to defend so he was able to keep up. After some time though, Dirk began to grasp Alec's habits. He adapted.

*Bang!*

"Ow!"

Suddenly, Dirk's staff made its way to Alec's shoulder. His grip loosened and he stumbled. Seeing this, Dirk moved in for close quarters. Before he did though, he suddenly ducked back. 

*Woosh!*

Alec's body twisted, and his leg came swinging around like a whip. He had used the imbalance from Dirk's strike to shift and perform a kick. Usually this would catch an opponent off guard since they would move in for another strike, but Dirk was able to dodge. 

"Wow! You're good."

Alec spoke with a grin seeing Dirk react and recover so fast. Meanwhile, Dirk's mind was reevaluating Alec every second. 

This was how Dirk carried out battles. He would read his enemy, grasping his strengths and weaknesses, and then adapting accordingly. Everything they did only gave Dirk information on how to handle them better. And then, if he read them well enough, he could destroy them. He would turn the battle into his favor, leading everything like a conductor. The enemy would play toward their own doom.

However, there weren't many people who could force him to fight long enough for that to happen. At least, that was on Earth. Here, things were different. Now even children were forcing him to think twice. It was all because of magic and anima. He always questioned whether or not he liked it. 

Luckily, his combat experience still applied, and it gave him an almost insurmountable edge. Dirk and Alec seemed to be even, but it was only now that Dirk had learned enough to begin destroying his opponent. 

Dirk and Alec reset, both facing each other with their weapons. Suddenly, Dirk charged toward Alec again, and they fought. Dirk bombarded Alec with blows, and Alec couldn't seem to counter. Dirk's attacks chained together perfectly like a dance, and Alec had to constantly defend. Alec suddenly wasn't so giddy anymore, and he was focusing seriously on the fight.

Then, something unexpected happened. A pillar came surging out of the ground right as Dirk pressed an attack. Alec sensed it, but his body couldn't move out of the way. He was pushed by Dirk into the pillar with a dull point on it. The point came crashing right into his back.

"Agh!"

Pain suddenly surged through Alec, and weakness threatened to overtake his body. However, he gritted through it and at least didn't collapse. This was only possible because of anima. Otherwise, he would have crumpled on the spot. 

Alec's body twisted and barely recovered after being poked. He then weakly raised his sword to block Dirk's sudden blow. Unfortunately, if he wasn't at peak shape, he couldn't stop Dirk. He was bombarded all over his body with jabs and whacks. The bruises accumulated. 

For some reason though, he was still able to stand and take the hits. Dirk was wondering how his endurance was so high when he saw a flash of light over Alec's body. This was light magic. 

'He's healing himself.'

Dirk recognized it. Light magic could heal, and light mages could easily heal themselves. While Alec couldn't heal himself that much, it was enough to keep him going. Even the lowest level spells had decent effects. 

But that would only prolong the battle. Dirk sped up while calling more pillars. Alec was hit from all sides as Dirk's movements became more unpredictable. Whenever Dirk would push Alec a certain direction, there was always a pillar waiting to strike like a hidden snake. And when Alec would try to push, a pillar would be waiting to intercept him. Alec became a punching bag as he was continuously beaten up, and the worst part was that he couldn't seem to ever dodge or fight back. The situation became worse when some rock arrows came, and he received real wounds. 

Finally, when Alec was exhausted, Dirk came in personally after tossing away his staff. He chained a few punches straight on Alec's body and jaw before kneeing him in the gut. Then, he did a roundhouse kick, his foot slamming into Alec's shoulder like a hammer. He was ruthlessly sent to the floor, unable to even twitch a muscle. 

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"Stop! Dirk is the Champion!"

With that announcement, cheers erupted. Dirk's fantastic attacks had made everyone's blood boil in excitement, and that last attack sealed the deal. Alec had been no more than a punching bag. He had been utterly oppressed by Dirk once his habits were grasped. 

Some nurses came running on stage, quickly taking Alec away. Before Dirk could leave as well though, a beautiful lady approached with a trophy. 

"Congratulations, Dirk. You're the tournament champion of your first year class. Here."

"Oh. Thank you."

Dirk accepted the trophy that was handed to him. It was small and held a little wooden carving of two swords crossed together. He thought it was nice, but it held no value. This would be worthless in half a year when the next tournament came around. 

With that, he walked off stage, everyone in his class remembering his name and face. When he made his way to the stands, Ava was first to greet him with excitement.

"Good job! Now I'm not the only one who will suffer from your attacks!"

"Uh-huh."

"Oh, is that the trophy? It looks nice."

"Yea. Here."

Without much thought, Dirk handed the trophy to Ava before walking over to his parents who were nearby. Ava looked at the trophy for a bit, but soon realized that he had just given this to her. Would he want this back? Knowing him, probably not. She decided she would keep it though, considering it a present from him. 

"Dirk! You did great, honey!"

Cecilia smiled and clapped, giving Dirk a celebratory hug when he walked over. Ryker also nodded in approval.

"Although not everyone competed, you're technically the strongest in your class. You beat that kid rather easily. I must say, you're talented in combat."

"That's because he's got his mother's blood. Isn't that right?"

Cecilia smiled. Dirk knew she specialized in anima training and physical combat, so he couldn't help but nod. If the excuse of genes was enough to convince them that there was nothing weird about him being good at fighting, then he would roll with it. 

However, despite his parents not saying anything, he knew that they were wary of something. After that night when his mother asked him about meeting suspicious people, he knew that they were curious about his unnatural fighting ability. They just didn't want to directly confront him about it since in their eyes, he really was only a kid. He also never did anything out of the ordinary, and his schedule was so cyclical that a clock would be impressed. There was simply no explanation for his ability in combat other than sheer talent. 

But they didn't seem entirely convinced. Even now, Dirk could see some conflict behind his mother's smile. He genuinely wondered what she was thinking about, but didn't pry. 

After Dirk's battle, the championship fights for the upper classes started. Dirk watched his seniors, but other than the more advanced spells, he wasn't that interested in the fighting. However, he did notice how much more adept his upperclassmen were. Even the kids in the year above him were leagues better than his own class. This was attributed to the dungeon diving they had been doing for a year. They knew actual combat.

Suddenly, after a couple battles, Rita stood up and left. Dirk looked at her with a bit of surprise before nodding. She was going to fight for the championship. 

She quickly arrived on the stage. By now, the entire arena was filled with spectators. These fights between the upperclassmen were the most exciting since they were between the most powerful students in the school. Right now, Dirk learned that his sister was one of those most powerful. 

Soon, the battle between Rita and another student started. There was no suspense before both were going full force. Rita constantly flickered in and out of view as she void walked, putting distance between her enemy. She also cast several high level spells that Dirk couldn't understand. He simply watched as the arena became a prison of darkness. 

However, her enemy wasn't to be trifled with. The man who wore armor that glowed with enchanted red lines pulled out a spear and spat fire like a dragon. He elegantly slashed at all of Rita's spells and burned them away as if they were demons of darkness. His heavenly fire seemed limitless, and even though he was surrounded, he wasn't at all disadvantaged. He was even capable of keeping up with Rita's movement, forcing her to void walk nonstop to avoid being hit. 

Neither person's energy was limitless though. After almost an hour, the two showed signs of tiring. Rita's magic was a little less dark and oppressive, while the man's fire burned a little less bright. The two slowed, but their wills weren't any less fierce. If anything, the climax was beginning. 

When Rita got a moment of rest, her hair suddenly flared with black fog. The surface of the arena turned completely black, and even the spectators were engulfed with black fog that spread from her person. 

"Domain of darkness."

Cecilia spoke as she smiled, watching her daughter with a proud face. Ryker wasn't as happy though. He seemed to be worried about something. 

"Domain of fire!"

Suddenly, from the darkness shone a warm light. A tornado of fire pillared to the sky and pushed away the darkness. At first it seemed weak, like a small sailboat in a stormy sea, but it quicky strengthened until it actually gained the upper hand. Dirk could see his sister struggle to push away the fire that began to overwhelm her.

And she wasn't able to hold on for long. The man let out one final blast of fire, and Rita was blown off the stage.

"Stop! The winner is Trent!"

With that, the referee stepped in with an announcement. The domain of fire was pulled back, revealing the man with armor. He kneeled on the floor while heaving for breath, not in much better shape than Rita who was almost passed out. 

"I'll be back."

Suddenly, Cecilia stood up and disappeared from beside Dirk. He looked at the spot she was at curiously.

"Where did mom go?"

"People like your sister who exclusively use the dark element aren't compatible with light element healing. Your sister needs dark healers to help with any wounds, but they're very rare. Luckily your mother knows some dark healing, so she's going to help.

"Hmm..."

Dirk listened to his father and made a mental note of what he said. The light element was known for its fantastic healing properties, but those with the dark element weren't compatible with the element that was opposite to theirs. It would harm Rita to be healed by the nurses or doctors present within the academy since they were all of the light element. Normally she would have to recover naturally over a long period of time, but if there was someone like Cecilia who could use dark healing, then she could be helped. 

'It's a serious disadvantage, but then again, not many have the dark attribute in the first place. They're simply too rare for it to matter that much. But it looks like it's something I'm going to have to worry about. Is it only for those with an exclusive dark attribute?'

Dirk pondered, but his father saw his concern and spoke. 

"You have the dark element, so even though it's not your only attribute, you will indeed need to worry about regular healing. People with an exclusive dark attribute just have it worse. However, since you're not a high tier, it doesn't matter much right now. It's only when the attributes within you become stronger that the dark element begins to have effects on you. Your sister is a Tier 5, and she's only just beginning to have troubles with that. If you want to know more, I suggest going to your mother. She understands the dark element much more than I, obviously."

"Understood."

Dirk thanked his father for the information. It didn't look like it would be a problem for quite a while, but it was something that he would have to keep in mind. 

After that battle, there was one more. Two more people entered the stage, both of whom were in the class above Rita. They were both older and looked more like adults who had experienced hardship. Their auras radiated with determination.

"Fight!"

The hand went down, and they both dashed to each other. One utilized the fire element, while one used water. The two clashed with the highest level spells that were a level above Rita's. The spells attacked each other as if they had lives of their own. 

Then, like Rita's battle, both people eventually released their elemental domains. Water and fire clashed, releasing fog all over the arena. This fog had thick enough mana to block Dirk's senses. Usually, Dirk would have taken the opportunity to intake the thick mana, but there was only water mana within the steam. All the fire remained around the man. 

After a long time, the domains finally saw a change. The water domain overwhelmed the fire, crashing down on its opponent. The fire user was washed away, leaving the water user standing. 

With that, the battle was called. Dirk sat there with emotion, starstruck by the display. The domains were even stronger than in Rita's battle. They were on a level that Dirk couldn't even begin to understand from where he was. This was true power, and Dirk was inspired by it.

 

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