At the beginning of Tenebras's second fight against his sworn enemy Grace Kars, the two stepped into the arena as a heavy silence covered the entire place.
The referee raised his hand high, then blew his whistle, announcing the start of the duel.
In an instant, the two fighters dashed toward each other at tremendous speed. Their fists collided in midair with such force that a powerful gust of wind spread across the arena.
The battle intensified immediately, and it was clear that Grace held a significant advantage.
He was a user of the Lightning Element and had already reached the Fifth Rank of the Shadow Nourishment Stage, while Tenebras had not yet broken through to that level.
Lightning danced around Grace's body like glowing blue serpents, and he controlled it with astonishing ease.
Grace smiled mockingly and said,
"Do you want me to teach you another lesson like last time?"
At first, Tenebras was confident in himself, but after several clashes, he began to feel the vast difference between them.
Grace's attacks were faster and stronger.
Tenebras tried to use his Spear Strike, but Grace was far quicker.
Moving lightly, Grace began gathering lightning in his left hand, forming a glowing sphere that emitted a terrifying buzzing sound.
In a brief moment of distraction, Grace found a gap in Tenebras's defense.
"It's over."
He fired the lightning sphere straight toward Tenebras's chest.
A massive explosion echoed across the arena.
Tenebras staggered backward several steps, feeling as if the bones in his body had been shattered.
He struggled to stand, trembling, as fear slowly crept into his heart for the first time.
He felt that all hope of victory had disappeared.
And at that moment…
An image appeared in his mind.
The face of his mother, Giana Bransa.
Something deep within his heart ignited.
Tenebras compressed all the power within his body, and a dense dark aura began rising around him like living black smoke.
The arena trembled beneath his feet.
The audience was stunned.
Even the nobles' expressions changed.
At that moment…
Tenebras finally broke through into the Shadow Nourishment Stage.
He opened his eyes, and they were as dark as a moonless night.
With a furious roar, he charged toward Grace like a storm.
Grace immediately sensed the danger. He gathered all the lightning around his body and formed a dense lightning shield.
But Tenebras's strike was far stronger than he expected.
The attack pierced through the shield…
Light and darkness exploded across the arena.
Then…
Both fighters collapsed onto the ground.
Silence filled the arena.
No one knew who had won.
The referee began counting.
"One…
Two…
Three…"
Suddenly…
Grace stood up.
His eyes were filled with killing intent.
He rushed toward Tenebras, who could no longer move.
He wanted to kill him before the count ended.
Grace raised his hand and unleashed a storm of lightning toward Tenebras's body.
The attack was powerful enough to kill any fighter in the arena.
The referees prepared to intervene…
But the great patriarch of the Novera family, James, raised his hand and stopped them.
His gaze was cold.
He saw this attack as an opportunity to end the curse with Tenebras's death.
Lightning struck the ground.
A massive explosion covered the arena with dust.
The referee finished the count…
And everyone waited to see Tenebras's corpse.
But when the dust cleared…
Tenebras was still standing.
Without a single scratch.
Shock spread across the audience.
No one understood what had happened…
Except for those whose power had surpassed the Abyss Spirit Stage.
They had seen something terrifying.
For a brief moment, a dark demonic hand emerged from the fourth sealed eye in Tenebras's hand, blocking the lightning before it could reach him.
Those powerful masters exchanged glances.
They all realized one thing.
Tenebras…
Was not an ordinary human.
He did not die from Grace's attack.
But inside…
He felt as if he had died.
He had lost to Grace once again.
Twice.
And because of his weakness…
He had nearly died.
After that, the referee announced the results of the round.
Those who advanced were:
Grace Kars, Emilia, William, and the third son of the Fire-User family.
Then the referee declared,
"The next match will be a four-person battle royale."
But before the next round could begin…
The royal guards rushed toward the king, shouting in panic.
"Your Majesty! Forces led by Trido James have attacked the royal palace!"
At the same time, other reports arrived.
Half of those forces had attacked the Kryo Family Palace.
Trido James believed that they were responsible for his father's death.
Within moments…
Chaos erupted everywhere.
Magic began flying in every direction, and the tournament eliminations were immediately halted.
Doctors rushed into the arena to save Tenebras and the other participants, quickly moving them to safety.
But everyone knew one thing…
A great disaster had just begun.