The arena was silent.
The students around watched intently. The combat between Ragnar and Draven had become more interesting than many had expected.
Ragnar ran his tongue along the corner of his mouth, wiping away the small trace of blood.
He seemed excited.
"It's been a while since a rookie made me bleed," he said.
Draven maintained his fighting stance.
Calm.
Balanced.
Observing his opponent's every move.
Change in stance
Ragnar flexed his hands.
His claws were more clearly visible now.
The muscles in his body tensed even more.
"Since you can take it…" he said, "I think it's fair to use something a little more serious."
Some students recognized what was happening.
"He's going to use a racial technique…"
"Ragnar doesn't usually do that in training…"
Zayra also noticed.
She crossed her arms, watching intently.
Beastly Technique
Ragnar lowered his body slightly, like a predator about to attack.
— Beast Step.
As soon as he finished speaking, he advanced.
This time it was different.
His speed clearly increased.
The first blow came from below, attempting to hit Draven's chin.
Draven managed to block, but the impact was stronger than before.
He was pushed back a few steps.
Ragnar didn't stop.
He continued the attack with a rapid sequence of blows:
side claw, elbow, knee strike.
Draven blocked the first attack.
Dodged the second.
But the knee strike hit his abdomen.
The impact knocked the air out of his lungs.
He quickly retreated to regain space.
Arena Reaction
Some students reacted immediately.
— Now Ragnar is fighting seriously.
— This rookie's going down.
But Zayra didn't seem convinced.
She kept watching Draven.
— Not yet.
Draven analyzes
Draven took a deep breath.
The blow had hurt.
But it had also revealed something important.
Ragnar was indeed using more force now.
Even so, his attacks still followed a clear pattern.
Quick advance.
Aggressive sequence.
Constant pressure.
In Draven's mind, the voice came again.
[Updated analysis.]
[The technique used increases the opponent's speed and aggressiveness.]
[High probability of opening after attack sequence.]
Draven understood.
He needed to wait for the right moment.
The counterattack
Ragnar advanced again with Beast Step.
This time he tried to grab Draven by the shoulder to take him down.
Draven twisted his body at the last instant.
Ragnar's hand passed through the void.
It was exactly the opening the Great Sage had foreseen.
Draven reacted immediately.
First blow.
A direct punch to the stomach.
Second blow.
A quick elbow to the chest.
Third blow.
A strong kick to Ragnar's side.
The Beastikim lost his balance for a moment.
It was the first time he had been clearly pressured.
General surprise.
The arena fell silent for a second.
Then came the murmurs.
"He read Ragnar's movement…"
"How does a novice do that?"
The instructor watching the fight narrowed his eyes.
Now he was also paying more attention to Draven.
Ragnar smiles.
Ragnar straightened up slowly.
He ran his hand over his injured leg.
Then he began to laugh. — Now that's more like it.
He looked directly at Draven.
— You're interesting.
He returned to his fighting stance.
— Much more than I thought.
On the other side of the arena, Draven also prepared himself again.
His body was warmer.
His blood was running faster.
He was enjoying the fight.
And so was Ragnar.
The battle was still far from over.