Vherrow moved faster than anyone Diablo had fought in Velmoor, closing the distance in a single fluid step that left afterimages in the dust kicked up behind him. No weapon, no windup, just a bare hand driving toward Diablo's ribs with enough force behind it to crack stone. Diablo caught the wrist an inch from impact. The crowd's roar dulled into a low murmur of confusion, most of them too far away to have even registered the strike, let alone the block. Vherrow's jaw tightened beneath the iron mask, the only visible sign of surprise. "You caught that," he said. "You're fast," Diablo said, releasing the wrist and stepping back to a neutral distance. "Faster than a normal person should be." "So are you." Vherrow rolled his shoulder, settling into a loose stance that didn't resemble any formal school of combat Diablo recognized. "Interesting. I was beginning to think this tournament would be a waste of my time." He came again, low this time, a sweeping kick aimed at Diablo's legs t

The moment Diablo let more of his strength bleed into his stance, the entire character of the fight changed.Vherrow came at him again, faster than before, and this time Diablo didn't bother catching the strike with a simple parry. He met it head on, sword against bare fist, and the shockwave that rolled outward from the collision sent a visible ripple through the dirt floor, cracking the packed earth in a spiderweb pattern beneath their feet. Several spectators in the front rows were knocked back into their seats by the force of displaced air alone."Now that's more like it," Vherrow said, sliding back a step before pushing off again immediately, a flurry of strikes aimed at Diablo's ribs, throat, and knees in quick succession, each one carrying enough force to end a normal fight in a single connect.Diablo weaved through the first two, caught the third on his forearm, felt the impact rattle up into his shoulder in a way none of his other opponents today had managed, and answered wit

The moment Diablo stepped back into the shade of the fighters' tunnel, Natsu was already shoving through the crowd toward him, Mari and Akeno close behind, Leo trailing at a more measured pace with his bow still slung over one shoulder."What was that?" Natsu demanded, grabbing Diablo by the shoulder. "The ground was cracking. People three rows back got knocked out of their seats. I've never seen a match like that in my life.""He was strong," Diablo said simply. "Stronger than I expected.""Stronger than you expected?" Mari's eyebrows shot up. "Diablo, the entire arena felt that fight. I felt it, and I was standing in the tunnel."Akeno studied him carefully, arms crossed, her expression more measured than the others but no less intent. "You held back against Coldrick. Anyone with eyes could see that much. But this Vherrow, you didn't hold back nearly as much, did you?"Diablo considered how to answer that, aware of Leo watching him just as closely despite saying nothing. "He pushed

Voss moved first, but not in the way Diablo expected. Rather than lunging with the spear's reach, he took a single measured step forward and let the weapon do the work, snapping the shaft out in a quick testing jab aimed at Diablo's shoulder, more probe than genuine attack. Diablo turned it aside with a small deflection of his blade, barely more than a flick of the wrist, and Voss immediately withdrew the spear back into a guarded stance before Diablo could capitalize on the opening."Careful one," Diablo said."Careful ones live longer," Voss replied, already circling, spear held loose and ready. "Learned that the hard way more than once."He tested again, a quicker jab this time aimed lower, toward Diablo's hip, and when Diablo deflected that one too, Voss followed immediately with a third strike chained directly off the second, the spear's long reach letting him cover distance faster than the motion suggested. Diablo caught that one on the flat of his sword and pushed the shaft wid

The twenty minutes passed faster than Diablo expected, filled with Mari's restless chatter and Natsu's half serious pep talk about how he'd better win so someone could finally give the masked hunter a real rival in the finals. When the herald's voice finally rang out calling his name alongside Renna Ashcroft's, Diablo left the others behind and made his way back through the tunnel, the late afternoon light softer now, gold instead of harsh white, stretching long shadows across the cracked and hastily repaired arena floor.The crowd's noise swelled the moment he stepped into view, louder than it had been for any match except the one against Vherrow. Word had clearly spread through the stands about what today's fights had already produced, and the energy in the stadium had shifted into something closer to anticipation for a genuine spectacle rather than idle entertainment.Across the ring, the opposite tunnel darkened, and Renna Ashcroft stepped out into the light.She was younger than