Chapter 92: Kael VS Zion (Part 1)
Kael sat quietly inside his waiting room, his breathing slow and steady as the last traces of exhaustion gradually faded from his body. The trembling that had plagued him after his battle with Hulk had almost completely disappeared. His mana core continued recovering at a steady pace, circulating mana through his body with every passing second.
He slowly opened and closed his fingers before clenching his fist.
"So the aftereffects are almost gone."
He rolled his shoulders before stretching his stiff muscles.
Although his body still felt a little sore from forcing Darkness Mana Emphasization through his mana conduits, he could already tell that he would be able to fight without any major problems.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"Looks like Infinite Adaptation is doing its job again."
Just then—
Knock! Knock!
A staff member opened the waiting room door.
"Mister Kael."
"It’s your turn."
Kael stood up immediately.
His expression became calm as he picked up the sword Zion had lent him earlier.
He looked at the blade for a brief moment before fastening it around his waist.
"...Time to see just how far apart we really are."
He walked out of the waiting room and into the academy corridor.
Unlike before, there were no cheers reaching his ears.
The atmosphere throughout the academy felt strangely quiet.
Everyone already knew what battle was coming next.
This wasn’t simply another tournament match.
This was the battle everyone had been waiting for.
Kael versus Zion.
The Copycat...
Against the Original.
As Kael walked toward the stadium entrance, countless thoughts flashed through his mind.
"This fight..."
"It’s going to come down to speed."
Zion wasn’t called a genius for nothing.
His footwork...
His reaction speed...
His swordsmanship...
Everything had been polished to an absurd degree.
Kael slowly exhaled.
"This won’t be like fighting Felix."
"It won’t be like fighting Hulk either."
"There won’t be any room for mistakes."
Meanwhile...
On the opposite side of the academy...
Zion walked calmly toward the arena with his sword hanging at his waist.
His footsteps were neither hurried nor slow.
Every movement carried absolute confidence.
Halfway there...
He noticed someone standing beside the corridor.
Auriella Voss.
She remained leaning quietly against one of the stone pillars with her arms folded.
She didn’t seem surprised to see him.
Zion stopped a few meters away.
"What are you doing here?"
Auriella ignored his question entirely.
Instead, she asked one of her own.
"...Who am I going to be facing in the finals?"
Zion looked at her silently for a brief moment.
Then he resumed walking.
As he passed beside her, he answered without even looking in her direction.
"Hope you’re ready for our battle."
"Because..."
"You haven’t seen anything yet."
Without another word...
He continued walking toward the stadium.
Auriella watched his back disappear into the distance.
Her expression remained as calm as ever.
"...It would be troublesome facing that butterfly."
She muttered softly to herself before pushing herself away from the pillar.
Moments later...
Both contestants stepped onto opposite ends of the arena.
The entire stadium fell silent.
Thousands of students watched without making a sound.
This wasn’t simply the battle between Rank One and Rank Two.
This was the clash everyone had anticipated ever since Kael began displaying techniques that clearly resembled Zion’s.
Many wanted to know...
Was Kael truly capable of standing alongside the one academy’s greatest genius?
Or...
Was he merely an exceptionally talented imitator?
The referee looked between both contestants.
After confirming they were ready...
He slowly raised one arm.
"And..."
"The battle begins now!"
His voice echoed across the arena.
Yet...
Nothing happened.
Neither Kael nor Zion moved.
Neither drew their swords.
They simply stood there...
Watching one another.
The strange silence only heightened the tension inside the stadium.
"What are they doing?"
"They haven’t attacked..."
"Why is nobody moving?"
Even the teachers watched carefully.
Kael’s lips slowly curled into a smile.
"Tell me something..."
"Big Brother."
A few students blinked in confusion.
"...Big Brother?"
Kael continued smiling.
"Would you humor me..."
"Like you once did..."
"In the gym two months ago?"
Zion stared at him quietly.
For a moment...
He looked genuinely confused.
Then something clicked.
"...Do you mean after the Ogre Test?"
Kael nodded.
His smile widened slightly.
He slowly lowered his center of gravity.
His feet shifted into a familiar stance.
His right hand rested naturally on the sword’s hilt.
The spectators immediately recognized it.
"The Celestial Star Sword Art..."
Zion remained motionless.
He quietly observed Kael’s posture.
"...Then show me."
"How far you’ve gotten."
Kael’s eyes sharpened.
Mana quietly flowed through his body.
He inhaled once...
Then vanished.
"First Form..."
"Guiding Light."
Kael vanished from his original position.
A streak of light shot across the arena.
In less than a heartbeat—
He appeared directly in front of Zion.
His sword flashed toward Zion’s neck.
Clang!
Without even drawing his weapon...
Zion lifted one of his still-sheathed swords and blocked Guiding Light effortlessly.
The collision produced a sharp metallic ring that echoed throughout the stadium.
The impact created a gust of wind that swept across the arena floor.
Zion didn’t move an inch.
He looked directly into Kael’s eyes.
"It’s funny..."
"...that you think the First Form alone is enough to defeat me."
Kael smiled.
"Which is why..."
"I didn’t learn only the First Form."
He immediately adjusted his grip on the sword.
Mana surged through the blade.
Without giving Zion a moment to counter—
Kael twisted his waist.
"Second Form..."
"Falling Star!"
The sword descended like a meteor crashing from the heavens.
For the first time since the battle began...
Zion’s eyes widened.
He immediately unsheathed one of his swords.
CLANG!!
The collision exploded with tremendous force.
A powerful shockwave burst from the impact, forcing Zion several meters backward.
His boots carved long grooves into the arena floor as he struggled to regain his footing.
Before Zion could stabilize himself...
Kael had already disappeared again.
His voice echoed from multiple directions at once.
"Third Form..."
"Constellation Dance!"
Kael appeared directly before Zion once more.
His sword became a blur.
One strike...
Two...
Five...
Ten...
The attacks flowed together so naturally that they resembled countless stars dancing across the night sky.
The audience gasped.
"So fast!"
"I can’t even follow his sword anymore!"
Zion remained completely focused.
His remaining sword moved almost instinctively.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
Each strike met Kael’s blade perfectly.
Not a single attack landed.
Yet...
Even while defending...
Only one thought occupied Zion’s mind.
"How...?"
"How does he know these forms?"
"I’ve never demonstrated them."
His expression darkened.
For just a brief moment...
He glanced toward the VIP section.
His gaze landed directly on Master Crawford.
"Did that old man..."
"...really take another disciple behind my back?"
Up in the VIP lounge...
Master Crawford suddenly frowned.
"...Why do I feel like that brat just blamed me for something?"
Garrick burst into laughter.
"Hahaha!"
"Come on."
"Forget about that."
"I’m more interested in how the boy knows more forms of your technique."
Master Crawford folded his arms.
"I’d like to know that myself."
Back on the battlefield...
Kael refused to slow down.
His mana continued flowing smoothly.
His sword shifted into another stance.
"Fourth Form..."
"Astral Cross!"
Kael’s voice sounded from Zion’s front.
Yet his presence...
Appeared behind him.
Almost simultaneously.
Zion’s instincts screamed.
He spun around immediately.
But before he could complete the turn—
Kael’s voice sounded again.
"Fifth Form..."
The instant Zion heard those words...
Every hair on his body stood on end.
His pupils contracted.
Because he already knew...
Exactly what came next.
"Meteor Shower!"
Kael’s blade exploded into motion.
A relentless barrage of incredibly fast sword strikes rained toward Zion from every direction.
The attacks came so quickly that they resembled countless meteors falling from the heavens.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
Sparks erupted nonstop.
The spectators couldn’t even distinguish individual strikes anymore.
All they could see were flashes of steel.
The barrage continued for several long seconds before...
Everything suddenly became quiet.
Kael lowered his sword.
"..."
There was no one in front of him.
His eyes narrowed.
A faint breeze brushed past his face.
He slowly turned.
Several meters away...
Zion stood calmly with both swords now fully drawn.
A thin line of blood slowly trickled down his cheek.
Kael smiled.
"I guess..."
"I got you there, Big Brother."
He casually pointed at the small cut.
"Now that you’ve seen I know your techniques..."
"...let’s begin the real fight."
Silence.
Zion stared at him for several seconds.
His grip around both swords tightened.
He slowly lowered his body into his own stance.
His expression had completely changed.
"I see..."
"You’ve learned quite a few neat tricks."
"I won’t bother asking where you copied those techniques from..."
"...because it’s obvious."
"It was me."
Kael raised an eyebrow.
"And what makes you think..."
"...that I didn’t copy them from Master Crawford instead?"
Zion answered without hesitation.
"Because if it had been him..."
"...I wouldn’t still be standing here after using the Fifth Form."
"I’d already be dead."
He glanced briefly at the shallow cut on his own cheek.
"I admit..."
"I underestimated you."
Kael couldn’t help smiling.
"So..."
"I’m no longer just a copycat..."
"...or a fraud?"
Zion looked him straight in the eye.
Then answered in the same calm voice.
"No."
"You’re still a copycat."
"And a fraud."
The stadium became deathly silent.
"But..."
"I didn’t expect you to be capable of copying techniques from simulations."
"The way you execute them..."
"...makes it obvious."
"You copied the movements."
"...not the understanding."
He slowly raised both swords.
Mana began gathering around him.
"Now..."
"For a proper demonstration..."
"...on how those techniques are truly meant to be used."
His gaze sharpened.
"Watch carefully..."
"...you copycat."
Zion slowly lowered his center of gravity.
The mana around him became calm.
Unlike Kael’s explosive momentum...
Zion’s aura became frighteningly silent.
It was the silence before a storm.
Kael tightened his grip on his sword.
"So you’re finally getting serious."
Zion didn’t answer.
Instead—
He disappeared.
Not with Vanishing Step.
Not with any movement Kael could perceive.
He simply vanished.
Kael’s pupils shrank.
"Behind!"
He instinctively twisted his body.
CLANG!
Their swords collided.
The force pushed Kael several meters backward before he dug his heels into the arena floor to stop himself.
Before he could even regain his balance—
Zion was already in front of him again.
A second strike came.
Clang!
A third.
Clang!
A fourth.
Clang!
Kael’s arms trembled from the continuous impacts.
"He’s faster..."
"Much faster than before."
The spectators watched in stunned silence.
"So this is Zion’s real speed..."
"I can’t even see him anymore!"
Charlotte gripped the railing tightly.
"So this is the gap..."
"...between Kael and Zion."
Cairo couldn’t help but grin.
"Now we’re talking."
"This is the fight I’ve been waiting for."
Back on the arena...
Zion continued his assault without giving Kael a single chance to breathe.
Every strike flowed seamlessly into the next.
There wasn’t a single wasted movement.
Kael defended desperately.
His sword barely managed to keep up.
Each clash echoed throughout the stadium.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
Kael suddenly activated Vanishing Step, escaping several meters away.
He took a deep breath.
His arms felt numb.
"He’s proving a point..."
"He’s showing me the difference between copying a technique..."
"...and mastering it."
Zion pointed one of his swords toward Kael.
"You’ve copied the forms."
"But you’ve yet to understand them."
"A sword technique isn’t just about memorizing movements."
"It’s about understanding why each movement exists."
Kael smiled.
"I know."
"That’s why I’m fighting you."
"So I can steal that understanding too."
A vein twitched on Zion’s forehead.
"...You really are shameless."
Kael shrugged.
"I’ve never claimed otherwise."
A few students burst into laughter at the exchange.
Even Garrick chuckled from the VIP lounge.
Master Crawford simply sighed.
"Those two..."
"They’re having a conversation in the middle of a duel."
Madam Voss remained expressionless.
"They haven’t even reached the true climax yet."
Back below...
Zion slowly raised both swords.
"Enough talking."
Kael nodded.
"I agree."
Both of them disappeared at exactly the same moment.
Two streaks shot across the arena.
They crossed paths in an instant.
CLAAANG!
The collision produced a deafening explosion.
A powerful shockwave spread across the battlefield, forcing dust and broken stones into the air.
Neither of them retreated.
Their swords met again.
And again.
And again.
The spectators could no longer distinguish who was attacking and who was defending.
Only flashes of steel remained visible inside the cloud of dust.
Every exchange became faster than the last.
The arena trembled beneath their feet.
High above the stadium...
Master Crawford folded his arms with a satisfied smile.
"Good."
"Now..."
"They’re finally fighting for real."
The battle between the two practitioners of the Celestial Star Sword Art...
...had only just begun.