The Next Bout
"I-I CAN'T BELIEVE IT, FOLKS! ALREADY, WE'RE STARTING THE KING CULLING WITH AN UPSET! THE "RIPPER PRINCE", PRINCE ERIGOS IS UNABLE TO CONTINUE! PRINCE MERLIN TAKES THE FIRST VICTORY, LOCKING HIS POSITION INTO THE SECOND ROUND—!!!!"
The announcer's call had settled it in further, spurring the audience to roar out with enough volume to cause the colosseum itself to tremble.
As he made his way back through the corridor he came from, he was stopped by a pat on the shoulder from his uncle, who had spectated the entire bout.
"Well done, kid. I didn't know you had it in you, truth be told," Belial congratulated him.
He smiled, "I've been preparing for this for a while."
"I can tell," Belial smiled.
The two returned to the left side competitors' waiting room.
On the other side, Prince Beleth still stood in the hall, not so much as looking at the bloodied-and-beaten Ripper Prince who limped past him.
"Pathetic," Prince Beleth said beneath his breath.
Though it angered Prince Erigos, even his shattered pride knew he couldn't lash out at the Impervious Prince, simply stumbling past him on his way, breathing heavily.
He's something else…Damn it all…Prince Erigos thought.
–
"Did you see that?"
From the spectator viewing, supplied by demonic arts, Prince Purson asked this to his twin sister, who lightly shook her head.
"See what?" She asked.
Prince Purson squinted, "Our dear little hafling brother…Merlin didn't even draw his sword throughout the entire battle."
"Oh…Why would he do that?" She put her hand to her chin.
He shook his head lightly, "That, I'm afraid, I do not know…Intriguing," he smiled.
–
As soon as he saw down on the cushioned bench, leaning back and resting as he could feel the eyes of his fellow competitors and family members on him, the announcer wasted no time:
"ON TO ROUND TWO, FOLKS! LET'S NOT WASTE ANY TIME!"
With that said, a glow from one of the tablets manifested in the room–coming from the one held in the hand of a tall, burly man who wielded an ax, presenting massive horns and legs that took the shape of an equine's own.
"FROM THE LEFT SIDE, PLEASE WELCOME THE "TERRIFYING PROSPECT", THE YOUNGER BROTHER OF THE DEMON LORD HIMSELF, ALLOCER!"
He decided to spectate this match through the magic-formed display in the waiting room, wiping the sweat from his forehead as his minor wounds had already regenerated.
As Allocer, the massive, hairy demon who wielded the skull ax made it to his side of the arena, his opponent arrived soon after, being introduced by the announcer:
"FROM THE RIGHT SIDE, GIVE IT UP FOR THE "GENERAL OF DOOM", THE FIRST DAUGHTER OF THE DEMON LORD: DEVIL GENERAL ZAGAN–!!!"
The cheers for Allocer were completely snuffed away as the entire crowd instead roared out for the army-leading princess who was dressed head-to-toe in all-black armor, presenting her famous helm that resembled a roaring dragon.
"BEGIN-!!!"
Allocer didn't seem to mind the lack of cheers as the barbaric man simply flipped his skull-handled ax, grinning at the prospect of battle.
"Come on, Zagan! I've always wanted to experience all-out combat against you! Ga-ha-ha!" Allocer howled with boisterous laughter.
General Zagan was silent, only raising her hand as a black force coalesced before she summoned her massive, dragon-claw lance that took the tinge of the abyss.
"That's more like it!" Allocer grinned wide.
Allocer's lengthy, dark-brown hair swayed in the winds manifested by his own Hell Release, which he delved into right as the battle began, summoning the swirling crimson that roared out from the depths of darkness.
"RIGHT OFF THE BAT, FOLKS! ALLOCER ISN'T MESSING AROUND HERE!"
In response, General Zagan still stood tall and silent, wielding her lance as she simply waited for her uncle to be the one to take the initiative.
"Huh–?!"
Allocer snarled at the fact that his opponent didn't seem to use her own Hell Release as he stood there with his bulkened body; the Hell Release had altered his body, causing his bristly body hair to grow more dense as his height increases and his complexion shifted to a reddened hue.
"...You're that confident, are you?! Ga-ha-ha! I guess I'll have to teach my dear little niece the difference in experience here! I've been alive for centuries!" Allocer shouted.
As the man raised his massive, scarlet-steel ax as his fingers wrapped tightly around the skull handle, a dense air gathered around it before he began to swing it downward with a hum filling the winds.
"--Crimson Breaker: Kingdom Shaper!"
It was as if the weight of the ax itself had multiplied many times over, causing the air around it to curve and heat up before it finally reached the sand below in a devastating impact.
Neither competitor had yet to approach the other, yet Allocer's assault was launched from far away.
The impact manifested itself in a massive tremor that caused the sands of the arena to ripple and form waves, exuding a crimson shock wave that repeated multiple times.
General Zagan stumbled a bit, and that was enough–that singular instance of weakness spurred the tattooed younger brother of the Demon Lord to rush forward, laughing out as he flipped his ax between his fingers.
"He's a scary one…" Klaus said from the stands.
"I've heard stories about Allocer. He used to be a legendary general for Grandzania, always leadin' his men from the vanguard…not for a morale boost, but only because he loved fightin' that much," Marlow told him, "...He had to relinquish his position to Princess Zagan after he was defeated by the Hero."
"So…there's some history to this bout, then?" Klaus asked, looking at his friend.
Marlow simply nodded, watching the arena closely as Allocer dragged his ax through the sands before finally reaching General Zagan.
The repeated, concussive shock waves finished, but it produced enough of an opportunity for the brutish man to close the distance and finally swing his ax towards the dragon-helmed woman.
"--Take this! Giant Crusher!"
A crimson light etched itself across the edge of his ax as he yelled out, slashing it directly towards the general dressed in all-black armor.
–But, it failed to reach General Zagan.
"What?!" Allocer let out in shock.
Before the ax was able to slam its crimson-enhanced edge against her armor, General Zagan caught the man's wrist, clenching it tightly as she stood even taller than the burly, two meter high brute.
"I suspected it before, but I've confirmed it now: Uncle, you're unfit to lead an army," General Zagan spoke calmly to Allocer while holding his ax-wielding wrist.
"Ngh–! What was that, brat?!" Allocer lashed out.
Though the brutish royal tried to move his arm away, the ungodly grip strength wielded by the current general was far too much; even when unleashing a bountiful amount of crimson energy from the depths of his being, Allocer failed to make General Zagan budge.
"WHAT'S THIS?! EVEN THE MIGHTY, BRUTAL ALLOCER IS UNABLE TO CONTEND WITH THE STRENGTH OF THE DEMON GENERAL?!"