My first friend, my last enemy.

The metal gates of the arena creaked open as I took my first step, feeling the slight resistance of the dusty ground beneath. The crowded stands awaited, eyes fixed on me, holding their breath in anticipation. The atmosphere was thick with tension and expectation. The arena, surrounded by high walls, had transformed into a massive battleground illuminated by powerful lights. In the center, my opponent and I stood together. Our eyes locked, and our bodies were filled with the tension of ready muscles prepared for battle. The silence signaled that the fight was about to begin, and within that silence, there was a palpable electric energy in the air.

Amidst the cheers, screams, and applause from the stands, the excitement of the audience became almost tangible. I could hear the supportive shouts from behind the cage wires on one side and feel the hatred in my opponent's eyes on the other. It felt like more than just a physical battle; it was an emotional conflict. Every step I took was met with various cheers echoing from the stands. The supportive cries of some spectators blended with the passionate allegiance of others who had placed bets on their favored fighters. The tension in the air indicated the critical and uncertain nature of the impending struggle.

As the sounds of blows in the middle of the arena echoed in my ears, my eyes tracked every move of my opponent. The audience's enthusiasm quickened my blood.

"Saku?"

I couldn't believe the person standing in front of me was Saku; I was in great astonishment, but I quickly composed myself. Regardless of who was in front of me, I had to defeat them. Saku was my friend, so I didn't need to kill him; rendering him powerless would be sufficient.

Saku: "How are you, old friend? It's been a while, and you've become quite savage. I never thought you could easily kill people."

"This is none of your concern, Saku. I'm here for a purpose, and I'll finish this quickly and leave."

As we continued our conversation, the audience watched us. At that moment, I noticed Arthur standing next to the King. He had claimed to have business but still appeared to be here. Did he lie to me? Why is everyone telling me to do things their way? Are they lying to me now? I'm angry, why am I so angry? The reason is clear; everyone is using me. Could they have survived until now without me? Certainly not. They look down on me because I've been weak from the beginning, don't they? I'll show them what I'm capable of.

The intense aura around Daichi was growing, and while most spectators felt only a slight discomfort, those who could see auras knew how powerfully he thirsted for blood.

Arthur: "Can you see this too, right? He's like you and that special class mage kid. And he claims to be from the strategist class."

King: "So? Do you think it's him?"

Arthur: "I don't know, that's why I couldn't leave. I couldn't ignore the doubt within me, so I came to watch the tournament, but I think I'm too late. It seems to have already started."

King: "He's still quite young and weak. If he can't handle that power even with his weakness, we'd better finish this here."

Arthur: "Is that necessary? If he loses once, he'll return to normal. Can't you defeat him?"

King: "Even if I defeat him, he knows he's weaker than me right now. But if he loses to someone he considers beneath him, it will shatter his ego."

Arthur: "So, our only chance is the mage kid? Do you think he can succeed?"

King: "I'm not sure. You said you could land a blow on him, right?"

Arthur: "Yes."

King: "Well, the mage kid landed a blow on me too."

Arthur: "What? You must be joking. No, you're not. How is that even possible? Have you aged?"

King: "Still, if your kid has his power, everything could change."

Arthur: "I guess we'll find out, whether for better or worse. Let's hope the mage kid defeats him, and Daichi returns to normal so we can talk to him. But..."

King: "If the mage kid loses, his anger will increase."

Arthur: "You agree with him, don't you? Even if it's just a legend, you think he's right."

King: "What I think doesn't matter. The fight is about to begin. Be on guard for anything."

Saku: "I don't know what's going on, but I have my own reasons to win. So, you better not underestimate me, my friend."

"Show me what you've got."

Referee: "YES, IT SEEMS OUR WARRIORS HAVE LAID OUT THEIR TRUMPS! THEN LET THE BATTLE BEGIN!"

Saku: "[Fireball]"

Saku began creating numerous fireballs around him.

"You used this ability when defeating that monster, right? Do you think it's enough to defeat me?"

Saku: "Well, I've mastered this ability quite a bit since then."

Saku transformed the fireballs he created into hundreds of small fireballs, fired one towards me, and it came right next to my foot. It was so fast that I couldn't see it.

Saku: "Actually, I aimed for your leg. If you don't move, I can finish this quickly."

"HAHAHA, BRING IT ON!"

[Anticipation]

Saku started firing all the fireballs towards me at extremely high speeds. Despite my Anticipation ability and high agility, I could be hit at any moment if I didn't focus all my attention. Fireballs were raining from all directions; he used some fireballs to confuse me and predicted the areas I would dodge, firing more intense fireball volleys. It seemed like he had tons of mana compared to me, and he could effortlessly perform so many spells without thinking.

"You've become quite skilled in using magic, my friend!"

Saku: "Thanks for the compliment. You haven't been idle yourself."

"Well, I've learned a few things about the intricacies of magic, even if not as much as you."

It was time to see the results of the long hours of work. I had thrown all the swords, daggers, axes, and every weapon I had beaten for days, even weeks, into a portal, and I used the maximum speed technique I had used before to increase their speeds. As a result, I had a portal where I had thrown all the swords. The entrance of this portal was now in the room I was in. To use the technique of throwing something from the portal, I had to store the weapons beforehand and leave an entrance portal, so I had no choice but to store all the weapons in the room. Now, what I had to do was create hundreds of exit portals and throw all the weapons at Saku.

"THIS GAME IS A TWO-PLAYER, SAKU!"

[Portal]

[Portal]

[Portal]

[Portal]

[Portal]

...

While continuing to move at high speed, I kept creating hundreds of portals, sending sharp objects toward Saku at full speed. As Saku continued to evade, he kept throwing fireballs. We fought by throwing things at each other and dodging at the same time. Saku was a mage, so he didn't use a sword like me. On the contrary, I had more advantage in close quarters combat. While dodging and continuing my attacks, I was approaching Saku, and we finally met in the middle.

"IT'S OVER NOW!"

I swung my sword towards Saku at full speed, but he created a shield to deflect my attack.

Saku: "Why are you putting in so much effort? Just give up. I have to win this tournament!"

I continued attacking him with my sword and dodging the fireballs he continued to throw. He, on the other hand, blocked my sword strikes and the weapons I threw with shield spells.

"What a coincidence! I also need to win!"

Instead of dodging a coming fireball, I threw my sword towards it, splitting the fireball in half. The spreading flames disrupted Saku's vision, and I managed to leave a scratch on his face.

I got some burns from intercepting the fireball, and Saku had a large cut on his face.

Saku: "Alright, so you want to play like this."

Saku touched the ground, and three giant stone golems emerged.

Saku: "It ends here."

"DID YOU THINK ALL THIS WOULD BE ENOUGH TO DEFEAT ME?"

It was time to use my last trump card. Until now, I had been thinking about how to use this ability, and since its mana cost was high, I could only use it once. This ability was the class skill I gained at level 50.

[Mechanism: Allows you to create a mechanism of your imagination. The mana cost of your ability varies depending on the complexity, number, power, and duration of the mechanism you create.]

I didn't understand what this ability was at first, but in simple terms, it allowed me to create any mechanism I imagined. I could create a flying castle powered by steam, a scanning turret that fired an infinite number of nuclear missiles, or a powerful artillery that could make a limited number of shots with my current mana.

Using my ability, I created a heavy shotgun with two bullets. I obliterated both golems with a single shot, leaving only one golem. Now, I had no mana left, so I had to rely on my own abilities.

Saku: "Wow! You keep surprising me. But it seems like your mana is depleted. As far as I remember, you couldn't even take down a small boss alone, and I must say this golem is stronger than that boss."

"We'll see about that."

I had noticed that when I pushed myself too hard, I could increase the power of my anticipation ability and see a bit further into the future, but it was excessively exhausting my body and mind. The golem, despite its size, was fast and durable, and Saku wouldn't just watch; he would continue raining magic attacks on me. I had to deal with everything at the same time. I took a deep breath and focused entirely.

Arthur: "Is he getting stronger? His aura is increasing, and he's avoiding Saku's magic attacks much more easily. Is he overloading his anticipation ability? I didn't teach him that."

King: "No, he learned it on his own. Just like him, he's willing to sacrifice everything for the desire to become stronger and rule. I'm sure now; that kid is the heir to the Ruler."

Arthur: "So, what does that mean..."

King: "It's too early to decide. Maybe we can bring him to our side, but first, he has to be defeated here. Otherwise, the only option will be to kill him before he becomes stronger and kills us all."

My strength and speed had increased many times over. I could see all the directions from which attacks were coming and easily dodge them. My attacks were leaving only scratches on the golem, but it was enough. I had increased the number and speed of my attacks so much that I overwhelmed the golem with sword strikes until it broke into hundreds of pieces.

Lilith: "What's happening to him? His eyes are shining in a red color, and the aura of the desire to kill is reflecting so intensely and violently that I almost feel nauseous. Isn't the King going to do anything? They need to stop this match urgently."

Malik: "Well, I don't feel much, but the mage kid looks pretty relaxed. All golems are gone, and his spells seem to be useless. So, why is he so calm?"

"SSSSSAAAKUUUUUUUU! IT'S TIME TO END THIS!"

The intensity and desire for destruction I felt had increased so much that my senses were at their peak, as if I could see nothing but also everything at the same time. I could feel the slightest breeze in the air, smell every scent, and taste the bitter flavor of the dust and smoke cloud left by the chaos. It was as if I were invincible, until that moment. My senses suddenly went crazy, and it was as if they were begging me to escape. I hadn't noticed the immense power in front of me until that moment, or no, I hadn't wanted to notice. I hadn't wanted to admit that it was stronger than me.

Saku: "Forgive me for doing this, my friend. If I can get my old friend back, I guess I can hurt you a bit. But now you're strong, right? So please, don't die."

Saku rose into the air, and white sparks started to appear around him. His pure and white aura was merging with my aura, which was going from red to almost black, creating a clash between black and white lightning, like two opposing poles confronting each other. Saku's eyes turned completely white, and white cracks began to form on his body. His hair and eyes turned completely white, and extremely bright white lights leaked from the cracks, hair, and eyes. He raised his right hand to the sky and pointed it towards me; his hand seemed entirely peeled off and transformed into a pure white bright form. It was so bright that I could barely see his fingers.

Saku: "[Infinite Abyss]"

Suddenly, all sounds in the world ceased, and it felt like time had stopped.

Arthur: "MY KING!"

King: "[Absolute Shield]!"

The King applied the highest level shield magic inside and outside the arena to protect all spectators, the city, and himself.

I heard a high-pitched sound that broke the silence, and then a massive white beam descended onto the entire arena. For seconds, the beam, so beautiful and white, seemed to be a corner of heaven amidst the violence and chaos it created.

The beam slowly disappeared, and the arena began to be visible again. The entire arena floor had sunk meters deep, and Saku had fainted. Daichi's entire body was covered in burns, and he had lost consciousness. All the spectators, bewildered by what had happened, were watching the events without understanding. Then, everyone started screaming and cheering. Everyone had forgotten the shaky warrior they were supporting and was now cheering for the masked mage. There was only one person who didn't forget Daichi.

Lilith: "DAICHI!"

Lilith jumped into the arena with tears in her eyes and went to Daichi. She hugged him and started crying.

Lilith: "PLEASE! SOMEONE HELP!"

The King erected a magical shield, creating a barrier between the arena, which was now a battlefield, and the spectators, hiding the inside of the arena. He descended into the arena. Malik also jumped into the arena behind Lilith. When he lifted his head, he realized that due to the shield, he couldn't see the spectators, and they probably couldn't see them either.

King: "Don't worry; he'll be okay."