Elemental Zodiack

Chapter 23: The Tournament, Part 2

"I-Incredible! ~The new contester for the Zodiack spot, Solaria Tay won the second battle of the tournament in less than two minutes showing an absurd amount of Life Force and Physical power against the Zodiack of Fire, Ryuuen Akasa!"

"Unbelievable..." Laure was at a loss of words, knowing well enough how skilled of a fighter Ryuuen was.

"Judging how she fights... The amount of Life Force and even the pressure... She might be able to even defeat me and take the first seat in the future..." says Yoso after looking at the aftermath of the fight with a serious expression.

"Don't come at me with such party tricks... If you want to defeat me that is..." says Solaria while slowly backing off to her seat.

 Hearing those cruel words, and living such humiliation, Ryuuen could only look down and punch the ground once.

"Crap..."

"This tournament is awesome! I wish I could possibly participate as well!" shouts Yoso while taking a weird position on his seat, with one leg on the table and one on the chair.

"You and that number 2 i***t are in the same situation... Zodiacks from 1 to 3 can not participate in this Tournament... It is a given," explains Saki

"Lame..." says Yoso

 After the ten minutes break that always took place between the matches, the next designated fighters stepped on the field for the third round of the tournament.

"~And we've already reached the third round of this wonderful tournament where the big powers of Dinsfurd are clashing against each other! May the third round between the Zodiack with the sign of the Scorpio: Geoff Stinger of the Infinity Shield and the Zodiack under the sign of the Libra: Keigo Murasawa of the Poisoned Dagger... Start!"

"If I were Keigo... In this matchup..."

"Strike instantly... If I miss, it's all over with!" thinks Keigo while instantly charging towards Geoff at the signal of the announcer... However...

"Too bad, Murasawa... You are a decent assassin, but your fate was decided at the moment it was decided that I was your opponent!"

 Having perfectly blocked Keigo's backstab with his earth shield, Geoff swiftly turned around and punched Keigo in the gut with a punch covered by a thick layer of rock.

"Gwaah!" falling on his back, with blood coming from the corner of his mouth, Keigo couldn't help, but lose consciousness altogether.

"~What is happening in this tournament!? This was even faster than the previous battle! As expected from one of the strongest Zodiacks, Geoff of the Infinite Shield! Keigo Murasawa can't fight anymore, thus the winner of the third fight of this tournament is Geoff Stinger!"

"Mister Geoff is as powerful as ever!" exclaims Yoso

"Yes, and his earth shield seems more self-aware than ever. Sometimes I can swear that the earth is protecting him with its own free will. It's frightening..." says Laure

"~Like before, we will take another break of ten minutes before the next fight, so get ready for more Zodiack fights coming soon!"

"I sometimes wonder what mister Geoff ID card looks like. I can't figure if he just has incredible Life force control or just reflexes out of this world..." mutters Yoso

"Reflexes wouldn't help his fighting style too much. After all, even if he can see an attack, he still needs some control over his earth shield so he can block it quick enough..." says Saki

"I see... I'll have to ask him later... Maybe he'll show it to me."

 --- After a brief period, the time for the fourth battle of this tournament has finally come... Steeping in the middle of the arena are once again, two known Zodiacks.

"~Here we go with the fourth fight of this exciting tournament! This time fighting, the Zodiack with the sign of the Capricorn: Alex Iulio!"

 Many people cheered up for Iulio, as expected. He is one of the most popular Zodiacks, along with Kein and also does many commercials and such things. He is quite the star in Dinsfurd.

"- And the Zodiack with the sign of Aries: Sarus of the Pitch Black!"

 This time, not many even tried to applause. Sarus is the exact opposite of Iulio, with many having mixed feelings towards him.

"I can feel that Mister Sarus is not liked by people..." says Yoso with a sad tone 

"He is not bothered by this... People don't even really know how he looks like since he is wearing that hood all the time. Other than some achievements and the fact that he is a young Zodiack, people don't really know much about him..." explains Laure

"I see..."

"I am sorry Sarus... You've done way more in the previous battles and for this kingdom altogether, and yet, you still don't get much recognition for it," says Iulio

"I know... And even though this probably won't change, I will keep doing things in my own way. Former number one, Percival... and Shiro, are not there anymore. And that number two guy is a Zodiack only with the name. So from now on, I'll raise my sword to help that kid protect this place... Even by a little bit..." says Sarus while staring down at the floor, and after strengthening his resolve, he took a grasp of his hood, and took his mantle off altogether.

"~Wha- Wha- What?! The Smoke Zodiack, Sarus took his mantle off! It's the first time he shows his face to anyone ever since becoming a Zodiack! And the only thing that I can say is..."

"He is so handsome!!!" a wild crowd of girls started shouting from the tribunes.

 The other Zodiacks didn't pay too much attention since they already had the opportunity to see Sarus unmasked a few times, but the civilians didn't have such an opportunity yet.

"Well well, I guess you will take things seriously for once since you became a Zodiack, mister Joker?"

"I am sorry, sir Iulio, but I won't be able to take you lightly in this fight..."

"I see, well... Don't blink please!"

"~ May the third fight of the tournament, between Alex Iulio and Sarus... Start!"

  With this signal, Iulio charged with his lightning step, right in front of Sarus, ready to s***h him with his shortsword. However...

"How did you?"

"Even though you are a thunder user, this doesn't mean that speed defines everything. After all, even though thunder is fast... There are faster things... And my training is by no means superficial enough to let you s***h me with mere speed," says Sarus after fending off Iulio with his katana.

"Here I come... Iulio..."

 Sarus filled the space with smoke, making Iulio be unable to use his vision to its full extent, and then started striking from multiple places, not living any room for Iulio to attack.

"Show yourself and fight me!"

"Sure thing..." says Sarus after coming out of the smoke, right in front of Iulio, disarming him with a strong katana strike over Iulio's catalyst.

"What now? Will you fight me without your catalyst?"

"Tch... I get it. You are way too strong, mister Sarus, I give up."

"I see..." says Sarus while slowly putting his katana in its sheath.

"~Again, one amazing battle! Sarus dominated Iulio's speed with even faster reflexes from the get-go, and so he takes the victory in the fourth fight of this tournament!"

 This time... It started to feel different from the beginning of the fight. After his victory, the crowd started applauding and cheering for Sarus, calling his name. The fact that he showed them that he is not a dubious person and is actually a strong and charming Zodiack, made them feel at ease after a few years of not knowing who he really was.

"Mister Sarus doesn't actually rely much on his affinity... Doesn't he?" asks Yoso

"From what I know, he defeated a former Zodiack and took his place, without even using Life force. He is a strong swordsman, and nothing more... But from Ryuuen and Keigo's report on the last battle..." says Laure

"He has yet to show us his true strength... I feel at ease knowing that Dinsfurd has someone like him," says Yoso

"Yes... You are right."

  After winning his battle, Sarus proceeded and went to Yoso's place, in the small time gap between the fights.

"Sir Yoso..."

"It was a great show off, mister Sarus. I am glad to have someone like you as a Zodiack!"

"I see... It truly makes me happy to hear you say that. I've come here to discuss a matter that is fairly important and might need a new Zodiack gathering soon."

"That being?"

"A mission to find Taka Tsubasa and bring him back... Or have him give his consent for leaving the Zodiacks..."

"Taka Tsubasa... Number 2... I understand. You need not only my permission alone but also the majority vote from the other Zodiacks is required for this kind of mission."

"Yes... Most of the other Zodiacks agreed already... That's why I want to discuss this in the next meeting."

"I understand. Okay, we'll do it. We actually needed another meeting prior to the fight against the Black Cross, and also after this tournament, so I agree with you."

"Thank you very much. Now if you'll excuse me..." and so, Sarus leaves for his seat, after Yoso agreed with his request.

 ---Meanwhile, one pair of eyes was stuck on the seat where Yoso was at. Staring from the tribunes, a girl was more interested in the judges than the actual fights...

"Yoso..."

"What's the matter, Aki?" says one of the people that was standing next to her, presumably a friend of her.

"Ah... N-Nothing! Just wondering when the next fight will start..."

"Ah... I see! Well, I think it is just about to begin."

"~Get ready! Because the fifth battle of this tournament is going to start now! Standing in the arena right now, we have the Zodiack with the sign of the Pisces: Masato Kazuya!"

 Like always, cheers and applause could be heard in the arena, Masato's name being shouted continuously.

"-And another contestant that ought to reach the seat of Zodiack: Kirino Dirk!"

"Without further ado... Let the fifth fight... Start!"