-Zeref’s POV-

“Welcome back contestants and viewers, to this joyous day for round 2 of the tournament. In 60 seconds the portals will open and all contestants will be permitted to jump in! Get ready as there’s no turning back now.” The presenter’s voice echoed and the crowd boomed in excitement.

Sara grabbed my hand and closed her eyes. I comforted her by grasping her hand tightly.

“It’ll be fine, I know you’re still injured. I’ll protect you.” I reassured her before facing the portal, waiting for the last 20 seconds.

The portals were lined up side by side like during the inauguration, on the centre platform, except fewer contestants were next to us. Garsonite Prep and Benditwallow Academy had already been disqualified due to the lack of points in the first round, so we were lucky to even make it to round 2.

“Contestants Ready?!” he asked, causing the contestants next to us to cheer.

“3…2…1! Jump into the portals!”

With that announcement I jumped into the portal without hesitation, still grabbing Sara’s hand behind me. The noise faded behind me with one leap.

[You have entered a green portal]

**

[You are now in a private dimension]

The air had a cold feel to it and all my hairs rose in alertness. Shivers travelled down my spine and my senses were being dulled again. It must’ve been another spell. Immediately I activated my Seikuken and inspect skill, to see through the pitch black darkness and detect for life forms that were near us.

[Sleep spell has been cast on you]

[Mental spell has been rejected]

No wonder my senses felt so groggy, it was a sleep spell. We were lucky, there were no signs of life on our path; I looked around to be met by large walls rising up for hundreds of meters and an eerie silence, which didn’t sit right with me. The pathway we were on, was stretched on for 10 metres or so, then moved right.

Suddenly, Sara’s body fell forward from behind me and her head rested on my back; the sleep spell must have already made her pass out.

I really needed to find out the layout of the maze we were in and I could use my sixth sense for that. Taking off my jacket, I laid it on the ground neatly and made Sara rest on top of it. Now for protection I created 3 metre dense, 20 metres high Ice walls on each side of the hallway and threw gravity mines.

Knowing we were safe for now, I sat down and expanded my vision using my sixth sense. Twist after twist, the walls stretched on for 5 kilometres in all directions. After a couple minutes, I had a good overview of the positions of the other teams and our whereabouts, the number of beasts and our goal.

The portals back to the stage were at the centre of this huge maze and conveniently we were placed the furthest away. I could probably get there with ‘Godspeed’ immediately but that would show everyone my secrets.

Rarrrggghhh!

A deafening roar shook the air and large tremors passed through the ground with each step. Something was approaching and it was big.

I slowly got up ready and unsheathed Voadhailis’s Claw for the first time from my waist, grabbing the hilt with two hands in a kendo stance.

I gripped the hilt of the sword tightly, waiting for the right exact moment.

Boom!

With a large entrance, a huge troll about 10 metres clobbered the ice wall down to smithereens with its fists, it was disgusting in every way. Drooling from the mouth and reeking of a carcass, it wreaked.

I inhaled deeply.

Then…

Syphoning flame mana into the blade, I raised the blade above my head and slashed down in one swift motion. A blast of mana surged through me and I felt the power of the blade, rushing up my arms, emitting a wave of fire through the maze in all angles. The arc of dense pure flame mana cut through the troll cleanly and travelled on without signs of stopping, cutting through anything in its path. The thick smell of smoke filled the air as the walls were burnt to nothing more than ash, creating a clear space of a pathway for us. I might’ve gone a bit overboard.

The troll was still standing, its eyes wide and still. Its legs wavered before it split in half, falling apart. The blood of all his sliced up brain and arteries squirted like a water fountain and the white of his ribs stood out, being engulfed in the fat flesh and red blood clots. His brain bubbled before falling onto the floor with a slop.

I cringed at the gory sight. The skin I sliced through was burnt and crisp and there were some orange blood clots forming around the cut on his head. His dark blood left the artery it belonged to in big surges and pulsated from his carotid.

[You have used up 500 MP]

This was our chance to win! I picked up Sara and put her on my back and ran straight flash stepping, moving left, then right, then straight again…

Since I knew the whole layout of the maze I could avoid unnecessary fights and get to the main point of the mission. This was going to be easier than I thought.

**

“Look, it’s the Xanxus Academy pair! Hahahaha! Aren’t we lucky?” a sinister laugh echoed throughout the hall and a girl popped up in front of me blocking the pathway. I turned back to run but we were surrounded.

“We all know there’s no point to this fight, just let us pass.” I told the Royal Prep Academy Girl coldly, looking back at the guy behind me too.

“We both know that’s not gonna happen, pretty boy! You guys stole the first position from us and you think we’d let you guys just go. Don’t make me laugh!” she sneered before charging at me like an angry bull.

Her partner reciprocated her movements and charged in too from behind. They were both striker type mages, so I could’ve taken them both on, in hand to hand combat but Sara was on my back and my hands were occupied.

I’d have to use taekwondo. As the girl came in first she threw a left straight, then a right hook aggressively. Dodging it, I then planted my left foot deep in the ground and spun on it. Shrouding my right leg in ice mana, the roundhouse kick connected with her temple and I used her own momentum to make my kick do more damage.

Her body flew like a ragdoll against the wall of the maze and it slid down in a dead position. I hoped she wasn’t dead from just one kick. We’d be disqualified but, when I saw her breath I felt at ease.

“Jade!!!”

The royal Prep boy was smarter than the girl and backed out his sword. If I wasn’t mistaken it was a replica of the legendary sword ‘Excalibur’. The golden hilt shined and the blade gleamed a perfect silver. A true work of art.

“You fight like a coward! Unsheathe your sword!” he shouted furiously glancing at his team mate immobile on the ground, then at me.

“Oh sorry. Did I hurt your puny little girlfriend?” I smirked, enraging him more.

“She is my sister! You sick jerk!” he vociferated before charging at me, slicing furiously. His blade work was impeccable and precise but he just wasn’t fast enough; I dodged his inexperienced and predictable swings, then countered by parrying a random sword strike to the right. I followed through with a spinning tornado kick to his chin.

My plan was to knock him out and run for the portal. I couldn’t wait around and waste time when the 3 other schools were close to winning.

He recovered after a couple seconds and charged in again, but this time he used light magic to disorientate me. It was a good move from him but luckily my Seikuken helped me to see the path of every sword slash coming towards me.

“I’m only starting!” he shrieked before, using light magic to create an afterimage of himself. This time I made a mistake and his Excalibur skimmed me cleanly against my torso. A red line formed on my chest through my shirt after a couple seconds, and a painful and burning sensation engulfed my chest.

[You have suffered 200 damage]

“You feel it don’t you, my light magic’s purification ability. Every slice that connects with your body will fatigue you twice as fast. So keep dancing around you arrogant sinner!”

“Just shut your blabbering.” I said coldly before disappearing from his view, “Did you think you were the only one with special tricks. It’s time for you to go to sleep, Mr royal.”

I flash stepped behind him and smashed his head with both my palms at his ears, then grabbed onto Sara again. The ears were an important organ not just for listening but also responsible for balance, so rupturing the eardrums was a great tactic to disorientate an opponent fast.

“Wh-What did you d-” before he could finish, I finished him off with a kick to the head and his body toppled over and fell to the cold ground. I checked for his pulse. He was still alive. Good!