Blackout Ascension: Return of Primordial Heir-Chapter 7: Sun and Storm

The Solaris Royal Arena held fifty thousand audience packed shoulder to shoulder watching the battle arena with excitement and fear.

Grand Chancellor Vaelon stood at the edge of the royal podium. He raised his heavy, golden staff high above his head. The gem at its peak glowed bright.

"Activate!" Vaelon’s voice boomed, magically amplified to echo like a god speaking from the clouds. "The Luminary Colosseum!"

The very foundation of the arena began to change into something new. A deep vibration shook the legs of every warrior standing in the arena.

It was a terrifying and magnificent ancient, world-shaping magic. The glowing white marbles rose from the arena, instantly floating like clouds in the sky. The sunlight hit the white marble, reflecting a bright light across the arena.

The battlefield was beautiful, and it was undeniably deadly. One wrong step or one missed calculation led the warrior to fall into the abyss, meaning defeated.

"The first duel of the First Bracket," the Chancellor announced, his voice rose in the silence. "Ignis Solaris versus Synder Zain."

A wave of murmurs started in the arena.

Ignis Solaris. The King’s own nephew. The Blaze of the South. A man who has a mana core so hot that it can even vaporize the vast lake into steam in a few minutes.

Synder Zain. The Silver Wind of Sylphyros. A prodigy who had never once been touched by a blade in a duel. These were two of the strongest and most terrifying commanders in the entire alliance.

Normally, in any traditional tournament, warriors of this caliber would meet in the semi-finals or the grand finale. But here, the audience felt excitement and anxiety to see them in their very first battle in the arena.

Down on the ground level, the heavy East Gate opened.

Ignis Solaris walked out of the east gate.

He wore an iron-clad armor and a spear flaring up with fire mana. His every step released an immense aura of heat, and even the audience in the arena felt the suffocating pressure of Ignis.

On the opposite side, the West Gate slid open. Synder Zain walked out from the West gate, opposite to his opponent. He was simple and had long, snow-white hair waving wildly at the side of his face. He moved to the floating tile with silence like winter mist.

High above the arena chaos, at Royal Pavilion, Princess Seyana leaned forward with excitement to see her brother battle.

"Ignis is incredibly strong," she whispered to herself, "he has the raw power to shatter a palace. But Synder... no one has ever even touched his armor in a duel. He’s a ghost."

Down on the arena floor, standing silent among the twenty-eight other waiting champions, Kairos watched with perfect focus and calculation.

Ignis is releasing too much mana. Kairos analyzed by watching the mana waves around Ignis. He’s letting his core run hot to scare his opponent, but he’s wasting mana. Synder, on the other hand... Synder is suppressing his mana entirely. He’s hiding his intent. He doesn’t want Ignis to know the next movement.

A massive, bronze bell sounded from the high pillars.

GONNNGGGG!!

Ignis instantly burst forward. The fire ignited at his legs, and instantly Ignis covered the fifty-meter distance between them. He moved through the air like a fired cannonball.

"Flare Step!" Ignis roared.

He thrust his heavy spear forward with both hands, aiming at the chest of Synder with fire magic flaring up throughout the spear to enhance its power.

The crowd shook in shocking thought. It was an instant killing blow.

But Synder simply dodged to the left.

Ignis’ spear missed Synder’s rib by a millimeter. Ignis instantly turned, using his forward momentum and converted the thrust into a destructive slash aimed at Synder’s neck.

Synder stepped backward, but he landed on a platform that was not there a second ago. The audience and Ignis shook in disbelief. Synder smirked, "My calculation is correct." As they entered the arena, Synder calculated the pattern of floating marbles shifting.

Ignis’s heavy spear struck empty air, but the sheer force destroyed the pillar into a thousand pieces in front of the spear.

"I see," Ignis whispered with a bloodthirsty look on his face, "you are fast, very fast. They really weren’t lying about the Silver Wind."

Synder moved on a smaller tile three meters above and to the right of the Ignis without effort. He raised a single finger with a wind ring spiralled at the top of it.

"You are easily strong enough to destroy a battlefield, Ignis," Synder said, his voice calm and composed, "but your fire burns wastefully. You attack with anger. A true blade does not scream before it cuts."

"Then let me announce this to the whole world!" Ignis roared.

He reversed his grip and slammed the spear into the marble he stood on. "Inferno Pillar!"

The stone cracked open, but it was beneath the Synder’s legs, which were hot enough to melt that marble in a second.

Synder dodged side in a fraction of a second before the blaze consumed the marble. He jumped higher, using bursts of wind beneath his foot to ascend the marbles like a staircase.

Ignis refused to let him take advantage of the higher ground. He jumped immediately after the prodigy, using the fire bursts under his foot. The two warriors climbed rapidly into the sky, jumping from one floating rock to another.

"Solar Flare Lance!" Ignis roared and rotated his burning spear in a circle, compressing the oxygen around it and threw a flaming javelin upward.

Synder stopped mid-air and finally drew his two weapons. "Aereos Barrier."

He crossed the twin blades in a perfect ’X’ before his chest. A dome-shaped wall formed around him to block the Flaming Javelin.

BOOOOOMMMM!!

The mid-air collision shook the entire arena, with a white light flashing across the arena, and smoke filled the arena.

When the smoke and dust finally cleared, both warriors had landed heavily on opposite ends of the highest floating platform in the center of the arena.

They were both panting in exhaustion. Ignis’s armor was damaged due to the impact of the collision. The thick slash of blood dripped from the cheek of Synder. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

Ignis laughed with a high-pitched sound. "You are far better than the rumors said, Sylphyros. I haven’t bled for a first strike in three years."

"So are you, Solaris," Synder replied softly, the blood from his cheek dripping into the armor.

"No more testing the waters. No more games," Ignis whispered, stretching his shoulders. "I’m ending this right now."

He kept his hand on his chest rune and released his core limiter. The thick mana restrainers got off from Ignis. "Mjolnir Blaze: Wrath Form."

The heat in the arena instantly became heavy and suffocating. Even the crowd that stayed before the magic barriers felt the heat of Ignis. Ignis became the walking sun with raw fire power igniting.

Synder responded in kind by pressing a hidden rune on the twin swords. "Boreas Glare: Gale Wind."

The air around Synder became cold, and a powerful tornado spiralled around him.

Two ultimate forms in one single platform.

They charged simultaneously. Fire met Wind.

The impact was a small catastrophe. Ignis thrust his devastating spear with the force of crushing a giant skull in an instant. Synder moved with precision, his dual silver blades parrying the massive strikes.

The continuous shockwaves cracked the surrounding floating marbles. The Luminary Colosseum was literally falling apart under their combined powerful strikes.

Ignis and Synder are fighting at their peak. But in the Royal Box, Kairos is analyzing the Ignis flaws in attacks and even the prodigy Synder’s flaws in intense battle.

Synder moved directly forward and willingly took the burn on his left shoulder to attack Ignis by entering his space.

"Cyclone Palm." Synder dropped his left sword to balance the Ignis’s center of gravity and chanted a powerful ball of wind magic, and thrust into Ignis’s ribs.

BAAAANNNNGGG!!

The powerful explosion scared everyone in the arena. Ignis was violently thrown backward due to the impact. His feet left the ground entirely, his heavy body smashing through three floating marbles.

The crowd shook in shock. "He’s out! The Prince is out!"

Synder slowly lowered his combat stance, exhaling cold air. He sheathed his remaining sword.

In the final momentum of defeat, Ignis swung his spear and slammed into the stone marble as an anchor to stop himself from falling. Sparks shimmered as the metal dragged through the marble.

He looked at Synder and laughed, coughing blood. "Nice hit... truly. That damaged my core. But you made one fatal mistake, Synder."

Synder was shocked with confusion and disbelief. "What mistake?"

"You assumed I ever stopped moving."

Ignis disappeared.

He instantly vanished. It was a secret, forbidden technique of the Solaris royal line. Flashfire. For a few seconds, they turn their body into a sparkling fire burst with immense heat to move fast.

Synder’s pale eyes widened in sudden shock. He realized his error, that he had lowered his guard for half a second.

It was more than enough for Ignis. Ignis instantly appeared directly behind the Synder. The sudden, immense heat created a popping sound.

Ignis had his hand wrapped tightly around the middle of his spear. The sharp tip of the spear is held a millimeter from Synder’s neck.

"Checkmate!" Ignis whispered, his voice calm with pride.

Synder stood silently, unmoved, seeing the spear and Ignis panting with exhaustion. Synder closed his eyes. He released the grip on his remaining sword, leaving a falling metal sound on the marble floor. He bowed his head slightly in a gesture of accepting defeat.

The bronze bell rang loudly through the stadium. "The match is concluded! Ignis Solaris is the winner!"

The arena sounded violently in cheers. Crimson flags of the Blazing Sun waved with pride from every tier of the stadium.

Ignis immediately pulled his spear back. He stepped forward and pulled Synder into a warrior hug and patted the back of Synder.

"You are a terrifying storm, Synder," Ignis laughed loudly, wiping blood on his mouth. "I swear to the gods, I thought I was a dead man."

"An.. And you are a stubborn sun," Synder replied with shaking his head. "You simply burn too bright to put out."

They separated and walked on opposite sides of each other with pride.

High above, the magical scoreboard changed.

Winner: Ignis Solaris of Solaris Kingdom.

Advancing to Round Two of the Luminous Bracket. In the safety of the Royal Pavilion, Princess Seyana exhaled a relieving breath. She clapped softly with joy.

Down on the sands, Kairos nodded once. He absorbed the result. Ignis has overwhelming power, but he uses more mana for his heavy strikes and exposes his weak point, Kairos analysed. Synder has speed and technique, but he lacks the raw power for a finishing blow. I can beat them both.

Nearby, Brandon Sylphyros watched Seyana clapping. He saw the pure relief on her beautiful face. He saw her bright, genuine smile. His pale hands tightened with anger.

She smiles for everyone except me, Brandon thought, a jealous thought growing inside his chest. Why do you look at them with such warmth? Look at me. I will make you look at me.

The crowd was waiting for more battles and more magic. The adrenaline in the stadium was at its peak.

The grand announcer enhanced his voice again to carry his voice in those violent cheers. "The arena resets!"

The shattered marble tiles repaired themselves and floated back into their starting positions as they were newly built. "Next match! Lysandra Velkin of Solaris versus Daemon Sylphyros of Sylphyros!"

The floating battlefield began rearranging and shifting into a new arena for the incoming storm. The Great Tournament of Solaris was only just beginning.