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(Feng Mian's Perspective)

"Maledictum - Segnis, Infirmis, Enervis!" I chanted, using the same series of spells Xuan Kai's brother had used against him back in the Advancement Exams in Shenzhen.

These three Maledictum spells slowed my opponent down greatly and also reduced his power. However, even with these debuffs applied, he was still quite fast. I pulled out Gemini, my twin pistols, and dashed backwards as I shot out a volley of bullets in front of me. He had anticipated my attack, however, and jumped up to avoid my shots.

I had wanted to cast more spells before we began fighting, but Tang Ren Shan closed the distance far too quickly. Gritting my teeth, I swerved around the outskirts of the arena to try and create a gap between us, but he followed.

"HAHAHA! Hey, you're not hitting a single bullet!" he taunted as he charged towards me, dagger in hand.

Ignoring his provocations, I continued to shoot at him. Dodging the bullets slowed him down a little, though not by much. Still, it was exactly what I needed.

Once I had gained enough distance between him and myself, I whipped out a neatly-folded artifact from the back pocket of my jeans, and slipped it on myself. Right before Tang Ren Shan could strike me with his dagger, I leaped out of the way, now with my artifact equipped.

"What… where did she go?" I heard the audience murmur, and smirked. This was exactly the reaction I wanted them to have. For if they were this surprised… no doubt my opponent would be confused as well.

"Tch… invisibility? Your profile didn't tell me about this…" he muttered in frustration. But then, much to my dismay, he licked his lips as they curved upwards into a crazy smile.

"Heheh… this is getting interesting! Come on! Let's fight some more!"

I cringed in disgust as I circled around to get behind him, before firing off a few bullets from Gemini. I had about half my mag left on both guns.

"There you are!" he yelled, spinning around instantly and deflecting my bullets with the flat side of his blade.

My eyes widened as the bullets I just shot came ricocheting back towards me. I managed to avoid it just barely, and I felt sweat form on my forehead. This guy… he may be a maniac, but his strength was real. I didn't possess the cheat-like powers Xuan Kai had, but… if it were him, the battle would've been over by now.

"Where did you go, my sweet snack~" the boy giggled hysterically as he tried to look for me, who had returned to invisibility.

It's time… I'll summon it now, just to prepare.

Thinking this, I muttered a spell name in my head as I felt something materialize behind my back. The cast had been a success… all that was left was to wait for the perfect moment to use it.

Most mages chose to say their spell names out loud since chanting in your mind required a lot more mana and skill, not to mention the diminished power of the produced spell, and if it's a projectile one, also the accuracy of it.

However, in higher-tier fights and situations like this where telling your opponent what you were going to do next could be fatal, even if they only have a second to react to it, casting in your head was a skill that needed to be mastered. I've been practicing it in my own time, but still wasn't too proficient at it.

Still, this spell that I just cast was not a projectile one, so accuracy was out of the question. As for power… that wasn't too important. As long as it was strong enough to kill Tang Ren Shan in one strike, I was fine.

Deciding that everything was in place, I took off my Cloak of Invisibility and aimed the gun's barrel at my clueless opponent, and let my bullets fly.

He turned around immediately once more, eyes bulging with maniacal excitement.

"You're ALL MINE!" he yelled, charging at me and deflecting the bullets once again with his dagger.

However, this time, I was ready. Stowing one of my two pistols away and dashing forward in one swift motion, I ducked below my own bounced bullets and pulled out my secret weapon from behind my back.

Tang Ren Shan realized I wasn't just running away like before, but it was already too late for him. He could not stop his own momentum.

As he cut down on me with his dagger, I blocked it with my other pistol's frame and went directly for his neck with my own blade - a kunai, generated by Shadow Magic.

My cold steel plunged into his neck, but instead of being shocked and scared, Tang Ren Shan's expression contorted into one of a psychopathic laugh.

And then, his body dispersed into a cloud of dark purple energy. Immediately after, I heard his voice reappear from behind me.

"HAHAHA! That was just a clone all this time - you're SO DEAD NOW!"

However, as he prepared to cut me with his own dagger, I smiled, having anticipated everything already.

"DI-"

He froze mid-movement, dagger still in hand. Slowly, I turned around and looked at him in the eyes as blood dripped from his throat.

"H-How…" he croaked.

"Too bad… I specifically chose this weapon to deal with you," I chuckled. "You see… this dagger is no normal dagger. It has a name - Umbra, Devourer of Souls. Even if I struck your clone and not your main body, your replica still possessed a fraction of your soul. And my cute little weapon here… ate it up, inflicting the same damage on your real body."

His eyes bulged in fear and shock as he stared at me twirling Umbra around in my hands.

"N-No… NOT… HERE!" he suddenly yelled.

I backed away on instinct as an ominous crimson energy began surrounding him.

Not good - he's about to do the Demon transformation!

Time seemed to stop at that moment for me, as I thought about what to do. Xuan Kai… he had told me to kill my opponent if this happened, but…can I really do that? Killing people wasn't the same as killing Magic Beasts or Monsters… they were my own race…

No… I have to prove myself to Xuan Kai. If it were him, he would not hesitate. In fact, he probably wouldn't have held back on that strike to Tang Ren Shan's throat either, killing him instantly before he could even start the demonification process.

In the end… some things, no matter how morally incorrect, had to be done.

"Demonification Level Three, Tier II: FULL BODY TRANSFORM!"

Gritting my teeth and holding my dagger tightly in my hand, I made my decision.

Dashing towards Tang Ren Shan's vulnerable body in an instant, I plunged Umbra deep into his heart. Slowly, his eyes shifted to look at me. They were full of astonishment, as if not expecting me to actually have the guts to kill him.

Tightening my grip on my weapon, I forced Umbra in deeper.

"GRAHHHHH!" he screamed in agony, the wail echoing across the arena's dead silent chamber.

And then, slowly, he fell limp, eyes no longer full of life.

I pulled out my dagger and let his body collapse to the ground. Umbra vanished, its time limit reached.

Taking deep breaths, I backed away from the corpse.

I did it… I killed someone. But… I don't feel disgusted. Somehow, this… wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. In fact… it felt exhilarating.

Was this… the feeling to kill?

"AND WE HAVE A WINNER!" the announcer declared excitedly, despite the silent audience and the gruesome death that occurred just now. "Two contestants came onto stage, but now, only one will leave it! Congratulations, Miss Feng Mian!"

I let out a deep sigh, glancing up at the sky as the audience roared in praise and cheering. I walked off the stage, refusing to look back.

*****

(Xuan Kai's Perspective)

The match had just concluded, and Feng Mian was on her way back here.

"Looks like your plan succeeded, eh?" Xiang Peng chuckled as she glanced at the screen showing Feng Mian's unfazed face despite having just murdered someone.

"… What plan?" I asked, feigning ignorance.

"Yeah, yeah, what plan?" Qing Yue added as well, though she was genuinely ignorant unlike me.

"… Heh. Never mind."

At that moment, Feng Mian came through the door.

"Welcome back," Yu An Yan said with a smile.

Feng Mian returned it with one of her own. "Yeah… that was tough."

"Physically… or mentally?" Obsidia asked with a mysterious yet devious slight grin.

"I would say… both," Feng Mian laughed awkwardly.

"Well, either way, you won. That's all that matters," Lan Xiao Su said in comfort.

"What she said," I added. "Good work."

"Mm… thanks," Feng Mian replied, blushing slightly at my acknowledgment of her.

"By the way," I continued, curious.

"Hm?"

"Where the hell did you pull that purple knife from?"