Return of the Legendary Runesmith

Gilbert was on cloud nine.

After the first two rounds, he had dreaded that history would repeat itself—that Runebound Academy would once again be eliminated early.

But to his relief, his fears turned out to be unnecessary. What followed was nothing short of a dream.

The two students from Runebound had bounced back, proving they were far from done. They were still standing strong in the contest, and they were ready to fight their way to the top.

It might be a bit of a stretch to say they could win the entire tournament, but now, Gilbert finally had hope. Maybe—just maybe—Adrian's team could pull off a miracle.

Across from him, Ariana wore a smug grin as she turned to him and said, "Weren't you saying something about a miracle, Headmaster Darwin?"

The mentioned headmaster sat stiffly, teeth clenched, hands gripping the armrests of his chair in frustration.

But one man among them still hadn't given up. With calm confidence, he replied, "There's still one round left, Headmistress. I'd suggest waiting before making any bold claims."

Ariana scoffed and muttered under her breath, "Pathetic bastards…" It was clear they hated the idea of Runebound advancing in the tournament.

Back in the preparation room, Adrian helped Allen wipe the water off his head. The boy was still shivering slightly.

"That was awesome!" Aries beamed. "I never thought your second attribute would end up saving us!"

Allen rarely used his light attribute during training, which made the final attack he used to defeat Layla a complete surprise.

He gave her a faint smile. "It was a spur-of-the-moment thing. I'm just glad it worked."

Everyone was satisfied with his performance. Layla had been a powerful opponent, especially with her magic—but Allen had handled it well.

"Now, it's up to our captain," Aries said with a confident grin. "Just do your thing and show them who's the real ruler out there."

"You've got this, Senior!" Altia cheered.

"Go win it, Senior!" Brendon added with a fist pump.

Adrian stood quietly, a bit surprised by how much faith everyone had in Elana.

Then again, they had every reason to be that confident. None of them had ever seen her lose.

Still, it must have put a lot of pressure on her.

That's why Adrian gently pulled her aside. Placing his hands on her shoulders, he looked her in the eyes and said, "Listen, Elana… Don't carry the weight of everyone's expectations. Just fight like you always do. And if things get tough, you don't have to push yourself too hard."

Elana gave him a soft, warm smile. "Will you be happy if I win?"

Adrian let out a breath. "I… Yes, I will be."

"Then watch me win," she said, her voice full of quiet resolve, before turning and walking toward the arena.

"And now, joining us for the final match—please give it up for the captain of the Runebound team! She's known as the Frost Princess, and a returning participant from last year's tournament… Participant Elana!"

The crowd exploded.

Cheers, stomps, and chants filled the arena. The entire place buzzed with energy as Elana's name echoed from every corner.

It was obvious who the fan-favorite was.

Even though Runebound had been knocked out early last year, Elana had left a lasting impression. And that explained the massive crowd of fans that now rallied behind her.

"And who did we get from the other side?! The Blazing Princess of the Blackthorn, participant Averis!"

From the other side, the same girl who got into a small argument with Elana during the opening ceremony appeared.

Her expression was frosty as she carried her battle hammers behind her back.

Elana remained silent and so did Averis as they both stood facing each other.

Soon, the referee stepped forward and went through the rules. Neither of them asked any questions.

The referee stepped back and raised his hand before asking, "Participants, ready?"

Both girls nodded at the same time.

The referee took a deep breath and with his hand going down, he shouted, "BEGIN!"

The call was given, Averis charged forward with a roar, twin battle hammers gleaming in the light.

"Here she comes! The hammer maiden wastes no time!" the commentator shouted, voice full of excitement.

Elana didn't move.

At the last second—whoosh!—she leaned just enough to let the first hammer fly past her cheek, then spun around the second with elegance.

CRACK!

Her baton struck Averis's side.

The crowd gasped.

"And she scores first! A clean hit to the ribs!"

Averis growled. She turned fast, hammer swinging wide.

Elana ducked, flipped back, and struck both of Averis's wrists.

"She's aiming for control points! Those batons are like needles—fast, sharp, precise!"

Averis slammed both hammers into the ground.

BOOM!

The floor cracked.

Dust burst into the air—but when it settled, Elana was gone.

"Where—"

SMACK!

A baton jabbed Averis's back. She spun, but Elana was already to her left, baton gliding along her leg before popping her knee from the side.

"She's dancing around her like wind! It's speed versus strength—and speed's winning right now!"

The crowd was losing it.

"Go Elanaaa!"

"Come on, Averis, hit her once!"

Averis gritted her teeth and stepped forward, swinging hard.

This time—thud!—she clipped Elana's arm.

The crowd jumped.

But Elana twisted with the hit and used the momentum to twirl behind Averis, crossing both batons against her upper back.

WHACK!

Averis stumbled forward.

"She took that hit just to land two more! This girl's on another level!"

Breathing heavy, Averis charged again.

Elana leaned low, slid between her legs, and popped up behind her.

Two clean strikes—one to the back of the thigh, one to the shoulder.

Thud! Thud!

Averis dropped to one knee.

"Is that all you've got?" she growled, trying to stand.

Elana whispered, just loud enough for her to hear, "Not yet."

She ran forward—batons glowing faintly with frost.

A blur.

However, Averis was prepared this time.

She jumped back and slammed both hammers on the ground before magma exploded towards Elana.

The silver head was stunned and had to counter the spell right away with an ice wall instantly

However, the magma was too violent and hot for the ice wall to resist.

*SZZZZZZ*

Steam erupted as the magma swallowed the ice like hot knife on butter. However, Elana got enough time to back away and take a safe distance.

The crowd gasped as the magma began filling the arena and the two contestants once again stood while facing each other.

Averis wiped her bloodied lips before she said, "Thought I can deal with you without sorcery. Guess, I underestimated you."

Elana didn't say anything and crouched low.

The battle was about to take a massive turn.

°°°°°°°

A/N:- Thanks for reading.