Chapter 571: The Blade of Misdirection
Chapter 571: The Blade of Misdirection
The Aspect Demonstration arena looked different from the combat platforms. Smaller. More intimate. A circular stage surrounded by tiered seating that put the audience close enough to smell your sweat.
Which was unfortunate because I was sweating a lot.
"Competitors will be evaluated on three criteria," Professor Hanae announced from her elevated judge’s platform. "Power output. Control. Creativity. Each demonstration will last no longer than three minutes. Scoring is based on a scale of one hundred."
Fifty competitors. Fifty demonstrations. Fifty chances for someone to notice that my registered Aspect made zero sense compared to what I’d shown all day.
"You’re nervous."
Isabelle stood beside me in the competitor’s staging area. Her spear rested against her shoulder. Her wine-red eyes watched the first demonstration with detached interest.
"I’m not nervous."
"Your left hand is twitching."
I stopped my left hand from twitching.
"Strategic concern. Different thing."
"If you say so."
The first competitor was a Sentinel. Water manipulation. She created a sphere the size of a beach ball and held it suspended for thirty seconds before dissolving it into mist. The judges gave her a seventy-two.
"Boring," Isabelle said.
"Functional."
"Same thing."
The demonstrations continued. Fire users created pretty shapes. Earth movers built temporary sculptures. Enhancement types punched targets and measured the impact. Standard stuff. Nothing that would make anyone question the nature of reality.
My turn approached like an execution date.
"Satori Nakano," the announcer called. "Onyx Hounds. Registered Aspect: Thermal Incision. Threat Level: C-Rank with A-Rank potential."
I walked onto the stage. The spotlights hit me like accusations. Twenty thousand faces watched from the stands. Cameras captured every angle.
The demonstration targets sat arranged in a semicircle. Metal plates. Stone blocks. Reinforced dummies designed to measure damage output.
Thermal Incision.
My official cover story. The ability to generate and project heat in concentrated beams. Useful for cutting through obstacles. Dangerous at close range. Nothing special.
The problem was that I’d spent all day absorbing lightning and tanking void damage and moving faster than any C-Rank should manage. The judges weren’t stupid. The audience had watched my fights.
If I demonstrated a simple heat beam now, questions would follow.
If I demonstrated anything else, bigger questions would follow.
"Begin when ready," Professor Hanae said.
I raised my hand toward the first target.
The Dragon Witch’s Ring pulsed on my finger. Heat gathered in my palm. Red light bloomed between my fingers.
I released.
The beam carved through the metal plate like it was tissue paper. Clean. Focused. Exactly what a Thermal Incision user should produce.
Boring. Functional. Same thing.
I moved to the second target. Stone this time. Harder material.
The heat beam took longer but achieved the same result. A neat hole punched through three feet of solid rock.
Third target. Reinforced training dummy.
I changed my approach. Instead of a beam, I let the heat radiate outward in waves. The dummy’s surface blackened. Smoke rose from the impact points.
"Fifteen seconds remaining."
I needed something impressive. Something that showed A-Rank potential without revealing S-Rank capabilities.
Think.
The heat gathered in both hands now. I drew it together. Compressed it. Shaped it into something more than a simple beam.
A blade.
Thermal energy condensed into a sword-length projection extending from my right palm. It glowed orange-white at the core. The air around it shimmered with distortion.
I swung.
All three remaining targets split in half simultaneously. Clean cuts. No resistance.
The crowd went silent.
Then they exploded.
"TIME! Satori Nakano’s demonstration is complete!"
I let the heat blade dissipate. My hand throbbed from the energy output. The Dragon Witch’s Ring cooled against my skin.
The judges conferred. Numbers appeared on the display board.
Ninety-four.
Second highest score of the day. Just below Reyna’s ninety-six from her lightning demonstration.
Close enough to be impressive. Not close enough to raise too many questions.
Perfect.
"That was restrained," Isabelle said when I returned to the staging area.
"Strategic."
"You could have scored higher."
"Higher would have been suspicious."
"You’re already suspicious. You absorbed lightning on national television."
"Different discipline. Aspect demonstrations are about registered abilities. Today’s fights could be attributed to unregistered secondary effects."
"Could they?"
"If people want to believe it badly enough."
Isabelle made a sound that might have been agreement or might have been skepticism. Hard to tell with her.
The demonstrations continued. More fire. More ice. More enhancement. Julian Valerius demonstrated his Quantum Disruption to scattered applause and a score of eighty-seven.
He looked at me from across the staging area. His eyes promised violence.
"He’s going to try something during the tactical challenge," I said.
"Obviously."
"Any suggestions?"
"Don’t die."
"Helpful."
"I try."
The final demonstration ended. Scores were tallied. Rankings were posted.
I’d finished second in Event Four. Reyna first. Me second. Isabelle third.
Four events down. Two remaining.
"ATTENTION COMPETITORS! EVENT FIVE BEGINS IN FORTY-FIVE MINUTES! THE TACTICAL CHALLENGE! PLEASE REPORT TO THE BRIEFING ROOM FOR TEAM ASSIGNMENTS!"
The tactical challenge. Random teammates from different guilds. Leadership under pressure.
And Julian Valerius with his broken hand and his burning hatred.
This was going to be interesting.
The briefing room was a converted classroom deep in the arena’s administrative section. Fluorescent lights hummed overhead. Metal chairs arranged in rows. A holographic display at the front showing the challenge parameters.
"Teams will be assigned randomly," Commander Valerius announced from the podium. Julian’s father. The resemblance was obvious. Same golden hair. Same aristocratic bearing. Same smug certainty that the world existed to serve their convenience.
"Each team will consist of five competitors. Team leaders will be determined by cumulative point totals. The challenge itself is a modified capture-the-flag scenario. Each team must defend their own objective while attempting to capture their opponent’s."
The holographic display showed a map. Urban environment. Multiple buildings. Lots of vertical space and choke points.
"Random assignment begins now."
Names scrolled across the display. Guild affiliations. Point totals. Team compositions.
I watched my name appear.
Team Seven.
Leader: Satori Nakano (Onyx Hounds)
Member: Julian Valerius (Argent Sentinels)
Member: Derek Diaz (Cobalt Vipers)
Member: Maria Santos (Scarlet Phantoms)
Member: Pei Wei (Azure Dragons)
Julian’s name. On my team.