Chapter 792 – Impulse [Part 2]

The Wrath noble threw another heavy strike.

Lux sidestepped.

And this time... He struck.

Not flashy.

Not dramatic.

A clean palm strike to the stomach.

Perfect timing.

Right at the breath disruption window.

[Critical Hit!]

The Wrath noble’s eyes widened.

Air left his lungs violently.

Lux followed immediately, short elbow to the jaw.

Controlled.

Precise.

The larger demon staggered.

Dropped to one knee.

The arena fell quiet.

Lux stepped back.

Hands relaxed at his sides.

Breathing steady.

Not even slightly winded.

The Wrath noble tried to rise.

Failed.

Coughed.

The Envy field wavered for half a second.

Lux looked down at his opponent calmly. "You overcommit," he said quietly. "And you lead with your right shoulder."

No arrogance.

Just observation.

Then he looked up at the others.

"Next?"

Casual.

Almost bored.

The Wrath noble was still coughing behind him, pride punctured, lungs offended. The Envy field around the arena rippled like something embarrassed on his behalf. The other demons shifted uncomfortably. No one liked seeing brute force dismantled clinically. It felt... impersonal. Like being audited.

And Lux?

He was already calculating exit strategies.

[Artifact Resonance: Increasing.]

[Estimated Time Window: Narrowing.]

’Yeah, yeah. I know,’ Lux muttered internally. ’I’m multitasking.’

A slow clap echoed from the edge of the arena.

Measured.

Deliberate.

Unimpressed.

Lux turned his head slightly.

Of course.

Pride.

Tall. Elegant. Hair silver and immaculate like it had never known sweat. A long coat embroidered in gold sigils shimmered faintly as he stepped forward. His boots didn’t make a sound against the emerald floor.

"Hand to hand is dull," he said smoothly. "We are not animals."

Lux tilted his head.

’Debatable.’

The Pride demon stepped into the arena. His aura didn’t press like Wrath’s. It gleamed. Radiant. Polished. A blade in social form.

"My name," he continued, voice carrying without effort, "is Arctyros Valencrest."

Something that long had to belong to Pride.

"I demand a proper duel," Arctyros said, eyes locking onto Lux. "With skills."

The nobles murmured in approval.

Yes.

This was better.

Spectacle.

Status.

Proof.

Lux inhaled slowly.

Skills meant noise. Noise meant time.

Time meant risk.

But also...

Ending this decisively might collapse the ego theater faster.

He shrugged lightly.

"Fine."

Arctyros smiled like someone who had just been handed a stage.

He lifted his hand.

Golden light coiled around his fingers and condensed into a weapon, an elegant spear of radiant infernal steel, etched with glowing runes along the shaft. The blade shimmered, edges humming faintly as if slicing air simply by existing.

Showoff.

Lux rolled his shoulders once, stretching his neck.

[High-Grade Pride Armament Detected.]

[Weapon Classification: Runed Authority Spear.]

[Projected Damage Output: Severe.]

’Noted.’

Vira leaned forward slightly in her seat, wine forgotten again.

Now this?

This was interesting.

Lux felt the Envy field shift, feeding off anticipation. Spectacle raised emotional volatility. Good for her.

Bad for efficiency.

Arctyros twirled the spear once, the motion elegant and unnecessary. "Try to keep up, Vaelthorn."

Lux exhaled slowly. ’I hate that tone.’

"Don’t trip on your cape," Lux replied lazily.

The arena flared.

Arctyros moved first.

Not a lunge like Wrath.

A glide.

His spear sliced forward in a blur of golden arcs, the blade carving light into the air. Each strike left afterimages that detonated half a second later, small bursts of concussive force exploding where Lux had been standing.

Lux activated Shadow Step.

He vanished.

Reappeared two meters to the left.

The delayed detonations ripped through empty air, emerald stone cracking in clean fractures.

Gasps echoed from the sidelines.

Arctyros spun smoothly, already anticipating the reposition.

The spear thrust again.

This time faster.

Lux ducked, the blade grazing just above his shoulder. He felt the heat of it, the authority woven into the runes.

Arctyros followed through, pivoting seamlessly into a sweeping arc aimed at Lux’s ribs.

Lux activated Shadow Step again.

Gone.

Behind him.

Arctyros twisted mid-rotation, spear reversing in a backward stab that narrowly missed Lux’s abdomen.

’Annoying,’ Lux thought.

This one was clean.

Disciplined.

Precise.

[Opponent: High Control Combatant.]

[Primary Advantage: Weapon Reach + Rune Delays.]

[Emotional State: Stable Pride Elevation.]

Lux circled slowly now, letting the spear carve air between them.

Arctyros lifted his weapon, runes flaring brighter.

Golden sigils burst outward in a circular wave.

Lux felt the force coming before it hit.

He Shadow Stepped again, blinking out as the shockwave tore across the arena floor, cracking stone in a spiderweb pattern.

Reappearing above.

Yes.

Above.

Lux dropped from mid-air, landing lightly behind Arctyros.

The Pride demon spun, spear sweeping upward in a defensive spiral.

Lux leaned back just enough to avoid decapitation.

Close.

Very close.

And something inside Lux shifted slightly.

Not anger.

Not excitement.

Annoyance.

’You’re making me work.’

Arctyros smirked.

"Running suits you."

Lux’s lips curved faintly.

’Time to make this shorter.’

He exhaled slowly.

[Velvet Marionette Dominion Activated.]

Invisible threads slipped from Lux’s aura, thin as breath, soft as silk.

They didn’t flash.

They didn’t glow.

They drifted.

Attached.

Arctyros lunged again, spear thrusting with blinding speed.

Lux stepped aside.

Let the threads brush against the Pride demon’s forearm.

Nothing happened.

Not yet.

The threads embedded deeper.

Lux circled.

Arctyros pressed forward relentlessly, spear strikes forming a beautiful pattern of violence.

Each impact shattered stone.

Each swing was clean, theatrical.

And Lux?

He wasn’t counterattacking.

He was letting the threads settle.

Sink.

Bind.

[Thread Link Established: Partial.]

[Motor Disruption Potential: 14%.]

Arctyros thrust again.

Lux ducked and tapped his wrist lightly.

Threads tightened.

The spear’s trajectory shifted half an inch.

Just enough.

The blade almost grazed Lux’s jacketless shoulder instead of piercing through.

Arctyros blinked.

Subtle.

But there.

Lux felt the connection strengthen.

He smiled faintly.

Arctyros attacked again, this time with a flourish, spear spinning in a vertical arc meant to corner Lux.

Lux stepped in.

Closer than expected.

Their faces inches apart.

Arctyros’s eyes flashed with superiority.

Lux whispered softly, "You’re overextending."

Threads tightened.

Arctyros’s left knee faltered slightly mid-spin.

Just a tremor.

Barely visible.

But enough.

Lux pivoted, palm striking Arctyros’s elbow joint.

The spear wavered.

Gasps from the audience.

Arctyros snarled and activated a rune burst, golden light exploding outward in a blinding flare.