The announcer’s voice echoed through the Colosseum vibrating the glass of the VIP suites.

"Match Thirty One. Glen Mcdonald versus Silas Vance."

Glen walked out of the dark tunnel and stepped onto the sunlit sand. The crowd immediately began to boo. They had seen him defeat Kaelen Vance but the official guild narrative had spun the victory as a fluke a desperate trick pulled off by a cheating slum rat.

Glen ignored the noise. He drew his new weapon. The massive pitch black longsword felt incredibly heavy in his hands a solid block of unbreakable A Class metal. It did not glow. It did not hum with magic. It was just pure brutal mass.

Standing across the arena was Silas Vance. He was a B Class Rune Knight from the Astra Guild. Unlike the brute force Berserkers of the Valor Guild Silas relied on cutting edge mana technology. He wore a sleek suit of silver armor covered in glowing blue runes. In his hands he held a long elegant halberd that crackled with frost magic.

Up in the VIP suite Elias Vance stood next to Vane the Eden researcher.

"Silas is a tactical fighter" Elias said his voice tight with lingering anger. "His armor is inscribed with kinetic reflection runes. If the Mimic tries to punch him or use that dark armor again the kinetic force will be reflected right back to him."

Vane smiled his black eyes fixed on Glen. "Let us see if the boy has what it takes to be so arrogant."

Down in the arena the mechanical chime signaled the start of the match.

Silas did not charge. He spun his frost halberd tapping the butt of the weapon against the sand. A wave of ice spread outward freezing the arena floor and creating a slippery hazardous terrain.

"I studied your matches Mimic" Silas called out his voice echoing with smug confidence. "You rely on raw physical speed and close quarters brawling. But you cannot run on ice and you cannot punch through reflection. You are out of your element kid."

Glen rested the heavy black longsword on his shoulder. He looked at the frozen ground and then at the glowing runes on Silas’s armor.

"You Astra Guild guys talk way too much" Glen sighed.

Glen did not activate Lightning Movement. He did not want to slip on the ice and he did not need to waste his mana. He simply walked forward his boots crunching against the frozen sand.

Silas frowned. He raised his halberd channeling a massive amount of frost mana into the blade. "If you will not run, then do not blame me for freezing you solid. Glacial Pierce."

Silas thrust the halberd forward launching a massive jagged spear of solid ice directly at Glen’s chest. The projectile moved with terrifying speed the air freezing around it. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Glen did not dodge. He gripped the hilt of his black longsword with both hands and swung it in a brutal upward arc.

He did not use a skill. He just used his Level 15 physical strength and the sheer unbreakable mass of the A Class metal.

The black blade slammed into the incoming ice spear. The heavy metal did not chip. It did not freeze. It simply shattered the magical ice into a thousand harmless glittering fragments that rained down on the arena floor.

Silas’s eyes widened in shock. "What kind of sword is that? It has no mana signature."

"Focus on the fight Vance," Glen smiled continuing his slow steady walk forward.

Silas panicked. He unleashed a rapid barrage of ice spears thrusting his halberd over and over again. Glen deflected them all swinging the massive black sword with fluid brutal efficiency. Every impact sent a shockwave through the air but Glen did not slow down.

He closed the distance stepping within striking range of the Rune Knight.

"You fool" Silas shouted bracing his stance. "My armor reflects kinetic energy. If you hit me with that sword your arms will shatter."

Glen stopped. He looked at the glowing blue runes covering Silas’s silver chest plate. The runes were pulsing ready to absorb and reflect any physical impact.

"Who said anything about hitting you with the sword?" Glen said his dark eyes locking onto Silas.

Glen lowered the black longsword letting the tip rest on the ice. He raised his empty left hand. He focused his mind reaching deep into his mutated spiritual core and tapping into the microscopic fragment of The Lost he had devoured the day before.

He activated Void Touch.

Glen stepped forward and gently tapped his bare index finger against the center of Silas’s glowing silver chest plate.

The effect was instantaneous and absolutely terrifying.

A sickening hiss echoed through the arena. A patch of dead gray rust bloomed from the exact point where Glen’s finger touched the metal. The rust spread with unnatural speed devouring the pristine silver armor in a fraction of a second.

The glowing blue kinetic reflection runes flickered violently and died their magical energy completely erased by the demonic anti mana.

Silas gasped stumbling backward. He looked down at his chest. The incredibly expensive high tech Astra Guild armor was crumbling into brittle gray dust falling away from his body like dead skin.

"My armor" Silas screamed dropping his halberd and frantically brushing at the decaying metal. "What did you do? What is this?"

The crowd in the stadium fell completely silent. They had never seen anything like it. Magic was supposed to clash with magic. It was not supposed to just rot away into nothingness.

Up in the VIP suite Vane leaned against the glass his black eyes wide with morbid delight. "Fascinating. He has perfectly integrated the anti mana into his physical strikes. He will make a wonderful specimen."

Down in the arena Silas was left standing in his padded undergarments his ultimate defense completely erased from existence. He looked up at Glen his smug confidence replaced by absolute primal terror.

Glen picked up his heavy black longsword. He did not smile. He looked at the terrified Rune Knight with cold calculating indifference.

"You rely too much on the mana" Glen said echoing the exact words Evander Buchanan had used just a few minutes earlier. "And not enough on your own foundation."

Glen swung the flat side of the heavy black blade striking Silas squarely in the ribs.

Without his armor to absorb the impact the B Class rookie was launched off his feet flying twenty yards across the ice before crashing into the boundary wall. He slumped to the ground completely unconscious.

"Match Thirty One Winner" the announcer stammered clearly unnerved by the bizarre display. "Glen Mcdonald."

Glen rested the sword on his shoulder and turned toward the VIP suites. He found the window where Elias Vance and the Eden researcher were standing. He did not give them a thumbs up this time. He just stared at them letting them process exactly what they had just witnessed.

The F Rank Mimic could not just steal skills anymore. He could erase their weapons. He could rot their armor. He was becoming something the system could not control.