Lumi, especially after receiving Zephyrion’s deadpan stare, finally stopped waving and turned toward her opponent. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

Every trace of warmth vanished from her eyes, replaced entirely by chilling coldness.

Draven was imposing, standing at nearly six foot five. His massive rippling muscles and broad frame made him resemble a giant. He grinned down at Lumi as though staring at something insignificant beneath him.

"Puny little thing... damn, you got unlucky getting paired with me." Draven flexed his massive arms with a grin. "Unfortunately for you, these fists don’t discriminate. Size, gender, age... everybody gets equal rights."

Lumi said nothing.

"Begin!"

"Hah!"

Draven exploded forward with terrifying momentum. Despite his enormous frame, he appeared before Lumi almost instantly, his fists barreling violently through the air.

Whoosh!

His fists blasted through empty air, dust erupting across the arena in violent bursts.

"Huh?"

Draven frowned deeply as he whipped his head around, only to find Lumi standing calmly at the opposite side of the arena.

His gaze narrowed sharply.

"Hm. So you’re fast, huh?" Draven rolled his neck with a scoff. "Heh... good. I can move fast too."

A sharp metallic ripple echoed throughout the arena.

Then, like waves spreading across water, silver rapidly extended outward from the center of Draven’s forehead, engulfing his body in an instant.

Zephyrion’s eyes sharpened slightly.

This wasn’t armor. It was his actual skin.

’The Hartvain rune art.’

From what Zephyrion remembered, the Hartvains possessed the ability to grant their skin metallic properties.

Members of their house were essentially living tanks. Still, Zephyrion could tell this was only one facet of the rune art.

As his gaze met Lumi’s, he subtly shook his head.

Lumi gave the faintest nod in response.

"Here I come!"

Draven kicked off the ground with such force that the arena trembled violently, cracks racing across the floor in all directions. His fists tore toward Lumi with even greater force than before.

Lumi shifted sharply to the side, the fist splitting past her by inches.

But Draven’s eyes flashed instantly.

"It’s not over!"

He closed the distance again with another explosive burst of speed. His fists erupted forward like torrential bombardments, unleashing a relentless barrage of strikes all at once.

Lumi’s movements were sharp and abrupt. Her stance shifted constantly as she weaved effortlessly through every attack.

The two figures blurred throughout the arena at astonishing speed, dull booms and sharp whistles echoing endlessly across the coliseum.

The entire arena had fallen silent.

Every eye stared wide at the unfolding scene.

She was... holding her own?

Above, City Lord Borric’s eyes had narrowed deeply. Even the other city lords stared on in visible shock.

How could she move so expertly?

More importantly, Draven was bombarding her with relentless attacks, yet her expression hadn’t changed in the slightest. She didn’t even appear to be exerting herself.

"Is running all you can do!?"

Frustrated, Draven abruptly halted his barrage before glaring at Lumi furiously.

"Fine..." he exhaled heavily, steam bursting from his nostrils. "You asked for this."

"Full Metal Skin!"

A sharp hum echoed throughout the arena.

Another ripple spread outward from the center of Draven’s forehead. The silver coating his skin deepened and thickened, radiating an overwhelming sense of force. Sunlight reflected off his body in harsh metallic flares.

It was as though he had become entirely metallic.

Draven suddenly stepped forward.

The force of that single step alone shattered the ground beneath him and caused the arena to tremble violently.

"Now..." A cold grin spread across his face. "...let’s see you dodge this one, little ghost."

The ground several meters behind him exploded apart as he blasted forward.

As he appeared before Lumi, his fist descended with such overwhelming force that violent gales erupted outward from the strike.

Many spectators shot to their feet instantly.

That speed. That power.

There was no doubt about it. If that attack landed, it was over.

Yet Lumi’s world slowed.

As she glanced back, her eyes suddenly met Zephyrion’s. Countless calculations flickered within his gaze. Then his eyes flashed faintly. He blinked once before giving her a subtle nod.

Lumi turned forward once more.

Motion returned instantly.

The fist was inches away from her face one moment. The next, metal aura flowed effortlessly through her body as her stance shifted. She moved slightly aside, the fist tearing past her.

Before Draven could react, Lumi suddenly seized his massive arm and twisted sharply.

Draven’s enormous body was lifted from the ground instantly.

Despite her comparatively small frame, Lumi stepped forward powerfully, the arena floor shattering beneath her feet.

Then, in one smooth motion, she hurled him completely out of the arena.

"IMPOSSIBLE!"

Borric shot to his feet, his eyes widening to their absolute limits. Beside him, the other city lords stared at the scene in utter disbelief.

Draven Hartvain... a primary descendant of the Hartvains... had been defeated just like that?

And by this unknown girl?

"Just who is that girl... and why the hell haven’t we heard about her before?"

But it was Ociden who answered.

"She’s the mute that came back with the young lord." Ociden’s eyes narrowed toward Zephyrion. "One of his people."

A sharp glint flickered within Ociden’s gaze. He had known about Lumi from the very beginning, yet even he had never imagined she possessed this level of strength.

Her appearance was far too deceptive.

Yet Borric still seemed utterly incapable of accepting reality.

"It’s impossible! He’s a Hartvain!" Borric barked out furiously. "There’s no damn way he loses to some tiny little thing like that! She cheated! She definitely did some sneaky—"

"Ah, can you shut the fuck up already?"

"What...?"

Borric turned sharply toward the voice, only to find Garrick staring at him with obvious irritation.

"Cheated this, cheated that. Are you a fucking idiot?" Garrick shook his head before lazily gesturing toward Kastor, who sat silently above them. "The Head of Calderalth is sitting right there and you’re still barking about cheating. What? You think that old monster’s blind?"

Borric’s anger evaporated almost instantly.

"No, I—"

"And besides..." Garrick clicked his tongue. "I thought you Hartvains at least had some balls. But you can’t even admit defeat when it’s this obvious?

Borric clenched his fists.

"Bu-"

"Tch. Forget it." Garrick waved him off with disgust. "Just tie a ribbon on your head and start calling yourself Lady Borric already."