Next Day - 2

He jolted awake, scared and covered in sweat, his body twitching in fear. The room was dark, the only light coming from the faint glow of the moon outside. His heart was pounding, and he could still feel the cold, sharp sensation of the sword piercing his chest from the nightmare.

With trembling lips, he whispered, "W-what was that…"

"That figure… who was that… why did I die, and why did he say those things?"

He struggled to form the words, his mind racing as he tried to make sense of the terrifying dream he had just experienced. His whole body trembled as he recalled the ominous figure that had thrust a sword into his chest, the pain still vividly etched in his memory.

"Huh? What's wrong? Why did you disturb my sleep?" Rie, who had been peacefully sleeping on his chest like a cat, was jolted awake by his sudden movement and found herself thrown down to the bed.

"I don't know… someone killed me in my dream…" he said, his voice shaky and filled with fear.

"You had a bad dream? Don't think about it too much. You're just a kid; it's normal to have scary dreams when you're stressed," Rie said, her tone indifferent but somehow comforting.

"Yeah… I think it was just a bad dream… a way too realistic bad dream… I never want another one like this…" Lloyd took a deep breath, trying to calm himself.

"Now, don't stay awake. You have a fight tomorrow. Your body needs rest," she said, her voice soothing and reassuring.

After her comforting words, he slowly lay back down, closing his eyes and trying to shake off the lingering fear. Rie, once again, curled up on his abdomen, her presence warm and comforting as she drifted back to sleep like a cat.

---

"That was a very odd and scary dream I had… It was much more realistic than any dream I've ever had. It almost felt like my chest was actually punctured by a sword. The pain… the sensation… the metallic smell of blood mixed with dirt… it was all too real…"

Lloyd couldn't help but dwell on the nightmare as he prepared for the day. The vividness of the dream was unsettling, making it difficult to focus on anything else. He tried to shake it off, but the fear and confusion lingered in the back of his mind.

Before his name was called to fight, he paced around, his thoughts consumed by the odd dream he had experienced. It was too real to ignore and too unsettling to dismiss. The sensation of the sword piercing his chest, the sight of the mysterious figure, and the cryptic words spoken haunted him.

"Ahh… it's getting distracting for no reason. Let's leave it…" he muttered to himself, frustrated by his inability to shake off the dream.

Lloyd groaned, unable to make sense of the dream. He decided to ignore it and dismiss it as just another odd dream, albeit a disturbingly realistic one.

[Participant H-55, Lloyd Hatzok, please arrive at the arena…]

When his turn came, Lloyd took a deep breath, steeling himself for the fight ahead. He got up and headed to the arena, where the noise of the crowd grew louder with each step. As he entered, the crowd erupted in cheers and roars of excitement, their energy palpable.

"Give us another good show, Hatzok boy!" the crowd shouted unanimously, their enthusiasm filling the arena.

Hearing their wishes, Lloyd couldn't help but smile. He nodded and greeted the crowd like a seasoned celebrity, waving and acknowledging their cheers.

At the referee's signal, the match began. Lloyd's opponent this time was a spearman with a peak three-star aura, a formidable adversary.

"Ain't it a bad match-up? Making me, a swordsman, fight a spearman without even providing a shield…" Lloyd said slyly, his eyes narrowing as he sized up his opponent.

The spearman smirked, twirling his weapon with practiced ease. "Let's see if you can disarm me,"

Lloyd tightened his grip on his sword, his focus sharpening. 

"You bet," Lloyd replied.

The fight began, and this time Lloyd decided to launch an offensive.

'A sword against a spear is really a bad match-up, but not for me. I can just overpower him if I want, but let's just play with skill instead of power,' he thought.

Technically speaking, a spear is superior to a sword without a shield. Not only would the swordsman be completely open to the spear and unable to defend himself well aside from parrying continuously, but the spear also offers greater range and defense. Since it concentrates all the force at one point, a single hit could be lethal.

And that was the kind of fight Lloyd found himself in.

Lloyd started attacking offensively, but the spearman defended himself by thrusting his spear in short distances, maintaining a solid defense.

Targeting Lloyd's upper body, the spearman didn't want to give him any space to push forward.

Keeping the spear between chest and neck level, the spearman made small advances, forcing Lloyd to back off and adopt a defensive stance.

'He's more skilled than I thought…' Lloyd murmured.

Despite the disadvantage, Lloyd remained calm, analyzing the spearman's movements. He knew a small opening from him would turn this match completely upside down. 

The spearman's technique was impressive. Each thrust was precise, aimed to keep Lloyd at bay. Lloyd's swordsmanship, however, was nothing to scoff at. He parried the attacks with skill, looking for an opening.

The crowd watched in anticipation, the tension in the arena visible. Lloyd knew he couldn't rely solely on brute force. He had to outthink his opponent.

Suddenly, Lloyd feinted an attack to the left, causing the spearman to shift his stance. In that brief moment, Lloyd saw his opportunity. With lightning speed, he redirected his sword and aimed a strike at the spearman's exposed side.

The spearman reacted quickly, but not quickly enough. Lloyd's blade grazed his opponent's side, drawing first blood. The crowd erupted in cheers, sensing a shift in momentum.

"You're good," the spearman admitted, gritting his teeth in pain. "But I won't go down that easily."

Lloyd smiled, his confidence growing. "Neither will I."

The spearman adjusted his grip, and the fight continued. Lloyd pressed his advantage, using his agility to dodge and counter the spear's thrusts. He was careful not to overextend himself. 

'Well, his spear is at least thrice the weight of my sword and it takes more power to move it if I continue like this I can wear him down enough to force an opening," 

With each passing second, Lloyd's strategy became clearer. He aimed to wear down his opponent, exploiting any weaknesses he could find. The spearman, realizing this, tried to end the fight quickly with powerful, sweeping strikes.

"Hermes' Spear!" The spear shone golden brightly enough to blind the person with an incredible amount of aura dripping from it. 

The spearman jumped up in the air and threw the spear at Lloyd with full muscle power. 

Lloyd, however, was prepared. He dashed to the left dodging the strike before it hit him.

*boom* *clatter* 

The spear hit the ground created a thunderous sound and shook the whole arena with earthquake-like tremors. The dust threw up in the arena as a result. 

"Holy shit! Did you want to kill me with that!" Lloyd's eyes almost popped out of the socket looking at the massive power it contained. 

The spearsman didn't take any time to retrieve the spear after failing to hit the target. 

But Lloyd didn't let that go unnoticed he dashed and closed the distance between them.

Just when his hand was an inch away from grabbing his spear he felt a cold metallic tip touching his Adam's apple. 

The crowd roared as Lloyd pointed his sword at his unarmed opponent. "Yield," he commanded.

The spearman, breathing heavily, looked at Lloyd and then at the crowd. After a moment of hesitation, he nodded. "I yield."

The referee stepped in, announcing Lloyd as the winner. The arena echoed with applause and cheers, the crowd thrilled by the intense and skilful fight they had witnessed.

Lloyd smiled, soaking in the admiration. 

*******

Ik ik My action scenes are pretty shit but I am trying to improve them! But your reviews are always appreciated. 

I need to buy a laptop because my PC is dead please donate anything is appreciated. 

Paypal: paypal.me/Un1que01

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