Who's the man behind the mask?¹

"Huff, huff," panting, Jason slowly stood up. He looked at the arrow that was embedded in his ribs and pulled it out. He winced, and blood dripped from his wound. He looked at Elizabeth, who was also panting and bleeding. She looked at him with a cold and determined expression.

'Damn, she's tough. To think she would try to injure me so badly when I was just trying to appreciate nature's creation by copping a feel! I need to end this quickly!'

Jason thought as he dropped his sword on the ground. He clasped his palms together, and closed his eyes concentrating on his fire element, and drew out all the essence of nature around him.

He felt the heat in his body rising, and his blood boiling feeling a terrifying and deep red thing slowly forming in his hands, as he slowly released them, showcasing what it was.

"Hahh,"

"What?"

"Is that?"

Shocked gasps of surprise could be heard from the crowd, as the audience saw the unveiling of what was in Jason's hand.

It looked like a seed that slowly formed into a flower, slowly revealing its petals. But this was not a normal flower. This was a pure flower condensed from his fire essence. This was the skill known as the "flame petal of destruction."

Jason's face paled, as he seemed to have overdrawn his essence. He had mastered this skill slightly, but he hadn't used it previously, because it was a skill he had not perfected.

It was a skill that had a high risk and a high reward. It could destroy anything in its path, but it could also destroy the user if the user wasn't careful.

He looked at his opponent Elizabeth, as he sent forth the attack, collapsing to the floor. His consciousness slowly faded.

Elizabeth frowned deeply, as she felt the fear of losing hovering over her. She grasped her whip, and quickly condensed multiple water and ice shields. She hoped this would be enough to withstand the attack and survive.

"Absolute zero," she activated her unique ice skill she had mastered condensing the air around her into a thick rich of ice, she also tried using it to condense the essence of the flames.

She could lower the temperature of anything she touched, and freeze it instantly by using the absolute zero skill.

But it was too late, all all her plans failed. The flame petal split its petals into strings of flames, as each one attacked Elizabeth and her shields.

The shields, although strong, were unable to withstand the destructive prowess of the flame petals. The flame petals burned through the shields, and reached Elizabeth. She felt a searing pain, as the flames engulfed her.

The referee intervened before the attack could get the better of her.

He used his earth element and created a wall of rocks between Elizabeth and the flame petals. He then used his wind element and blew away the remaining flames.

"Jason wins," the referee announced.

Jason was carried to the infirmary, to receive treatment. He was unconscious, but still breathing. He had won the match, but at a great cost, at the cost of not being able to cop a feel! This made Jason truly sad.

Elizabeth was also carried to the infirmary, to receive treatment. She was conscious but badly injured. She did look happy because she had lost the match in the end.

The crowd was silent, as they witnessed the aftermath of the match. They had just seen a display of incredible skills and abilities and they all realised that this was unlike the previous matches! This is the final of the tournament!

"The matches so far have been exciting. We'll take a thirty-minute break, everyone, as the contestants and the audience need some time to recover. Please stay tuned for the next matches, and thank you for your support," said the first elder, as he addressed the crowd. He looked at the stage and sighed. 'The students this year are truly strong.'

The dark lord and the masked dude were called to the arena after the thirty-minute break had elapsed. They were the third-ranked fighters from Group A and Group B, respectively. They had both impressed the crowd with their skills and abilities, especially their mastery of the darkness element, which was a rare and powerful element.

They both stood up from their seats almost at the same time and jumped onto the ring. They landed with a thud, and dust rose from the ground. They looked at each other a little before withdrawing their weapons.

The dark lord took out his staff, which was made of black metal and had a skull on its top. He held it in his right hand and pointed it at his opponent. He said in a low voice, "I heard you also use the darkness element. Let's see who can use it better."

The masked dude didn't reply. He only brought out his weapon, which was a sword that had a curved blade and a dark sheen. He held it in his left hand and swung it lightly. A dark aura slowly spread on his sword, and a faint whisper could be heard from it.

"Match begin," announced the referee, who was standing on the side of the ring.

The dark lord and the masked dude didn't even bow towards each other, and immediately attacked.

Darkness bloomed, as the light around the stage turned dark. It seemed like day all around the world, but with the exception of the stage. The stage was engulfed in a shadowy mist, and only the silhouettes of the fighters could be seen.

The dark lord pointed his staff, as he condensed an orb filled with the darkness elemental essence. He launched the orb towards the masked dude, hoping to hit him with a surprise attack. The orb flew through the air, leaving behind a trail of black smoke.

The masked dude created an earth shield, and blocked the attack. He used his earth element to create a solid and sturdy defense. The orb hit the earth shield, and exploded. The earth shield cracked, but it didn't break.