NOVPUBJulius was very glad he had fought Irene. He had learned a lot and could implement so many of her techniques into his own style. It helped that she had a fire affinity as well, which translated well to his own skill set.
He had never attempted to infuse his own mana into another person's construct like she had done. It was a brilliant technique, one that suited his talents very well. He had excellent mana control. Better than almost anyone he knew in Tier 3. However, in the past, he had been trying to use his willpower to influence an opponent's mana directly.
That was a silly oversight. Why would he do that when he could use the mana he had, which was already infused with his willpower? Mana had the tendency to stick to other mana, making it even easier.
All he needed to do was send a thread of his own mana toward his opponent's creations and integrate it just a little bit. It wouldn't take that much, and he didn't need to take it over, but if he could destabilize, that would be enough. 𝑛𝘰𝑣𝘱𝑢𝑏.𝘤𝑜𝘮
It was also a reason why Irene's beam of fire was a good attack. It wasn't something that was easily destabilized. The beam of fire wasn't like a construct. It didn't really have a physical form. It was just pure thermal energy compressed into a deadly beam of light.
Not to mention that it was ridiculously fast. The beam of light had barely left him any time to react. He might steal that particular attack from her. Actually, he might steal a lot of things from her. It was just too bad that her defenses weren't that robust.
The barrier she used to block his attacks was quite strong, but once he got through that, it was over. She had a movement skill, but it was just a fire version of [Flash Step]. She wasn't a warrior either, which meant she wasn't able to utilize the skill as well as he might have. She wasn't fast enough to avoid him when he anticipated her movements.
It wasn't as fun or exciting as the last fight, but he had technically gotten way more out of it. He already had so many ideas blooming in his head. If he could learn how to disrupt an opponent's constructs without having to rely on his ruinous aura, that would be really good.
His aura was nice, but it required him to already have the advantage before it could prevent them from activating their skills. However, if they were ready, his aura, no matter how strong, had to work for it.
This would simply let him get closer to that point. He believed that if he had this when he fought Liam, he would have had an easier time dealing with the ice constructs. He had always been a bit envious of other mages' skills that disrupted mana.
Although he could already tell that it was going to take some getting used to. Irene's skill was clearly pretty difficult to recreate, but he would still try to emulate it. He wasn't expecting it to be easy.
While the idea was quite simple in concept, the actual success relied on some hard work. A really good sense of mana was absolutely required. Otherwise, it was doomed from the start. How else was he supposed to spot the opening in the construct he could exploit?
Thankfully, he had that down. His mana senses were definitely better than most. It was hard to compare with other people, but he got the idea that his senses were usually not of the norm. He suspected that [Spatial Perception] had helped him immensely on this front.
Then came the demanding mana control. Just because he found the right doorway didn't mean he knew how to open the door. Since he didn't have a key, he would need to lockpick it until he gained entry. Something that required a level of finesse and skill. What he had done with Irene a few moments ago was something similar to using a battering ram to smash down her door.
Not a very elegant solution if he was being honest. He had just beaten her down with brute force. While it had worked, he didn't feel the need to continue this method. His mana control was one of his best qualities, and it would be a shame if he couldn't figure out a more discreet and efficient way.
It was also why he had even been somewhat successful on his first try. Just because he used brute force, it didn't mean there wasn't a level of skill involved. It still required him to carefully control his mana. Just not as carefully as Irene had done when she infiltrated his constructs.
His improved aura control had also helped in this process. It gave him the extra power he needed to break through.
Aubrey might be a perfect training partner if he needed one. Her clones were a mana construct or at least something pretty close to it. He didn't see a reason why he couldn't use this idea to deal with her clones.
However, it would probably have to wait until the end of the tournament. He was officially in the top four. Not only him, either. Aubrey and, likely, Derek were going to be joining him. Unfortunately, Edgar wasn't a part of that as well. It would have been nice if all four of them had taken the spots.
The achievement didn't feel as impressive as he probably should have thought it was, but it was hard to get excited when he was beating students whom he believed never had a chance. He was much more excited that he had learned so much. There was such a wide variety of skills and abilities that he was exposed to some amazing things.
He wasn't a sit-at-a-desk type of learner, either. He loved to experience something with his bare hands, which helped him retain the information better.
With a happy smile on his face, he went over to his opponent. Irene was still catching her breath and he patiently waited until she got it back. However, it didn't seem like she was in the mood for chatting with him and the moment she could get up, she walked in the opposite direction.
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He couldn't blame her though. Not everyone could be a good sport about losing. Especially when it was against someone younger than her.
He had learned that almost every noble student had a bit of their own pride. It didn't matter what family they came from; they all had their own tendencies and ego. Of course, some were worse than others, but it was a common theme.
Not seeing a reason to stick around any longer, he left towards his own tunnel. The cheers of the crowd no longer disturbed him and with a soft nod of appreciation for their zeal, he went to meet with the others.
***
Derek won his match quite easily, to nobody's surprise. However, he suspected that many people were half expecting another wildcard to appear and take him down.
After the match, they had a little celebration for all of them. Cake was included.
He had promised to hang out with his other friends as well. Speaking of them, he was glad to see that Polux had made it to the top four as well. Unfortunately, Joshua hadn't won his previous match, but he still made a good showing of himself. He had been one of the few first years even in the top sixteen for the Tier 2 tournament. The only other people, being Polux and Helen Cromweld, who, in all honesty, were likely to win the entire thing.
He had seen her recent fight against a strong second-year. She did not have any trouble winning, and it was obvious, at least to his eyes, that she was holding back some of her strength.
"Do you think I have a chance against her?" Polux suddenly asked him as they hung out in a training room.
Julius turned to look at the first-year wolfkin. Polux was normally never outwardly anxious, but there was some unease in his aura. However, Julius wasn't the type of person to lie to someone just because it might spare their feelings.
"I don't know. But I believe if you end up fighting her in the final match, there is a good chance you lose," he said straightforwardly.
"Is there anything I can do that might help increase my chances?"
"Not really. At least nothing you could achieve in a single day. From the looks of it, she is an extremely versatile fighter, which means she doesn't have many weaknesses," he told Polux. The other boy should know this as well.
Her style of fighting was eerily similar to Julius's. She leaned more toward being a close combat fighter, but could easily switch to a mage-focused role. Her entire skill set revolved around her handling everything for herself.
He was certain that she had a really good focus skill as well. Her ability to remain calm under any circumstances was too impressive not to be. She was also similar to him because she had a fire affinity as her primary means of offense. She also bore a weaker wind affinity that she liked to use to enhance her fire attacks and increase her speed.
The main difference was that she focused more on evasion, whereas Julius's abilities really allowed him to take a beating with his healing skill and even his other skills. Still, she was quite impressive for a Tier 2.
"How should I fight her?" Polux asked.
"Shouldn't you focus more on tomorrow's match? You won't have to face her if you lose tomorrow," he reminded Polux.
"I think I have a good shot at beating my opponent tomorrow. Most of his defenses are mana-based, and you know already that most of my attacks rely on aura. Also, I have watched his previous matches. He seems to struggle more with instinctual close combat fighters. He has the strength, but from what I have seen, his speed is going to let him down."
Julius nodded in agreement with his assessment. The boy Polux would be facing tomorrow was the same person who had defeated Joshua earlier. He had a solid foundation and abilities, but it was also clear that he was a little too rigid.
The only time Joshua had put him on the back foot was when Joshua started to try outlandish ideas. However, when Joshua tried to use his standard swordsmanship to fight, it didn't end very well.
His opponent hadn't been very fast, but he firmly held his position and beat Joshua back until he found the perfect moment to end the fight.
Polux, on the other hand, was a fighter who relied heavily on his instincts and aura senses. He could sense weaknesses in his opponents like a shark sensing blood in the water. He then used his superior speed to punish these weaknesses. He was also very durable and more cunning than he looked.
This combination of factors made Polux a dangerous opponent, and it was a good matchup against tomorrow's opponent. Julius was actually quite confident that Polux would win despite his stated worries. The only problem was that Helen wouldn't be that easy to beat.
She had the speed to keep up and more. Her perception was quite good and he doubted she would be taken off guard by Polux's tricks. She also had phenomenal firepower backing her, making her constantly a threat no matter the distance between her and her opponent.
However, Julius did note a couple of things from her fight.
"If you ever get into a direct conflict, she has the tendency to use her fire mana to burn her opponents. If you can, don't scrap too long with her unless you believe you can hurt her. It would just weaken your own position the more you prolong it. Get in fast and hit like a bull."
"Anything else?" Polux asked, looking grateful for his words.
"I don't know if she is doing it on purpose to fool whoever's watching, but her long-range attacks take a lot of her attention. If you can somehow catch her off guard, this would probably be the time to do it," Julius added.
Polux grinned widely at Julius. "Thanks!"
"You're welcome," he said with a slight smirk of his own.
"What are you two talking about?" Tia asked, walking over with the others in tow.
"He's giving me advice on how I might deal with Helen Cromweld," Polux said to her.
"Oh, don't worry about that. You are going to do great. Just give it your all, and you will win," she supported him with a nod.
Polux turned to look at Julius. "See what I mean? I need someone who's not afraid of telling me I am outmatched."
Tia placed her hand on her hips. "You really want me to tell you that? That just sounds like a bad friend. I am trying to support you here."
"Yeah, but I also need real solutions to win against her. Words and cheers can only get me so far."
"Well, here's a strategy. Hit her harder than she hits you."
Polux rolled his eyes. "Thanks. Real helpful, Tia."
"I know, that is just how I am," Tia said sarcastically.
Julius chuckled as they continued to bicker. As much as he wanted to go and train, he stopped himself and let himself relax. For the moment, he just enjoyed the time with his friends.
