Void Evolution System
chapter-1717

"August Void."

Eris said his name with a nod as she landed in front of him.

"Should I say I've been looking forward to our meeting?"

August shook his head with a wry smile.

"It probably isn't for the right reasons, so I'd prefer if you didn't," he responded.

They'd come for a duel, so it wasn't like they were going to start fighting immediately. Still, it wasn't easy to make small talk when they weren't on the friendliest of terms.

They stood there, neither willing to make the first move before the other was prepared.

The duel they tried to have was ruined by a third party.

Eris had practically lost all of her control over their army. Everyone listened to Wilhelm, because he had a charisma that they couldn't avoid being sucked into.

Eris definitely had more of a chance to bring them to victory, but Wilhelm made them feel like winners. To these young geniuses who more often than not hadn't lived long enough to develop some sense, the latter was far more appealing.

They shared his mentality, after all. They also saw commoners as dirt. They also wanted to wreak havoc and use their power in ways they weren't allowed in the outside world.

Perhaps Eris and the rest were the strange ones for being different.

Nevertheless, Eris was now a puppet leader who couldn't do anything about what her team was doing. Since they wanted to be idiots, she figured it was better to end this whole thing and stop giving them chances.

Just her and August fighting wouldn't be enough to end this war, but as long as August's troops could occupy the castle while everyone else was busy fighting, then everything changed.

The two geniuses had come to an agreement.

Whichever of them won this fight would win the war.

If August lost here, his troops would forfeit no matter what kind of progress they made. If he won, then their occupation of the castle would be confirmed and they'd automatically gain victory.

It was a simple solution that actually took a painful amount of planning to set up, but now that everything was set into motion, it all came back to them.

"So, are we going to do this or what?" Eris said impatiently.

"I'm ready whenever you are," August responded easily.

Eris nodded and took several steps back, putting roughly ten meters between them.

She primed herself for battle, dropping her stance. The look in her eyes changed as she became the cold-blooded killer that August knew.

And as she did, he also took his battle stance, becoming the killer she had yet to meet.

A cool wind blew between them as if to set the stage. As a single blade of wandering grass slowly drifted down to the earth, they both dashed forward.

Bang!

Their first collision was physical.

August already knew what she could do with her mana, but she really didn't know many of his abilities. Aside from the one time she'd seen him fight in the second stage, she never had the opportunity to understand exactly what his power was.

Plus, if she tried to view him through the lens of who he was in the last stage, then she would immediately lose this fight.

August had a new aura about him. It wasn't anything about his power, but rather, his demeanor.

Something told her that he had improved beyond anything she could expect, and based on that instinct, she decided to test him first.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

They exchanged blows one after another.

Dragons were already physical creatures. Their bodily talent was just as strong as their affinity for mana.

When they were given the maneuverability of a smaller, bipedal body, they were like tigers given wings.

Unlike human practitioners, dragons liked to use the entire potential of their bodies.

Eris was more prone to use her lower body. Her kicks were like lightning, moving with extreme speed and covertly enough to only be sensed when they actually struck.

She was also extremely flexible. Her body twisted in ways that August never thought possible, both to dodge and attack.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

She was always in motion. Her legs generated insane power from all directions, barraging August and giving him no room to maneuver around her.

August blocked in the best way he could. He matched her in flexibility, but he'd never fought someone with this kind of lower-body focus.

She kicked out and he blocked with his forearm. When he thought he had a chance to escape, she hooked her leg around his arm and twisted her body to essentially climb him, trying to snap his neck in an instant.

Boom!

August slammed his foot into the ground and countered her rotation, refusing to allow her close to his head.

He slammed his arm out to the side and forced her to jump back as he chased her.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

It had a different effect when August attacked.

He and Eris both moved a lot when they were on the offensive, but they did so in different ways.

Eris was always pushing forward, but August liked to strafe around the enemy and make his attacks less predictable.

She had more speed, but his every attack had more power.

On top of that, August used his fists.

He swung from both his left and right as if he didn't have a dominant arm, and though he couldn't maneuver his arms like Eris could her legs, he had more than enough experience to understand how to use them.

BOOM!

Eris' entire body was pushed back through the dirt by the sheer force he exhibited.

It wasn't hard for her to block his attacks, but the force transmitted through her arms was still enough to cause serious damage. She had to match him and move constantly so she could dodge as much as possible within his unpredictable routines.

In terms of physical skill, there wasn't a huge difference between them, but it was definitely there.

August approached again with extreme power and struck out.

BOOM!

The impact hit only air as Eris ducked below it. She twisted her body and kicked upward with the aim of disrupting his momentum, but August had already moved.

BANG!

Two fists slammed into her stomach and sent her crashing into the ground. Without being able to lower her leg in time, she lost her footing and lost the ability to correct her fall.

Yet, if she hit the ground here, then she'd be at an immense disadvantage.

'Damn.'

In their first clash, she was the one to lose.

VOOM!

She summoned her mana, turning into a shadow that teleported several meters away.

Now that she'd used it, mana was no longer disallowed.

But that was fine.

In this aspect particularly, Eris was certain that she'd be the one to come out on top.

A sea of darkness appeared around her.

In the same breath, the ground rumbled and water responded to August's call.

This time, it was a battle of precise control of mana.

Eris definitely thought she was better. With the resources in her grasp, it was hard to think otherwise.

However, August had a teacher that others could only dream of having, and when it came to control, he was particularly talented.

Perhaps many people thought the battle would end here, but little did they know…

It would be a lot closer than any of them expected.