The Smiling Death

Chapter 477: Eliana Vs Amon

Three arrows shot, then five arrows, then ten arrows.

The arena became filled with wind projectiles.

The sharp arrows streaked through the air with terrifying speed, producing shrill whistling sounds as they cut through the atmosphere.

Amon continued moving.

His body weaved between the attacks with surprising agility. Sometimes he dodged by mere centimeters, allowing the arrows to pass so close that he could feel the wind brushing against his skin.

Other times he raised his sword.

Clang!

One arrow shattered apart.

Clang!

Another exploded into fragments of wind mana. The spectators watched with widened eyes. His movements looked smooth and effortless.

Yet everyone understood how difficult it actually was. A single mistake would mean getting hit. The distance between him and Eliana rapidly shrank.

Twenty meters. Then it was fifteen. Now only Ten.

Eliana’s expression gradually became serious. A close-range fight against Amon was exactly what she wanted to avoid.

An archer’s greatest advantage was distance. And Amon was quickly removing that advantage.

More mana gathered around her bow. The pressure surrounding her body increased.

The air itself seemed to vibrate. Even nearby students could feel it.

Amon immediately noticed. His eyes narrowed.

"What spell? High Rank?"

Eliana smiled mischievously.

"Maybe."

The next second, a huge magic circle appeared behind her. Multiple glowing magic circles rotated behind her.

Wind mana gathered rapidly. Then dozens of glowing wind arrows formed in front of it.

Floating behind Eliana.

Every student watching stared in shock.

Even several ongoing sparring matches slowed down as students turned their heads toward the spectacle.

"Whoa..."

"How many arrows is that?"

"She’s serious."

"That’s insane."

The floating arrows continued increasing.

First ten, then ifteen and twenty. Then lastly twenty-five. Each one radiated sharp wind mana capable of piercing stone.

All of them pointed directly at Amon. Like a deadly storm preparing to descend upon him.

Amon’s grin widened. His excitement only grew. This was exactly why he enjoyed sparring now.

Before, he had been weak. Back then sparring had mostly been him getting beaten by stronger opponents.

There was little excitement in that. But things were different now.

Now he was stronger. Now he could fight. Now he could win.

The desire to win always excited him. It gave him a thrill unlike anything else.

He was not fighting.

He was winning. He enjoyed winning the most.

That was what made his blood race. This was also the perfect chance to test himself against one of his closest friends.

Amon lowered his stance. Shadow surged over his body.

Shadow spread beneath his feet.

The shadow on the floor expanded rapidly like black water.

Across from him, Eliana finally released her spell.

The storm descended. More than twenty-five arrows shot toward him simultaneously.

The sight was breathtaking.

Even Amon couldn’t help feeling impressed. It was amazing how she had managed to create so many arrows at once.

The projectiles covered nearly every direction. There was almost nowhere to dodge.

The students watching held their breaths.

Then the shadows moved.

The shadow beneath Amon suddenly rose from the floor. Long black tendrils emerged.

At first they looked like liquid.

Then darkness wrapped around those shadows.

The darkness compressed, hardened and sharpened the shadow. Giving it solid form.

The black tendrils twisted together.

They interlocked with each other then merged.

In only a moment they formed a massive shield-like structure in front of him.

BOOM!

The first arrows struck.

Then another and another and another. Explosions rang throughout the arena.

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOM!

The entire sparring floor trembled. Violent winds erupted in every direction.

Dust and debris flew upward. The resulting shockwave spread through the arena, forcing several nearby students to shield their eyes.

A powerful gust swept across the training hall. For several moments visibility disappeared completely.

The battlefield vanished behind a curtain of dust and wind.

Students stared into the cloud. Trying to see something.

"Who won?"

"I can’t see!"

"Did Amon block it?"

"Where is Eliana?"

Even Eliana herself struggled to see. The dust cloud obscured everything.

She kept her bow raised. Her eyes carefully searched the battlefield.

Just then something moved beneath her.

A dark shape suddenly emerged from her shadow. Before she could react, something wrapped around her ankle.

"Eeww!!"

Eliana screamed and instinctively flinched. A shadow tendril had grabbed her leg.

The unexpected sensation startled her far more than she wanted to admit. The distraction lasted only a fraction of a second.

But that was enough.

From the side Amon appeared. His body burst out from the fading dust cloud.

He was moving much faster than before.

Eliana’s eyes widened.

"So fast—!"

She immediately tried to summon another spell.

Mana gathered around her fingers.

At the same time she pulled her bowstring back, attempting to create another wind arrow.

But before she could finish. Something black descended from above.

A dark blur spun through the air. The object moved silently.

It was angerous.

Eliana’s instincts screamed at her.

She looked upward.

There a black hatchet floated directly above her head.

Its curved blade hovered only inches away.

It needed just one movement and one command.

And it could have split her skull open. The weapon remained perfectly still.

It was waiting and ready.

Amon had stopped it. The students watching finally understood what had happened.

Gasps spread throughout the hall.

"When did he throw that?"

"I didn’t even see it!"

"That’s terrifying."

"She would’ve lost her head if that was real."

Eliana stared at the floating hatchet. Then she looked at the shadow binding her leg.

Then at Amon standing only a few steps away.

The elf princess realized she had already lost.

Even if she completed her spell now, it would be too late.

The hatchet would reach her first. A nervous chuckle escaped her lips.

"Hehe..."

She slowly lowered her bow. Then she raised both hands in surrender.

"I lose."

The shadow around her leg immediately released her.

The floating hatchet returned to Amon’s side.

Amon smiled proudly.

"Good choice."

Eliana rolled her eyes.

"You are way too strong."

Amon placed a hand on his chest dramatically.

"Thank you. I worked very hard to become this handsome and powerful."

Several nearby students groaned.

"Only that boy could say that after winning."

"What does handsome have to do with anything? And does he realky thing he is handsome?"

"His confidence is unbelievable."

Eliana couldn’t help laughing. "You idiot."

Amon grinned.

The instructor overseeing their arena nodded.

"The winner is Amon Vale."

A round of applause followed.

Some students clapped politely.

Others stared at Amon with complicated expressions.

Especially those who remembered the weakest student in Class A from last year. The gap between that Amon and the current one felt unbelievable.

They could not believe that he was the same boy who had ran away toward the window and slamming it hard. Trying to opened it, so he could run away from monster.

Meanwhile, from another arena, Seraphina quietly watched the scene.

A faint smile appeared on her lips.

She had already finished her battle with Marcus easily.

Marcus who loose the spar against Seraphina, he looked impressed.

Aisha also just won her match.

Amon didn’t notice any of it.

At that moment he was simply happy.

Happy that he had become strong enough to stand beside his friends. Happy that he could fight against them.

And most importantly. Happy that he had won. And he could win against others.

---

"Dammit! Are we seriously doing this?!"

Aisha’s irritated voice rose above the noise of the crowded market.

The beastwoman walked alongside her friends with her arms tightly folded beneath her chest. Her wolf ears twitched occasionally, showing just how annoyed she was.

Currently, the five of them were walking through the bustling streets of Elarith City’s market district.

People moved everywhere around them.

Merchants loudly advertised their products.

Children ran between stalls.

The aroma of roasted meat, fresh bread, and various spices filled the air.

It was a lively weekend afternoon. And unfortunately for Aisha, she was stuck with these idiots.

Especially two specific idiots.

When she had first heard Amon and Eliana talking about shopping after class, she had assumed they were joking.

Unfortunately, they had been completely serious.

Not only serious. They had dragged her along. Against her will. Or at least mostly against her will.

"Hey! Let’s go to that clothing shop!" Amon suddenly exclaimed while pointing toward a large store across the street.

A mischievous grin spread across his face.

"I want to buy some cute clothes for Aisha."

Aisha immediately stopped walking. A vein appeared on her forehead. Then she slowly turned toward him.

"Hey, bastard."

Her voice sounded dangerous.

The group’s formation had remained mostly unchanged during the entire trip. Marcus walked on the far right side, deliberately maintaining distance from Amon.

Beside him walked Eliana.

Then came Amon. Seraphina walked on Amon’s left. And finally, Aisha occupied the far left side. Even with the noise of the crowded market, Aisha’s voice reached Amon perfectly.

The black-haired boy simply grinned.

"Hehe~ Just you wait. I’ll buy you lots of cute things."

His grin widened further.

"Just be a good girl."

Aisha’s eye twitched again.

"I swear one day I’m going to kill you."

"Hehe~"

Amon only laughed.

His complete lack of concern somehow made it even more irritating.

Before Aisha could continue her threats, Seraphina calmly spoke from between them.

"You two should stop."

Her voice wasn’t loud.

Yet somehow it immediately carried authority. Amon instantly raised both hands.

"As you say, Sera~"

His obedience was so immediate that Aisha almost felt offended.

"Tch."

She clicked her tongue and folded her arms tighter.

Meanwhile, Marcus glanced at the familiar scene. His expression looked tired. At this point he had witnessed countless arguments between Amon and Aisha.

"This drama..."

He shook his head. "I’m getting used to it now."

Eliana giggled beside him. Honestly, she found their arguments entertaining.

The elf princess then suddenly looked toward Amon. A playful smile appeared on her beautiful face.

"Hey, putting that aside..."

Her emerald eyes sparkled mischievously.

"Amon, what about me?"

She pointed at herself. "You won’t buy me anything?"

Amon stared at her. Then his lips twitched. The elf princess was probably wealthier than everyone present combined.

Her family literally ruled an entire kingdom.

Yet here she was asking him to buy her something. The shamelessness was impressive.

Of course, he knew she was only teasing him. So he decided to play along.

Amon placed a hand on his chest.

"Of course I will buy you lots of things."

Then he narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

"If you act like a good girl."

Eliana immediately clasped her hands behind her back.

"Hehe~ Then I’ll be a good girl, Amon~"

Her long pointed ears twitched adorably.