Lightning Is the Only Way

The other participants watched Gravis first in surprise, but then in disdain. He was obviously afraid of the fight. Only the very few participants who had seen what had happened that day knew that he actually meant what he said.

"Why not?" asked the Guild Master of Earth. "Don't you want to prove yourself?"

"No," Gravis simply answered. The Guild Masters waited for him to say more, but apparently, Gravis was finished.

"Nothing? Really?" asked the Guild Master of Fire, confused. He was in tune with the element of fire, so he was naturally hotblooded. Who wouldn't want to prove themselves by suppressing someone else publicly? "Well, nothing we can do about it. Let's just get back to our guilds."

The Guild Master of Water didn't want to let the chance slip to give her future disciple a better reward. "You have to fight. We are still in the entrance exams. So, go out there and fight!"

Gravis narrowed his eyes. "You told me I am not allowed to fight in the tournament, and now you tell me I have to fight?" asked Gravis, annoyed. "So, you are just playing around with me as you like?"

The Guild Master of Water got angry again. "Listen here, you runt! We are still in the entrance exams, and if you want to join our guild, you have to follow what we say!" she snarled.

Gravis didn't relent. "And what's that got to do with you? I'm not joining your guild anyway. I have proven myself enough already!" Gravis also grew more annoyed.

She clenched her teeth. "You little-"

"Hey, come over here for a second," said the Guild Master of Lightning and politely pushed Gravis to the side, so they could talk where no one else could hear them. Gravis just looked at the Guild Master of Lightning neutrally.

"Put yourself in our shoes for a second," he started whispering to Gravis. "We need to uphold an image of fairness and justice. You might not care about what others think about you, but to us, it is important due to our position. If we don't quell the disciples' unrest, they might start looking down on us," he explained sincerely.

"I mean, sure, I get that, but first you tell me not to fight, and then to fight. To me, it looks like I am just getting pushed around to your guys' liking," Gravis complained.

The Guild Master of Lightning sighed. "I know, and you're right. Could you just do me this little favor? You don't even have to fight really. Just punch him once, and he won't be able to move anymore. Come on, please," the Guild Master of Lightning implored.

Gravis sighed. "Alright, but only because you're my future Guild Master," he finally conceded.

The Guild Master of Lightning gave him a thumbs up. "That's the spirit. Thank you! I won't forget this." Then they both turned around and walked back to the others. The Guild Master of Water was still mad.

"So?" asked the Guild Master of Earth. The Guild Master of Lightning just gave a thumbs-up, and the Guild Master of Earth nodded.

Gravis walked to the middle of the arena, where one person stood proudly in the middle like he owned the place. "Alright, who's my opponent?" asked Gravis as he looked around, apparently not noticing the big guy in the middle with the spear.

Sigur grew angry by Gravis' disregard. He stood imposingly in the middle of the arena. Every normal person should be able to judge that he was the strongest of every participant here. Sigur took out his spear and pointed it at Gravis as a provocation. "I am your opponent! Today, I will-"

BANG!

With unreal speed, Gravis had closed the distance and punched Sigur in the gut. Sigur immediately puked out the contents of his stomach and keeled over, seemingly not being able to breathe.

"Done," said Gravis as he turned around to get back to the Guild Masters.

Sigur fell over and landed on his knees. He was still not able to breathe, and his whole body hurt immensely. He vomited a couple more times, and cold sweat was breaking out all over his body.

The participant's faces whitened. They had not seen the attack coming, at all. One second, Gravis just stood there, and on the next, he had already buried his fist into Sigur's gut. Gravis' strength was the real deal.

The Guild Masters looked at the spectacle with slight disgust. Gravis didn't even let the guy posture before he punched him. This was rude and a little dickish. Why did nothing go its normal way when it involved him?

The Guild Master of Lightning sighed. "Can't you win with a little more grace?" he asked helplessly.

"Grace won't help in a fight to the death," Gravis nonchalantly answered.

"But this isn't a fight to the death," the Guild Master of Lightning said back, with another helpless sigh.

"Spars are worthless. Why train specifically for a spar when a spar is not dangerous to your life?" Gravis asked rhetorically.

The Guild Masters sighed collectively. They knew where Gravis was coming from, but why did he have to be so serious in something so insignificant? It was only a short spar.

"YOU BASTARD!" came a shout from Gravis' back, as a spear shot towards him. Sigur had gotten control over his body back and was furious. He had shouted and stabbed his spear towards Gravis' back.

If he had remained silent while attacking, he might have hit Gravis. Gravis wasn't omniscient and couldn't look behind his back. Yet, Sigur decided to announce his attack loudly.

Gravis quickly turned around and caught the spear in one hand, stopping it easily. In one fluid motion, Gravis broke off the head of the spear and put it into Sigur's gut.

It didn't even look like an attack. It looked more like someone put back a weapon in its sheath. Gravis just slid the head of the spear into Sigur's gut like it was the most normal thing to do.

"Don't attack people with the intent to kill if you are not prepared to lose your life," berated Gravis bored, like he was lecturing his kid who just made a mistake. If Sigur had actually been a danger, Gravis might have killed him, but in his eyes, Sigur was only a kid who made a mistake.

Sigur looked at his body in shock. This seemed so surreal. His spear was sticking out of his gut, but he didn't feel the pain. He couldn't comprehend the situation.

"Tch," spat the Guild Master of Fire, as he jumped to Sigur and pulled out the spear. Then, he shoved a pill into his mouth. After some seconds, Sigur seemed to finally realize what just happened and started screaming in hysteria.

The other participants watched in cold shock, and a shudder went over their bodies. Gravis didn't show any emotion while stabbing Sigur. It just seemed to be the most normal thing for him. He was a madman!

The Guild Master of Fire didn't complain, even though he thought that Gravis went too far. Sigur did attack him from behind with the intent to kill, so the Guild Master of Fire couldn't say anything. He was also disappointed in Sigur. Sigur had been acting like a spoiled child that demanded more and more, and when something didn't go his way, he would cry.

"Are we done now?" asked Gravis bored.

The other Guild Masters sighed again, something that they had been doing a lot since they met Gravis. The Guild Master of Water walked forward, a smile on her face.

"The Entrance Exams are officially over!"