Kang Oh tightly gripped the soul stone.

[You have grabbed an owned soul stone.]

[A Sacred Duel will now begin to determine the dungeon's master.]

[The victor can only be determined in a one-on-one fight. No one else can help you.]

[Summoning the dungeon master's proxy.]

...

[2]

[1]

[The proxy has appeared!]

A pillar of light surged into the air and then disappeared. This was a familiar sight. Even so, Kang Oh couldn't help but furrow his brow.

"It's been a while." The man softly waved his hand.

"It has, Mr. Bart."

The proxy was the Genius Gamer and Crazy Highschooler, Bart. Though the latter title wasn't used much anymore, as he was going to graduate high school soon.

[The Sacred Duel has begun.]

[If your opponent's HP reaches 0 or they surrender, then you win.]

[You have one hour to complete the fight. If you cannot defeat the dungeon's master or their proxy within 1 hour, then the duel will end in your defeat.]

[All skill, spell, and item effect cooldowns have been reset. They are only reset during the Sacred Duel. They will go back on cooldown once the Sacred Duel ends.]

"Mr. Bart?" Sephiro yelled in disbelief.

At that moment...

A ring of light appeared on the ground, and Sephiro was pushed outside of it.

"Hmm, I didn't think I'd see you here, Mr. Bart," Kang Oh said.

"It belongs to a junior I know. She made me her proxy," Bart said.

"I see."

"Alright, let's go." Bart stretched out, and then pulled out a dagger with yellow inscriptions. It was the SS-rank weapon, Kunta's Legend.

"Are you confident?" Kang Oh asked.

"I don't think you should be higher ranked than me."

Kang Oh was rank 4, while Bart was rank 6. Bart's eyes blazed with a fighting spirit.

"Arth's ranking system is pretty accurate."

'There's a reason you're rank 6 and I'm rank 4!'

"Is that so?"

"Of course."

Bart and Kang Oh. Their current score was 1 win, one loss, and 1 draw.

Kang Oh was completely defeated their first time around. The second time, however, Kang Oh won easily using Transcendent Blade. Their third battle ended in a draw, as they'd both run out of HP simultaneously.

They were tied.

Today's the day they would figure out which of them was stronger!

Thunk.

Kang Oh and Bart moved simultaneously.

* * *

Sephiro clenched his fists as he watched Kang Oh and Bart's fight.

It wasn't everyday that you'd see two of the Numbers fight against each other! He didn't want to miss even a second of it.

Kang Oh swung his demon swords with both speed and power. He'd gotten plenty proficient in dual-wielding, so there were no visible weak points in his movements.

Bart had also gotten stronger. The more you saw him, the more shocked you would be.

A simple slash, elemental spells, an Archer's movement and survival skills, a Priest or Dryad's healing spells, a Paladin's barriers, an Assassin's vital strikes, etc.; Bart used them all.

Moreover, he'd use his multitude of skills/spells at the right time and place.

"Mm."

Sephiro knew that Kang Oh and Bart were just getting started!

Kang Oh was using pure swordsmanship, while Bart wasn't combining two or more skills/spells to create something new.

'Who'll make the first move?'

Sephiro's question was answered soon after.

Kang Oh rolled the dice first. After all, the Sacred Duel would automatically result in his loss after an hour passed.

Festival of Blood!

Demon Sword Blood was coated in blood red energy.

Swish.

His blood sword came flying at Bart's neck.

In response, Bart combined a skill and a spell.

Sharp Thorn + Sacred Shield!

Sharp Shield!

Bart was surrounded by a spiky barrier like a hedgehog's quills. In spite of that, Kang Oh followed through and struck the barrier.

Festival of Blood was in effect, so Blood's power was considerable.

Bam!

The barrier crumbled. However, the barrier's broken shards flew right at Kang Oh, its spikes shimmering in the air.

Kang Oh didn't panic, and calmly dealt with the attack. If he wanted to beat Bart, then he couldn't afford to be dazzled by Bart's skill/spell combinations.

Swish, slash, swish, slash!

Kang Oh swung his blades one after another.

Then, Bart began his long-range bombardment.

Homing Missile + God's Fury!

Orb of Fury!

Giant energy, which radiated intense light, flew at Kang Oh.

Kang Oh cleaved through the orb using Ubist. Normally, physical contact would cause the orb to explode. However, Ubist had absorbed it; Abyss Blade had activated.

"Ah, that's right. That sword absorbs magic," Bart said, as if he'd just remembered. "Man, what an annoying sword," he added.

"It's not as annoying as your class."

"Oh, do you know what my class is?"

"Not knowing makes it even more annoying. Want to tell me what it is?"

"No thank you."

The two spoke amicably, as if they were good friends. However, they exchanged attacks while they spoke, which definitely wasn't something friends would do.

Kang Oh's swordsmanship was sharp and precise, as his Hyper Intuition could point out his opponent's weak points. On the other hand, every one of Bart's fusion techniques were the equivalent of a one hit KO.

"Haahp!"

Tempest Tiger!

"Hmph!"

Flaming Spear + Light's Judgment!

Judgment of Flame!

The giant tiger aura and the red blazing flames twisted through the air.

Boom!

Their clash resulted in a massive explosion. Bart used that opportunity to sink into his shadow, reappear behind Kang Oh, and swing his dagger.

Steel Slash + Swiftness!

Swift Slash!

Bam!

Although his Hyper Intuition had warned him ahead of time, he couldn't respond fast enough to the attack.

However, Kang Oh didn't just sit there and take it either.

Transcendent Blade!

Blood flashed through the air.

It was as if he'd been waiting for this. Bart used his secret move, Rewind, and nullified Kang Oh's Transcendent Blade.

But Kang Oh had already experienced the effects of Rewind before. Thus, he'd used Transcendent Blade while taking that move into account.

In other words, Blood and Transcendent Blade were just bait! Ubist, which came flying at Bart right after he used Rewind, was his true attack.

"Ugh." Bart tried to create a barrier, but Ubist sliced through him first.

Bart retreated so that he wouldn't take a follow up attack. At the same time, he fused two spells together.

Earthquake + Mother Nature's Prison!

Cracked Earth's Prison!

Tough vines arose from the cracks beneath his feet, which tried to wrap around his arms and feet.

'Not a chance.'

Red Butterfly's Dance!

Kang Oh moved nimbly, dodging every single one of the vines, and rushed straight at Bart.

At that moment...!

Bart suddenly sped up, so much so that he was difficult to track with the naked eye. It was like he was a laser!

If he was capable of rewinding time, then he could also fast forward it!

Time Acceleration!

In the blink of an eye, Bart had gotten right in front of him.

Although Bart had the ability to accelerate time, Kang Oh had a secret move that could deal with it. If his opponent had transcendent speed, then he would need to surpass his limitations too!

Transcendent Blade!

Ubist flashed, and shards of light rose into the air. Bart had taken the hit.

For the first time, Bart's face grimaced. Even though he'd used his new technique, Bart hadn't gotten anything out of it. Kang Oh already had an answer to Rewind too.

'As I thought, melee combat isn't the answer.'

Bart used Absolute Evasion, allowing him to dodge Kang Oh's attack, and widened the distance. Then, he used Fusion once more.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Bart unleashed powerful skills and spells in succession.

Kang Oh had no choice but to back off. That was just how powerful Bart's barrage was.

After that, a similar sequence of events occurred. Kang Oh tried to close the distance however he could! On the other hand, Bart used all sorts of spells and skills, and even fused them to keep him away!

Their battle was essentially a huge game of cat and mouse.

Kang Oh decided to finish this fight. As the challenger, time wasn't on his side.

'If I go over the time limit, then I lose!'

Kang Oh simultaneously used Devil Trigger and Gluttony. He used one of the items he'd picked up from his battle with Red Moon.

It was Brutal Blade's katana!

This weapon was an S-rank sword with exceptionally high attack power.

'In order to beat Bart, I have to be willing to go at least this far.'

Of course, he needed to seize the soul dungeon too!

Whoosh!

Kang Oh, who'd transformed into the Dual Demon, radiated fierce jet-black energy as a result of Gluttony.

His abilities were increased threefold!

He was now capable of using 'Behead', which unleashed a sharp energy blast at his enemy, and also gained a passive skill called 'Strengthen Slash', which increased the damage of his cuts.

"Mm."

Bart had fought Kang Oh three times already, so he knew about Devil Trigger and Gluttony. He knew just how much stronger they made him!

Thus, Bart used his trump card.

Summon Golem + Fire Armor + Gigantification!

Fire Giant!

He fused three abilities to use this technique; it was both a composite skill and a summoning spell!

A giant magic circle appeared before him, and a giant engulfed in flame arose from within.

But that wasn't all.

Summon Spirit + Iceberg + Rapid Growth!

Ice Giant!

Another giant, which resembled an iceberg, joined the Fire Giant.

"Wow." Sephiro couldn't hide his astonishment. Bart was capable of using all manner of skills/spells, but now he could even summon. It was enough to make him think, 'What's his limit!?'.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The two giants simultaneously swung their fists at Kang Oh.

Plus...!

Bart cast one last spell with the rest of his MP.

Time Acceleration!

His targets: the Fire and Ice Giants!

The two giants' fists came crashing down unbelievably quickly.

Kang Oh's necklace glowed.

Dodging their fists was impossible; they were too fast and had a wide radius.

Moon's Protection!

He was protected by the full moon.

Boom!

Upon contact, the Ice Giant's fist released ice shards everywhere.

Roar!

The Fire Giant's fist shot flames into the ground which then surged into the air.

Kang Oh was fine for 3 seconds. But once Moon's Protection was up, sharp shards of ice and flames mercilessly flew at him.

With no other option, Kang Oh hurriedly used Abyss Shield.

However, Abyss Shield wasn't even close to cutting it. Kang Oh's body was burnt and his body was torn to shreds by the shards.

Whoosh!

The two giants followed up with another attack. It was as though he were fighting a giant forest fire or a blizzard; he was fighting nature itself.

However, Kang Oh didn't give up.

While Bart had his Fire and Ice Giants, Kang Oh had Demon Sword Ubist and Demon Sword Blood.

Mad Wind's Sword!

His initial swing was gentle and refreshing! However, his swings gradually became faster, more powerful, and more violent!

Ubist and Blood danced in the air, unleashing skill after skill.

Darkness Strike!

Fresh Blood Wave, Abyss Claw!

Lightning Breath, Everlasting Darkness!

Tempest Tiger, Behead!

Transcendent Blade!

Kang Oh unleashed attack after attack, putting everything he had behind each strike.

Bam!

This resulted in a huge collision, and a huge explosion after that!

"Uheop!" Sephiro watched the thrilling spectacle and gaped.

He also regretfully kicked the floor. Sephiro had been so busy watching their fight that he'd forgotten to record it!

* * *

The battle was over.

The victor was clear.

Swish.

The tip of Demon Sword Blood touched Bart's throat.

"I lost."

Bart gracefully accepted his defeat. He felt both angry and refreshed.

Losing to Kang Oh had pissed him off. He had definitely been ahead, but at some point, Kang Oh had completely overtaken him.

But there was also a part of him that felt refreshed when Kang Oh destroyed his Fire and Ice Giants with pure strength.

[You have won the Sacred Duel.]

[You are the new owner of the soul dungeon, Twisted Fortress.]

"Now our score's 2 wins, 1 loss, and 1 draw. I'm ahead. And you know what they say, the final victor is the true victor." Kang Oh grinned.

"Ugh."

Bart's mood soured.

"Hoo, hoo."

Whereas Kang Oh was quite satisfied. Is this what it felt like to beat your rival?

"Let's fight again soon." Bart wanted a rematch.

"No thank you," Kang Oh said decisively.

"You're just going to run?" Bart said impolitely, lacking the normal honorifics.

"What's wrong with that?"

'If you're going to drop them, then so will I!'

"Are you really going to be like that?"

"Nothing's free."

"What are you talking about?"

"If you want to fight me, then... You have to do me a favor first." Kang Oh smiled evilly. This was his chance to procure some high quality manpower.

"You're so cheap. I'm not doing it."

"Sure, do what you want."

Kang Oh had nothing to be disappointed about. After all, he was the final victor. If he didn't fight Bart anymore, then that's what he'd remain. On the other hand, Bart would keep being the loser.

"Ah, seriously!?"

'You can't do that!' His pride as a 'genius' was on the line. Ultimately, Bart acquiesced to his demands.

"Alright, fine. Let's fight again. I'll do you that favor."

"Do the favor first. Then we can fight."

"Fine, I got it already!"

"Heh." Kang Oh grinned.

He was so happy he'd be able to use the Genius Gamer, Bart, however he wished.