Universal Power System

Mako tightened his grip on the obsidian sword, feeling the weight of it in his hand. The sleek black blade seemed to hum with latent power as he could feel the boosts being applied to his own stats.

Since Mako was suppressed, he couldn't even passively activate his aura which meant that the passive boosts that the ability gave him for being active were nullified, making him weaker.

As Magnus took his stance, Mako observed his teacher's movements with a keen eye. Magnus was a formidable opponent, his every motion calculated and precise. He remembered the fight from this morning where he watched the fluid fighting style of Magnus and how even after throwing every single ability at him, the boy wasn't even able to graze him once.

Logically, it would be completely impossible for Mako to get a better result than that boy with no abilities and less training, but he had no choice but to give his best and try and impress Magnus.

*Ding!*

[New Quest Received]

As Mako quickly read the contents of the quest, he readied himself with a deep breath before launching himself forward at Magnus. The obsidian sword gleaming as he swung it towards Magnus with all his might, but Magnus effortlessly sidestepped the attack, his movements fluid and graceful as usual.

However, Mako wasn't finished as he turned the sword mid-strike to now begin slashing horizontally to try and catch Magnus off guard as he was still within range of the horizontal strike.

This was one of the techniques that Commander Sable had taught him which was called a fakeout, a simple vertical slash that was easy to dodge by weaving left or right, but with enough strength and force one could change its direction and momentum mid swing and begin to swing horizontally instead, making it effective against unsuspecting opponents.

But before Mako could even finish putting his strength into the sword to change its direction, Magnus had trusted his blade forward, stopping mere centimeters away from Mako's throat.

The sudden movement and deadly striking position left Mako completely off guard as he was just frozen in place, losing all power he had in his wing; too scared to look down and see whether his throat was stabbed through or not.

"Too slow," Magnus remarked, his voice echoing through the hall. "You need to anticipate your opponent's movements as well. Your opponent won't sit idly by while you finish your attack sequence."

Mako gulped down hard, as the system confirmed that he hadn't been hurt. Frustration began to bubble beneath his skin as he couldn't believe that he was brought to such a state of fear and terror by a singular fake strike!

He had to do better. He had to prove himself worthy of Magnus' tutelage.

Magnus didn't give Mako much time to recuperate as he swiftly swung his sword onto Mako's sword, striking it back and bringing Mako back from his daze.

Mako quickly got back on his feet and feinted to the left before swiftly changing direction and lunging towards Magnus from the right. Magnus remained calm and easily countered Mako's strike by raising his sword to parry the attack.

*Clink!*

The sound of the two swords clashing resounded in the hall and Mako was easily deflected back.

However, Mako did not stop, with each unsuccessful attack, his sword began to glow a bit brighter, revealing the magma cracks and empowering Mako with increased Agility and Strength.

Mako unleashed a barrage of feint attacks, by first continuously weaving left and right to make himself less predictable as to where he would strike until the final moment when he would lunge forward for the strike.

But once again, Magnus was one step ahead, easily parrying all of Mako's attacks with a flick of his wrist.

"Still predictable," Magnus commented, his tone almost bored. "You need to keep your opponent guessing. Mix up your attacks, and never show your hand too soon. If you keep coming at me with the same formula after I have countered it, there is no use trying it again from a different angle, I'll counter it every time."

Mako nodded, his mind racing as he processed Magnus' words. Even though he was changing up his movement and attacking differently, it didn't change the fact that the final lunge hadn't changed. Magnus disregarded all of Mako's evasion and movement and only focused on the final strike which was predictable. He couldn't afford to be predictable. He had to be smart, and strategic.

Taking a step back, Mako assessed the situation, his eyes flickering over Magnus' form. He desperately needed to find a weakness, a vulnerability to exploit.

He breathed heavily as he tried to think. He thought back to all of the lessons Commander Sable had taught him, and the way Magnus fought in the morning. Then, it finally hit him.

A smirk appeared on Mako's face as a new plan of attack formulated in his mind. Leaping forward, Mako unleashed a flurry of strikes, each one aimed at a different angle, a different opening. He didn't commit to any attack but rather began to unleash the opening attacks of every basic attack maneuver he knew.

Each attack maneuver was unique and was aimed at a different part of the body. By only giving the opening strikes of each maneuver, Mako reserved his strength and was fast to switch moves making him unpredictable as he never followed any known maneuver through to the end.

But still, Magnus was a wall of steel, effortlessly blocking every blow with calm confidence.

"Good effort," Magnus acknowledged, a hint of approval in his voice. "But you're still holding back. Don't be afraid to sometimes commit fully to your attacks. Hesitation is your greatest enemy."

It was true. After witnessing the huge gap in skill level between him and Magnus, his body was subconsciously weary of the fact that the man he was striking could end his existence at any moment.

Mako nodded, absorbing Magnus' words as he readied himself for another assault. He couldn't afford to hold back. He had to give it his all.

With a primal roar, Mako launched himself towards Magnus once more, the obsidian sword now riddled with several deep brightly glowing cracks of magma, swinging through the air as he unleashed a barrage of strikes with reckless abandon of himself. And for a moment, it seemed as though he might succeed and finally land a hit on his elusive teacher.

But in the end, Magnus was always one step ahead, this time matching Mako's every strike with a strike of his own sword, effortlessly blocking all Mako's attacks with a calm ease that bordered on arrogance.

By this time, Mako had received a significant boost in strength and speed from the crackling magma sword. He was getting more and more comfortable with his duel as he began to move faster and even started to predict a bit of Magnus' counter- movements.

After sliding onto the ground, Mako delivered an extremely low horizontal blow to Magnus' ankles, but Magnus effortlessly jumped into the air to dodge the low attack and began to thrust his sword downward at the prone Mako.

However, this was exactly what Mako wanted. Using all of his strength, Mako slammed his foot onto the ground mid-slide to propel himself into the air. He twisted his body so that he could build power and momentum in his sword as he quickly launched a nothing-horizontal swing, but this time it was in mid-air.

'His speed won't help him while he is in mid-air and with his sword aimed at the ground, he can't dodge this attack!' Mako thought to himself as he believed that he had finally succeeded in landing a blow on Magnus.

"Nice try," Magnus stated as a big smile appeared on his face, his confidence completely destroying Mako's all hopes and dreams.

In the next instant, Magnus let go of his sword and allowed it to fall to the ground; however, before the sword could drop on the ground, Magnus kicked the hilt of his sword straight up with extreme force.

All of this took place within a second and was too quick for Mako to react as the kicked sword carried so much force and momentum alongside it that it was able to parry Mako's rotating horizontal attack without even a hand holding onto it.

As the two swords clashed, the magma cracks on Mako's sword began to glow extremely bright and had now completely enveloped the entirely of the blade. However, the cracks didn't dim down and began to envelop the sword more and more until finally, the whole sword was bright glowing.

This could only mean one thing.

"oh..." Mako managed to say as he realized but it was too late already.

*BOOM!*

The sword shattered and realized all the energy it had been storing inside it in a violent explosion that blasted Mako back several feet in the air.

As Mako lay collapsed on the ground, exhausted and defeated with the smoke rising from his body, he couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration for Magnus. Despite his overwhelming strength, Magnus had never once resorted to overpowering Mako. Instead, he had offered guidance, wisdom, and insight, molding Mako into a better fighter with each passing moment.

As he was reminiscing about the intense fight that he just had, he heard the clicking sound of Magnus' footsteps approaching him

And as Mako stared up at his teacher, his breath ragged and his body aching, he knew that he still had much to learn but it all depended on whether Magnus accepted him into his class or not.

Magnus stood before Mako, his expression unreadable as he studied the young warrior kneeling before him. After a moment of tense silence, Magnus finally spoke, his voice carrying a note of respect that Mako had not heard before.

"You have potential, Mako," Magnus said, his tone gruff but sincere. "I have seen very few cadets that possess your level of determination and adaptability."

Mako's heart soared at Magnus' words, a surge of hope filling him despite his exhaustion.

"Thank you, sir," Mako replied, his voice hoarse but filled with gratitude.

Magnus nodded, a rare smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

"I believe you," Magnus said, his voice echoing through the hall. "Welcome to the special power weapons class, Mako. You have earned your place here."

With those words, Magnus extended a hand toward Mako, a silent gesture of acceptance and respect. As Mako grasped Magnus' hand and pulled himself to his feet, he knew that this was a great path for him as with the guidance from such an excellent fighter, Mako knew that there was no limit to how strong he could become.