Damned Healer
Chapter 216: Cornered Beasts

Chapter 216: Cornered Beasts

The military officer announced loud and clear for the whole arena: "The two support spots are taken. With two victories, Darian is qualified."

Everyone heard it and nodded. This qualifier wasn’t just about winning twice — you had to win before all the spots for your class were filled.

That meant it all came down to your own skills, since everyone would get to fight at least once. If you won your first match, you’d get a shot at a second to qualify. But if you lost the first one, then it was all up to luck — you’d have to be picked again and hope there was still a spot open.

Darian calmly walked back to the stands, ignoring the murderous glares from the Red River Pact clan. Step by step, totally unfazed. He and those idiots already had bad blood — and now, he’d sealed that feud for good. It wasn’t ending until one side was wiped out.

When he got back to his group, he saw all the members of the Amazon Sentinels silently staring at him.

Niara leapt up, flapping her short wings, and latched onto him.

"Nice job, Dan! Next time, I wanna fight too. Just sitting around watching sucks. We’re partners, right?"

He gave a small nod and petted her soft scales.

Right then, Silas came back from the back of the stadium and returned to the arena, surprising everyone.

He sat down in a corner of the arena, looking serious and deep in thought. Everyone could tell his mind was on Eleanor, who was still unconscious. He’d only come back because the military forced him to.

Darian noticed the twins looking his way, so he just gave them a little nod to calm down. Of course he’d fully heal Eleanor afterward.

The military officers talked among themselves for a few seconds.

"Silas didn’t receive any medical attention or treatment that breaks the rules of the qualifier. He just slept for a few minutes and woke up. Because of that, he’s not disqualified." The high-ranking officer explained, and everyone was shocked by the news.

Silas had been poisoned by something nasty, but... Darian gave him a pill. That alone was enough to cure such a deadly poison! Where the hell did he get something that strong?

Everyone had already seen Darian’s healing skills, but they were sure he could only heal wounds. Healing injuries and detoxing poisons were both part of "healing," but they were totally different things. No one could’ve guessed Darian’s healing was so insane it could do both at once.

As for being poisoned, taking an antidote wasn’t against the rules. And since the military confirmed Silas hadn’t gotten any outside help, if he woke up fast, he couldn’t be disqualified.

"Two of the four tanks can’t fight anymore. Since there are only two spots for tanks, Silas and Emmett from the Amazon Sentinels are automatically qualified." The officer announced.

Darian took out two tanks by himself — that was unheard of. It messed with the qualifier rules. Emmett hadn’t even fought once, like he was supposed to, but still made it through.

Not that it was a bad thing. He’d show what he could really do in the tournament anyway. Luck’s a part of anyone’s skillset, and this time, he got a ton of it.

"I’ll draw the next fighter."

The officer spoke and waved his hand, making several lights with the remaining names shuffle through the air again. After a few seconds, one name remained:

"Fighter Class — Gwyneth from the Temple Wardens."

A medium-height woman dressed in a black cloak with a long saber at her waist took a deep breath and stepped forward.

Since the twins couldn’t be challenged, she only had two options: Nayara or one of the Red River Pact fighters.

Once she reached the martial stage, Nayara lit up a bit. But Gwyneth looked at her, gave a slight, sheepish smile, and then asked to fight Maverick from the Red River Pact.

The leader of the Amazon Sentinels muttered to Nayara’s side: "She doesn’t want to fight someone she sees as an ally. Gwyneth’s blessing can cause serious injuries if she’s not careful. But if she holds back, she’ll never win."

Nayara nodded. The two of them had known each other for a while and were kind of friends. The twins heard that and figured it’d be best not to fight Gwyneth if she lost one — they didn’t want to get her disqualified.

Maverick stepped onto the martial stage. He had a long sword at his waist and wore a stone-cold expression. Not surprising — now he didn’t just need to qualify, he had to show off as much power as possible... those were the vice-leader’s orders.

"She’s got the right mindset. Instead of fighting an ally, she wants to challenge someone strong, no matter the outcome," Niara said, seeing the determined look in Gwyneth’s eyes.

Everyone agreed. Darian, on the other hand, just felt relieved that the Temple Wardens clan members weren’t trash like the empire’s biggest clan.

"Begin."

Both of them drew their weapons. The longsword and the saber flashed as they roared, and a yellow aura flared up around them, almost like living flames.

But neither of them moved right away.

"Let’s settle this with a single strike using our blessings, yeah? That way we both save energy for the next fight," Maverick calmly suggested.

She nodded in agreement.

Right after, they both took on expressions of intense focus, hands resting on their weapon hilts.

The yellow aura around Maverick began to distort, losing its color. Around him, space itself looked slightly fractured. Meanwhile, Gwyneth’s body started to glow with greenish markings across her skin.

Darian recognized those blessings — they were pretty rare, both meant for fast and destructive attacks.

Gwyneth’s was called Nature’s Wrath — a buff that boosted speed and attack power. In forests or places with a lot of natural energy, it became twice as strong and let her fight with low energy cost. But in regular places like the martial stage, she could still move and strike, but energy consumption was crazy high and control was a lot harder.

Maverick’s blessing was simpler, called Celestial Sword. It didn’t boost his speed and wasn’t hard to use — but its offensive power was terrifying, able to slice pretty much anything in half.

Gwyneth seemed like she was at a disadvantage for accepting the duel. But she trusted in her speed and her saber. If she could be precise enough, she might block his blade, and the weight of her saber plus her attack power could take her to victory.

It all came down to landing a clean strike. In this kind of clash, technique and precision mattered way more than brute strength.

They held still for ten seconds. Then, they locked eyes — sharp like blades... and moved at the exact same time.

*CLANG!*

The two weapons collided violently, making a sharp and piercing sound.

They were locked in a clash. It didn’t even take two seconds before Gwyneth shut her eyes. She was clearly losing — her feet slid back a step.

She grunted... in the end, she’d failed. He didn’t let her strike the perfect angle. That guy wasn’t just some random idiot — he’d been trained by his clan leader, who was known for being experienced and strict.

She looked like she was about to open her mouth and concede, but then...

...multiple artifacts on Maverick’s outfit lit up subtly. They gave him an extra burst of power. Gwyneth’s saber couldn’t hold up — it snapped in half.

"You bastard!" Nayara roared furiously.

*Slash!*

He struck without mercy.

Blood sprayed all over the stage. Gwyneth had a massive gash running from her waist up to her shoulder.

Nayara ran toward her, and Darian sighed, moving right behind.

To all the regular humans who’d later watch this fight, Maverick would look like he crushed her with pure strength. Even most High Humans watching the recording later wouldn’t be able to tell he’d used hidden artifacts. Only the people present in the arena could clearly feel the energy spikes.

When she got to the stage, Nayara yelled, furious: "You already had her beat, you asshole! If she...!"

In the middle of her rant, she turned toward Gwyneth and saw Darian waving his hand, releasing a bright white energy. In less than two seconds, he’d fully closed her wound.

"She’s fine. These bastards aren’t that impressive. She’ll be able to fight again,"

Darian said calmly and shot a mocking glance at Maverick before heading back to the stands.

Nayara took a deep breath and knelt next to Gwyneth, checking her condition. She was conscious — and shocked that she was completely unharmed, not even a scar left.

Wounds like that, which could be fatal if not healed, weren’t forbidden from being treated. The rules weren’t that strict on that, it depended on the type and severity of the issue. Of course, using anything to regain energy was totally forbidden.

Everyone had seen Darian fight and knew what he could do... but even so, it was still mind-blowingly abnormal.

"Let’s go..." Nayara helped her off the stage.

Without delay, Gwyneth went straight to Darian and thanked him deeply.

The high-ranking officer just watched it all, but even he threw a cold look Maverick’s way. After all, Maverick himself had suggested a skill-only duel. Then, even after winning, he still resorted to cheap tricks... Did that clan seriously not realize they were just digging their own grave?

Unfortunately, those people were so used to sitting on top of the food chain and never being doubted or challenged. But now, after the chaos Darian had stirred up, they were acting like cornered beasts going wild.

They weren’t thinking rationally — just trying to seem dangerous and powerful at all costs. It was pathetic and ridiculous, but... humans weren’t always that different from animals.

"I challenge that bastard!"

In the middle of the officer’s thoughts, a sharp voice rang out.

Maverick had won, so it was up to him to choose the next opponent. The only exceptions were...

A young human girl, wearing light yellow-toned clothes and carrying a sharp gaze, stepped onto the martial stage.