Temporal Dominion

Lucian's breaths were shallow, his body aching from Ethan's relentless strikes. But despite the pain, he felt something awaken inside him.

A sharp clarity.

A rhythm beyond the normal flow of time.

Ethan cracked his knuckles, eyes gleaming with renewed focus. "Not bad. But I'm done playing."

He blurred forward, his kinetic augmentation pushing his speed beyond human limits.

Lucian saw it.

A flicker—an echo of the near future.

Ethan's first punch would come from the left. A feint. Then a follow-up knee to the gut.

Lucian moved before it happened.

He sidestepped before Ethan's punch was even thrown. The Silver-Tier combatant's fist struck nothing but air.

Ethan's eyes widened in shock.

Lucian twisted his body, dodging the incoming knee strike before it was even executed.

The crowd gasped.

"No way—"

"He's moving like he knows what's coming!"

Lucian exhaled, the world around him feeling fluid.

Time wasn't just something he observed anymore.

He was inside it.

Ethan gritted his teeth. "Tch. Annoying trick."

His aura surged. His muscles tensed. Then—

He exploded forward.

Blinding speed. Faster than before. A barrage of fists.

But Lucian was faster.

His power sharpened—expanding.

He saw every attack before it happened.

He wasn't just reacting.

He was moving in the spaces between time.

Dodge. Step. Counter. Dodge again.

Ethan's strikes missed their mark again and again.

He couldn't land a single hit.

The crowd erupted.

"What the hell is happening?!"

"How is Lucian dodging everything?!"

Ethan's frustration boiled over. He pulled back, pouring every ounce of kinetic force into one final, devastating punch—

Lucian didn't just see it coming.

He moved faster than it.

Time slowed to a crawl.

Lucian stepped inside Ethan's guard, his body already positioned for the finishing blow.

A perfectly timed counter.

He twisted his hips and drove his fist straight into Ethan's chest.

Impact.

A thunderous shockwave burst from the strike.

Ethan's body lifted off the ground, his breath escaping in a choked gasp.

For a brief moment, time stood still.

Then—

He crashed into the arena floor, motionless.

Silence.

Then—

The referee raised his hand.

"…Lucian Vale wins."

The dueling grounds exploded with noise.

Lucian exhaled, lowering his fist.

He had done it.

He had won.

And for the first time in his life—

The world was finally paying attention.