The Moonlight Swordsman

Katty signaled for her companions to halt on the uneven, sloping path, where a modest hill provided some much-needed cover. 

Suddenly, the mood changed and everyone's expression became serious; they were all acutely aware of the gravity of the situation.

"It seems there are three people coming in our direction, and that War God and a girl are not present among them," Katty said.

"Aren't they too overconfident?" Skalari Mage asked.

"Yup, that Soren guy is so full of himself," the seasfolk mage replied.

"I thought that young war god would be present; is he scared?" Warenwolf asked, looking towards Draken.

"Whatever the reasons are, let's confront them directly," Draken replied.

As one, they emerged from their hiding place and marched defiantly toward the oncoming mages of the Felgura Kingdom.

In the midst of the rough, lonely terrain, the two parties met but kept their distance from one another.

Zareena, Soren, and Raven looked directly at the five Beast Kingdom mages. On particular note was Raven's unwavering gaze, fixated on Katty, who stood with a radiant smile beside Draken.

"Hey Katty, that human bitch is staring at you," the skalari mage whispered near her.

Katty's eyes shifted to Raven, who was still gazing at her intently. Katty's cheeky grin in response appeared to infuriate Raven even more.

"Calm down, Raven. You will get your turn," Zareena whispered.

Raven took a deep breath and then said, "Yes, princess."

"You humans are starting to get more cocky." The seafolk mage shouted. 

The Seafolk mage left his colleagues behind and walked slowly but steadily toward Soren, Zareena, and Raven.

"Now aren't you the cocky one," Zareen replied, getting in position to attack. 

She gently raised both palms into the air, and a moderate wave swept down on them in a rising crescendo. The flood pushed mercilessly at Zareena's party, creating a wall of water.

"Let me join too," Katty said. 

Katty's steely resolve called forth a school of shark-like sea monsters with arms, legs, and terrifying, razor-sharp claws. 

These glowing blue beings sped through the water at tremendous speeds, heading directly for the Zareena group. 

Katty rode atop one of these shark-like monsters and kept her vicious troop focused on its prey.

"I miss Sera now," Zareena whispered.

Zareena extended a single hand, her commanding presence evident as she orchestrated a spiraling formation of golden leaves.

This formation took the shape of a colossal, gleaming spear.

The speed of the leaves' rotation increased as they danced. She lowered her hand with a fast and exact motion just before the oncoming water wave and the shark-like beasts approached.

The golden spear sliced through the water like butter and pierced one of the shark monsters down the middle.

Katty expertly shifted a group of her shark-like monsters to the flank on the right.

A cloud of black smoke swirled about Raven as she raced toward Katty. Zareena, meanwhile, made a beeline toward the seafolk mage.

At the same time as Soren leaped into the air, the ground underneath them split open, sending him flying towards the three remaining mages.

"Here comes the main guy," the Skalari mage said, and instantly two daggers appeared on his hands. 

"Try not to play around, Lenar," Warenolf replied. He summoned a spear in his hands.

"Keke.. don't worry," Lenar said as his eyes focused on the falling Soren in their direction. 

Meanwhile, Draken was just standing still with his arms crossed and watching the brawl.

*Booooom*

An enormous force of gravity descended upon Warenolf and Lenar as a loud explosion echoed throughout the battlefield.

When Soren landed on the field, the impact was so great that it cratered the ground immensely. Meanwhile, Warenolf and Lenar were both brought to their knees by the intense pressure.

 Draken, on the other hand, stood steadfast with his arms folded and his unblinking eyes set on Soren.

"So this is how his gravity pressure feels....kekeke" Lenar said.

Through his body, currents of electricity surged, transferring themselves to his twin daggers. A second later, the oppressive power was destroyed, and he was standing right behind Soren. The evil energy crackled in his reptilian eyes.

He swung his daggers at Soren's back twice as fast, but the nimble mage was ready. He deftly sidestepped the assault and stepped back to safety.

Within seconds, the mud surrounding both of Soren's legs had hardened into a solid mass. But Soren reacted incredibly fast, pulling back while using his gravitational force to smash the crusted mud. 

Warenwolf stayed in the mud in the middle of the field, his face sticking out to stare at Soren.

Soren was suddenly attacked by a barrage of lightning. Warenwolf and Lenar were so focused on their goal that they refused to give Soren any breathing room or a second chance. The plan all along was to quickly and cooperatively crush him.

Quickly dodging and weaving to avoid the lightning, Soren's instincts kicked in as his mind raced to devise a retaliation. 

Meanwhile, Draken, who was standing back and watching the action, was secretly a little on edge. The two remaining opponents on the other team absorbed his thoughts.

The fact that he couldn't identify them puzzled him. He couldn't help but speculate about their extraordinary bravery and the special tricks they might be using. 

The previous match had already revealed that one of their members consumed a special potion that rendered her invisible, making her difficult to identify even with mana sense.

And his intuition was right. 

Aizel and Daisy were making their final preparations as they stood not far from the unfolding combat. 

Time was now a precious commodity, as its invisibility would soon expire. Aizel had turned Sekki into a huge spear that dangled in the air in front of them.

Daisy, her bow taut and beads of sweat on her brow, was poised and ready.

"Are you sure I can shoot Sekki towards that dragon?" Daisy asked, looking a little nervous.

"Yes, if you are worried about the size, then don't worry about it. Just shoot with a little wind energy and strengthen the strings with Mana.

"Me and Sekki will handle the rest," Aizel replied, stretching his neck and arms a little.

[I am ready, let's show them what we can do, fufu]

"Yes, let's take them by surprise. Don't mess up the timing, Sekki."

[Don't worry, Master]

Sekki spoke words of reassurance, its voice full of self-assurance. Daisy nodded, clenched her bow, and took a long breath in preparation.

The Sekki drifted effortlessly into Daisy's waiting palms. She could feel the enormous weight of the spear as she pulled on the bowstrings, but she persisted with the help of mana enhancement and Sekki.

Aizel, standing at her side, poised like a sprinter ready to dash, mirrored her tenacity. Daisy's eyes never left Draken, who stood immobile in the distance.

"Now our potion effects can be worn off anytime. Before that just shoot and let me do the rest. On the count of three..

Daisy nodded.

"One...

"Two...

"Three... shoot..

*Swish* *Crackled*

Charged with Aizel's lightning, the spear flew through the air at the speed of a bolt of lightning. Aizel, in close pursuit, sprinted with electrifying velocity alongside the flying spear.

Aizel and Daisy became visible in the distance as the potion's effects wore off. 

Draken's heightened awareness picked up on their presence immediately, and he shifted his focus to Aizel, who had closed the distance between them very swiftly. 

The lightning-charged spear was hurtling directly toward Draken's head.

Soren, Warenwolf, and Lenar also noticed it but were busy fighting with each other. 

"So you finally showed up, Young War God. If this was your sneak attempt, then you have failed miserably." Draken said it with a smug.

As if on cue, Aizel performed a stunning leap into the air. Bolts of lightning surged through his legs as he delivered a powerful kick to the spear.

The sudden reversal in the spear's direction sent it hurtling in Lenar's direction.

"Soren nowwwww..."

Soren, alerted by the voice, quickly raised his arms, aiming the massive force of gravity at Lenar, who was floating in midair and throwing lightning bolts.

The gravitational pull yanked him down to the ground. 

At the speed of lightning, Sekki thrust through his head, leaving him no room to respond. 

Everything happened so quickly that nobody could have done anything to stop it. The belt buckle on Lenar's pants lit up brightly as his body disintegrated into specks of light.

In a flash, he found himself back on the balcony of the Beast Kingdom in the Colosseum.

"What even happened out there?" he said in shock.

"Hard luck, buddy," one of the Skalari mages sitting beside him told him.

Meanwhile, Draken was a little shocked to see this development. 

Suddenly, a barrage of arrows started to drop towards him. He just stood there and let them hit him. 

Aizel quickly changed direction and reached out to strike at Warenwolf, who had been trying to sneak up on Soren.