"What the heck? He ran away?"
"Why didn't he keep fighting? He was about to turn the tables!"
"I think Ethan Hayes might be running low on magic power."
In front of the projection stone, the crowd was left in awe after witnessing Ethan Hayes's series of actions. A seemingly hopeless situation had been forcefully turned around by him. If not for the quick support from Livide and the others, there would probably only be three opponents left now.
"Phew~~~"
As the gale brushed past Ethan's face, he dashed through the sky, his crown fading and the regal cloak reverting to his normal attire. He had exited the spirit assimilation state.
He didn't want to, but the assimilation move was explosive rather than sustainable. For now, he could only use it once per day. Once out of that state, handling four opponents simultaneously was too much for him. Retreating was the best choice.
All he needed to do was wait for the cooldown of his spirit assimilation. Once it reset, he could return to crush those four underfoot.
"But… they're chasing really closely!"
A streak of light, Ethan sped forward. Yet not far behind, Livide, Nebula, and the others gave relentless chase. They stuck to him like hounds, occasionally launching spells to try to slow his escape.
At this point, even without looking at the projection stone, everyone could see their movements from a distance. Above the forest, the chase unfolded, resembling a dramatic game of cat and mouse.
"Looks like Ethan is truly running out of magic power…"
"But just running like this won't work either; the gap isn't widening."
"Does this mean he's doomed to fail?"
The crowd debated, each offering their own opinions.
The nobles naturally hoped for Ethan's downfall—his actions had already greatly embarrassed the nobles and royals. On the other hand, commoners wished for him to endure and perhaps pull off another miracle.
"Fire Creation Magic—Blazing Fireball!"
A massive fireball, two meters in diameter, launched from Ethan's hands. Seeing this, the pursuing Nebula and the others prepared themselves to block or dodge.
But the next second, their expressions froze as they saw the fireball fly toward the sky.
"Huh… the sky?"
Not just them—those in the stands also stared, dumbfounded, as they watched the fireball ascend into the heavens.
What was that?
Was Ethan so drained that he had lost basic control? Such a ridiculous trajectory—was he blind?
"Fire Creation Magic—Blazing Fireball!"
Again, a fireball shot into the sky.
Time and again, the same thing happened, leaving Nebula and her group convinced: Ethan was done for!
He wasn't faking it.
It made sense—though their team of six had been slacking off initially, not giving their all, six people were still six people. Ethan's remarkable feat of taking out two of them was already astonishing. However, at the end of the day, he was still just a rookie—a boy not yet twenty years old.
Even a prodigy had limits.
"Livide, you're wind-element. You should be able to catch up and take him out, right?"
"Hah, your mercury magic isn't slow either. Maybe you should go instead," Livide scoffed, maintaining his measured pace.
He wasn't foolish.
Ethan seemed spent, but there was always a chance he had a trick up his sleeve. If he did, whoever went in first would surely pay the price.
Besides, magic and power weren't free. If Ethan was eliminated, their alliance would dissolve immediately, leaving them to battle for the captain's position. There was only one spot, after all.
Boom!
While they were bickering, several more fireballs soared skyward. Though it was daytime, sharp-eyed onlookers noticed dark clouds gathering in the high skies. White clouds dissipated, replaced by rolling black thunderclouds.
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