Chapter 12
Hambo lay beside a broken tree trunk, slowly stirring as he groaned under the weight of his pain. The mark of the punch he had received was evident on his face, and blood still trickled from his nose. Placing his hand on the tree trunk for balance, he struggled to his feet. His gaze shifted toward Suero and Moryo, who had seemingly abandoned their fight, now focused on the barrier that had suddenly vanished.
Hambo wiped the blood from his face with his sleeve, then fixed his eyes on Suero. In them, a mixture of shock and disbelief flickered. He muttered under his breath, as if speaking from the depths of his consciousness:
"What kind of power does he possess? How could a single punch shatter the defensive barrier granted by my technique? This boy… he's not ordinary."
---
On the other side,
Moryo and Suero stared at the sky, where the barrier that had enclosed the battlefield had disappeared. Suero tilted his head upward, confusion and concern intertwining in his voice as he spoke:
"Could it be that Master Sbyam and Betma have returned?"
Moryo, appearing more unsettled, kept his sharp gaze fixed on the sky. He shook his head slightly, deep in thought:
"Impossible. They couldn't have returned this quickly. The distance between here and their mission is far too great."
Suero cut in, turning toward him with growing urgency:
"Commander Moryo!"
Moryo turned slowly, maintaining his usual composure, and replied coldly:
"There may be an intruder."
Suero furrowed his brows cautiously:
"An intruder? What do you mean?"
But Moryo, uninterested in explaining further, responded firmly:
"We need to investigate the area. We can't ignore this."
Suero hesitated for a moment before asking:
"But… why do you think there's an intruder? Do you have any proof?"
Moryo didn't spare him a glance as he answered flatly:
"We'll find out soon enough. Just stay alert."
A faint sound of footsteps broke the silence.
Then, a mocking voice echoed from behind them:
"HEY!"
Moryo and Suero spun around instantly, ready for whatever was coming.
Standing a few steps away was Beth, arms crossed, his expression brimming with indifference and arrogance.
Suero was the first to speak, his voice wary:
"Who are you?"
Beth showed no interest in introductions. His gaze swept over Suero from head to toe before he sneered:
"You… aren't you that idiot's brother?"
His words alone were enough to spark Suero's fury. His eyes widened slightly before he turned toward Moryo, as if sharing his shock.
Beth continued, his smirk growing sharper, his tone dripping with provocation:
"Solio is obsessed with killing you. I wonder… why?"
Moryo, piecing things together in his mind, thought to himself:
"This man… is he from the Rizsius organization? He seems to know Spailo. But why is he here?"
With heavy steps, Suero began advancing toward Beth. His eyes burned with barely contained rage, each step amplifying the storm brewing inside him. His voice came out sharp and challenging:
"Do you have a connection to Spailo?"
Beth, seemingly amused, let out a short chuckle:
"Don't worry, I hate him just as much as you do."
But Suero wasn't convinced. His voice rose with growing anger:
"You're from the same organization he belonged to, aren't you?!"
Beth remained indifferent, as if discussing something trivial:
"You mean the Rizsius organization? Yeah, I am—"
He never got to finish his sentence.
In an instant—faster than Beth could register—Suero vanished from his spot and reappeared right in front of him.
It was like a flash of lightning, too quick for Beth to react.
With a fist brimming with energy, Suero delivered a devastating punch straight to Beth's face.
It wasn't just a punch—it was an explosion of sheer force.
Beth was sent hurtling backward, rolling across the ground multiple times before finally coming to a stop on his back.
Lying there, he stared up at the sky, which was still thick with dust from the impact. Then, suddenly, a grin spread across his bloodied lips before he burst into hysterical laughter. His voice rang through the air, wild and unhinged:
"What a joke! This is way too fun!"
Beth slowly pushed himself up, his face smeared with blood and dust. He turned to Suero, who stood there, muscles tensed with anger, and met his gaze with a chilling smile.
---
On the other side of the arena, Alia stared at the sky where the barrier had suddenly disappeared. Her features were filled with astonishment as she whispered to herself:
"What's happening? The barrier... It's been deactivated?!"
Her thoughts were interrupted by the voice of Veb, who was standing near her, gazing into the distance with sharp eyes:
"Oi, you girl!"
She slowly turned toward him as he continued in a serious tone:
"I don't know what's happening, but it's clear that the barrier has been destroyed! The event's been canceled, and there's an infiltrator among us. We need to search for them, but separately… because honestly, I don't want to stay with you."
He didn't wait for her response; instead, he turned and began running toward the forest, his eyes scanning the area intently for any sign of the infiltrator. Alia shouted after him, her voice dripping with sarcasm and anger:
"As if I care about you, you idiot!"
She began to move as well, but suddenly, she felt something restraining her. She tried to lift her feet, but she couldn't move. Looking down, she saw that her feet were frozen solid in thick ice. Her eyes widened in shock as she whispered:
"What?!"
Behind her, Darwin appeared, standing calmly with his hands in his pockets. His expression was cold, and his voice was steady as he spoke:
"If you don't want to die, stay quiet."
Alia struggled to turn toward him, her face a mixture of anger and shock. She spoke in a tense voice:
"What?!"
Darwin responded coldly, as if giving an order:
"You'll stay here, silent, waiting."
Alia refused to accept this, yelling in anger:
"You bastard!"
She tried to free herself from the ice with all her might, but to no avail. The ice was tight and solid. Darwin smiled faintly and added:
"It's useless. You won't be able to move. I'm a user of ice magic, and your feet are completely trapped. If you want to break free, you'll have to disable my magic... and that's impossible for you."
Alia continued her violent attempts to break free, rage burning in her eyes as she muttered through gritted teeth:
"DAMN IT !"
Darwin was unfazed by her anger, responding calmly again:
"I told you, stay quiet."
In the blink of an eye, a brown flash, like a thread of glowing light, shot toward Darwin at incredible speed. The flash sparkled intensely, like an arrow shot from an invisible bow.
Darwin sensed the danger and quickly turned toward the flash. But it disappeared suddenly, and in its place, Veb appeared right in front of him. Veb's hands were glowing with brown sparks, dancing like small flames.
In an instant, Veb threw a punch directly at Darwin's face. As his fist made contact, a terrible effect occurred. The air around them warped from the force of the blow, and massive pressure waves erupted from the point of impact.
Darwin was sent flying into the air, his body colliding with a nearby tree at an astonishing speed. He crashed into its trunk with tremendous force, causing it to shake and break some of its branches. He fell to the ground, his features showing pain as blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
Veb stood next to Alia, his expression indifferent, as if what had just happened was a common occurrence. He looked at her coldly and said:
"You need to be more careful."
Alia shouted at him in anger, still furious about what had happened:
"Shut up! I didn't ask for your help!"
Veb didn't respond, but he kept his eyes focused on Darwin with caution.
On the other side, Darwin was trying to rise again. He wiped the blood from his mouth with his hand, his eyes shining with a mixture of caution and anger. He glared at Veb, who stood confidently, thinking to himself:
"Damn, these students... They're all monsters... Sbyam's students aren't human!"
---
In a room shrouded in darkness, where it seemed the shadows consumed everything around it, the atmosphere was completely still, as if time had stopped. The faint light scattered in the corners of the room offered little warmth but couldn't hide the tension that filled the space.
Sbyam stood in the middle of the room, his hand in his pocket, maintaining his usual confidence, while Betma stood beside him, his expression calm but cautious. Sbyam broke the silence with a tone of boredom:
"OI! You old fools! I'm tired of waiting!"
Betma, who had been silently observing, spoke in a low voice, though tinged with a hint of annoyance:
"What do you want from us?"
Silence fell over the room again, as if everyone was weighing their next steps. Sbyam sighed in frustration, then slowly turned toward the door, saying:
"I'm leaving."
He began walking toward the exit, but suddenly, his voice pierced the stillness:
"The Rizsius organization..."
Sbyam stopped in his tracks, without turning, while Betma raised an eyebrow in confusion, surprised by the speaker's tone:
"What about them?"
Another voice came from the council, this time with a heavier tone:
"There's a man leading them."
Sbyam turned halfway, his eyes lighting up with intensity as he responded seriously:
"Cut to the chase."
The elder continued slowly and cautiously:
"A man named Raizo. We don't know when he became a sorcerer, but... he was once a scientist."
Sbyam interrupted him, impatience evident in his voice:
"I know that. Do you have anything new?"
The elder continued calmly, though he seemed reserved:
"You need to bring him here."
Betma felt the weight of the situation, hesitating before speaking:
"But..."
Sbyam cut him off sharply:
"I won't do it!"
An angry shout came from one of the elders:
"WHAT?!"
In that moment, Sbyam's eyes glowed with a dark yet terrifying light, and his serious voice filled the room, causing the walls themselves to seem to tremble under its weight:
"I won't start a war with the organization!"
Another elder responded angrily:
"Why, you fool?!"
Sbyam turned fully toward them, his tone a mix of sharpness and absolute determination:
"I won't put my students at risk of a destructive war, especially with Spailo among them."
The elders' anger escalated, and their voices rose:
"Since when do you fear a sorcerer?!"
Sbyam smiled faintly as he confidently walked toward the door, his voice calm but carrying an undeniable weight:
"I don't fear my former student... What truly concerns me is my students, and protecting them from him."
As he exited the room, the elders' angry cries echoed behind him:
"COME BACK HERE... COME BACK, YOU BASTARD!"
But he didn't look back, continuing his way as if their words meant nothing to him.
---
In the event square, where things were starting to take a more serious and dangerous turn, Campeis stood inside the palace, his eyes tightly shut as if sensing something in his surroundings. Slowly, he raised his finger toward the sky, speaking in a calm voice, but one that carried hidden strength:
"Activate the barrier."
At this pivotal moment, the shape of the sky began to change. Dark lines of light appeared above, gradually gathering to form a transparent yet solid barrier, surrounding the entire square like a cage, trapping everyone inside. The scene was awe-inspiring, as if a momentous event was about to unfold.
On the other side of the square, Beth stood staring at the sky with cold eyes. He didn't seem surprised by what had happened, but he smirked sarcastically, speaking to himself:
"The barrier has been activated... It's inside the palace now."
Suddenly, a small explosion shattered the silence, and a green spark shot through the air at an incredible speed, heading straight for Beth. The spark glowed intensely, like an arrow released from an unseen bow.
But Beth, as usual, showed no sign of disturbance. He slowly glanced at the approaching spark, and when it drew close enough, he calmly raised his hand, as if time itself had frozen around him. At that moment, a dark vortex began to form above his palm, spinning rapidly as if it were a gate consuming everything.
The spark reached Beth's face, but instead of striking him, it was drawn into the black vortex as though it were a magnet, then vanished entirely without leaving a trace.
Moryo, who had been watching the scene in shock, widened his eyes, staring at the spectacle as if trying to comprehend what had just happened. He muttered to himself:
"What is this? How can he do that?"
Meanwhile, Suero stood beside Moryo, but he wasn't calm. His voice was filled with suppressed anger as he said:
"Commander, I will move now!"
Moryo quickly turned to him, trying to calm him down:
"Stop! We need to work together. We won't achieve anything if we act alone!"
But Suero was not ready to listen. His eyes filled with hatred as he glared at Beth, then spoke in a low, sharp voice, as if his words were coming from the depths of his soul:
"I hate him... I want... I want to take revenge on them!"
Moryo felt the intensity of Suero's anger and raised his voice firmly:
"Suero!"
Suero turned toward him, looking at him inquiringly, while Moryo continued seriously:
"We're starting your Shrine Punch training now. This is the right moment for you to learn and master your power."
Suero's eyes softened slightly, but he exhaled gently before giving a faint smile. He then turned his gaze back to Beth, speaking with growing enthusiasm:
"Alright...!"
As for Beth, he remained in place, watching Suero and Moryo with cold, indifferent eyes. He seemed to know exactly what they were planning, but showed no interest.
At that moment, Suero's eyes flared with renewed excitement, filled with determination. When his gaze met Beth's, it felt like a silent duel, each testing the other without uttering a single word.
End of chapter.