Hearing the shout signal from Keyzier, Novalia didn't waste a single second. Her eyes glowed purple, her magic staff hitting the ground hard.
"Paralyzing Area!"
A wave of paralyzing energy spread from where Novalia stood. Keyzier and Donovan, who knew their partner's magic range by heart, jumped back simultaneously, away from the danger radius.
Party Wild Dragon, who was in a defensive position, didn't have time to react. In an instant, the five of them flinched. Their muscles tensed up, their knees locked, and their movements stopped completely in the middle of the arena.
"Got you!" Donovan exclaimed triumphantly.
However, the smile on Keyzier's face faded when he saw the woman in the white robe behind Fred, the Priestess and Buffer of Party Wild Dragon could still move her lips. Her eyes radiated strong determination. As a Rank S, she had high status resistance.
"Mass Dispel! Sacred Purification!"
Blinding white light exploded from the Priestess's body, sweeping across the entire arena like a cleansing wave. The light hit Novalia's purple mist and annihilated it instantly. That high-level dispel magic canceled all kinds of debuff magic ensnaring her colleagues.
Fred and the other members of Party Wild Dragon flinched, then regained control of their bodies.
"Don't underestimate us!" Fred shouted angrily. "We didn't get the Rank S title just by luck! Counterattack!"
Fred slammed his spear down, sending a shockwave towards Keyzier. At the same time, the enemy Mage fired a barrage of ice spears, and the Archer released explosive arrows at Donovan. Their Tank roared, ready to charge forward.
The coordinated counterattack forced Keyzier and Donovan to defend. Small explosions occurred around them, sending dust flying. The audience cheered, thinking the wind of victory had returned to favor the Wild Dragon.
Seeing opponents who were still persistently fighting, Keyzier wiped the dust off his cheek. His gaze changed. There was no more playful smile.
"Alright..." Keyzier muttered coldly. "Playtime is over. Novan, Nova... Serious Mode."
Hearing that instruction, Novalia took a deep breath. She raised her magic staff in the air, creating a complex pattern that shone brightly. This time, she wouldn't hold back. The large amount of mana she usually conserved, she now released all at once.
Her mouth chanted spells at a speed difficult for ordinary ears to follow.
"High Strength! Sonic Speed! Light Agility! Eagle's Intuition! Danger Anticipation! High Mana Regeneration!"
Six magic circles of different colors appeared stacked beneath Keyzier and Donovan's feet.
Red for strength. Light blue for speed. Green for agility. Yellow for intuition. Purple for anticipation. Dark blue for mana regeneration.
Everyone in the stands gaped. Giving one buff was common. Giving two was a sign of an expert. But giving six high-level buffs simultaneously to two different targets without a casting pause was insanity!
"Impossible! What kind of mana does that girl possess?" muttered Patrick in the VIP seat, his hands gripping the railing.
Keyzier and Donovan's bodies shone brightly, enveloped in a rainbow aura that faded into pure energy. Their muscles felt light yet packed with power. Their instincts sharpened until they could hear the enemy's heartbeat from a distance.
Donovan grinned broadly, showing his teeth. "I feel like I can split a mountain now."
Without warning, Donovan disappeared from sight.
His speed surpassed the limit of human vision thanks to Novalia's buff.
"Where is he?!" shouted the Party Wild Dragon Tank in panic, raising his shield in all directions.
Suddenly, a heavy whisper was heard right in the Tank's left ear. "Right here, Buddy."
Crash!
A brutal blow from the flat side of Donovan's Mythril Greatsword struck the enemy Tank's body. The sound was like a cannon explosion.
Whoosh! Bang!
The Tank's massive body, weighing over 100 kilograms plus armor, was thrown across the arena as if he were merely a rag doll. He flew twenty meters before finally slamming hard into the arena's boundary wall.
The stone wall cracked, creating a small crater. The Tank slid down, fainting instantly with his eyes rolled back.
Before the audience could process what had happened, Donovan had already turned around. His eyes locked onto the Archer standing trembling in the corner.
"Your turn, Miss."
Donovan dashed again. The Archer tried to aim, but her hands were too slow. Donovan appeared in front of her, swatted her bow away, then delivered a 'controlled' roundhouse kick to her stomach.
Whack!
The Archer was flung away, sliding on the ground until she hit the wall on the other side of the arena, right next to her fainted colleague.
"Two down!" Donovan counted casually while shouldering his greatsword.
While Donovan cleared the defense line and ranged attackers, Keyzier faced Fred and the opposing Mage.
The Mage tried to cast defensive magic, but Keyzier raised his left hand, his eyes glowing a terrifying pale light blue.
"Blizzard!"
The temperature in the arena plummeted drastically to freezing point. A snowstorm far more ferocious than before raged, freezing the arena floor and slowing Fred and his Mage's movements to half their normal speed.
Fred shivered, trying to break the ice coating his legs. "Do you think this cold can stop me?!"
Keyzier didn't answer. He raised his right hand towards the arena ceiling.
"Black Hole!"
A pitch-black sphere the size of a fist appeared in the air. Although small, its gravitational pull was terrifying. Gravity around Fred became chaotic. Rock debris, ice shards, and dust were sucked into that one point. Fred felt his body being pulled forcefully, making it difficult to stand upright.
"And lastly..." Keyzier brought his hands together.
"Wind Tornado!"
A giant whirlwind appeared, merging with the snowstorm and the black hole's gravitational pull.
The three disaster magics combined into one: an ice tornado possessing gravitational suction. The enemy Mage screamed as his body was lifted into the air, spinning in the sharp ice vortex before finally being thrown out of the arena like trash.
Now only Fred remained. The Rank S Party Leader held on desperately, stabbing his spear into the ground to avoid being sucked in. His armor began to crack, his skin scratched by hundreds of ice shards.
"I... will not... lose!" roared Fred, forcing himself forward through the storm.
Keyzier watched the struggle with a flat gaze. He deactivated his magic instantly.
Silence...
The wind vortex, ice, and gravity disappeared in an instant, leaving Fred gasping for breath, kneeling on one leg, exhausted.
Keyzier walked slowly towards Fred. His footsteps echoed in the silent arena.
"You are strong, Fred. I admire you." Keyzier said as he stood right in front of Fred's face. "But I must finish this match. Thank you."
Keyzier coated his fist with hardening mana.
Thwack! Bang!
A solid punch landed on Fred's stomach.
The body of the Wild Dragon party leader was flung backward, flying through the air, then hitting the arena wall with a painfully loud sound. His body slid down, his dragon spear slipping from his grasp. Fred, the Rank S pride of Pixa, fell unconscious.
Dust slowly settled. In the middle of the arena now ruined. Cracked ground, scorch marks, and ice remnants, Keyzier stood tall. Behind him, Donovan smiled with satisfaction, and Novalia lowered her staff gracefully.
Only one person from Party Wild Dragon remained conscious: The Priestess.
The woman stood trembling. She looked around. Tank fainted, Archer fainted, Mage thrown out of the arena and fainted, her party leader unconscious. Everyone was out of the arena.
Keyzier turned slowly towards the Priestess. His gaze was sharp, yet calm.
"Still want to continue?" Keyzier asked briefly.
The woman dropped her staff. Her knees went weak. She raised both hands in surrender.
"I... we surrender!" she exclaimed with a trembling voice.
"The winner is... PARTY NOIVER!" Patrick shouted loudly, breaking the silence.
The next second, the entire stadium exploded.
WUUUUUUUOOOOOOHHHHHH!!!
The cheers of the audience shook Pixa City after three Rank C newcomers defeated a veteran Rank S party of five members. They had just witnessed history being made.