Pa!
A firm hand suddenly gripped Charles's wrist, and the enormous ball of fire in front of him twisted unnaturally as though an invisible force had seized it from within. The flames distorted violently before vanishing in an instant.
At the same time, the twin magic arrays behind Charles cracked from their centers, fractures spreading across their surfaces before both exploded into fragments of light.
A thick cloud of smoke immediately swallowed the battlefield, obscuring Charles and the figure standing beside him.
Charles barely had time to react before his body was violently lifted off the ground. A sharp snap echoed through the smoke as his wrist was twisted, and his crimson irises rolled backward until only the whites of his eyes remained visible. His entire body went limp in the air, the destructive spell he had been preparing completely forgotten.
It took several seconds for the smoke to begin clearing.
