As Hamza prepared to bowl the ninth over, Feng took a single off the first ball, followed by two runs and a boundary. Xavier scanned the field, anticipating the next delivery.
Hamza stepped onto the popping crease and whispered, "Phantom Mirage."
Upon releasing the ball, it shimmered with mystical energy, leaving a faint, glowing trail in its wake. Xavier's gaze sharpened, sensing the unusual nature of the delivery. The ball hovered in mid-air for a split second, creating an eerie stillness in the atmosphere.
Suddenly, it spun wildly in multiple directions, catching Xavier off guard. The ball appeared to break both ways simultaneously, making it nearly impossible to read. In response, Xavier whispered, "Second counter: Silent Snowdrop."
Just as the mirage ball seemed poised to sweep into the wicket, it vanished into thin air. Xavier raised his bat and smiled, confidently taking off for a run.
Hamza narrowed his eyes in confusion, thinking, "Huh? Is he swinging at nothing? Where's the ball?"
"It's at your feet, Hamza!" Rovan called out.
Hamza glanced down and saw the ball swirling around his feet like a tiny cyclone. He attempted to hit it toward the wicket behind him, but Xavier was already stepping into the non-striker's crease, commanding, "Stop." As he did, the ball's speed slowed and eventually came to a halt beside Hamza's right foot.
The commentators and crowd gasped in astonishment.
In the Islamabad pavilion, Nolan analyzed the replay of the delivery, "Xavier recognized that the real ball was aimed at the wicket. The moment it was about to strike, he hit the ball with significant spin, allowing it to roll back toward Hamza's feet, swirling round and round. That was a remarkable counter. Reading the wind's movement and calculating the ball's speed with such precision isn't something everyone can pull off. It's no wonder he's considered a genius."
Romeo smiled, whispering, "It wasn't just his Realm, Rovan."
Rovan, rubbing the ball on his sleeve, passed it back to Hamza, who walked away frustrated.
Feng surveyed the field, tapping his bat on the crease as anticipation built in the crowd for the upcoming delivery.
Hamza, determined on the bowling crease, murmured, "Phantom Mirage," sending the shimmering ball toward Feng that created an illusion of veering off course.
Feng's wicket glowed with a translucent silver aura, Clad Shield defense activated. He focused intently on the delivery. Leaning forward to defend, he thought, "This ball should drift outside off-stump…"
However, the ball defied his expectations, changing direction mid-flight and sharply diving back in due to its deceptive spin. It struck his pads right in front of the stumps.
"Eh?" Feng stood there, momentarily bewildered, as Hamza and the fielders erupted in a loud appeal.
After a brief moment of deliberation, the umpire raised his finger to signal LBW.
"Yes!" Hamza cheered, raising his fists as Juhan, Ibn Sena, Rovan Venus, and Asim rushed to commend him.
Hamza looked at Feng conceitedly and said, "Not all outs involve hitting the wicket."
Noticing the sarcasm in his tone, Feng scowled, irritation evident in his gaze.
"Haha! It's out! Hamza did it!" Basid remarked glancing at Romeo and Leif.
"Yeah, he sure did." Nolan smiled.
"Oh! If Xavier wasn't the one to fall, it's Feng who has succumbed to the Phantom Mirage! What a delivery!" Wasim exclaimed.
"He misjudged the trajectory, thinking it would move away, but that deceptive spin has sealed his fate. Hats off to Hamza; the entire stadium erupts in celebration for Islamabad's third wicket." Jones continued.
"Tch, what was I thinking?" Feng clicked his tongue in disappointment.
"Should we consider a review?" Xavier asked.
With a smirk, Feng shook his head. "Not a chance. Our Captain is up next." There was an unusual confidence in his voice as he strolled back.
Xavier couldn't help but feel a slight astonishment at his growth. "Little ones do grow up quickly, don't they?" he mused.
Isa, donning his helmet, took a deep breath.
"We're counting on you, Isa," Aaron said, giving a thumbs up.
"Yeah, show them what you've got out there," Orion added with a smirk.
Kazuna, Elias, Nagi, Haruf, Evan, and Alan all nodded in agreement.
"We've got your back, your highness. Go, light up the field," Noah encouraged, giving him a gentle push as Isa stepped onto the ground with a smile. A sudden thought struck him, and Isa turned to Zachariah. "What's up?" he asked looking up.
Zachariah, with a fleeting grin, rested his hand on his cheek and said softly, "Break a leg."
Isa nodded smiling.
Seraph observed the two in wonder.
Isa glanced at the middle schoolers, Helios, Ryan and Poseidon, who also nodded.
"We expect great things from you, long lessons. Don't come back empty-handed," Kenzo instructed with a smirk.
Isa smirked back, "Don't worry; I'll make sure to give you the biggest lesson you've ever received, little king."
"Look who just walked in," Senri pointed out as Feng stepped in, tossing his bat aside, visibly annoyed.
"I can't believe I only scored 4 runs off 7 balls! I'm dumbstruck! This is an utter disgrace!" Feng tossed his bat aside irritated.
"Pft!" Gabriel, Ryan, Heber, Azazel, and Adam stifled their laughter.
"Don't laugh!" Feng shot them a glare, but they didn't stop. On the contrary, Even the high schoolers joined in.
Senri playfully grabbed Feng by the shoulders, "Come on, it happens. But coming back this early is quite a feat!"
Feng puffed his cheeks, "Not you too now. It was that LBW's fault…"
"Haha!" Senri laughed, ruffling Feng's hair.
Isa, taking a deep breath as he headed toward the pitch, united with Xavier.
"Ah, there he is. Karachi kings Pinnacle of Monarchy user," Seon Yul grinned.
Wasif pondered for a moment, hand on his chin.
"What's on your mind? Are you going to activate your Phase 2?" Seon Yul asked.
Wasif clicked his tongue in denial.
"Not even on him? He's the team's Captain. Haiz… who would that lucky person be then? Besides, what if Isa turns out to be just like Aigou? Don't regret your decision," he advised, but Wasif remained fixed on his decision and returned to his position.
"Oh dear…" Seon Yul sighed, adjusting his hat.
As the tenth over began, Karachi Kings stood at 85 runs for the loss of 3 wickets, maintaining a solid run rate of 9.5.
Isa, positioned at the non-striker's end, carefully observed the pitch and field placements. A sly grin crept onto his face as he whispered to himself, "Pinnacle of Monarchy, Phase 1: Kingdom's downfall."
As a couple of overs passed, the crowd and commentators began to notice Islamabad's disorganized fielding and questionable tactics. The sudden shift in momentum left even Islamabad's fielders bewildered as Isa and Xavier steadily piled on the runs.
Isa striking one shot amongst them high and towards long off and deep extra cover. Ibn Sena and Rovan, both sprinting to field the ball, lost their pace and collided.
"Watch out!" Rovan exclaimed, grabbing Ibn Sena as he hit the ground hard, wincing in pain as his elbow bore the brunt of the fall.
The crowd collectively gasped.
"Sena!" Basid and Murad called, while Romeo narrowed his gaze seriously.
"What on earth just happened? A total mix-up in the deep covers! Rovan and Ibn Sena sprinting for the ball, and boom—they collide!" Jones exclaimed, his surprise evident.
The ball, meanwhile, trickled away to the boundary for four.
"Tch!" Venus muttered, clearly frustrated.
Isa's eyes flashed with apathy as he returned to his stance at the crease.
"Ouch! That's a painful knock to the elbow for Ibn Sena! And to add insult to injury, the ball has rolled into the boundary for four!" Maaz chimed in.
"For the past few overs, we've seen a series of unfortunate collisions and massive drop catches—first Hamza and Asim, then Emaad and Hamza, and now Ibn Sena and Rovan. Karachi Kings are certainly taking advantage of these blunders. But that elbow injury could have serious implications!" Wasim added.
"Are you alright?" Seon Yul asked Ibn Sena, who nodded with a pained smile.
"Why don't you take a break? Tell Romeo to send in a substitute," Rovan suggested, patting his shoulder.
Ibn Sena opened his mouth to protest, but Rovan's stern expression stopped him.
"The match isn't going anywhere, Sena. Come back when you're ready," Rovan insisted.
Ibn Sena hesitated but eventually nodded, leaving the field as Nolan stepped in to replace him.
"Rovan..." Wasif called out.
"Yeah, I've figured it all out," Rovan responded with a frown.
"That's Senior Isa's Pinnacle of Monarchy, isn't it?" Ezekiel asked, visibly unnerved.
"Mm-hmm," Evan confirmed with a nod.
"Seeing him use it in a match is far more terrifying than when we faced it ourselves," Seraph remarked.
"That's because this time you're watching others suffer instead of being on the receiving end. It changes your perspective," Haris noted.
"What's more, it doesn't even feel like Senior Isa's Pinnacle is activated. He hides it so well," Ryan added.
"He's practiced a lot to perfect that. Isa believes that a silent attack is more terrifying. When your opponents can't see where the threat is coming from, it creates internal chaos. They start to doubt everything," Kazuna explained.
Kenzo, however, looked satisfied. "If this is how we're getting payback for all that grandstanding, then I'm all for it," he said with a smirk.
Adam shot him a skeptical glance, muttering under his breath, "Of course, in your perfect little world, everything's always fine, you smug king."