"OH MY, OH MY!" The referee exclaimed, but before he could even start riling up the audience, he could already hear the loudest cheer from the stands.
Seizing the opportunity, the referee exclaimed, "Is this the finale already? Are we going to witness the climax before the true finale? Or will one of the other two groups present an intriguing surprise, managing to rival Water or group G?"
As the gates opened, Stell and the rest of group G walked out of the waiting room.
"On my left, we have the terrifying dark horse that emerged victorious against all odds! The group G!"
While the referee was announcing their arrival, Stell wondered whether he had run out of advertisements or if he didn't want to ruin the moment for the audience.
Looking around, he heard the audience cheering, waving, or even throwing things at the invisible wall.
He could see dwarfs, elves, and even more fantasy species. Although he felt pressure, he also enjoyed the attention that the audience showered group G with.
However, all of that attention was taken away as the referee announced group A's entrance.
Well, Water's entrance. After all, he was the only one left in the group A.
Although he felt annoyed at Water, Stell couldn't help but sigh every time he remembered that he was about to fight that legendary opponent.
A person who defeated Tian Fen!
If it wasn't for Felix, Stell might have even shaken, afraid to look Water in the eye. However, Felix's reassuring look as he led the group left Stell with a confident but bitter laugh.
Stell's confidence in Felix almost reached Heavens at that point.
"Hey, what do you think? How long till we defeat him?" Felix laughed as they approached the center of the arena.
Shaking his head, Stell couldn't help but reply. "The question is whether we will be able to even match him."
"Boring." Pouting, Felix chuckled.
"Better be boring than overconfident." Stell sighed, unable to understand Felix's confidence. By then, Stell was sure that Felix wasn't aware of the true power of his luck, although he had an inkling.
"Where's fun in that? How are you going to advance if you don't risk it?" Felix laughed at Stell's comment, even clapping his hands once.
Stell felt like Felix was right but wasn't at the same time. With a confused expression, he only nodded, refusing to continue with the topic.
"Now, let's deal with the flashy guy." Felix grinned as he reached his position.
"NOW, NOW, EVERYONE!" The referee began unreasonable shouting again, making Stell furrow his eyebrows, wondering whether all that shouting was necessary.
"LET'S STOP WITH THE DELAYS!" The referee glanced at Water and Felix before slashing with his palm vertically. "LET THE MATCH BEGIN!"
With a relaxed expression, Water began conjuring waves while Felix and Stell waited for Water.
Earlier, in the waiting room, Stell and Felix made a plan. The first step was to avoid Water's first wave. Instantly after avoiding the wave, they should separate and attack water from both sides.
Why did they have to wait for Water's wave? Because Stell noticed that Water waited slightly after creating each wave as if he was recharging.
Meanwhile, the remainder of group G charged at Water like moths drawn to a flame. Stell could only shake his head, knowing that his teammates would likely be rewarded regardless, whereas he stood to lose a Mid-Tier Rare Rank achievement.
Just like earlier, Water quickly finished creating a wave before he sent it after group G.
The wave caught every member of the group G except for Stell and Felix, carrying them while advancing towards the duo.
"Good luck." Felix chuckled, wishing luck to Stell.
"Be careful not to trip." Stell hid his nervousness with a joke.
Then, Felix jumped in the air, avoiding the wave. Running in the air as if there were invisible platforms under his feet, he quickly approached Water.
Meanwhile, Stell released the energy he accumulated since the start of the battle with a stomp, creating the biggest Earth Wall he ever had. As the wave crashed into the wall, every group G member carried by the wave vanished with white light.
Thankfully, the wall was strong enough to withstand the wave, although Stell felt like it was on the brink of destruction.
As the wave split, Stell rushed from the Earth wall, intending to help Felix as fast as he could.
Looking ahead, he saw Felix jumping in the air, kicking with his heel at Water.
Water leaned his body backward, dodging the attack before he conjured a small waterball and threw it at Felix.
"Too bad." Felix grinned, waving his own hand, summoning wind that collided with water, breaking the waterball.
"Tsk." Water looked dissatisfied as he jumped backward, summoning a mini wave and riding on it. Felix instantly followed behind, not letting Water get away.
Stell looked as Water started conjuring a bigger ball before an idea arrived. However, he wasn't sure whether he could do it.
After all, he was involving himself in a fight between a protagonist and an exceptional opponent who might have been a protagonist as well.
At that moment, as if Felix knew what Stell thought, or he was simply that lucky, Felix shouted. "Stell! I need your help! I can't stop him alone. Once he makes a big enough ball, we will lose!"
Alarmed, Stell didn't think further as he started running in the opposite direction.
As he ran, every step of his produced an Earth Wall a meter high. Although the wall was thin and unsuitable for defense, Stell was sure that it would suffice.
Running from one end of the arena to the other, Stell divided the arena into two. Then, noting the positions of Felix and Water, Stell smirked.
Following that, Stell divided the arena again, limiting the space in which Water could run. Stell was alarmed by the enormous ball that floated in front of Water.
"Fuck!" Water cursed as he saw through Stell's plan. Since he was riding a small wave, he would crash into the wall! Either that, or he could stop riding the wave.
The problem was that Water couldn't control two things at once. He couldn't create a new wave, so his speed would be considerably reduced.
Angered, he jumped from his wave, turning towards Felix. "This should be enough for you, anyway.
Stell panicked when he heard Water's words. Closing the distance to Water, he shouted to Felix. "Get out of the way!"
Felix complied, moving and allowing Stell to continue running. Then, once he reached five meters of distance from Water, he saw Water throwing the gigantic ball at him.
Stomping, he made a slight crack in the ground. Usually, such a crack wouldn't have been able to stop Water. However, as if he knew that Water would move forward, the crack opened just at the place Water stepped on, making Water lose his balance and throw the ball to the side.
As the ball crashed, Stell made a pillar that lifted him, barely avoiding the flood that occurred.
Meanwhile, Felix strolled through the air before arriving in front of the tripped Water, who was carried by the water. Before Water could even react, Felix stomped him in the stomach as he grinned.
As Water lost his breath, he looked at Felix angrily. Waving his hand, the water from the flood flew at Felix's head as if it was aimed by a canon.
And yet, the water missed. With a look of despair, Water looked at the foot that approached his face before turning into white light.
"A VICTORY! WHAT A TURNAROUND! WATER LOST TO WIND AND EARTH!" The referee shouted as the audience cheered at Stell and Felix's victory.
Grinning, Felix looked at Stell. "Fun?"
Stell smiled slightly before bitterly chuckling. "It was your complete victory."
Stell knew that every more that happened was affected by Felix's luck. There was no way that the all-powerful Water could so easily fall for a trick that Stell made in the heat of the moment.
After all, Stell had only used one wish. Even his control was dubious. Under normal circumstances, Water would have surely found a way to easily defeat them.
Felix didn't correct Stell as he grinned. "You didn't answer."
Stell could only shake his head. "It wasn't bad."
As the referee looked at the duo, he couldn't help but evilly grin. "I think that it's time to reveal the final surprise. As many of you guessed, the final battle will be a battle royale between the members of the group!"
Stell froze.