After a moment of silence, they looked at each other—Haizen and Urilo on one side, and Carlos and Butcher on the other. Surrounding them were a few members of Carlos' faction, trained warriors ready for combat. Suddenly, Carlos drew his sword, the blade blazing with fire. His fire magic wrapped around the weapon, illuminating the dim hideout. The members of Carlos' faction also drew their blades, though not all fifty members were present. Many were stationed at the entrance and upstairs, but a few remained underground, ready to fight.
Butcher seemed to be laughing with madness, knowing this was his time to go wild. Haizen and Urilo, both experts in combat, prepared for the impending clash. Urilo instinctively created magic barriers to block the attacks from Carlos' members. Haizen, with precise movements, threw his hidden daggers at the attackers. Each dagger was a direct hit—two of Carlos' men died instantly, while one remained, staggering from the wounds.
Urilo, without missing a beat, shot a spell directly at the remaining member, killing him instantly. He did this while continuing to chant the shield barrier spell, demonstrating his extraordinary skill. This all happened in a moment, a flurry of action that set the stage for the brutal battle to come.
As the battle raged, Urilo, encased in a protective magic shield, took on Butcher. Despite the protection, the heavy blows from Butcher were relentless, pushing Urilo to his limits.
The hideout trembled with the force of their confrontation, the structure above beginning to crumble. Amidst the debris, Haizen saw a chunk of rubble hurtling towards Nova. He dashed forward, pushing Nova out of harm's way just as the rubble crashed down.
At that moment, Carlos struck, his magic-enhanced power overwhelming. Haizen was thrown back, blood spilling from his mouth as he kneeled, weakened from the attack. He looked over at Nova, who was now shielded by a magical barrier conjured by Urilo.
Haizen got up again and ran towards Carlos with only one thing in his mind: to kill Carlos. They fought intensely while Urilo battled Butcher. But Urilo and Butcher's fight seemed to be one-sided, with Butcher's frenzied attacks keeping Urilo on the defensive from the start. Despite his injuries, Haizen countered every attack made by Carlos. Haizen's face was like that of a cold-blooded killer. The underground hideout was trembling from their fierce duel.
Haizen knew there was little hope of winning this fight. Carlos was an exceptional fighter, and having Butcher on his side only made things worse. If this had been a normal day at work, Haizen would have fled before the fight started because he was smart and knew when to fight and when to retreat. But today, he couldn't fall. He had to protect his brother, and Carlos was here to kill him. He knew it was a kill-or-be-killed situation, so he gave it his all.
While fighting, Haizen spotted a bottle of potion rolling around the hideout. He grabbed it and threw it at Carlos' face, causing an explosion like a bomb. Urilo had anticipated this, and Haizen teleported behind him just in time. Carlos, also a third-tier mage, had his barrier activated when the bomb hit his face. Though the attack was sudden, he took little damage—nothing he needed to be overly concerned about. Rubble was everywhere as the house collapsed in on itself. Urilo protected Haizen and his brother from the worst of it. The fight had turned the hideout into a visible arena under the night sky, with Carlos' faction members watching, ready to intervene on their leader's command.
Urilo and Haizen positioned themselves protectively in front of Nova. Across from them, in the pit of the hideout, stood Butcher and Carlos. It was clear: they had to fight or perish.
Suddenly, Urilo nodded at Haizen, a silent agreement passing between them. Haizen charged at their enemies, while Urilo began to chant a dangerous spell, his body surrounded by swirling dark and green energies.
Carlos, recognizing the threat, prepared his Thunderstrike. The air crackled with electric energy, poised to be unleashed. Amidst this, Haizen attacked with his daggers, his movements swift and desperate.
But then, disaster struck. Carlos' trained assassins descended into the pit, stabbing Urilo mid-chant. The spell went awry, unguided yet violent, striking down the assassins with lethal force. Those who were not hit directly by the spell screamed as their life force was drained, their bodies withering to husks.
Confusion reigned. Haizen, disoriented by the sudden attack on Urilo, was hit by Carlos' lightning strike. He was thrown back, severely burned and bleeding, struggling to rise with only one functioning arm. Butcher advanced to attack Haizen, who lay low because of Carlos' attack. Haizen knew this fight was over. But Urilo, despite his grave injuries, continued his spell. The dark green energy surged wildly, striking down more of Carlos' men. Those who survived were left in terror, witnessing the power and determination of their opponents.
Haizen stood up and attacked like a madman, making Butcher confused. Butcher thought Haizen was done for and had given his attention to Urilo. But Haizen's fight was far from over. Even with injuries, he could still use his teleport skill. He used it on Butcher, who was looking at Urilo like his prey. Haizen teleported and jumped onto Butcher, stabbing him in the face where his blind eye was and then stabbed Butcher in the face repeatedly, blood spraying wildly. Butcher, who was screaming, "You little cunt, I'll kill you!" tried to take Haizen off his face but couldn't. Butcher collapsed to the ground with Haizen on top of him, still stabbing like a madman.
From the side, Urilo continued his murderous killing spree of Carlos' assassins, making Carlos remember why he needed to kill these two. Haizen stood up, blood all over his face, and looked at the sky and laughed because he knew this fight couldn't be won. But he thought if he had to die, he would die killing as many as he could. He then started to walk towards Carlos with his injuries.