At this moment, Mage Seiya finally confirmed that it wasn't mere luck that two renowned top level bishops had died at the hands of this man. It was because of strength. Strength wasn't just about combat power; it extended to subtler aspects, such as mastery over the flow of battle.
This man's reactions and combat skills were undoubtedly top-notch, but his ability to analyze and control the battlefield was on another level entirely. He could assess every aspect of the situation in the shortest time, then use the most efficient methods to manipulate every factor to his advantage. Even the strengths of his enemies, under his clever arrangements, could be turned into weaknesses.
The magic eye, which allowed complete awareness of the battlefield, gave Seiya and Oren an absolute advantage, even in their temporary blindness. Yet, Seiya only realized after speaking up that either he shouldn't have warned his companion, or he should have done so differently. Just because Seiya could see the battlefield clearly didn't mean Oren could, and his verbal warning had already fallen into the opponent's calculated trap.
When Seiya sensed the surging fire element, the scroll had already been unfurled, its magic charged to its limit. However, the person holding it didn't immediately activate the spell, akin to an arrow nocked but not loosed. This deliberate delay consumed magical energy but was necessary for the user's strategy—to wait until Seiya sensed the threat, called out to warn Oren, and Oren instinctively dodged, before finally releasing the spell. The calculated delay was designed to exploit those two fleeting moments.
Upon hearing his companion's urgent shout in the instant of blindness, Oren instinctively evaded. But unable to see anything, he couldn't identify the nature of the attack, leaving him with one natural reaction: leaping upward. This was the most common and reasonable way to dodge but also the worst option when facing a highly skilled opponent who had predicted and orchestrated this reaction.
No matter how skilled a warrior is, once airborne, they lose their footing and ability to adapt. Even the most agile cannot escape becoming an easy target mid-air, especially when their opponent, equally skilled, had calculated and set up their trajectory in advance.
Seiya couldn't understand how their opponent could perceive objects in such intense light, similar to the magic eye. But the blazing fireball unleashed precisely at the moment Oren ascended mid-air, targeting his trajectory perfectly, left no room for doubt.
If Oren had stayed on the ground in the narrow alley, even blind, his reflexes might have allowed him to sense the searing heat and dodge. After all, the magic fireball traveled slower than a regular arrow. As long as he wasn't hit directly, Oren's battle aura and enchanted armor might have withstood the resulting explosion. However, now the fireball, infused with the full magical force of a fire magic master, was unerringly headed straight for him.
Except for fire elementals and similar creatures inherently immune to fire, there is absolutely no living being—or any object, for that matter—that could survive this pinnacle of fire magic. Although the magical leather armor Oren wears is a masterpiece among magical gear, the sheer power of Blazing Nova, a top-tier offensive spell, cannot be resisted even by the anti-fire mastery of a fire elemental grandmaster. If struck, the Alrasia's finest swordsman would, without a doubt, be reduced to a single indistinguishable lump of charred remains along with his leather armor and sword.
The torrential downpour was utterly powerless against the searing heat of the top-tier fire magic. Every raindrop and droplet evaporated entirely within ten meters of the glowing sphere, and the fierce heat wave scattered the rest of the rain, amplifying the overwhelming aura of the fireball. Yet, two clusters of water suddenly broke through this oppressive force, surging upward to intercept the raging Blazing Nova.
They weren't merely water masses; they were Seiya's summoned water elementals. Both Seiya and Oren couldn't help but feel a surge of relief in their hearts. The fireball wasn't so fast as to be unavoidable, and fortunately, two water elementals happened to be below Oren, preparing to launch a water-arrow attack. With just a thought, Seiya redirected their energy to form a shield, interposing them in front of Oren at the last critical moment.
No one had ever tested what would happen if a Blazing Nova struck two water elementals—both being pinnacle spells of their respective elements. However, anyone could imagine the effect of pouring water onto molten iron. These two water elementals held vast quantities of water, far beyond any bucketful, and the fireball's heat exceeded what could melt mere metal.
A thunderous explosion shook the entire capital city. A massive amount of water instantaneously vaporized, expanding thousands of times in volume to create a scalding steam storm. The central area was obliterated, reducing nearby houses and the two water elementals to tatters. Raindrops were blown skyward, and the area transformed from a cold, rainy night into a steamy inferno akin to a volcanic spring.
General Oren bore the brunt of the explosion's force. Instinctively curling into a ball, with his battle aura and enchanted armor at full strength, he avoided direct harm from the scalding steam but was hurled like a ragdoll, spinning and tumbling into the distance.
Compared to Oren, Seiya fared slightly better. Protected by multiple layers of advanced magical shields and being slightly farther from the explosion, he lowered his altitude to reduce the shockwave's impact. Though thrown off balance, he managed to remain somewhat stable in the air.
Even so, Seiya's focus remained razor-sharp. Despite the physical turbulence, his voice and hands were busy chanting incantations and forming gestures, preparing to face the enemy rapidly advancing through the steam-shrouded rooftops.
Even lightning piercing the heavens couldn't cut through the dense steam. Though invisible to the naked eye, Seiya's fully active magic eye could see a figure bounding towards him amidst the dissipating storm.
It was impossible to control flight amidst such turbulent winds unless one was a grandmaster of air magic. Seiya knew this well, and his pursuer undoubtedly did too. This was why his opponent exuded such intense killing intent. Determined to capitalize on Seiya's current vulnerability, the enemy sought to strike while Seiya was isolated—this was his only chance to eliminate a high-level mage like him.
Watching the approaching pursuer so clearly—like observing a wolf baring its bloodstained fangs and exhaling its foul breath up close—mage Seiya felt tense but not panicked. As the Court Mage of Alrasia, his reputation was not built on hollow fame.
In this life-or-death moment, his mind instead reached an unprecedented level of focus. His Mystic Eye, deeply linked to his consciousness, was operating at full capacity, perceiving his opponent with incredible clarity. Every detail of the assailant became vivid: the surging fighting spirit coursing through his body, the boiling magic within him, and even the physiological responses caused by his overwhelming intent to kill—the adrenal glands and pituitary glands flooding his bloodstream with hormones, spiking his blood pressure, and driving his heart into a rapid, pounding rhythm.
Seiya saw it all, as if his enemy's body had become an open book.
Asa's heart was indeed pounding rapidly, with his surging fighting spirit coursing through his body along with his blood.
When he realized that Talice was carrying the most offensively potent type of magic scroll, he had centered all his strategies on ensuring that the scroll's magic would land successfully. The tactics were nearly flawless and almost succeeded, but he had not anticipated that Seiya would be able to command two water elementals at the critical moment to block the seemingly unavoidable Blazing Nova. Even less did he expect the aftermath of the collision—an outcome he had not foreseen.
As devastating as the large-scale steam explosion might appear, Asa knew it was unrealistic to expect such an effect to lethally wound two top-tier combatants. The storm of scalding vapor, though intense and scorching, caused no burns, as everyone involved was already drenched from the rain. The explosion's primary impact lay in the powerful gusts, which separated the combatants—Oren being hurled in one direction while Seiya was blown in the opposite.
Although Asa hadn't predicted this outcome, he made an instantaneous decision. He knew he had to seize the opportunity to eliminate the isolated mage, who was unable to fly freely in the turbulent storm. If Seiya regained his composure and resumed using his magic eye from high above, Asa knew there would be no escape. Without hesitation, he abandoned the unconscious Talice and rode the storm's winds in furious pursuit.
But this was, after all, the Court Magician of Alrasia. The mere fact that he could summon four water elementals silently and seamlessly while simultaneously employing flight magic was enough to secure him a place among the continent's top-tier magicians. The scroll and the crystal prism obtained from Talice had already been expended; now, Asa had no choice but to rely solely on his own strength to pursue and eliminate this formidable adversary.
As the final syllable of a spell left Seiya's lips, a rolling mass of silvery-white mist burst forth from his hands. Wherever it passed, the air froze instantaneously, creating a towering wall of razor-sharp ice crystals. This immense, jagged barrier stood directly in Asa's path. Typically, anyone familiar with this spell would know better than to engage with such a structure head-on. It was no mere ice wall; the barrier carried an added enchantment of freezing magic. Colliding with it meant not just being impaled by its jagged edges but also frozen solid, becoming part of the crystalline monstrosity.
Whether Asa understood this or not, Seiya couldn't say. What he did know, however, was that this man would absolutely not back down, evade, or hesitate. The taut muscles of his body, the relentless momentum of his charge, and the boiling, scalding killing intent coursing through his blood made that abundantly clear.
Indeed, Asar didn't dodge or retreat; he crashed directly into the ice wall. However, instead of being pierced or frozen solid, he threw a punch, and then his entire body surged with fighting spirit. The ice, now thicker, stronger, and more dangerous than any wall, was shattered by his force.
But this impact had already consumed about seventy percent of his fighting spirit. Seiya could clearly see the fighting spirit within the pursuer rapidly diminishing, from a torrent to a trickle. Despite this, the impact had successfully closed the distance between them to a point where an attack could be made. Seiya noticed that the magic within Asar began to emit a foul, necrotic stench, followed by an explosive burst of fire magic—a simple and swift spell designed to strike.
A blue-green fire arrow appeared at the tip of Asar's fingers, traveling at crossbow-like speed and carrying the deadly stench of decay. Seiya recognized that this fire arrow contained toxins and rot potent enough to kill an elephant.
If any other mage had been confronted with such a powerful but direct attack, they might have panicked for a moment, only to be struck by the arrow's speed. But Seiya wasn't like other mages. All of Asar's movements and attacks had been laid bare before Seiya's magic eye. Asar had barely begun to gather his magic when Seiya was already preparing his own spell. A lightning-charged shard of ice, precise in its power and accuracy, intercepted the fire arrow in mid-air, turning it into a cloud of greenish-blue smoke that was quickly scattered by the steam.
This simple spell, however, drained Asar's magic by ninety percent—half of that used in the acceleration and instant casting of the spell. Seiya had to admit that this simplification of magic was the most effective method. If not for the magic eye, he was sure that he would have already been burnt into a charred, stinking pile of flesh.
But Seiya didn't relax. As he blocked the attack, he saw Asar pull a small object from his cloak. It emitted a vibrant magical energy that resembled the natural magic of the elves.
The object quickly grew in mid-air, transforming into a centipede almost a meter long. But before it could fully take shape, it was struck by a blast of cold energy from Seiya's spell, freezing it solid in place.
The use of insects to store magical energy was similar to creating magical scrolls. Such a tactic could catch someone off guard, but against a mage with the magic eye who had already seen it before, it became a mere trick.
The steam storm had weakened, and the two were now at the edge of the vaporous winds. If they moved a little further, Seiya could rise into the air with flight magic, reaching an altitude where his opponent couldn't reach him. But at this point, their distance had shrunk to nearly nothing, and Asar gathered all his strength. He roared, took a step, and leapt toward Seiya.
Even with only thirty percent of his fighting spirit remaining, that punch, infused with his remaining energy, was still a deadly blow for any mage.
While Seiya's magical shield could protect against arrows and raindrops, it was not enough to withstand the force of a powerful physical impact. The protective halo around him slightly twisted under the force of the punch, then shattered. His mage robes fluttered in the wind created by the punch and were torn apart.
However, the punch didn't land on Seiya's body. It grazed his chest, drawing a line of blood as it passed.
"You lost," Seiya said coldly, watching Asar fall. His magic eye locked onto the falling opponent, the giant pupil above his head coldly observing the defeated foe. With a surge of flight magic, Seiya rose just enough to evade the punch.
Asar's heart sank. He knew he had lost. His desperate leap had been his final gamble. Now, the steam storm's energy had dissipated, and Seiya would soon ascend out of his reach. More importantly, every attack had been blocked. Even with all his power, Asar couldn't land a blow on the mage. This meant that he could not defeat a high-level mage in full control of the magic eye. Every movement, every muscle twitch, was visible to his opponent. No matter what strategy he used, it was pointless. Only overwhelming strength could win, and he had none left. His fighting spirit shattered.
While Seiya's magic eye stayed vigilant, watching the falling Asar, the mage's mind began to process. It was a surprise that Asar, who had forced both Oren and Seiya to fight together, wasn't a match for him in a one-on-one battle. However, Seiya quickly understood that this made sense. Although their combined strength was unquestionable, their spirits had faltered during the fight, leaving openings that Asar had exploited with clever tactics.
Now, there would be no more openings. Seiya had resolved to ignore Oren and the female knight for the moment. He would rise into the air, then rain down powerful magic to destroy his opponent in a bloody explosion.
But at that moment, the magic eye grew alert. Seiya and the magic eye both turned toward a figure emerging from the shadow of a building behind him, leaping toward him like a spider, seizing him in mid-air.