301: The Flawless Man

Darius wasn't even wearing combat gear.

Talk about being overconfident.

Tura took the lead, charging forward with everything she had. Right before impact, she unleashed her One-Hit Kill. The real difference this time was her recovery speed; she didn't miss a beat, pressing the attack by rushing him head-on. At the exact same moment, Carta fired her Mana Cannon. The magic split into two trajectories, curving around to flank him from both sides.

My job was to "see." I had to read the flow of mana, the fluctuations, the habits—every single pattern—and provide the right instructions. That was our winning formula. It was how we’d made it this far.

"Now those are some pleasant attacks! You're making me happy!"

Grinning like a madman, Darius dragged his greatsword across the ground with a grating skritch before swinging it upward with explosive force. Earth Attribute effects erupted from the blade. He’d infused the very soil of the arena with his mana.

Among the Four Great Elements, Earth is generally considered the "weak link." Since it usually requires physical matter to work with, its clunkiness is usually a fatal flaw.

...Or so I thought.

"Everyone, Shield! Hurry!"

Tura trusted my lead. She skidded to a halt and immediately began chanting. But every single grain of flying dirt was packed with a terrifying amount of mana; it wasn't just dust, it was a torrential downpour of magical artillery.

In an instant, Tura’s Shield was blown to pieces. The debris pelted me, and it even reached Carta, who was positioned way in the back.

The big advantage of the Earth Attribute is its low mana consumption. Unlike Fire or Water, you aren't creating something from nothing, which means you can dump all that extra mana into your physical abilities instead. I knew Darius was strong, but this was just ridiculous.

Maintaining a Shield costs a fortune in mana. If he keeps this up, we’re going to lose by attrition.

"What's the matter? You can't beat me if you're just focused on taking hits!"

Knowing he had the upper hand, Darius shouldered his greatsword with a heavy thud, looking for all the world like he was holding back to give us a chance. To put it simply, he was like a version of Duke who didn't have a single opening.

Just imagining that is terrifying.

However, my spirit hadn't broken yet.