Harman turned his gaze for a moment toward Noa, who was wiping the blood flowing from his nose, supported by Ranta.
"Noa Hyperion, huh? Even though he received help, he managed to escape that pursuit without any serious injuries, all without even using his chaos… that boy never stops surprising me."
But an incandescent heat caught Harman's attention, and in front of him, Soni had finally decided to get serious, preparing a far more powerful attack than the previous one. The heat was so intense it was melting the sand beneath his feet. Harman, looking unimpressed, admitted it touched his sensibilities.
— I'm really going to get angry if this pathetic fight drags on while the students are watching.
The energy emanating from Soni's body only grew stronger with each passing second.
— You could have just stayed out of it instead of interfering.
Ranta asked whether Harman would be able to withstand that attack. Kobra reassured him while supporting him.
— Soni may be strong, but the one standing before him isn't just anyone, so there's nothing to worry about.
Ranta looked at both of them and understood. He told them to leave: if they stayed, they would be more of a burden to Harman than support. Weaver shared the same reasoning as Ranta and urged Noa to leave and let the adults handle the situation. Noa clenched his teeth.
"This attack he launched against us… even if I had decided to use my powers, I wouldn't have been able to withstand it like Harman did… I would have had to completely lose control of myself."
Noa clenched his fists, realizing that right now he was forced to retreat without even being able to properly respond. He recalled the image of the mad familiar holding a member of the Order at sunset.
"Just like that day."
— No… never again. Never again…!
Harman felt a chill run down his spine as he sensed the dark energy emanating from Noa's body as he turned away, clenching his fist while leaving, followed by Ranta and Kobra.
"This energy… how can a child possess something so terrifying?"
He had guessed that Noa wasn't afraid of the situation, but sensing that energy, he now fully understood why.
At that moment, an attack was launched, interrupting Harman's thoughts. A concentrated beam of flames struck him before dissipating far into the horizon. Harman was sent flying into the air, though he barely reacted.
Soni appeared above him mid-air, unleashing a barrage of energy that created massive impacts on the ground. Harman was still unharmed, having deflected the attack with a simple movement of his hand. The two clashed in the air, constantly evading each other.
"This is going to be more complicated than expected…"
As he thought this, Harman, floating freely in the air, asked if Soni had ever seen a cataclysm. That question surprised Soni, as it had nothing to do with the situation. Harman remained calm.
— Even if you are strong, your level is only that of a B-class.
And before Soni could even process it, Harman was already in front of him in a guard stance, having taken his sword before Soni could react. Soni quickly retreated and launched several projectiles toward Harman, who dodged them effortlessly and even destroyed some with the stolen sword. Soni appeared behind him again, grabbed his arm, and threw him violently, followed by a fireball that was sliced apart before it could even reach its target.
— You are still young, so out of empathy I will show you the true level of an S-class leader against someone as inferior as you…
The sword he had taken from Soni became covered in a purple energy, both gentle and terrifying.
"I have fought countless people… but this…"
It was beyond him. Completely beyond anything he could withstand. If he didn't act quickly, he would die.
But it was already too late.
— DEATH PENALTY!
A torrent of absurdly powerful purple energy erupted, annihilating everything it touched into microscopic particles, slicing mountains in half and erasing their peaks in a roar that could be heard all the way to the kingdom's capital, darkening the sky and eclipsing the light itself.
The civilians cried out in confusion. A man shouted that it was one of Master Harman's techniques.
— WHAT?! WHY IS THE STRONGEST S-CLASS USING SUCH POWER IN THE KINGDOM?!
Another civilian wondered if they were under attack. Someone else asked who would be foolish enough to attack the strongest nation in the world.
In another battlefield zone, Lise Hyperion stood before the body of an opponent covered in wounds, her white hair flowing in the wind. She turned and observed the energy surge piercing the sky like a massive red serpent, her blue eyes calm and emotionless.
On the battlefield, the attack was about to erase Soni from existence when a small spatio-temporal portal opened behind him. From it emerged a silent hand that launched another attack to collide with Harman's.
The impact released a pink explosion, and the attack from the mysterious figure transformed into a sort of vortex. Harman immediately went on guard.
"A spatial power too? The pressure is too strong… if this continues, I'll get sucked in…"
A young girl's voice interrupted his thoughts. A gravitational anti-orb was launched, and when it collided with the vortex, both were simultaneously cancelled, to Harman's great relief.
— So? Need some help, I see!
He looked up and saw the person who had assisted him, bringing a smile back to his face.
— Lyly!
She exclaimed that she was happy to see him again.