Kira didn't even bother turning around. With a casual flicker of magic, a thick, sturdy stone wall shot up from the ground, effortlessly blocking the charging ice dragon. Then…
"Rock Cannon!"
Kira waved their right hand, fingers pointed, and the stone wall shattered into dozens of neat cubes. The blocks arranged themselves in a chaotic formation midair before launching like cannonballs, blasting the ice dragon into a hundred shards of debris.
Word Spirit Magic, as the name suggests, draws its power from spoken commands. This move didn't make the magic faster or anything—it was just Kira showing off.
Glancing back, Kira saw Gray, battered and bruised, eating dirt on the ground, while Lyon looked only slightly worse for wear.
Seriously? You lost that fast? Come on, Gray, are you only good after you've been beaten to a pulp?
Kira always kept an eye on their teammates, so they'd been watching the other fights too. Loke and Cana were up against some tricky opponents, but thanks to the magic items Kira had given them, they were holding their own—and putting on quite a show.
Gray and Lyon's fight, on the other hand, was a bit more… traditional. It was a classic showdown, like something straight out of a shonen manga. The battle went something like this:
The two started with a nostalgic spar, reminiscing about their days as fellow students under Ur. Then they got into a heated debate about one-handed versus two-handed casting. Finally, Lyon revealed his goal, blaming Gray for Ur's death, while Gray was overwhelmed with guilt.
In Kira's simplified recap, it went like this:
"Been a while, huh? Let's spar for old times' sake."
"I can't do it!"
"What, too guilty to fight? Then stay out of my way—I'm reviving Deliora."
"No way! That's Ur's legacy!"
"Still using two hands to cast, huh?"
"One-handed casting's unstable. Ur taught us that."
"I can cast with one hand. I'm stronger than you, and I'll surpass Ur!"
"You'll never surpass Ur!"
"If I revive Deliora and defeat it, I'll prove I'm better than her!"
"Stop it! That's impossible!"
"It's your fault Ur died challenging Deliora! Die!"
"Ur's still alive in that ice! Are you really going to keep up this ritual?"
"I've known that all along!"
Stab! Lyon lands a critical hit.
What?! Gray's down.
The whole exchange was packed with magical clashes and emotional outbursts, complete with dramatic lighting, expensive-looking effects, flashbacks, and plot twists. By the end, Gray was heavily injured, and Lyon had barely a scratch.
It felt like it took forever, but the whole thing lasted maybe ten minutes.
Kira was stunned. In the time it took me to have a quick chat, Gray already lost? Didn't you say you were strong? This is pathetic!
After a brief pause, Kira spoke coolly. "Gray, I did say that if you lost, I'd help them finish the Moon Drip ritual, right?"
"?!"
"!!!"
As expected of the story's number-two guy, there was no way Gray would go down so easily. Fueled by sheer determination, he staggered to his feet. "I know that… Lyon! This fight's not over! Kira, stay out of this—I can handle it myself!"
Lyon glanced back, a flicker of pride in his eyes, like a big brother seeing his little sibling grow up. "Still standing, huh? I take back what I said. You've improved, Gray."
"Time for you to wake up!" Gray roared.
Lyon's expression hardened. "No one's stopping me from achieving my dream!"
Kira shook their head. Tch, too bad, Lyon. In a shonen manga, only the protagonist gets to achieve their dreams.
The two clashed again, this time escalating from bare-knuckle brawling to a flurry of magical attacks. Ice animals and weapons flew back and forth—bows shooting falcons, giant apes smashing hammers, cages trapping tigers, wolves biting axes, spears piercing leopards, and dragons demolishing cannons. It was like a bizarre showdown between Sun Wukong and Erlang Shen.
Twenty minutes later, Lyon finally slipped up. The instability of his one-handed casting betrayed him at a critical moment. One mistake led to his downfall, and Gray seized the chance, blasting him with an icy cannon.
The fight was over!
By then, Loke and Cana had already finished their battles and strolled over. Lyon's team was completely defeated, and the Moon Drip plan was done for.
"Huff… huff…"
Lyon knelt on the ground, blood staining his battered body, his expression a mix of defeat and defiance. "I never thought… I'd lose to you."
"Give it up, Lyon. Stop the ritual. Ur… she wouldn't want to see you like this," Gray urged, still hoping to reach him. He couldn't bring himself to finish Lyon off—he genuinely wanted him to break free from this obsession.
"You can't change my mind. Even if this plan failed, I'll keep going. Three more years if I have to. I will defeat Deliora and surpass Ur!" Lyon spat.
Gray glanced at Ultear nearby. "Who's this? Your accomplice?"
"Hmph!" Lyon turned away, refusing to answer.
Clueless, huh? That's not just anyone—that's your master's daughter! Kira thought.
Ultear played her part with a wicked grin. "Hehe, I knew you'd fail, Lyon, but losing to this kid? That's unexpected."
Lyon stayed silent.
Gray shot Ultear a look. "You want to revive Deliora too?"
"Why not? Such a powerful demon, sealed away like this? What a waste," she replied.
"Are you all insane? What do you even gain from reviving Deliora?!" Gray said, tugging at his hair in frustration. "Lyon's done for, and you're alone now. The ritual's over!"
"Over? Hehehe… what are you talking about? The ritual's still going strong!" Ultear laughed.
Gray's head snapped up, realizing the ritual hadn't stopped. "What?! But how?!"
He turned to Kira, incredulous. "Kira, what were you doing while I was fighting Lyon? Sightseeing?!"
"Why's it still going? No one's even performing the ritual!" Gray was utterly confused, losing his composure.
Seeing Gray's distress, Ultear smirked. Before Gray could charge at her, a sudden blast of ice from behind knocked him down.
Lyon, struggling to his feet, cast a spell with one hand from a distance. "Nice work, Zalty! Keep it going!"
He wasn't down yet!
Gray tried to get up and fight, but after his grueling battle with Lyon, he was drained of magic and energy. He could barely stand, let alone take on another fight. Facing Lyon alone might've been possible, but this new opponent—Zalty—had unknown strength and plenty of stamina and magic. Gray's only option was to try talking his way out.