"Impossible! How can he control such a wild and chaotic spell?!"
Everyone's eyes widened in disbelief.
They could feel the sheer force contained within the orb of magic in Ethan'—hands.
Once a spell is fully formed, even if it's your own, touching it directly with your body usually results in injury. Yet here Ethan was, holding it as if it were nothing.
Boom!
With a swing of his arms, one to the left and one to the right, Ethan mercilessly pushed the spell forward.
His targets? The nearest enemies—Valtas and Catherine.
But what surprised Ethan was that Sally, who wasn't even in his line of attack, suddenly stepped in front of Valtas to block it.
Thud!
The moment the spiraling sphere hit, both Sally and Valtas were blown away like cannonballs.
Even though Valtas hadn't taken the full brunt of the attack, Sally's body slammed into him midair, dragging him along.
In a single strike, all three were hurled into a pile of nearby ruins.
"YES!"
Marx couldn't help but cheer.
His worries were clearly unfounded. Ethan was far more powerful than he had imagined.
"Ah... though that was still pushing it…"
Ethan had succeeded, but his body had reached its limit.
He collapsed to the ground, utterly exhausted.
That was his final, all-or-nothing blow.
After battling dozens of enemies and then taking on these three elites, his mana was completely spent. He had injuries too.
He looked down at his hands. The skin on his left hand was torn open, crisscrossed with gashes like knife cuts.
His right hand was charred black, as though it had been burned.
A result of his imperfect control.
Although the Rasengan's non-elemental concept could be adapted into magic, there were still subtle differences. Using one at a time was manageable, but controlling two simultaneously had stretched him too thin.
Fortunately, nothing major had gone wrong at the crucial moment.
Otherwise, he would be the one lying in the rubble right now.
"How are you holding up, Ethan? Still with us? I don't get it—where the hell are the other squads? Why hasn't anyone shown up yet?!"
Marx helped Ethan sit up, worry written all over his face.
It had already been seven or eight hours since the invasion began, yet not a single other squad had arrived. Even the Golden Dawn, which was supposed to be stationed in the capital, had seemingly vanished.
Something wasn't right.
"They probably ran into trouble on the way…"
Ethan gave a bitter smile. It was clear now—this invasion had been carefully planned.
And if it was premeditated, then the enemy would've made sure to cut off reinforcements.
The only factor they hadn't accounted for… was him.
If not for him, the inner city might've already fallen.
"Ethan!!"
Speak of the devil…
Even without turning around, Ethan recognized that voice.
Hovering not far away in the sky were Yami Sukehiro and a dozen other Black Bulls, arriving on magic broomsticks—fashionably late.
Ethan didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Seriously? You guys show up AFTER the battle's already over? Planning to swoop in and steal the credit or what?
Swish!
Whoosh!
They landed. Yami, as always, had a cigarette hanging from his lips as he scanned the surroundings.
The others all wore various expressions of shock.
The devastation was massive. The once-bustling capital had turned into a war zone.
Even as frequent visitors to the city, they had trouble believing this burning ruin was the same place.
But nothing compared to the horror right here.
Blood soaked the ground. The stench was overwhelming.
Severed limbs and exposed entrails made it look like a literal hellscape.
"Yo, kid. Looks like you've been busy."
"Busy? He took out over a hundred enemies on his own! If it weren't for Ethan, the inner city would've fallen for sure!" Marx added.
"One guy… killed over a hundred?"
Everyone froze at the sound of that.
That was straight-up terrifying.
Killing a hundred pigs would be hard enough—never mind a hundred armed enemies.
He looked so cheerful and innocent… who would've guessed he had such ruthless strength?
"Black Bulls, listen up! Teams of three—search the surrounding areas in all four directions. Any hostiles, eliminate them!"
Yami barked the order, all traces of his usual laziness gone. His expression was serious, even grim.
Though he came from overseas, he'd long since considered the Clover Kingdom his home.
And now, people were attacking it?
That was personal.
"Yes, Captain!"
At his command, Luck, Vanessa, and the others split off, heading out to secure the area.
Only Asta and Yami remained.
"You're not heading out, kid?"
"Haha, Captain, I saw Ethan was hurt. If there are still enemies around, I want to be here to protect him!"
Ethan felt a warmth spread through his chest.
Some people say things just to sound good. But Asta wasn't one of them—he meant every word he said.
Ethan chuckled to himself.
The first one to genuinely check on him… wasn't a girl, but a dude.
Was this guy trying to win his heart or what?
"Oh, right—Captain Yami, did you guys run into trouble on the way? What took you so long?"
Ethan asked.
The Black Bulls' base wasn't far from his own post. By broomstick, it should've only taken about eight minutes.
Yet here they were, hours late.
"Yeah, we got ambushed on the road. Lost some time dealing with it. Seems like this whole thing was planned. Wouldn't be surprised if the other squads ran into the same mess…"
Yami nodded. He might've been all muscle, but he wasn't dumb.
Given how things had unfolded, it was obvious the enemy had deliberately delayed all reinforcements.
That's when Ethan suddenly remembered something.
"Oh right—Captain, could you check the rubble over there? I subdued three people earlier who seemed to be leading this whole invasion. They should still be there—we might get intel if we question them."
Yami nodded and unsheathed his katana as he walked toward the debris.
Ethan had said the enemies were down, but now wasn't the time to take chances.
But when Yami lifted the wreckage…
No one was there.
"Uh… Ethan, are you sure this is the place?"
"Pretty sure… maybe… yeah, I think so. No wonder Sally threw herself in front of Valtas…"
Ethan cursed under his breath.
He finally understood what Sally's goal had been.
Among the three, only Valtas could use spatial magic.
If they needed to escape the capital quickly and safely, they needed him.
So she used her life to protect his.
One life for two…
"Clever move…"
Even Ethan couldn't help but be impressed.
It was the most logical and efficient tactic—but he wasn't sure he could've done the same.
Who'd willingly bet their life like that?
He wasn't that noble.
-------------------------
To read future chapters head over to Patreon:
patreon .com / Samorash