"That... that monster... it’s the masked man’s monster," Nolan said as he tried to stand up while being supported by the others.

"You mean... Oliver is the mysterious man this whole time?" the townspeople said in shock.

All this time, they had been praising the masked man as a hero while at the same time looking down on Oliver. Never did they realize they were actually the same person.

A deep feeling of guilt slowly filled their hearts.

"Honey... our son... our son is actually a tamer..." Irmine cried in tears as she saw Oliver summon a monster.

Arnulf, on the other hand, was speechless as he recognized the monster his son had summoned.

’It wasn’t a mistake, that’s Velkryss, the boss of Mooncrest Dungeon... so my hunch was actually right.’ Arnulf thought.

He had started suspecting it ever since he found Oliver near the dungeon that day. Many times, he had wanted to ask his son directly, but he did not want to force Oliver to answer and risk making him uncomfortable.

But right now, he felt nothing but happiness and pride. Arnulf tightly hugged Irmine in his arms.

"Let’s watch our son save our home!" Arnulf said proudly.

Tamera’s eyes became teary as she looked at both of them happily. She then shifted her gaze toward Oliver standing in the middle of the field.

’Now what you need to do... is win this fight, Oliver! ’

At the center of the battlefield, Oliver’s right hand was covered in crimson aura.

His eyes were completely focused while Husk stood beside him.

BOOM!

Auron’s body erupted in flames as Ignivor appeared beside him once again.

"Let’s fight properly this time. Without interference," Auron said.

"Before we fight, I want to ask you something. Don’t use that Howl skill of yours. I don’t want my town to be destroyed because of it," Oliver said.

"What was that?! Tch! Fine. I also don’t plan to use that skill. But you too, don’t use that blast skill of yours. I don’t want it hitting my convoy," Auron replied.

"Deal," Oliver smirked as they reached an agreement.

Now, both of them could fight all out while knowing the other would not use their most devastating attack.

The next second, both of them rushed forward and clashed head-on.

Every time they collided, sparks of crimson and flames exploded outward and slammed against the magical barrier. The battle was completely balanced, with both sides exchanging blows equally.

The crowd was utterly flabbergasted by the scene before them. This was the first time they had ever witnessed such a high-level fight with their own eyes.

Sometimes, the movements were so fast that they could not even follow them properly.

"Come on, Oliver! Beat him!"

"You can do it!"

"Save our town!"

The crowd cheered loudly as they watched Oliver fight. For the first time, they no longer saw him as a failure.

They saw him as their savior.

After thirty minutes, the battle was still in a stalemate, with both Oliver and Auron visibly exhausted. However, the one more affected was Auron, since he had not fully recovered after using his Partial Form against Oliver yesterday. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Sweat covered his face as he breathed heavily. Aria, on the other side, already knew the outcome of the battle. Her twin brother had already reached his limit.

Mana management was one of the most important aspects of combat. If someone failed to manage it properly, they would become a sitting duck for enemy attacks.

That was what their master always emphasized.

Auron wiped the sweat from his forehead before slowly standing upright. Even he knew his time was running out.

"I’ll finish this with one attack."

He raised his right hand and supported it with his left. Suddenly, all the surrounding flames gathered toward his right arm, forming a gigantic flaming hand.

"Me too."

Oliver did not falter. He also covered his right hand and focused all of his crimson aura into it. Thanks to his Familiarity reaching over 300, the amount of crimson aura he could harness was far greater than before.

A massive crimson claw formed around his right arm.

Both of them stared at each other. Then, they stepped forward at the same time before breaking into a run.

And in the next instant, both of them unleashed their attacks forward. The two different auras violently reacted against each other.

BOOM!!

A massive explosion of crimson and flames erupted outward, causing cracks to spread all across the magical barrier. Smoke completely covered the barrier dome.

No one knew what had happened to the two fighters inside.

"Oliver!" Irmine cried worriedly.

But Arnulf quickly held her back from rushing forward.

Soon, the magical barrier slowly began dissolving as the smoke gradually dissipated.

And within the fading smoke, only one figure remained standing.

It was Oliver.

The townspeople immediately rushed toward him before lifting him into the air in celebration. All of them were overjoyed.

Meanwhile, Auron was lying on the ground with his eyes closed, still trying to process what had just happened.

"I... lost? To another kid?" he muttered.

His undefeated record in this region had finally been shattered. Of course, losses against his master did not count. He looked at his trembling right hand, still aching from the impact of the final clash.

Suddenly, a shadow appeared above him and a hand was offered toward him. It was his sister, Aria, smiling gently at him.

"How does it feel to lose?" she asked teasingly.

"Huh! It sucks," Auron replied as he grabbed her hand and stood back up.

He then looked toward Oliver, who was currently being cheered by the townspeople.

And strangely enough, Auron found himself smiling as well.

"So... that is the real feeling of winning," Auron muttered.

He had won far too many times in his life that victory no longer made him feel happy. To him, winning was as natural as breathing.

As for the feeling of losing to someone else, it was something he had never truly understood before.

"Young Lord, please don’t feel too sad. You weren’t even at your best condition. You actually fought two of their representatives. They cheated! I’ll demand a rematch next time," Emorim said angrily.

"There’s no need, Emorim. I lost. And strangely enough, I don’t feel that bad about it." Auron replied calmly.

He then walked toward Oliver. Noticing Auron approaching, Oliver also stepped forward.

"You’re strong. What’s your name?" Auron asked.

"Oliver. Oliver Overheart."

"Oliver, huh? I’ll remember that name. If you think this will be the last time we meet, then you’re wrong. Next time, I’ll be the winner." Auron smirked slightly.

"But today, you win. I’ll speak to my father and make sure Ashville is preserved."

After saying that, Auron turned around and walked back toward the carriage. Inside the carriage, Emorim shouted toward the carriage driver.

"Let’s move to the next town!"

"No. We’re returning to the castle. I want to train with Master. Cancel all the trips." Auron suddenly said.

"But... we already informed the other towns-"

"Just do it, Emorim. Do you want to disobey the heir of House Labre?" Aria said jokingly.

"Hmmm... fine. Let’s go home, everyone!"

"Yeahhh!" all the soldiers cheered happily as they realized they could finally return to their homes and families.