The instant Leo released the spear—

The world flashed gold.

CRAAAAACK—!!

A deafening roar erupted through the chamber as the transformed Lightning Dragon Spear tore through the air.

There was no travel time.

No visible trajectory.

One moment it was in Leo’s hand.

The next, it had already crossed the battlefield.

The surrounding space distorted violently from the concentrated energy.

Walls shattered.

The floor split apart.

Even Ryan felt his skin tingle from the residual electricity.

The attack was absurdly powerful.

Far beyond what someone of Leo’s age should have been capable of producing.

Yet—

The masked woman didn’t move.

At least, that was what everyone thought.

BOOOOOOM—!!

The spear struck.

An explosion of golden lightning engulfed the entire area.

The chamber vanished beneath a sea of light.

The Leader of the Twelve Signs screamed.

Chunks of stone evaporated.

Pillars collapsed.

The resulting shockwave blasted Ryan backward several meters.

Even Lena had to shield her eyes from the blinding flash.

For a brief moment—

Nobody could see anything.

Then the light slowly faded.

Dust filled the air.

Cracks spread across every remaining surface.

And standing at the center—

The masked woman remained completely unharmed.

"...What?"

Leo’s expression stiffened.

The Lightning Dragon Spear had missed.

Not by a few centimeters.

Not by a meter.

It had missed entirely.

The masked woman now stood several steps to the side of where she had been.

That was all.

No dramatic movement.

No explosion of speed.

No afterimage.

She had simply...

Stepped aside.

As though avoiding a falling leaf.

[An impressive technique.]

Her voice echoed calmly.

[The timing was good. The power was excellent.]

The shattered remains of lightning danced around her feet.

[You would have seriously injured most people above the wall.]

Leo’s grip tightened.

"...Most people?"

The masked woman nodded.

[Unfortunately.]

Her gaze shifted toward him.

[I am not most people.]

The pressure in the room intensified.

For the first time since the battle began, Ryan and Leo both understood something.

She wasn’t looking down on them.

She wasn’t mocking them.

She was simply stating a fact.

Which somehow made it even more frustrating.

Ryan clicked his tongue.

"Tch."

His holy sword burst with light once more.

The golden radiance surrounding him became denser than before.

He could feel it now.

The realm beyond the wall.

Every second spent fighting her was teaching him something.

Every exchange.

Every movement.

Every mistake.

It was as though she was unintentionally guiding him forward.

The masked woman seemed to notice.

[Your understanding is improving.]

Ryan frowned.

"Stop acting like my teacher."

[I am merely making an observation.]

The next instant— 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

She disappeared.

BOOM!

Ryan’s instincts screamed.

He raised his sword.

CLANG—!!

A fist collided with the blade.

The impact exploded through his arms like a cannon shot.

The floor beneath him shattered instantly, spiderweb cracks racing across the stone as his knees bent under the overwhelming force.

"Wha—?!"

Ryan’s eyes widened.

He could barely follow her movements.

One moment she had been several meters away.

The next, she was standing directly in front of him.

Her arm remained extended from the punch.

[Good.]

Her voice carried a hint of approval.

[You reacted.]

Ryan gritted his teeth.

The fact that she sounded pleased only irritated him more.

But before either of them could move again—

Another presence appeared behind her.

Leo.

His spear had somehow returned to his hands.

The moment the masked woman’s attention shifted toward Ryan, Leo struck.

No warning.

No hesitation.

His spear shot forward like a dragon lunging for its prey.

The timing was perfect.

The angle was flawless.

Even the masked woman had to acknowledge it.

For the first time, she prepared to evade rather than casually deflect.

Then—

CLANG!

A metallic sound echoed through the battlefield.

The masked woman’s eyes narrowed.

An iron cage had suddenly materialized around her.

The bars rose from the ground and locked together in an instant, completely surrounding her.

The attack had come without warning.

For the first time during the battle, genuine surprise appeared in her eyes.

She immediately struck one of the bars.

BANG!

The cage trembled.

But it didn’t break.

Her gaze sharpened.

Another punch followed.

BOOM!

The entire structure shook violently.

Still—

Nothing.

The bars remained intact.

Not even a dent appeared.

"..."

A faint look of realization crossed her face.

Ah.

Soul Bound Staff.

She remembered hearing about it from her.

One of the academy’s relics.

Annoying.

Very annoying.

And whoever had activated it had made an excellent decision.

The cage looked unimpressive at first glance.

The metal appeared old.

Worn.

Ordinary.

If it had looked indestructible, she would have used considerably more force from the beginning.

Instead, she had judged it as something that could be casually broken.

That mistake cost her.

Of course, escaping wasn’t impossible.

Not for her.

But realizing the nature of the relic, adjusting her strength, and breaking free would still take time.

A second.

Maybe less.

For ordinary people, that amount of time was meaningless.

For superhumans—

A single second could decide an entire battle.

The masked woman’s gaze shifted.

Leo was already moving.

Golden lightning erupted around his body.

CRAAAAACK—!!

The chamber lit up with blinding light.

At the same time—

Ryan moved from behind.

Holy power exploded from his sword.

A massive arc of radiant energy cut through the battlefield.

One attack from the front.

One from behind.

A perfect pincer attack.

The masked woman watched both techniques approaching.

The Lightning Dragon Spear.

The Holy Sword Light.

Neither attack alone could seriously threaten her.

Together—

And under these circumstances—

They were dangerous.

A faint smile appeared beneath her mask.

[Excellent.]

There was no sarcasm in her voice.

Only genuine admiration.

[You’ve finally begun fighting as a team.]

The next instant—

BOOOOOOOOM—!!!

Golden lightning and brilliant holy power crashed into the cage simultaneously.

The resulting explosion swallowed everything.

The chamber vanished beneath a storm of light.

The ground erupted.

Walls collapsed.

The shockwave blasted outward with enough force to tear stone apart.

Even I had to shield my eyes.

For several seconds, nothing could be seen.

Only blinding gold and white.

Only destruction.

Only overwhelming power.

Then—

The explosion finally began to fade.

Dust filled the air.

Broken stone rained from above.

The entire room trembled as cracks spread across the remaining structure.

Ryan lowered his sword.

Leo tightened his grip on his spear.

Neither spoke.

Neither relaxed.

Because both of them knew.

An opponent like her wouldn’t fall that easily.

And deep within the cloud of smoke and light—

A silhouette was still standing.