Vol. 15 - Ch. 7 - Ultimate Clan Battle – Qualification Rounds (7/22)

"Alright, I'm up first! Celestial Spirit King, here I come!"

Sylph conjured a massive spear of wind and hurled it straight at the Celestial Spirit King.

"Hey!?"

The Celestial Spirit King twisted his body just in time to dodge. He broke in cold sweat when he realized just how fast Sylph’s spell was, and it was faster than anything he'd ever seen.

"W-What’s with that speed!? And —"

He turned his head around to check the spear that he just dodged and saw that it had stopped against Halt's magical barrier, which surrounded the arena. It was unimaginable that an attack spell didn’t disappear after hitting something.

This meant the spell that the girl released wasn’t meant to pierce its target.

“No way, is it for reinforcement?"

"I'm just getting started!!"

Sylph shot five more wind spears from her hand all at once.

However, instead of flying straight at the Celestial Spirit King, they first shot up into the air, then split off in five directions. They suddenly changed course just before hitting the arena and rushed toward him horizontally.

By now, the Celestial Spirit King had figured out her plan. He realized dodging all of them wasn't the best strategy.

"Zeyaaaahhh!!"

With a swift hand chop, he knocked one of the wind spears that had been charging at him at lightning speed out of the air. The remaining four barely grazed him as he managed to avoid them.

"Aww, you broke one."

"Five was more than enough. My turn."

Ifrit stepped forward.

"Alright, let’s go with the plan."

With a snap of Sylph’s fingers, the five spears that had been stopped by Halt’s barrier suddenly released a violent gust of wind. The swirling air wrapped itself around the Fire Spirit King, Ifrit.

"So the six spears weren’t supposed to activate a magic circle. Each spear was an individual reinforcement spell then?"

The Celestial Spirit King had realized Sylph’s magic was meant to enhance Ifrit’s magic and support it. What he hadn’t expected was that destroying one spear hadn’t stopped the reinforcement process.

"I may have run away in disgrace before, but not this time!"

Empowered by Sylph’s wind enveloping him, Ifrit conjured a massive fist of flames and swung at the Celestial Spirit King.

"Ah. That’s bad!!"

There was no time for hesitation.

The Celestial Spirit King met Ifrit’s attack head-on, punching with full force. The sheer wind pressure from his fist overpowered the fire-enhanced flames, blowing them out completely.

"W-What the heck!?"

"He canceled it… with just a punch?"

Ifrit and Sylph gawked.

They hadn’t expected to end the fight with that attack, but they’d at least thought they could land a hit. Yet despite the two spirit kings being strengthened by Halt’s mana, their combined spells were still obliterated by the raw power of the greatest spirit of all.

"You really are something else, Celestial Spirit King-sama."

"Even four-on-one won’t cut it."

Undine and Gnome, who had been standing back, stepped forward.

"Guess we’re going all in, then."

"Fumu, we’ll need to if we want a shot at winning."

"Hey, Ifrit, why don’t we try that move?"

"Oh, that one, huh? I’m alright with that, but it’s not like you to suggest it, Undine."

"I just really want to show Halt what I can do in this fight."

As Undine spoke, countless water spheres floated around her spirit form.

"I’ll sync up with you. You’ve got the highest base attack power, after all."

"Yeah! Alright, I’m counting on you."

Once again, Ifrit’s body swelled up after being enveloped in Sylph’s wind.

"…Unison Ray, huh? But that takes time to charge."

The Celestial Spirit King recognized the powerful fusion magic between the Water and Fire Spirit Kings. He conjured a shining spear of light and took aim, determined to stop their preparations.

"You think I’m gonna just stand here and let you pull that off—Huh!?"

However, before the Celestial Spirit King could throw the spear, thousands of tree roots wrapped around his body.

"Gnome! You little—!"

"Heh heh heh! Our job’s just to buy time."

"Celestial Spirit King-sama, just wait for a little longer, okay?"

Gnome’s roots bound the Celestial Spirit King, while Sylph reinforced them with magic, making them nearly impossible to break. Even though it wasn’t a fusion spell, their teamwork made the bindings strong enough to choke out a demon.

"D%@IJ it!!"

"Sorry for the wait. Are you guys ready now?"

"Yeah, anytime."

Ifrit’s magic reached its peak, and Undine synchronized her power with his.

Previously, Mai and Mei’s Unison Ray had annihilated nearly a thousand demonic beasts in an instant.

The spell they had now was several thousand times stronger.

A massive dragon-shaped blast surged toward the Celestial Spirit King. Even he wouldn't escape unscathed if it hit. Gnome and Sylph tightened their restraints, making absolutely sure the attack landed.

"N-No way."

For the first time, the Celestial Spirit King braced himself for defeat.

And then—

"Daddy! You got this!!"

Mai and Mei—who were supposed to be cheering for Sylph’s team—couldn’t help but root for their struggling dad.

Their voices reached the Celestial Spirit King’s ears.

"Hmph!"

With sheer brute strength, he ripped through Gnome and Sylph’s restraints.

"Huh…?"

"W-Wait, WHAT!?"

The Celestial Spirit King turned to face the enormous dragon of fire and water hurtling toward him.

He clenched his right fist tight—so tight it looked like it could crush steel—then swung upward with all his might.

The magic dragon made of water and fire was punched straight into the sky.

"You’ve gotta be kidding me."

"I-Impossible."

High above, Undine’s water, heated by Ifrit’s flames, triggered a massive steam explosion. The shockwave was so powerful that it was observed even in the distant elven kingdom of Alheim.

Dark clouds spread across the sky, and heavy rain began to fall.

Through the downpour, the Celestial Spirit King strode forward.

"Alright, you little punks… time for some discipline."

Having broken past his limits thanks to his daughters’ encouragement, the Celestial Spirit King proceeded to beat the absolute heck out of the Four Great Spirit Kings.

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