For several long seconds, Prince Tristin simply stared at Ezra.

The forest had grown strangely quiet after Desmond lowered his weapon.

Broken trees leaned against one another, shattered rocks littered the ground, and leaves continued drifting through the air from the violent battle that had just ended. Even the wind seemed slower now, carrying the faint smell of burnt gunpowder and disturbed soil across the battlefield.

Ezra stood motionless with the Kel-Tec PMR-30 still aimed at Desmond.

His expression remained as dull as ever.

There wasn’t the slightest intention of lowering his weapon.

Seeing that unwavering gaze...

A smile slowly crept onto Tristin’s face.

It started as a faint curl at the corner of his lips before quickly growing wider.

Then...

"Hahahaha..."

His laughter echoed throughout the quiet forest.

He pointed at Ezra as though he had just witnessed something amusing.

"Would you look at this guy."

Basil immediately joined in.

"Hahaha!"

The large boy laughed loudly while holding his stomach, looking at Ezra as though he had heard the greatest joke in the world.

Felix merely watched with a calm expression.

The corners of his lips lifted slightly, but unlike Basil, he didn’t laugh loudly.

Gareth simply smiled to himself.

Desmond crossed his arms, a faint smirk appearing on his face as he quietly observed the scene unfold.

After laughing for a while...

Tristin slowly exhaled.

"Ah..."

The smile disappeared from his face.

His expression became completely serious.

The cheerful prince from moments ago vanished, replaced by someone carrying the dignity expected of Britannia’s royal family.

His golden eyes settled on Ezra.

"Beat him up."

The simple command left his mouth without emotion.

Basil’s eyes instantly brightened.

"I’ve been waiting for you to say that."

Boom!

The ground cracked beneath his feet.

Crimson Cognis surged through every part of his body, reinforcing his muscles and bones before exploding outward with tremendous force.

His bulky figure shot toward Ezra like a charging beast.

Every step crushed loose stones beneath his boots.

His speed was shocking for someone with such a large frame.

Ezra’s black eyes calmly followed him.

Without hesitation...

The muzzle of the Kel-Tec PMR-30 shifted toward Basil’s forehead.

His finger tightened around the trigger.

Just then...

Whoosh!

A fist-sized rock suddenly flew across the battlefield from the side.

It spun rapidly through the air before appearing directly in Basil’s path.

"Hm?"

Basil instinctively reacted.

"Throwing rocks now?"

A mocking grin spread across his face.

"What kind of pathetic..."

He threw a heavy punch.

His reinforced fist collided with the rock.

The instant skin touched stone...

Boom!

The rock exploded.

Flames burst outward in every direction.

The violent blast swallowed Basil’s entire upper body before throwing him several meters backward.

His massive frame rolled across the ground, crushing bushes before finally stopping near Tristin and the others.

"...Argh!"

Basil groaned as smoke rose from his right hand.

The smell of burnt flesh drifted into the air.

Everyone’s attention shifted toward him.

His injury wasn’t particularly serious.

Most of the explosion had been blocked by the Cognis reinforcing his body.

Still...

The skin on his fist had turned black with soot.

Parts of it were slightly burned, while thin streams of smoke continued rising from between his fingers.

Basil stared at his injured hand in disbelief, then his face twisted with anger.

"WHO DARED TO DO THIS TO ME?!"

His furious roar echoed through the forest.

"SCHOLAR, DAMN IT!"

A lazy voice answered from the trees.

"Ganging up on one person... I didn’t know you guys had it that bad."

Several pairs of eyes turned toward the source.

A young man slowly walked out from behind the trees with one hand tucked inside his pocket.

His relaxed posture made it seem as though he had merely come to watch a play rather than enter a dangerous battlefield.

Cyrus.

He finally decided to join after watching Ezra and Desmond’s battle from the sidelines the entire time.

To him...

The fight had been entertaining enough to watch until now.

Felix looked at him for a moment before pointing in his direction.

"It’s the average Joe?"

His mocking tone immediately drew a few chuckles.

"Honestly..."

Felix laughed lightly.

"Out of everyone that could’ve shown up... I wasn’t expecting you."

Even Tristin let out another small laugh.

Desmond shook his head with an amused smile.

Gareth smiled politely without saying anything.

Only Basil wasn’t laughing.

He slowly climbed back onto his feet.

The veins on his forehead bulged.

His breathing became heavier as white smoke continued drifting from his injured hand.

"Enough laughing."

His voice was frighteningly calm.

He channeled Cognis into the burned hand.

The blackened skin gradually began recovering while he quickly wrapped a bandage around it.

Then...

He raised his furious eyes toward Cyrus.

"I’m going to kill you."

His voice carried obvious killing intent.

"Wax Candlelight of Brun."

Cyrus simply slipped his free hand into his other pocket.

A crooked grin spread across his face.

"You think I’m scared of you?"

He tilted his head.

"Pig of Evermont."

Silence.

For one brief moment...

Nobody spoke.

Everyone knew Basil hated that nickname.

The words echoed inside his head like a hammer striking steel.

His eyes twitched.

"H..."

His body trembled.

"H-How..."

His breathing became rough.

"HOW DARE YOU!!"

Boom!

His Cognis erupted once again.

Without another word, Basil charged.

His footsteps pounded across the forest floor as he rushed straight toward Cyrus with enough force to shake the surrounding ground.

Cyrus glanced sideways toward Ezra for only a brief second.

His voice became much quieter.

"I’ll split them up. That should even the odds for you."

Ezra gave the faintest nod.

He understood the plan immediately.

Since the fewer opponents standing together...

The greater his chances of not stressing himself too much.

Seeing Basil rapidly closing the distance...

Cyrus suddenly turned around and sprinted deeper into the forest.

He intentionally exaggerated his movements, making sure Basil wouldn’t lose sight of him.

As he ran, he cupped his hands around his mouth.

"I called you a pig!"

He shouted loudly.

"What are you going to do about it?"

He looked over his shoulder with a mocking grin.

"Pig! Pig! Pig! Pig of Evermont!"

Every shout made Basil’s face grow darker.

The last thread of reason inside him finally snapped.

"I’LL KILL YOU!!"

Basil roared at the top of his lungs.

"CANDLELIGHT!!"

The enraged young noble completely forgot why he had come here in the first place.

The numbered gems.

Ezra.

Prince Tristin’s orders.

Everything disappeared from his mind.

There was only one thing left.

Catching Cyrus.

And making him pay.

The two figures quickly disappeared deeper into the forest, leaving the sound of crashing branches and Basil’s furious shouting echoing in the distance.

Prince Tristin watched the direction they had gone for a moment before letting out a long sigh.

"Ah... Basil."

He rubbed the bridge of his nose, looking more helpless than angry.

"Felix, go after Basil and end that fight quickly. As for me, Des..."

"I’m not fighting with you guys."

Desmond interrupted before Tristin could finish.

He casually rested both hands behind his head and turned away from the group as if nothing important was happening.

Tristin frowned.

"Where are you going, Desmond?"

"I’m going to look for a Numbered Gem."

Desmond spoke without stopping.

"I still have a test to pass."

He glanced over his shoulder at Ezra, a faint grin appearing on his face.

"Besides... I don’t want to fight him like this. I want to beat him in a proper one-on-one."

He waved lazily.

"So... see you later, Prince. Felix. Gareth."

A playful smile spread across his face.

"Oh... and greet that idiot Basil for me."

Without waiting for anyone to answer, Desmond disappeared between the trees.

The forest quickly swallowed his figure.

"Tsk..."

Tristin clicked his tongue.

Losing Desmond was disappointing.

After all, he had just watched him exchange blows with Ezra without giving up an inch. There was no denying that Desmond was the strongest fighter among them.

Still...

Tristin didn’t intend to chase him.

His attention shifted toward Gareth.

"What about you? Are you going to say the same thing?"

Gareth stood calmly with his hand stroking his chin.

He thought quietly for a moment before giving a respectful bow.

"I would also prefer a one-on-one."

His voice remained calm and sincere.

"But... This is a royal order."

He slowly straightened his back.

"So, I will obey."

His eyes moved toward Ezra.

There wasn’t the slightest trace of hostility in them.

"No hard feelings, Ezra."

His words sounded genuine.

Unlike Basil, Gareth wasn’t driven by emotion.

To him, this was simply another order that needed to be carried out.

Tristin nodded with satisfaction.

"Good."

A smug smile returned to his face.

"Felix."

He glanced toward Felix.

"Forget Basil. That average fellow won’t survive long anyway."

He folded one arm behind his back before looking directly at Ezra.

"The three of us will focus on disciplining this Lowline."

His voice grew noticeably colder.

The moment those words left Tristin’s mouth...

Ezra moved.

It was almost as though he had been waiting for permission to attack.

His feet pushed off the ground.

The distance between him and Felix rapidly closed.

From the very beginning, Felix had been the first target in Ezra’s calculations.

A skilled marksman supporting powerful close-range fighters would become increasingly troublesome the longer the battle continued.

Removing him first was the logical choice.

However...

Ezra wasn’t the only one making calculations.

The instant he burst forward...

Gareth moved as well.

He had already predicted Ezra’s intentions.

Felix’s physical ability couldn’t compare with Ezra’s, Gareth’s, or even Prince Tristin’s.

If Ezra wanted to reduce the pressure on himself...

Felix would naturally become the first target.

Gareth stepped directly into Ezra’s path.

But...

Ezra had expected Gareth to do exactly that.

The two met halfway.

Clank!

Steel slammed against steel.

Ezra raised the Kel-Tec PMR-30 horizontally just as Gareth drove the barrel of his Colt 1911 forward he took out from his space bag the instant he moved.

The two firearms collided with enough force to throw sparks into the air.

Both boys immediately pushed against one another.

Muscles tightened.

Boots dug into the loose soil.

For a brief moment, neither side gave ground.

Then Gareth’s superior physical strength began to show.

He forced Ezra backward several steps, the soles of Ezra’s boots carving shallow trails across the forest floor.

At that same moment...

Clap.

Prince Tristin calmly brought his palms together.

A confident smile spread across his face.

Cognis flowed through his body before gathering inside both hands.

An intricate Alchemy Circle quickly formed between his palms, its glowing lines spinning with elegant precision.

He slowly separated his hands.

"Let me show you..."

His golden eyes narrowed slightly.

"...why it is important for a Lowline to obey royalty."

The Alchemy Circle dissolved into countless glittering particles.

Each particle shimmered like tiny fragments of sunlight suspended in the air.

They drifted together.

Merged.

Compressed.

The surrounding light itself seemed to bend toward them.

Slowly...

Six brilliant blades took shape beside Prince Tristin.

Each one appeared to be forged entirely from condensed light, hovering silently around him, giving off a soft golden glow.

Ezra’s eyes lifted toward them.

Light...?

Before he could finish the thought...

One disappeared.

No...

It hadn’t disappeared.

It had already moved.

There was no visible travel.

No gradual acceleration.

One instant it floated beside Tristin.

The next...

The sharp tip had already reached Ezra’s chest.

His instincts screamed.

Ezra forcefully pushed himself backward.

The glowing blade grazed across the front of his cardigan.

A sharp tearing sound followed.

The outer layer of clothing split open.

The cut continued through his training shirt beneath it before stopping at the tight black inner garment protecting his body.

The attack had missed his flesh by the narrowest margin.

Ezra’s expression remained calm.

Inside...

His thoughts raced.

I couldn’t sense it properly.

His eyes immediately searched for the remaining light blades.

Nothing.

They seemed to vanish the moment they moved.

Then...

Bang!

A rifle shot echoed through the forest.

Ezra reacted almost on instinct.

His Kel-Tec PMR-30 fired immediately.

Bang!

The two bullets collided in midair.

Clank!

A shower of sparks burst outward.

Yet Felix’s heavier rifle round smashed through Ezra’s pistol round and continued forward.

Ezra immediately shifted sideways.

The remaining bullet flew past his shoulder before burying itself deep inside a tree.

Another rifle shot followed almost instantly.

Ezra’s footwork became lighter.

He twisted, stepped, and slid across the uneven ground, narrowly avoiding the incoming fire.

His gaze locked onto Felix.

The young marksman had already repositioned himself behind Gareth and Prince Tristin.

The Springfield M1903 rested firmly against his shoulder.

Thin smoke drifted lazily from the rifle’s muzzle as he calmly prepared his next shot.

He had become the sniper supporting the battlefield.

Gareth controlled the front.

And Prince Tristin pressured from the center.

Felix hunted every opening from the rear.

A dangerous formation.

Before Ezra could act...

The tiny hairs on the back of his neck suddenly stood upright.

Danger.

His pupils rapidly shifted.

He searched for the invisible light blades while listening instead of relying only on sight.

There...

A faint tearing sound.

The air itself seemed to split apart.

The instant something cold brushed against his cheek...

Ezra twisted his body with explosive speed.

A golden blade skimmed past.

Blood sprayed into the air as a thin cut opened across his cheek.

Before his feet could even touch the ground...

Bang!

Another rifle shot roared.

Felix had perfectly timed the attack, firing while Ezra was airborne and unable to adjust his footing normally.

Fortunately...

Ezra had already anticipated that possibility.

His free hand reached into his Space Bag.

The Harpoon Gun appeared almost instantly.

Without hesitation, he aimed toward the thick trunk of a nearby tree.

Bang!

The harpoon shot forward, dragging its steel cable behind it as it sped toward the tree.

Its steel tip struck the thick trunk of a towering tree just before Felix pulled the trigger.

Bang!

The rifle roared.

Almost at the same instant, the thin steel cable stretched tight.

The powerful pull yanked Ezra sideways, dragging him through the air just as the bullet tore past the spot where his head had been a heartbeat earlier.

The shot continued into the forest behind him, punching clean through another tree before disappearing into the distance.

Ezra didn’t allow himself even a moment to recover.

The instant the cable carried him clear, his instincts flared once again.

Above.

Without looking, he twisted his waist and released the tension in the cable, letting his body fall into a controlled turn.

A dark shadow descended from overhead.

Boom!

Gareth crashed onto the ground with a reinforced punch.

The force blasted apart the earth beneath his fist, sending chunks of dirt and shattered stone flying in every direction. A shallow crater formed where the punch landed, while cracks spread rapidly across the ground.

Ezra narrowly escaped.

His boots barely left the edge of the impact before he pushed himself upward with an agile flip, avoiding the strike by no more than an inch.

Dust swept across his face.

Before he had fully regained his balance...

Gareth attacked again.

His second punch came without hesitation.

Cognis surged through his arm, swelling the muscles beneath his uniform as the blow tore through the air toward Ezra’s ribs.

Ezra leaned backward.

The punch skimmed past his chest.

At that exact moment...

A faint chill brushed against his back.

The tip of one of Tristin’s light blades silently grazed the fabric of his cardigan.

Another attack.

It had reached him without warning.

Ezra’s pupils narrowed.

He didn’t panic.

Instead, he reached out and caught Gareth’s other arm just as it rose to continue the assault.

Using Gareth’s own strength, Ezra pulled himself around the larger boy’s body, attempting to slip behind him and create enough space to avoid both the invisible blades and Felix’s rifle.

For a brief instant...

It seemed like the maneuver had worked.

But Gareth had already anticipated it.

The opening wasn’t a mistake.

It was bait.

Bam!

Gareth suddenly drove his forehead forward.

The headbutt crashed directly into Ezra’s forehead.

The impact rang through Ezra’s skull like a hammer striking steel.

His vision shook.

His balance faltered.

Before Ezra could recover, Gareth stepped in close, seized the opportunity, and rotated his body.

Using his superior strength, he spun Ezra across his shoulder, forcing him into an exposed position.

Far behind them...

Felix’s eyes never left the battlefield.

His breathing remained steady.

The Springfield M1903 rested firmly against his shoulder.

He had been waiting for this exact moment.

The instant Gareth completed the rotation...

Felix squeezed the trigger.

Bang!

The rifle bucked against his shoulder.

The bullet screamed across the battlefield with terrifying speed.

Ezra’s head still throbbed from the headbutt.

The enhanced force behind Gareth’s strike, strengthened by Cognis, had left his thoughts momentarily unsteady.

Even so...

His body reacted before his mind fully caught up.

Instead of resisting the momentum...

Ezra flowed with it.

He tucked his body sideways into a fast aerial somersault.

The spinning motion carried him just outside the bullet’s path.

The round sliced through the empty space where his head had been only a fraction of a second earlier.

He had escaped another fatal attack.

But...

The moment his feet descended toward the ground...

Gareth was already there.

Like a hunter waiting beneath its prey.

He caught Ezra before he could land, lifting him across his shoulders with overwhelming strength.

There wasn’t even time for Ezra to plant his feet.

Gareth twisted his waist and hurled him violently toward his left.

Ezra’s body spun through the air.

Before he could regain control...

Bam!

Gareth stepped forward and drove the sole of his boot into Ezra’s abdomen.

The kick exploded with tremendous force.

Air burst from Ezra’s lungs as his body shot across the battlefield like a cannonball.

He crashed through the first tree.

Crack!

The trunk split apart.

Then another.

Boom!

A third tree shattered under the impact.

Broken branches, bark, and leaves erupted into the air, scattering across the forest floor.

Only after smashing into the fourth massive tree did Ezra finally come to a stop.

The thick trunk groaned from the impact before settling back into place.

For a moment...

Everything became quiet.

"Cough... Cough..."

Ezra bent forward.

Blood spilled from the corner of his mouth before dripping onto the broken earth beneath him.

His breathing had become noticeably heavier.

Each breath drew a dull ache through his chest.

Across the battlefield...

Prince Tristin laughed softly.

The smile on his face carried complete confidence.

Felix lowered his rifle just enough to inspect the result of their coordinated attack.

A satisfied smile spread across his face.

Beside them, Gareth calmly rolled his shoulders before cracking his knuckles one after another.

His expression remained composed.

There was no excitement.

No arrogance.

Only the quiet focus of someone carrying out his task.

The three of them stood together without breaking formation.

One controlled the battlefield from afar with precise rifle fire.

One dominated close combat with overwhelming physical strength.

The last commanded an Alchemy Path capable of striking at the speed of light while directing the flow of the battle.

Two Binder Alchemists, each carrying deep Cognis reserves reinforced by Alchemy accessories.

Alongside them...

A prince who had already stepped into the Adept Alchemist Rank, his own Cognis amplified by multiple royal-grade Alchemy artifacts.

Facing even one of them would have been difficult.

Facing all three together...

Without giving them time to interfere with one another...

Was something else entirely.

Anyone watching from the outside would likely reach the same conclusion.

This was the greatest challenge Ezra had faced since the beginning of his battel for survival in the Trial of Steel.

Ezra slowly straightened.

"Ah..."

A long breath escaped his lips.

The pain throughout his body remained.

The pressure surrounding him remained.

Even so...

His thoughts became strangely clear.

I understand now.

The words echoed quietly within his mind.

His dull black eyes slowly changed.

From the depths of his pupils...

A darkness deeper than the night itself began to spread, as though an endless abyss had quietly awakened behind his gaze.