"He’s stronger than I expected," the Earth mage muttered.
"He’s been fighting all day," one of the knights replied. "He can’t keep that up forever."
The mage of Water frowned.
"Look at the way he’s moving. He’s barely slowing down."
"Then we’ll make him work harder."
The mage of Wind raised both hands.
The air around the clearing began to move.
A powerful current swept through the trees, carrying the sounds and scents of the approaching monsters toward Nero. The mage subtly altered the airflow, creating a path that encouraged the creatures to converge on the same location.
At the same time, the Water mage sent streams of water through the undergrowth, disturbing nearby nests and drawing out monsters hiding beneath the roots.
The three knights joined in.
Two drove their weapons into the ground, sending tremors through the earth and forcing buried creatures to emerge.
The ice-wielding knight froze the nearby stream, then shattered its surface with a kick. The resulting noise echoed through the forest, provoking a fresh wave of roars.
Their plan was working.
The number of monsters increased rapidly.
Nero was soon surrounded by creatures approaching from every direction.
The five cadets watched with anticipation.
"Now," the leader whispered.
They didn’t immediately attack.
Instead, they waited for Nero to become occupied.
A hulking beast charged from the front while several smaller monsters attacked from behind. Nero answered with a flash of lightning, stopping the first creature in its tracks, then turned his hand and sent a burst of fire through the others.
A second wave followed.
Then a third.
Each time, he dealt with the monsters using a combination of Lightning and Fire.
His movements appeared increasingly economical, but the five cadets interpreted this as a sign of fatigue. They assumed he was conserving his strength because he could no longer afford to waste mana.
They were wrong.
Nero was simply making them wait.
He could have ended the entire disturbance with a few carefully placed attacks. However, he wanted the five cadets to commit themselves completely to their plan.
The more confident they became, the less likely they were to notice the trap waiting for them.
Finally, the leader raised his hand.
"Move!"
The five figures emerged from their hiding places.
The Water mage attacked first.
A tremendous volume of water surged through the trees, twisting into a spiraling torrent that rushed toward Nero from his right.
At the same time, the Wind mage swept both arms forward.
A powerful gust struck from the opposite direction, compressing the water into a high-speed barrage.
The two attacks converged.
Nero turned his head.
Golden lightning flashed around his body.
BOOM!
The collision exploded into a cloud of mist and sparks.
The knights charged through the disturbance.
Two slammed their weapons against the ground, raising enormous walls of earth on either side of Nero. The third swept his sword through the air, sending a wave of ice across the clearing.
The walls closed in.
The frozen ground spread beneath Nero’s feet.
A coordinated attack designed to restrict his movement and prevent him from escaping.
For an ordinary cadet, the combination would have been troublesome.
For Nero, it was almost amusing.
He lifted his sword.
Lightning gathered along its edge, illuminating his expressionless face.
SHING!
He swung once.
A golden arc tore through the incoming ice wave, splitting it apart before the attack could reach him. The same motion carried into a second strike, sending a concentrated burst of lightning toward the nearest Earth knight.
The knight reacted quickly, raising a thick barrier.
CRACK!
The lightning shattered its outer layer and forced him backward.
Before the knight could recover, Nero stepped forward.
A ring of fire erupted around him.
The flames spread across the ground, forcing the other two knights to halt their advance. The Water mage immediately countered, drawing moisture from the air and sending a dense wave crashing toward the fire.
Steam filled the clearing.
The Wind mage seized the opportunity.
He thrust his hand forward, compressing the air into several invisible blades that tore through the mist toward Nero’s blind spots.
They were fast.
Fast enough to catch most opponents off guard.
Nero tilted his head slightly.
One blade passed beside his cheek.
Another slipped past his shoulder.
The remaining attacks struck the ground behind him.
The Wind mage’s eyes widened.
He had aimed carefully.
How had Nero avoided them?
He didn’t have time to think.
A golden flash appeared before him.
Nero had crossed the distance.
The mage hastily raised a barrier of swirling air, but Nero’s sword struck it before the defensive technique could fully stabilize.
BOOM!
The barrier burst apart.
The mage was hurled backward, skidding across the ground before managing to regain his footing.
Nero didn’t pursue him.
Instead, he turned toward the three knights.
Their formation had already begun to break.
The Earth knights spread apart, attempting to attack from different angles, while the ice knight advanced through the steam with his sword raised.
Nero’s eyes moved between them.
Three knights.
Two mages.
Five opponents who believed they had cornered him.
He wondered whether they would understand their mistake before the fight ended.
***
The ice knight reached him first.
A pale-blue aura enveloped his sword as he unleashed a series of rapid slashes. Each strike released a wave of freezing energy, spreading frost across the ground and forming jagged barriers wherever Nero moved.
The knight’s swordsmanship was disciplined.
His movements were sharp, and he used the expanding ice to restrict Nero’s options.
Nero met the first strike with his own sword.
CLANG!
Golden lightning surged along the blades.
The knight’s arms trembled as the impact forced him backward.
He immediately recovered and thrust his free hand forward.
Several ice spears erupted from the ground.
Nero twisted between them.
A spear passed beneath his arm. Another shattered against his shoulder as lightning reinforced his body, while a third was cut apart by his sword.
He moved forward without hesitation.
The knight’s expression tightened.
He swung again.
Nero caught the attack, rotated his wrist, and pushed the opposing blade aside.