*Shoosh*


    Arthur charges toward Marcus, his senses heightened, his body pushed beyond its limits. His de slices through the air with deadly intent, rising in a powerful upward arc.


    *Trrrrrrrrhhh*


    The chains of Marcus''s artifact whip toward Arthur like living creatures under his control, while Marcus quickly loads another dart into his crossbow.


    *Zaaap*


    The dart whistles through the air at incredible speed, and the magical chains close in on Arthur from five different directions. Even with his heightened reflexes and experience, Arthur feels overwhelmed by the multi-pronged attack.


    *Whoosh* *Whoosh* *Whoosh* *Whoosh*


    Arthur swings his sword at the chains, deflecting some, but Marcus''s relentless barrage of darts forces him on the defensive. He moves quickly, dodging and sliding, narrowly avoiding the onught.


    As the seconds tick by, Nyx continues focusing on the green lizard, keeping it at bay. Eliza, on the other hand, watches with growing apprehension. She wants to help Arthur, but both he and Marcus are moving too fast, and she''s afraid of hitting her beloved savior if she interferes.


    "*cies Sub Pedibus…*" Eliza begins chanting, grasping her staff tightly with both hands. "*Pavimentum Gelidum, Nunc Fiat…*"


    A thinyer of ice starts spreading across the ground around Marcus, and he feels the mana surging from Eliza, realizing she''s casting a powerful spell.


    "You bitch…" Marcus growls, furious, andmands one of his chains tosh out toward Eliza. She''s exhausted, wounded, and pouring thest of her mana into the spell. She knows she can''t dodge in time, so she focuses on finishing her magic, ignoring the iing threat.


    "Eliza!?!" Arthur sees one of the four chains heading straight for her as he dodges the other three and Marcus''s darts. Despite the chaotic battle, Marcus maintains perfect focus, a testament to his experience.


    "*Pavimentum Gelidum… Pavimentum Gelidum…*" Eliza repeats her chant, her voice unwavering. But when she hears Arthur''s shout, her eyes flicker to him for a split second.


    The chain is only meters away, its sharp de aimed directly at her beautiful face. Arthur sees the determination in her eyes—she''s not backing down from the spell. But he also sees sadness, which makes that bitter taste in his mouth even stronger.


    A sh of memory suddenly strikes Arthur, a vision from a distant past—a simr look in another woman''s eyes. This woman had short white hair and dark skin. The same determination, the same sadness.


    ''Why?''The words escape Arthur''s lips, but they don''t feel like his own. It''s as if he''s someone else, in another time, another ce.


    ''For you…''The voice echoes in his memory, not his own, but someone else''s—someone who had sacrificed themselves for him, just as Eliza is about to do.


    At that moment, Arthur considers calling out for his mother''s help. She''s surely watching, and she could save Eliza. But what if she doesn''t want to? What if she expects him to save her with his own strength?


    There are too many unknowns, and Eliza''s life is in immediate danger. Arthur has no time to think, only to act. And so, he does.


    In a split-second decision, Arthur allows one of the chains attacking him to pierce his abdomen, gritting his teeth as pain floods through his body. With both hands, he grabs hold of the chain embedded in his stomach and pulls it back with all his strength.


    *Grrrrraaahhh!*


    "WHAT!?!" Marcus stumbles forward,pletely caught off guard by Arthur''s bold action, his bnce thrown off.


    That slight misstep is enough to cause the chain aimed at Eliza to stop just short of her face, missing her by mere centimeters.


    "Arthur…" Eliza sees her beloved bleeding, one of Marcus''s chains still lodged in his stomach from across the arena. But instead of pain, Arthur wears a confident expression, even shing a reassuring smile at her.


    Fighting the urge to run to him, Eliza focuses on her spell, now more determined than ever. "*Pavimentum Gelidum… Nunc Fiat!*" As her words echo, the iceyer spreads rapidly in all directions, encircling Marcus.


    She yells with all her remaining strength toward Arthur. "Keep him on the ground—*cipavimentum!!!*" She ms her staff into the ground, summoning a freezing wind that stiffens the very air around theyer of ice.


    For a moment, Marcus''s eyes widen in rm, but he quickly regains his bnce, leaping into the air with practiced grace while aiming his crossbow at Arthur.


    Arthur, despite the searing pain from the chain cutting into his insides, grips it tightly and yanks Marcus downward.


    "Damn you!!!" Marcus fires the ck dart, aiming straight for Arthur''s head. Arthur barely dodges it by mere inches, but the dart still finds its mark, piercing his shoulder.


    Even with the growing list of injuries, Arthur endures the pain, using the momentum to drag Marcus down. *Bam!* Marcus crashes onto the icy ground in front of Arthur, striking him with the butt of his crossbow as the remaining chains slither back toward him.


    *Zhhhhhh* The ice beneath Marcus reacts instantly, as if alive, locking his feet in ce. Layers of ice begin creeping up his legs, binding him where he stands.


    Arthur stumbles back, struggling to free himself from the chain lodged in his abdomen, but another chain wraps around his chest, lifting him off the ground and pulling him toward Marcus.


    "It''s over, boy!" Marcus growls, ordering the other two chains to attack the ice creeping up his legs. They sh at the spell with ferocious speed, slowing the ice''s advance, but his feet remain trapped.


    Arthur hangs helplessly, suspended by two chains in front of Marcus. Eliza, exhausted, copses to her knees,pletely spent, while Nyx, still battling the green lizard, watches in anxious worry.


    "You can''t do anything…" Marcus smirks, tilting Arthur''s body so they''re face to face.


    "I can…" Arthur responds with a confident smile.


    Marcus shakes his head, disappointed. "So what—"


    *Ptoo!*


    Marcus''s expression twists into shock as Arthur spits a mouthful of blood directly into his face, several dropletsnding in Marcus''s open mouth.


    "YOU IDIOT?!?!" Marcus roars, enraged and confused, wiping the blood from his face. But Arthur''s smile only grows darker.


    "It''s already inside you… I''ve won," Arthur says with a grim smirk.


    Marcus''s eyes widen in realization. He recalls Arthur drinking two different liquids earlier, his mind piecing it together quickly—the first must have been an antidote for the second, a type of poison.


    "No!!" Marcus frantically tries to spit out the blood, but it''s toote. Some of the poison has already seeped into his bloodstream.


    The effects of the immobilizing poison are swift, and Marcus feels his muscles stiffening, his body betraying him as the venom spreads.


    Marcus begins to feel his body going numb, and with no control over his muscles, the chains of his enchanted mesh cease to respond, no longer receiving his Astral Energy.


    "No, no, no!!!" He screams in panic as Eliza''s ice spell climbs quickly up his legs, engulfing more and more of his body.


    Arthur manages to pull the chain from his stomach, but he copses to his knees, struggling to stop the bleeding as he loses more blood.


    Nyx panics, rushing toward him, but Marcus''s lizard also charges, preparing to unleash a deadly acid attack aimed at the pair.


    "Watch out!!!" Eliza tries to help, but she''s too exhausted to even lift her hand, let alone cast a spell. All she can do is scream.


    Arthur sees the creature filling its mouth with acid behind Nyx and feels a surge of helplessness. But before the lizard can make its move, a flurry of gray feathers rains down from the sky, shredding the lizard''s body into fragments of glowing green light.


    A figure descends from above—it''s not Aria yet, but the mysterious Lady Lis. Shends gracefully in front of Arthur, casting him a nce before turning her attention to Marcus, whose body is nearly encased in the ice from Eliza''s spell.


    "Don''t kill him yet," she says loudly, then shifts her gaze to Eliza.


    Eliza ignores Lis''s request, her focus solely on Arthur, her eyes shining with both confidence and a silent request for his opinion.


    Arthur doesn''t respond to either Lis or Eliza. Instead, his gaze lifts to the sky, where he sees another figure descending. Her smile is radiant, full of pride, and her eyes sparkle as they meet his.


    "Your prey, your choice," Aria says softly, her voice warm and calm. She pulls a healing potion from her storage treasure and swiftly hands it to Arthur, though a shadow of darkness lingers in her eyes as she nces briefly at Marcus.


    Aria quickly heals all of Arthur''s wounds with her powerful potion and helps him to his feet alongside Nyx. Lis watches the scene unfold with a curious and slightly apprehensive expression.


    "I can''t tell you what to do, boy, but this is one of the favored sons of House Drummond. You could gain much if you knew how to use such a resource…" Lis advises Arthur.


    But he ignores her words, walking over to Eliza after receiving another healing potion from Aria. He gently helps her drink the potion and then offers his hand to lift her up.


    Eliza smiles as she epts Arthur''s help and follows him toward Marcus. Nyx retrieves Arthur''s sword and flies to his side.


    Arthur nods and smiles at Nyx before taking his sword. He nces at Lis, then Eliza, and finally, at his mother.


    Aria nods back at him, her approval clear, and Arthur turns his gaze to Marcus, whose body is nowpletely immobilized by both the poison and Eliza''s ice spell.


    Arthur can see the fear in Marcus''s eyes, a final, desperate plea for mercy.


    "No,"


    *Shoosh-BAM*


    Arthur strikes with a powerful vertical sh, shattering Marcus''s frozen body with his de.


    *Crack-BOOM*


    The once confident Master Drummond is reduced to thousands of frozen fragments, scattering through the air.


    Arthur''s lips curl into a dark, satisfied smile, and the women around him smile as well—even Lis, whose eyes sparkle with anticipation and curiosity as she watches him.