Chapter 296: The One True Sovereign

The first thing Seraphina did after stepping out of the portal was look around. Her gaze settled on the central arena, where Arthur was engaged in a brutal fight with someone she didn't know.

At that moment, a dark chair materialized right beside her through a small portal. Seraphina sat down without hesitation, her eyes locked on the fight.

Without taking his eyes off the battle, Abel asked with a smile:

"So, how's the cooking going? Everything all right?"

Seraphina turned toward him, the hint of a smile touching her lips.

"Yes. There are only a few finishing touches left, but they'll be taken care of on their own as soon as we get back. I've set a timer... Everything will be ready in ten minutes."

Abel nodded approvingly.

"Okay."

But the very next second, Seraphina froze.

Her heart skipped a beat, then hammered frantically, the throbbing echoing in her temples. Blood surged through her veins with tremendous force. She stood frozen, gasping in short, ragged breaths as though she were being deprived of oxygen.

Her gaze shifted and landed on Noah, who was sitting nearby.

A jolt of shock went through her. Seraphina stared at him in utter disbelief for a split second, then sprang straight out of her chair, forgetting everything else. She covered the distance in an instant and dropped to her knees right at Noah's feet, whispering reverently, her voice trembling.

"Lord Noah... greetings!"

At the very same moment, Kai and his chair silently vanished into thin air, only to materialize at the other end, right beside a young man with long white hair and golden eyes.

Kai smirked and pointed toward the arena.

"Yo, Asher. How about a match? I'm getting bored."

Asher kept his eyes on the arena without turning his head.

"What, yesterday's match wasn't enough for you?"

"Hold on, our score is a thousand and seventy-one to a thousand and seventy-one, so it's a tie! Don't get all cocky," Kai shot back.

Asher gave him a skeptical sidelong glance.

"Do I need to remind you how many times you've reset the score because I kicked your ass?"

Kai froze for a second, then put on the most nonchalant expression he could manage.

"No, I don't remember anything like that. That definitely never happened!"

Ignoring his response, Asher shifted his gaze to Nivea, who was sitting nearby, then looked back at Kai and lowered his voice.

"Listen... don't you think Nivea's been acting a little strange ever since they arrived?"

Kai shrugged.

"Well, I think she's always been strange, hasn't she?"

"Yeah..." Asher shook his head, studying her figure. "But now, especially."

Meanwhile, Noah sat in his chair, staring in utter bewilderment at the girl prostrating herself on her knees before him.

Seraphina continued murmuring incoherent words of reverence and devotion.

Noah grimaced, feeling extremely uncomfortable. Turning to Abel, he skeptically pointed at her.

"Hey... what's wrong with her?"

Abel merely broke into a broad grin as he watched the scene unfold.

"Oh, nothing special. Just get used to it."

Noah gave Abel a heavy, distrustful look before leaning slightly toward Seraphina.

"Listen... you've probably mistaken me for someone else."

At his words, Seraphina abruptly raised her head. Their eyes met, but a second later, she looked away, shrinking in on herself.

"Oh... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. Please forgive me!" she babbled, frantically apologizing for daring to look him directly in the eyes.

Noah sighed wearily.

"Hey, listen, you've definitely got the wrong person. And besides... how do you even know my name?"

Seraphina looked up at him again, her gaze filled with fanatical devotion.

"How could I not know you, Lord Noah?! You are my true lord, and the lord of us all. I owe my very life to you!"

Noah leaned back conspicuously, grimacing at her intensity as though it were something unpleasant. Seraphina caught his reaction and immediately reined herself in. Rising from her knees, she bowed her head slightly and spoke apologetically.

"Forgive my rudeness... I haven't even properly introduced myself. My name is Seraphina Waldstein."

Murmuring something under her breath about "the prophecy... it really has come true..." she added, her voice a little softer:

"But you may simply call me Seraphina. Or whatever you wish, my lord."

Noah rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"All right, Seraphina... just move aside. You're blocking my view."

"Oh, of course!" she replied at once, silently moving to stand beside his chair. She straightened up like a soldier at attention, assuming the stance of a vigilant bodyguard.

Elyria had been silently watching the whole exchange, her face twisted into an expression of utter confusion. She blinked at the bizarre scene, then waved a hand and silently turned away, returning her attention to the arena.

Meanwhile, in the arena, Iron stood breathing heavily and unevenly, blood streaming down his face, only to be instantly dissolved and absorbed by Lumon.

His eyes narrowed through the blood. With a sharp movement, he opened his palm and materialized a sword. From a considerable distance away, Iron swung his weapon and, in the next instant, teleported directly in front of Arthur, aiming the tip of his blade at his neck.

But Arthur reacted in a flash. He thrust his palm toward the incoming attack.

Iron abruptly adjusted his trajectory, turning the thrust into a series of furious, lightning-fast slashes. The blade whistled through the air, but Arthur deflected every strike with the edge of his palm, precisely targeting the part of the blade without a cutting edge.

At one point, Iron tried to catch him off guard by sharply redirecting the blade toward his throat, but Arthur was quicker. He effortlessly pushed the flat of the sword downward, forcing the weapon away with a dull clang.

Iron froze in surprise. Meanwhile, Arthur executed a swift midair turn, raised his leg above the engineer's head, and drove his foot straight into Iron's head.

The tremendous impact sent him flying. Before his feet could even touch the ground, he slammed into the transparent barrier at full speed.

Watching the spectacle, Kai let out a whistle.

"Whoo... That one had to hurt."

Arthur took a heavy step forward, looking down at the fallen Iron with a smirk.

"Is that all you've got?"

He was just about to dash forward when he suddenly stopped.

Iron slowly straightened up, and at that moment, his eyes turned completely gray-white.

Asher and Abel leaned forward, their expressions shifting to interest. Kai, meanwhile, grinned with satisfaction.

"Oh... He's finally starting to fight for real!"

Iron muttered quietly through gritted teeth, barely loud enough to hear.

"Full power."

He instantly appeared right in front of Arthur, drawing back his fist for a devastating punch. Arthur managed to raise his arms and block the attack, but the tremendous kinetic energy behind the blow sent him flying a couple of meters to the side.

Iron was already there waiting for him. His fists became a blur as he unleashed dozens of consecutive strikes.

Iron could see everything: every contraction of muscle fibers, every movement of the joints, the rapid flow of blood, and the pulsing of the blood vessels. His detailed scan revealed that Arthur's body was entirely human, save for the extraordinary strength and abnormal density of his tissues.

The engineer abruptly changed the trajectory of his attack, aiming straight for Arthur's Adam's apple. Arthur barely managed to tilt his head aside, narrowly avoiding a fatal blow. Iron immediately ducked beneath the counterattack and attempted to drive a powerful upward kick into Arthur's groin, but Arthur blocked that attack at the last moment, catching the kick with his thigh.

Without losing a second, Iron launched his other leg, aiming his heel straight at Arthur's face.

Arthur dodged at lightning speed and staggered backward.

Iron clicked his tongue in frustration. Clenching his fingers sharply, he attempted to trigger a gravitational discharge right in front of Arthur. The air around Arthur grew dense, restricting his movements, but Arthur simply pushed off the air with greater force and, in the next instant, was already right on top of Iron.

They clashed in close combat once again.

With every exchange of blows, Iron became increasingly horrified by one realization: Arthur was getting faster. During the first few seconds, Arthur had reacted with a slight delay, but now his speed and timing had completely caught up with the engineer's reactions.

Damn it... Iron thought.

Suddenly, the world around him began to darken. Everything sank into deep blackness, leaving only the thinnest, blindingly white lines that traced Arthur's silhouette.

In the next instant, the very space before them cracked like fragile window glass. Shards of reality scattered in every direction, slowing with each passing millisecond until they came to a complete standstill in midair. Through the torn breach in space, Iron could clearly see Arthur's muscles, bones, and blood surging through his veins.

The crack widened. Another deafening snap rang out, and the entire process repeated itself on an even larger scale.

The world abruptly returned to normal. Time, which had seemed to slow to an absolute crawl, resumed its course.

Iron realized that Arthur was now moving at a speed utterly beyond his reach. A fist appeared directly before his eyes. Iron instinctively raised his arms to defend himself, but Arthur's devastating punch smashed straight through his guard. The impact sent Iron skidding violently backward across the arena floor, while smoke rose from his palms, which had absorbed the blow, scorching under the immense heat.

Arthur stopped, straightened up, and looked at Iron with a grave expression.

"Well, well..."

With that, he suddenly dashed toward the golden, diamond-shaped artifact he had thrown away at the beginning of the fight. Picking it up from the floor, Arthur said quietly:

"I didn't think I'd have to use this."

Iron wasn't about to give him a chance to catch his breath. Gathering his remaining strength, he launched himself forward in a lightning-fast dash, putting all his mass and kinetic energy into the attack as he swung his fist at Arthur with full force.

But Arthur calmly extended his free hand and stopped the devastating punch with his bare palm. At the same moment, the golden, diamond-shaped artifact in his other hand instantly transformed into a sharp sword.

Arthur delivered an incredibly precise strike, calculated down to the millimeter, that cut off every possible avenue of retreat or defense for Iron. The engineer immediately realized that blocking the trajectory was impossible. His only option was an emergency teleport.

The next moment, Iron teleported several meters backward.

Once at a safe distance, he opened his palm and breathed heavily as he turned his gaze toward Arthur.

"A coincidence...? Or not...?"

A bright white-violet glow flared above his outstretched palm. The light instantly condensed into a cluster that shifted shapes at a furious pace: a triangle became a hexagon, followed by a perfect circle and a small, indistinct square.

Within these geometric shapes, long strings of complex mathematical formulas and numbers rapidly rotated and multiplied, all mirrored in reverse.

Iron prepared for a decisive dash. Across from him, Arthur tightened his grip on his weapon and readied himself to charge as well.

Iron understood perfectly well that if he simply fired the spell straight at Arthur, he would easily dodge it. He needed the perfect opening.

They launched themselves forward simultaneously.

Arthur charged ahead, and the sword in his hand began changing shape at a furious pace. The blade stretched into a scythe, transformed into a halberd, split into nunchucks, then reverted again, adapting to his every thought.

Meanwhile, the spell in Iron's palm finally took shape, expanding and filling with immense destructive power.

They closed the distance at breakneck speed, now only a few meters apart. At that moment, Arthur's weapon settled into its final form: a massive, monstrous warhammer, which he had already raised above his head, preparing to bring it crashing down. Iron's magic was ready to erupt from his fingertips.

The collision seemed inevitable.

But in the next split second, the protective barrier surrounding the entire arena vanished from top to bottom, disappearing without a trace.

Asher and Noah sprang from their seats simultaneously.

In an instant, they appeared right between Iron and Arthur as the two charged toward each other. Noah thrust his sword forward, blocking Iron's path, while Asher simply stepped in front of Arthur.

Arthur's enormous hammer whistled down from above, but stopped just a few centimeters above Asher's head.

At the same time, Iron abruptly recoiled as the tip of Noah's sword came dangerously close to his face.

The white-violet glow in the engineer's palm dispersed with a sharp pop.

Elyria immediately rushed forward, pushing her way toward Iron.

Meanwhile, Seraphina was still in shock at Noah's incredible, incomprehensible speed. Her eyes hadn't even been able to follow his movements, leaving her frozen in stunned disbelief. Finally, she came to her senses, a happy smile spreading across her lips. Looking at Noah, she spoke with reverence and delight.

"That's my lord."