Zephyr, Isla, and Lennox were visibly shaking.
It wasn't because of the sudden drop in temperature.
It wasn't because of the ice or snow covering the area.
The reason was much simpler.
Fear.
Fear and worry buried deep in their minds had surfaced the moment they saw the two figures.
Two members of the Synapse Circle had arrived.
To Zephyr, the situation felt even worse than before.
They had already been struggling against a single powerful opponent.
Now there were two members of the Synapse Circle standing before them.
Just thinking about it made his chest tighten.
Regardless, no one moved.
The Wyndhams remained where they were, their eyes fixed on the newcomers.
A man and a woman stood side by side.
Both were clad in metallic suits that looked sleek rather than bulky.
The armor appeared light and flexible, allowing free movement without restriction.
"Well... well... well," Caelan said.
Despite wearing the suit, he wasn't wearing a helmet.
His face was fully visible.
He was a handsome young man with dark hair that reached his shoulders.
The hair wasn't tied back, allowing strands to sway lightly in the wind.
"We might have saved you all from that danger," Caelan said, glancing toward the Pyre-Fang member.
"But that doesn't mean you're entirely safe."
The Wyndhams remained silent.
No one interrupted him.
Caelan looked directly at them before speaking again.
"So, I'll make you the same offer she did."
His tone was calm, but nobody found it reassuring.
"Quit the tournament now before things start getting messy around here."
He stated it casually, as if he were giving friendly advice.
Yet everyone present understood it was also a warning.
The Wyndhams remained silent.
None of them knew what to say.
Naturally, the others were waiting for Zephyr or one of his siblings to respond, but none of them did.
Not because they didn't want to.
They simply weren't sure what to do.
The situation had already gone beyond what they could comfortably handle.
However, while the others remained silent, one person decided to speak.
"This tournament isn't a place to flex power," Clifford said.
His voice wasn't loud, but it carried across the area.
"If you think we don't deserve to stay in this tournament, then why not beat us into elimination?"
As he spoke, Clifford walked past the others and stopped slightly in front of them.
Caelan and Maelis glanced at each other.
A small smirk appeared on both of their faces.
"Unfortunately for all of you," Maelis said as she finally spoke.
"We don't intend to beat you into quitting."
Her smile widened.
"We intend to beat you all to death."
The moment those words left her mouth, she moved.
Air thrusters burst from her legs.
Boom!
She shot forward toward Clifford.
The speed was terrifying.
Clifford's eyes widened.
The attack had come too suddenly.
Even though the others immediately reacted and rushed forward to either protect him or pull him out of the way, it was obvious they wouldn't make it in time.
Meanwhile, Clifford braced himself.
He prepared for the impact.
But the attack never arrived.
Instead, he felt a sudden rise in temperature.
Then—
Boom!
Maelis was slammed from the side.
A figure engulfed in raging flames crashed into her with tremendous force.
The impact sent both of them flying across the street.
They smashed through the side of a building and disappeared inside.
It was the Pyre-Fang member.
She had recovered from the surprise attack and was striking back.
Boom!
A powerful explosion erupted from inside the building.
Flames burst from shattered windows.
For a brief moment, the Wyndhams stood stunned.
However, they quickly shifted their attention to the remaining person standing before them.
Meanwhile, Caelan calmly turned his head toward the building where Maelis and the Pyre-Fang member had crashed.
His arms remained crossed over his chest.
"Well, it seems I'll be the one dealing with you people myself," Caelan said calmly, as though he didn't have a single worry in the world.
However, the moment he finished speaking, a condensed ball of air shot toward him.
The attack had been launched before he had even finished his sentence.
It was fast.
Very fast.
His suit reacted immediately.
A burst of air shot from one of the thrusters, pushing his body to the side.
The condensed air ball flew past him and continued into the distance.
Then he dashed forward at incredible speed.
Both of his arms transformed into blades.
A layer of frost covered them, giving off a chilling aura as he closed the distance.
By this point, the Wyndhams had finally managed to pull Clifford out of immediate danger.
Gavalich was the first to counterattack.
With a roar, he charged straight at Caelan.
It became a direct clash.
Gavalich swung his claws at him without hesitation.
Caelan reacted instantly.
He lowered his body and ducked beneath the swipe.
The attack passed over his head.
In the same movement, he slashed one of his bladed arms across Gavalich's body.
A wound opened up.
At once, icy frost spread from the injured area.
The cold rapidly bit into Gavalich's body.
Without pausing, Caelan followed up.
He thrust his second blade forward, aiming directly at Gavalich.
The attack was clearly meant to end the fight immediately.
However, before the strike could land, his suit reacted.
A small warning beep sounded.
Beep!
The next moment, his body was suddenly thrust out of the way.
From behind him, the condensed air ball that had been fired earlier came racing back.
It slammed directly into Gavalich.
Boom!
The explosion erupted on impact.
Gavalich was blasted off his feet and sent flying back toward the others.
Meanwhile, while Gavalich was still being thrown backward, another figure charged forward.
"Arhh!" Jimmy yelled.
He rushed at Caelan with everything he had.
His speed was high, and he had built up considerable momentum during the charge.
Seeing this, Caelan didn't move aside.
Instead, one of his hands immediately transformed.
The arm reshaped itself into a triangular shield.
He brought it up in front of him just as Jimmy arrived.
A moment later, Jimmy's body slammed directly into the shield.
Bang!
The impact rang out across the battlefield.
At the same time, a short burst of air shot from the thrusters on Caelan's back.
The sudden burst completely canceled the momentum behind Jimmy's charge.
Jimmy's eyes widened.
'What... how? How can he stop my charge like that?' he thought in disbelief.
Jimmy's Bull Charge was similar to the Buster skill.
The difference was that Bull Charge needed time to build momentum if he wanted to unleash its full power.
The longer the buildup, the stronger the impact.
Buster, on the other hand, was almost instantaneous.
Because of that, it could be used repeatedly without needing a long setup.
Even so, once Jimmy built enough momentum, the resulting hit was always devastating.
Yet Caelan had blocked it as if it were nothing.
Before Jimmy could recover from the shock, Caelan moved.
With his free bladed arm, he thrust forward.
The blade pierced straight into Jimmy's abdomen.
"Arhh!"
Jimmy cried out in pain.
The icy blade remained lodged in the wound for a brief moment.
Almost immediately, frost began spreading from the point of contact.
It crept across Jimmy's clothes and around the wound, the cold biting into his body.
Caelan didn't stop there.
He pulled back his shielded arm and slammed it into Jimmy's face.
Bang!
Jimmy's head snapped backward.
Then another strike followed.
Bang!
The second hit landed just as hard.
Blood burst from Jimmy's mouth as the force of the blows sent him reeling backward.
Pulling his bladed arm out of Jimmy's abdomen, Caelan immediately followed up with another attack.
He swung the shield forward.
Bang!
The shield slammed into Jimmy's face once again.
The impact sent Jimmy crashing back to the ground.
Meanwhile, Henry had already gathered several compressed air strikes and launched them toward Caelan.
The attacks shot across the battlefield one after another.
This time, Caelan didn't move.
Instead, something shifted on his shoulder.
A pistol-like mechanical weapon rose from the armor.
The weapon rotated with precise movements before locking onto the incoming attacks.
Then it fired.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Each air strike was intercepted before reaching him.
The compressed wind exploded in midair, sending violent gusts sweeping across the entire street.
However, the shoulder-mounted weapon didn't stop there.
The barrel adjusted its aim and immediately turned toward Henry.
Then it started firing.
"Oh shit... why aren't they helping?" Henry panicked.
He hurriedly moved while firing small bursts of air.
Each burst was just strong enough to detonate the incoming shots before they could hit him.
Meanwhile, while the mechanical weapon continued tracking and firing at Henry automatically, Caelan bent down and grabbed Jimmy.
Jimmy was still lying on the ground.
Blood covered his nose.
The wound in his abdomen wasn't bleeding.
A layer of ice had sealed it shut.
Even so, the pain was still there.
Caelan grabbed him by the neck and lifted him into the air.
"That ice was meant to make sure you don't bleed too much and get eliminated by the tournament," Caelan said calmly.
His expression remained unchanged.
"I intend to kill all of you since you decided not to leave on your own."
As he spoke, he raised his bladed arm.
The edge was positioned directly against Jimmy's neck.
One swing would be enough.
However, just as he was about to strike, a thin, frightening-looking hand grabbed his arm.
The motion stopped completely.
Caelan's blade froze in place.
Turning his head, he looked at what had stopped him.
The arm stretched downward to a hunched figure with a white wolf snout.
It was Zephyr.
'I can't be afraid,' Zephyr told himself.
He bared his werewolf teeth at Caelan.
'We're more in number now. If we play our cards right, we'll be able to get rid of this trouble.'
The thought strengthened his resolve.
With a growl, Zephyr yanked hard on Caelan's arm.
The force lifted Caelan off the ground.
A moment later, Zephyr slammed him down with all his strength.
Boom!
Caelan crashed into the ground hard.