They don't want me to try anymore.

Richard, using the dragonfly's high speed, repeatedly hid behind the dragon, unleashing a barrage of lightning bolts and boulders. After reinforcing the attack with a magic circle formed by the remaining starfire, it was enough to break through Damon's armor.

This strategy proved to be very effective.

boom!

Less than half a minute later, because he turned too sharply while dodging the dragon's fire, Damon's griffin lost its balance and was hit in the wing by Richard with a stone the size of a basketball.

The griffin was clearly broken, and its flight posture immediately became erratic.

"...You are much better than I thought."

Damon scratched the back of his head, still smiling, but with a hint of self-deprecation in his tone.

He found it extremely difficult to harm Big Black, while Richard, on the other hand, could indiscriminately unleash a barrage of magic that, while ineffective against Big Black, would strike him without restraint…

Richard said, "Do you understand? I may not be able to beat William, but I can definitely beat you. You might as well admit defeat now."

"Haha, that's not necessary. After all... all I need to do is hold you off!"

Damon smiled slightly and instructed the griffin to fly as high as it could.

Just as Big Black was about to chase after them from below, he suddenly loosened the reins, jumped off the saddle, and let the griffins fight on their own while he himself plummeted vertically.

Midway through, he swung his warhammer, transforming into a whirlwind that grazed the big black dragon's shoulder, causing the dragon to let out a cry of pain.

Finally, he landed near Richard and grabbed the dragonfly's tail.

Wow, what kind of hammer technique is this, falling from the sky?

"Get down here!"

Richard was surprised, but he acted quickly. Before Damon could regain his balance, he made the dragonfly bend its tail, turned around and cut off the latter's left hand with his sword.

However, Damon immediately used his remaining arm to tightly grasp the dragonfly's tail, which he couldn't shake off no matter how hard he tried. With his right hand, he threw away the warhammer, took out a small flail, and attacked Richard from a distance.

"...Why don't you consider withdrawing from the competition and going back to treat your hand? If you wait too long, you might have to take the medicine again to grow another one!"

"No rush, no rush, this is just a warm-up!"

Damon laughed maniacally, "And William will be here soon..."

This is exactly what Richard was worried about.

Through the arrow in front of him, he saw William getting closer and closer—a few times he probably encountered other players, so the distance value fluctuated slightly, but it immediately continued to decrease.

At this rate, William should be here in about ten minutes.

If he hadn't dealt with Damon by then...

Whoosh!

At that moment, a dark shadow flashed by, grazing half of Damon's ear, and blood splattered everywhere.

Richard looked up and saw Sophia standing on the city wall, operating a dwarven crossbow and aiming an arrow at Damon.

"what?"

Damon turned around in surprise, about to retract his meteor hammer for defense, but Richard decisively cooperated, sending the dragonfly back to the illusionary realm.

Suddenly, neither of them had a foothold in the air.

As a Silver-rank Griffin Knight, Damon had plenty of levitation items to deal with this situation, but in the rush, he was caught off guard and things just kept getting worse.

Sofia's second arrow was already upon them.

He gritted his teeth and turned to the side, intending to take the arrow at the cost of losing another arm.

But the cold sensation that followed the pain after the arrow pierced his flesh made him realize that all was lost.

It turns out that the arrows Sophia shot were temporarily enchanted!

"You can even use magic, Princess Sophia, you're stronger than I imagined... Too bad, I haven't had enough yet..."

Damon smiled and shook his head, then bowed to the two of them before his half-stiff body fell to the ground, turning into a pile of ice shards, and he made his exit.

"...I really can't handle this kind of battle maniac."

Richard landed on a nearby rooftop, also panting heavily.

Then he saw that Sophia seemed to be unsteady on her feet, and that orcs were approaching nearby. He mustered his strength and flew over to rescue her and brought her to the safe roof of a nearby city tower.

As soon as Sofia's feet touched the ground, she lay in Richard's arms, her face slightly flushed and her breath coming in soft gasps.

Richard blinked.

"...If you do that, everyone outside can see it."

"Whatever, I really don't have the strength to stand up."

Sophia gently stroked Richard's chest with one hand and said softly, "I also wanted to be more dignified, but since someone claimed that he would struggle to the last moment, I had no choice but to disregard my injuries and use up all my last bit of magic."

Got it, the final ripple, right...?

Richard scratched his head and replied in a low voice, "Thanks, without your arrows, I would have had at least one more summoned beast killed by Damon."

"Don't mention it, we're teammates after all~"

Sophia chuckled sweetly, her warm breath slipping into Richard's clothes: "Besides, that dragonfly is also proof that you owe me a favor, and I don't want it to die."

Yes, that's true...

Richard recalled the magic book the beauty had given him, and the fact that Sophia also possessed the ability to simulate magic. Feeling the warmth and softness against his chest, he couldn't help but frown.

I have a feeling that something very troublesome is going to happen.

She's such an irresistible woman...

"...It's really time for me to step down this time. You should also rest and prepare to face William."

Sofia also thought of Richard in the simulation.

If she had initially thought of this man as an extremely talented and loyal individual, then after their direct contact during the competition, she began to truly recognize his charm.

Perhaps, in the next simulation, I can try to win him over?

Luvia, Alice, and that pirate are all options, so why can't she give it a try?

hee hee~

Let's leave aside the ulterior motives of both sides.

As William drew closer, Sophia committed suicide and left the scene.

Richard, on the other hand, seized the opportunity to use stealth to hide on an empty rooftop and meditate to replenish his mana.

In theory, if William were to turn away now and wander around with the trophy, Richard would definitely not be able to catch up. But just as William knew that Richard would definitely retaliate, Richard was also certain that the other party would want to defeat him head-on.

as predicted.

A moment later, a colorful whirlwind blew over and condensed into a human shape in the center of the garden below the city gate.

It was William.

After realizing that his last teammate had also died, his expression darkened slightly.

“A very good strategy, you have really surprised me… If you are willing to reconsider my previous proposal, I can offer you even more favorable terms.”

"For example, marrying Luvia?"

“...You should be glad I’m not Luvia, otherwise, you arrogant fool, you would have died by that woman’s sword long ago.”

Is she really that scary in your eyes?

Putting aside the fact that he might chain people up, lock them in basements, or beat Longlong until he cried, I think he's actually quite kind.

Richard chuckled, ending the joke, and drew his Ghostly Dagger, looking down at William.

"Let's end this game."

Outside the painting.

Just when everyone thought everything was settled and the audience was ready to watch William effortlessly shrug it off, the noise started up again.

"Is this Connaught really only a Silver rank 1? Putting Aaron aside for now, Damon was clearly unharmed, yet he was still quickly defeated by him!"

"I never imagined it would turn into a one-on-one duel!"

"I must admit, Richard truly lives up to his reputation..."

Among the audience were many skilled professionals, including numerous Summoners. After witnessing Richard's performance, they sincerely admitted their inferiority and expressed their utmost admiration.

He truly is a genius!

pity……

...The opponent was simply too strong.

Someone sighed and said, "The final victory will definitely belong to William. In the end, the Connaught's first stage has already reached its limit by defeating a mid-stage opponent. Without fully recovering its mana, how could it possibly continue to challenge opponents of higher levels?"

"Yes, even without using elemental transformation, William is guaranteed to win!"

"Look, look! Lord William has made his move! Richard can't hold on any longer..."

In the painting.

The wind was as sharp as a knife, the thunderstorms were powerful enough to blow up a wooden house in an instant, and the hailstones the size of human heads flew wildly.

The power of the elemental mage was now on full display.