Chapter 121: Better Than Losing

1 minute and 30 seconds left…

Klade was in a difficult situation right now. For the past two minutes, he had been forced entirely onto the defensive.

He simply could not bring himself to seriously hurt Blazeo. After all, Blazeo was his very first monster.

“Hahaha! How long are you planning to evade my attacks, Klade? When are you going to summon your dragon? Don’t tell me you intend to defeat me without using it.” Lucretia laughed.

For the past minute, she had barely done anything herself. Instead, she simply stood back and allowed Abedi to control Blazeo, turning Klade’s own monster against him.

Klade remained silent. His handsome face was now covered in sweat, while his academy attire had become damp.

It was not that he did not want to call his dragon. The problem was Abedi. If he called his dragon and Abedi somehow managed to take control of it as well, then the battle would be over instantly.

Not only would he have to fight Blazeo, but he would also have to face his strongest monster at the same time. That was a risk he could not afford to take.

As another blazing attack from Blazeo rushed toward him, Klade gritted his teeth and dodged once more.

Klade’s eyes repeatedly glanced at the timer as it continued counting down. Every passing second increased the pressure on him.

‘That monster must have a weakness. And I need to find it fast.’ Klade’s mind raced. His eyes moved in every direction as he carefully scanned the battlefield, searching for anything unusual.

Blazeo charged at him once again, but Klade continued evading while observing Abedi.

Suddenly, he noticed something. A thin thread connected to Blazeo briefly reflected the light of the platform. The faint glimmer caught his attention.

Klade’s eyes widened.

‘There!’

He immediately prepared to move. However, Lucretia noticed the change in his expression. She realized he had found something. Without hesitation, she raised her scythe and dashed toward him.

“Not so fast!”

Lucretia swung Screaming Nightmare directly at Klade as the scythe sliced through the air. But Klade had already anticipated the attack. He swiftly evaded it and continued rushing forward.

His target was not Lucretia. It was the thread. Abedi immediately reacted as the puppet monster tried to pull the thread away, causing it to move just before Klade reached it causing his blade to miss.

However, Klade had prepared for that possibility.

“Nova Blast!”

He thrust his staff forward and a concentrated sphere of flames shot directly toward the thread. The fire engulfed it instantly, causing it to snap. At last, the connection was severed.

Immediately, the control over Blazeo disappeared.

“Blazeo! Cast Inferno Fang!”

Klade did not wait any longer. As soon as he saw his monster return to normal, he immediately ordered it to attack Lucretia.

Blazeo’s fangs suddenly ignited with blazing flames as it lunged toward Lucretia. Lucretia raised her scythe to block the incoming attack. However, she showed no fear or panic.

Instead, she was laughing.

“Hehehe…”

“Why are you laughing?” Klade asked as he kept his guard up around Lucretia.

Then suddenly, he got his answer. A group of threads shot toward him from behind. Before he could react, they wrapped around his body and Klade immediately found himself unable to move.

At the same time, Lucretia rolled to the side and evaded Blazeo’s attack. She then swung her scythe upward.

BAM!

The impact sent Blazeo flying away across the platform.

“Hehehe! Good job, Abedi. You think I don’t know that you would attack the threads to sever the connection? I don’t think you’re an idiot, which is why I let you see those threads in the first place.” Lucretia grinned widely.

“But my real plan was to create a single moment of carelessness. Hahaha!”

Klade’s eyes narrowed. He had been focused entirely on freeing Blazeo and failed to notice the other threads surrounding him.

“Now, can you kindly walk toward the edge of the platform, please?”

Abedi’s masks spun from screaming mask to crying mask as the threads tightened around Klade’s body. Immediately, Klade’s legs began moving on their own, one step then another.

He was walking toward the edge of the platform and no matter how much strength he used, he could not resist the control.

However, suddenly, a smile appeared on Klade’s face. Then he laughed.

“Hahaha!”

Lucretia frowned. She thought Klade must have gone crazy because he was only moments away from losing.

“If I am going to fall, then I will drag you down with me!”

“What?!” Lucretia’s eyes widened in surprise.

BOOOM!!!

Suddenly, a massive explosion erupted from below the platform as Lucretia struggled to keep her footing. Then, from within the smoke and flames, a gigantic silhouette emerged. Its massive wings unfolded as it rose from the darkness beneath the arena.

“No way… when did you summon it!?”

For the first time, genuine shock appeared on Lucretia’s face. Because what she saw was a dragon, Ethilas!

“I have been summoning it since the competition started, while everyone was busy moving between platforms. I simply let it roam in the darkness and wait for my signal.” Klade grinned.

“Now, Ethilas! Burn the enemy away!”

The dragon roared and ready to release flame from its mouth.

“Tch! Abedi! Push him away!” Lucretia immediately ordered. She no longer had any way to escape.

Ethilas opened its mouth and unleashed a volcanic blaze.

BOOM!

The platform was instantly engulfed in dragonfire. The overwhelming flames swallowed Lucretia and Abedi whole and

both were eliminated as their bodies transformed into light.

The platform itself could not withstand the attack. It shattered apart and collapsed into nothingness.

Klade smiled bitterly as his victory had come at a price. With no platform remaining beneath him, he also began falling. Moments later, his body transformed into light as well as both students had been eliminated together.

Klade and Lucretia were teleported back to their chairs in the auditorium. The moment they appeared, all the students turned their attention toward them.

“Even Klade was defeated…”

“With them gone, now only two remain…”

“The final battle…”

The students quietly discussed among themselves. The tournament had finally reached its climax.

Suddenly, a large circular screen appeared in front of everyone. The image displayed the last remaining platform. The entire auditorium immediately fell silent as all eyes were fixed on the screen.

Inside it, the final two students stood facing each other across a platform. They were the last survivors.

Oliver and Kai.

The final battle was about to begin!