"SCRREEEEEEEEECCCHHH!!!"
Storm, who had taken down Leon, was now coming directly at Rowan.
Rowan cursed, his heart pounded when he saw the fearsome Bond coming at him with enraged eyes.
"You are angry because I hit your Master!?"
Rowan shouted as he stood up. Then, he grinned and,
"What a coincidence! I wish to avenge my Leon as well!
Storm increased his speed, as if he had accepted his challenge.
He descended at a speed even faster than before, then suddenly, just as Storm was about to reach him, the Seven Circles around Rowan shined again and,
The air around him exploded, sending him flying and away from Storm, who was still descending towards the hard ground a little too fast.
Yes, he was about to hit the ground head-first.
Was this Rowan's plan all along?
From the smirk on his face even when he was in the air, that indeed seemed to be the case.
He flapped his giant wings and his descent slowed down.
Storm was a Master of Aerial Combat. How could he fall on the ground face-first? That would not just be embarrassing for Silas, but even for Storm himself.
The Roc flapped his wings again, changing his direction as he turned towards Rowan again. This time, the Mage had no way out.
With a screech, Storm flapped his wings and rushed towards Rowan, but then,
"SSSSCCCREEEEEEEEEEECCCCHHHHH!!"
The Roc screeched in agony as suddenly, his body tumbled. Half of his right wing was cut open, and he tumbled into the ground with blood spilling all over the space.
Rowan, whose body had fallen on the floor, sat up and smirked as he stared at the fallen Roc.
"Like Master, like Beast, eh?
Again, why do you think a Mage like me would need to spend effort creating a simple air explosion like that?
I was obviously planning for…
He announced with a wide grin, sensing more than 50 invisible Wind Threads that he had weaved around the fallen Storm, ready to cut him the instant he tried to move.
Storm's body trembled in agony and rage, his piercing blue eyes stared at the hateful man in front of him. Then suddenly, his expression changed as Rowan walked towards him.
Rowan's grin widened.
"Well, why wouldn't you be? You are here on the ground, your injured Master is in the air, on that slow thing that would need a few seconds to come here, more than enough time for me to get rid of you. But don't worry, I do not plan to kil—"
Rowan froze as he sensed something.
The ground beneath him was shaking. Then, he noticed something.
His back seemed… warm?
Recalling the look on Storm's face, he realized something and slowly turned around.
A towering beast with a molten rock exterior, glowing lava veins underneath his skin. His spiked shell radiated intense heat, and his massive horn looked lethal. Every step the gigantic creature took shook the battle ground.
Elira's Second Beast.
The Flaming Behemoth, who was coming at Rowan at a speed that would turn the poor Xenthalor Mage into bloodpaste if they collided.
Yes, all this while, Magma had been positioning himself according to Elira's instructions, and now that he finally had the chance to show off his might, the Behemoth was in no mood to hold back, and this was exactly what Elira wanted from him.
The reason why she targeted Arthur instead of Silas, allowing Silas to face Rowan, was all because she had Magma.
Elira knew Rowan would do anything in his power to move the battle near the ground. After all, this was how Stormfang Monarchs fought.
To Elira, the result of their battle didn't matter. She just wanted Magma to attack the winner.
Arthur was already done, even his Titanback Behemoth, a Beast known for its strong defense, couldn't hold off against Emberaile's and Elira's constant bombardment.
Silas was injured, his Storm was out, and his Thunder was too slow to make a difference.
Rowan's Leon was out of the picture too, and while she didn't understand why the Xenthalor Mage didn't use both his Bonds from the beginning and was somewhat worried about his second Bond, she soon realized it didn't matter.
It didn't matter what Rowan's second Bond was.
After all, Magma was already close to Rowan. There was no way a Mage could even resist a Behemoth like Magma at this distance.
In a battle between a Beast and a Human, a Human would never come out on top.
The only thing Rowan could do right now was to bring out his Second Bond, and even that wouldn't make much of a difference because Elira had already calculated it all.
According to the strength Leon had shown today, she knew he was Rowan's Primary Bond.
In Kael's words, Leon's and Rowan's 'levels' were similar.
So whoever Rowan's Second Bond was, it would be weaker, especially when compared to Magma, who was the only Legendary Beast in this battle.
Could Rowan's Second Bond be a Legendary Beast?
Legendary Beast Eggs were monopolized by the strongest families. This was the same for all the Nations. Only Prodigies or the Heirs of the most influential families got to Bond with Legendary Beasts.
Was Rowan one such heir?
Elira had read about all the influential families and forces throughout Nerathis. There was no family with Ashworth as the last name.
Could Rowan be one of the few lucky ones who accidentally found a Legendary Beast Egg?
Well, even if that was the case, Elira could always defeat the Mage with numbers.
After all, she was up by one Bond in this battle.
The only way Rowan could defeat her would be if his Second Bond turned out to be a Mythical Ranked Beast.
The moment she thought about it, Elira laughed at that possibility, dismissing it in an instant.
The battle was indeed over.