Aji felt the sudden escalation in pressure—vastly different from their light spar the day before. This time, Advisor Alex was unleashing his true, unbridled power. As retired leaders of their respective regions, continental advisors occupied the absolute zenith of martial mastery.

Just like Advisor Silvi's awe-inspiring display against Gayatri, Alex's maximum output was impossible to fathom.

Advisor Alex raised his sword toward the heavens, causing the blade to hum with a thunderous resonance. The concentrated energy shot upward like a pillar of blinding light, piercing straight through the clouds. Across Elenoir, citizens looked toward the sky in astonishment, realizing an apocalyptic battle had broken out at the advisor's estate.

"Forgive me, Aji!"

Alex swung his sword downward. The celestial pillar of energy plummeted in an instant, crashing straight toward Aji, who stood waiting with his wooden staff raised high.

BLAAAAARRRRR! BOOOOOOMMMM!

A catastrophic gale blasted outward, pulverizing the stone perimeter walls of the estate into fine dust. The shockwave hurled Nora backward through the air.

Nora stared in sheer disbelief. So our spar yesterday was just child's play to him?! He realized his own strength paled in comparison to the former grandmaster's true limits. Even at his absolute maximum, Nora knew he stood no chance against Alex.

But... what about Aji?!

Nora scrambled to his feet, calling out into the settling dust. "Aji!"

As the haze cleared, Aji remained standing firm. He held his staff horizontally above his head, holding off the full kinetic force of Alex's descending strike. A deep trench carved through the earth all around them, leaving only the ground beneath Aji's boots untouched.

Advisor Alex offered a subtle, respectful smile. "Just as I suspected, Aji... you are no ordinary youth!"

On the other side of the courtyard, the blast wave disrupted the battle between Barsha and the impostors. The blinding cloud of dust briefly obscured everyone's vision.

The moment visibility returned, Barsha moved at invisible speed, materializing directly in front of Morina and Nurma. Delivering a lightning-fast combination of kicks and strikes straight to their midsections, she sent both women tumbling across the dirt.

Barsha still refrained from drawing her blades. With the true identities of her opponents unconfirmed, she refused to commit to lethal force just yet.

Scrambling to their feet, the two impostors burned with rage. The false Morina turned toward Alex, her voice screeching across the courtyard. "Alex! Cut them down immediately, or we will erase your family from existence!"

She had completely lost her patience. Alex's hands trembled violently as he stood trapped in an impossible dilemma. Pressed into a corner with no way out, he faced an agonizing choice.

There was no turning back.

"Stand down, Nora!" Alex commanded, his voice heavy with sorrow. "Continue your fight against the dark army. Remember your vow... and forgive me!"

Nora stood frozen, his mind reeling. What does he mean? Is he truly allied with the dark army?! So the rumors were true... but why?! How could Advisor Alex side with them?!

Before Nora could process his shock, a swirling magic array materialized beneath Alex's feet. Ambient natural energy rushed into the formation like a whirlpool.

Refusing to let his idol fall into darkness, Nora braced his stance, determined to snap Alex back to his senses. Absorbing atmospheric mana into his core, he charged forward, swinging his massive broadsword to shatter the casting circle.

'I have to save him!'

Just as Nora closed in, the energy wings on Alex's back multiplied exponentially—erupting from two into eight radiant wings, four fanning out on each side.

The energy wings lashed out like whip-cracks, striking Nora before his broadsword could reach the magic circle.

SLASH!

The impact sent Nora flying through the air, dislodging the broadsword from his grip as he crashed hard onto the ground. Even while airborne, Nora marveled at the sheer, terrifying majesty of Alex's technique.

Meanwhile, Barsha faced the two impostors as they finally dropped their facades. Unable to contain their dark magic any longer, a suffocating aura of corrupt energy enveloped their frames. Realizing restraint was no longer an option, Barsha prepared to deploy her full strength as well.

"Demon Transformation!"

The fake Morina and Nurma mutated into horrific demonic forms.

By now, a contingent of municipal guards from Elenoir had arrived at the perimeter, led by Mayor Basel himself after receiving reports of the commotion. Reaching the estate, the guards stood paralyzed in shock. Before them was a high-level battle between their revered continental advisor and a young Sky Squad operative—while nearby, Sky Squad Leader Barsha was single-handedly engaging two fully transformed dark operatives.

Explosions rocked the estate grounds continuously. Mayor Basel held his men back, observing the high-stakes confrontation to discern the truth before taking action.

Barsha moved with fluid precision, holding her ground against the two mutated dark operatives. She parried their dark-cloaked swords, weaving through their wild, heavy swings with practiced ease. Resolving to end the duel quickly, she activated her specialized assassin art.

"Ghost Speed!"

Barsha transformed into a streak of lightning, crisscrossing past the two dark operatives. Her dual daggers executed thousands of high-speed slashes across their mutated bodies in a split second.

The high-volume assault shredded both dark operatives to pieces. Yet, moments later, plumes of dark magic swirled around their remains. Worm-like tendrils of dark blood wriggled out from their open wounds, knitting their severed flesh back together—a high-speed regeneration that rapidly drained their dark energy reserves.

On the main battleground, Alex repelled Nora with his energy wings before lunging straight at Aji, eager to test the full extent of the youth's capability. Flapping his eight massive wings, Alex launched a torrential rain of thousands of sharp energy feathers toward Aji.

Aji whirled his wooden staff into a seamless wheel, deflecting every single energy projectile that rained down on him.

Nora watched in awe. Aji handled the unassuming wooden staff as if it were a natural extension of his own body. Enveloped in a dense aura, the staff successfully held off the relentless assault from Alex's eight energy wings—while simultaneously parrying Alex's high-speed sword slashes.

Nora felt a wave of humility wash over him, realizing how naive he had been regarding his own strength. The clash of titans unfolding before his eyes was a profound reality check.

As shockwaves continued to detonate across the compound, a frantic voice shouted out from the crowd of municipal guards.

"Husband! Stop!"

An elderly woman came running into the courtyard. Following closely behind her were the real Nurma and her husband.

How can this be?! They are completely unharmed?!

Advisor Alex froze, his descending sword grinding to a dead stop inches from Aji's staff.