At his words, Reno rushed toward the strange being.
Orubos did not waste any time either and shouted again in an unknown language. Suddenly, the ground split apart and behaved strangely beneath Reno's feet. Reno found himself destabilized and lost his balance on the constantly rising earth.
Suddenly, as he looked down and tried to find a way to regain his footing, a giant hand formed in the air and crushed him.
The part of the ground that had risen was flattened again, with Reno in the middle, but to the magician's great surprise, Reno was pushing back the giant hand with nothing but the strength of his body.
Orubos then deactivated his spell and moved on to another, moving his hands in a coordinated yet chaotic manner, impossible for Reno to understand.
Soon, another hand rushed horizontally toward him. But Reno grabbed Man-Eater and cleanly split it vertically.
"Come on!!"
As soon as Reno sliced through the giant hand, a swarm of black spheres made of an unknown substance rushed toward him from multiple directions.
Without losing focus, he cut them down one by one at high speed.
The spheres came from everywhere. They could follow curved trajectories, coming entirely from his right or even behind him.
Reno was surrounded but not defeated; he kept slicing through them with strength and resolve, to the point that even though there were hundreds, none managed to touch him.
Orubos then changed tactics and detonated them all at once. Reno was engulfed in flames and heat but emerged proudly, completely unharmed. His body was truly resilient, and he was proud of it.
He charged toward the magician, blade lowered.
Orubos blew a violent wind toward his opponent to push him back, but it only slowed him slightly. As he extended his hand to cast another spell, a dagger pierced through it.
"What?"
Orubos turned to see where the weapon had come from but saw nothing and no one anywhere. He grew angry and refocused on the ogre rushing at full speed. His wound healed instantly and the dagger melted inside his hand. The moment Reno brought his blade down on him, he turned into confetti.
Reno was surprised, but his surprise turned into fear when he saw the confetti suddenly become electrified.
Reno took a powerful shock that paralyzed him for a full second.
Orubos reappeared behind him with a smile on his face. He extended his hand again and this time dodged the dagger aimed at it.
He had predicted it. He knew Rita was somewhere in the shadows, interfering at certain moments.
He quickly turned around to locate the assassin, but once again, there was no one.
Suddenly, Reno turned and charged again with Man-Eater again. Orubos refocused on Reno, extending his hand once more, but lost his balance and began falling forward.
His feet had been bound by threads and pulled backward.
"You're starting to annoy me."
As his fall became inevitable, the magician fused, becoming completely intangible with the ground and letting himself be swallowed by it as Reno violently struck the earth with his sword.
The ogre was confused but still alert. As soon as Orubos reappeared, Reno turned and charged again, full of rage.
The magician could feel the ogre's aura growing more and more wild. The last traces of his hesitation were gradually disappearing as the battle continued.
He extended his hand once more, and this time the dagger came from behind—but instead of piercing the young man, it passed through a black puddle that had appeared on his body.
The black liquid appeared like mud, swallowing the blade, which came out the other side of his body before being spat back out.
Still carrying its momentum, the weapon flew straight toward Reno, who did not expect such a spectacle. Soon, the weapon clashed against Man-Eater, echoing through the air.
Orubos did not waste any time; he raised his hand and brought it down quickly.
Immediately, gravity increased again in the area, preventing Reno from moving at all. The magician extended his hand a second time, and a giant hand appeared once more, grabbing Reno and squeezing him with all its strength.
The ogre gritted his teeth and tried to endure it with all his power.
Orubos cursed when he saw he could not crush the warrior, so he threw him into the air with the giant hand. Reno was launched into the sky like a useless pebble.
Rita suddenly came out of her hiding place and moved behind the magician at high speed. The being did not even need to turn around to know she was there.
Suddenly, thick branches erupted from the ground and blocked the path of the viper. Writhing violently, they slammed into the ground in an attempt to crush Rita. But fortunately, she did not bear her name for nothing. She slipped between the branches, cutting them as she went, and reached Orubos.
The magician had already turned around, facing the warrior.
"There you are."
He smiled, but Rita did not attack. Instead, she moved closer and raised her hand near her mouth. Orubos could see a strange black powder, which she immediately blew into the air. The dust spread across the area, landing on the magician's robe.
Orubos kept smiling, seemingly amused.
"If you think poison can defeat me, you are mistaken."
But Rita smiled in return.
"I know."
Suddenly, Orubos felt something pierce his body. Something enormous. A great sword that had slain more than a thousand men. Orubos looked down as the blade emerged from his body, having completely bypassed his barrier and now lodged inside him.
Black blood flowed from his mouth.
"Not bad…"
Reno, who was in the air and had thrown Man-Eater, was proud of his hit. He landed violently on the ground but was unharmed by the fall. The black dust dispersed, and he soon saw the magician, impaled, staring at the sword with an empty gaze.
With a small smile, he looked at Reno and said:
"…but it is not enough."
Soon, the magician's body transformed into a flock of doves, and the sword fell to the ground. The birds scattered and flew into the sky. It was a beautiful sight worthy of a magician—but it only meant it was not over.
Orubos reappeared as usual. This time, the black dust itself served as his stage.
Reno looked hopelessly at the place where the young-looking entity had appeared.
"So you never end."
Orubos replied:
"A magician like me must keep the audience entertained for a while."
Reno moved forward and rushed to grab Man-Eater. He was tired. Even if it did not happen often, he was still human. He could no longer stand this man and the pressure he emitted.
He wanted to collapse onto the ground…
"Are you tired, warrior?"
Suddenly, Reno snapped out of his daze and refocused. The magician had done something. This urge to sleep was not normal.
"Damn it."
Reno had to end this, but he had no idea how. The only way was to drain his reserves, but he doubted they even had a limit.
Rita was still hiding in the shadows, but he suspected that sooner or later, the magician would find her. The magician was cunning.
He had to act fast.
"Don't worry, warrior. I'm almost done."
Suddenly, Orubos began a series of strange hand movements.
Reno immediately grew afraid of what was about to happen.
He first placed the palms of his hands together, but they were inverted in opposite directions, then he slowly began to rotate them.
Reno panicked—he was panicking intensely. The last time he had let the magician perform a similar spell, an angel had appeared to judge them.
There was no way that would happen again.
He launched himself at the magician and struck him.
But unfortunately, Man-Eater was once again stopped by an azure barrier—this time a perfect, round sphere with no visible flaw.
Reno looked at the sphere with utter despair. He instinctively knew he could not break it, he knew he could not stop it—the magician was done playing.
In a weak voice, he said…
"No…"
But Orubos, who had carefully closed his eyes, replied calmly.
"Tsk tsk, don't interrupt the show."
His hands came together in a prayer-like position, then he continued rotating them, returning to the same starting motion but reversed. Then followed a strange dance that steadily increased Reno's stress, pressing harder against the barrier, which still did not break.
"No!"
His screams could not stop the dance. Orubos bent his hands in one direction and then the other, moving through strange yet graceful positions.
It was beautiful—very beautiful—but it clearly hid a terrible attack, and Reno could feel it approaching.
Suddenly, a small white sphere, seemingly made of pure wool, began to emerge from the ground inside the magician's protective field. The small area lit up, and more and more spheres began to rise. They floated slowly like tiny clouds in a gentle breeze, eventually reaching the surface of the azure sphere.
Reno got a closer look at one as he pushed harder against the barrier. It was neither snow, nor wool, nor silk—nor anything he had ever seen before.
But it shone brightly, and this time, it did not harm him physically.
It was beautiful…
very beautiful…
Orubos was soon surrounded by countless small white spheres within his barrier, and Reno knew he could not let him finish. He struck the barrier repeatedly without success.
The tension kept rising, becoming almost tangible as the magician continued his graceful dance, eyes closed. He seemed to feel the dance, feel the world, hear Reno's screams and enjoy them, hear distant birds, see the near future, glimpse a tragic fate—and yet he smiled.
The dance was nearing its end. Reno's face was twisted with despair and sorrow. Nothing could stop the magician from unleashing his next attack.
He stopped there, his face dark and his gaze sorrowful...
Rita was a little farther away. She too had sensed the danger. She too could see something was wrong with this dance.
The small spheres were becoming more numerous, and the small area beneath Orubos's protective barrier was glowing like a powerful bulb.
She saw that the dance was ending. She saw that the attack was imminent—but what she also saw was Reno, frozen, with a new expression.
She had seen so many expressions on her husband that day, and this one had become the worst of them all.
She understood it without him even speaking.
He intended to stay there and take the attack in order to protect her.
An expression of sadness, but also compassion, love, fear, coldness—the mixture was sacrifice...
It was an expression of sacrifice that Rita saw on her husband's face.