Senko left, leaving Betty and Karaido to fight Merrick and Milo while he went to search for Tia. As he moved, he sensed several strong auras. He turned and saw Sam, Hal and Nina—the National Division team—approaching.
Sam smirked. "Hello, Sebiko."
Senko : "My name is Senko, not Sebiko and you know that. Anyway, what do you want?"
Hal : "We want you to surrender without trouble. We're at full strength but you've already worn yourselves out."
"You stayed back and watched, just as I expected. Very sneaky. But the funny thing is—your trick won't help you."
Sam raised an eyebrow. "And why not? We'll beat you because you're tired."
"This isn't about who beats who. It's about the flags. And ours has already been stolen."
"What are you talking about?"
"Exactly what I said. Our flag was taken by that girl from the moon Division , I'm looking for her right now."
Sam went silent, glancing at Hal and Nina. "He doesn't seem to be joking."
Hal frowned. "Yeah, that's a problem. Even if we win the fight, it won't matter. The goal is placing all three flags."
"So, what do we do?"
Hal looked at Senko. "Seems we'll be joining you in searching for the missing flags."
"Am I supposed to be happy about that?" Senko muttered.
"No."
So Senko ended up searching together with Hal, Nina and Sam.
Meanwhile, Merrick and Milo grew tired of fighting Karaido and Betty—who were also exhausted. They stopped and Karaido said,
"I think that's enough, don't you?"
Milo answered, "If you're done, then we're done too."
"Honestly, I don't want to fight anymore. I just want to find that stupid flag you thieves stole."
Merrick smirked. "Good luck finding it."
Karaido clenched his teeth at Merrick's words. He wanted to search for the flag but he couldn't leave Betty—Murphy would surely kill him if anything happened to her. And Senko's delay was troubling. He looked at Betty.
"We won't continue the battle, Betty. Let's go search for the flag."
"You're right. I don't see any point in fighting either."
Karaido and Betty fired blasts of energy at Merrick and Milo, who blocked them with a shield. When the dust cleared, Karaido and Betty were gone. But Merrick and Milo could sense where they went, so they jumped to follow.
Realizing they were being pursued, Karaido growled.
"I'll hold them off, Betty. You keep searching for the flags."
Betty : "But you can't defeat them—even if you're the strongest among us, they're still powerful."
"We have no choice. Just don't waste my effort."
Karaido teleported in front of Merrick and Milo, striking with sound waves. The two split apart to dodge. Karaido hurled his axe at Merrick, who blocked with his sword, then lunged at Milo with a hidden air-charged dagger. Milo countered with his spear, pushing him back.
Merrick glanced around and noticed Betty had vanished. She had run far away, determined not to waste Karaido's sacrifice. She began searching but then sensed another presence. Turning, she saw Nina from the National Division
"You're from the National Division, aren't you?" Betty asked, drawing her weapon.
"Yes," Nina replied calmly. "But I'm not here to fight. I'm looking for the missing flags."
Betty blinked. "How do you know about that?"
"Your teammate Senko told us. So the three of us decided to look for this Tia girl together."
"You learn fast," Betty muttered. "Fine. Then we should search together."
"Yes."
While everyone else searched, Tia sat hidden on a mountain slope where she had landed with Merrick and Milo earlier. She held both the green and red flags, keeping them out of sight. Suddenly, she felt energy approaching. Rising, she saw Sam and Senko coming straight toward her.
Sam attacked first, firing glass shards infused with ice energy. Tia dodged, surrounding herself with flames. But Senko followed up with an ice blast, hurling his weapon at her. She blocked with her fiery star, but Sam's glass shards struck her body this time, knocking her to the ground.
As she struggled, Sam and Senko rushed over, standing above her.
"Just hand over the flags," Sam said coldly. "We all know you can't beat us or run away. We're watching you closely."
Tia stayed silent for a few seconds, then surrendered the two flags to them.
"Good girl," Sam smirked.
They left her behind and headed to the glass platform. Sam fired an ice signal into the sky to show their teammates they had found the flags. Everyone searching saw it.
Betty, Nina and Hal soon arrived at the platform too. The situation was clear: the National Division hadn't wasted their energy and now they had three members. The Fighter Division had only two—Betty and Senko—and they were tired. Karaido was still occupied with Merrick and Milo.
Senko realized there was no point continuing. "Well done, clever bastards. Congratulations on winning the first match."
Sam grinned. "That's right—we're smart. Now let's place these flags and finish this."
Sam climbed onto the glass platform and planted the three flags. But something strange happened. The platform glowed blue and green—the colors of the National and Moon flags—but the red one didn't light up. It was like it was broken.
Everyone was confused. The platform should shine with three colors, not two. Sam froze, then muttered,
"Impossible… does this mean—"
Before he could finish, a great storm erupted, blasting everyone backward. The cause was Merrick, Milo and Tia, who had joined forces.
Milo teleported several times in quick succession, appearing on the platform. In front of everyone's shocked eyes, he placed the real red flag alongside the green and blue. The platform lit fully. The Moon team had won the match.
Sam, Hal, Nina, Senko and Betty were stunned, unable to speak. Finally Sam growled,
"You tricked us. That's why the red flag didn't work—it was a fake!"
Milo smirked. "Sharp as ever. You figured it out. But the real one… we kept it close all along."
— Earlier —
Milo had spoken to Merrick and Tia. "The key to winning is the three flags. We only have the green. The red is already placed and the National Division surely found the blue—but they're waiting for us to tire out so they can swoop in. So here's the plan. Tia, do you still have that nail polish?"
"Yes," Tia frowned. "But why are you asking me that now?"
"What color is it?"
"…Red. But seriously—"
"Perfect."
They cut a strong wooden branch into a pole, tied a cloth to it and painted it red with the nail polish. It looked exactly like the real flag. Tia hid with the fake one, ready to give it away if needed. Meanwhile, Merrick froze the real red flag in a hidden spot to keep it safe.
This was why Tia had so easily surrendered earlier—she had handed over the fake red flag and the green one. Later, she rejoined Merrick and Milo and together they launched their surprise counterattack.
— Back to the present —
Hal whistled. "I have to admit, that was a smart plan. But girl, how did you make such a convincing fake so fast?"
Tia smiled faintly. "Decorating and carving wood was part of my life before. It wasn't hard."
"Impressive. Congratulations, then."
Betty suddenly asked, "Wait… where's Karaido?"
Milo replied, "Don't worry. Merrick and I defeated him but he's alive."
"Take me to him. The match is over—I want to treat his wounds."
"Alright."
Milo led her to the unconscious Karaido. Betty knelt, pulling out ointments and bandages to tend his injuries. Milo muttered,
"He protected you until the very end. He even fought me bare-handed to stop us from chasing you."
Betty lowered her head. "And I wasted his effort…"
"Don't blame yourself," Milo said quietly. "You did your best."
Betty glanced at him, confused. "Why are you trying to comfort me? We're enemies. One day, either your side or mine will have to die. But… thank you."
She carried Karaido on her back, bringing him to Senko, who helped treat him with medical supplies.
The three leaders had been watching everything closely. Murphy stood, furious and stormed away, leaving Yossan and Aiden behind.
"Someone's angry because he didn't win," Aiden remarked.
"Of course," Yossan said. "This competition is crucial. But I liked your team's cooperation and clever strategy."
"They have to be smart, or else they'll suffer crushing defeat," Aiden replied.
Suddenly, Klaus appeared before the resting teams.
"Congratulations, Moon Division team, on your victory in the first match. Now, come with me. I'll return you to your leaders and comrades."
Everyone followed Klaus into a cave, where he transported them back.
Merrick, Tia and Milo reunited with their friends, who rushed to check on them. The same happened with the Fighter and National teams.
Aiden stepped forward to his team. "Well done, Milo, Merrick and Tia."
Merrick answered, "Thank you, sir. We just followed your advice and played smart."
"Yes, that's the key. But don't forget—strength is just as important as strategy."
"Understood."
Murphy appeared before his team. Karaido and Senko braced themselves, certain he would scold them. But Murphy simply said,
"You fought well. Unfortunately, you didn't win. What matters is that you're safe."
They were stunned. Murphy hadn't shouted. The reason was simple: Betty, his niece, was safe. That was all he cared about.
Later, Klaus's voice echoed from loudspeakers.
"Attention. Please look at the big screen. The points for each team from the first match will now be shown."
The scoreboard lit up:
Moon Division: 100 points
Fighter Division: 75 points
National Division: 50 points
The National Division had scored lowest—they barely fought, relying only on finding the blue flag and waiting for others to weaken.
Yossan frowned at the results, but there was nothing to do but prepare for the next battles.
Klaus concluded, "In two days, the second match will begin. Be ready." Then he left without further questions.
That evening, Murphy sat quietly in the garden. Betty approached.
"I'm glad you're safe," he said warmly.
"Me too. But Uncle… I have a request."
"Anything for you."
"Please don't get angry at the team fighting in the next match. We're all doing our best. Karaido and Senko protected me—especially Karaido."
"…I'll try. To be honest, these past three months I've been seeing a doctor. He helped me control my temper a little."
"That's very good."
Night fell. Melvin, Jayden and Tristan sat together talking. Aiden approached, and they all stood respectfully.
Aiden : "You three will fight in the next match, correct?"
"Yes, sir," Jayden replied.
"Then I'll give you the same advice I gave the first team. Work together, be smart. And never neglect strength—it's just as important."
Tristan nodded. "We understand, sir."