'As expected. I still can't see it…'

As Rey looked at the eight—plus a projection of the ninth—enemies who would fight him, he could see Status Windows popping out of every single one of them.

All except one.

—Adonis!

'I guess it's because he has an S-Tier Class. That makes sense…'

In essence, it was on the same Level as [Absolute Appraisal]… or even stronger.

'Still, the only exception to [Absolute Appraisal] is that the target is a Tier above my Skill's effect.'

As such, Rey thought he'd be able to see Adonis' Status Window. However, after trying for so long, nothing was forthcoming.

In the end, he had to settle on a conclusion.

'He probably has Resistance to that kind of stuff.' That was the only explanation that made sense to him at this point.

'In any case, it looks like they're about ready.'

Still in his Ralyks persona, he calmly looked at the group that surrounded him from all areas.

It was a cool morning, so no one was sweating—at least, not yet—yet they looked tense as they circled around him.

'I should probably cancel out the effects of my Items to give them a chance…'

Instead, Rey decided to utilize a few of his Buff Skills instead.

His body flowed slightly as every aspect of himself became strengthened, one way or the other.

Rey still felt it was unfair, as he pretty much knew all their abilities and style of combat, but he was also being faced by everyone at once.

'I think that evens things out a little…' He smiled, feeling his heart thump a little in excitement.

'Alright then. Let's see what they've got.'

~WHOOOSH!~

The group attacked at once, all of them glowing with energies of various colors as they buffed themselves up considerably well—for those who could—and a couple attacked from long range.

Rey watched all the attacks come at him with a smile on his face.

'Let's see how far I can go too!'

*******

Adonis felt a determination within his heart as he looked at the opponent in front of him.

He wanted to win!

'I already know Sir Ralyks is stronger than I am. I'm not even sure we can defeat him if we combine our strengths. Still…'

Adonis was looking for a single clean hit.

As such, once the fight was initiated, he used his [Grand Light Magic] to call a heavy rain of light to descend upon his target.

He looked around and saw everyone else call forth their Skills or Magic abilities.

Alicia utilized her [Greater Ice Magic], sending piles of Ice Spikes flowing his way, while Justin sent a bunch of sharp threads flying towards Ralyks using [Marionette].

He also utilized stealth and tried to get closer.

Belle was using her [Absolute Wind Magic] to conjure a maelstrom of wind torrents all around Ralyks.

It made it difficult for those who had rushed to face Ralyks head-on—like Trisha and Clark—to properly reach him,

However, once the whirlwind reached a critical point, both of them chose to back off.

Trisha launched a Lightning Strike Spell using her [Greater Lightning Magic] Skill, while Eric relied on his [Heat Vision] Skill.

Eric could only do so much thanks to his C-Tier Mage Class, but he practically poured his entire Mana Supply into [Greater Explosion], since that was the best damage-dealing Skill at the moment.

As for Rey, well… his only Skill wasn't going to be very useful, so he maintained his distance and watched from afar.

That was probably for the best.

~BOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM!!!~

Echoes of destruction, and shockwaves of power spread from the target's location.

The area of impact was so large that Adonis and his classmates had to take countless steps back and regroup in a single position thanks to the explosion.

With all of these Skills raining down on the target, one would think he was toast.

But…

'What's this bad feeling that I sense?' Adonis narrowed his gaze as he stared at the convergence of overwhelming energy on the target at once.

'He should suffer some damage… right? He didn't even dodge it.'

Even the Dragon that they fought—whom Ralyks had defeated

—would have been severely wounded if he received so many attacks at once.

Adonis wasn't comparing Ralyks to an average Dragon Commander, by any means, but he simply couldn't see so much power going without consequence.

"Amusing."

The nine students expressed shock the moment the words were uttered from Ralyks' lips.

Hissing smoke soon replaced the explosion, and as the charred, devastated ground leaked out dark mists, there was a certain silhouette that stood at the center.

The shadowy appearance was tanging still, as casually as imaginable.

"My turn."

The moment Adonis heard this, he activated [Absolute Defense] and yelled at the very top of his lungs.

"Everyone! To me!"

The group huddled closer to him, and his golden dome of energy covered all nine of them.

He looked at the position where Ralyks had stood, at the crater that had been formed on the ground, but found nothing there.

'H-he's gone…?!' Adonis' eyes widened as he tried searching for him all around.

Left? Right? Behind? No… he was in none of those places.

"There's no need to look so anxious… or is there?" The voice came from above.

Everyone raised their heads, and there Ralyks was; floating in the air as he stared down at all of them.

"Do you really think you're safe inside that dome?"

Adonis shivered as the question was asked. He didn't know how to answer it, so he decided not to.

Instead, he thought of a way to counter, and it involved summoning his Divine Sword to—

"It's no use…" Adonis felt a hand rest on his shoulder as a voice echoed within the dome.

'E-eh…?'

It belonged to none other than Ralyks, and the Hero hadn't even noticed when the invaded his [Absolute Defense].

~VWUUUUM!~

A strong pressure filled the interior of the defensive barrier, causing everyone to fall to their knees.

"Is there anyone who can rise?."

*

*

*

Thanks for reading!

I mean, how else did you expect the fight to go if not a one-

sided massacre? I'll try to keep things engaging…