This Beast-Tamer is a Little Strange

The tension in the arena was palpable, the air heavy with anticipation as the shimmering projection of the Prismarin began its ominous advance.

Each step it took refracted light into an array of dazzling patterns, almost mesmerizing, but Kain knew better than to lose focus now. His instincts screamed at him that this was no ordinary move—it was like one of the rabbit-like creature's strongest abilities, and Serena wouldn't have revealed it unless she believed it could still turn the tide despite being two spiritual creature down.

"Bea, stay alert. Queen, prepare the guards for evasive maneuvers," Kain commanded, his tone sharper than usual. Find more chapters on empire

The projection suddenly felt much more solid—the true body had finally revealed itself?

Several crystal pieces fell from it and split into multiple smaller images, each radiating an aura weaker than the original, but definitely at the peak of green-grade.

'What kind of monster is this? And how can it exert such a strong feeling of a threat?'

However, unlike the earlier illusions, these projections didn't simply have the stingers launched at them as a test fly through them, it was almost as if each body was the true body—with full or even stronger strength than the original.

The over a dozen rabbits moved synchronously, surrounding the remaining Vespid guards and Queen. One struck with a swipe of its crystalline paw, forcing the guards to scatter. Another lunged at Bea's threads, the delicate strands which were usually untouchable shattering upon contact.

Queen buzzed in a frantic pattern, coordinating the guards into a unified counterattack. They aimed their glowing stingers at the projections, landing several direct hits. Their defense appeared to be weak, each time the construct merely dissolved into a burst of light. However, a new one would almost immediately begin reforming elsewhere on the field.

Therefore, their numbers never actually reduced. However, Kain did not believe such a strong ability was without cost to it.

The largest Prismarin, which Kain suspected to be its true body, suddenly stopped moving, its body glowing brighter as Serena's spiritual power surged into it, and Kain's ominous feeling coming from his spiritual skill grew stronger with each passing second.

Moreover, the smaller projections were now surrounding Kain and the others and also beginning to glow—likely to form a final synchronized attack with the main body.

As the Prismarin prepared its final surge, Kain's mind raced. Aegis was completely out of commission to help defend against whatever was coming, and he couldn't think of many other options.

The battlefield shimmered with refracted light as the Prismarin and its projections unleashed a pulse of energy. The glow intensified, signaling the final attack.

Supported by Kain, Bea produced tens of thousands of splits threads that spread outward in a lattice of mental energy.

Her threads sought to destabilize its focus, interfering with the synchronization of the smaller projections.

Thankfully, unlike the earlier illusions, all of these appear to actually be splits of the Prismarin with a simple rudimentary consciousness of their own that could be manipulated. And after being boost by Kain, it wasn't difficult for Bea to seize control once a split landed—actually getting a split to make contact was the more difficult part since the glow they emitted seemed to be able to deflect or shatter approaching threads. But with tens of thousands of splits produced, one eventually got through!

Meanwhile, Queen directed the remaining Vespid guards to harass the true body. Their glowing stingers landed successive strikes, siphoning its energy and appearing to slightly slow down the rate at which the light it was emitting grew.

Finally, the Prismarin's form dimmed, its projections flickering as their synchronization faltered. Kain relaxed, although it was close they had managed to succeed at thwarting whatever they had planned.

But suddenly, the Prismarin's glow spiked, and a beam of refracted light burst forth. The beam wasn't aimed at a single target or just Kain and his contracts—it spread out like a fan, sweeping across the battlefield.

"Dammit!" Kain yelled.

Queen and the remaining Vespids were swallowed by the light. Even Bea, as a microscopic organism, couldn't avoid the sweeping attack.

Moreover, the attack was as cruel to its allies as it was to itself. After launching the attack that its own body was drowned in, it collapsed. But with its collapse the attack did not end, drowning Kain, Serena, anything and everything that was location on the stage.

For nearly a full 10 seconds, the arena was bathed in a light so intense that even majority of the high-level teachers watching couldn't see what was going on inside.

The Prismarin's devastating final attack left the battlefield in eerie silence, the air thick with residual energy. Dust and fragments of stone glittered faintly under the arena's lights, suspended in the aftermath of the blinding beam. Even the audience, boisterous and rowdy only moments ago, was struck silent, collectively holding their breath as they strained to see through the dissipating light.

As the light faded, the battlefield was silent. Kain's vision blurred, his body trembling as he struggled to stay upright. His body felt like it had been through a wringer—his spiritual power drained, his muscles heavy, and his thoughts were a fuzzy garbled mess. But there was one clear thought in his mind—to be the last one standing.

Across the battlefield, he could make out Serena, her normally pristine and composed figure hunched over, her breath ragged, with a now much smaller crystalline rabbit perched asleep at her feet.

They made brief eye-contact, aware that as the only remaining being conscious on the field, the outcome of the match with be down to them. Unfortunately, both were far too weak to attack the other and decide the outcome.

"This… isn't over…" he muttered hoarsely, forcing himself to stay standing, though his legs trembled beneath him.

Serena looked far from her usual elegant state, her piercing blue eyes locking onto his. However, despite the injuries she already had worsening, her expression remained resolute, her pride as the number-one ranked student refusing to allow her to show weakness.

Then, as though in unison, both competitors collapsed.

The crowd erupted into chaos, cheers and gasps mixing into a deafening roar.

"Who won?!"

"What about my money?!"

But there was no answer.

Even the referee hesitated, their gaze darting between the two unconscious competitors. Neither Kain nor Serena stirred, their contracts recalled into their star spaces just before they collapsed, the battlefield now devoid of any lingering threats.

For Kain, the world faded into darkness, the outcome of the match unknown.