For all that James had come to strongly dislike Callum Wright, he wasn't so blinded that he would underestimate him. Yes, he was arrogant and spoiled. He had likely used his family's connections to help his career and had an overbearing, annoying personality.

But those things didn't make him any less an E-rank. He might not be among the best, but having gone through his second Awakening alone made him impossibly strong for a single G-rank to fight.

That was why, the second the fight started, James let go of any and all attempts at mockery. Making your opponent angry would always be a valid tactic, but that was only applicable when you didn't risk getting smushed into paste from an angry [Knight Banneret].

I'm so glad we could access his file before this. I don't think I would have liked facing him without a good plan.

Wisps of energy rose from Callum's skin as they began coalescing over his clothes into a true armor set. From a mana-steel helmet with an intimidating luminescent plume to a full-body silver plate mail that shone ominously under the dim streetlights of the parking lot, he looked like a knight from the past, ready to trample over any adversary.

The Knight Banneret Talent allowed him to manifest his mana into a tangible defense and offense. As the armor pieces clicked into place, James could feel the weight of Callum's determination to crush anyone who had embarrassed him.

He took a deep breath and clenched his fists. This was it.

Mana surged in his veins, scorching hot under the pressure of his willpower. Months had passed since James had been wronged, but not a day went by that he didn't think of it. The mad dash to power, taking part in increasingly dangerous dives… They had all been to bring him to this moment. His eyes locked onto Callum's, trying to read his movements before they even began.

Lauren, a slight smirk on her face, vanished into the shadows, her stealth skills making her nearly invisible in the dim light. Her growth during the last few weeks had mostly been focused on increasing her ability to go unnoticed and in dealing lethal blows, and she had crowned it by managing to kill a Mineral Stallion before it could understand it was under attack.

Those skills would get a workout now, considering how many eyes were on them, but to succeed, she needed to just slip away from Callum's attention.

Maria stood a few steps behind James, her hands radiating with red-hot mana. Considering how her ability was not just about creating fire but controlling it, with a flick of her wrist she could send a wave of flames toward an enemy or create a wall of fire to shield her allies. The limited space did her disfavor, not allowing her to show off her most powerful conflagrations, but it also prevented their opponent from easily dodging.

Ezekiel, as always, kept his distance, knowing he'd be immediately targeted if he allowed himself to get too close. His buffs would spell the fate of the encounter, as well as his healing spells.

They didn't expect to be able to stick too many debuffs on the Knight Banneret since his skills should protect him from the worst of it, but it was still fundamental that he be ready to heal anyone that got hit too hard, which would certainly happen.

Daniel, the team's Tank, moved to the front, his broad physique acting as a catalyst for the enemy’s attention. His shield, made from the toughest D-rank materials, could withstand even the most brutal attacks. He'd have to rely heavily on his equipment's quality to stop Callum's assaults.

Callum, seeing Team 0's formation, let out a chuckle. "So, you've come prepared. Good. It wouldn't be fun otherwise." With a swift motion, he summoned a massive sword, the blade more tangible than the rest of his armor set.

That's a real weapon. Not a skill, but likely D-rank equipment too. Shit, I should have expected this.

James gritted his teeth. "Let's do this."

With a roar, Daniel charged forward, his shield raised to take the first blow. Callum, with surprising speed for someone in full armor, met him halfway. His sword struck the Tank with such strength to send him flying a dozen feet back, immediately showing the difference between the ranks.

James took this as his cue and dashed forward, trying to keep their opponent's attention away from the others by aiming a powerful punch at Callum's side. But the knight was quick, parrying James's attack with his sword. The force of the blow sent James skidding backward, but he quickly regained his balance.

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Lauren, seizing the opportunity, moved silently, positioning herself behind Callum. She threw a knife aimed at a gap in his armor. The blade flew true, but Callum, sensing the danger, twisted just in time, the blade grazing past him, leaving a mere scratch. The Rogue had known how difficult it'd be to actually hurt him, but her effort still allowed James and Daniel to reposition.

From a distance, Maria directed her channeled energy, hands glowing bright red. With a fierce shout, she unleashed a torrent of flames, forming a massive fireball that hurtled towards Callum. The heat was so intense that the very air around it shimmered. The Knight, sensing the imminent danger, raised his sword, pumping mana into it and with a swift motion slashed through the fireball, dissipating it into a burst of sparks and smoke.

At that moment, Ezekiel cast his buffs and a soft light enveloped his teammates, increasing their AGI and VIT to better handle the confrontation with someone so evidently superior.

Daniel, now reinvigorated, charged once more. As he closed the gap, he swung his massive shield like a battering ram, aiming to knock Callum off balance.

The Knight, however, was prepared. Using his sword, he deflected the shield's blow, leaving the Tank open for a retaliatory kick that folded him in half.

Before he could do more, James was on top of him, fist brimming with mana and piercing through his defenses. The hit rang the armor like a gong, visibly disrupting the skill's effect thanks to the large injection of energy.

Despite not being enough to meaningfully injure him, Callum still grunted in pain as he skidded back a few feet.

James, sensing an opening, lunged forward, fists glowing with raw power as he tried to prevent the Knight from recovering. The air swooshed with every punch, the armor flickering even more under the disturbing effect of James' mana. Callum parried and dodged, but James was relentless, landing a few solid hits that caused the knight to stagger.

However, the E-rank was far from defeated. With a roar, he unleashed his Talent’s true power. His armor shone even brighter and the air around him became dense with mana. With a swift motion, he sent out a shockwave of energy, knocking James back several feet.

An AoE skill of that magnitude would require several seconds of effort for a G-rank, but he cast it while under duress, and from the looks of it, he wasn't even slightly winded.

Lauren, using her agility, managed to dodge the shockwave and quickly closed the distance, her knives ready to strike as she tried to gain some time for her teammate to recover. But Callum was quick, having expected it, and caught her wrist in a vice-like grip.

She struggled, trying to free herself, but his strength was overwhelming. The girl barely had the time to push off the ground, cushioning the blow, that she was sent flying with a kick, rolling to a stop next to the circle of leering Radiant members.

Hoots of laughter and shouts of encouragement rang from the crowd as Callum took the upper hand.

To prevent him from ending the fight then and there, Ezekiel stepped forward, hands glowing brightly, as he cast several debuffs on the Knight.

Of course, he knew they wouldn't be nearly as effective as they usually should be - it was the entire reason why he hadn't started by using them - but it did allow Lauren the time to scramble away from the approaching danger.

The atmosphere was thick with tension, as the vacant parking lot echoed with the faint sounds of distant laughter and screams from the Coney Island rides less than a mile away.

It was evident to all that despite putting up a decent showing for a new G-rank team, they weren't about to magically cross the gap to the second Awakening. Still, Team 0 rallied, forming a circle around Callum, who stood there watching with a smirk, confidence in his victory unshaken.

All at once, the silence was broken. James and Daniel shot forward from two opposite directions, trying to force the Knight to keep his attention on them while the others worked out something.

Ezekiel took the moment of reprieve to quickly heal Lauren, whose suit had protected her from organ rupture, but who would still be out of the fight without help.

As the Knight deflected and parried James and Daniel's blows with relative ease, despite being slowed by the debuffs, the temperature started rising again. Maria's hands contained a condensed fireball powerful enough to resemble a bomb.

The ground beneath them began to shake as Callum's armor started glowing ominously, once again charging his AoE skill. He sent the two harassers flying back and quickly closed the distance with the fire mage, sword held high and ready to put her out of the fight, possibly forever.

A blindingly bright bolt of light hit him in the visor before he could bring his weapon down, making the knight roar in pain and annoyance and giving the redhead the time to retreat.

Ezekiel scurried back, not wanting to be in the path of his rage, but kept building up another such attack. Just like what he had done against the rats in the nearby dungeon, he was completely forgoing the healing ability of his skills to concentrate the mana into making the bolt as luminous as possible.

Not something that could turn the tides by itself, but definitely enough to allow Maria to release her own magic.

The fireball hit Callum's armor with the sound of thunder, exploding into a roaring inferno that blocked everyone's sight.

The redhead kept feeding the spell mana, her hands trembling as she sustained it well beyond what it should have been capable of.

Still, it was all for naught. With a thunderous boom, Callum unleashed his ability. A massive wave of energy erupted from him, aiming to obliterate anything in its path. The parking lot trembled, chunks of asphalt flying into the air.

The Radiant members were forced back by the intensity of their companion's rage, not having the luxury of high-level equipment to protect them.

Only the lanky E-ranker, who had been silently watching the fight unfold, was unmoved, gusts of air swirling to protect him from the debris.

Once the explosion was over, the parking lot resembled more the site of a bomb explosion. The asphalt had been torn apart completely, revealing the sandy ground below.

Smoke lingered in the air, making it difficult to see what was going on, even with enhanced SENSE.

James, having picked himself up from where he had been sent tumbling, quickly located Callum with Thakinetic Awareness.

He was still standing in the middle of the epicenter, armor slowly knitting back together after having been subjected to repeated abuse.

His helmet, which had once covered his expression, now lay at his feet, which he bent down to pick.

When he rose, James was finally able to take a look at his expression and was unsurprised to find it absolutely murderous.

Fuck. Alright, this is a bit harder than I hoped.