Taking another of the shockwaves Callum seemed capable of conjuring at any moment was out of the question, since everyone had already been hurt enough by the last one. More importantly, James strongly felt that if they allowed the Knight to dictate the pace, they'd lose any hope they had of snatching a victory.

This, practically, meant turning the AoE attacks into a useless waste of mana. Signaling to the others, James took a deep breath and ran towards Callum, stopping immediately when he started glowing again.

Rather than being discouraged, however, James grinned. A fireball, smaller than the previous one but no less hot, nailed the E-rank in the chest, making him stumble back and grunt in pain.

Immediately, James resumed his approach, getting close enough to nail Callum with an enhanced punch in the stomach, disrupting his armor sufficiently to seriously threaten him.

Instead of following through, he retreated, having rightly observed that Callum was preparing, once again, to unleash his area skill.

It washed over him, making James stumble but not inflicting any harm. At the same time, Lauren sent one of her knives flying, aiming for the gap he had created.

Again, Callum was able to simply use his large mana pool to flood his surroundings and prevent anything from touching him, but it was slowly becoming evident that it wouldn't be a viable tactic.

All members of Team 0 were keeping their distance, occasionally attempting to get close and inflict a blow, only to be stopped by the stronger Knight, which would open the way for another long-range attack and force him to once again use the shockwaves.

E-rank Awakeners had enough mana to keep wasting it for a long time, but considering that James estimated each wave to be made of at least fifty mana, Callum had to be more careful the longer they drew it out.

But what struck James was Callum's breathing: it was becoming ragged. It was clear that constantly pumping mana into defense and using his AoE skills was draining him, both physically and mentally. His initial bravado was fading as it dawned on him that he might actually lose if he didn't get it together.

Daniel observed the changes too, and he deliberately said so out loud, aiming at unbalancing him further "He's getting tired. We need to keep the pressure on, and it'll be over soon."

A cornered animal is at its most dangerous. We should expect him to lash out and try to break the encirclement soon.

They had prepared for this exact eventuality, planning out their options and even simulating it with Miss Walker's help. This was their one chance of winning, since, despite how much they could try and tire him out, if Callum calmed down enough, he'd realize they were more likely to tire before him. Especially if he stopped with the shockwaves and started attacking them directly again.

Just as predicted, with desperation evident in his eyes, Callum lunged directly at James, his sword gleaming wickedly. James braced himself, ready to intercept the attack with his gloved fists. He'd trained for this moment and knew that if he wanted to avoid getting skewered, he'd need to at least deflect some of the blow's power.

Still, his role here was not to heroically defeat the E-ranker by himself. He just needed to create an opening for the others to exploit.

He shifted his feet, trying to move with the sword, but Callum was quick and his blade found its mark, piercing through James's defenses and biting into his side.

Lauren took the moment to throw another knife, aiming for Callum's exposed neck. While it didn't hit its mark, it managed to graze his cheek, causing a thin stream of blood to trail down his face. The distraction was enough for James to pull away from the blade's dangerous edge.

Stumbling back, blood oozing from his side, James fell to the ground. The severity of the wound was evident; if not treated immediately, he would be out of the fight. Despite the high-level materials his suit was made of, it could only prevent him from being cut in twain when confronted with another D-rank weapon and E-rank strength behind it.

Ezekiel's eyes widened in horror and he sprinted toward James, his hands glowing with the luminescence of healing magic.

Daniel, realizing the direness of the situation, stepped in front of the injured Thakinetic, his shield held high, ready to intercept any further assault. "Maria! Cover us!"

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The fire mage, anger evident in her eyes, let loose another torrent of flames, this time not aiming for Callum directly but at the ground around him. The asphalt and sand melted under the intense heat, creating a boiling barrier that temporarily trapped the Knight Banneret.

While Callum struggled with the inferno, Lauren capitalized on his distraction, her stealth allowing her to get close without him noticing. With a swift motion, she landed a solid kick behind his knee, forcing him to stumble into the lava. The heat seared him and he let out a scream of pain, giving the team a moment of respite.

Ezekiel, in the meantime, reached James. Placing his hands over the wound, he channeled his mana. As the wound began to close, a soft glow enveloped James, rejuvenating his energy. The white mage's skill with healing magic had grown by leaps and bounds lately, thanks to all the broken bones and cuts he had to heal during their forays in Saratoga.

That served him well now, as he was able to quickly put James back on his feet.

Still, the fight was not over. The Knight painfully picked himself up, ugly burns all over his exposed skin. They had managed to prevent Callum from getting the upper hand even as he tried to break the encirclement, but now they needed to capitalize.

Daniel did exactly that, pushing forward and attracting attention to himself. James moved in synchronization with him, ready to exploit any openings the Tank could create.

"Keep him off balance!" James shouted to the team. "Don't give him a chance to breathe."

The crowd, which had observed at a distance, began to jeer and shout, watching the battle unfold like a sport. "Come on, Wright! Is that all you got?" Someone yelled, causing a stir among the spectators.

Feeling the pressure from the team and the crowd, Callum roared in frustration, summoning most of the mana he had left for one powerful skill. The ground shook from the concentration of energy emerging from within him, the very air trembling.

Where he once had a classical armor, it now began warping under the strain, the skill not made to support so much power. Still, he kept on pushing until it solidified again. Horns and cruel lines made up the new armor, giving Callum a much more intimidating look.

Lauren, sensing the impending danger, disappeared into the shadows while Maria prepared to unleash another wave of fire. Ezekiel hurried to refresh the buffs, knowing how dangerous the situation was.

But it was Daniel and James who charged forward, attempting to stop whatever it was that he was doing. The Tank, shield first, slammed into Callum, pushing him off balance. He had to quickly retreat, avoiding a powerful but too-wide sword swing, which James noticed was caused by the new armor limiting the Knight's movements.

This gave him the chance to unleash a series of rapid punches, each empowered by his willpower. With every blow, the dull thud of Callum's armor denting could be heard as damage accumulated all over.

What should have been a powerful defense, it seemed, was still extremely susceptible to disruption. Rather, it was even weaker since the skill that made it had been strained so much.

James' release of his own powerful mana into it led to the armor quickly failing. Callum swung his sword desperately, trying to get some space.

He managed to achieve his goal, but it was already too late. Large pieces of his armor flaked off, floating into the air and vanishing, the power that made them too unstable to sustain.

Having wasted the vast majority of his mana into it, it seemed that he, too, could understand how precarious his situation was. His skills were out of the question now, and Callum would have to rely entirely on his powerful stats.

That might have been enough, but it seemed that panic was taking over his mind as he continued to swing his sword erratically, trying to keep everyone away.

The crowd was forced to widen the circle, not wanting to come under the maddened E-rank's attention.

James gave the referee a look but saw that he didn't seem particularly interested in stepping in. Instead, he appeared to be suppressing a grin, evidently enjoying his rival’s pitiful end.

As Callum, overwhelmed and desperate, lunged towards James one last time, Maria unleashed a precise beam of flame, targeting his feet and sending him tumbling down. Callum let out a painful scream, his sword falling from his grip and clanging to the ground. As the heat dissipated, he staggered up, beaten and with a defeated look in his eyes.

James took the opportunity with glee, feeling a smile sprout unbidden.

The feeling of his gloved hand connecting with Callum's temple was highly satisfying, and he was sure he'd remember it for a long time.

He didn't use as much mana as he could have, not wanting to actually kill him, but he didn't hold back either since the Knight was an E-rank.

The blow was strong enough to send him skidding a few feet until he rolled to a stop, knocked out cold, for everyone to see.

The parking lot was filled with a deafening silence. Team 0 had somehow managed to win against an E-rank Awakener, a feat very few believed possible.

That quiet was broken by the sound of someone touching down behind the crowd, and from the aura blazing at full force, James quickly realized who it was that had just arrived.

The Radiant members quickly parted as a tall, muscular man stalked their way. He wore a well-made trench coat, which did little to hide his muscular build. His eyes were dark as he took in the situation.

"You." The man growled, pointing at James and his team. "Have brought shame and insult upon my Guild. The disrespect you've shown will not be forgotten."

James, still catching his breath, stood strong against the pressure of the man’s aura, his eyes filled with defiance. "We fought a fair fight. It's not our fault if your man couldn't stand up to the challenge."

"Kid, don't insult me. You know very well what the situation is like. You've deliberately set up this confrontation so you could humiliate us even further. This is not something I can let go of." The man replied, glare intensifying.

The crowd, which had looked to still be recovering from the abrupt end to the fight, tightened into a circle again, preventing any hope they might have had of escaping.

The Guild Leader, however, turned his gaze on his own men, looking equally, if not more, enraged. "As for you… The fact that you even allowed things to come to this sickens me. Five rookies by themselves were able to utterly shame us, and none of you tried to do anything about it." He reprimanded.

The E-ranker that had served as referee gulped but found the courage to reply "Mr. Mettermeier, you know that interfering in the fight would have been even worse. Callum agreed to fight them by himself!"

"Then you should have stopped him then and there. What kind of idiot goes along with such an evident ploy?!" Was the incensed comeback.

Shaking his head, the Radiant Leader looked at Callum's still form. "Someone pick him up and take him to a healer. I don't want to waste a potion on that idiot."

Then, he turned to Team 0 and grimly addressed them "Kids, don't think too badly of me. Unfortunately, there is no other choice. Any last words?"