Seeing the white-haired girl with incredibly blue eyes in front of him, Hans Weiss took a deep breath and resolutely drew his wand. He thanked God that it was Rose Potter and not Asterion Black.
"You seem relieved to see me. Don't I scare you as much as Asterion?" Rose asked with an impassive face, observing the relieved expression on the German Minister's brother's face. She had to admit, seeing Hans's relieved expression irritated her more than she had expected.
"Not at all, Lady Potter. It's just that I'd suffer more at the hands of Asterion Black," Hans replied with a dry laugh, but his eyes were hawk-like as they assessed the intensity of the aura emanating from Rose. He was relieved to see that she had less than 30% of her magical energy remaining.
Hans estimated that Rose had hunted down his teammates before finally finding him, which greatly improved his situation at the moment.
"You'll suffer less at my hands?" Rose murmured to herself with a puzzled look, then she laughed, bursting into a loud, maniacal laugh.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA~"
Raising her head and looking at Hans with a manic and extremely arrogant expression, she said, "Prepare to be beaten so badly that your mother won't recognize you."
That look made Hans feel a shiver run down his spine. What kind of eyes were those?
Crazy. Rose Potter was crazy. It was the only thing Hans could think as he looked at the smile and expression on her face. At that moment, he realized that encountering Asterion Black might be less painful than facing this teenager who seemed to have inhaled some very suspicious white powder.
Hans barely had time to react when Rose appeared in front of him. He only managed to reinforce his body with magic before her fist struck his stomach with colossal force.
*Boom!*
Spitting out a large amount of saliva mixed with blood, Hans's body arched through the air and was thrown backward like a cannonball.
Cough! Cough!
Kneeling on the ground, holding his stomach, Hans coughed a few times and stood up, looking at Rose with a cold expression.
"I'm going to enjoy beating you," he said, pointing his wand at Rose. In the next moment, more and more spells were cast within a few seconds.
His Innate Technique was working at full capacity, and his senses reached a level he had never achieved before.
Rose dodged all the spells, leaping from tree to tree with incredible speed. Her blue eyes remained fixed on the figure standing among the trees.
She noticed something interesting: Hans wasn't letting her get too close with the amount of spells he was using, which made her realize that her enemy might not be good at hand-to-hand combat.
But she wasn't in a hurry to prove her theories. Hans was a semi-grade 1 wizard, one of the most powerful in the tournament in her mind, along with a Russian boy and a French blonde. She planned to make him expend magical energy before finally taking down the defenseless lamb at the right moment.
Seeing the fleeting shadow moving around in an utterly unpredictable manner, Hans tightened his grip on his wand. If it weren't for his enhanced senses at that moment, he wouldn't even be able to track the trajectory of the white-haired teenager.
Rose Potter's control over her magical energy was something he had never seen in his life. She used tiny amounts of magical energy for reinforcement, significantly conserving her magical reserves.
Unlike him, who was expending large amounts of magical energy, Hans realized that Rose wanted to drain his magical energy and then finish him off as a defenseless lamb.
The worst part was that she was succeeding. He was wasting magical energy and couldn't stop, because if he did, he was sure that Rose would close the distance and force him into hand-to-hand combat, something he was definitely not good at.
Grinding his teeth, Hans knew he couldn't keep falling into Rose's trap. He would be exhausted sooner or later, and at that moment—he would lose.
He would do something he never thought he'd do, even in front of hundreds of thousands of wizards and witches.
Taking a deep breath, Hans turned the ground within a 50-meter radius into mud and pointed his wand at the ground. In the next moment—
*Boom!*
An explosion erupted! A large amount of mud was thrown into the air along with dirt and stones.
Rose didn't care and shot towards Hans, her eyes locked on the young man. She reached out her hand towards his neck with the obvious intention of grabbing him.
Then, to her astonishment, Hans met her gaze and pointed his wand at her.
"Fiendfyre," he whispered, his face pale. The immense amount of energy drained by one of the strongest spells on the planet left his magical reserves nearly depleted.
Rose's eyes widened as she sensed the tremendous danger. The world around her slowed down repeatedly; she could see, at the tip of the enemy's wand, the blue flame starting to be ejected toward her.
She extended her hand toward Hans's wand, and her innate technique began to operate at unprecedented speed.
His brain overloaded with the amount of information being processed so quickly.
*Boom!!!*
In the next moment, a gigantic dragon of blue flames opened its mouth, attempting to swallow Rose whole.
"Innate Spell Manipulation – Unlimited – Red," Rose murmured, mere centimeters from the blue flames, her smile wilder than ever.
Reality was distorted and manipulated as the space spiraled with red energy, tearing through everything in its path, pushing everything backward.
The blue demonic fire was shattered and scattered around, burning the surrounding trees.
Hans's eyes widened as he felt a red light pass in front of him. Agonizing pain caused his brain to halt for a moment. He looked to the side and saw half of his shoulder and his entire arm had vanished completely.
His face paled in the face of the cruel reality. A large amount of blood spattered on the ground, staining the muddy soil.
Breathing rapidly, Rose wiped the blood from her nose and smiled, beginning to laugh. This was it; she loved this sensation, the euphoria coursing through her veins in the face of danger.
"HAHAHAHA~" She didn't care about the blue flames burning around her.
She never expected an ant who wasn't even a grade 1 wizard could put her in danger. Even though she hadn't activated Infinity to protect herself, what Hans had done was still impressive.
Walking over to the still-living Hans and grabbing him by his uniform, Rose quickly left the area. She was sure this place would turn into a complete blue hell in a few minutes.
Leaving behind a forest burning with demonic blue flames, visible throughout the arena.
—
With Rose's display of power, the English audience had no choice but to erupt into applause and excited cheers. It was impossible not to get thrilled; the entire first phase of the tournament had turned into a grand coliseum.
Cruel, brutal, and bloody—everything that most people would never see was unfolding before them, which excited the audience in a rather strange way.
But then, everyone fell silent. Rose and Hans's fight would likely be etched in everyone's hearts, including those sitting in the VIP seats.
Joseph Weiss, the German Minister of Magic, in particular, couldn't help but clench his fists in fury at the deplorable and near-dead state of his younger brother.
"A high-level dark magic," Dmitri Ivanov, the Russian Minister of Magic, remarked with a sarcastic tone, looking at the German minister.
"What are you implying with that, Ivanov?" Joseph asked coldly, his eyes icy and lethal as they locked onto Dmitri.
Others might fear Ivanov because he was a special-grade wizard, but Joseph was not afraid—not when he was also a special-grade wizard.
"Nothing, just being ironic," Dmitri replied sarcastically, giving a toothy grin.
"Hmph." Joseph snorted coldly and turned his gaze back to the big screen, wanting to know more about the condition of his younger brother.
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Next Chapter Second Volume: 140 - King's Game (8), 141 - King's Game (9), 142 - King's Game (10), 143 - King's Game (11), 144 - King's Game (12), 145 - King's Game (13), Chapter 146 - Second Phase of the King's Game (1), Chapter 147 - Second Phase of the King's Game (2), Chapter 148 - Second Phase of the King's Game (3), Chapter 149 - Second Phase of the King's Game (4), Chapter 150 - Second Phase of the King's Game (5), Chapter 151 - Second Phase of the King's Game (6), 152 - Second Phase of the King's Game (7), 153 - Second Phase of the King's Game (8), 154 - Second Phase of the King's Game (9), 155 - Second Phase of the King's Game (10).
Opening his eyes, Asterion looked at the distant forest burning with demonic blue flames. All the trees in that place were set ablaze, making the flames grow enormously and seem like they would consume everything. They looked as if they would reach the heavens at any moment.
"In the name of Merlin, what happened there?" Cedric asked incredulously, staring at the distant forest burning in blue flames, his eyes wide open in extreme shock.
" Did someone die??" Cedric turned and asked Luna, who was crouching on the ground, drawing what appeared to be a woman wearing a veil and holding a scythe with a stick. Her blue, almost ethereal silver eyes were completely focused on the drawing.
Asterion looked at the drawing with a deep gaze and then looked away. For some reason, that drawing made him feel some unknown palpitations.
"No one has died." Her words made Cedric's face look relieved, but his expression changed to one of helplessness with her next words.
"Yet." She added with an innocent look, gazing at Cedric. Though she showed a mischievous smile on her lips, the young Hufflepuff could only let out a low, slightly sad laugh.
When Cedric was about to ask more, Rose appeared suddenly, carrying four other people. She casually dropped the four members of the German team and let out a more than relieved sigh.
She seemed relaxed and at ease, almost as if she had just unwound after a long period of stress.
Looking at the condition of the four German team members on the ground, Cedric quickly approached and checked on them. His expression changed when he saw Hans's critical condition.
He pulled out his wand and began chanting healing spells one after another. His skillful control of magical energy made Rose and Asterion look at him with surprised expressions.
Cedric truly impressed them, but sensing the twenty-year-old's magical energy reserves, they understood that less magical energy was easier to control.
After half an hour of casting healing spells, Cedric, with a pale and exhausted face, sat on the ground, tired. He raised his eyes towards Rose and asked with a hint of dissatisfaction, "Was all this necessary?"
Hans's condition looked terrible. With Cedric's treatment, his critical state stabilized, his wounds no longer bled, and he would survive, though with almost irreparable sequelae.
In this International Magic and Witchcraft Tournament, only death was not permitted; everything else was allowed. The situation only showed how brutal the upcoming challenges would be.
Although, compared to the Triwizard Tournament, this tournament was still more harmless, as every edition of the Triwizard Tournament ended in deaths.
"Do you think you would have survived that?" Rose didn't answer Cedric's question and pointed to the forest still burning with blue flames. From a distance, dragons, snakes, and firebirds could still be seen. It looked as if the fire was alive.
Cedric paused for a moment and sighed, shaking his head. "Impossible, I would have died."
"He used high-level dark magic, so he must face the consequences," Rose leaned against a tree and replied in a relaxed tone.
"A bunch of ants forced you into this state," Asterion, who had been silent, mocked Rose, making the white-haired girl grit her teeth in frustration.
Although she knew she had underestimated the ants, she still didn't regret it; the fight was more interesting than she had expected. Unlike Special Grade Wizards, who don't hold back their magical energy in attacks, one of the reasons for the absurd level of destruction by Special Grade Wizards, low-level wizards must conserve their magical energy for emergencies. This was unusual for Rose, who rarely worried about magical energy due to her talent.
"That guy is good; his innate technique involves heightened senses. If he were a Special Grade Wizard, he would be a tough opponent." Pointing to Hans, now missing an arm and a good part of his shoulder, Rose spoke while clicking her tongue in admiration. It was the first time in her life that someone had managed to at least see her traces.
Asterion nodded, though he didn't think Hans's senses were better than Neville Longbottom's. While the boy wasn't particularly strong against a Special Grade Wizard, he was strong against Grade 1 and lower wizards.
Remembering Rose's state during the fight, he couldn't help but think how similar Rose and her male counterpart from another reality were. Both were particularly sarcastic in battles they would inevitably win, though in rare cases, both showed a serious demeanor.
In short, it was a surprise to see Rose with a manic smile on her face, breaking limbs. Asterion had to admit, it was pure and wild brutality, which he found sexy.
"How long would it take for you to recover your magical energy if you were a Grade 2 wizard?" Asterion asked Rose, who was resting beside Luna.
Asterion was not unaware of the other teams' thoughts of exhausting them through many fights; it was the most obvious strategy when fighting someone very strong.
But whether it was Rose or Asterion, neither would run out of magical energy. Their incomparable magical energy reserves were not something mere Grade 2 wizards could deplete.
They were only limited by a fixed amount of magical energy they could use; exceeding this fixed amount would disqualify them from the tournament. However, both Rose and Asterion recovered more energy than they spent, creating something impossible in reality: a perpetual cycle of magical energy.
"Three minutes. And you?" After doing the calculations in her mind, Rose answered without hesitation. This was the regeneration rate of her magical energy when she was a Grade 2 witch, which was when she was about three or four years old.
"Five minutes," Asterion replied indifferently. He didn't have the absurd control over his magical energy that Rose did. At least not in the past; with his second innate technique, he could control his magical energy at the same level as Rose Potter.
"I located another team while you were gone. I'll wait for you to recover your magical energy before I start acting." Asterion said, warming up with a smile on his lips. It had been a long time since he fought as a Grade 2 wizard, a stage he quickly surpassed, reaching Grade 1.
"Asty."
Hearing his nickname, Asterion's lips twitched as he saw almost silvery blue eyes looking at him deeply.
"Don't call me Asty," he said harshly, not caring about the girl's feelings.
"Yes, Asty." With a serious expression, Luna responded, saluting like a soldier.
"What did I say seconds ago?" Asterion asked with a blank face.
Luna put her finger to her lips and answered with a genuinely thoughtful expression. After a while, she remembered and replied seriously, "Not to call you Asty."
"What should you do then?" Gritting his teeth, Asterion asked again.
"Not call you Asty, Asty." With an innocent look, Luna responded again.
"..."
Asterion's expression was unreadable at this moment. He looked wordlessly at the innocent-looking girl.
"Pfft~~" Rose in the background started laughing, hearing their conversation, especially Asterion's expression. "AHAHAHAHAH!!!!"
Cedric turned his face to look at the tree as if it were something interesting, but his shoulders shook, indicating he was holding back from bursting into laughter like Rose.
Sighing, Asterion surrendered. "Do what you want, but what do you want to say?"
"He's here," Luna said, making Asterion show a confused expression.
"Who's here?" Cedric asked the question Asterion was about to ask, both looking strangely at Luna.
"Another seer has arrived." She replied casually, her voice indifferent to the arrival of the Dark Lord.
Asterion remained silent. In the end, he didn't care about the arrival of Gellert Grindelwald. It was more than expected for the Dark Lord to come to Hogwarts, especially with the man's imminent plan about to be completed.
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Next Chapter Second Volume: 141 - King's Game (9), 142 - King's Game (10), 143 - King's Game (11), 144 - King's Game (12), 145 - King's Game (13), Chapter 146 - Second Phase of the King's Game (1), Chapter 147 - Second Phase of the King's Game (2), Chapter 148 - Second Phase of the King's Game (3), Chapter 149 - Second Phase of the King's Game (4), Chapter 150 - Second Phase of the King's Game (5), Chapter 151 - Second Phase of the King's Game (6), 152 - Second Phase of the King's Game (7), 153 - Second Phase of the King's Game (8), 154 - Second Phase of the King's Game (9), 155 - Second Phase of the King's Game (10), 156 - Second Phase of the King's Game (11).
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