The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　Nathaniel David stared intently at Dark, beginning to consider the question with extreme seriousness.

　The previous duel was initiated by Dark, who was not under duel protection time, meaning he could have challenged Dark to a duel.

　The question is whether he has the ability to defeat Dark at this moment, and whether he can recover to his peak condition in the at least six and a half minutes between now and the start of the battle, while Dark has expended some energy in the previous duel.

　Given all these factors, if there is a chance of winning, defeating them on the spot would be an excellent choice.

　But as he pondered this, Dark's attention was no longer on Nathaniel.

　It wasn't that he had lost interest in Nathaniel; after all, the "Golden Mammoths" hadn't been able to unleash their full power. But he couldn't possibly deliberately hold back just to allow Nathaniel to perform at his best.

　The duel just now, before Nathaniel summoned "The Last Battlefield," was fraught with danger; one wrong move and he would have lost. Through that duel, he also proved that his personal combat ability was barely passable.

　However, going from completely unusable to barely usable is a significant breakthrough. He wasn't one to aim too high, so any breakthrough was a good thing. As for the energy expenditure…

　He really hadn't expended much energy, so even if he immediately started another duel, he wasn't afraid.

　However, having just engaged in strenuous exercise, it would be better to take a break before considering the next duel.

　So he stopped paying attention to Nathaniel David and instead looked at the duel projection in the Red and Blue Restaurant!

　The duel between Quintina North and Chloe Artemis is still ongoing.

　Moreover, their duel seemed even more exciting and intense than the duel between Dark and Nathaniel David.

　While the hand-to-hand combat was intense, it lacked visual spectacle; only the scene when Nathaniel David summoned the "End of the Battlefield" was truly grand.

　Conversely, the duel between Quintina North and Chloe Artemis was a clash of titans, a massive battle of skills, with a "doomsday" feel to it, as if it were about to destroy the entire world.

　That scene even made Dark forget to calculate the score, but the dense sounds emitted as the "divine cause" kept surging in made him quite satisfied with the gains from this duel.

　Nathaniel David stared at Dark for a while, but when he found that Dark didn't react, he turned to look at the projection and was immediately drawn to it.

　"Boom!"

　In a region some distance away from here, thunderclouds have now completely covered the area.

　The dark thunderclouds churned wildly in the sky, and Quintina, radiating intense light, hovered below them. Her expression was dignified and imposing, and the electric currents flashing around her gave her an overwhelming aura.

　On the ground, Chloe Artemis also floated in mid-air, but he was not rootless and suspended.

　On his body, the pitch-black shadow coalesced into a gigantic demonic form, connecting with the shadow on the ground.

　That was the "Shadow of the Night" that his magical spirit transformed into after using its ultimate move.

　The "Shadow of the Night" enveloped his entire body, as if it were "armored." Not only could it absorb the power of shadow from him, but it was also under his control, able to throw powerful "shadow balls" with a wave of its hand.

　Under these circumstances, for Quintinanos's lightning to hit Chloe's true form, it would first have to shatter the "Shadow of the Night." However, Chloe somehow managed to use some secret technique to continuously replenish the "Shadow of the Night's" shadow power, allowing it to instantly recover from any injury and remain completely intact to this day!

　By this point, the duel between the two sides had been going on for quite some time.

　Neither appeared to be injured, but their mana consumption differed. Chloe, in order to summon and repair "Night Shadow," also expended a significant amount of mana.

　Quintina had already expended a great deal of magic before the duel even began, and after the duel started, she used her magic power even more frantically, as if her magic source was inexhaustible.

　However, based on her detailed behavior, Chloe was convinced that her magic would eventually run out, and that she was only putting on a brave front but being weak inside.

　Therefore, he patiently waited it out.

　His "Shadow of the Night" technique isn't entirely invincible. If Quintina were at her peak, "Shadow of the Night" would likely have already been shattered by Quintina.

　The fact that he can still hold on is proof that Quintina is not in good form. Just a little more exertion, just a little more, and he'll be ready to launch a counterattack.

　And it wasn't just him; it seemed the entire audience was waiting for that moment to arrive.

　Of course, the audience was waiting for one of them to run out of magic, not just Quintina.

　"It's definitely more exciting to watch big scenes."

　Dark squinted for a moment, then casually deactivated the Duel Domain and, together with Marscare who was waiting nearby, suddenly retreated towards the Blue Restaurant.

　Nathaniel David reacted swiftly, instinctively taking a step forward. But his foot twitched halfway through, and he suddenly withdrew, ultimately abandoning the idea of ​​fighting Dark again.

　Even if we were to fight again, it would have to be after I've recovered! He told himself this, but in reality, he was "cowardly." No, he had become even more cautious!

　Nathaniel David gave a soft snort and quickly retreated towards the red restaurant.

　With the end of the duel, Nathaniel David's score dropped from 20 to 13, while Sky Magic Academy's total score became 68, widening the gap with Ocean Magic Academy's score once again.

　Darkdemon's score increased from 32 to 39 points, even surpassing the combined total scores of the Elf Magic Academy and the War Totem Academy.

　If there were individual point rankings, he would be far ahead. This "charge tactic" can only be described as a complete victory.

　Not only did Darke gain seven points, but Marscare also gained seven points, bringing his total to 20 points from 13. It's worth noting that Nathaniel David only had 19 points before defeating him.

　Therefore, it is highly likely that his score has surpassed that of all other students except for those from St. Mary's College.

　What enabled him to achieve this was simply a victory in a high-multiplier "Duel Time"!

　This alone shows that making good use of "duel time" can indeed lead to a comeback from a desperate situation.

　However, St. Marian Academy's total score has now reached 193 points, making it unrealistic to surpass them. Both the Sky Magic Academy and Ocean Magic Academy contestants, if they were rational enough, would likely only aim for second place, rather than competing with St. Marian Academy.

　Of course, this is just Dark's own opinion; perhaps the Sky Magic Academy and the Ocean Magic Academy will have different views. Moreover, anything can happen in a magic duel, and this match is no exception.

　Dak walked through the window into the blue restaurant, took the coffee Aurora handed him, and continued to look at the projection across the street.

　At this moment, the projections on the ceilings of both restaurants had switched to showing the duel between Quintina and Chloe.

　Standing here, you can faintly hear the rumbling of thunder coming from afar. "How strong is that mammoth?" Senior Pandora asked curiously as she walked over.

　Dark thought for a moment and said, "It's still pretty impressive." "Really?" Senior Pandora rolled her eyes in thought.

　Nathaniel David's performance in his duel with Dark was not good, and it almost made her lose interest.

　But since he received a relatively high evaluation from Dark, he must be alright. In that case, we might as well give him a try when the next "Duel Time" starts.

　With that thought in mind, Pandora stood side by side with Dark to watch the duel between Quintina and Chloe.

　And so, the moment finally arrived.

　Quintina's momentum suddenly weakened, and the power of the lightning she released decreased significantly, failing to penetrate the "Night Demon's" defense!

　The difference was so obvious that even the spectators outside the arena noticed, let alone Chloe Artemis, who was in the dueling arena.

　"Finally, it's all used up!"

　Chloe suddenly broke into a look of ecstatic joy.

　He had been waiting for this moment for a long time. While relying on "Night Shadow" to fight back, the psychological pressure kept building up. Seeing that Quintina could still release a continuous stream of lightning magic even when she was mentally exhausted, he was actually very anxious.

　Finally, the moment he had been waiting for had arrived! "Night Demon, Shadow Sphere!"

　He suddenly manipulated "Night Shadow" to raise his hands, condensing a larger "shadow ball" between them, preparing to throw it at Quintina.

　This was his final test.

　If Quintina's magic is indeed exhausted, it will be difficult for her to completely catch this "Shadow Ball".

　That will be his time to shine!

　"boom!"

　That "shadow ball" actually hit Quintina!

　Then, with a loud "boom," the "Shadow Sphere" exploded high in the sky, and Quintinanos fell like a bird with broken wings.

　A low rumble suddenly echoed from the dense thunderclouds, as if mourning her demise.

　Chloe's expression turned serious as she stared intently at Quintina's falling shadow, trying to visually determine whether she was truly unable to fly or was faking her fall.

　—The trick of feigning weakness to the enemy is so basic that it can only be described as a tactic that is so fundamental that it cannot be more basic.

　He had to confirm whether Quintina was faking it, otherwise if he went forward too easily, she might seize the opportunity and take him down in one fell swoop.

　Having fought so fiercely for so long with such intense emotions, Chloe absolutely could not allow herself to fail because of such carelessness.

　But as Quintina plummeted into the air, she suddenly exhibited noticeable symptoms. Electric currents around her surged, flickering and lifting her up, then… seemingly due to depleted magic, they dissipated, causing her to fall again at an accelerated pace.

　Finally, it crashed to the ground with a "thud," then struggled to its feet. Chloe's brow furrowed sharply, and she raised her hands. The "Shadow of the Night" also raised its hands, each forming a small "shadow ball" in its palm, which it then hurled at the same time.

　"boom!"

　Two Shadow Balls exploded simultaneously, the resulting dust engulfing Quintina.

　But the duel was not over yet.

　Quintina was not present in the "cemetery".

　Chloe became increasingly convinced that it was merely Quintina's act, a trick to lure him in.

　Therefore, he did not hesitate any longer and continued to control "Night Shadow" to throw "Shadow Balls" at the place where Quintina fell.

　"Boom!"

　As the "Shadow Balls" continued to be ejected, fall, and explode, the terrain at the point of impact was completely altered by him.

　He drew another magic card along the way, infused it with magic, and quickly summoned something. Suddenly, a continuous expanse of shadows rose from the ground, transforming into pairs of shadowy hands that crawled along the ground towards that direction.

　In just a short while, those shadowy hands rushed into the crash site, searching for and grabbing at Quintina.

　Quintina's body was wrapped around by those shadowy hands, which gripped her tightly and then suddenly pulled her out of the place where she had fallen!

　This scene left Chloe herself stunned.

　He hadn't expected to pull Quintina out so easily, and the latter didn't resist at all!

　Despite the fact that so many "shadow orbs" couldn't kill her, and despite the thunderclouds still rolling in the sky, Quintina seemed to be truly dead. His shadowy hand grabbed her entire body, lifted her up, and held her suspended in mid-air.

　He suddenly raised his hand, and the shadowy hand lifted Quintina even higher. The girl's long hair was disheveled, her head was down, her arms were hanging limply, and she was completely powerless.

　But when Chloe looked at Quintina in that state, he felt an extremely strange sensation; his heart felt as if it were being tightly squeezed, and he felt a dull, throbbing pain.

　"what happened"

　Incomprehensible.

　If Quintina completely loses consciousness and is unable to resist, the duel system should automatically declare her "dead" and then transfer her to the "graveyard" to end the duel.

　But it doesn't.

　For a moment, Chloe almost thought that the dueling system was malfunctioning, or that even the "graveyard" might be broken.

　If that's the case...

　This dueling arena is, after all, a relatively new invention. As users, they are merely dancing on a stage constructed by the gods, without any understanding of the stage itself.

　Naturally, it couldn't be confirmed that it was 100% correct. This caused Chloe a slight panic, even hesitation. He didn't throw the next "Shadow Ball," which he had raised high with "Nightmare."

　The scene within the dueling arena remained frozen for several seconds. Just as the audience began to wonder, a sudden change occurred!

　"This is"

　Dark suddenly stepped forward, placed his hands on the windowsill, and stared intently at the distant place where thunder was rising again, his eyes gleaming with golden light.

　That's where Quintina and Chloe are fighting.

　At this moment, an extremely strong divine fluctuation suddenly erupted, its majesty...

　The powerful aura reached this place in an instant.

　Dark clearly sensed—"the birth of God."

　In the distance, at the site of the duel, a majestic melody suddenly erupted after a half-second delay—it was the "God's Cause" rejoicing.

　"Boom!"

　Bolts of lightning struck down from the sky, and suddenly an extremely thick bolt of lightning cleaved the heavens and earth in an instant.

　In the projection, Chloe's face suddenly changed color.

　Quintina, caught in the shadowy hand, suddenly opened her eyes. Her extremely long eyelashes crackled with electricity, and her eyes, which had been opened again, were incredibly cool. Suddenly, the current that had been climbing up her eye sockets overflowed from the corners of her eyes, revealing a ferocious expression.

　"boom!"

　Her long hair, which had been draped over her shoulders, suddenly rose up, and the original sky-blue color of her hair turned dark blue from the roots.

　The surge of electricity coursed through every strand of hair, reaching the ends. Quintina's long hair suddenly cascaded backward, revealing a ring of divine light. The shadowy hand gripping Quintina's body instantly turned to dust, without even a trace of being struck by external force.

　Quintina's body then naturally drooped down, as did her limbs.

　She raised her head, staring straight ahead, her lightning-filled eyes appearing utterly empty.

　But Chloe, who met his eyes, didn't feel "empty." In that instant, he broke out in a cold sweat, his hair stood on end, and he convulsed as if electrocuted before abruptly clasping his hands together.

　"Snapped!"

　The applause was extremely crisp, but it was easily drowned out by the thunder.