*Ulissis*

I returned my attention to the track. Alto attacked the H.E.H. guy who had pushed him out of the course but his lightning was deflected back at him by an invisible barrier.

"Alto!" I yelled.

Alto pushed himself back up and continued to run even as sparks flew out of his body. 

"Alto!" a voice called it. Aban ran over to Alto with a white card in hand. It seemed that despite Alto's best efforts to continue, he was running out of steam.

Alto smiled. "Thanks, Aban." He came to a halt and stretched out his hand to him, but just before he could hand him the baton, he started to fall forward.

"Alto, are you alright, buddy?" Aban asked, arriving in time to catch him. He winced as the electricity sparking off Alto hit him but didn't say anything.

"Y-yeah, just tired is all. Go on, run!" Alto said, trying his best to smile.

Aban shook his head at him. "I can't leave you here, alone."

I glanced up at the announcer. "Hey, if it's not a bother, could you take me over to my teammates. I'll like to out Alto."

"Alright," the announcer said. She formed a water bubble around me which for some reason didn't vanish unlike other spells. Though I was glad that it worked.

"I'll take care of him," I yelled from the air as my bubble zipped over to Aban and Alto. "So don't worry and run with all you got! I'll take care of the distance Alto had left to go. You run the five miles you have to."

Aban looked over at Alto with concern but forced himself to look away. "Alright..." He ran off at blazing speeds. Though it seemed that his attention was more on H.E.H.'s member as he kept his eyes locked on him. He raised his hand, causing a wall of earth to appear in front of their latest runner..

The H.E.H runner slammed his hands again the wall and winced.

Aban chuckled and ran on ahead. I should've known that he would try something like that. He was a former gangster after all. Payback was a thing he was used to dishing out, even if it was merely to someone connected to the one who hurt his gang.

I sighed and took the bubble back to my new position.

"You sure that you're fine?" I asked, staring at him. I gapsed as I felt something warm against my hand. It was blood. Blood was oozing out of his side!

"Alto, this wound..."

Alto laughed drunkily. "Don't, worry... Uli..." He leaned to the side and collapsed against the floor of he bubble. His blood began to stain the water making up the bubble red.

"Alto!" I yelled at the top of my lungs. "Alto! Get up! Alto!" I wanted to shake him to try wake him, but that would only have made things worse. "Alto..." I felled to my knees as the bubble descended. "Hold on, please, just hold on a bit more!"

"Let me heal him!" I turned and saw Adela and Yen flying over to us. Adela held some herbs in her hand. She stared at the wound and gasped. "This... that guy hurt him more than he should've."

"Wait," Yen said. "You aren't allowed to heal a rival team member."

Adela crushed the herbs in her hands. "What kind of rules are these? First I couldn't aid Lei, and now I can't aid Alto. Frankly I don't care anymore! I can't let a friend die."

Alto raised a hand and forced a smile. "I'll... be fine."

"Alto!" Aban yelled. I gasped. He had finished that in such short time? Perhaps I was wrong about him. Perhaps Aban is more fit than I gave him credit for.

"How could he be this injured, though?" I asked. "I only saw that guy push him."

"That guy from H.E.H. he returned his magic attacks to him using some kind of invisible barrier spell," Aban said, furrowing his brow. He reached his hand out to Adela. "The herbs, please."

Adela handed the crushed herbs over. Aban raised Alto's shirt. The wound was deep. He quickly applied the herbs over the wound and focused his prana on the spot.

"Perhaps an invincible barrier would be a better way to refer to it," Aban said. "I couldn't locate any weaknesses even after Alto had temporary made it visible." He winced as he struggled to close Alto's wound. "I'm sorry Ulissis, but Arima and you have to win this yourselves. Try to avoid getting hurt, alright?"

Before I could answer, some medics rushed over and began healing Alto. Aban had managed to stop most of the bleeding, but it was still bad.

I put up my coat's hood. "I-I got this, don't worry... Just go with Alto and wait for us."

"Uli," Alto said.

I smiled. "Get better soon. We'll get our country some medals, you'll see! Though at this rate it seems we have to settle for silver at least." Wahkan was still far in the lead. Our team was behind Rios. "Come on Arima," I yelled.

Arima glanced up and nodded. She chanted something under her breath. Several ghosts appeared around the track.

"Tsk. Ghosts," Yuzuki said. Two other ghosts appeared around her. She scanned for an opening and ran for it. I had no idea why she wasn't using her magic.

"Yen, y-your teammates are amazing," Alto managed to choke out.

Then it suddenly hit me as to why Yuzuki wasn't using her magic. I had yet to actually see it, but she must've had time powers like Hikaru, or perhaps space magic! A smile dotted my face. Good, we had a chance. "Arima, attack them with all you got! Especially Wahkan. Wahkan's team are mostly time and space mages!"

Yuzuki glared at Arima as the ghost grabbed her. She kicked them with ease and threw them into the ditch. "Come on, is this all?"

"No," a girl said. It was the fourth member of H.E.H. she resembled a model unlike Aida and the guy who defeated Alto, who had more athletic builds. I didn't even notice her coming, as if her steps were quiet. Though her speed was fearsome, to have caught up with Wahkan all of a sudden...

Suddenly an explosion rocked the ground below Yuzuki.

Yuzuki though jumped into the air, escaping most of the impact of the explosion. She quickly made her way to Orion. "Orion, go and win this! Remember your training! I know that you can do this!"

Wahkan... I didn't know they had so many cool members. Wanikiya...I felt sorry for him, to be greatly overshadowed by his own people.

Aida's teammate handed the baton over to her. "Don't allow those inbreds to defeat us," the model like girl said.

"H.E.H. won't be embarrassed by me." She ran with all she had, chasing after Orion.

I turned to the screen and watched as Ona handed over his baton over to a black haired boy with eyes like Adela's.

Adela grinned. "Go, brother!" she yelled.

"Brother?"

"Yeah, Elliot is my older brother, well one of them. I got another one who is older. His name is Xun."

"Hey, shouldn't you move to your new spot?" Yen asked.

"Oh right!" I boarded the water bubble and flew over to the new spot I had to be.

I looked down and watched as Same cut one of Arima's ghosts with a water sword before handing his baton over to Eien.

Eien ran after the others at blazing speed. "Glacis Draco." He froze the ground below Aida.

Aida looked down and noticed ice was climbing her feet. "Viridis Angelus." A female angel with large wooden wings appeared behind Aida. Aida summoned a wooden staff and transformed it into a whip. She crashed the ice with it. I blinked before she hit herself.

"Was she alright?" I asked as I closed my eyes.

Aida laughed. "Worry about yourself," she yelled. I gulped. She had managed to hear that, from all that way over there? I mean, sure, those being filmed could be heard thanks to the magic transmission, hence why I could hear her. But to focus on what a inactive-participant was saying during the race?

I opened my eyes and saw that her feet were fine. Her wooden angel moved swiftly. It formed a sword out of rose thorns and aimed for Eien's back. Eien leap forward and turn around. He summoned his wand and transformed it into a bow and arrow. He fired off fire and ice arrows.

"Pay attention to me," Aida said in a flirty tone. Her hands slid around Eien's neck. Thorns came out of her hands and impaled the proud prince. As soon as Aida let go of him he fell to the ground. "Now, back to paying attention to Wahkan!"

"Eien," I yelled. "Someone come quick." A pool of blood had formed around Eien. "He's losing too much blood!"

Aida stopped and looked back. She licked the blood on her fingers. "Interesting, the son of a male born to the Yuki-Ona clan, not to mention a male himself. I wish I could've played around with such an interesting specimen for a little bit more, alas he refused to wait his turn."

I ran out as soon as my bubble landed near the spot they were in. "You, what's wrong with you? You might've killed him!"

"Shut it Ulissis," Eien snapped. He pushed himself up. He had become more fox like. His eyes were even more furious than when he had fought Zelde. "I won't lose to a witch like her!" He charged after Aida.

Aida raised a hand to her mouth and snickered like a stereotypical princess. "Finish him!" Her angel appeared behind Eien.

Eien froze the angel completely this time. A ring of blue flames appeared, preventing Aida from going any further. "I won't be toyed with!" He stabbed Aida through the chest with one of his tails.

"Stop!" Ashynna yelled as she ran towards us. "Don't kill her."

Aida glance up at her. "Who the hell are you?" She ripped Eien's claws out of her chest and kicked Eien unto the ground. "I don't need protection, especially from a Kyuu Seishinn."

I backed away. H-how could she be fine after that? W-was she even normal? Her wound, it was already healed!

Eien refused to stand down. "Don't protect her, Ashynna. This is my match, you're done with this event. Go back to the finish line and wait for me to cross through it." He covered himself in ice. "My last spell...I didn't' expect that I'll be pushed this far."

Aida turned to the other runners and ran on ahead. "I've wasted too much time on you, fox."

Eien snapped. Ice froze the track, as in the entire five mile stretch and all the area in between. Everyone turned their attention back Eien and Aida. "You won't go anywhere." The flames that were blocking Aida attacked her at once, burning her skin.

Aida grunted in pain. "Ugh, such a persistent man."

"Ulissis!" Arima yelled as she shattered the ice underneath her feet using her spirits. She walked over to him, careful to avoid slipping. The other runners were also walking, all of them unused to walking on ice. She handed me the baton before walking over to the side. "Be careful, very careful... Eien and Aida are both dangerous. Get far from here and win this, okay?"

"Just wait for me at the finish line, alright?" I said with a smile. I tugged on my hoodie and ran across the ice. The ice below my feet vanished as soon as I stepped on it, not even transitioning to water before doing so. What was my magic? Was I really an anti-magic mage like Eien had once suggested?

I glanced over at a white skyscraper and spotted a white haired man looking down at me though a pair of binoculars. He had a slight smile on his face. He wore white and red armor with twin gun holsters. Guns that could neutralize magic at that. He grinned as soon as we locked eyes.

Father, did you know? Was that why he warned me not to go to school? But, why is he suddenly smiling now? What are you planning, dad? Have you not given up on your goal yet? To eradicate this world for that which it is known for? Magic.

**Solar Note: Hope that you enjoy this chapter :). Originally this one was to be longer, far longer, so I divided it into three parts (might turn out to be four in the end). In fact, the Ulissis part of the last chapter was originally part of said long chapter. Probably was like 6K+ words... Thoughts on Ulissis, Aida, and Eien?**