A stunned silence hung over the surroundings. If it wasn't for the howling winds, there wouldn't have been any sound at all.
Surprisingly, it was Aphestus who broke this silence. He sprung forward, landing on the pillar by Leonel.
In truth, he half expected to be attacked, but all he received was a grin in return. That was the only sign he needed to shoot forward, his body displaying an agility and flexibility most couldn't match.
This change seemed to shake the other three organizations out of the stupor. What had this young man just said? Who did he think he was?
The three organization Heads all looked toward Hutchin at once, frowns deeply etched on their faces. To this point, there had been a subtle centering of the past events that all seemed to revolve around this young man. From the snicker in the beginning to this point, everything seemed to point toward him. Yet, they hadn't noticed until this moment.
Hutchin didn't say a word nor did his face give away any emotion.
Of the three organization Head, the last was a middle aged man from Misty Woods. His eyes seemed to sparkle with something imperceptible as he gazed from Hutchin to Leonel and back again.
"What are you all waiting for? There are over a hundred of you and only one of him. Did we waste all the resources we spent on you?!"
Hutchin frowned the moment he heard these words. But, coaching from the sidelines also wasn't against the rules, especially since it seemed as though the race hadn't even truly started yet.
A flash of determination crossed the faces of the youths who led the pack, a tinge of rage coloring their gazes. That was right, what did they have to fear?
Leonel's light smile didn't fade. His wrist flexed, his jet black spear following an elegant arc.
A surge of at least a dozen dove forward, all of them aiming for a separate pole from Leonel.
"Well… I tried to warn you. Chain Domain."
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
In that moment, it seemed as though the world was enveloped in black. Whether it was by coincidence or on purpose, even the elders couldn't move out of the way. In the blink of an eye, a world of darkness and whipping chains covered a more than 500 meter radius.
Before they could react, all dozen youths who stepped forward found themselves wrapped from head to toe, their bodies frozen in space and a look of twisting pain on their faces.
"AH!"
Screams filled the skies as they struggled against the chains.
Whatever defiance they had had vanished in an instant, fear coloring their features as they realized the only thing keeping them suspended in the skies was Leonel's will. The moment he no longer felt that it was necessary, they would plunge to their inevitable deaths below.
"See? Play stupid games, win stupid prizes."
Leonel looked down toward the seemingly endless abyss below.
These pillars were so high up for a reason. They were purposely built at a height where the atmosphere was sparse, leaving the perpetual hurricanes with less substance to work with. It could be said that this was the safest location on the entire planet.
What was most fearsome wasn't the several dozen kilometer drop below, because with their strength, it was impossible that they'd make it all the way to the bottom. Before they could even make it a few hundred meters, they would be shredded to pieces by the violent winds.
At that moment, a small group of three individuals leapt into the storm, but Leonel pretended as though he hadn't seen them at all. It was clear to everyone that they were members of Valiant Heart.
"Thank you!"
Leonel smiled when he heard this, nodding lightly.
He knew that he wouldn't be able to protect them like this later, so he might as well do the best he could now.
In the past, his Domains could only stretch out about 10 meters, even less within a Fifth Dimensional world unless he fueled it with Universal Force. But, at this moment, not only was Leonel not using Universal Force, but his range was already 50 times greater.
This was the benefit of King's Might.
It was then that the sickening sound of bones snapping sounded. The dozen figures that hung in the air at Leonel's whim screamed out in pain, their bodies shivering uncontrollably as they were thrown back to the pillar.
"Consider this a warning." Leonel spoke lightly. "I might not be so nice next time."
Another group of Valiant Heart Mountain members shot forward. No one dared to stop them. If Leonel could so easily deal with them crossing into the air, given the range of his odd Domain, just how hard would it be to stop them from interfering.
It was when the fourth group gathered the courage to move forward that a voice called out.
By this point, the three organization Heads were popping blood vessels. Of all the ways they had expected things to go, this was most definitely not one of them. And, to make matters worse, it almost felt like a slap to their faces that Leonel's Domain covered them as well. It was as though he actually dared to give them, as mighty Fifth Dimensional existences… a warning?!
Luckily, Wissan stepped forward.
"Don't you think that this is a bit too far?" He pushed up his glasses, his chubby body weaving through the crowd until he stood at the very edge of the pillar's roof.
Leonel's smile didn't fade as he looked Wissan up and down. Rather than rebutting, he asked a simple question.
"And what wouldn't be too far in your opinion?"
"That would be allowing the race to continue as designed, of course."
"Mm." Leonel nodded. "Well I disagree."
Wissan expected Leonel to say something else after this, but he simply stood there, waving about on his pillar with a smile on his face.
At that moment, a chuckle came from Wissan's back before a light slap landed on his shoulder.
"It seems you finally lost a war of words, Wissan. I always told you that that shit doesn't matter. All that does is whether my blade is bigger than yours. What do you say, Emna? How about we have some fun? If we wait any longer, I won't be able to be first anymore."