The material unraveled mid-air, splitting into segmented plates and glowing threads that wrapped around Haras’ arms, legs and torso with inhuman precision.

  The suit fused to her body.

  The glow intensified.

  Haras flailed. “WAITWAITWAIT, WHY ME?!!”

  Kintovar only smirked.

  The last piece—a sleek helmet snapped into place over Haras’s head. The visor glowed.

  Haras trembled. The suit hummed. Data flooded her mind. Limitless calculations. Adaptive movement systems. Precision neural feedback.

  She stopped shaking.

  She straightened.

  Her breathing steadied.

  Haras stood tall.

  Alan’s jaw dropped. “Oh… oh, shit.”

  Roselle’s eyes sparkled. “This is awesome!”

  The Headmaster narrowed her golden eyes.

  Haras clenched her fists. The Quantum Mindsuit responded instantly. Power rippled through her body. Then she grinned.

  “Ooookay,” she cracked her knuckles. “I take it back… This is… AWESOME.”

  She turned toward Kintovar. “I assume you put all the best features in this bad boy?”

  Kintovar adjusted her sunglasses. “Oh, Haras… you have no idea.”

  She gestured toward the suit. “The Quantum Mindsuit doesn’t only boost your physical abilities; it links directly to your mind. Every thought, every instinct—it’s enhanced, sharpened, perfected.”

  She stepped closer. “You’re more agile than you’ve ever been. You can generate energy barriers and have reflexes to superhuman levels.”

  Kintovar grinned. “But that’s just the appetizer.”

  She spread her arms wide. “The real magic? It fuses magic and tech into one. And it amplifies it beyond the limits. You’re now unstoppable! Invincible!”

  Haras flexed her fingers. A slow smile spread across her face. “…Oh, hell yeah.”

  The Headmaster hovered in silence for a moment. Her eyes locked onto Haras in the Quantum Mindsuit.

  Then, she lowered her gaze to the ground.

  “…Extreme Technology.”

  Her grip on her staff tightened.

  "Now, I see."

  She lifted her head a composed look. "This is no different from that day. The day of your first rebellion, Kintovar."

  The golden crystal atop her staff spun—faster and radiated waves of sheer psychic force.

  "You mock us. You mock magic. You belittle our power with your so-called creations."

  She raised her staff high.

  Behind her, thousands of psychic spheres crackled into existence like an army of golden suns.

  "You think your technology surpass magic?"

  She boomed across the battlefield. “Then come. I will show you. I will prove to you the difference between your pitiful machines and the power of true mages!"

  Her golden aura blazed around her intensely.

  "You will never—EVER—stand at the top!"

  The sky rained golden death.

  Thousands of psychic orbs screamed through the air with terrifying force, aiming to pulverize Kintovar and Haras where they stood.

  Kintovar didn’t flinch.

  She simply reached behind her back and swung out her weapon— The BG-356.

  It was massive, absurdly so and yet, she held it with ease. But something was…different. There was an added piece to the giant Cannnon.

  Kintovar smirked.

  Meanwhile, for Haras, everything slowed. The psychic spheres no longer rushed at her.

  They drifted like embers in a breeze.

  Haras grinned. Her feet kicked off the ground with shields bursting to life beneath her to form a series of solid energy platforms.

  Step.

  Another step.

  She was running up the barrage with impossible agility.

  She laughed. "This is INSANE!"

  But then, a wave of psychic pressure slammed outward from the Headmaster.

  The weight of it made the air feel like it was collapsing.

  For a split second, the suit flickered.

  But Haras didn’t slow. She reached the Headmaster in an instant and punched her in the face.

  The impact sent a shockwave through the battlefield. The Headmaster’s head snapped back with golden energy rippling violently from the strike.

  Haras pulled her fist and blinked in pure shock for a moment. Then she grinned. That grin turned into a laugh. "Oh, HELL YEAH! I’ve been wanting to do that for YEARS!”

  Kintovar sidestepped, ensuring she remained firmly behind Haras. The remaining psychic spheres screamed past them and detonated in a cascade of golden explosions.

  The Scientist tapped a hidden switch on the BG-356.

  Click. Whirr.

  The massive weapon shuddered.

  Panels along its surface slid apart. Internal mechanisms shifted. Pistons locked into place. The barrel expanded and reshaped itself. A pulse of energy surged through its frame which caused the weapon itself to glow white. When the glowing ended, the dull metallic design was gone.In its place—a sleek blue and orange chassis that radiated pure power.

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  Kintovar sidestepped and gave Haras room to charge forward.

  Haras swung.

  The Headmaster ascended to evade her, but Kintovar had already anticipated it.She adjusted her aim with the bg-356. Three glowing markers snapped into place on the Headmaster’s body.

  Lock acquired.

  Kintovar pulled the trigger. A roaring beam of energy erupted from the weapon that streaked through the air with a blinding blue-orange glow.

  The Headmaster snapped her staff forward and launched her own psychic beam out to meet it.

  The two attacks collided mid-air. The impact sent ripples of force cascading in all directions.The air distorted above.

  Kintovar gritted her teeth. “Tch…! This old hag’s still got juice!”

  Then—

  A third beam joined the fray.

  Haras, standing firm in the Quantum Mindsuit unleashed a pure arc of golden-white energy laced with flickering data streams.

  The Headmaster’s eyes widened yet she reacted instantly and formed a psychic shield around herself.

  The golden barrier shimmered, absorbing Haras’ blast. She then returned her focus on the clash with Kintovar.

  Haras smirked. “Oh-hoh~! I see how it is! Ignoring me, huh? Let’s fix that.”

  She raised her hand, fingers splayed.

  “Quantum Mindsuit: 15% Power Input Overdrive.”

  The suit hummed—then roared.

  Golden-white energy flared with circuit-like patterns blazing across the armor.

  Her energy beam expanded instantly into a colossal torrent of raw force.

  The Headmaster’s eyes widened. “Impossible!”

  Her psychic barrier shattered on impact.

  A blinding wave of energy swallowed her whole, and Kintovar’s attack also crushed her counter beam.

  For a moment—just a moment—everything was silent.

  Then—

  BOOOOM.

  A Gigantic explosion rippled outward within the sky that shook the very ground beneath them.

  When the dust settled, steam hissed from the Quantum Mindsuit.

  Haras rolled her shoulders.

  Kintovar narrowed her eyes. “Make sure you don’t push past 50%, Haras. This thing wasn’t built for reckless idiots.”

  Haras snorted. “Pfft, please. I know your tech inside and out. You think I wasn’t paying attention all those years?”

  She tapped the side of her helmet. “I know exactly how much I can handle.”

  Roselle watched the aftershock of Haras’ devastating blast. Her small hands clenched at her sides. “…We could have never handled this fight alone.”

  Risebelle, standing beside her with her arms crossed nodded grimly. “Yeah. This is beyond our level.”

  Her eyes lingered on Kintovar, who coolly adjusted her sunglasses, and Haras who stretched her arms.

  Risebelle gritted her teeth. “If we had to face either Kintovar or the Headmaster alone…”

  She swallowed. “…We’d have been screwed.”

  Roselle bit her lip. She didn't want to admit it, but the gap between them and the ones fighting…

  It was colossal.

  The air rippled as the Headmaster descended with her golden aura flickering unsteadily.

  She nearly crashed into the ground but at the last second, she halted her body with a jerk.Her breaths came ragged. Her body was now marred with cracks of unstable energy and blood.

  Slowly, the Headmaster straightened up and floated just above the battlefield.

  “…I see now.”

  Her voice held no fury this time. No mockery.

  She raised a single hand and studied a golden sphere she held in it that was dissipating yet also trying to stabilize itself. Then, she turned her gaze toward Haras in the Quantum Mindsuit.

  “This technology of yours… This Quantum Mindsuit—it’s unlike any other of Kintovar’s creations. This one… possesses a system that allows the user to grow. To adapt. To evolve mid-battle.”

  She inhaled deeply. Her psychic aura flared for a moment before dimming.

  “…It has the potential to stand on equal footing with Extreme Magic.”

  Kintovar’s smirked. “Oh?”

  Haras flashed a toothy grin. “Heh. You’re finally taking us seriously, huh?”

  The Headmaster’s face became eerily neutral for a moment. Then—

  Her face twisted.

  Fury. Absolute, unrestrained fury.

  Her golden aura ignited in a violent surge. “Very well… There is nothing left for me to do…”

  Then her eyes burned.

  “BUT TO CRUSH THE VERY FOUNDATION OF EVERYTHING IN ORDER TO DESTROY THAT SUIT!!”

  She threw her hand toward the sky.

  “ZENITH MAGIC: GRAVITY’S ABSOLUTE SKYFALL!”

  A deafening shockwave erupted outward. The skies darkened. The entire Mystical Island shook wildly. A titanic force surged across the land, and suddenly—

  Everything rose.

  The Forest trees—uprooted.

  The sand on the beach—lifted.

  The Academy—wrenched from the earth.

  Everyone was helplessly pulled skyward.

  Kintovar acted in haste. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small cylindrical device labeled 'lip-glaze.'

  Kintovar boomed towards Haras. "Haras, it looks like Headmaster Aimathema’s lost her marbles. I think she is in due of a make-over!”

  Roselle’s breath hitched.

  She wasn’t staring at the chaos. Not at the floating ruins. Not at the massive gravitational forces tearing through the island.

  Her gaze was locked on the mini-tank. The reinforced container that held Runebelle.

  The tank wobbled mid-air. For a split second, it tilted dangerously.

  Roselle’s pupils shrank. "Runebelle—!!"

  She reached forward instinctively, but she wasn’t fast enough even when she used her yellow lightning to try and grab it. The tank lurched further away.

  Risebelle grabbed Roselle’s arm. “Stay focused! We’ll get her after we deal with this nightmare!”

  Roselle’s fingers trembled, but she forced herself to nod.

  Meanwhile—

  Sybil was screaming.

  "Becky!" She thrashed against the air’s invisible grip and clawed toward the lifeless body.

  Becky’s body was floating limp.

  Sybil reached—almost there—

  But a powerful telekinetic force yanked her back.

  “NO—!!” she wailed. Her fingers brushed Becky’s hand but it slipped through her grasp.

  Alan growled "This is insane!"

  And then—

  A deafening crash.

  The Academy building, an enormous mass of stone and magic collided into Sylra.

  A sharp gasp escaped her lips before the impact. When the debris settled, Sylra was no longer conscious.

  The Headmaster floated above everyone. She began moving her hands around like a conductor and the floating wreckage obeyed.

  The trees twisted together to form jagged spikes. The Academy’s walls rotated to create an inescapable barrier around the group. The sand, earth and water spiraled into massive orbs that were ready to crash down upon them.

  The Headmaster’s golden eyes glowed fiercely.

  "This is where you fall," she declared. "All of you."

  The Headmaster’s trap was closing in, and there was no way out—no escape. The walls of debris, trees, sand and earth were closing tighter with every heartbeat.

  Kintovar turned sharply to Haras.

  “Haras, it’s time to make the ultimate sacrifice,” Kintovar’s spoke heavy, but resolute. “We’re locked in with nowhere to go. There’s no other choice.”

  Haras looked at her wide-eyed for a fraction of a second before the gravity tugged harder on her body. Tears welled up in her eyes that she quickly wiped away with a swipe.

  “It’s been a pleasure working with you, Kintovar,” Haras said strained,. A sad grin curled on her lips.

  Kintovar only nodded sharply with a fierce look in her eyes. She turned her head toward Roselle and Risebelle. “Creations,” Kintovar shouted. “I will need you two for this! Prepare to act when we’re done.”

  Roselle clenched her fists and shifted her stance while glancing at Risebelle.

  The moment Kintovar had said those words, everything started moving like clockwork. The first massive chunk of debris began to fall, followed by the sand, the earth, the trees, the water, all of it coming down like a crushing storm.

  The Headmaster boomed: “It’s over! All of you will perish!”

  But just when the world began to collapse on them, Kintovar aimed the The lip-glaze device she pulled out moments ago and uncapped it. A sudden flash of blue energy surged from it and went into Haras’ Mindsuit.

  Haras felt an overwhelming surge of power—far beyond anything she'd experienced before. Her suit glowed with intensity with extra energy coursing through it like a raging river. Magic from the destroyed extractors surged into her veins and the Quantum Mindsuit reacted with a low hum. Haras gritted her teeth and struggled to contain the rush of energy that threatened to overwhelm her.

  "I feel invincible..." she whispered under her breath. But there was no time to relish the power.

  She turned to Kintovar with a fierce look in her eyes. "I’ve got this. Get ready."

  Kintovar nodded sharply.

  Haras held out both hands in front of her. "Anti-Gravity Jamming Wave!" she shouted.

  A massive pulse of energy erupted from her body that expanded outward in every direction. The gravitational force that had been suffocating them vanished. The falling debris, the trees, the Academy building—everything began to slow, then stop.

  "Go!" Haras shouted. "It’s only going to last five seconds!"

  Risebelle quickly raised her hand to the sky. "Acid Rain!" she called out, and rain began to pour from the heavens. The droplets sizzled as they made contact with anything.

  The Headmaster screamed. Her body was already on fire with energy, but this was unlike anything she had ever encountered. Despite her resilience, the acid rain ate into her skin, causing her to recoil.

  "No!" she screamed. "You think you can stop me with this—?"

  Risebelle acted fast and launched Roselle through the air with a brutal force that sent her flying toward the Headmaster. "Do it NOW!" Risebelle shouted desperately.

  Roselle’s body twisted in the air like a comet. Her yellow lightning crackled around her, but now—now it burned red. 200% of her power was unleashed in that moment, and the air around her exploded with energy.

  While nearing the Headmaster, Roselle rang out:

  "THUNDERCLAP, SUUURRRGEEE!!!!!"

  Roselle’s lightning twisted into a rapidly spinning fan of energy that arced from her hands and dancing across the air. The fan of lightning homed in on the Headmaster with terrifying precision.

  The crackling fan of red electricity slammed into the Headmaster’s body. The Headmaster’s scream pierced the air. The blast of lightning consumed her in a flash of red-hot fury.

  “NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

  Project Mage