Taro finished enduring until the next boy was in position with his beast manifested and ready to attack. And only then, when he'd completely fulfilled his tactical role, did he finally allow the bonds to be severed entirely. He collapsed onto one knee, breathing heavily, sweat covering his face.

But there was a smile on that face despite the pain and defeat.

He'd done what needed to be done.

Had pushed Ren's Golden beast to his absolute limits.

Had wounded it critically in those final moments.

And had set up his teammate for a clean elimination that would force Ren to face the remaining battles with one less beast available.

Had established a situation where his team still had a chance of victory if the following combatants executed appropriately.

It was the best outcome Taro could have achieved given the circumstances.

Ren grabbed his hair with momentary frustration but was also smiling while observing his tenacious friend. Always giving him problems. Always pushing him to be better. It was exactly why their friendship was so valuable, why training with Taro had been so beneficial for both during all this time.

He assessed the situation rapidly through his bond with the paralyzed hydra.

The beast was alive but critically wounded. The proboscis had pierced through vital areas, the enhanced mineral tip having caused internal damage beyond what was immediately visible. The paralyzing venom was spreading through its system, locking muscles and preventing movement.

And the battles continued without pause, the teacher recognizing that momentum needed to be maintained given the combatants' strategy.

The next student attacked the paralyzed hydra immediately, his beast launching an elemental fire projectile that should have been resisted or avoided easily in normal circumstances.

But the hydra couldn't move appropriately with the venom running through its system.

Even so...

Ren managed to make it fire a beam even while lying down, orienting one of the heads toward the incoming opponent. The light beam emerged with reduced force but sufficient, and Ren ingeniously used earth control and the shot's thrust to reposition the hydra's head slightly, rotating it just enough so the enemy projectile got destroyed and didn't impact the exposed flesh while his own attack eliminated the opponent.

But the second opponent entered more rapidly, all the others already in line trying to maintain the battle active with not a second of rest.

This opponent was more dangerous, using wood element roots that would have type advantage against the hydra's base earth element, which despite being omni-elemental now, still maintained a certain inclination toward its two initial elements.

But by the time the roots were completely trapping the hydra... Ren executed a light jump with the hydra again, massive mana expenditure that left the beast's reserves dangerously low but allowed repositioning just behind the attacker, eliminating the second opponent with a weak but clean shot.

Against the third, however, the hydra no longer had sufficient mana to continue.

The venom had been partially processed but the physical damage it couldn't heal due to constant battle was too extensive. Without being able to heal appropriately, without resources for more powerful attacks, and with the enormous hole the Terror's lance had left in its flank plus the accumulated damage from the mineral ball on its diamond defenses...

It took only any attack from the next beast to finally eliminate the hydra. Ren withdrew it before the final blow connected completely, to avoid additional harm and unnecessary pain.

And now Ren had to bring out the mantis.

His most versatile beast but also most fragile in many aspects. And there still remained six opponents he'd have to eliminate before he could even think about facing Liora at the end of the line.

The battle was far from finished. And Ren, feeling the bond with the hydra so weakened, mentally prepared himself for the extended phase that would require everything he had left to overcome.

Taro observed from his collapsed position as they carried him away to rest, with genuine satisfaction despite the defeat of his two powerful beasts.

He'd done his job. Had worn down the titan. Had demonstrated that even Ren Patinder could be pushed to his limits.

Now it depended on the rest of the team to capitalize on the advantage he'd created.

♢♢♢♢

ATTRITION STRATEGY

The mantis moved through the seven lesser opponents like a green storm that left no opportunity for appropriate responses. No Silver-rank beast could defeat it despite being "only" Bronze 2 when the versatility difference was so pronounced.

The inevitable result from before beginning.

But what they did accomplish, despite their individual defeats, was wearing it down and tiring it somewhat.

Each battle required the mantis to move, attack, dodge. Each exchange spent some mana even if victories came relatively quickly.

And the general strategy they'd employed under Liora's coordination from her position at the end of the line had been defensive from the start, designed specifically to tire the mantis instead of trying to defeat it directly.

The beasts focused on surviving as long as possible, forcing the mantis to pay for each elimination. They established defenses that had to be penetrated, created distance that had to be closed, executed suicide attacks that required the mantis to adjust its last attacks midway.

It was death by a thousand cuts in terms of accumulated fatigue, wear that built slowly but consistently with each successive opponent.

The strategy did little to keep the beasts alive for long… that had been recognized from the start as impossible. Even the most resistant of the group eventually fell under the mantis's rapid cuts, insane speed and precision finding weak points that no Silver defense could completely protect.

The mantis was also difficult to detect when using invisibility, difficult to resist when its claws connected with force amplified by elements advantageous against any of its opponents.

But they had fulfilled their purpose...

The mantis was breathing more heavily now than it had been at the start. Its movements remained fast but there was a minor loss of maximum velocity that trained eyes could detect. Its mana reserves were somewhat reduced after eliminating six opponents consecutively without appropriate opportunity for recovery between battles.

And the audience was now much more invested in the fight than in any of Ren's previous battles during this exam. Because this one was more balanced than the vast majority had been, real equilibrium where the outcome wasn't predetermined but genuinely uncertain.

Ren could lose this time.

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