Water Mage in the Flame Realm-Chapter 293 - 283: On the Line

The king's gentle and magnetic voice resounded through the hall, and just from the tone alone, it was the most human-sounding sentence the king had uttered so far.

Andrew almost couldn't resist rolling his eyes!

After all, anyone who wasn't foolish could tell that the so-called "physical discomfort" was just an excuse. Ultimately, it was to buy the Magic Guild more time to prepare for the third negotiation competition.

Barbara, with a look of mockery, tilted her head slightly and said to the king, "It was you who initially proposed starting the negotiation competition early, and now it's you who suggests reverting to the original schedule. Your Majesty's condition is quite changeable."

The king wasn't angry, instead, he sighed and said, "Indeed, after my cultivation was hindered, my physical condition has been less stable than before. I apologize."

His attitude became increasingly gentle, and his posture was exceedingly humble.

Members of the Warm Fire Commerce Association, from Catherine to Havier, suddenly changed their expressions almost simultaneously after he spoke.

One could see mysterious ice-blue runes, somehow silently covering the entire floor of the hall.

Barbara intended to retreat to Andrew and the others after defeating Yorkshire, especially once Yorkshire was rescued by Capella, but she found she couldn't retreat at all. Those ice-blue formation lines transformed into tangible restraining power, disallowing her departure.

"Impressive, truly impressive! To allow someone who shouldn't have even participated to enter the field right under my nose, without anyone realizing—this Andrew, young friend, you really don't seem like just a Tier Four mage."

The king chuckled deeply, his gaze directly landing on Andrew. "Although I was a bit negligent regarding 'who may enter,' I still have the final say on 'who may leave,' don't you think, Andrew the young mage?"

Hearing the king's words, many present who hadn't understood the situation realized: Yorkshire's inexplicable entry was Andrew's doing.

It also became clear that Andrew's actions not only tricked the Magic Guild but also greatly offended King, the nominal referee of this negotiation competition!

So, while the king chose not to dwell on the second duel, recognizing its outcome, he couldn't entirely swallow this affront either.

Thus, he discreetly converted the competition arena into an ice-bound cage, trapping Barbara! And he did so with such subtlety that Catherine, seated right beside him, was unaware until the king activated his power.

The king's actions weren't just to use Barbara as leverage to force the Warm Fire Commerce Association to agree to his proposal to delay the third battle until the day after tomorrow. He also wanted to let Andrew and the others know: I am still the leading figure here! So cease all attempts of trickery under my watch!

In his previous world, Andrew had witnessed various forms of biased judgments and unfairness.

But a referee directly interfering against one party—this was indeed unheard of.

At this moment, despite his seething anger, Andrew felt a hint of astonishment and an intriguing thought: "Why is the king favoring the Magic Guild so much? Is it really just because he wants to marry Capella? Can this sole reason justify such actions?"

It's no exaggeration to say that although the king caused no substantial harm to Barbara, this move had already crossed the line.

While the king's actions undeniably benefited the Magic Guild, for himself and the Royal Court, deeply offending the Warm Fire Commerce Association was by no means wise!

Indeed, Dean Charlie said coldly, "Is Your Majesty attempting to initiate a war?" Always gentle and elegant, even when plotted against with poison by the Dragon Taming Lady, Dean Charlie kept his composure. Yet now, his face was terrifyingly grim.

A slick expression, ill-suited to his firm and masculine face, appeared on the king's face as he smiled, "Dean Charlie, you're overthinking it. Upon reflection, perhaps delaying until the day after tomorrow is too much. Let's at least postpone it till tomorrow."

From the Magic Guild's perspective, as long as the third battle wasn't conducted today, whether postponed till tomorrow or the day after wouldn't matter. As long as there's a chance to catch a breath, it's enough.

As he spoke, the king relaxed the restraining force around Barbara, opening a path, and said: "Either the third battle waits until tomorrow, and if you agree to this condition, I'll immediately release Miss Barbara. Or else, I might have to risk offending your party."

His words were a mix of firmness and leniency, primarily because Barbara was now under his control, causing both Dean Charlie and Catherine extreme difficulty.

Agreeing would be exceedingly unsatisfactory since, if the third battle started immediately, their side's victory was almost guaranteed.

But to disagree, who knows if the king's mind is not quite right, and should Barbara get hurt...

"It's acceptable." A steady voice echoed, "It's acceptable to postpone until tomorrow and not the day after. However, it must be tomorrow morning; any later, Your Majesty, don't even think about it."

The person speaking was Andrew.

Barbara exclaimed, "Andrew, don't agree with him. He wouldn't dare to really do anything to me!" Susan also looked over and couldn't help but say, "How... how can you agree with him?"

Dean Charlie's face changed subtly, as if realizing something, and he looked into Andrew's eyes: "Are you thinking that..."

Andrew nodded and respectfully said, "Yes, just as the dean thought."

Susan shouted, "What do you mean? What are you thinking?"

Dean Charlie took a deep breath, looked back at the king, and said, "Fine, tomorrow it is, tomorrow at 9 a.m., the third battle. Now, release Miss Barbara immediately! Immediately!"

He understood what Andrew had in mind—

In simple terms, the king insisted on a one-day delay to buy the Magic Guild time.

Yorkshire was practically impossible to pair with Capella for the third competition. For the Magic Guild to win, they needed new personnel to team up with Capella. Such as the Second Saint Son Tiago, or perhaps the extremely mysterious First Saint Son rumored to be even stronger than Capella.

"Undoubtedly, if the battle is tomorrow, the Magic Guild can definitely regroup," Andrew was well aware, but still believed it was okay to delay until then because: "On our side, we can also use this extra day to make crucial preparations!"

Water and Fire United.

Previously, every instance of Water and Fire United was just rough collaboration driven by instinct between Barbara and himself.

Now, both he and Barbara, with Yorkshire as their trial stone, have confirmed individually that they each deserve the moniker of "Tier Four prodigy" in terms of strength.

Next, it was only natural to practice their cooperation, truly honing combat collaboration of "Water and Fire United," rather than relying mostly on instinct or ambiguous concepts of rough collaboration as before.