Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix

With their battle plan established and roles assigned, a newfound determination coursed through the group. Rain and his comrades fully grasped the gravity of their situation and recognized the need to give their utmost effort. The enemy at their doorstep left no room for complacency, and every second counted.

The sense of urgency was palpable, propelling them to a swift resolution. They understood that their loved one\'s safety and the fate of their homeland hung in the balance. This awareness served as a potent motivator, spurring them to work more efficiently and tirelessly than ever before.

"This is better than before, but aren\'t you trying to do more than you can handle?" Branden asked.

"It is just damage mitigation, nothing else," Rain replied. "It will be worse for me if I have to worry about others instead of taking the damage myself."

"Speaking of damage mitigation, are we going to attack them at night?" Branden asked. "If your waves could reach that far, we would be able to cause a lot of damage to their resources."

"They are probably waiting for that, so it is better that we don\'t," Rain said. "Besides, they could have a red crystal somewhere, and that would only make us waste mana. Instead of that, I have some other ideas."

Rain shaded his battle plans with Branden, and he nodded. While neither of them liked to play defensively, they knew that they could cause a lot of mental damage to the enemies if they kept repelling them. They only need to endure the situation for a while until they reach their results to some extent.

In the end, the day passed without any issues, and then the night came. The group went to rest soon after dinner, but Rain woke them up around midnight when a lot of the enemy soldiers began to move.

"It seems that they aren\'t joking, and they want to defeat us as soon as possible…" Jori said while showing a serious look. "Are you sure that they just want to prevent us from interfering in the war in the west?"

"That should be their secondary goal, I guess," Rain said. "Anyway, assume positions. This is the chance that we have been waiting for."

As the enemy forces advanced, a sense of tension permeated the camp. Rain\'s group swiftly assumed their designated positions, determination evident on their faces. Rain\'s keen instincts detected the presence of Seadir and the others, who remained concealed while observing the unfolding battle.

It was clear that they harbored doubts about their ability to repel the approaching enemies. However, Rain was resolute in his goal to prove their capabilities and demonstrate that underestimating them would be a serious mistake. The time had come to dispel any doubts and unite for the impending confrontation.

Rain didn\'t see the five soldiers of Joanis, so it seemed that they wanted to make use of the chaos of the battle. Rain smirked while imagining their fate… it seemed that they saw themselves as immortals that get stronger as they die, but they lacked the creativity to know that there are things worse than death…

The enemy army advanced methodically, each soldier gripping a towering shield firmly in hand. It was apparent that they had prepared themselves to withstand the wave that Rain had unleashed earlier. However, they remained unaware that Rain had no intention of being the one to repeat such an attack.

Their disciplined march and the junction of their shield formation painted a picture of determined resilience, suggesting that they were willing to endure whatever challenges lay ahead.

When they were fifty meters away from the waterway, Dana, Kei, and Gila raised the spear and then used their mana to control the water around them. Before long, a wave as big as the one that Rain created earlier moved toward the enemies, but the soldiers didn\'t move an inch.

Much to everyone\'s surprise, when the wave was about to crush the enemy soldiers, the water suddenly stopped around them and began to circulate them… before long, everyone could see a long wind barrier circulating the one thousand soldiers that came to attack at night…

"As expected, they brought some mages to counter it," Rain said. "Branden… it is your turn."

Branden nodded, and then he pointed his hands toward the wave around the enemies. Before long, the water began to circulate and cover the entire wind barrier, and when that happened, Branden used his magic to freeze all of it.

The temperature in the area began to drop, and the enemies soon realized the trap that they set for themselves when they began to tremble thanks to the cold. The mages of their group made the wind barrier explode.

Some of the ice scattered around, and some cracks were formed on the ice around them as well. The mages used their magic to melt the ice around them as fast as possible, but that had been a mistake since it created a wave of steam that covered them.

Thanks to that, the enemies began to retreat slowly while waiting for some sort of ambush, but after several minutes, it never came… before long, they began to hear some commotion coming from behind, and soon they found that an area of their camp was on fire… it seemed that Roan, Jori, and Reca managed to achieve their first goal…

"It seems that those guys weren\'t there… Where are they?" Rain thought while looking around.