They seemed to make the wrong decision at every turn. They were sending themselves straight on route to the strongest team in the rankings. With a tier 4 on your team, no matter what talent would immediately put you on par with the weakest Heri team. Even the lowest Heri team would wreak havoc on that battlefield, able to steamroll over all the other groups. It wouldn't even be a competition.

The team with the Tier 4 was in a very similar position. Barring any unnatural luck against them, there were very few teams out there who would be any threat at all.

Ben's team continued on their path, away from any nearby flags and straight towards an extremely tough fight. With Ben's abilities, I could see ways they could win, but the reality was that it would be a challenging endeavor.

It would require incredibly favorable environments, of which there were very little around what was going to be the most likely meeting spot for the two teams. So it would be a straight-up clash between the two teams. I couldn't help but worry about him. I had almost gotten used to the idea of facing Ben in the Heti cullins after his display in the qualification matches. If they were on that path with the tier 4 and were knocked out from the beginning. It would all be decided in the next few minutes.

They quickly approached the same location, they hadn't noticed each other yet, but it would only be a matter of time. Neither of them had any extraordinary scouting abilities, so there was every chance they would miss each other, which was the only thing I could hope for that they would pass peacefully and go in different directions.

That was never going to happen though, soon they had found each other and were feeling each other out, I was surprised with how conservative the Tier 4 was being in the engagement, he was keeping far behind any other member of the team.

He was trying to conserve energy for fights where he was needed. The rest of the team around him was one of the strongest as well. So the tactic should work for them.

My summons was skittering around excitedly around the broadcast. I had to calm them. To focus on the match. Ever since they had evolved and became far more adept and intelligent, as well as gaining a more comprehensive range of scouting abilities, they were never happy with staying in one place, no matter what they were watching.

That momentary distraction almost made me miss the start of the conflict. Ben's team went on the offensive.

Two offensive mages shot huge beams of fire towards the opposition. They responded well, their defensive specialists immediately raising walls around the team. One of earth and the other of sand. A variant of earth. It was quite rare. Usually not appearing in defensive mages as well. A strange combination.

The offensive was stopped, but it allowed Ben's team to position itself to press on the attack. Ben began strafing to the side. Magic was already beginning to spring up around him as the gas spread.

He was quickly bouncing around between the trees, keeping the majority of the enemy squad within eyeshot. The seeker broadcasting the fight on Ben's side was quick to follow him; they had recognized him as the most likely mvp of the team.

Other fights were breaking out all over the stadium. The main screen was showing a battle between three high rated squads fighting over a single flag. The battle was very intense. Even with the intensity, I would think they would soon be switching to the fight between the Tier 4 and Ben. Two big talking points in the lead up to the group stage.

As if the producers were listening to me. The fight between the three squads came to a climax, with one of the teams escaping with the flag. They moved the main screen on to the battle between the two squads.

Ben had kept quiet in the engagement, much as he did for the qualifying matches. The rest of the team was keeping the enemies engaged. The tier 4 had yet to make a move. I would guess he was waiting for the right moment to strike when the tier 4 started moving.

If his gas only affected the mages who had used magic, then the tier 4 would still have a great chance of taking out quite a few of Ben's team. So the wait was necessary. Letting the rest of his team do the work—the perfect assassin in that way. I had never seen him in that kind of light before the destruction of our town. He had lost his parents in an extremely brutal fashion. That would change a man, no matter who he was before.

That moment was looking less and less likely to come; however, Ben's team was failing to push the others to resort to their trump card. So he was forced to go into action early with his swift decision to begin moving towards the opposite team. He seemed to go nearly incorporeal. That was a new move. Not entirely unexpected for his element. His talent to be able to do something like that so early was what was impressive.

Gas began to spread around the opposite team, soon turning opaque. The eyes of the opposing team soon began to widen as they realized who they were going up against. They desperately tried to push the gas away through air magic but to no avail.

They soon began clawing at their stomachs as the gas started to take hold.

That was when the Tier 4 decided to step in.

The trees around Ben and his squad seemed to come to life, they ripped themselves up from the ground, their bark twisting into a disgusting facsimile of faces. He had brought life to the woods, and they were angry. They let loose a silent roar and began to attack.