While the euphoria filled Thersland, Theo and his teammates couldn't share the same joy because their focus was on Nella Griffith and her team.
They competed in Block C, showing an unprecedented strength from the start.
What made them bewildered was the last battle between the three teams.
Unlike Theo's trick, Nella held the flag with a calm expression. She didn't even feel scared to declare, "None of you shall get this flag from my hand."
"Nonsense."
"Get her!"
All the other two teams focused on Nella while the rest of her team faced their opponents in a 1 vs 2 situation.
Even Nella needed to face two people. One was the leader of Brazil Team while the other one was Vietnam Team's leader.
Brazil Team Leader raised his hand and covered it with a yellow glow, heading straight to Nella. Vietnam Team Leader, on the other hand, summoned a few light cubes in order to help the other guy.
Seeing the incoming attack, Nella remained uninterested. She simply raised her hand and waved it to the side.
Surprisingly, Brazil Team Leader was thrown to the side like Phyrill when they first met. After that, she stared at those few cubes before lifting her hand toward them.
Bam.
All the cubes exploded as if they hit something invisible.
She then moved to Brazil Team Leader, who was still lying on the ground. Placing her hand on his back, she released some sort of power. "Ha!"
Crack.
Bam.
The ground turned into a crater as Brazil Team Leader spat a mouthful of blood and fell unconscious. Even the referee quickly checked his condition and released him again after knowing it was just a minor injury.
However, everyone who watched her performance was simply tongue-tied.
Even Sheira dropped her jaw and stuttered. "This... This… This is madness. What is this? Nella Griffith has knocked out Brazil Team Leader with… with… It's not skill, right, Sir Diego?"
"Yes." Diego nodded with a serious expression. "I can't tell you much to avoid putting her at a disadvantage, but all I can say is it's an advanced technique, not a skill. I am sure that those who understand this technique will agree with me, she is an extremely talented young lady. Achieving that level of mastery at 17 years old, I am afraid only a few can be compared to her talent in this world. She is among the best younger generation all around the world. That I can say with confidence."
"However, her face and her name remind me of Theodore Griffith. I happen to hear that they have met and the latter claims he is her cousin. What do you think about this, Sir Diego? Why would both of them represent two countries? If they're together, I am afraid…" She fell silent and turned serious.
Diego had a mysterious look in his eyes but shrugged his shoulders. "They must have a family problem. We shouldn't say anything about it here. But if they're indeed together, this year will certainly become a huge mess. Haha. I don't know if I should hope for them together or not."
Hearing Diego's remark, all of them began to whisper to each other their views about Nella. After all, Nella showed extraordinary prowess that impressed Diego.
While they were chatting with each other, Theo suddenly rose from his seat and stared at her dumbfoundedly. Although he couldn't feel it, he somehow understood a little bit of its mystery.
"Instructor… That is Force Control… Isn't it?"
"Ehm, no. I am not a master of "Control" so I can't say much regarding this technique. However, I am confident that this is a combination of Soft and Force Control and a high-level one at that. I can't replicate it though, so don't ask me about such a thing. Maybe I can gather some information from the country, but we will see…" Radvils explained with a serious expression.
"Soft and Force Control." Theo furrowed his eyebrows and looked at Ellen, who shook her head, clueless.
"Still, what a monster. 17 years old with that kind of control, are you sure you're related by blood?" Radvils glanced at Theo.
"You tell me." Theo shook his head helplessly. Nella's confidence might not be exaggerated. After all, she hadn't used a single skill, yet, already overpowered her enemy. "Haha."
Theo came to a realization and thought, 'I can see it now. Awareness, Breathing, Control, Technique, and Endurance. It seems I can see all those advanced types in this competition. I remember the nun from yesterday could see with a blindfold… her Awareness may have advanced to Nella's level of Control too.
'Now, I am looking forward to seeing the advanced type of Breathing, Technique, and Endurance. I wonder if I should be hoping for this or not since it will certainly burden me in the competition.'
Theo couldn't help but let out the same stare as when he pressured the others to keep evolving. Even if it was not directed to them, Alea and the others could feel it as well.
Theo had set his sight on Nella next. If they couldn't show their improvement, Theo might be disappointed in them and simply throw them away.
This created another layer of pressure in their hearts as all of them turned serious, staring at Nella as if saying, "I won't lose."
The battle continued for a while, but as one would expect, none of them managed to snatch the flag from Nella's hand. They even regained their advantage when Nella defeated the two leaders.
Those from the United Kingdom cheered for Nella's strong appearance. They all knew about her reputation there, so they already expected Nella to do such a thing.
Although they were outshined by Nella, the rest of the team also had overwhelming power, becoming one of the favorite teams in this competition.
Even if they didn't want to admit it, Nella had more impact than Italy or Theo, but it didn't necessarily mean her win was guaranteed.
However, like Theo and his group, other countries began their discussion on how to deal with Nella after she showed such prowess. As Diego said, only a few of them might have the chance to compete with her.