Clara's robe of shifting elents flared as she cast another spell, this ti weaving fire and water together in a way that shouldn't have been possible. The result was a roaring steam explosion that surged toward , a boiling mix of scalding vapor and raw force.
I countered quickly, summoning a wall of wind with a three-circle spell to disperse the steam. The barrier held, but barely. The sheer complexity of her attacks was forcing to think faster and act smarter with each passing mont.
"Not bad," Clara said, her tone carrying the sa lazy amusent as before, though her movents were anything but sluggish. She flicked her wrist, and two new spells ford in tandem—one a spiraling vortex of wind, the other a sharp, crackling spear of lightning. They shot toward in perfect sync.
I cast Fla Lance again, this ti aiming it to intercept the lightning spear. The fire and electricity clashed violently, sparks and embers scattering across the battlefield. At the sa ti, I used a burst of wind to dodge the vortex, landing with a roll just out of its range.
Despite the fact that I was high Silver-rank to her mid Silver-rank, her Gift more that closed gap. Her spells were calculated and layered, each one forcing to respond in a way that left open to the next.
I retaliated with a four-circle fire spell, Inferno Wave, sending a scorching arc of flas surging toward her. She didn't even flinch, raising her hand and conjuring a wall of water that swallowed the flas whole. The steam hissed and evaporated, leaving the battlefield montarily shrouded in a thick mist.
"You're slipping," Clara said, her voice coming from sowhere in the fog. "I thought you'd put up more of a fight, given your rank. Maybe I overestimated you."
I gritted my teeth, ignoring the taunt. She wasn't wrong—I was losing ground. Her Gift, Sorcerer's Right, was turning this into a battle of creativity and control, not raw power, and in that departnt, she was leagues ahead.
But there was one thing she'd underestimated: my ability to think on my feet.
'Alright, let's change the ga,' I thought. As Clara's silhouette appeared through the mist, weaving another spell, I activated Lucent Harmony. The air around shimred with a faint golden glow as I tapped into the precise, disciplined flow of light mana.
She noticed imdiately. Her eyes narrowed as she finished casting a five-circle spell of her own—a crackling web of lightning that spread out across the ground like a trap, forcing to keep my distance.
"You've got sothing up your sleeve, huh?" she said, her voice a mix of curiosity and caution.
"Sothing like that," I replied, focusing my mana into a single, concentrated point. Light spells were all about precision, and this one had to count. I poured everything into the casting, forming a five-circle light spell: Radiant Spear.
The glowing spear of pure light took shape above , radiating heat and power as it humd with concentrated energy. Clara's expression shifted, the casual amusent giving way to genuine surprise.
"Wait—" she started, but it was too late.
I unleashed the spear, sending it hurtling toward her at blinding speed. Clara's instincts kicked in, and she threw up a shield of combined wind and earth mana, but it wasn't enough. The Radiant Spear pierced through, shattering the barrier and exploding in a flash of golden light.
When the dust settled, Clara was lying flat on her back, her robe of elental mana flickering faintly as she groaned. Her Evolver humd softly, tallying her points and transferring them to .
"I knew I shouldn't have agreed to this fight," she muttered, shielding her eyes from the sunlight as she sat up. "I swear, every ti I try to have fun, it bites in the ass."
I stepped forward, catching my breath, the faint hum of the Evolver at my hip reminding that I'd secured the win. Clara's own Evolver activated with a low, chanical hum as the tally began. A soft light enveloped her, numbers flickering briefly in the air.
1000 Points.
The confirmation appeared on my own Evolver screen, the points transferring to seamlessly. I exhaled slowly, my grip on the lingering traces of my light mana finally relaxing. Clara Lopez, Mid Silver-rank, worth 1,000 points. Not bad at all.
And with that, she vanished, her Evolver completing the teleport and leaving nothing behind but a faint wisp of mana and the sll of singed grass.
I stood there for a mont, staring at the empty space where she'd been. Sothing about this didn't sit right. Clara wasn't the type to pick random fights, not even during the mid-terms. Her laid-back nature made her unlikely to seek out challenges unless there was sothing—or soone—behind it.
'Who could've put her up to this?' I wondered, the thought nagging at the back of my mind. Clara's comnts had been flippant, but there was always an undercurrent of truth buried in her teasing. Maybe she had been testing for herself, or maybe soone else had nudged her in my direction. Either way, it didn't feel random.
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anwhile, deep within the forest, two blurs of crimson and gold darted through the canopy, clashing with enough force to send shockwaves rippling through the trees. Birds scattered, leaves burned, and the unfortunate squirrels who had made this part of the forest their ho probably reconsidered every life choice that had led them there.
"Ray-Ray, are you that mad at ?" Cecilia called out, her voice laced with mock concern as a shimring crimson shield sprang into existence in front of her, effortlessly deflecting a barrage of light rays that Rachel hurled her way.
"Cecilia Slatemark!" Rachel snapped, her voice ringing out like divine judgnt, "For daring to say that, I will kill you!"
"Aww, but what did I even do?" Cecilia replied, her tone infuriatingly sweet as she pressed her palms together. Crimson mana crackled around her fingers before exploding outward, conjuring dozens of spears that hovered ominously in the air. Except, as usual with Cecilia's magic, these weren't just ordinary spears. No, these were chaos-infused monstrosities, their power and speed utterly random, as though even the laws of mana themselves couldn't decide what they were supposed to do.
Cecilia smirked as she launched the chaotic barrage. "Wait, wait, I know what this is about! It's because Arthur almost found out your embarrassing little secret, isn't it? Riiight~?"
Rachel's face froze into a mask of icy fury, her wings flaring behind her as golden feathers materialized in the air. With a flick of her wrist, the feathers shot forward, precise and glowing, slicing through Cecilia's unpredictable spears like they were paper mache.
"This is dangerous," Cecilia admitted under her breath, her eyes narrowing as she exhaled onto her palm. Flas blossod instantly, wrapping around her hand before spreading outward, forming a blazing defense that scorched the incoming feathers to ash.
"No secret!" Rachel shouted, her voice carrying the weight of righteous indignation. "You pranked !"
With a flash of light, she reappeared behind Cecilia, a massive golden hamr now in her hands. It radiated holy mana, glowing with an intensity that could have made lesser mortals rethink their life choices.
"Oh, you have to be kidding !" Cecilia screeched, twisting her body just in ti to narrowly avoid the hamr's downward swing. The sheer force of it cratered the ground beneath them, sending debris flying. "What kind of Saintess smashes people with a goddamn hamr!?"
"Evil! You're evil!" Rachel yelled, her voice high with fury as she swung the hamr again, her wings propelling her forward with terrifying speed.
Cecilia grimaced, summoning her crimson mana into her left hand. It crackled and twisted, shaping itself into a wicked-looking pitchfork that glimred ominously. With a yell of effort, she brought it up just in ti to et Rachel's hamr head-on.
BOOM.
The two weapons collided, releasing a shockwave that rippled through the forest, uprooting shrubs and sending nearby trees swaying precariously. For a mont, neither girl moved, their weapons locked in a tense standoff, sparks of mana flying in every direction.
"Thank god you don't know how to swing properly," Cecilia muttered under her breath, her muscles straining as she fought against the overwhelming force of Rachel's hamr.
Rachel's eyes glowed with golden light as she pressed forward, the weight of her resolve as heavy as the hamr itself. "You will repent!" she yelled, her tone leaving absolutely no room for argunt.
Cecilia, despite the dire situation, couldn't help but smirk. "Repent? For what? For being right?"
Rachel's furious growl echoed through the forest as the clash intensified, neither girl willing to give an inch. It wasn't a battle of strategy or cunning—it was pure chaos. And in a way, that made it all the more dangerous.
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