((All out? What exactly does that entail?)) Koda thought as he watched Tayuya turn and mutter something to Mantle. ((If they team up then even second gear might not be enough to win. My chances of fleeing are even slimmer if they get serious about fighting me.))
Koda was beginning to get a little pissed off at this point. What had started out as a simple shopping trip had turned into a full-on brawl in the middle of the Market. Though everyone nearby had fled the scene long before, the damage already done to the various buildings was nothing to scoff at. If he was caught by the Guardians here then they would no doubt include him in the punishment despite having merely defended himself. If that happened then he could very well receive a brutal lashing for breaking into the Lana Realm even though he had been banned.
"Look, I just want to leave," Koda said, still trying to remain reasonable. He really wanted to leave as staying would cause problems not only for him but also for his friends as well. He refused to let Vex and Aria take the consequences for him as he knew they would. "The Guardians will have detected the spikes in magic. They'll be here any minute, so continuing to fight would be foolish. Try and be sensible."
Tayuya merely laughed, his purple eyes twinkling as magic began to build up around him. "The Guardians won't be coming here for quite some time so there's no need to worry. Relax and let's have some fun! The thrill of fighting a worthy opponent excites me! It gets me charged up! I don't even know your name but I DO know that me and you are gonna fight!"
((Guess reasoning doesn't work on battle obsessed freak. Royals are a pain to deal with.)) Koda sighed inwardly as he proceeded to take a deep breath. ((Okay, if what he said is true about the Guardians not showing up until later, then I won't hold back. I'll knock out the lackey first then worry about dealing with the battle freak.))
"Second Gear- Downpour."
Koda closed his eyes as the condensed magic surrounding him exploded outwards once again, causing all nearby windows to shatter into pieces. The aura which had been a dark black color previously was now a shade of sea green, a brilliant color that was rather pretty to look at. Needless to say, Tayuya and Mantle were silent as they watched Koda with different looks. A look of shock from Mantle and an expression of delight on Tayuya.
"Okay Mantle, let's do it!" Tayuya said as he got into a fighting stance.
Mantle nodded as he bent his knees, recovering his composure. "Just give the order young master."
"I guess we gotta do things the hard way." Koda reached towards his biceps and pulled out his twin daggers from their sheaths. "I'll also be hitting you with everything I got; prepare yourselves!"
"Go!"
With that simple command, the fight commenced. Now, however, Koda had to deal with a powerful duo possessing two of the fastest attributes of all the elements. Even if he used third gear, victory was uncertain as he raised up a lightning shield to block Mantle when he appeared beside him while simultaneously fending off Tayuya's punch with the flat of his black dagger.
"You're better than I thought." Tayuya smiled as he twisted around and attempted to slam the heel of his foot into Koda's leg. The attack however merely bounced off a small shield of electricity that appeared just in time. "But how long can you split your focus I wonder?"
Koda grit his teeth as he began to struggle, completely on the defensive as he blocked and dodged attacks that came at a rapid-fire pace. Even with his speed enhanced with second gear, the royal Tayuya and the noble Mantle easily kept pace with him and even began to make headway as the strikes and blows kept coming. All Koda could do was defend and dodge, having no time to even consider a counter.
The two of them had obviously worked together before as each of their attacks were in perfect sync, complimenting each other with little to no flaws. Each time Koda would get an opening to fight back, either Tayuya or Mantle would cover it by speeding up their striking speed. Using this strategy, occasional blows and strikes would end up glancing off Koda, causing him to lose focus and allow more attacks to get through.
"DAMN IT!" Koda yelled as he stopped moving, thrusting his arms outwards, finally having enough. "BACK UP! Strepitus Aquae (Water Explosion)!"
Both Tayuya and Mantle were blasted backward before they could even react, swatted away by a literal wall of water erupting from the aura surrounding Koda. The water gushed forth as if fired from multiple cannons, splashing everything in a fifty-meter radius.
Koda stood up straight, finally able to take a breath. If he had let the attacks continue, he would have lost without having even attacked a single time. He was lucky that he had activated his Downpour Gear otherwise he'd have been easily overwhelmed. Of course, by using his water spell, the two battle freaks now knew the secret of his gears. Even if they didn't, it wouldn't take a genius to figure out that each gear allowed him to access different elements and spells. Though unless he told them, they wouldn't be able to figure out that he gained a boost in magic and physical abilities.
Tayuya was the first to stand back on his feet, his bright purple eyes actually sparkling with excitement. It was clear that instead of confusion, he was actually happy that the youth in front of him could use more than one element. To say that this royal was beginning to freak Koda out was putting it lightly as he began to suspect some mental issues.
"That is so awesome! You can use more than one element!? Can you use more than one spell? Can you use more elements with more gears? How strong are you really?" Tayuya looked ready to burst, a bright smile on his face. Koda was now certain that this kid was mentally unstable.
Mantle took a long time getting up, having appeared directly in the blast of water. It was clear that he was slightly unnerved at the concept of more than one element, but he still stood up and returned to a fighting stance. "Master Tayuya, what are your orders? Attack? Retreat?"
"Let's give it another go!" Tayuya let his electricity spark around him once again, the lightning now even stronger than before. "Force him to go all out."
"Okay. I'll go all out then," Mantle said as he raised his hands to the sky. "Sagittae Lux (Arrows of Light)!"
Far above Koda's head, pricks of light began to form rapidly, taking the forms of arrows before shooting down towards the young man with speed almost impossible to trace. Without even thinking, Koda formed a lightning shield above him, blocking out the majority of the arrows, with only one of them piercing through the layer of lightning and running straight through his leg.
Searing pain shot up his entire body, making the shield dissolve back into magic. If Kuu or Julia had been there, they could have healed him from afar. However, since he was alone, he could only bear with the pain and push onwards.
"I've hindered his mobility," Mantle said proudly as he lowered his arms. "Should I leave the rest to you, sir?"
"Of course. Just stay back for now. Fulgur Gradus (Lightning Step)." Tayuya disappeared and reappeared in front of Koda, taking the youth by surprise as he slammed his fist into the jaw of his opponent.
With his mobility limited, Koda struggled to regain his defense and raise up his shields. However, each time he raised up a shield of water or lightning, it would be torn apart by a light arrow fired by Mantle. Each time he tried to utilize his daggers, they would be swatted aside by the back of Tayuya's hand before the other hand slammed into his stomach, jaw, or temple.
"You're done!" Tayuya said as he raised his fist for the final strike, prepared to knock out a dazed Koda with a well-placed punch. "Say goodnight."
"Third Gear- Scorch"
The magical aura surrounding Koda immediately turned from a beautiful sea green to a blistering shade of red, a color that expanded towards Tayuya.
To the young royals surprise, the aura was packing a lot of heat, so much so that he had to retreat to keep from being burned. The aura flickered around like a living flame as Tayuya watched the young man in front of him stand recovering, standing up straight without even the slightest hint of an injured leg. Though he had previously been getting pummeled into the dirt, the boy now looked quite literally like a whole new person.
The previous hairstyle, the same one Tayuya had, was gone, leaving the youth with bright red hair, the same color as the shifting aura covering him. His facial structure had changed into that of someone who was somewhat younger with a much colder expression, a look of genuine anger on his face. To top it all of, the magic he was giving off was simply staggering, tons of it just leaking out without end.
((Just how much magic does he have?)) Tayuya had to cover his eyes as the hot wind coming off of Koda was overwhelming. ((His magic capacity must be on par with a royals. No, it should be on par with an elf.))
Magic capacity, the internal storage unit for magic that everyone possessed. The larger one had, the more magic could be stored within it and the more magic one could potentially tap into. Magic Capacity started growing since birth and would keep expanding, only stopping around the age of 20. The storage differed from person to person but magic capacity was usually pretty large, especially in regards to royals whose magical storage was way above average. However, the largest magic capacity of all the races were the elves, a race who could wield magic unlike any other.
For someone at such a young age to let off as much magic as Koda, it was on the level of an elf around the same age. More and more magic poured out as the youth finally made a move, causing both Tayuya and Mantle to flinch.
"I didn't want to have to use this Gear," Koda said, his voice carrying anger and hostility. "I told you to stop, again and again, holding back because I didn't want to hurt you or damage this Market. However, I've changed my mind. Today you feel the result of having angered a future Legend."