Daniel widened his eyes, jerking his head in the direction of Blake. "You mean the magicians back in the day—Invoker?"
"You mean… The greatest power came from knowledge and memory?" Chloe's lips then parted, trembling so hard.
"Wasn't the art of memorization obsolete? Now that we have technology that advanced by leaps and bounds, it made things easier and convenient." Chloe tilted her head.
"I agree, more often than not, we have some mnemonic devices that aid information for every spell's magical sequence therein."
Chloe retorted at Russell, "The items we have today could do more than just for mnemonics—!"
'What are they even thinking? I know that just as much.' She rolled her eyes as she rested her palm on her chin. 'I did a great revamp for education regarding the magic system in my empire.'
"All of them are correct, but it could work weirdly for Miss Ana." Brenov cleared his throat with his hands laid at the back. "With your state, you could vaguely see her mana capacity."
"It's as small as my fist…" Daniel seemed to have lost his voice as dread washed his spine, and so does the rest of his team.
Charlotte prattled next, "B—But look! Her mana may be small, but it looks compact at the center—however, all over her figure contained nothing but pitch black!"
"I'm not sure if you're all aware, but…"
"Analysis."
'That's a low baritone voice, who could—' Anasthasia glanced the same direction as they did. There, she sized him up. 'He's slightly taller than Russell, but his physique is comparable to Blake's. His stowed shield and ax suits him well.'
Blake grinned in his response. "That's somehow close but not quite, Ind."
Anasthasia saw his onyx eyes widened from Blake's feedback. He shifted slightly to the side, which had his bronze skin glistened under the sun. Gone is the shadow he cast unto them.
'My, I rarely notice this man earlier despite his figure.'
"Analysis…" Anasthasia muttered and flickered her eyes, "How did you come up with that?"
Ind began to roll his shoulders and crossed his arms. "The recent fight, in retrospect, had me think of it." She noticed how his clothes seemed too fit for his stature.
Brenov, this time, beckoned Anasthasia. She also leaned closer to hear his whisper, "Miss Ana, both Chloe, and Ind belong to special classification. In this institution, Ind has a near indication as Abjurers; meanwhile, Chloe's powers remained unknown as she doesn't fit any of the classifications."
With her nodding, she hummed and modulated back her voice as she avowed, "Why don't we test out?"
"You mean their two powers altogether?"
"Sure, Brenov. Let's get to it—"
"Without any weapons?"
"I'll use 'Seraphine' this time."
Anasthasia removed the cloak unto her and asked Blake, "May you hold this for a while?"
Just like the first time they saw her appearance, they deemed awestruck to the core. They blinked a couple of times as they stared at her chic choice of outfit.
'They couldn't take off their eyes of my outfit.' She giggled inside. She rummaged in her pocket and retrieved the old ceramic in her hands. Before they could react, she arced her hand midair as she implored the call.
The sudden warmth pulsed through them all once more and 'Seraphine' transformed. They could see how Anasthasia twisted her heel, turning around with grace. She held 'Seraphine' in her hands, so regal that they assumed her as a majestic lady.
'I miss this feeling.' She turned his head to the side, closing her eyes as she felt every beat of a warm embrace from 'Seraphine.'
"I think I'm ready—"
"So breathtaking…" Daniel uttered that his voice toned so hoarse without any hesitation while his grey eyes gleamed brightly from her reflection. They all nodded, unable to refute his remark.
White feathers continued to flutter, by and by; they fell onto the marble floor.
Anasthasia flashed a meek smile. "Shall we start now?"
"Miss Ana, you still have soft white feathers in your head and on your shoulder."
"Thank you for that, Charlotte." Anasthasia patted her hand, dusting off the feathers and smoothed down her skirt. It took her time to notice her wrists aglow with bright light, forming long striking feathers.
"You also have those beautiful features on your footwear—No! Your ankles, rather."
She peered downward; it meshed well on her wrist. She tried to move around, and she almost tripped herself from the lightweight.
'So it begins…'
"You use staff…"
"Yes, Daniel. What of it?"
"Nothing…" He averted his gaze, scratching his nape. He gave up the notion to say words further.
Anasthasia sashayed her way to the center of the training ground. The last clack on her shoe cued for her to turn around, facing them with hand on her hip. She noticed the feathers regenerate as it, in due time, fell on the ground, which left her trail of bright feathers.
"Go on, Chloe and Ind." She beckoned with her fingers. The two of them looked at each other, nodding, then dashed.
In a surprise, she took a glimpse at their position. Their momentum continued to build up, and the sensations only continued to tingle her. She pointed 'Seraphine' unto them, revealing an intense beam of light—in a blink of an eye, it penetrated Chloe, but nothing took effect.
'Oh, I see…' She looked heavenward, admiring the scorching heat. 'We shall play with your games.' That in mind, she raised her staff and glimmered.
'Prominence!'
"What the hell is this? It looks like we're in the desert!" Daniel covered his face from the intense heat.
Brenov, on the other hand, was quick to move and created a barrier of water as they spectated the area.
Anasthasia, with the power to refract the power of light in the area, took hold of the initial advantage. She's in her domain, prowling close to them.
Chloe and Ind didn't fare any better as they profuse a lot of sweat, breathing raggedly in their place.
"What's going on, Ind?!"
"Wait, give me time. I'm finding ways!" Ind scowled and glared at Anastasia's previous position. He then raised his ax as a magic array formed above him.
'He's trying to reverse the spells' magic sequences. As if I'd let you.'
Anasthasia danced her fingers, but Ind got a hold of her presence.
"Quick! She's on the left side!" Ind set out a wave of holographic light, "Detection!"
Which caught Anasthasia off guard, and her vague figure slowly revealed her position.
"Thanks!"
'This is annoying.' Anasthasia clicked her tongue, noticing Chloe's approach. 'You aren't the only one who could manipulate illusions!'
Chloe pounced to her location with gleaming daggers on her hands and slashed halfway only to slice futilely in thin air. Her neck quivered, which made her roll sideways. Her eyes almost gouged out from the wind spikes that puncture the ground.
She faded into nothingness right after.
'Zephyr's Kiss!'
Anasthasia dashed away, creating a distance. She slowly tapped the floor and made a decoy, then ran to the other area.
Ind frowned from the sight of her illusions as they deemed too real—some of them charged his way while the rest took a pose and cast a spell. Imminent danger loomed him, clenching his teeth.
"Aftershock!"
He stomped the ground, sending tremors that caused recurring tides on the now cracked marble floor. This interrupted and offset Anasthasias' illusions.
Still, not enough, he roared aloud, leaving everything in chaos.
"Lion's Roar!"
Before the deadly roar reached Anasthasia, she turned visible and sang out a siren melody. Both sound waves collide with each other, creating a tremendous shockwave.
Chloe, taking advantage of the propelling wave, she glided and went after her neck.
To her greed, she slashed another clone and left her vulnerable midair. Her eyes widened as she saw flying debris at her. She could only cover herself.
Chloe screamed from pain, louder than ever before, as stone marbles took a direct hit on her petite body. Fortunately, her momentum halted from Ind's grasp while he cast a barrier in front of him, deflecting the stones.
"That...hurt…" She groaned.
"She's not an easy opponent." Ind squinted his eyes, "I'm super close to this—"
Anasthasia cast and sent multiple spells, constantly bombarding their way. Thuds on the barrier grew stronger.
"Done!" Ind cheered. Seeing how he broke it off, the scorching heat slowly vanished. He sent out a gush of water unto Chloes' arms and healed.
"The tables have been turned!" Chloe felt a hard lump stuck on her throat as she witnessed. "Or so we thought…"
Anasthasia danced to the side, tossing the staff midair. On her whim, she stopped her tracks and pointed her hand on both of them.
The prism found on 'Seraphine' glimmered, shooting three beams of light to the ground.
"Dodge!" Ind bellowed. He attempted to block using his defenses and barrier but led to no avail—shattered like broken glass.
"Now, we shall dance!" Anasthasia revealed a grin.