Eliot and Lucas were about to face off against each other. Eliot looked angry but serious, Lucas knew he wasn't about to be careless. This was a fight where Lucas had to genuinely try his best, or he would probably die. In most fights, the person would be knocked off or be unconscious, but knowing Eliot, he was going for the kill.
Lucas didn't have a choice, there were no tricks, there were no schemes. It was a fight of pure ability. He knew this was inevitable, he even planned for it. But when he reached this point, he wasn't sure that it would all turn out the way he wanted to.
'Take a deep breath, I'll take over when I see that you can't handle things anymore. For now, I'll try to call out things I notice.'
Lucas prepared himself, he was thinking back to the monstrous wolf he fought last night. He believed that whatever Eliot showed, he would figure out some kind of tactic to win or at least survive.
The host let them have their little dispute since he could see that the crowd was interested, but now that they positioned themselves it was time for him to come take the spotlight once more.
"Well well well, what a heated little debacle that was, huh? Who is going to win this time? Are you a follower of Eliot, a young noble who has shown his prowess through the tests and his incredible results? Or will the dark horse and tactician Conrad win this fight? Don't forget to bet before the match starts, or you won't participate."
After waiting for a bit he counted down the fight.
"And FIGHT!"
But Lucas and Eliot stayed on their respective places. The audience was interested, even the higher ranking mages looked forward to the duel. They were mostly here to see what the older students had, but to their surprise there were a lot of potential candidates in the first years. They could only start advertising their group after the duels, so they had been holding back.
Both Eliot and Lucas were waiting for the other person to attack, the moment one of them started the other could start collecting information. The first step into a fight is to understand your opponent. Lucas learned this from Liam, his teacher at Havi's mansion, while Eliot learned it from Vires. Now it was time to see which teacher was the better one.
Eliot stayed calm, which annoyed Lucas, there was something he wanted to try though. They couldn't hold their position forever, someone had to move. Since Lucas had a small idea to surprise him, he started first.
He started to run towards Eliot without any kind of muscle strengthening. What he did do was prepare a spell. "Fireball!", he yelled while an above average ball of fire was sent to Eliot. There were many ways of conjuring magic, one of them was to associate the right runes to certain keywords. Lucas didn't use it often since he found it stupid, but it did help in hastening his attack.
"You dare use fire against me?!", Eliot immediately retaliated with an even bigger mass of flames, encapsulating Lucas attack and creating a massive explosion.
BOOM
'Just from his first attack it's clear, he used the same spell, but it was bigger. He's close to reaching Rank 2.'
'Back-up! Bottom left!'
Lucas didn't take even a split second to think it through, he completely trusted his own instincts and that was the right choice. From the explosion came multiple fireballs, most were sent wildly in his direction with only the one coming from the bottom right that was a threat. He wanted to use his sword to block the flames, but his sword was technically an artifact. Part of him got annoyed that he even brought it with him in the first place, but better safe than sorry.
Dodging the flames he quickly made a counterattack. "Field of Ice!", a combination of water, ice and wind started to turn the courtyard into a frozen mess. Eliot wasn't spared from the cold as water and ice started to rush towards him. He waved his hands and flames ravaged the ice and water, a massive amount of steam exploded into the air. Lucas didn't wait a second before pushing his attacks forward.
"Medium Lightning Bolt!", the bolt wasn't aimed properly at Eliot since he was surrounded by the mist, but he simply used his previous tactic that he used with the wolf.
BOOM
Another explosion occurred, but not due to Lucas's attack.
"Is this all you amount to? Is all you can do play tricks or are you actually weak!?"
Eliot wasn't the least bit wet as stationary fireballs surrounded him. The ground in front of him caught fire while he was protected by a wall of fire.
'His defense has increased, close quarter combat is out of the question, what do I do?'
'He's indeed protected, but it's not that he's invulnerable to fire.'
"Earth Wall!", a tall and broad wall shot out from the earth. Lucas rushed towards the base while strengthening his own muscles.
Boom
Hitting the bottom of the wall made it unstable enough to fall down right where Eliot was standing. With his attack he created an opening in the wall, optimal for aiming his next attack.
"I'm not done yet! Whirlwind!", Lucas conjured another spell that created a small whirlwind that only helped the flames spread out. Turning Eliot's defense into his own attack was the best thing he could think of at the moment. Eliot had to choose between keeping the flames under control or blocking the falling wall. Just like the wolf, he was stuck between a rock and a hard place.
"You think I'm afraid of some dirt?!", the only difference was that Eliot wasn't as confused as the berserk wolf was.
BOOM
Eliot blasted the pillar to bits with another explosion, the crowd was starting to get very interested. While Lucas stood not far from the mess of elements, all the water was gone, leaving rubble and flames to run amok. His mask displayed a smile, but Lucas was extremely focussed and serious. He knew Eliot wasn't going to be done with this, he could only hope that it drained some of his energy.
The dust settled, while Eliot walked towards Lucas. His clothes and face were covered in scratches and ash, but he didn't look badly injured.
'On to the second strategy.'
He needed to keep up his offense, or he would be in trouble the moment Eliot started to get serious.
"Earth Sword.", while he did say sword, it was more like a small pillar of condensed dirt. It wasn't sharp, but it would do some great blunt damage, which he was going for. Eliot didn't care for what Lucas conjured up, he was determined to beat him up.
"Sword of Flames.", Eliot summoned an actual sword of flames that fit right in his hand. Lucas was about to blurt out that he was cheating, not because he could create a better sword, but because his glove protected him from the fire. It wasn't an artifact, just clothing with a small form of protection, so it wasn't classified as a Rank 0 artifact, merely enchanted clothing.
Lucas got angry, yet he had to calm down. He waited for a few more seconds before pushing a ton of wind magicules out his back. Normally there wasn't a gateway there, luckily Lucas was different. With the wind pushing him forward and his own enhanced muscles, Lucas never moved so fast.
Even Eliot was surprised and quickly held his sword up to block the incoming attack.
"Activate Earth Spike!", during the sparse time Lucas had he created a simplified array on the ground that would form a spear-like pillar. Eliot sensed the magic behind him activate but didn't even bother looking back.
Crack
A magic shield he silently deployed blocked the pillar. Lucas rushed towards Eliot with the wind in his back and quickly shot a fireball in front of him. Dealing with two attacks should've been harder to deal with, but sadly.
"HYA!", Lucas used all his strength to swing his sword, but it was all for naught. "Kgh!"
Lucas flew back and needed a second to gain his stability. Looking up he saw Eliot in front of him with his sword of flames. "You're weak!"
SLASH
Lucas flew further back, the strength Eliot displayed wasn't something he could block. His "weapon" got broken in two. The gash on his chest left by Eliot's sword hurt like hell, yet Lucas was happy that it was immediately cauterized. During his fall, his mask cracked in certain places. His face was still hidden, but the smile on the mask looked even more unnatural.
Breathing was becoming a task for him, he felt like part of his lungs didn't want to work anymore. Seeing Eliot coming closer again, Lucas made sure to at least stand up.
"You manipulate others into failing.", a kick landed right in his stomach, making Lucas throw up on the spot. He had to hunch over to take a breather.
"The only reason you're even here is because you take advantage of others weaknesses.", another kick landed on his back. Eliot wasn't even trying to win the competition anymore. He simply kept kicking Lucas harder and harder.
"You're not worthy of being here! You're a lying sack of shit! You're nothing!", the kicks kept coming, and Lucas was starting to lose his composure.
'I give up, you do it!'
'I don't want to.'
'WHAT? Why not? We're in serious trouble now!'
'So what? My way of fighting is ruthless and brutal, so is my magic manipulation. If I use my fighting style I might be capable of pushing him back, but what's the point if you're weak? You're someone who focussed more on the fine manipulation of things, so why not do that? I'm glad to see that you're using some of my combined attacks to get an advantage, but that's my method, not yours.'
'What are you insinuating?'
'Look, I have my own style of fighting. You can take some of the tactics, sure, but that shouldn't dictate your fighting style. I know you like to focus on more political fights, but you can't forget that when our life is on the line, nothing matters. Forget about your reputation, forget about the shame, focus only on one thing, our victory. Let yourself be free.'
'... I'll try something, but first we need to get out of this!'
'No worries, let me just take control for a single second. I'll create space, then you'll finish things up.'
While Lucas was discussing on how to move forward, the kicks didn't stop. The audience and even the host started to lose interest and some were even worried about Lucas's health.
"ENOUGH OFF THIS!", everyone was surprised by the sudden scream of anger. Especially Eliot felt something very dangerous, Lucas's back suddenly felt hot.
BOOM!
Eliot jumped back and could only look in disbelief at the location where Lucas was just moments ago. 'His back lit up like an explosion? That doesn't make any sense! Only certain magical beast or monsters should have such an attack!', Eliot was perplexed.
"All right, enough of this garbage, it's time to finish this.", Lucas said with a sneer; which was totally out of place. Eliot felt like Lucas became a different person, but then he switched back to his previous demeanor.
"How did you do that just now!?"
"What are you talking about? Don't you know one of the most basic fire spells? I thought you were a top student, yet you can't even figure out how I did it? Pretty disappointing if you ask me."
"Shut up, I already beat you, give up, or I won't hold back anymore! You can't win against me!"
"Hahaha, you were holding back as well? Then let's stop holding back, otherwise it wouldn't be a fair fight, right?"
"Have you gone mad?", Eliot was seriously perplexed.
"Perhaps, but if that's what it takes then I'll gladly go insane.", his mask didn't help him look any more sane than he was.
'C'mon, let's see what you can do. Focus on making the spells, I'll help you push them out as fast as I can.'
Lucas ran forward once more, his battered body and slightly broken mask made for a frightening image.
"You won't stand a chance! Not even a suicide attack will do anything.", Eliot was done with this fight. He deployed a few magical barriers to be sure, since he was always taught that a cornered animal could be a lot more dangerous.
"Ice Spear!", Lucas started off with a strong attack meant to destroy some of the barriers. Eliot silently created a flame spear in response, the two canceled each other out. By responding without any crutches like Lucas, Eliot felt more powerful than ever. It was his strength that led to this result, to his victory!
"Wind Blade!", the wind came flying at Eliot, it was too fast for him to react, 'Huh?', part of his shield got damaged.
Eliot was caught of guard, yes, wind was an extremely fast element, but Eliot was trained enough to counter it. 'Did the spell come out before he chanted it?!'
"Ice Spear!", hearing the next spell, he quickly created his next Fire Spear, if it was any other element, he probably wouldn't have been capable of conjuring it up so fast. Lucas fired off a strong spell every second. A Rank 1 mage couldn't do such a thing.
"What the fuck!"
BOOM
What Lucas summoned wasn't an Ice Spear at all, but actual just multiple Wind Blades. They fueled the fire spear, forcing it to explode. All his barriers were broken and then some. The explosion hurt him as well. Part of his face got caught in the explosion.
'What is this?! He chanted multiple Wind Blades by giving the wrong chant? What!?'
Eliot was scared, the whole fight Lucas had been luring him into a trap. By making Eliot believe Lucas summoned his spells through words, he always knew what Lucas was shooting towards him. But now, nothing made sense. Key-words couldn't be linked to multiple spells, and should be obvious for the brain to remember the runes. Lucas said certain words but focussed on the right runes to create a completely different spell.
"Ice Spear, Wind Blade, Fire Spear, Earth Spike!", a bunch of different spells came at Eliot one after another, he couldn't keep up with his counterattacks. Not only was the speed impossible for a Rank 1 mage, but what Lucas said and what came at him was completely different. Sometimes it matched up, sometimes it was the complete opposite. Sometimes the spell appeared before he chanted it, other times it only came when another spell was conjured up.
Eliot didn't know what to use for a defense anymore. The only thing he could do was conjure up more barriers.
'So fast!', Eliot could only form a fire spear before the other bunch all landed on his barriers. They were all destroyed now, his own fire spear was also used against him again.
"Wind blade, Whirlwind, Fire Spear, Earth Spike, Fireball, ...", Lucas kept summoning spells one after another, they just kept coming, his speed increased further and further. He was going beyond his own limits, Lucas didn't have any magic left, but the spells kept forming.
"What the hell is this!", Eliot couldn't keep up anymore, not only because of Lucas's inhumane speed but also because what he said and what he conjured didn't match up anymore. Eliot was stuck in place and could only keep conjuring up barriers which the explosions quickly took care off.
Lucas on the other hand never stopped his movement, with the wind in his back he rushed towards Eliot.
BOOM
Eliot flew backwards out of the explosion. His face was a mess, and his body looked destroyed. Pieces of bones were visible and blood kept pouring out. His clothes and hair caught on fire, but nobody was paying him any attention.
Lucas stood on the stage, his body looked battered but in comparison to Eliot he looked fine. His arm looked broken and was on fire, it seemed like pieces of stone were lodged into his skin. Every student in the crowd could only watch on in awe of his image.
After that, came the cheering.