(Fraise Azurenacht's POV)
Cerulean Academy, Present Day
Approximately ten minutes have passed.
My fight against Esmes continued.
Now that our battle has reached a certain point, Esmes was forced to rely on the power of her Blazer.
Unleashing a portion of the magic it had been concealing, she drastically increased the temperature in our environment to volcanic levels.
Because of this, not only has my ice magic been weakened, but her flames were also augmented in the process as well, putting me at a disadvantage.
However, there is nothing for me to worry about.
I swore an oath all those years ago after all.
—Because of that, I will never lose.
* * * * * * * * * *
Esmes glances at me for a moment. I can tell she noticed something different about me now.
In that case….
"Come."
I taunt her forward.
Esmes raises her sword high and begins to channel even greater flames. As if to pour her very heart and soul into her blade, her sword transforms into a pyre of nothing but pure energy that embodied her emotions and her unrelenting will to never give up.
As of right now, Esmes's blade of light had reached a temperature to where it was roughly as hot as the surface of the sun itself. The light it emitted was absolutely blinding, and the heat of its radiation could've been outright lethal for those nearby, had it not been for them being protected by the barrier.
Now prepared, she launches herself forward, swiftly closing the distance between us with one step.
This was it, in this one single moment, she was going to strike me down with everything she had.
Wielding a sword that knows only destruction, clearly this was no ordinary attack.
However—
—I refuse to run in the face of her resolve.
"Now burn, Light of Purgatory!!"
She swung her blade.
In the next moment, it felt as if all time had stopped.
For a second, I lost my breath. Not because the air was sucked out of me, but rather it felt as if the very air itself had caught fire and evaporated like tea.
Because of that, I couldn't speak.
Because of that, I couldn't think.
I couldn't help but watch helplessly as I saw the very colors of our reality begin to seemingly burn, leaving behind lifeless shades of black and gray.
Even light itself burned in the face of her might.
The name was fitting…
—This was truly Purgatory indeed….
BANG!!!
The strength behind her strike was astronomical, if not, immeasurable. It was beyond the definition of what the word "strong" even meant. The whole arena was bathed in light and radiation, almost as if a day of twisted salvation had suddenly fell upon us.
This fight was over.
Atleast, it should've been.
So why?
Why was I able to still stand here?
The answer was very simple.
"—You're not the only one who possesses an indomitable will."
"—!?"
Using my sword to guard, I parry her attack.
"What!?"
Startled, Esmes took one step back.
A wise decision.
However—
"Ice Age."
I stomp the ground.
The ground beneath my feet freezes into solid blue ice. The ice expands rapidly, consuming and covering everything in a blanket of sleet and snow.
Pillars of ice pierces through the sediment like beautiful flowers suddenly coming into bloom.
Dark gray clouds began to form underneath the barrier enclosure, casting a large shadow beneath.
The temperature dropped dramatically, eventually approaching a level of cold too harsh to sustain any life. In a matter of seconds, the whole area had been transformed into some sort of dark twisted tundra.
Ice too cold to generate fire.
Ice too harsh to sustain life.
Ice capable of freezing an entire city over—
—An ice age, true to its name.
"Ca…n't….B—brea…..the—!?"
Of course you can't.
Suddenly being caught close to the epicenter of the blast, Esmes's body was reduced to that of an ice sculpture. Her movement, almost non-existent.
But it wasn't only the fact that she couldn't move that made her situation terrifying but the dreadful fact that she couldn't even breathe properly. The reason being was because due to the atmosphere suddenly dropping to almost subzero temperatures, it created a miniature flash freeze, which in turn, would cause the very molecules in the air to freeze.
Those molecules of frozen oxygen would then crystalize and bond with the other, forming ice shards the size of an atom before eventually transforming into a dangerous white mist. And should you directly breathe the mist in, it would only cause the shards of ice to reach the deepest parts of the lungs, eventually causing inflammation, pain and discomfort beyond human comprehension.
—In short, it was no different than inhaling a bag of razor blades.
However, Esmes will not have to suffer for long.
Because I'm putting an end to this fight.
Once and for all.
I drew my blade one last time.
Devilish blue flames emerge.
Esmes's eyes widened with shock.
"Can you see it?"
"Can you even comprehend it?"
"These flames…."
"…..are beyond even Purgatory itself."
I swing my blade.
With one strike, I silenced her for good.
* * * * * * * * * *
"And the winner is…. Fraise Azurenacht!!"
As Mr. Naoto officially declared that, the terminal above us confirmed the results of the match up.
I sheathed my blade and stared at my opponent.
Esmes was kneeled down on both knees, robbed of both her strength and vitality.
Aside from that however, physically, she was fine.
The sword of flames that I struck her with bore an incoperal edge, allowing it to ignore flesh, and attack the opponent's soul from within.
"Damn it… I'm not…..done yet."
"Give it up. It's already over."
Furious, Esmes clenches her hands.
Perhaps she's realized any further than this would only make her look like a sore loser in the long run.
Heh.
"Esmes Montoya, was it?"
I extend my hand.
"Huh?"
"You put up a good fight today. Just from this single fight alone, I can tell your resolve to never give up is strong. That's good. I too, am someone who refuses to yield so easily. So tell you what. I'll cut you some slack, and say this battle ended in a draw. Dea—?"
Esmes suddenly slaps my hand.
"—I do not need your pity."
Recovering a little, she stands up.
"Today was my loss. However, do not think this is over. One day, I'll be back. And when I do, I'll show you, and everyone else here, who is truly superior."
With that, she takes her leave.
"Superior, huh."
What a silly notion.