The girls stood facing each other ten meters apart, ready for battle, and finally, Vina remembered what she had forgotten to mention.
"I almost forgot. Let the battle begin."
As soon as the signal was given, Leira sharply thrust her left hand forward, releasing a powerful lightning bolt at Rizel. It may not have been as strong as Katrina's, but for an ordinary person, getting hit by it would be deadly. The necromancer raised her staff and plunged it into the ground before her. The staff attracted the discharge and rapidly absorbed it, with electricity not bothering its owner much.
"She grounded the lightning, just like that," Katrina immediately understood what had been protecting Rizel from harm, "I guess her gloves don't conduct electricity, so she can't be afraid of lightning from that distance."
A couple of seconds passed, and the discharge dissipated, leaving the sorceresses contemplating their next move.
"Well, as I thought, nothing will work from a distance," Leira closed her eyes and took a deep breath, "I'll have to recall my past lessons."
She widened her stance, bending her knees and raised her hands in front of her, palms open. The stance was quite unusual, more suitable for a close combat master, but Leira seemed to know what she was doing.
"Get ready, Necromancer," she pushed off the ground with a boost of lightning magic in her legs, covering a distance of ten meters in a single jump. Swinging her palms sharply, the noblewoman released two wind blades that flew diagonally towards her opponent's torso.
"Tch," Rizel gripped the staff with both hands and positioned it perpendicular to the attack.
The windstream collided with the staff, but the impact pushed the necromancer back. To avoid losing her balance, she jumped into the air and landed a few meters back, steadying herself for a new attack. Leira tilted her body towards the ground after her initial attack and pushed off, performing a somersault in the air. The girl aimed a kick precisely at her opponent's shoulder, and at the same time, a lightning sparkled on the heel of her shoe. The necromancer blocked the attack with her staff and pushed the girl back with a swift thrust. Leira executed a reverse somersault and landed on one knee. At the same time, taking advantage of the moment when Rizel was blocked, she turned on the spot, took the staff in one hand, and delivered a sweeping blow to her opponent's legs.
"You won't catch me off guard like that," right before the strike, Leira held out her hands in front of the approaching staff and created an air barrier, pushing herself backward.
And once again, after exchanging blows, the girls returned to their initial positions.
"When did you learn to fight in close combat like this?" Rizel decided to inquire, catching her breath.
"I've always been skilled in it. The art of combat for mages was invented during the Elemental War. You know, many mages would surrender or die from the first attack in hand-to-hand combat. Various styles were developed for different elements, and my father, by pure chance, knew the basic techniques from all of them. Though many nobles looked down on him for it, thinking that their servants should fight for them and that learning martial arts was a waste of time, my father was always proud of his skills."
"Well, now it's somewhat clearer. You master two elements and combine different techniques. By keeping your legs slightly bent, you maximize the use of lightning's reinforcement, always ready to jump on the enemy. And you keep your palms straight to quickly and easily employ wind attacks, as controlling wind magic without weapons or staves is quite complex. Especially using the wind blade without a sharp surface is almost impossible."
"That's why I use my palms. And you seem to know a lot about magic that you can't wield."
"Well, you could say that my mom taught me a lot. Alright, the break is over; I won't hold back anymore."
With one hand, Rizel brought her staff a little closer to its tip and gripped the handle behind her back, as if she were holding a spear. Leaning forward, the necromancer jumped sharply towards her opponent. From a swing, she delivered a straight blow with the top of the staff, and Leira, creating an air shield on her right hand, deflected the strike to the side. Leira took advantage of the gap in defense and immediately struck with her left hand to the chest, but Rizel skillfully evaded with unseen agility. Intercepting the staff in her left hand, the necromancer turned on the spot and held the staff behind her back with both hands. Spinning on one leg, she delivered a circular strike around herself, forcing Leira to leap back to avoid getting hit.
"Hmm," the noblewoman snorted maliciously and gave her opponent a hostile look, "you said you wouldn't hold back!"
"Well, how should I put it," Rizel scratched her cheek, which, under the impenetrable cloak, looked quite amusing, "my magic is not suitable for friendly sparring; I'm afraid no one, except Ragni, can withstand Decay for long."
"Darn it! That's why I don't like you! You never fight seriously!" Leira stomped her foot in frustration and pointed at the necromancer, "I'll make you fight seriously, or I won't be able to respect myself!"
The girl brought her palms together, creating a concentrated beam of electricity.
"Even if you ground my lightning, this one won't be that simple," with these words, Leira released an electric sphere the size of a large apple towards Rizel, "a ball lightning!"
The sphere dashed towards its target, but the necromancer swung her staff and quickly positioned it against the attack, as if casting a spell. However, nothing happened; the sphere collided with the staff and exploded in a powerful blast, at least that's how it seemed to the spectators. The explosion pushed Rizel back, and she managed to stay on her feet only by driving the staff into the ground. For the first time in the battle, her legs, clad in gray boots, were visible from under the cloak. But in the next second, the cloak seemed to come alive and fully enveloped the girl.
"Phew, that was dangerous," Rizel got back on her feet, but Leira was already closing in at point-blank range.
"Almost got you!" The sorceress delivered a straight palm strike to the head, but the necromancer, releasing her grip on the staff with one hand, quickly leaned back, "not over yet!"
Completing a half-turn, Leira delivered a second strike from above, but once again, Rizel surprised us with her exceptional agility. Supporting herself with her left hand on the staff, she pushed off the ground and soared into the air, landing gracefully on the staff's tip.
"What's this?" Leira took a step back, balancing on one leg, and swiftly released a powerful lightning strike towards her opponent. Rizel somersaulted backward, snatching the staff in midair, and landed right in front of the sorceress. "And one more time!"
Leira summoned another lightning charge on her heel and brought her foot down heavily on the head of the seated necromancer. Rizel extended the staff horizontally before her and stopped the strike just ten centimeters from her face. The lightning spread across the silver staff, visibly causing pain to its owner. Struggling, Rizel managed to get back on her feet and pushed her opponent away.
As soon as she landed, Leira gathered all her wind mana into her fist, empowering it with the speed of lightning, and delivered a powerful blow – not just a simple wind blade but a strike capable of knocking even the strongest opponents off their feet. Rizel gripped the staff with both hands and blocked the attack, but the wind's pressure almost knocked her off her feet and nearly tore her cloak off. The cloak's hems opened, revealing delicate legs clad in tall boots, and even the hood fell back.
"Riz?" What the girl saw under the shroud clearly surprised her, but the sorceress relaxed in vain. Blown back by the wind, Rizel swiftly landed and jumped forward, extending the staff forward. The strike hit right at the solar plexus and, reinforced by some invisible force, flung Leira to the far end of the arena. Struck by the blow, the sorceress lost consciousness, and the battle ended.
"Wohoho, I never knew our necromancer could fight like that. Her victory is undeniable, but I'd like to hear the opinion of our martial arts expert," Rumy appeared on the screen, calmly stirring a spoon in a cup, from which warm steam was rising.
"Hmm, well, what can I say. I think if it were a simple contest of strength, Rizel would have easily won, but they decided to settle everything in close combat, and it turned out to be an interesting spectacle."
The golem took a sip from the cup and smiled thoughtfully, continuing the conversation.
"Of course, Leira did well; she masters her style of combat perfectly, but in Rizel, I feel skills honed over years, or perhaps centuries, of training."
"Really? Are you saying our Riz has lived for over a hundred years?"
"Oh, no, no, you misunderstood me. The way she fought reminded me of an acquaintance I spent a lot of time with once. She also wanted to develop her own staff-fighting style and was a necromancer. Perhaps she was Rizel's mother, grandmother, or at least her great-grandmother. Did you know that after a necromancer's death, their skills and knowledge pass on to the next generation?"
"What? So, she's from some noble family?" Gold coins glittered in Vina's eyes.
"No, rather, she comes from an ancient lineage, but not one too well-known to the public. Perhaps if I saw her face, I could give a more accurate answer."
"Oh, well, it's not over yet. Let's hope the next opponent will be luckier."
"Mmm, quite chilly," when Leira regained consciousness, she found herself being carried up the stairs by her caring friend. "Riz? Thanks for helping me."
"Don't bother," Rizel's voice sounded dissatisfied, "fell for that bold merchant's bribe so easily."
"Well, sorry, you weren't exactly fair either. You could have fought me seriously from the beginning, but instead, you just played around with me."
"Well, I just didn't know how not to hurt you."
"But your last strike was very strong."
"Mmm, to be honest, I haven't figured out how I did it yet, but maybe from this, I can develop a more perfect technique for defense and attack."
"And you're beautiful," Leira enveloped the necromancer, wrapping her arms around her neck, "why do you hide?"
"I have my reasons, and there's no need to pry. When I decide, I'll tell you myself."
"Mmm, alright, I won't push you, but promise you'll tell me first!"