The black princess casually tossed the star into the center of the massive body. Slowly descending, the star changed shape from spherical to spiral, and upon reaching its target, it exploded into an enormous black flame ball. Half of the body was consumed by the burst, and the remaining part scattered into crimson flames around the red princess.
"Heh, now I see you can offer me something interesting," Seleria breathed heavily but still smiled at her opponent. "However, with that power, you probably find it challenging to move."
The princess crouched and gathered the scarlet flames around her body, transforming them into bright red wings and clawed paws, covering her arms. Seleria pushed off the ground and, flapping her wings, quickly closed in on Ragni.
"In this state, I'm much faster than you!" The red princess raised her scarlet paw for a strike, aiming at her opponent's chest. Ragni deflected the girl's paw, and it grazed the dragoness's scaled arm, leaving a few shallow cuts.
"Is that all?" Ragni looked at the cuts on her arm and shifted her gaze to the claws made of crimson flames. Unlike her claws, the scales on them bristled outwards, forming rows of sharp spikes. "Yes, this will be a problem."
The red princess raised both her paws to strike, but Ragni didn't attempt to block them. The dragoness extended her hands forward, gathering a cluster of black flames in them. Seleria flapped her wings and descended, evading the destructive attack. The black sphere passed by and collided with the crystal shield, shaking the entire arena. The explosion caused the crystal barrier to manifest in the air, turning red from the strain; it seemed like it would shatter any moment.
Seleria found herself below Ragni and swiftly turned in the air. Flames formed a long and narrow scaly tail on the princess's body. She grabbed it and hurled the dragoness to the ground with force.
"Ugh," the blow was powerful, and Ragni momentarily gasped for breath. "I should slow you down."
She gathered an enormous mass of black flames in her hands and split it into four parts, tossing them into the air. Four black stars remained suspended at the level of the lower stands. The power of the black flames was immense, and it seemed like the very light was distorted as it passed through them. Vortices were visible around each star, acting like lenses that refracted the light. This tremendous force affected those within the center of the field the most.
"What an unpleasant force," Seleria glanced at the black stars and her own wings; the black flames were gradually pulling parts of the crimson flames towards them, and her wings began to disintegrate. "So, if I move away, will those stars rip me apart?"
"Exactly. Now let's see whose flames are stronger," Ragni rose from the ground and turned to face Seleria, widely opening her mouth. With a piercing screech, a flash of black flames began to gather spirally before the dragoness's mouth. When it reached a meter in diameter, Ragni sharply exhaled, and the flames, like a black serpent wriggling, lunged towards the enemy.
Seleria gathered the remaining crimson flames in her hands and erected five rows of pseudo-crystalline barriers before her. The surge of dark energy struck the first barrier with force, breaking it, and continued forward. Although the flames lost a lot of power after breaking through all five barriers, they still reached their target. To protect herself, Seleria sacrificed her crimson wings and created the final barrier before her. The crimson and black flames collided and, with a thunderous roar, shook the entire Academy. The crystal barrier above the arena trembled; the entire dome revealed transparent hexagons, turning threateningly red from the pressure.
"Uhh, Rector, are you sure this barrier can withstand any attack?" Even Vina, who was sitting in the far end of the stands, was startled by this spectacle.
"Hmm, theoretically, it should," the Rector's words didn't instill much confidence. "Though, we've never tested it against the combined power of two gods before, but it's never too late to start."
For a while, due to the tension in the barrier, it was impossible to see what was happening inside the arena. But soon, the crimson haze began to dissipate, and what appeared before the spectators was somewhat unexpected. Ragni was still in her dragon form, but the black flames only barely covered her hands. Seleria, having absorbed a part of the explosion, had restored her wings and partially her paws with crimson flames. However, the power of the black flames no longer hindered the dragoness's movements, allowing her to fight the red princess on equal terms.
The girls clashed under the dome of the arena in a fierce battle. Ragni's strength was overwhelming, but Seleria relied on her agility, evading the dragoness's powerful attacks. Surprisingly, the red princess quickly adapted to using her wings and performed pirouettes in the air, literally sliding over Ragni's paws to dodge strikes. Ragni, remembering her first encounter with the princess's paws, avoided her attacks but occasionally received powerful kicks. Of course, without the aid of crimson flames, Seleria couldn't inflict significant damage on the dragoness, who was covered in black scales. The question was simply, who would give in first.
The girls closed in tightly; Ragni delivered a straight punch, and Seleria, deflecting it with her right paw, approached her opponent. The princess prepared to strike with her hand engulfed in crimson flames, but the dragoness stopped her with her other paw.
"I might not be able to hit you directly, but at least I can catch you," overcoming the pain from the crimson spikes, Ragni pulled her opponent closer. Collecting the remnants of black flames on her elbow, the dragoness struck Seleria in the stomach.
The powerful attack and the pressure of the flames were shielded by the last moment's crimson flames on the princess's hands. However, she was falling to the ground at high speed. Twisting her body, she formed a whip from the flames and grabbed Ragni with it. The fiery whip wrapped around the dragoness's chest and the base of her wings, dragging her towards the ground. Before the impact, Seleria transformed her wings into a small shield, softening the fall, but the blow was still of monstrous force. Following her, Ragni crashed into the ground with weakened strength. The remnants of black and crimson flames finally dissipated in the air, and Ragni gradually started reverting to her human form.
The girls lay on the ground, exhausted from the intense battle, and only after a couple of minutes were they able to get up.
"You were my strongest opponent," Ragni breathed heavily, her breathing significantly affected by the use of black flames.
"I could say the same about you," Seleria coughed, and there was a visible mark of the dragoness's paw on her abdomen; several ribs were possibly broken.
"Shall we continue? I can still fight for a few more minutes," Ragni got back into a fighting stance, not rushing.
"I'm sorry, but for me, it's over for today," Seleria's eyes clouded, and she fell lifelessly to the ground.
"The winner is RAGNI!!!" Vina's voice marked the end of the first round.
"Yeah, it was an unforgettable battle. You won't see anything like this again. If you missed it, you'll regret it for the rest of your life. Of course, many questions remain, but maybe our temporary commentators can help answer them."
The camera moved to two empty seats.
"What? Where did they go!?" Vina nearly choked with anger.
"They left as soon as the girls fell to the ground," Rumy sipped her tea apathetically.
"Oh, goodness, they're no help at all! And to all our viewers, I remind you that the next round will take place right here in three days. All this time, Academy students will be providing entertainment programs for you, as well as renting rooms for visitors from distant lands. For wealthier citizens, rooms are available right on the Academy's premises. Also, don't forget to buy souvenirs with the participants from my colleagues. Until we meet again, that's all for today!"
Vina waved her hand, and the crystal in the center of the arena dimmed. Skillfully jumping out of her chair, the girl rushed to her friends.
"We need to help them get off the arena," Katrina rushed towards the stairs, but two figures blocked her way.
"Forgive me, princess, but I don't think the arena is the most favorable place for humans right now."
"Don't worry, Kat, we'll take care of our daughters ourselves."
The two queens stopped the princess and headed towards the arena. After such a heated battle, it was probably hell down there.
Soon they returned, carrying the beaten girls in their arms. Ragni was conscious, so with a sheepish expression, she tried to break free, but her mother held her tightly in her embrace.
The girls were seated in chairs, and Feris immediately began treating them.
"Phew, they made us worry," the red queen wiped the sweat from her forehead, exhausted after just a couple of minutes on the arena. "Thank goodness they stopped us."
"Yes, sometimes they can be too reckless," Ignis ruffled her daughter's hair, and the girl turned away with annoyance.
"Girls!!!" Vina's piercing scream brought the nearly lifeless Seleria back to consciousness. "You looked so amazing!! It was an astonishing battle, the audience's response was incredible, and souvenirs with your faces are selling like hotcakes!!"
The diminutive girl joyfully embraced the princesses by their necks, and judging by the girls' faces, they were on the verge of suffocation.
"Al-alright, Vina! Please let us go!!" Seleria struggled to find her words, trying to escape the merchant's firm grip.
"I see my daughter finally made friends," Ignis smiled and covered her lips with her hand. "So, I didn't make a mistake trusting her to you."
The black queen patted me on the shoulder in a friendly manner.
"I apologize for not introducing myself; not everyone here knows me. I am Ignis, the mistress of black dragons, and this silly girl's mother," the queen gently tapped Ragni's cheek. "I'm only familiar with Krito and the princesses, but I've heard good things about all of you. Nevertheless, I don't leave my little girl unattended."
"I see a new face among you," Sheraza took Aileen's hands, and the girl felt a little flustered. "I heard you are from the empire. I hope my daughter didn't cause you any trouble. I am Sheraza Eileran, Seleria's mother, and the queen of Leran, though I don't often show myself in public. Princess Hilda, I apologize for not visiting your family; I had my reasons."
Unlike Ignis, Sheraza behaved calmly and composedly, as befitting a true queen.
"By the way, what great blades! Where did you get them? The last time we saw you, you didn't even have money for passage," Ignis deftly pulled out two swords from my sheaths and twirled them in her hands, handling them just like I do in my combat style.
"And you didn't recognize them? They were with me even during our first encounter," I recalled their appearance when I first held them in my hands. "Oh, they looked a little different back then, and I didn't take them out of the sheaths."
"Really? I guess I'm getting old, ha-ha," given that she was immortal, the phrase seemed unsettling. "But still, where did you find them? I haven't seen them in thousands of years."
"I accidentally bought them in a nearby weapons store for ten gold coins."
"WHAT? Ten? How? Ohh," unexpectedly, the queen sat on the floor and, clasping her knees with her hands, began muttering something to herself, "I understand that a lot of time has passed, but still, how did it come to ten gold coins."
"Come on, don't worry! You didn't see what condition they were in," Rumy appeared out of nowhere and lightly tapped the queen on the head. Such a rough gesture alarmed us.
"Huh? Rumy? Long time no see!!" The queen rushed to embrace her old friend.
"What do you mean, long time!? We were just together in the commentator's booth!" Rumy gave a disapproving look at Sheraza, who awkwardly turned away. "Well, never mind. These blades were in terrible condition until recently. An unskilled blacksmith tried to melt them down several times, and as a result, they became like charred pieces of wood. It's a good thing that you foresaw them returning to their original state by sensing the familiar flame."
"Wait, so these swords?" I looked at the black queen warily.
"Yes, I admit it. It was my doing. Long ago, I forged them for the first summoner as a sign of peace between our peoples. The war claimed many lives on both sides, and after the fall of Nihelium, I saw no other alternative."
"So, the meteorite from which these blades were forged is your scales?"
"Ha-ha," Ignis lowered her head. "Not entirely... It's made from my father's scales."