"It was time for the second battle. Two beautiful girls, the lightning mistress Katrina and the mighty warrior Vivien, would meet on the battlefield," Vina announced, warming up the spectators. "Both of them barely won their first battles, but they were not about to give up without a fight."
The girls stepped into the center of the arena, facing each other.
"It feels a bit awkward to fight you," Vivien scratched her head uncertainly. "Usually, I feel either negative emotions or a desire to compete with my opponents, but I've never felt that way with you."
"I understand," Katrina smiled. "I've always respected you as a fellow warrior. It takes great courage to face dreadful monsters without relying on magic."
"Yeah, being a warrior is indeed challenging. During war, commanders usually sacrifice less valuable soldiers to save the mages. However, I still want to fight to prove that magic doesn't change anything," Vivien said, swinging her naginata and gripping the handle with both hands.
"I would never sacrifice any of my people as long as there's a chance to save everyone. I'll keep on fighting," Katrina replied, adopting a combat stance.
"That's why I admire you. If I ever have to serve in the army, I'd be honored to fight under your command," Vivien said.
"And I would consider it an honor to fight alongside you," Katrina replied.
The girls smiled at each other and prepared for the battle.
"I see you've settled things between yourselves," Vina didn't interrupt their conversation. "Nothing else holds us back. Let the battle begin!"
Vivien immediately launched an attack, trying to close the distance to her opponent quickly. In response, Katrina briefly connected her hands, creating a ball of lightning between them.
"Let's begin," Katrina threw the charged ball at the spearwoman, and the girl sliced it with her weapon, causing an explosion that momentarily enveloped her in a cloud of dust. "Did I hit you?"
Vivien leaped out of the cloud and delivered a devastating blow to Katrina. The princess quickly jumped back, avoiding the strike. Vivien then gathered electric sparks at her fingertips and hurled them at her opponent.
Vivien buried the tip of her naginata in the ground, dispersing the lightning in the earth. Swirling around, she landed a sweeping strike on Katrina's chest, but the princess managed to step back and avoid the hit. However, Vivien followed up with a staff strike to the girl's thigh. Katrina infused her glove with lightning, blocking the spear's handle with it.
"Gotcha," Katrina clenched her fist, allowing the lightning to flow through the naginata's handle.
"Gotcha, but not me," Vivien smirked, as the lightning dissipated into the metal, seemingly unaffected.
"Damn," Katrina realized what was happening and leaped backward, but it was too late.
"Release," Vivien's command made the naginata glow with golden light. With thunderous rolls, the cold metal began to cover itself with electric sparks, forming a massive golden blade of pure energy at its tip. "You're an amazing sorceress, to fill it with energy, you only needed a couple of spells."
"Wow, so now you're not afraid of electricity?" Katrina's body started to emit a golden glow.
"Yes, thanks to Aileen," Vivien raised her hand, showing the princess her glove. "You don't mind if I use your own magic against you, right?"
"No, it makes it even more interesting. But know that I can use magic not only for attack!"
Katrina disappeared in a flash, swiftly dissipating into the air. In the blink of an eye, she reappeared behind her opponent.
"Damn," Vivien turned around just in time to block the sorceress's hand crackling with lightning. "Algo told me that lightning magic could accelerate your body, but it should be detrimental to you."
"Don't worry about that," Katrina pushed off the staff and, in an instant, leaped over Vivien's back. "My body easily withstands such strains."
Lightning sparkled on Katrina's heel as she struck Vivien's side in a swift motion. Vivien caught the girl's leg and pushed her away.
"Oh, damn," Vivien leaped backward and began flexing her hand, which had just blocked the attack. "It's hard to block your magic with bare hands."
"But I'm surprised you're still conscious. Normally, people fall unconscious from such a blow," After Vivien's push, Katrina fell to the ground but quickly got up, brushing off the dust.
"Really?" Vivien looked amazed at her hand, still covered in that black viscous material. "Then maybe I have a chance."
Katrina charged at the spearwoman again, and Vivien blocked the attacks, but the princess's speed was much higher. The warrior had no choice but to defend herself, waiting for the right moment to counterattack. After several unsuccessful attempts, Vivien managed to block Katrina's claws and attempted to strike the princess's abdomen with the staff. However, Katrina stopped the shaft with her foot and leaped back.
"It won't work for me," Vivien was catching her breath; although she defended, she was just as exhausted as her opponent.
"It's not just about strength but also about technique," Katrina began gathering lightning mana in her legs.
"Krito said that the magic stolen from me belongs to me," Vivien smiled and took off her right glove. "Let's see how true that is."
"STOP! It will kill you!" Katrina realized what the girl was trying to do, but she couldn't stop her now. Vivien grabbed the handle with her bare hand, and electric discharges surged through her body. "You're not a lightning mage; you can't accurately control the charge."
"It's alright, as long as the discharge doesn't pass through my heart, I can handle the rest," the girl smiled, although her face twitched occasionally from the pain. The discharges diverted from the handle and traveled down her arm and right shoulder, flowing into her legs. "And now let's try."
Vivien crouched and leaped forward. In a single bound, she was next to her opponent and struck horizontally. Katrina jumped up, and the sparking blade whooshed beneath her.
"Damn," the spearwoman clicked her tongue and missed her target, flying past her. "How do I stop now?!"
With a dull thud, the girl acquainted herself with the architecture of the arena wall.
"Whoa," Vivien staggered away from the sudden obstacle. "I need to be more careful."
"Are you alright?" Katrina awkwardly scratched her cheek. "You won't get used to this right away."
"It's nothing," still swaying, Vivien reassured the girl. "Just give me a second."
The warrior slapped her cheeks and shook her head to regain her composure.
"I need to learn to brake, that's all."
Vivien took a deep breath and prepared for the attack. She leaped high into the air and brought down her spear upon the princess. The blade plunged into the ground, and the center of the arena cracked deeply, but Katrina stepped back and retaliated. Now, the girls were evenly matched in speed, and no strike found its mark. Katrina easily evaded the spear's sweeping strikes, but Vivien blocked each counterattack. The initiative shifted from one girl to the other, yet it remained uncertain who would emerge victorious.
"You still won't last long!" Katrina spun around, channeling lightning into her heel, and delivered a circular strike to her opponent's head.
"Then I'll try to finish this quickly!" Vivien grasped the spear with her right hand, blocking the strike with the handle. The lightning passed through the weapon and into the girl's body, causing her intense pain, but it also granted her a rare chance for an unexpected attack. "Opening!"
Vivien struck the princess's abdomen with her left hand, sending her flying several meters backward. Katrina clutched her chest, seemingly struggling to breathe after the blow, but Vivien found the attack equally taxing; her right hand nervously twitched from the tormenting discharges.
"That hurts," Katrina gasped, bending over the area of impact.
"Well, it should. Looks like no one ever hit our princess that hard before," Vivien quipped. "But let's see how you handle this from a distance."
Katrina jumped far back and began gathering an enormous lightning sphere in her hands.
"Ah, damn," Vivien managed to retrieve her second glove and drive the naginata's end into the ground before the storm descended upon her.
"Storm," the sorceress spread her arms, and the sphere split into dozens of lightning bolts, all rushing towards her enemy.
All the discharges headed straight for the nearest lightning rod. One after another, the lightning bolts clashed with the golden blade of the naginata and were drawn into the weapon. However, the spell was too powerful even for an enchanted weapon. The runes on the handle glowed more intensely, and the spear started trembling from the strain.
The last lightning bolt struck the naginata, and Katrina lowered her hands. But Vivien's problems were just beginning. The spear overflowed with magic, and the girl couldn't control it.
"Oh, damn," Vivien tried to hold onto the naginata, but it shook violently and continued to shatter the ground beneath it. "What the hell, why not!"
Vivien drove the naginata harder into the ground and hastened to remove her gloves.
"Don't you dare!" Katrina's cry was drowned out by the humming of the charged metal. Vivien grabbed the handle with both hands, and the lightning pierced her body. Her face twisted in pain, but she endured, attempting to harness this power.
"As long as this is my weapon, all the power in it is MINE!!!" The girl's shout shook the stands, and a golden flash blinded the spectators. After a moment, the light subsided, and Vivien stood at the center of the arena, with golden discharges coursing through her body. "An unusual sensation, a bit tingling, but so much fun!!"
The girl swung her spear, and its blade increased in size, a huge golden blade that covered almost a quarter of the arena adorned the top of the naginata.
"While I can still control it, I can fight you!" Vivien turned on the spot, and as she described a circle, the blade released a ring-shaped lightning bolt. Katrina gathered lightning at her fingertips, creating a net that blocked the enemy's lightning.
"I'm sometimes amazed by you," the princess gathered a small bolt and hurled it at her opponent.
"Now that won't affect me anymore," Vivien easily brushed off the attack as if swatting a bothersome fly. The spearwoman dashed toward her adversary, and now she didn't need to get too close. Swinging the enormous blade, she attacked the princess from a distance of more than ten meters. Each strike tore enormous furrows in the ground, leaving the sorceress with less space to retreat. Katrina's lightning couldn't even reach the swordswoman; they repelled by the golden aura surrounding her.
"The nature of our lightning is the same; that's why they won't reach you," Katrina stopped creating lightning and electrified her hands. "Then, I find it easier to fight up close!"
Vivien delivered a powerful strike from a pivot, but the blade stopped midway. The sparkling edge was halted by a powerful electric shield formed by Katrina's hands.
"If my lightning won't reach you, then you won't penetrate my defense!" Katrina easily pushed the blade away.
"It all depends on the strength of the blow!" Vivien gripped the handle closer to the base and raised the massive blade over her head. "How about this!"
She brought all her power down upon the sorceress, and Katrina met the blow by crossing her arms above her head. The impact drove the princess into the ground, and as she knelt, trying to withstand the force of the attack, the ground behind her was swept away by the shockwave.
"Your Blade is also a spell!" Katrina contorted in pain but slowly turned her hands so that her golden claws touched the blade. "Every spell has mana and form, and if you disrupt the form, the magic will dissipate."
Gathering thin, sharp blades at her fingertips, the princess swiftly spread her arms, tearing apart the tip of the golden blade. Cracks from the rupture spread all over the sword, and it began to disintegrate. However, all the mana accumulated in the blade didn't dissipate into the air; like any lightning spell, it started to gather in the center of the dome, preparing to explode. A dazzling flash began to engulf the audience, but a swift shadow raced to meet the adversary. Katrina managed to react, and the blade passed just a couple of centimeters from her face, but it was a deceptive maneuver. Twisting the handle, Vivien struck the princess in the solar plexus, followed by a resounding explosion.
"Wow!" Even the commentators were momentarily blinded by the flash of the ball lightning. "What a spectacle! And what about the participants? What is this?"
Katrina knelt on one knee, her hand buried in the ground. Judging by the marks from her claws, she used her hand to brace against the ground to remain standing, but she couldn't get up. The girl struggled to catch her breath, holding onto her stomach. The final blow had taken its toll, and she couldn't even stand.
"Could it be that Vivien won? But how is that possible!"
Vivien lay at the opposite end of the arena, sprawled on the ground. She appeared to be unconscious, but no one saw how it happened.
"Ah, damn, what's the use of this whole system if we can't see what happened there?" Vina was searching through the crystals, looking for the right one. "Kuro, can you do something?"
"I'll try," the sorceress focused on the video crystals, and the image under the dome quickly changed. After a minute, the moment of the explosion finally appeared.
"There you go! Show it slightly lower, with a view from the balconies!" Vina continued to scrutinize the image. "And there it is! Concealed by the flash, Vivien rushed forward to knock out Katrina while she was preoccupied, aaaaaand..."
The blade missed the princess, and the spearwoman struck Vivien's chest with the hilt, which caused such a reaction from Katrina.
"Turn it from the other side!" The image rotated, and the reason for the swordswoman's fall became clear. The princess's hand, with lightning sparkling on it, was on Vivien's shoulder. "Haha, our princess managed to deliver a blow even in such a position. I wonder how powerful it was for her opponent?"
Katrina staggered to her feet and approached her defeated opponent.
"How are you?" With her hand on her stomach, she stood over the fallen swordswoman.
"Your hand is heavy, princess," Vivien opened her eyes and struggled to remove the hand from her shoulder, revealing five traces of burnt armor. "Otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to knock you down, but you hit me hard too," Katrina smiled and finally straightened up.
"But still, I came close," Vivien managed to turn onto her stomach, her legs still numb, but she could get on her knees using her hands. "But the battle is over."
The swordswoman took her spear, now devoid of any traces of magic, and attempted to stand, using it for support.
"Let me help," Katrina offered, placing Vivien's arm around her shoulder, and they headed towards the exit. "You're a wonderful warrior, and I wouldn't have regretted losing to you."
"I'm not sure," Vivien smiled softly. "I wouldn't want to fight anyone from them in the next round."
"Oh," Katrina sadly lowered her head. "I don't even know who would be more challenging."
"Don't lose heart; there are no unbeatable opponents. You just need to find the right approach!" Vivien smiled and released her hand. "Thanks for the help; I'll manage on my own from here, or my sister will laugh at me."
The girls exchanged friendly glances and headed upstairs.