"It's nice to finally meet you in person. Lagus the Sea Serpent" Celestine offered a bow as a form of greeting.
"Hello there, Ms. Special Someone~ Welcome to my territory," Lagus replied.
Wilhelm covered his face and said, "I think I need to be alone for now."
Celestine was holding her giggles and decided to tell Wilhelm, "Can you show me your face before you go?"
"As if!" He started levitating and quickly ascended to the top branch.
Celestine finally let out her giggles. A while after letting some small laughs out she then asked the giant serpent, "When did you guys meet?"
"Oh, so we're gonna start at that part, well let me think... Hmmm It was two years ago... He was searching for my nest at that time and was on a sailor's ship full of adventurers trying to explore the island."
"He happened to feel my presence as I was swimming around the area. Since I dislike humans who want to step into my territory. I was a bit aggressive and attacked the boat. I only wanted to scare them by creating a whirlpool but then they started throwing attacks at me,"
"I got mad about it and charged a beam ready to graze the ship. And I was really amazed when a single mage stopped my attack but it didn't stop there, I started to create magic circles that surrounded the boat, but with a single snap of his fingers all my magic circles vanished."
Celestine was pretty familiar with the disappearance of magic, it's the skill he used to beat Celestine back in their days in the academy.
"That must be his Zero Magic Field, a unique skill he developed before leaving the academy. He can control where it appears and when it wears off, a nasty spell against magic. A nightmare for magicians" She said.
"Yes, that's the one. After that, he charged a couple of unknown spells. They weren't elemental magic that I was familiar with and all of them were difficult to defend. Facing him is like facing an unknown entity."
"He was also using teleportation magic which makes it hard to hit him physically. That's why I proposed a deal between us. I told him that I did not wish for humans to step into my area and he told me that he just wanted to have contact with the guardian of Rowas and that happens to be me."
"Since that was what he wanted I told him that I'll meet him near the shores from where they sailed. It was the territory above the place he currently resides and after our agreement and then I went back to my lair."
"Wait, he didn't defeat you?"
"No, he did not. We never fought seriously but I think he has a chance of defeating me. After all, he has a monstrous talent for magic, if I had trouble dealing with him two years ago I doubt that I'd win easily if we fight now."
"I have a question."
"What is it?"
"Are you by any chance weak?"
Lagus didn't help but laugh at the question but he couldn't blame Celestine for thinking that way, after what he had said it made him sound weak.
"That's quite the wording you have there missy..." He suddenly quieted down and Celestine felt a strong killing intent. "I am a Water Guardian. I wouldn't receive such a title if I am weak... You can confirm it yourself---"
Wilhelm appeared behind Celestine and pulled her away from Lagus as he teleported a hundred meters above the giant snake. The spot where she was standing got hit by a strong whirling drill of water. It was rapidly spinning, and with its intensity, it pierced through the stone arch creating a clean hole.
Lagus started charging his breath and fired a very large continuous beam, it was half the size of the island and such a thing was aimed towards them.
The beam was fast and strong, it made a circular shape from the clouds and the shock wave was enough to shake off the Harpies that were in the tree but Wilhelm avoided it before it could reach them.
They were transported back to the center of the tree. She witnessed the destructive power of Lagus and was convinced that he was anything but weak.
"What the hell are you doing?! Have you lost your mind??" Wilhelm asked him, confused as to why Lagus started attacking Celestine.
It was true that Celestine provoked him. She knew too well that guardians were strong enough to destroy a kingdom.
Lagus ignored Wilhelm's question, "That wasn't my strongest attack just to let you know. Now, tell me, young miss. Your opinion of my power?" The question was directed to Celestine.
"Wilhelm. Let me go." She asked him to release her. Her voice sounded bold. And he let her go as she demanded. "That was rude to throw in a sneak attack. Why don't we have a go?" She clearly wants to fight Lagus head-on.
"Well, aren't you the one who questioned my prowess? It was an act of provocation... Ms. Special Someone..."
Wilhelm understood where Lagus was coming from. But he still couldn't figure out why Celestine provoked Lagus. What was she thinking of doing something dangerous?
"Hey, woman. What were you thinking..!?"
"Let me fight him."
". . . What? You can't be serious that's beyond reckless, you don't have a chance against him."
"I know, but you're here with me. With that, I'm confident that I won't end up dying" Putting that much trust in Wilhelm while wearing a combative look on her face made him trust her actions.
He realized that she wanted to have a match against a guardian to estimate her strength. Lagus also got a gist of what she was planning and decided to play along. The surprise attack he launched missed but he expected that Wilhelm won't let him harm Celestine.
"You are interesting. Just like Wilhelm... But are you seriously going to fight me? A guardian? Alone?" Lagus' word was laced with belittlement.
She didn't mind his tone. Celestine wasn't feeling angry, she was calm and serious. For her, it was an opportunity to measure her capability by going up against a strong opponent.
"Before you guys fight can you take it somewhere else? You might destroy the place by accident and you've already caused a big commotion for the sirens. How about a couple of kilometers away from here?" Wilhelm told them.
Lagus surfed away from the island and Celestine followed while riding Dale. The further they get, she starts feeling nervous but there is no backing out, she couldn't miss such an opportunity.
Wilhelm informed the Harpies about what was happening and apologized for the sudden commotion. It was not like they could complain if Lagus was the one to cause it. He holds the highest authority in the area. Who would complain about it?
Lagus stopped indicating that they were far enough. The reason why he played along with Celestine was because he was just bored. It was the only reason why and Lagus gave her the opportunity to try her out by acting offended by her question even though it meant nothing for him.
Lagus wanted to know how she would react and unexpectedly the girl was braver than any sailor who sailed near his area. It was a big amusement for him, he couldn't help it. And with his information regarding Celestine, he knew that she could entertain him.
Celestine being blessed by mana enables her to have an unlimited amount of energy. She won't get tired easily during the upcoming fight between them.
"Hey, can I borrow a staff?" She asked.
"Which staff?"
"Any would do."
Wilhelm pulled out a wooden staff from his space box and handed it to Celestine. After having a good grasp of the staff she jumped off from Dale's back.
After falling a few seconds she started to levitate and pointed the staff to Lagus. "[Lightning]"
It was their starting call. The moment it hits the forehead of the giant serpent it dealt no damage since the scale is very thick.
Lagus let out a loud screeching sound, the sound waves pushed Celestine back. It lowered her defense due to the hurtful sound that reached her ears.
Water started to rise from the ocean at a fast pace, whirling rapidly, and was aimed to hit her. Celestine started flying sideways to avoid them. With the help of the staff her mobility in the air was raised dramatically.
But Celestine was still recovering from the screech. She started leaving magic circles in the air as she circled the giant snake. Each of the magic circles continuously fired lightning arrows but it doesn't seem to be dealing damage even if she were to place hundreds of those.
Lagus' water attacks that were chasing her were moving faster the smaller they got, she decided to increase her speed.
She cast a very large magic circle as she finished revolving around the serpent the hundred magic circles she set up stopped shooting and started forming a line that connected every single one of them, forming a very large magic circle.
"This is a payback for that beam earlier! Storm Formation [Chain Lightning]!"
Lagus received the attack directly and for the first time, she dealt some damage but they were no more than small scratches for him. With that Lagus started to fight a bit more seriously.
He also cast magic circles and each of them created solid icicles and were fired at her with an insane speed. Compared to the water that needed to rise from the ocean they were like rock bullets.
Celestine created a barrier that blocked the attack but blocking it forcibly shook her steady flight, each hit felt like receiving a cannonball. The attacks increased in number and were just popping everywhere.
The sound of water splashing as the ice hits the surface of the ocean. She was in the defensive position but she also threw in some attacks, it was a strategic way to observe the enemy's attack pattern and find the weak spot or the blind spot.
Celestine began to soar higher and was almost reaching the clouds. The attacks became more visible now that she had found her stand. With that being said, she used it as an opportunity to fire giant lightning balls falling from the sky. Each of them made Lagus feel like receiving solid punches.
Lagus had to tell Wilhelm telepathically,
"I got to tell you this but your girl sure has a knack for fighting, she clearly used the sky as her standing ground to throw in heavy attacks, she must have figured out that staying close to the ocean is disadvantageous for her" he complimented her.
"Are you fine with having a chat with me? Shouldn't you focus during a fight?"
Wilhelm asked him.
He already figured out what Lagus wants to accomplish. No wonder he acted that way towards Celestine, he wanted to know the power of creatures blessed by mana. He too was curious about it.
"Nah, I'll be fine as long as I'm touching the sea. My wounds heal quickly when I'm in water."
"Having an ocean worth of healing potion makes you undefeated no? Isn't that cheating?" Lagus has the ability to heal his wounds using water, a unique ability that made him undefeated in the oceans.
Celestine launched a series of High-Level Magic. They were dealing consistent damage to the scale but it still wasn't enough to bring down such a large and durable opponent.
She viewed the damages and noticed that they disappeared after a few seconds. Celestine figured that Lagus had healing abilities. With that, she already got the gist that it's a losing battle but that didn't stop her. She decided to deal as much damage as she could by concentrating her attacks.
"Advance Magic [Pure Lightning]" A heavy strike of silver lightning pierced through his thick scales. The giant snake started hissing in pain.
"I told you to focus, didn't I? She's not your ordinary mage you know. She learned from me."
"No shit Wilhelm! No shit! Teaching her advanced magic? Are you out of your mind?! She's blessed by mana! She can fire that shit all day!"
"And you can just heal yourself right?"
"As if I'd let myself get hit by that again! Do you know how stingy her attacks are?"
"I don't, I've never received one and I don't plan to... Oh look, she's ready to fire three more. Watch your tail~"
"You damn crazy human! If she continues that shit up, I'll have no choice but to get serious!"
"That's what you wanted right? Don't worry she asked me to watch over her. I'll interfere if things go south."
With that being said Lagus began to charge his breath. Celestine saw it coming and released three [Pure Lightning] that she was preparing. After the release, she created a barrier to her side and threw in some lightning beam to push her body away from the firing spot.
In terms of power, Lagus' beam is still stronger than the three advanced magic combined.
The collision created an explosion and a sonic boom. She started spamming advanced magic and combined all of them together creating a condensed ball of silver lightning.
"Okay, what the heck is she planning? Did she just combine those?"
"Anything is possible in magic, Lagus... I think you better avoid that or just blow it away... That will surely hurt your tail if you get hit by it."
"I can blow it away, but I think I'll use something different"
Lagus can fire freely since his attacks are aimed at the sky but he was brewing something.
"This should be the right time for you to claim your reward... Watch this"
Lagus closed his eyes and a symbol appeared and glowed on his forehead.
The clouds gathered around the area, then it started raining heavily creating a rageful storm in the ocean.
Celestine was confused by the sudden weather, there were no signs of rain before they started. With the sudden strong down-pour, she concluded that it was Lagus' doing.
The droplets that were falling went directly towards her. She tried to fly away but the water had already caught her. It had surrounded her body creating a sphere of water. Lagus then controlled the pressure, the water was pressing towards her, she was being squashed by it.
With that her control over the lightning ball wavered and missed its target. Lagus stopped crushing her the moment she fainted. The shape of the water from a spheroid has slowly turned into a carpet. Celestine was unconscious and was lying on top of it.
"That's what I planned to reward you for saving that girl. A magic that calls for rain and the ability to take control over it. It's basically controlling the weather."
Wilhelm can control and make water but controlling the weather was something he hadn't tried yet.
"It still crossed my mind why you are concerned with Runa?"
"Because she looked like someone I know from a very long, long time ago... I'll leave that matter aside and for now you should heal your wife"
"She's not my wife..."
"Soon?"
"Oh for God's sake, Shut up!"