Hiding within the root of a tree, Greta Fischer, the vice-champion of the German team, took the opportunity to catch her breath and focused on using her innate ability to scan her surroundings. After checking everything within a two-kilometer radius, Greta let out a disappointed sigh upon not detecting any of her teammates nearby.
It had been about half an hour since they had all split up after Hans's shout. Greta wanted to see if anyone was close to her so she could regroup with her team. Wandering alone during the elimination phase was asking to be surrounded and attacked by a group.
"Are you tired?" Hearing a concerned and pitying voice beside her, Greta responded instinctively.
"I'm fine, and you?" Suddenly, she froze, her body going rigid. She was alone—who had she just spoken to?
Mechanically turning her head, Greta's eyes widened in horror as she saw the girl with white hair. She understood why her captain had ordered everyone to flee; the chances of her team confronting a special-grade witch head-on and winning were practically nonexistent.
It was almost a consensus that all teams would devise a plan to exhaust the magical energy of both special-grade witches before attacking them with full force.
"I'm fine, thanks for your concern," Rose replied with a gentle smile on her face, her blue eyes looking at the brown-haired girl with green eyes.
Taking a deep breath and calming herself, Greta asked calmly, "My teammates?"
"Two are incapacitated, and it's just you and your captain left," Rose replied nonchalantly. For some reason, the fear in the girl's eyes made her a bit excited.
She definitely felt she had been spending too much time with Asterion; her cousin's sadism had rubbed off on her. Not that it was his fault—when she fought, she let herself go completely, becoming almost a lunatic for a good fight.
Greta began to move away slightly as Rose spoke.
"Want to run again?" Rose asked, noticing her movements almost immediately.
Greta did not respond and drew her wand, a plan forming in the young woman's mind. She didn't believe that Rose had used her magical energy while fighting Karl and Lena, which meant the girl in front of her wasn't at full strength.
Greta thought that if she fought Rose and further exhausted her magical energy, her captain, Hans, might have a better chance of winning after she was incapacitated like her teammates.
"A commendable choice. Your two companions made the same choice you did. I must say, all the magical schools have chosen their elites well for the International Tournament; everyone I've seen so far is very good," Rose nodded in satisfaction, seeing the young woman choose to fight her instead of fleeing. In her eyes, there was no point in a fight where the opponent didn't even have the mindset to win.
Suddenly, Rose's eyes grew serious. She leaped into the air and spun, dodging earth spikes that had risen from the ground. Using one of the spikes as leverage, she propelled herself back into the air and spun 360 degrees, evading other spikes, but this time made of wood.
Even knowing that her attacks would never harm Rose, Greta couldn't help but widen her eyes in amazement at how Rose avoided all her transfiguration spells so incredibly.
Just how strong are her reflexes to dodge something like that? Greta thought, horrified by the fourteen-year-old's prowess.
"Transfiguration. I must say, I'm surprised," Rose said, sitting on a branch and swinging her legs back and forth with an excited smile, though to Greta, it looked more like the smile of a madwoman.
Taking a deep breath, Greta didn't hold back her magical energy as she reinforced her body and assumed a fighting stance. This made Rose's eyes light up with excitement; all the other German team members had chosen to use spells rather than engage in hand-to-hand combat.
Descending from the branch, Rose landed on the ground and assumed a fighting stance as well. Their eyes met with intense focus.
The wind rustled the tree canopy, and when a leaf fell to the ground, they both moved simultaneously.
The ground beneath them sank, and they appeared in front of each other. Greta lifted her leg and, with a high kick, aimed for Rose's head. The strong winds generated by the attack caused both girls' hair to whip violently.
Rose firmly held onto her opponent's leg despite the powerful kick and punched towards the young woman's stomach.
Suddenly, Rose saw Greta move like a serpent; her body seemed boneless. Her head was trapped between two strong thighs, and she felt her center of gravity shift abruptly.
In an instant, Rose found herself lying on the ground, looking up at the green eyes above her with surprise.
A punch infused with powerful magical energy jolted Rose awake, and she quickly used her own thighs to ensnare the enemy's arm, effectively immobilizing her.
Greta gritted her teeth, and despite the pain, she tried to bite Rose, but the girl returned to the position where the fight had started.
"Was it a spell that made your bones flexible?" Rose asked curiously, gently touching her own face and feeling a slight pain around it.
Greta's thighs, reinforced with magic, still caused her some pain—something even a true special-grade witch had never managed to do. It could be said that this was the first time Rose had felt any pain in a fight.
"Creating new spells has always been something every country does and will continue to do forever; we're not like England, which is stuck in time." Taking a fighting stance, Greta responded, her eyes locked on Rose. There was unmistakable pride in the girl's tone.
But what answered Greta wasn't words, but Rose's innate technique.
"Innate Spell Manipulation – Unlimited – Blue."
As the swirling blue energy vortex formed just above Rose's finger, Greta felt an extremely powerful suction, and her body was pulled toward the white-haired girl.
Firmly gripping Greta's neck, Rose intensified her hold and addressed the German girl's earlier words.
"You're right; we're not very into creating new spells, especially in this century. But compared to that, our research field involving Innate Techniques is the best in the world. Every country has its weaknesses and strengths; that's just how life is." Her voice remained even and nonchalant, while her grip grew tighter, making Greta's vision blur and darkness gradually envelop her consciousness.
"Captain, I fought as hard as I could against this monster; the rest is up to you…" This was Greta's last thought before darkness took over her awareness.
Releasing Greta's unconscious body onto the ground, Rose sighed in relief and stretched comfortably. The German girl had caused more trouble than necessary, even managing to hurt her.
"It seems I can't underestimate ants… I hate to admit it, but Asterion is right; everyone will fight to the death when cornered," Rose murmured, as she lifted her foot and broke all four of the girl's limbs, preventing her from moving or effectively holding a wand.
It might seem a bit cruel—and it was—but a healing potion could mend all the injuries without leaving any lasting effects, so Rose felt she had a clear conscience.
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