Rather than suddenly attacking each other, each began casting a spell. In a flash, Carmine was covered with silver Paladin armor. The summoning of it went straight on her body. It was a spell of some sort, so casting it before the battle might have been a rule violation. She held a massive shield, and a sword besides.
As for Terra, she grew covered in a rocky exterior. Her hands were completely surrounded by large balls of metal, making them appear like maces. Her shoulders and various other vital places were covered in layers of earth. Between the two of them, though, Terra's protection looked a lot freer, giving her mobility. Meanwhile, Carmine's armor looked absolutely impenetrable.
"I must admit something," Terra said, "Although Master uses me to defend, I am an Earth Manipulator! My attacks are also powerful!"
Carmine put on a malicious grin. "Paladins must smite demons every day. Anyone who thinks we're all defense has never fought us!"
The two women finally attack. Terra used her canon ball hands while Carmine swung her large sword. The two clashed, creating a massive bomb that filled the arena. The noise was enough that Lydia awoke with a start. She had her sword drawn looking for danger before Miki and Celeste were able to calm her back down.
As for me, my eyes didn't leave the arena as the two women fought aggressively against each other. Terra was fighting more desperately than I had ever seen her, and I had healing spells ready if I needed them. I wouldn't hesitate to throw the match if she was in danger. Yet, as the two girls fought, I found that my worries were unfounded. Remarkably, Terra was starting to gain an edge.
Each time they landed a hit, their respective armors were damaged. However, where Terra's regenerated instantaneously, Carmine's did not. She may be able to heal her body, but her armor steadily accumulated more and more damage. Perhaps she might have been able to cast repair, but she wasn't given the time to. Terra's repair was a passive effect, where Carmine would have to depend on a lengthy spell.
Terra continued to launch Earth attack after Earth Attack. Spikes shot up out of the ground. Some trying to impale Carmine while others were tossed at her like massive spears. Most of them bounced off of her shield, but a few manage to slip past her defenses, causing damage to the handful of open places. On the other side, Terra was hit a lot more, but her entire body had a massive defense beyond the armor. The wound created began to heal almost as soon as they were made.
Earth Manipulator was simply too strange and unconventional of a job, and an Earth Golem couldn't be compared to a human. The human couldn't compete with a magical vessel full of mana!
"The fight is mine!" Terra's body glowed as suddenly hundreds of spike flew out and attacked Carmine.
The intent wasn't to kill her but to push her off of the stage, which would cause her loss. She was using the pure weight of the Earth to push the other woman off. Carmine slammed her shield into the ground. She glowed as well, and suddenly, she was encased in a barrier. No matter what Terra threw at the barrier it no longer budged in the slightest.
"This barrier will last for ten minutes," Carmine panted. "It is impenetrable to the likes of you!"
"I… won't accept it!" She lifted up her hand, and suddenly dust and dirt started to accumulate.
It grew larger and larger and started spinning. The action caused the wind to start spiraling around it, causing hats to fly off and clothing to flap in the wind.
"Terra is a wind mage too!" Celeste clapped happily.
I decided to ignore her as I watched the spinning boulder grow larger and larger. Carmine's eyes started to widen, shock and fear forming in them.
"How… did you get all of this power?" Carmine demanded.
"If I want to stand by Master, I must win!" Terra declared. "I am strong because I must be strong to stand by him!"
She chucked the massive ball, still spinning, across the arena. It slammed into the shield, making a horrific booming sound that shook the entire arena. Everyone in the audience was completely shocked, never having seen such a powerful fight before. This was already exceeding what they had expected to see during the gladiatorial matches this was replacing.
There were a few moments where the spinning ball stopped, unable to move forward as it pressed against the impenetrable shield. The roaring sound continued until a distinct crack could be heard. The cracking sound started to spread more and more, until visual cracks formed across Carmine's shield. Her face turned white as her body flashed the color of various buffs. Just as the shield was about to break, she launched out with a massive wave of her sword, striking the spinning ball of earth.
The ball exploded just as the shield shattered into pieces. A massive blast of air spun out as the arena was instantly turned into a crater.