Within the coliseum's battlefield, Curie finds herself surrounded on all sides by three males Ascended.
One standing to her left has short, somewhat spiky red hair. He wears a modified wrestling singlet and has a rather muscular physique. Another to her right wears a hooded leather jacket along with denim pants and leather boots. He has an athletic build, a dark skin tone, a beard, and a short, well-groomed hairstyle. The one standing behind her has an olive skin tone with short, curly black hair. He wears a large sports jersey with shorts and a pair of sneakers.
Despite the signs of imminent battle, the atmosphere between the four is rather pleasant.
Curie speaks to the three Ascended with a friendly disposition. "I would just like to thank the three of you again for accepting my challenge. I've been wanting to test my skills against capable fighters for quite a while now." The Ascended to her right smiles faintly upon hearing that, although it's hard to notice due to the shadow cast by his hooded jacket. "I think I can speak for all of us when I say, fighting someone who is capable of ascending so young is rather intriguing. You must be quite capable."
Though Curie's outward demeanor remains friendly and pleasant, her inner thoughts are cold, calculating, and pragmatic. I have wanted to gain proper data on my Soul Incantation in a proper combat scenario for quite some time. These three specimens will be suitable for my test, as their abilities are varied. This will allow me to engage in a rather complex combat scenario.
After the pleasantries, they all proceed to get into combative stances.
While Curie challenged and spoke to the three as if they were equals, she did not view them as such. She merely did so because it made manipulating them easier. To her, they were more akin to lab specimens in an experiment. Even though she recognized their ability as capable combatants, there was no doubt in her mind that each would fall by her hand.
After all, Curie believed that the greatest weapon she possessed was her mind.
The Ascended wearing the wrestling singlet was the first to act. He rushed towards Curie, both arms shooting out in an attempt to grapple her. She deflected one of his hands, preventing it from gripping her shoulder, but this allowed the other to grab the back of her leg. The Ascended then hoisted her into the air before violently slamming her into the ground.
In a quick response, Curie thrust her hand out just before impact, pushing off the ground. She spun and twisted midair, using the maneuver to reorient herself and create distance between them. While she had the capability to counterattack during the grapple, she refrained. She knew the Ascended's Soul Incantation reinforced his body, making it akin to a suit of armor, rendering simple strikes ineffective.
Anticipating what would follow, Curie activated her own Soul Incantation. An aura of soul energy surrounded her eye sockets, and her irises began to glow.
The next Ascended to engage her was the one wearing a sports jersey. He dashed toward her so quickly she couldn't track his movements. Geometric lines of soul energy glowed on his skin, indicating his Soul Incantation, which temporarily enhanced specific attributes.
While Curie couldn't visually track his movements, she didn't need to. Her Soul Incantation amplified her greatest strength—her mind and her Conscious Mind, allowing her to analyze information with incredible speed. Making for a powerful condition.
She began creating mental images of his most likely attack patterns. The Ascended unleashed a relentless barrage of strikes. Although her body couldn't react in time, Curie managed to dodge every single blow by preemptively moving according to her predictions and adjusting as necessary.
As she preemptively dodged a kick, the Ascended wearing a hooded leather jacket dashed toward her and launched a strike aimed at her back. Having jumped to evade the previous attack, Curie couldn't properly defend herself.
The Ascended's punch landed squarely in the center of her back. While the pain would have been enough to make most people pass out, Curie's high mental fortitude allowed her to remain conscious and endure the pain in complete silence.
Curie had anticipated that the hooded Ascended would be the only one capable of landing a strike on her, as his Soul Incantation allowed him to see when an individual's defenses were weakest. She lunged backward, creating distance.
The three Ascended noticed a sharp change in the atmosphere.
They were all aware that Curie had sustained severe damage, even though she hid it well. Yet her demeanor shifted. Her face became emotionless, and her eyes grew sharper—cold, even.
Curie now had a basic understanding of their abilities and capabilities. She had let them take the offensive to gather data and prepare the most effective counterattack. The test was over. She would defeat them efficiently.
She dashed toward the Ascended in the wrestling singlet. He attempted to wrap his arms around her waist to grapple her again. Curie ducked low, slipping beneath his grasp while simultaneously pushing his arms aside at the elbows. She rose and delivered a powerful slap to both his ears, followed by a flurry of fast yet precise jabs aimed at his joints and soft tissues. By the time she finished, the Ascended was writhing on the ground in pain, his ears bleeding. He was also suffering from several minor fractures and tears in his muscles and ligaments.
Although his Soul Incantation made his body like armor, Curie understood that every suit of armor had weak points to allow movement. She simply targeted the least protected areas.
Next, she turned to the Ascended in the sports jersey, silently gesturing for him to attack.
Visibly shaken by her display of cold brutality, he nonetheless refused to back down. He began dashing around her at speeds so fast that he left afterimages. Curie remained still, watching and waiting. When his attack finally came—a flying kick aimed at her head—she reached out and grabbed his leg mid-air. Using his own momentum, she slammed him face-first into the ground, causing cracks to form in the Coliseum floor.
Curie had anticipated that his speed and momentum would be his downfall. While his Soul Incantation granted high speed and offensive power, his defense was lacking.
Immediately afterward, the hooded Ascended was upon her, aiming a powerful blow at her stomach—exactly as she had planned.
Curie had intentionally lowered her guard to bait him. She knew his Soul Incantation would compel him to strike when her defenses seemed weakest. But her vulnerability was merely a trap.
As his punch connected, Curie simultaneously extended her hand and delivered a devastating one-inch punch to his sternum.
Both endured each other's attacks, but only Curie remained standing, her mental fortitude and willpower keeping her upright. The hooded Ascended collapsed on his back, unconscious.