In the middle of a stone coliseum forged and created using powerful earth magic.

Amidst a thousand eyes, two young adults could be seen exchanging blows in the arena. The scenery is reminiscent of those of two gladiators vying for supremacy and glory in a coliseum, yet the flying banners, the cheering of the cadets, the glint of armor, and the solemnity of the combatants could not be called savage or barbaric.

On one end was a young man clad in the dark armor of the Black Knights, obviously not familiar with the weight of the armor as his swings were slow and off centered. On the other end was his opponent, a strange girl who danced out of the range of his strikes without returning a single one of her own, simply dancing out of range of the strikes and magical projectiles. In the beginning of the battle, the crowd had been very supportive with the cheers and jeers, but now, they had grown tired of the one-sided fight and simply yelled at Yuelei to end it.

You’re not winning any favors with the crowd. Liur reminded her telepathically as she perched on top of one of the many giant pillars that surrounded the coliseum’s center. Some of the more older students knew that they formed a barrier meant to keep any magical attacks from straying into the crowd, but a majority of the non-student-body spectators thought them to be mere obstacles.

Since Liur had finally spoken up, Yuelei stopped playing around with her enemy, who was already panting in exhaustion. She had constantly circled around her foe, occasionally tossing out one or two Crystal Flare bombs against the thick heavy armor. She did not want to reveal any of her spells or techniques, so she had strove for a battle of attrition, and given the equipment of her opponent, it was quite an easy battle.

As the thick heavy black blade was lifted up for yet another swing, Yuelei lazily knocked it out of the young man’s slow and unsteady hands. A split second afterwards, she kicked at his shins and the forward momentum caused Oliver to stumble and trip down onto one knee. She then held up her weapon against the side of his full black helm. Even if it obscured his vision and blocked him from seeing the deadly blade, he could still feel the cold ice forming on his helm, a sharp contrast to his hot sweat pooling down his reddened and irritated skin.

“Enough! The victor is decided! Although it was clear from the start who the better contestant was.” Headmaster Quentil announced in the silence, obviously not quite pleased in the way Yuelei had ‘played’ with her prey instead of giving him a proper defeat to an honest duel. “Will the two contestants please leave the arena!”

Yuelei made no move to help her opponent up, instead deciding toss her Frost Edge into the air while removing her magical control on it, causing it to ripple and transform back into water. At that time her enemy had already returned to standing on his feet and turned to salute her, both hands clasped together on the hilt, and his head tilted downwards to touch the pommel. It was an extremely humble and polite courtesy, one given by someone who clearly understood that they had faced someone who was several tiers above them.

After seeing this posture and respectful attitude, Yuelei nodded in return and offered a few tidbits of advice, pointing out both the flaws in his stance and attacks. Her words were blunt and biting but was nevertheless well received by her foe. Most of the onlookers however, did not notice this exchange of words, only Yuelei slowly brushing past the defeated squire and continued towards the exit. She did not feel remorse- but there was little reason to continue disrespecting a defeated enemy.

As soon as the contestants left, Quentil quickly made the announcement for the next set of participants, hoping to stem the discontentment of the crowd.

When Yuelei came out of the dark tunnel exit, she was met with unfamiliar faces and stares. As luck would have it, she had ended up on the other side of the stadium, away from Silfy and June. Thus, she moved all the way up the stands, towards the seats furthest from the arena and therefore the most empty and away from prying eyes. As soon as she sat down on the cold earthen seats, Liur settled flew down and settled beside her.

That was quite the show. If you needed to send a message, then you could have just asked me to intervene.

“The battles should be fought with my own power, less they too have a companion of sorts. In that case you can intervene as much as you’d like.”

When did you gain a sense of fairness and honor, Yuelei? Do wolves hunt alone or in packs? Only dragons and great beings can hunt alone, and neither you or I are one of them yet. This Royal Knight Academy seemed to have instilled certain...Liur struggled to find a neutral-sounding word ‘beliefs’ into you.

“Not necessarily. I am simply trying to evade making enemies and warn those that plan on being an enemy without revealing anything.” Yuelei replied as she dug for the sack Galvin had given her, pulling out a pile of wrapped sandwiches.

Without any pomp and circumstance, she started to ram one sandwich after another into her mouth like a starving beast, only stopping to drink so she could continue to gorge herself. Crumbs and droplets of water splashed onto the floor as Yuelei satisfied her hunger that the combat adrenaline had temporarily held back. It was only when the emptiness in her stomach that reminded her of the early days in the Whitefrost Mountains had been replaced with a more satisfying feeling that she stopped.

“Wake me up when they call for me.” Yuelei mumbled as she laid her head against the back wall, shuffling her Sheive Cloak forward until it covered her entire body. The colosseum was loud- packed full of boisterous voices directed towards the competitors, but that did not deter Yuelei from falling asleep. The first few days of the Whitefrost- with ice and hail slamming against the upper reaches of the eyrie were similarly just as loud. With exhaustion finally overcoming her, she fell into a dreamless slumber.

The first thing Yuelei felt when she came to was the feeling of someone pinching her face. With an inward sigh she opened her eyes to catch the culprit red-handed, Silfy Justinia.

“She’s alive!” Silfy exclaimed, her mischievous eyes turning to June who was seated in the seats in front of them. “What is with those black eyes, Yuelei? Been having too much fun partying outside without inviting us?”

Without replying, Yuelei closed her eyes and pretended to go back to sleep.

“Hey hey, don’t ignore me, Yuelei. Galvin said that you went out for some ‘training’. Did Lin come back- or did you pay a visit to Lumnieve? Out with it!”

“...Let me sleep.” Yuelei grumbled, but to no avail.

“No can do. Not only did you made us worry and then literally appeared out of the blue with a grand flourish- you actually slept through our battles!” Silfy gripped Yuelei by the shoulders and shook her, with Yuelei’s head bobbling back and forth. When she finally stopped, Yuelei glared at Liur with a look obviously blaming her for this event. “And we have to give up our seats for this crappy view in the back stands!”

You brought this on yourself. Liur spread her wings and raised her shoulders in an imitation of a human shrug. Yuelei did not know whether or not to laugh at the gesture- so out of place yet oddly fitting for Liur’s dismissive attitude.

“Liur can’t save you now!” Silfy twisted around until she was behind Yuelei in a death-grip like hug. “I’m not letting go until you’ve properly explained yourself, young lady.”

“...Fine. Do you mind letting go first?.” Yuelei sighed and conceded defeat against Silfy’s stubbornness. If she were to refuse, Silfy would consistently nag her until the truth came out eventually- and a ‘training’ expedition was easy to fabricate. It took only a few minutes for her to explain about her trip to the Opalis Mine to gather alchemical reagents and fighting a Hookbrute while skipping the part of the Spirit’s Spring.

“...And since we were deep underground I didn’t have a good sense of time, so when we returned to the house, Galvin informed us about what day it was, and you know the rest.” Yuelei pulled out the piece of carapace she had obtained and showed it to Silfy. “I had hoped to processes this before I came here- but it seems it’s a bit late.”

June picked up the piece of shell and tapped it lightly- listening to the sound it made. “It’s sharp but the structure is brittle. Creature shells are often used to make arrowheads among my folk, perhaps you can use it as a form of shrapnel in those pellet bombs of yours.”

“It’s more likely that they would burn up in the process.” Yuelei shrugged, receiving the piece of Hookbrute carapace back and skimming a finger along the smooth surface. After a brief moment of consideration, she handed it back to June. “Since you can make arrows out of it, you should have it. I doubt that it has an alchemy properties compared to herbs. Most creatures and beasts don’t make good potions unless they are proficient with some sort of magic- and those that are often dangerous ones to hunt.”

“Then as customary of my people, I will return the gesture in the future when I find a prey you need.” June gladly accepted the gift and promised one in return.

“Hey, hey, hey!” Silfy grumbled. “Nice of you two to get along so well, but where is my gift?”

Yuelei glanced around her until she found the sack of food given to her by Galvin and then handed it to Silfy “Would you like a sandwich?”

“Oh. I see how it is.” Silfy accepted the olive branch. “If I ever bring you and June to one of banquets or balls sponsored by a well-acclaimed family, I fear that instead of socializing, the two of you will go straight towards the food.”

“Sounds about right.” Yuelei agreed without batting an eye. “Not that you will ever be able to convince me or June to attend one of your fancy parties.”

“Come on now, do you two live under a rock? One of the key benefits is to be able to get out and get to know people!” Silfy tried to argue, shouting quite loudly to overcome the noise from the spectators cheering on their favored contestant in the current duel.

“Actually, I lived within a rock- one of the Whitefrost Mountains to be specific.”

“My people often used hidden caves and standing stones as points of reference and safe camping sites.”

“…….” Silfy rolled her eyes and punched them lightly. “Oh Goddess, what am I going to do with these two?”

While the three of them were enjoying themselves- Liur was busy scanning the stands and the panels of the elite, her ever vigilance was one of the unknowing reasons Yuelei could converse with such ease.

The next one that was called out was surprisingly June, who was the last of the three to go. Silfy gave her a pat and then she moved towards the arena. Her opponent was someone they were acquainted with, Cecilla Solas- the red haired wielder of a flaming halberd, and Yuelei’s occasional sparring partner.

“I believe this is the first time we have sparred.” Cecilla greeted June as she walked out of her own entrance while planting the shaft of her weapon in the ground, moving forward and offering a hand in greeting. “It is a shame to have ended up as foes this early.”

“It beats fighting against Yuelei or Silfy.” June accepted the handshake with her bow strung around her back. “Let us exchange pointers afterwards.”

“Agreed.” Despite the fact that June only wielded a bow, Cecilla did not underestimate her. Most of the cadets trained in various arts, and like herself, she knew it was the ones that focused on one craft that was the most dangerous and experienced.

Then they parted, each to their own end of the stadium and after they finished prepping their weapons, they nodded at each other.

As soon as Cecilla nodded back, she dove to the side as a Storm Hunter tore through the space where she stood moments ago. She rolled and continued to run as more arrows pelted the place where she once stood and even when she was in motion she had to fend off arrows that seemed to predict her location ahead of time.

After few minutes of realizing she was making no progress towards June, who was strafing along in parallel to match her movements, Cecilla boldly charged forward, abandoning all pretense of being on the defensive in order to close the distance and attempt to gain the upper hand.

But June had anticipated it, for every battle she fought against Silfy always had the same situation occur over and over several times, with her foe trying to gain ground around her. Her calculated response was to send several arrows towards Cecilla’s face- an act that she would not dare lest there were experienced healers around.

Cecilla, witnessing the ever-growing size of the projectiles as they approached her, deftly tilted her head to the side to dodge them, but after the sixth one, she was forced to stop her charge and slip to the side- not trusting her ability to block an arrow with the shaft of the halberd. No- Cecilla indeed trusted her ability to block one, perhaps two arrows, but there was no knowing how many arrows June could release while her line of sight was broken by her weapon. As such, she had decided to slip to the side instead of momentarily halting her charge.

Yet that brief moment of slowdown was what June had wanted. When Cecilla looked up to where June was standing before, she had long vanished, utilizing her ‘Trails of the Wind’ technique that allowed for momentary rapid movement.

Sensing something was off, Cecilla quickly ducked as an arrow whizzed over her head. Without waiting, she slammed her halberd into the ground and blindly shot several ‘Fire Bolts’ towards the direction from whence the arrow came from, which was to her right.

June ignored the spells as they flew towards her, having already read their projectile trajectory and deemed they were not a threat. Even as they splattered harmlessly against the stadium wall behind her, she assessed the amount of arrows she had left- thirty. She would need to be more frugal from now on, or so she thought.

“It is a good thing the regulations limit the amount of arrows you could bring.” Cecilla laughed as she stood to face June again, watching for any movements. “A wind affinity archer as slippery as you is hard for most of us to catch, like that poor opponent of yours that you just simply danced in circles around and made his armor into a pincushion.”

“Armor is only useful to turn away straying blades and the occasional weak spell in a large battle. In a true exchange of skills and wits, it is a merely a burden.” June replied as she casually nocked another arrow. “Unless of course, it was magical armor, but most magic armor is light in the first place. Don’t you have a rare artifact that calls forth a salamander?”

“I have deemed it was better to rely on my own strength.” Cecilla curt reply earned her a nod of approval through the crowd, but it was quickly stifled as June released her technique. ‘Gaeling’.

The arrow that sprung forth from the bow did not fly towards Cecilla, but instead bounced and arced along the ground- like a stone skipping across a lake surface. Unable to properly gauge its trajectory and path, Cecilla had no choice but to slam her halberd into the ground and spend soul power to create a Flame Wall. As soon as the technique was dealt with, Cecilla swung her halberd to clear away the lingering flames- only to see June in the air a few feet in front of her, three arrows knocked to her bow.

June had again taken the advantage of Cecilla’s lack of sight to pull off a simple maneuver- a short ranged multishot. And in response, Cecilla had no choice but to either choose to dodge- or conjure up yet another Flame Wall to deflect the arrows. Cecilla did not believe that it would be quicker for her to dodge and recover, compared to the speed that June nocked her arrows. However when this time Cecilla did not dismiss her Flame Wall, but instead swinging through it with her halberd and sending a spray of tiny flames towards June at the same time deflecting her arrows..

June ignored the incoming projectiles and held out her bow, murmuring in a quiet voice- the words not caught by the onlookers. The next second, June’s altered version of the Windbolt shot forth- a thin half-moon green blade- easily slicing through the spluttering balls of flame and flying towards Cecilla.

Cecilla braced herself for another sneak attack, and so was prepared when the Aero Blade surged towards her. She coated her halberd in a protective flame, before slipping a foot back and leaning her weight against it.

As the attack approached- she swung.

The halberd’s edge met the altered Wind Bolt, splintering it into pieces that stuck into the ground around her like tiny needles. Cecilla prepared herself to receive June, but to her surprise the evasive archer suddenly released one hand from her bow as she fell towards her from the air. When they were but a few meters from each other, a strong blast of wind surge forth from her palm, a Windblast meant to knock both of them backwards.

However, Cecilla had other plans, using the shaft of her weapon as an anchor, she took the brunt of the Windblast head on to June’s surprise. As June was in free fall, flying backwards, Cecilla took the opportunity to dash forward and close the distance, and with a light hop, she swung her weapon down. Caught off guard, June had no choice but to use her bow to block the strike. Evenso, the impact and strength behind the swing was enough to smash June into the ground and cause her to wince in pain.

“I didn’t think you would be the one to close the distance!” Cecilla shouted as she pinned June down, making it futile for her to resist.

“And I didn’t think you would react faster than Silfy would.” June replied bitterly, but she was not yet ready to concede. holding out her palm and pushing out yet another Windblast.

This time it was Cecilla who was caught by surprise as her halberd flew out of her hands from the point blank strike. She snarled in response and quickly retreated to retrieve her weapon, but that was enough time for June to regain her position.

However before the next exchange would begin, June held up her hand in a fist, the symbol of surrender.

“...Why?” Cecilla asked, as flabbergasted as the crowd.

“It was my loss when you got close to me in the first place.” June shrugged. “An archer loses the moment they have been compromised, and I am not confident enough to strike you down with another measly dozen and half arrows,- I would need at least thrice that amount. I know when to concede and obtain victory on another day.”

As soon as June finished, some the crowd started to immediately boo and heckle her. They wanted a show from the cannibal girl but then they were denied of it. The teachers and instructors yelled at them, but their voices were overpowered by sheer volume of students. Finally, Cecilla decided she had enough of it and flames wreathed along the shaft of her halberd and into the blade. With a roar of howling flame, several tendrils of flame ripped forth from beneath the ground and lashing towards the seats in the stands. They were promptly repelled by the magical barrier, but it had achieved the desired effect. The crowd instantly quieted.

“Any that dare to insult my opponent, can take her place!” Cecilla roared. “More than half of you did not even sign up to participate, yet you dare have the nerve to laugh at the brave and courageous!?”

At Cecilla’s words, silence permeated through the crowd. It did not earned her any points with the cadets, as she had attacked them where it hurt, but the upper officials of the Church from the several orders of Knights, nodded their heads in approval.

And thus, Cecilla Solas left the arena, glaring at those seated above her, with very few daring to meet her gaze.

“Quite a temper on that one, but admirable.”

“...Agreed. But she is quite devoted and would make a charismatic and just leader. I’ll send one of our officer recruiters to her when the tournament ends. We could use someone who can inspire others like her in the Mage-Knights.”

“I’m more interested in the archer girl. I can tell from those movements that she’s a Shepherd. Her skills would make her a perfect candidate for the Glade Scouts. Her temperament, even moreso”

“It’s okay, June. You did your best.” Silfy comforted June when she returned, glaring at those that were staring at her as she made her way to the back of the stands.

“You fought wisely.” Yuelei added, although those were Liur’s words- who grudgingly applauded her actions in battle.

“One day, I’ll master the use of elemental Soul Arrows.” June shrugged. “Until then, my supply is merely a physical limit.”

“Or you can learn to use a sword.” Silfy interjected

“You mean this?” June smirked and held out a hand, and the next instant a transparent image of a sword appeared in her arms. A few seconds later, it morphed and transformed into an arrow- but the form seemed unstable. Within a few seconds, it turned back into wind. “...It seems that I am still too weak to use it.”

“June with unlimited arrows. I don’t want to fight her if she ever manages to master that spell.”

“Technically it is limited by pool of soul power.”

As the three of them spoke among themselves, the tournament continued.

The rest of the preliminaries were nothing worthy of mention. Silfy easily defeated her next two opponents, her superior skill with the shield easily granting her an edge over her foe. Yuelei herself could understand the same frustration Silfy’s opponent went through as both their weapon and spells bounced harmlessly off Silfy’s heavy target shield. The shield was given to her by Galvin a week ago, and Yuelei could tell that it had an enchantment of sorts.

Yuelei’s own opponents were nothing spectacular. The first one of them fell to her Frost Edge, not realizing that crossing weapons with a blade of pure ice was not the wisest choice and almost ended up with frostbite. Luckily the healers were at hand.

The second one was not so careless, they made sure to never cross weapons too long with Yuelei, and tried to gain superiority through spells. Of course, she realized that was impossible when one of Yuelei’s Primal Frost Bolts easily blew away ten Earth Bolts. She promptly conceded afterward, staring at Yuelei like she was some sort of monster as she left the field.

And thus the final sixty four students have been selected from the participants, twenty of them from current top ten from the male and female cadets. thirty-five from within the top fifties, and the last fourteen percent were previously unknown individuals, including Yuelei, Silfy, Cecilla, and two first year male cadets.

There was to be a three hour break before the next series of battles began, essentially a lunch break for both the spectators and participants. Of course, it was also a time for the various sponsors to advertise their products, and while the tournament was going on the entire outside field had turned into a fair. The food of course, was free, all expenses are covered by the Church. which was the main reason why there were so many viewers.

At the current time, Yuelei, Silfy, and June had invited Cecilla to enjoy a meal. They had found a small cafe-restaurant that was relatively empty and had seated themselves in the corner and placed their orders. Within a twenty minutes, the entire restaurant had filled up. They were lucky to have arrived just as the doors had opened.

“Here is your ‘Five-meats Skewers’ with a meat from each country, ‘Winter and Summer Vegetables Salad’ using imports from the Red Slate Republic, ‘Grilled Boneless Silkfish’ from our supplier that obtain them in the Sea of Ghosts, and platter of ‘Roasted Veal Chops.’ with our secret sauce!” The experienced waitress quickly arrived with their order, earning them the envious gazes of the other patrons. “The rest of your order will be ready in a few minutes!

“That’s quite a lot of food there, Cecilla. Are you preparing to go to war or something?” Silfy stared at the heap of veal that matched her sitting-height as the waitress busied herself elsewhere.

“Is this tournament not a war to distinguish oneself?” Cecilla shrugged as she ladled several skewers into her plate. Despite her otherwise blunt and crude demeanor, her skill with the fork and knife was quite elegant as she swiftly removed the bone and carved the meat into bite sized pieces. “If you worry about me being… ‘encumbered’ in battle, fear not, for my metabolism is quite astonishing. Plus, this can be considered little.”

“...Little? What sort of monster, are you?” Silfy shook her head as she ladled herself a bit of everything from each dish/platter.

“I can’t compare to Yuelei over here.” Cecilla pointed her knife toward her right. Seated beside her, sat Yuelei, who was freezing slices of meat and wrapping them with thick paper. After her last experience, Yuelei decided storing solid food rations should be done alongside of relying on potions, poultices, and elixirs.

“It seems that Yuelei is preparing for the battles in the far future instead of the next one.” June commented, sliding several skewers over for Yuelei to ‘incorporate’ into her makeshift rations. “Personally I prefer to dry meats and spices to carry along, but freezing seems to be a good option as well.”

Just as Yuelei was about to make a comment, the waitress arrived again. “And here is the rest of your order! ‘Triple-S Bouillabaisse with Giga-Scallops, Rocky-Shrimp, and Lime-Spotted Squid, Ghost Mushrooms with our special pâté blend and Whole-Roasted Kquail. Since you are not only our first customers as well as students that are advancing to the semi-finals, we have provided some Herb-Butter Teq Breadsticks, courtesy of the chef.”

“Teq Breaksticks?”

“One of the chef’s relatives passed her the recipe. She’s been trying to promote it for the past couple of months. Ah, don’t tell her that I told you though, I can’t stand those little things.” The waitress winked before leaving.

“Instead of calling it a breadstick, it’s more of a doughy cookie or sweet hardtack.” Silfy commented as she bit into one. “Doesn’t taste like bread at all, but the herbal butter is nice and fragrant.”

“They would make good rations.” June noted, as she tested the weight of one particularly large breadstick. “Light and filling. Would go well with some meat.”

At her words Yuelei also went to try the Teq Breadsticks, she found them too bland without the herb sauce, She didn’t like them for some reason, unaware the reason being that she was too used to a carbohydrate-deficient diet.

“I don’t like them either.” Cecilla commented after seeing Yuelei’s expression. “I can taste mushrooms and I detest those miserable little things.”

And so the conversation derailed to all sorts of matters, from one’s preference in food, to proper methods of cooking steak, knives and swords, blunt weapons vs blade weapons, to magical beast categories.

At one point Yuelei had caught strange movements in the corner of her eye. A young boy dressed like a squire had walked in and glanced around the restaurant until his eyes had landed on Yuelei and her group. Afterward his mouth had twisted into various expressions, before running out of the restaurant. To be safe, Yuelei asked Liur to keep an eye on him. Liur had decided not to accompany her, instead flying around the tournament fair grounds to keep an eye on things.

He’s returning with someone that appears to be a knight. Liur warned. He’s armed, and I can’t make out his expression behind that helmet of his.

Yuelei turned to face the door just as the aforementioned knight appeared. His blue-tinted armor and winged helmet signified his position within the Mage-Knight Corps as a water magus. The young squire pointed a finger their direction and the knight made eye contact with Yuelei. He nodded to the squire-cadet who promptly ran off before striding over to where they sat, the sound of his metal feet mixing in with the clamor of the restaurant. Yuelei slipped a hand beneath the table, ready to form a Frost Edge at a moment’s notice. She held her breath as the man strode through the restaurant, ignoring one of the waitresses saying that he would have to wait in line, and stopped in from of the four of them.

“Miss Cecilla Solas, based on your performances, my captain would like to invite you to join us at the Mage-Knight’s tents. Your… friends are welcome as well.” The knight’s words allowed Yuelei to relax, and she quickly dematerialized the weapon that was forming in her hands.

More coming. Liur’s voice shattered any of Yuelei’s hopes of resolving things quietly and staying unnoticed. Before long, several recruiters from the various factions and sub factions burst entered the restaurant.

It would be a long afternoon of polite declinations.

The first round of the semi-finals.

…

Lapis Serpent- (Riae Volkin) vs. White Azalea(Silfy Justina)

Victor: Silfy Justinia

…

Untitled- (Mohan Eliezer) vs. Bloodsoaked Rose(Cecilla Solas)

Victor: Cecilla Solas

…

Rampaging Bull- (Kerr Saul) vs Untitled-(Yuelei Alia)

And so it became Yuelei’s turn again, and she stared at the man in front of him. True to his title, he had a large build, his body mass would easily be triple that of hers. However, despite his bulging muscles, he did not wear any armor. Perhaps it was the compensation for the weight of his weapon, a large two handed hammer that he grasped with both hands. If one were to meet him inside a dungeon, one may assume that he was a minotaur. A pair of intelligent eyes stared at Yuelei as he too, judged the foe in front of him.

“Begin!” At Quentil’s announcement, Kerr Saul slammed the bottom of his weapon into the ground as chunks of white stone that made up the arena floor launched into the air. But their target was not Yuelei, no- they seemed to halt in midair and slowly converge and stick to the man’s body. Within moments, a set of armor had been formed, and the large burly man charged forward, true to his title.

At the same time, Yuelei did not stood still. She had determined ever since she laid eyes on her enemy that this would not be a simple battle. As the hulk of stone surged towards her with stomps that rivaled a beasts, four Winter Moons hung delicately in the air behind Yuelei. After determining the most opportune distance, two spiraling spheres of condensed Primal Frost Bolts was shot towards the incoming figure.

However they did little to block the charge, for Kerr Saul simply used his hammer to slam them aside as one may use a bat. Even though, they blew up in response, the shards of ice from the Primal Ice Bolts merely bounced off his armor. The magical barrier surrounding the arena glimmered as it repelled all the rogue bolts that had been deflected towards the spectator’s direction.

Yuelei did not dare to take attack head on, nor was she confident in her speed to completely evade any follow up strikes. A blunt weapon- even more so a large two handed hammer, could easily shatter ice, and Yuelei’s Frost Edge was no exception. And thus, Yuelei came to a decision, as her foe was almost upon her, she knelt down and conjured up an Ice Wall, projecting herself up into the air.

However to her shock, her opponent was still on the same level as her. The earth beneath his feet seemed to meld with his armor, similarly projecting him into the air. Struck with no choice as the heavy hammer started to swing towards her, Yuelei commanded the remaining two Winter Moons to crash against each other- causing an explosion of mist and ice at close range that knocked her away and avoiding the swing. Yuelei rolled along the ground and picked herself up only to see Kerr Saul undo his ice-covered armor to don another clean armor of stone. Clearly he had watched from Yuelei’s prior battles the deadliness of her ability to control frost.

Need a wing, Yuelei? Liur’s voice asked.

No. This is my battle, and I have this. Yuelei replied curtly as she watched Kerr swung his hammer around as he slowly walked towards her. At her words, Liur only shrugged and grumbled to herself about ‘foolish human notions of fairness’.

“The number of cadets that dare to take my charge head on can be countered with one hand!” Kerr Saul shouted loudly as he inched closer. “I commend you! Let us exchange blows in a sacred battle!”

“A duel is a clash between two individuals with only one victor with no need for words! If this can be considered sacred, then all of us that stand in this stadium are merely clowns entertaining those that are watching!” Yuelei spat out in return, her words an unbidden truth that directly insulted the spectators.

“Ah, you are an outsider. My apologies.” Yuelei’s opponent quickly realized that his opponent was no follower of the goddess. However Yuelei herself was surprised when he did not push the matter, respecting her own beliefs and standards. The crowd on the other hand, was booing her.

Kerr had finally approached within melee distance, and he eyed the four newly-formed Winter Moons that floated dangerously behind Yuelei five meters in front of him. He had experienced their deadliness firsthand, and if not for the fact that he focused on defensive techniques and spells, he would have likely taken heavy damage.

“Although you do know follow the Goddess’s Teachings, may her light forever watch over you, outsider.” Kerr hefted his weapon, signaling that the time for words was drawing to a close. “For whatever reason that is yours, we are opponents today!”

With a hefty leap, Kerr jumped into the air, his hammer held high above him, using earth magic to once again propel himself into the air. At the peak of his jump Yuelei sent a lone Winter Moon against him. However, before it could impact Kerr’s armor, Yuelei shot out a Frost Bolt that crashed into the explosive sphere of ice, showering the area with mist and shards of ice. It did little to deter Kerr’s momentum, but it was enough to obscure his vision. And thus when his hammer fell, it struck nothing but the ground, leaving a fissure in the stone ground.

Kerr was a seasoned veteran that was about to graduate this year. He had survived plenty of campaigns and missions, and his bounty of experience lead him to quickly turn to his left and conjure up an Earth Wall. Although he may have lost sight of his opponent, he had a sense for danger. Not a second later, the sound of two Winter Moons exploding could be heard, the sheer impact causing his temporary wall to crumble back to the stone it once was. Yet another second later, Kerr quickly hefted his weapon to block Yuelei’s Frost Edge.

And thus their martial prowess was put to the test. On one side was the armored giant, with strikes that were slow yet heavy enough to crush his opponents weapon in a single strike if it landed. On the other was a young girl that deftly wielded both sword and sorcery. Neither of them managed to gain the upper hand, as Yuelei had no choice but to evade the swings of the heavy hammer, and her weapon unable to pierce the stone armor resembling solid bedrock. Every so often Yuelei would switched from her typical explosive frost magic to swift wind bolts or debilitating water bolts, but they were too weak and simply bounced off the armor to her frustration.

After two bouts, Kerr tried to retreat, realizing that both his weapon and armor were slowly being coated in ice. Whether or not it was his weapon or his armor that blocked Yuelei’s strikes, the creeping ice was slowly but surely starting to dull his movements. However, Yuelei would not let him. For every step he took, Yuelei would dart forward two steps, movement granted to her by the enchanted anklets that had melded with her feet.

But she was too hasty, and even Liur who was watching from above merely shook her head. Kerr had been dragging his hammer along the ground with a single hand in a feint, causing Yuelei not to pay attention to it. As soon as Yuelei approached, he swung his hammer in way befitting of an uppercut.

“I ask thee… Eternal Time.” Yuelei’s whisper went unnoticed as the last Winter Moon behind her dashed in front of her towards her opponent, growing in size as the ancient ring’s stored Winter Moon combined with it. Defense was never Yuelei’s strongest suit, and as the hammer arced towards her, she started to conjure a wall of six Primal Ice Bolt within her free hand to meet it. To fight fire with fire- or in Yuelei’s case, power with power was always how she always fought. Her logic was fairly simple, the explosion from her own spell would knock her back and her growing Winter Moon would inflict more damage to her enemy- than herself.

However something strange occurred when Yuelei held up her hand to shield against the strike. At least it was strange to her- for her opponent and crowd seemed to take it for granted as the Frost Bolts seemed to meld vanish entirely. Due to their connection, Liur could easily tell what Yuelei’s intentions were- yet even Liur- who had stood up in the case she needed to intervene- was surprised at the sudden change. To most of the onlookers, it appeared as if the spell had failed and Yuelei was wide open to attack.

Yuelei had no time to ponder the meaning of what happened, and she braced herself for the hammer’s impact. Even her foe- Kerr, thought something was wrong but he was too deep into his swing to try and stop it. The arena was quiet as the hammer raced towards Yuelei’s chest… only to be met with a barrier of water. The ripple sent out from the nigh-invisible shield revealed that Yuelei was covered in a spiraling small half-sphere barrier shaped like a nautilus shell, with her at its center. Upon impact, the hammer seemed to bounce away, similar to how gelatin may bounce if pressed down upon. However what was truly shocking- was that right afterward the impact the barrier withdrew in size and then… exploded in a surge of water.

Kerr was dumbstruck as the water struck him in a wave. Yuelei quickly took advantage of the situation and stabbed her sword into the edge of the water, causing it to freeze over and immobilize Kerr. A split second afterward, she twisted her weapon and held it against Kerr’s helmet.

“I concede.” Kerr quickly realized Yuelei’s intentions, and shouted loud enough for the judges to hear as he was unable to lift a hand to give the signal. As soon as Quentil shouted the results, Yuelei undid the spell, causing Kerr to plop onto the ground as the ice returned to it’s true form. Yet strangely enough- the water did not evaporate away like most elementary water spells would after they were dispelled- instead remained and pooling on the ground.

And so came to be how Yuelei finally had an inkling of what sort of boon she had acquired in that sealed chamber.

The second round of battles. With the last round, over 80% of the remaining competitors were within the top tens of both factions of the Cadets. And thus, whether it was bad fortune or merely the Goddess’s will, Yuelei and her friend’s next opponents were not simple.

The Blood-soaked Rose (Cecilla Solas) vs. The Princess of Flowers (Priscilla Florella)

Cecilla’s opponent was one that Yuelei had kept her eyes on, for she was the highest ranked among the female cadets, and like Yuelei, she wielded a power different from the norm. The title Princess of Flowers was not for show, but a testament to her ability to achieve and maintain the highest rank among the cadets for several years. Yet it was quite fitting, for the silver haired lady was quite a rare beauty, and her temperament was both benevolent and kind as one that followed the Goddess. Even now, she greeted Cecilla- her junior quite politely.

“Lady Solas, I hear you often stay for long hours in the training arena and rooms. It truly makes me admire your determination and endurance.” Priscilla’s delicate voice harbored no ill intentions as she greeted Cecilla.

“No, the truly admirable one here is you, Lady Florella. To be able to cross weapons with you will truly be a beneficial experience. Please don’t hold back on account of my juniority.” Even Cecilla- who boasted a fiery personality and was an individual of few words- exchanged pleasantries with her opponent.

A few minutes later, despite the fact that the two were still pleasantly conversing, Quentil announced the start of the battle. Yet neither of the two made a move to attack, instead putting some distance between them and facing the other. Priscilla hefted her skirt in a bow before drawing her weapons, a set of half-moon chakrams. Cecilla returned the gesture, although she lacked both the grace or posture due to her medium armor, and clasped both hands on her favored halberd, tiny ebbs of flames stirring from the shaft.

“Please.” Lady Florella offered Cecilla the first strike.

Cecilla nodded in return, appreciative of the gesture. She took a deep breath and started to sprint towards the Princess of Flowers, flames snaking out from her hand into her halberd shaft into the axe-blade like a snake. A few steps away from Priscilla, she leaped off the ground and the flames on her weapon flared and reached their apex, obscuring the weapon in flames large enough to make it seem as if Cecilla had not a halberd in her hands, but a raging inferno. Such was Cecilla’s skill- Salamander Crash. Although it was a move that could probably be hard to use in combat due to the slow start time, it’s destructive power was enough to at least be determined as a rank four spell.

Priscilla made no move to dodge, intending to take the strike head on. As the pillar of flame descended, a faint yellow light surrounded her chakrams, and Priscilla crossed in together to meet the attack. Holy element clashed with fire element, a split second afterward, the pillar of flame slammed into the ground next to Priscilla, sending a cone-shaped wave of flame behind her. In the end Priscilla had diverted the blow to the side- a testament to the strength of Cecilla’s ability.

“Truly impressive.” Priscilla commended as she retreated a few steps back to allow Cecilla some space to recover, before spinning and swinging her chakram in a downward strike.

The strike was blocked by Cecilla’s weapon shaft, but it was followed up quickly by another and yet another. Priscilla’s movements were reminiscent of that of a dancers- fluid and without pause. The end result was that Cecilla was slowly forced backward at the endless onslaught, without a chance to strike back. Finding herself in such a defensive position, Cecilla slammed the shaft of her weapon in the ground, sending a powerful nova of flame outwards, hoping to change the flow of battle.

However, Cecilla found herself at a loss as Priscilla somersaulted into the air to avoid her Flame Nova. Thinking that this was her opportunity, she quickly bathed her weapon in flame and used it as a catalyst to send out a Flame Lance towards her opponent. One of Priscilla’s chakrams glimmered in return- the yellow light shifting to that of a blue-tinted one. She spun in the air and waved her hands as if cutting into the air, and a slash of blue light slammed into the Flame Lance, splitting it in half, and continuing on towards Cecilla. Its speed had dropped after going through the Flame Lance, and thus Cecilla easily evaded it at the same time Priscilla landed on the ground. The two merely nodded at the other in respect, and their exchanges began.

In the end, Cecilla lost due to their difference in versatility. Although she could fight toe to toe with Priscilla if she can maintain within the effective distance of her halberd, Priscilla easily closed the distance by taking advantage of the heavy swings. At times, she would even retreat backward while throwing her chakram like a flying disk, only to pull it back with a thin trail of water she attached to the handle through magic. In terms of magical power and spells, she easily countered Cecilla’s offense oriented ones with her defensive water and light spells.

After offering Cecilla some parting remarks and advice like an elder sister would, the two of them parted ways. Despite the lost, Cecilla felt as if she had learned quite a lot.

A few matches later, it was Silfy’s turn.

White Azalea.Silfy Justinia) vs. Magnolia Valkyrie (Byrhilda Siegla)

A battle between the eighth ranked and second ranked maidens of war.

Compared to the battle before fought by Cecilla, there was no pleasantries exchanged this time around. Byrhilda Siegla came from an old but noble family of knights, and although Silfy greeted her, she said nothing and only nodded in return. The spectators thought of her as cold, haughty and hard to approach, but the truth was that she was mute, a little secret that only a few within the entire Knight Academy knew. And out of those few, only three or four realized that it was the reason she had such a good relationship with Priscilla, who had her own small secret in turn.

As Silfy gave her arm and a shoulder a few twists and turns as warmup, Byrhilda carefully drew her weapon, a slightly-larger than normal mortuary sword, otherwise known as a basket-hilted sword, and placed the flat aside against her forehead while closing her eyes. This was a ritual that most of the spectators had seen her done before each fight, and many assumed that she was offering up a prayer to the goddess.

As soon as Quentil announced the start of the battle, Silfy hoisted up her shield up to cover her body- her sword held at a 45 degree angle against the ground. The Magnolia Valkyrie on the other hand, held spread her legs with one feet forward and one feet back, her left shoulder pointed towards Silfy. Her right harm was raised in the air with her mortuary sword slanted downwards, her left hand supporting the tip of the tip of the blade. A sword master would easily note that despite it looked like the point of her sword was impaling her own finger, it actually halted a few inches away from her skin. After giving Silfy a few more moments, Byrhilda’s figure blinked and she dashed towards Silfy like a whirlwind.

The sound of metal on metal echoed in the arena as Byrhilda jabbed and slashed at Silfy, the difference in skill apparent as Silfy could only block the rapid strikes. Compared to Priscilla who focused on defense and magic, Byrhilda was an offensive fighter that relied only on her speed for defense. Instead of focusing her magic as a range projectile, she imbued her body with the power of the wind to rapidly move and strike, similar to June’s Trail of the Wind.

Most of the inhabitants of the Holy Land of Ecclisa prided themselves in their lineage from one of the 108 knights that served the Goddess, and as a result, it was a nearly unspoken rule to pride themselves in their weapon skills. As a result, the most common branch of magic spells used were ones that augmented their bodies. Priscilla, like Cecilla, Kerr Saul, and even Silfy, was no stranger to this, and her speed that allowed her to flit from strike to strike was evidence that she excelled more than most at it.

Her blade constantly jabbed, slashed, and thrusted at Silfy, perfectly maintaining the distance in which her weapon would excel in and Silfy’s short sword was not able to reach. However, despite her obviously greater speed, she did not attempt to pull any tricks such as circling around her or attacking her weak spots.

This was the creed of the one titled Valkyrie, frontal attacks that did not take advantage of the enemy, no need for fantastic magical techniques- victory by sheer swordwork and willpower!

Silfy, who was suffering under the endless rain of strikes, felt as if she standing in front of a storm. Her right arm propping the shield up was numb from the constant strikes. Even when she shifted the shield to make it easier for her to block and deflect the strike, it was useless after nearly a hundred strikes. Furthermore when she tried to retreat, Byrhilda would match her step for step. Any feints Silfy did to try to attack would be seen through, or dodged. Silfy hate to admit it, but in terms of martial prowess in close combat, she was not the Magnolia Valkyrie’s match. Her shield’s enchanted glow from Bestow Holy contracted briefly, before exploding in a flash of light when it met Byrhilda’s next strike.

Yet Silfy did not feel the pressure lessen. In her surprise she took her eyes off her foe’s weapon to glance at her face, only to see that Byrhilda’s eyes were closed! That momentary stray of the eyes proved to be almost lethal as with a skillful twist, Silfy almost lost grip of her shield. With her balance lost, Silfy decided to gamble and duck instead of blocking the next blow. Yet her opponents weapon, ‘Saberblade’ seemed to bend in mid swing and transformed into an overhead slash.

Silfy still managed to achieve her aim, and that was slamming her shield into the ground sending out a wave of white flames, similar to Cecilla’s Flame Nova. At the technique some of the more spectators furrowed their brows. The white flames was a secret hybrid element that was only passed on through the Holyflame family, yet this outsider had managed to use it. However they were even more surprised with the nova of white flame seemed to retract, forming six shields of white light. While this process occurred within the next three seconds, Byrhilda merely took her stance and waited. Many could have easily taken advantage of the casting time, but Byrhilda was different.

“Thank you for waiting.” Silfy’s grateful words were only met with a nod. Silfy took her short sword and plunged it through one of the shields, causing it to condense and shoot out a Holyflame Spear at Byrhilda. The Valkyrie stood still as it approached, adjusting her stance so her right shoulder now pointed to Silfy, her weapon held high in the air pointing towards the clouds. As the magical missile approached her, with a swing that caused dust to kick up from the ground- the spell was cleaved asunder. Yet that was not all, for her form seemed to vanish. Even Yuelei’s eyes barely managed to catch her after image dashed along the ground and reappeared in front of Silfy. Again the exchanges continued, and after a few more minutes, the remaining five shields of white fire were crushed, and Silfy’s shield was sent high into the air with a series of concentrated rapid jabs.

Silfy admitted defeat soon afterward, for her swordplay could never compare to that of her opponents. She felt disheartened but took refuge in the fact that she had lasted the longest against the famed Valkyrie.

In many cases, due to the number of participants, a single set of brackets would consist of each individual participating in at least two battles. For Yuelei, it could have been considered good fortune that she was only called upon once, and that was only after they had to go through the list of participants that had not been called on yet.

Untitled-(Yuelei Alia) vs. Winter Wolf (Homan Lothar)

As Yuelei made her way into the arena, her opponent, a young boy that was likely a few years older than her stared upon her. He could have been considered handsome, but the aura the exuded from his body was of one that did not intermingle in social affairs. The garment he wore, a tight fitting suit woven from what Yuelei recognized as Mist Berac fur and something else, likely gave him the White in his title. Yuelei mused whether or not she would be given a similar title given the Sheive Cloak that covered her shoulders, but it was only the male cadets that were named after beasts.

“You may begin!” Quentil quickly announced. They were behind schedule now that there need to be an extra match due to Yuelei not being selected to participate out of the drawing.

As Yuelei started to form her Winter Moons in her hand and tossing them in the air, her opponent raised both his hands to show he was unarmed.

“Lady Alia, may we exchange a few words?” Homan shouted from across the room.

“Whoever you represent, I am not interested.” Yuelei replied flatly as five Winter Moons hovered behind her, lazily spinning in the air. She held her right hand out in a fist, and then waved her left hand against it, conjuring up her Frost Edge as if she was drawing it out of the air.

“I- If I were to concede, are you willing to listen?!” Homan undid his belt, where a series of daggers were sheathed and held it in front of him. At his words, many in the audience started to frown. Those that knew the White Wolf were aware of his prideful and loner attitude. For what reason would he put himself below an untitled first-year girl?

“...What are you plotting?” Yuelei’s eyes narrowed. Was this some sort of ploy or sneak attack?

Before responding, the boy tossed his weapons on the ground in front of Yuelei, causing the uproar of the crowd to change into a death-like whisper.

“Are the rumors true that you’ve come from the Whitefrost Mountains, and that you lived there?” Homan slowly walked forward.

“That is true.” Yuelei nodded, watching every one of his movements. Although he seemed to unarmed, users of magic can easily kill without a weapon.

“Are you acquainted with a giant dire wolf the size of three horses side by side, with a coat of white fur?” Homan’s voice had dropped considerably, and only those in the first few seats could make out his words. A giant wolf? Many wondered if he had encountered a divine beast.

“You must be speaking about Telif.” There was one figure that popped into Yuelei’s mind at his description, the kind female dire wolf that would advise Yuelei during her time at the castle of ice.

Homan’s body shuddered, but his eyes were glowing with light as he continued. “...Then are you related to that white-haired lady with the symbol of a snowflake upon her face- who wears a blue shimmering dress of ephemeral butterflies?”

Before Yuelei could gather her thoughts from the shock incurred from this man knowing of Lumnieve, Homan had recognized from her expression that Yuelei indeed, had some relationship to the Princess of Snow.

Homan’s face contorted and twisted with mixed emotions before turning his face downwards, unable to meet Yuelei’s eyes.

A moment afterward, he raised his hand into the air.

“I concede!” His words caused the crowd to shout out in uproar. To stand on this stage was a testament to one’s strength, and he- the White Wolf was ranked number four in the male cadets and never losing a duel. Many began to shout out in protest, suspecting some sort of foul underhanded tricks were in play. However, before the judges could interfere, Homan approached Yuelei in a speed worthy of the number four male cadet, and knelt in front of her.

“Lady Alia! Twenty years ago, if not for the intervention of the great white wolf, then I would not have been born to be standing here today. Allow me to swear fealty to you and repay this debt!”

Homan’s words were a revelation to those that were acquainted with his family. Twenty years ago, his mother had vanished and was presumed dead after an expedition to cull the Shadowless. Nearly a month afterward, she reappeared in the Lothar’s manor. When she recovered, many took her story, of being saved by the Goddess riding upon a white wolf, to be the ravings of a lunatic. After all, she had lost several parts of her body due to frostbite. When it was found out that she was pregnant at the same time… many had suspected she had laid with a Divine Beast in the form of a human. The only one that saw a glimpse of the truth was Homan’s father.

“I do not know your situation, but the one you owe a debt to is not me, but to Telif or Lumnieve. Twenty years ago, I was not in this world either.” Yuelei said quietly, in a whisper that only he could hear. At the same time, Liur had landed on her shoulder- her curiosity taking the better of her.

“Mother said there was a blue bird that day as well...” Homan did not stand up but his eyes glanced over respectfully at Liur. “Be that as may, allow me to serve under the Princess of Snow.”

Princess of Snow? Me? Yuelei quickly realized that Homan had misinterpreted the facts and thought that she was Lumnieve. Just as she was about to set the record straight- Liur interrupted her with a message.

It is fine, Yuli. Lumnieve said that she has no use for someone that could not even withstand her aura, and you should accept goodwill when given. Liur relayed.

How do you know this? Is Lumi nearby? For a moment, Yuelei feared what would happen if her baseless assumption was true.

She is watching from above, Drak is flying above us with a magical spell that allows her to see and communicate from the walls of the Frost Palace.

As Yuelei and Liur conversed mentally, time slowly drifted past. Even the crowd was waiting to see whether or not Yuelei would accept the man’s fealty. Thinking that she was about to refused- Homan pleaded again.

“If I am unsatisfactory, then give me a few years time to improve. I guarantee that I will place first among my peers!” His words were bold enough to cause a wave of dissent to pass through the students, but it quickly faded away. In terms of skill, the White Wolf was one of the few that could actually fight toe to toe against the Magnolia Valkyrie in terms of swordplay.

Instead of responding, Yuelei dispelled her Winter Moons, and placed the edge of her Frost Edge against Homan’s shoulders. The biting cold instantly caused ice to form, but Homan did not move at all. A second afterward, Yuelei bent over and whispered into his ear.

“The one with a debt you wish to repay is not me, for the Princess of Snow is not me, but someone I am indebted to.. As you are now, you cannot even stand in her presence without being frozen to death. When the time comes, I will tell you how to meet her. Are you still willing to serve me?”

Her words were a revelation to the White Wolf, but he quickly made his choice, but not without hesitation.

“I am!”

And thus Yuelei advanced into the finals without a fight.