Brand charged forward, mana churning about the air and tearing at the ground. But his feet, they felt heavy under Mildrith’s piercing gaze. The evidence of her battle was all over her soiled white gown, dirt-covered hair, and eyebrows that were burnt off.

She still somehow looked at him with confidence he’d not seen since before tattooing his skin. The thin smile on her face was more worrying to him than even the massive aura surrounding her or the baculus she held that hummed with power.

Mildrith let herself fall backward into a conjured throne. She placed her baculus in its holster as if she didn't need it. The message was clear; she didn't think he was a threat.

“I'll kick your ass out of that chair,” Brand thought, pooling mana into his feet.

With an explosion that tore the ground from under him, Brand launched forward faster than a crossbow bolt brandishing a spear in his hand ready to pierce whatever shields Mildrith planned to use.

She created three gigantic blades, one in front of the other instead of a traditional shield that Brand would have easily walked through. His spear broke through the first, easily shattering it like glass, but at the same time using up most of his forward momentum.

Brand barely pierced the second blade and went no further. His spear unraveled and absorbed Mildrith’s improvised shield filling him with mana while he stood as an unmoving target.

“Oh shit,” he muttered as he saw Mildrith pointed a finger towards him with a blade floating over her shoulder.

“Fly,” she said, sending the golden blade at his chest faster than he could hope to dodge. It exploded on contact, sending him flying for several feet until rolling to a stop.

Brand quickly tried to stand but fell over in pain. Trying to think past the throbbing in his chest, he used his magic perception to examine what damage he'd taken through his defensive aura.

“Blade didn't cut me at least, but it was too densely packed with spells for me to unravel fast enough.”

He managed to sit on his rear to get a good look at the bruise that covered the right side of his chest and stomach.

“Like being hit with a block of hard clay,” he chuckled to himself. “Clay that broke two ribs.”

He looked back at Mildrith whose smirk somehow grew wider. He knew of her blades from Tanya and rumors around the hall, but no one mentioned that she was just as good at mage craft as him.

From what he tasted from her magic, she used just as many spells as he did to empower her attacks. But unlike him, Mildrith prioritized explosive force over piercing defenses which is why Brand could cut them. There were also no leaching aspects involved in the sword’s creation, probably because she didn't need more mana than she already had. If Brand had her focus, he could probably make a fancy letter opener once a day.

Trying his best to conceal the pain he was in; Brand shifted his ribs back together with magic he learned from the tower of life. It took more mana than he had naturally, but the massive power gained from breaking two of Mildrith’s swords left more power to work with.

“Were you trying to kill me?” Brand asked with disbelief coloring his words.

“I knew my soaring blades wouldn't kill you,” Mildrith replied. “You’re the only one I know that could survive one at close range.” She sighed tiredly. “If your friends were made of sturdier stuff, I could have let loose a bit.”

Mildrith punctuated her statement by creating more blades than Brand cared to count, close to a hundred or so and all just as powerful as the one he failed to stop completely. “You’d make an excellent defender, even better than Alda. She would have died if I used my focus on her.”.

“What’s a defender?” Brand asked reaching for as much time as possible to heal.

“It's of the mysteries of war the Hall doesn't teach. They gain the attention of enemies so magi like me can cast unmolested. It's what most cultivators become.”

“Not my style,” Brand offered slowly coming to his feet. “The moment someone like you shows up I’d be in trouble.”

“Because you can't defend against-.”

“Because I won’t let you hit me.”

Brand pointed to where he’d been stabbed by the soaring blade. “This will be the last time you lay a finger on me.”

“Same goes for me,” Mildrith boasted. “You won't even be able to move me from this spot.”

Brand thought idly about freeing Tanya and Godric. Throwing a spear with the appropriate unraveling spell at the giant blade weighing him down would destroy it freeing him to help. Tanya’s freedom would not be much more difficult to achieve.

Sighing, he shook his head in denial at the unasked question. He could free his teammates to easily overwhelm Mildrith. He could even win the day by running, but what he wanted more than the beast-cores was the chance to test himself against someone as strong as the woman in front of him now.

“I guess Dagfinn was right, I'm a fool for a fight,” he mused.

The ground trembled in anticipation. Blue and white churned around Brand growing faster, throttling into a storm he didn't bother to conceal. He wanted Mildrith to see his runes glow and burn and bulge his muscles. He wanted her to know what she faced and be afraid. When he roared, his aura turning red and charged with lightning, her confidence was gone, and he smiled.

A step punched a crater into the earth. Conjuring a spear of throttled mana charred the grass with bolts of magic. And then, before Mildrith could raise a finger, Brand kicked off the ground a thunderclap tearing through the field behind him.

Mildrith, dependent on her hands, on gestures to guild her magic, could only move on reflex to defend herself with a wall of blades. Right as the spear was about to strike, Brand sky-stepped like kicking off a wall, creating a terrifying explosion of sound as he did.

“Bang! Bang! Bang!”

Mildrith's defense followed Brand just barely fast enough to take his spear thrust. A dozen of her blades shattered in an instant but a dozen more appeared holding off the attack.

Mildrith quickly moved counter with a smile returning to her face. Her victorious grin melted away once more as the broken pieces of her constructs melted into Brand's spear then up to his arm temporarily adding to his meager mana pool.

A spell of dancing runes formed in his free hand, powered by the mana he stole. “Spiral fortress!”

The red energy surrounding Brand's body leaped from his hand like a swirling tornado that swallowed Mildrith whole. He continued to channel his stolen power, extending his fortress aura onto his enemy eroding whatever defenses she had, and stealing the mana he freed from her control.

Without the power of Mildrith’s first attack, Brand would have never been able to extend his aura like a gale-force wind. If she were a mundane human, there would be chunks of her thrown across the field. Even if she were an average mage, her body would be battered and broken from the localized hurricane that assaulted her while sapping her strength, but Mildrith was no ordinary mage.

Her defenses dwindle away, Mildrith launched her soaring blades at the wall of conjured steel she’d made to protect herself breaking through like an arrow through parchment.

Sensing them with his magical perception, Brand sky-stepped out of the way then again for each blade aimed true in the hail of steel.

He ignored the burning on his skin, the aching of his muscles, and the throbbing threatening to split his mind. Constant explosions could be heard by those nearby from the swords striking the ground as well from Brand's explosive movements.

A crowd of onlookers was drawn in by the near-constant battling at the center of the rift. Everyone, even some of the monks, kept their distance knowing one stray projectile for Mildrith would mean their end.

Inch by inch Mildrith grew closer to finding her mark. Brand still moved like a blur but was slowing down as the battle went on. Each step grew heavier. Each breath burning with, fire with pain but it came with power and victory, and he was so close.

Brand threw a spear trying his best to keep it invisible despite its glowing enchantments. But his body screamed stealing his aim, but he still found blood.

Mildrith didn't danger in time. Her blades didn't move to protect her, and the spear cut through her mana shield with ease, shattering the throne-like glass as it sliced open the skin on her right shoulder.

Biting back a scream, she hit the ground and scrambled to her feet, baculus pointed forward and clutching at the wound drenching her sleeve crimson. More blades appeared circling her like a celestial body.

With fewer attacks coming his way, Brand came in close trying his darndest to land a blow on Mildrith. He swung a conjured ax cutting her swords to pieces but had to retreat after each attempt. Worse was his ever-growing throbbing that dulled his mind. Soon he just attacked blindly unable to calm his pain-riddled mind and body. Mildrith, on the other hand, had time and more than enough mana to formulate a plan.

As Brand’s thrust forward with another conjured spear, Mildrith created silvery chains linked to blades rooted in place to wrap around his body. She strained to keep him secure, especially with his aura still stealing mana from her chains, but she made sure to power them steadily to maintain their strength.

Wrapping him in more and more chains, she saw his mind wilt away like a burning leaf. He thrashed about with none of the precision she’d seen him with prior. She lowered the chain forcing him to his knees and spreading his arms wide.

“You’ve lost,” Mildrith said but there was no pride or posturing in her voice. “I can break every bone in your body, or you can surrender at once. At this point, you're just torturing yourself.”

For several long seconds, Mildrith thought Brand would not yield. If she restrained him for much longer, he’d steal what was left of her mana, so she prepared to strike him down but finally, he relented.

Brand’s red fortress aura died suddenly. “You, win,” he said, so tired speaking seemed like a great challenge.

Mildrith breathed a quiet sigh of relief and released him by banishing the chains. “That's what you get for trying to rob me like some sort of bandit.”

He let himself fall to the ground rolling to his back and looked up to Mildrith like the first time they’d met. “What do you mean I tried to rob you? Your beat-cores are already mine.”

“What are you talking about-”

Mildrith stopped herself and looked around for the orb she kept her team's beast cores in. Other than Tanya, the giant blade that held Goderich in place, and the many onlookers from the edge of Midgard’s forest, the field was empty. She turned back to Brand angrily opening her mouth to yell at him when she was interrupted by his laughter.

“Did you really not notice our fourth member,” Brand chuckled. “I mean, you fought Godric and Tanya but Rohaan never once tried to fight you. “Do you wanna know a secret?” Brand whispered loudly as if trying to tell a secret to a whole room. “It was his job to steal from you, the rest of us were a distraction.”

****

Several minutes after the fighting ended, Mildrith freed Godric and Tanya from their bladed prisons. She then wanted to berate Brand about stealing from her team but was interrupted when he started emptying his stomach.

“No wonder my head hurts. I've got a concussion,” he said with unfocused eyes.

“Good, you deserve it,” Mildrith said, then her face took on a curious look. “I never hit you in the head.”

Brand replied while fetching a small potion from within his pants. “My version of flash-step is a bit more intense than most. For now, my spongy little brain can’t handle how quickly I move and come to a stop. My head hurt like a son of a bitch while we were fighting.”

He uncorked the potion and poured the red liquid within directly onto his head soothing the pain and whatever other effects his overpowered flash-step left him with. Putting the vial away, he got to his feet but wobbled uncertainty. Mildrith grabbed him without thinking to help keep his balance right around the time Tanya made her way over to them.

The beats kin growled at Mildrith while wrapping her hands around Brand’s waist pulling him away. “He needs to lay down,” she said, lowering Brand to his back with his head on her lap.

Mildrith huffed at seeing Tanya's attitude towards her. “I guess it wasn't Godric she was after,” she thought, seeing how possessive his sister was being.

She sat down on the grass next to them still full of questions and anger towards Brand and his team for starting the fight in the first place. “If you already secured my beast cores, why fight me at all?” Mildrith asked, trying to sound as harsh as possible.

Brand moaned instead of responding while Tanya rolled her eyes.

Mildrith's attention shifted to Tanya. “Why did you help? We have more beast cores at home than we could possibly use.”

Tanya gave Mildrith an annoyed eye roll. “Not everyone can afford to just buy as many beast cores as they want,” she said as if talking to a child, a tone Mildrith had never expected from her.

“I just wanted to see if I could beat you,” Brand finally said. “By the time I got back from kicking the ass of that speedster girl, the cores were already taken.”

“Plus, it made for some good revenge,” Godric chimed in with his unendingly happy spirit as he reached them.

Mildrith was taken aback by his comment. She tried her very best to be cordial with Gridania’s king. If anything, he was the one that had been rude to her.

What does that mean?” she asked outraged.

“You outed me as a king,” Godric huffed. “Did it ever cross your mind that the reason no one knew who I was for more than a year was that I didn't want anyone to know?”

The fucks Mildrith gave about Godric’s opinion of her melted away. “That’s why you’ve been ignoring me! How stupid are you to think no one would figure out who you are! The only reason I found out was that Alda knew your fucking face like plenty of nobles that visited your court!”

A rather large crowd of students gathered listening in on the arguments.

“You got the good little lady to curse,” Brand said congratulating his friend.

“My hair was shorted before I came here,” Godric countered.

Mildrith looked at him as if he had the brain of an insect. “And you thought that alone would be enough?”

Godric shrugged. “Look, if you didn't want to get in a fight you should have just given us what we wanted.”

“Like anyone would just let you shake them down.”

“I didn't shake you down,” Brand said while Tanya played with his hair and massaged his aching head. “I helped and wanted some payment for my troubles. Not my fault you forced my hand. And before you ask, no, you weren't the only team we, um, helped, that refused to pay up. Yours was just the strongest.”

Mildrith could only release a long sigh. She laid her back down on the grass to look at the aurora in the sky. “You people are irritating.” She looked over at Brand. “And you're far too weak to challenge me, but with my family's resources that could change.”

Brand’s eyes never looked from the beautiful sky. “I appreciate the offer, but I’m taken. And with the cores I have now, I’ll open my fourth gate sooner than expected.” A wide smile crept onto his face. “Then I’ll be coming for you. For now, I just want to look at this freaky-looking sky. It's fucking majestic.”