"Fight me like a Mage! No Blessing… just you and me!" Yvonne declares without any room for me to object. "Fight me fair instead of hiding behind borrowed power!"

Fair? What does she even know about fair?

"You're telling me to abandon the exact thing I built my entire fighting style around because… you don't like it?" My voice oozes with skepticism because this entire situation is just plain stupid.

"I'm telling you to use only what any of us here has at their disposal." Yvonne's golem of six dissimilar arms smacks the ground as if accentuating her words. "Use your Skills, your training, your knowledge, your shrewdness… Like everyone else."

"And if I refuse?"

"You mean you forfeit?" My vision slowly returns, and I witness the smirk on the girl's face widen. "Or do you perhaps wish to do something else…" She drags her gaze across the unfriendly crowd watching our exchange from the outside.

If only I knew this is how things would turn out… I'm not the avaricious type, but there's too much money on the line, and so much I want to spend it on. And not just on myself. When I first found Valka, her tired eyes, and haggard looks… Nothing that happened to her was my fault yet I still want to make her up for it.

It's so much more than just a few pesky coins.

But if I simply turned my back and tried to walk away… Would they go feral? This is Sereban. We're all students, civilized, and the creme of the crop… Surely, they wouldn't stoop so low.

But if I tuck my tail and accept my defeat, the Fist's prestige will surely take a large blow. There are far too many witnesses, and my ties to the mercenaries are no secret. It'd be a major headache…

Just where are the teacher and the staff when I need them? I refuse to believe commotions like this are common around here… Or maybe they're aware but refuse to step in.

But to fight against a mage who's more powerful than me without most of my tricks and moves… I can't see myself winning that fight. Arcane as an element is arguably the worst performer in battle.

"That sounds like I'm supposed to fight with a major handicap." I let all my spells dissipate. "Or a lot of potential injuries if things get rough…" Following Yvonne's example, I look over the crowd, but the fury clouds their judgment. Herd mentality… It's in our nature. "So what concessions are you willing to offer?"

"Hm… no earth magic?" To my great surprise, she actually says something reasonable. "I heard about you last year the first time, and now had the opportunity to see what the puppies of Krieg are capable of. To be frank, I despise you for what you have; call it selfish or petty, I couldn't care less. But I'm not lesser than you and will crush you in a way that'll feel satisfying. Otherwise, I might find myself pitying you…" She chuckles, and her golem slowly begins to crumble.

Translation: It's for fame and reputation. She wishes to build a good public image as it is a necessity in noble society, and I'm the perfect stepping stone. Better than what I could've hoped for…

"I'll take that." It takes only a few seconds for me to consider and agree. With a thought, my candles emerge from the underground bunker, and I pull them all closer. "Round two then?"

I might sound confident, but I'm absolutely clueless as to how I'll eke out a victory.

We come to a secret agreement and return to our posts, leaving the ring mostly ruined and abundant with conver. Not like it'll be of much use to me in the face of light magic.

"Would you like a countdown?" Yvonne's smile betrays no emotions.

"In a real battle… there are no countdowns." I drag my feet and put on a show while measuring up any paths of potential approach. "You can come at me whenever you feel like it."

Despite the previously heated atmosphere outside, the crowd is now watching with bated breath. The masses need bread and circus, and since nobles are rarely starving… It is the circus they truly desire.

"How very thoughtful…" Yvonne's body betrays no danger, but the mana around her is a little more talkative.

A barely visible haze in the tapestry of mana, consisting of light…… that's obscuring its own approach. A trail of shimmering brightness crawled my way on the ground like a ravenous snake, acting very much unlike light. But that also meant that it was completely out of my expectations.

I had arcane barriers prepared, thin and flimsy to thwart any snap ray of radiance before taking cover, but no countermeasure against light snakes.

Although decapitating it might work…

Acting on impulse, I raise one of my sleek sheets of pure magic high and bring it down with gusto. Mana meets mana, and even though both of their forms are fragile, the arcane prevails. The sneak's head is cut off.

My gaze meets Yvonne's as the light mana slowly dissolves into thin air and the light show finally begins.

I swing into motion right away, shielding my retreat with shield after shield while rays of scorching light, big and small, rain down. Unlike what I've expected, Yvonne isn't looking for a high ground but instead, chases after me, sliding between smoking pikes of stone and crumbling slabs of earth.

And she's fast.

In response, I form bolts of arcane – basically pebbles but less sturdy and far lighter – and hurl them at her en masse. Because it's cheap and happens without me putting in hardly any effort. Unlike usual, I don't need to convert my mana into whatever other element I wish to use. I don't need to visualize, guide, and understand… I just point and shoot.

Soon, I find cover behind a protruding boulder, fairly intact despite my rampage, and I implement step one. That is, I hide a candle in an inconspicuous crack before continuing my escapade and repeating it.

Neither light nor arcane are famous for the collateral damage they cause, so what's there to fear?

As I revel in my genius, a beam burning with the colors of Solarie cuts through the stone just a little to my left and begins to travel horizontally. I instinctively take a step, just about to make a run for it, but instead, decide to drop low and roll under the sluggish line.

In but a mere moment, I'm back on my feet and spring out from behind cover. Yvonne's eyes take a split second to find me and understand what's heading her way, but that's a precious split second I don't allow to go to waste.

With my fists raised, I punch the air back to back, imbuing every move with mana and literally throwing fists at my opponent. Fists of arcane, that is… They might not be the deadliest, but despite common belief, arcane is pretty awful when it comes to the art of defense.

But a few beams of devastating light and agile steps help Yvonne weather the assault without as much as a scratch, with her lone candle still burning bright in her hand. It did, however, keep her occupied long enough for me to get in her face.

And throw my actual fist, clad in mana and itching to hurt that pretty mug of hers properly.

It hurts me probably just as much as it hurts her when my knuckle bashes into her cheek – after all, Bennett did teach us that the skull is one of the toughest bones, unlike our fingers – but it's so worth it. Thank the Abyss I put those points into Might the other day,

Yet, despite the clear hit and danger to her safety, Yvonne still adamantly clings to her candle, cradling it to her chest as her vision clears. I'm well aware that kicking someone when they're down is frowned upon, but my reputation here is already rock bottom, so I might as well drag it through the mud.

A fist of arcane slams down for the girl groaning on the ground, and she rolls out of its way only to be struck in the side by a second swing. She takes it like a true fighter and blindly lashes out to break the one-sided battering. But she made it too obvious.

I simply kick her hand away as she raises it to unleash the wrath of Solaire from her palm.

"Still cheating?" I ask in a tone completely devoid of both mirth and fury.

The candle should be my objective but what she said about me and my Blessing… It stung a little. Sometimes I do wonder myself if all that's special about me is just my Blessing or whether I'm putting in enough effort.

Most of the time I just grin like a madwoman and things turn out beneficial…

Yvonne made not just the crowd question these things but she managed to get into my head as well. However, she picked a very damn unfortunate time to play mental gymnastics. These days, I'm more determined than anyone, and no effort is spared.

Even though my fists are already aching, I strike again and again. Occasionally, Yvonne wiggles out of the way; other times, she has to block to protect her candle and vitals. But she's also clawing back at me with abandon and fury.

This is no longer a fight of intellect or control…

Our gazes meet again, this time not as a clash of pride but a duel of grievances and vengeance. This is also why I catch the light in her eyes. Like two lanterns about to burst, they gleam and expand and all I have time for is a swift barrier before the beams erupt.

My wall of arcane eats the brunt of it but the heat and gleam still make their way through. The defensive pin does it's just, the same way it dampened my every hit that met Yvonne's irritating face but it still hurts like three instant sunburns.

Not to mention, I feel like throwing up due to the intense light.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

A kick connects with my chest in this moment of weakness, but it's just what I needed to disengage. It takes me a while since the entire ring is saturated with mana to the brim, but I found all of Yvonne's candles.

Bashing her smug face like that felt fulfilling, but what can make this whole farce even more satisfying is… Winning.

The ring is connected to our pins and our pins are connected to the candles. Retracing where she hid them was child's play once I had her piece in my hand.

Although half-blind, I sprint toward the debris and disappear behind the upturned rocks while Yvonne gets to her feet. The beating did its job, but she's still very much in this game. I locate the first candle and extinguish it in quick order, before changing cover. Yvonne is on my tail but not fast enough to protect the second piece of her artifacts.

Which leaves only two.

Either she's a master at masking mana, or some of them must've fallen victim to our indiscriminate clashes. Although, I'm willing to bet on the latter.

Our game of cat and mouse doesn't last long, however. As I take a sharp turn to get out of sight and escape the incoming beams, they bounce after me and miss by just a hair's breadth. Peering into the mana, I witness an unnatural gleam spear across every surface, followed by rays of scorching light, bouncing between rocks as if they were mirrors.

A Skill that turns every surface reflective… What a nasty addition for a light mage. I manage to block two beams, but the third burns through my sleeve and eats into my skin while the fourth bisects the candle I carrying. The accuracy is frightening, and the girl chasing me with a bloodied nose is even more so.

"Where do you think you're going?" Yvonne looks unquestionably pissed and I might have an inkling as to why.

I've tried to utilize tight spaces to my advantage to avoid long-range shootouts… It seems that's no longer an option. The ability must devour a disgusting amount of mana but I doubt I'll be able to last until Yvonne runs out of juice.

Still, fleeing like a rat is the best I can do for now. Leaning on Premonition, I'm able to snap up shields in the right spots but it's pushing the Skill to its limits. I'm making predictions solely based on her gaze and movement, including every bounce, my own speed, every angle and crack, every corner, and of course, all of that instantly.

Because light does not politely wait for me to bide my time,

Needless to say, some of the spells land without much I can do. The pin and the fighting ring's protective mechanism hold but it still stings every time, like a hard slap. And I'm almost certain Yvonne is going for quantity on purpose to get back at me.

And I'm pretty much helpless against the barrage… Although she only said I can't rely on Savant, right? It's not that I'm only supposed to use arcane magic…

Willing to bet everything on the half-backed idea, I leap against a wall and push off with all my strength. The next moment a barrier solidifies under my foot and I step through the air and over the wall of rocks.

Going airborne is risky but it catches Yvonne off guard and allows me a few seconds of breathing room. Just enough to pull some water from a far corner of the outer dome and get work.

Some flat ground, a slightly open area, little to no cover… Not perfect but it'll have to do.

This is a race against time so my lines are sloppy, but I'm aiming for scale over precision or efficiency. Just four seconds after getting my hands on some water to use my Skills, a ball of light crests over the boulder like a tiny star and erupts, engulfing everything in light.

"Stop running, you rat!" The savage roar makes sure I can locate Yvonne easily, even while essentially blind.

I'd actually love to. I want nothing more than to just stop, lie down, have a hot bath, and be left alone for a while… But that's not how life works so I have to suck it up and whoop your ass princess.

Relying only on my mana sight, I dodge preemptively. Thankfully, Yvonne turns out to be confident enough to rush at me, even though she has the absolute range advantage. She's like a furious piece of the sun, hellbent on punishing me, even though that's not the point of the whole game.

But I'm happy to oblige. The less composed she is, the more likely my ploy is to succeed.

She brushes her hand against a few boulders she dashes past, turning their surface reflective, and shoots a few burning rays my way. But nothing too disruptive. I keep dancing away from her, dragging my feet and focusing more on carving the lines than fighting itself.

But that's when Yvonne whips out yet another trick she's been sitting on. The pulses of light that have been growing ever brighter around her peel themselves off her hair and swim through the air by themselves.

The pair of balls churn and gleam, turning from yellow to white, to purple, to orange, before shaping into cobras of radiance with the mark of Solaire on their back and crimson eyes.

Eyes set on me with a hint of intelligence gleaming behind them. They're about as long as I am tall and can fly quite swiftly… but at least Yvonne stopped throwing light at me.

Things are still bad. Identify doesn't come back with anything on the creatures, meaning they should fall into the golem category, but now I'm outnumbered. Not to mention, I'm committed to finishing the setup I can't even escape the pincer maneuver from three sides.

So I grit my teeth, form my arcane mana into sturdy gauntlets and floating shields, tie it all off with Maintained Magic, and prepare myself for a losing brawl. I greet the first snake to the right with a straight punch, only to discover its body feels liquidy and almost as hot as reaching into fire. The light scatters slightly but quickly reforms itself and attacks again.

Yvonne pounces at me next, locking her fingers and bringing her arms down on my shield. The layer of arcane cracks but holds her back long enough so I can finish the part I'm drawing and retreat.

This dance feels awkward. Arcane is an element without a distinct personality or tempo, not to mention my legs are sort of preoccupied with something else. But I have to keep fleeing, keep fighting back, and minimize the damage…

Yvonne's attributes are clearly not suited for this type of combat. I imagine the snakes are more of a protective measure than hunting dogs, but they're perfect for tying me up while she strikes.

More than once, I'm forced to take a hit for the greater good. My greater good, that is.

The snakes chase after me and launch a coordinated attack, one going for my feet while the other aims for my throat. Sadly, on this occasion, the former enjoys priority and gets the shields, the other living spell I catch with my hand. It swiftly coils around my gauntlet, sinking its teeth into my shoulder.

It does more than just sting a little, so I have to sacrifice my equipment and make the mana burst. The gauntlet shatters but takes the snake with it, scattering the light into motes of yellow, orange, and… purple?

In my moment of shock, Yvonne follows up with a textbook right hook. Her punch makes my chin go numb, and my mind goes blank for a moment while my knees give out. It's a solid punch I'll give her that.

I'm pretty battered by now and panting on my knees.

"Payback time, bitch!" Yvonne smirks and raises her fist.

I drag my hand across the ground, smearing some of the mud across the sand before looking up. "Weird… that's what I was about to say." I huff.

The ground all around us lights up as I pump it full of mana, and the trap activates. I've never made a rune on this scale – or this sloppy, to be honest – so the amount of mana it devours catches me off guard. The lines looked like mere smears of mud on the ground without any mana, but now they paint an intricate pattern of dozens of runes, interlocked and active.

But the moment it activates half of the fighting ring shifts and the ground groans and earth and stone reshapes itself. Pillars rise and walls emerge, while the floor sinks in and lighting begins to dance all around the edges.

Unlike Yvonne, who's caught by surprise, I'm already on my platforms of arcane, running like a rat. The Great Bunker is a defensive formation I've copied from a kid back in the workshop. He's obsessed with fortifications and perhaps a little messed up in the head… But his inscription works perfectly as a prison.

Although there's no way I'd ever be able to finish something like this in the middle of a serious battle.

When the ground stops shaking, Yvonne makes her dissatisfaction known. "This is cheating!" She yells.

"No, this is my second Class, no Blessing." I wave at her with a tired smile. "So are you gonna surrender or will you force me to do this the hard way?" I ask because the latter one sounds like a hassle. "Wait, do I win if you're knocked out cold?"

I'm just taunting her, I think I deserve this much. Whether she gives in and admits defeat or waits down there like a child in the naughty corner, it'll be embarrassing.

"Fine, you win." Yvonne's voice is clear and quite composed, unlike what I expected.

A moment later, the dome comes down, and my pin loses its luster. The ground trembles again as Yvonne forcefully collapses the prison from the inside using her earth magic, and emerges next to me. I must look like shit, beaten, slightly bloody, and dead tired, but she seems to have fared no better.

I made sure of that after all…

Unlike the previous state of hate and uproar, the crowd is now silent. A mass of almost a hundred people who were booing me and looked like they'd stone me to death if not for the dome are now mere silent observers. Well, I did just prove how unfair life is, didn't I?

Yvonne was supposed to win, but she didn't, I was supposed to become an object of mockery, but I didn't… Most of them were born into riches and never had to watch their homes burn to ash, and I'm the lucky one?

Yeah, life sure as hell is unfair, so…

"My money!" I stretch out my grubby hand to receive my winnings.

"Really, that's all you have to say?" Yvonne gives me a flat look, still slightly miffed but no longer consumed by emotions. "Good game, or nice try, or something?"

"Not to you, I don't." I shake my head and motion with my palm again.

"Fine, but I don't have that much money on me right now. Wait here, I'll be right back." She goes to grab her cape but I snatch it up from her.

"I'll take this too." I wrap it around myself in fear of my clothes giving in any moment now. "And find me in the park, I don't like this place."

"Suit yourself." She walks off.

Not much I can do but trust her word on that, I can't stand the glares pricking my skin. I'm about to leave, not a fan of all the attention when an adult steps up to me.

"Come, let us get you healed." The man says.

[Mage ???]

A teacher. I would've been elated if he had appeared a little earlier, to be frank.

"Why didn't you stop it?" I ask without being too specific.

"Stop what?" He asks.

"Don't do that." I click my tongue. "She mobilized the crowd, forced me into an unwinnable game, and you did nothing!"

"Is that so?" The man merely hums, dispersing the crowd with a glance and leading me away. "From how I saw it, Lady Azural realized she was at a… disadvantage against your uniqueness, and thus she utilized her own specialty."

"Shittalking and crowd manipulation?"

"Not quite…" The professor chuckles. "Popularity and social status. Nowhere as unique as your Blessing but extremely potent in some cases."

"But that's no longer a fair game of Candle Dance." I argue. This was supposed to be a proper duel.

"You are correct." The man nods and waves over a student who's clearly on healing duty. "Albeit, we have no rules against it, or your Blessing for that matter. Today was a first…" He explains, and I feel my body relax under the healing care. "With that said, if it came to it and they tried to prevent you from leaving, or Gods forbid worse… I would've intervened."

"Then you should've." I don't mince my words or show any respect.

The man shakes his head. "You still don't see it… She bluffed. She lied and threatened but did nothing warranting my intrusion. Talking about killing someone is not equal to murder."

Ah, why do I even bother? It's written in his eyes. Be it due to my blessing, or ears, or social status, or damn all of them, he will not see things from my perspective.

"To make it clear, purposefully causing your opponent harm instead of playing the game – as in breaking their nose with your fist, twice – counts as a rule violation." He gives me a pointed look.

"That so…"

"It is." He smirks. "And although I'm ashamed, I can't deny I've agreed with Lady Azural's words ever so slightly. You have an unfair advantage in Candle Dance. Your magic has no counter."

"Well, my friends can beat me, so maybe they should just try harder." I give the student who patched me up an appreciative nod. "But don't worry, I don't think I'll be back. Have a good day."

This place had potential, but I guess I'll have to look elsewhere for a way to keep up with Val. Although those purple specks of mana I saw… I just can't get it out of my head.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.