Into The Unknown World

Chapter 24. The mock battles | Part III

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"She's a wand-bearer, and she's expected to do a lot of this kind."

"Teleportation magic is a rare skill even for a wand-bearer, you know."

Pomell and Roe are having a conversation about her skill and being a wand-bearer. To be honest, I understand really well as to why it is so incredible. I say, even if she disappeared from our naked eye, her mana fluctuation suggests that she's still within the huge podium simultaneously jumping from one place to another making her invisible, like a phantom. This trick looked like a spell of invisibility, but it's actually a spontaneous use of one skill.

The instructor is being alerted looking around the side to side as he gently bends his knees and readied his sword. From time to time, Arabella stops making her leave an image of herself and looks like he is teasing the professor. On the other hand, although the instructor is on guard for an attack coming from her, he swings his massive sword to the empty space.

"And though no one is targeting the other, it's also a viable strategy. Making him alert with potential attacks from all of the direction."

"That's always a coward's tactic. Avoiding and all that."

"You don't have to say like that, Roe. She's—"

"Come forth, hell rain!"

Pomell, who had been arguing with Roe about Arabella 's way of fighting, stopped as she shouted, and multiple fireballs surrounded and rained down the instructor. Since the mana fluctuations were disturbed earlier, I did not notice her summoning a lot of fireballs. It's a very risky attempt from her, but the professor bent down to her feet, pressing his blade to the stone sheet.

"Impact shield!" the instructor shouted.

Heavy and scorching flames poured down on him, forming cracks in the ground, being completely covered by an unseen force like a tiny cyclone, dispelling the fires before hitting him.

"Huh! You don't think you're the only person that can use magic here, right? Milady?" 

I get it now. The professor uses wind magic reasonably close to my protective shield. While it looked like a half-doom surrounding it, it can only sustain a small area.

"Teleportation magic is really uncommon even for a wand-bearer. Not only that, but the elemental magic you are using is also on par with a staff-bearer. It's a pretty good one, but would it be all that you can do, milady?"

Always cautious and wary of the fireballs coming down on him, Arabella doesn't reveal herself. What an indignant tactic. Looking closely at the professor carrying his massive blade, there's a big blue crystal on its pommel while pivoting around elegantly eschewing all the fireballs. I believe that's why he can use magic even if he doesn't use a standard wizard weapon.

"Sixth sense," he once again shouted.

Gripping tightly to his sword's handle, he ran to the west side of the stage and swung the heavy-looking broadsword, stopping in the middle of the air.

"Wind Sphere," as Arabella slowly appears, pointing her wand to the broad sword she cried, forming a ball of raging wind stopping his weapon.

"Ho-ho! Dual elements for a wand-bearer! Very impressive!"

Although the stage is very dangerous and we are not really far away from it as we are waiting for our turn to fight, it's still enough not to hit us from the spells they are using. Whilst Arabella is still blocking the heavy sword,  I looked at the other stage and a young man is having a sword fight with another instructor but it ends quickly as the sword is pointing at the young man's neck. It's really far away from us to not hear them cheer for the fight between the other instructor and the Knight apprentice but that's really fast. I returned my sight to the stage where she is fighting and they are now slowly walking away from each other. 

"You can do it, Bella!" Roe shouted while clenching on to the rail.

"You don't have to cheer her. It's only a mock battle." Pomell retorted, still holding his long staff.

Thea who had been quiet before joined us by the bannisters and cheered our teammate. I can even hear her mumble like "you should do it." The other apprentice knights are also near the bannisters looking at the battle, while their mouths are slightly open. And though their amusement is noticeable, I kept checking the rest of our team, and the young woman wearing heavy armour walked close to me.

"You don't seem to be a knight but ah... you don't have a magical item with you. Are you a gemstone-bearer too?" she asked me with her two arms crossed.

She sounds like she's examining other delegates too, as well as what I'm doing. So she's really suspicious of the people around us, huh. This young woman appeared like she wasn't here to judge us, just to supervise us. Suddenly, I sensed a hand scratching at my back and wrapping around my neck as I watched Roe speak to her.

"No. He's a special kind! Hey, I am Roe, a grimoire-bearer. Would you like to see my spells?"

"Roe, let go of Twig! Don't embarrass him in front of a lady!"

"So, you are called Twig?" she asks and chuckles.

That stiff but noble-like demeanour is still evident even when she's smiling.

"No, I am Lemure. They are calling me Twig because I told them I was called Twig back where I came from," I paused and removed Roe's hand and added, "This is Rowan but he wants to be called Roe. That's Pomell and that's Thea."

"I am glad to meet you all I—"

"Fire Blaze!"

We switched our attention to the stage where the shout came from. Two large fire pillars are encircling the instructor while he is kneeling down preparing for his spell again.

"Impact shield"

We forgot that her assessment is still going on while we are introducing ourselves. The young woman with armour looked at the stage after Pomell instructed her to continue it later when everybody is finished.

"That's a good idea," she replied while still looking at the stage.

Roe who smiled dubiously walked beside me and hung his arm around my neck again and whispered, "You really are a bad boy, eh!"

"What do you mean?" I answered.

"Hey, I caught you looking at her. Are you going to deny it?"

"Huh?"

"Fire Blaze!"

"HA HA HA! Don't mind me. Who am I to judge, right?"

"You two! Pay attention!" 

"—Yes!"

While the fire pillars are still overwhelming the instructor's doom-like tiny barrier, the intensity of the heat is still the same and there's an arm's length gap in between. He stood up and at the same time shouted.

"Support Enhancement: Enhanced combat, Body augment!" 

"Fireballs!"

The disturbance of mana from her side is more daunting now. And though, his movement was much faster than before, he was able to get away from the two fire pillars. However, the barrage of fireballs from Arabella is not leaving him any room to dodge. He can evade it but not entirely, he blocks it using his broad sword and it dispels the moment it touches it.

"Fireballs!"

She continues hitting with her fire magic while the teacher dodges all the attacks. His movements were amplified by the moment he shouted his spell. Although the attacks are nullified when the sword is struck, the fireballs never cease.

"It's done."

"What do you mean?" I asked Roe.

"The instructor is gaining distance while Arabella is busy attacking using her fire magic."

"That's right! This test is almost done," said the young woman wearing full armour.

The instructor is indeed gaining distance and since she stopped using her teleportation spell, he can see her now. He jumps from one place to another, making her believe she's in favour of the battle. Just when she tries another attack, the sword is in her neck, and the battle is over.

"Impressive, milady! The test is now over."

I can see that everyone in the Knights Division enjoyed the fight as they approached her after she knelt and opened the bannister as she walked away from the stage. She somehow retreated elegantly as nothing had happened, and they were all cheering for her.

"That's a great battle!"

"You are awesome!"

"Fantastic spells!"

They were all really cheerful about her fight. She was surrounded by the Knights-to-be, and even Roe was there. He's something, really. The mage apprentices and I were waiting in the corner of the bannister as she approached us. Also, Pomell, even though he doesn't reveal it, I think he's going to congratulate her.

"Alright, everyone! Calm down! Next is Cedany! Come now, young warrior!

When that name was called, they were all very intrigued. However, a young woman wearing a full set of steel armour walked past us to the bannisters and to the stage carrying her long and sturdy-looking sword with a dazzling purplish-glow of crystal on its pommel. Well, her name is Cedany, huh. I wonder if she's like the instructor, a magic knight.

"Hey, lover boy! Your dame is fighting now. Cheer her up!" 

"What are you saying, Roe?" I ask.

I really don't understand him even now. He's been acting so weird calling me strange things. Pomell, who had been listening to him hit his head and rebuked him again. He's really odd. I, for one, don't feel anything sensual to her.

"That was an impressive fight, Arabella." 

I turned to her instead and praised her.

"Please, that was nothing. I'm delighted to see the rest of us going to have to fight here. So, now, lover boy. You 're not going to cheer your Lady Knight in shining armour a good cheer, huh?"

"You too?"

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