Thadeus stared at me with a look of disbelief, and I soon found out why.
"Do you really think I'm some kind of dog that you'd enter this duel without a Nexus?" he spat, his voice dripping with disdain.
A small, ironic smile crept onto my lips.
'I wish I could use one too, you spoiled bastard!'
A transparent orb appeared in his hand, shimmering with shades of red. Flames erupted, wrapping around his body like living, fiery serpents that embraced him. His hair bristled from the burst of prana, and then hell broke loose.
The air around me vibrated with palpable energy, as if the sky itself was about to collapse. My hands trembled slightly, not from fear, but from anticipation.
Thadeus, standing before me, looked nothing like he had in our previous duel. His figure was imposing, his flowing robes reflecting the flames dancing in his palms. I could feel the heat intensifying, suffocating, as if the sun had descended upon us. He was trying to dominate the battlefield, expanding his area of influence, turning the air into a blazing furnace.
The battlefield distorted under the growing heat, the ground cracking under scorching waves that shimmered like mirages. Flames began to leak from his body, framed by an orange glow, and every breath I took felt like filling my lungs with embers.
'Alright, let's do what needs to be done!'
Electricity roared within me, coursing through my body like thunder ready to break free. The world slowed for a moment, my magic coating my skin. The ground beneath my feet exploded into shards as I shot forward, a blur of blue light amidst the inferno.
The first attack came as a fiery rain. Flaming arrows tore through the air, their trails leaving scarlet streaks against the dark sky. I sidestepped lightly, each movement guided by the electricity accelerating my synapses. A flaming arrow grazed my shoulder, another exploded where I had been a second ago.
I responded with my own storm.
Two flashes cut through the air as my lightning spears took shape. With a swift motion, I hurled the first one, a dart of pure electricity that snaked across the field like a blue dragon. Thadeus raised his hand and deflected the projectile with an explosion of flames, but the second spear followed immediately, forcing him to leap back.
'Come on, kid, show me what you've got!' I thought, a manic grin spreading across my face. My senses were pushed to the limit, my pupils focusing on the microseconds.
Two lightning spears formed in my hands, static and ready to pierce everything in their path. Thadeus began to escalate his attacks. Ten fire arrows became fifty. Fifty doubled to a hundred, and soon most of the arena seemed to rain with fiery arrows.
'Let's close the gap slowly!'
I moved with precision, dodging each arrow. The distance between us was shrinking, and Thadeus's expression began to falter at the realization. His brows furrowed, and a massive circular wave of fire, a meter high, surged toward me.
"It won't work!!!"
Increasing my speed even further, I charged head-on into the wave of fire. A thin layer of gravity briefly interrupted the flow of the attack, creating a small opening—just enough for me to slip through.
My arms rose, and my two spears came down in an 'X' toward him.
His legs burst into flames, and Thadeus took to the air, narrowly dodging my attack.
A small smile formed on my face.
"You better come back!!!" I shouted.
I hurled the spear in my right hand and, at the same time, with my free hands, made a pulling motion. Thadeus, still gaining altitude, suddenly stopped. A strong pull dragged him downward, toward the spear I had thrown.
"AGH..." he groaned, channeling a massive fire shield to block my attack.
I seized the opportunity. Lightning exploded in my legs, the gravity around me lessened, and I launched myself toward him.
"BOOOOOOM"
The ground erupted, rocks flying in all directions, and in less than a second, our eyes met in mid-air. I attacked with all my might, using the spear still in my left hand.
Thadeus wasn't idle either. The serpents surrounding him merged, forming a massive snake several times larger than me.
"BOOOOM"
Our attacks collided in mid-air, and both of us were thrown dozens of meters toward the ground. I controlled the gravity around me and landed gracefully.
On the other side, Thadeus floated amidst his flames.
'I came out worse in that exchange,' I analyzed.
My arms were burned from top to bottom. My skin was red, and a familiar burning sensation began to build.
That was the problem with facing fire mages. Everything about their affinity was destructive. The heat hurt, the steam drained stamina, and it quickly dehydrated you. Prolonged fights against fire mages could only be described as hell.
'But of course, everything comes at a price.'
Thadeus looked at me with furious eyes, disbelieving that we were still so evenly matched.
His aura flared, nearly doubling in intensity. His flames began to change color, from a deep red to a bloody crimson. The air in the arena grew even heavier.
'So he's finally bringing it out. There it is, the champion rank.'
Floating in the air much faster than before, Thadeus extended his hands, and a hundred fire spears formed, flying at full speed toward me.
'Now the real show begins!!!!'
Not to be outdone, I increased the intensity of the electricity in my body and added a thin protective layer of gravity.
Our eyes met, and I charged forward even faster than before.
"BOOOOOM... BOOOOM... BOOOOM..."
The spears hit the ground and exploded in a five-meter radius. The entire arena terrain began to destabilize.
"Damn it!!! Stupid fire mages," I complained.
Though I could easily keep up with the speed of the fire spears, the resulting explosions were a nuisance. It wasn't enough to just dodge; I had to do so while staying more than five meters away from the blast to avoid the impact.
I felt more energy being expelled on the battlefield. Looking up, Thadeus had activated some function on his Nexus, which floated beside him.
Abruptly, the number of fire spears being launched at me doubled. The orb was mimicking its owner's spells.
"Damn it!!! Stupid rich kids and their expensive gadgets!"
And then hell descended.
**
"It seems young master Thadeus has finally gotten serious. It shouldn't take long to end this," said a middle-aged man to Talon, who watched the fight in silence, a stern look on his face.
"What do you think? Can the queen's candidate get out of this?" Cassian asked in his military tone, addressing Elder Silas.
The blind man, somehow, was able to follow everything happening.
'I can't say. I can't read the boy's prana signature at all. It's all too hazy, mixed with something I'm not used to,' Silas replied.
"I feel the same," Lyra added.
"What were we doing that we missed this talent in the fallen Carborex family?" Marius questioned.
More conversations among the elders ensued, but all kept their eyes firmly on the unfolding battle.
**
"It's about to get serious now," Lesley stated to Rose and Selene, who sat beside her.
"Is the boy still hiding something up his sleeve?" Rose asked, licking her lips.
"I wouldn't say hiding. Just not going all out yet."
"Interesting. Are you sure you don't want to give him to me?" Rose teased, glancing at Selene, who responded with nothing but cold, indifferent eyes.
**
Over three hundred fire arrows rained down on me like a torrential downpour.
'I can't dodge anymore!'
I slowed down, took a deep breath, and channeled my prana into my arms. My open hands clapped together. All the accumulated energy was unleashed, and a torrential explosion of lightning erupted from my body toward the sky.
"KABOOOOOOOOOOOM"
The storm of lightning collided with the rain of fiery arrows, and the explosion generated a colossal shockwave. The wind pushed both Thadeus and me back. The arena was so uneven it had become unrecognizable. A cloud of smoke rose, covering dozens of meters, hiding our silhouettes.
Everyone in the stands stood up in curiosity. The anticipation reached its peak. Some had come disinterested in a fight between low-level mages, but what they found was a spectacle.
An Awakened fighting on equal footing with a Champion. And to top it off, this Awakened had been announced as Master Elian's apprentice. There were even rumors he was the queen's consort. Too many revelations for a single morning.
The dust settled, and standing a hundred meters apart were Thadeus and me. Both still on our feet.
Thadeus's clothes were intact, but his arms, neck, and legs twitched involuntarily, signs of electrical damage.
I was in worse shape. The upper half of my clothes had burned away, revealing my reddened, burned chest. My arms weren't any better, but my face showed no real signs of fatigue.
"WOOOOOOOOOW," cheers of excitement erupted in the arena.