Under Kael's precise command, Meteor Shower and Tornado fused into a single apocalyptic force. His scepter radiated blinding light as spatial distortions rippled outward, warping the arena's very fabric.
"Inferno Cyclone!"
The composite spell roared to life—a spiraling column of frostfire meteors sheathed in hurricane winds. Air molecules ionized under the strain, casting eerie auroras across the battlefield.
Simon and Jessica reacted instinctively:
"Emberguard!" Jessica's twin shields flared—a latticework of solar runes intercepting the onslaught.
"Tempest Golem!" Simon's summoned colossus of compressed stormclouds raised crystalline arms, its form crackling with defensive lightning.
Kael's lips curled. "Pathetic."
The Inferno Cyclone struck.
First impact: Emberguard's runic matrix dissolved like sugar in boiling water. Jessica's scream pierced the din as frostfire tendrils shredded her Flame Ward.
Second impact: The Tempest Golem's lightning-infused body vaporized mid-block. Simon's storm-charged staff shattered, molten shrapnel embedding in his thighs.
Final impact: The cyclone's core detonated. Reinforced arena stones liquefied instantly, forming a glassy crater thirty meters wide. Spatial fractures spiderwebbed outward, freezing then flash-melting debris in paradoxical torment.
When the light faded, Jessica lay crumpled against a half-melted pillar, her battle-robes reduced to smoldering rags. Simon sprawled unconscious in a pool of his own blood, still clutching his staff's broken haft.
The crowd stood paralyzed—even Evelyn's seasoned composure cracked. Where the arena's eastern wing had stood, only smoking slag remained. Arcane reinforcement alloys meant to withstand seventh-tier spells now dripped like candle wax.
Kael lowered his scepter, frostfire corona dimming. "Next?"
His whisper carried across the dead silence. Nankur's earth-mage delegate fainted outright.
Jessica and Simon lay defeated, their bodies scorched and trembling as the frostfire residue crackled across the ravaged battlefield. Ivy's piercing shriek of triumph shattered the silence, igniting an eruption of cheers that shook the academy grounds.
"He… he actually won against four of them!" A warrior student gaped, clutching his singed helmet.
Evelyn exhaled deeply, her manicured nails unclenching from her palms. Kael's victory defied all logic – a first-year dismantling Nankur's elite strike team through sheer arcane innovation.
Jessica stared blankly at her blistered hands, supported by Dean – the same mage Cruy had earlier defeated. "Composite magic… this changes everything…"
Simon fared worse. Jared and Grant hauled him upright, their own injuries forgotten in the face of their leader's humiliation. The once-polished mage's robes hung in tatters, his singed hair reeking of burnt sulfur. Where aristocratic poise had resided, only trembling fury remained.
Kael approached the battered delegates, frostfire still dancing along his scepter. "Nankur Academy's reputation seems overrated. Even with Senior Simon and Senior Jessica teaming up, you couldn't handle a mere first-year like me."
Simon convulsed, fresh blood staining his lips. Jessica's cheeks burned hotter than Kael's flames – their meticulously planned humiliation had inverted into legendary disgrace.
The arena's destruction spoke volumes. Molten obsidian stone pooled where reinforced platforms once stood, spatial fractures still shimmering like malignant stars. Academy custodians later estimated the damage exceeded three years' maintenance budget.
Amid the cheers, the crowd couldn't help but marvel at the devastating power of Kael's magic. Whispers spread like wildfire – this wasn't just victory, but the dawn of a new magical era.
As healers rushed to treat the Nankur delegates, Kael turned to Amelia. Her knightly composure faltered for a heartbeat, revealing the awe she'd concealed throughout the duel.
"Still think composite magic's impractical?" he murmured.
Amelia's answer came as a rare, radiant smile – all the affirmation he needed.
Jessica and Simon stood pale and hollow-eyed, their gazes heavy with humbled reverence. Nankur Academy's meticulously plotted humiliation had backfired catastrophically, etching their defeat into arcane history.
Evelyn's mind raced with political calculations. This victory will reverberate across the Four Academies. Recruitment applications will triple by next semester.
Nearby, Cruy and Korgoth exchanged stunned glances. The chasm between them and Kael now stretched into an insurmountable void. Cruy burned with shame – his past rivalry with Kael seemed laughably trivial in hindsight.
The students, unburdened by such complexities, erupted into primal celebration. Magic Academy disciples surged forward first, hoisting Kael onto their shoulders. Warrior students soon joined, their earlier divisions forgotten in the euphoria of shared triumph.
"Kael! Kael! Kael!"
They chanted his name like a war hymn, tossing him skyward in rhythm. Frostfire sparks trailed his ascent, painting the smoke-choked air with fleeting constellations.
Jessica watched from the sidelines, Dean's supporting arm the only thing keeping her upright. Each cheer hammered home their failure. Simon, half-carried by his subordinates, glared at the revelry through bloodshot eyes.
"This isn't over," he croaked, though the threat rang hollow.
Amelia observed the spectacle from the crater's edge, her knightly composure softening. When Kael's laughing form descended for the seventh toss, their eyes met – a silent exchange that needed no spells.
The arena's ruins bore testament to more than a schoolyard brawl. Molten stone hissed where spatial fractures lingered, frostfire's paradoxical chill warring with lingering heat. Custodians would later discover the damage extended thirty meters underground – a permanent scar marking composite magic's violent birth.
As twilight fell, the celebration spilled beyond the training grounds. Bonfires of purloined spellbooks lit the sky, Warrior Academy cadets teaching magical initiates drinking songs.
Evelyn raised a goblet of stolen elven wine toward the chaos. "To unexpected heroes," she murmured, "and the revolutions they birth."
The toast went unheard, drowned by another thunderous roar:
"KAEL! KAEL! KAEL!"
History, it seemed, preferred its legends loud.
The euphoria transcended factional divides. Warrior and magic students alike roared their approval, their cheers merging into a thunderous tide that lifted Kael higher with each celebratory toss. Evelyn and the instructors watched indulgently, recognizing the catharsis their students desperately needed after weeks of mounting tension.
Jessica and Simon slunk away under the cover of chaos, their delegation's earlier swagger reduced to ash. No one stopped their retreat – Flamecrest's triumph needed no petty gloating.
Amelia lingered at the crowd's edge until Kael's gaze found hers. His grin, usually so self-assured, softened into something private and real.
Breaking free from his admirers, Kael seized her hand. They slipped through secret passages known only to academy veterans, the raucous cheers fading behind ancient stone walls.
"That was… intense," Kael admitted once they reached a secluded courtyard.
Amelia's laughter rang clear in the twilight. "Hero worship suits you."
"Temporary madness," he countered, though his fingers tightened around hers.
As moonlight silvered the battle-scarred grounds, their footsteps led toward the dormitories. The air hummed with anticipation – tomorrow's quarterfinals promised greater challenges, but for now, stolen tranquility reigned.
Eight days later – Quarterfinal Dawn
The arena throbbed with energy hours before the first match. Vendors hawked frostfire-glazed pastries and enchanted viewing crystals. Banners depicting the Elite Eight fluttered above packed stands, Kael's portrait burning brightest among them.
Arm in arm with Amelia, Kael navigated the champions' tunnel. Distant cheers seeped through stone walls, their rhythm syncopated with his heartbeat.
"Nervous?" Amelia squeezed his hand.
"Eager." Frostfire sparked at his fingertips. "This is where legends forge themselves."
The tunnel mouth yawned ahead, sunlight and roaring crowds beckoning. Somewhere beyond that radiance waited Dylan's tectonic might, Ethan's berserker fury, and battles that would redefine magical warfare.
Kael stepped into the light.