Battle (Part 1)

Hiss!

Aeon held his right hand in front of his face as he prepared himself for the searing pain. However, he did not feel anything from the blazing fire.

As he moved his hand away, he could see that there was now a huge wall of ice in front of him,  blocking the roaring flames, though it was getting smaller at a visible rate and turning into mist. The fire blazed for quite some time, but the ice wall was able to last. He looked back and saw Korona extending her staff and her other hand in front of her. She was sweating profusely.

Aeon was about to give Korona a thumbs up when he saw another person rushing towards her. He had blades made of ice in both his fists. It was the other team's teammate, the one they left behind. He was finally able to catch up. "Behind!"

The alert came just in time. Without thinking twice, Korona rolled forward. An ice blade stabbed right where she stood earlier.

Suri looked back and saw that Korona was in a pickle. The opponent was a Seran, so Korona would surely have a hard time competing against him, having lost the distance advantage. When he was about to rush back, he suddenly heard Korona yell.

"Go get the flag!"

Suri staggered. He hesitated for a moment. From a distance, he could see Korona being forced into a passive situation. All she could do was jump back. She couldn't even cast a short spell like an ice shard. However, when she saw the determination on her face while fighting, he stopped hesitating. "Alright. We'll leave him to you!"

When Suri turned back, he saw that Aeon was already running through the mist. He laughed at himself for not trusting Korona enough. The other guy sure did. He also rushed forward.

….

Korona kept jumping backward. Currently, they were in an open field, so she couldn't find any cover at all. She had already tried to cast a simple and short spell like a water ball and an ice shard, however, she failed to complete one every single time. The enemy's attacks came in a flurry and gave her no time to concentrate. If she insisted on finishing the spell, she would probably be cut. She knew that she wouldn't be killed in the process, but the moment that she stopped or surrendered, she would surely be locked into place by the enemy. The enemy would then connect with the others, giving their team no more chance to pass.

That was not an option.

While jumping and dodging around, Korona carefully paid attention to her surroundings. Although it appeared that she was in a passive situation, she was actually moving back towards the forest. Only by utilizing the terrain advantage could she win against a Seran close to her level in terms of skill.

When Korona's enemy had finally figured out her plan, it was too late. She was already at the edge of the clearing. A few feet behind her, there were already thick trees and bushes. The water mage picked up his pace to try and subdue her and, at the same time, foil her plan. However, Korona demonstrated a burst of speed. She was not at her limit yet! She was just faking.

The miscalculation of the Seran cost him his terrain advantage. Korona had successfully entered the forest and was now hiding behind the trees and bushes. He could give up on her right here and now.

But how would that benefit their team?

As soon as Korona figures out that he stopped pursuing her, she would surely help eliminate his other teammates. Worse, if he turns his back on her and she finds out, he'll be the one under pursuit and would be harassed until the end of the test. He'll end up being useless.

He gritted his teeth and entered the forest as well.

….

Aeon rushed at the two Remorans, his right hand holding his trusty dagger. Compared to earlier, the two were moving at a much slower speed now, so he was able to spot them despite the cover given by the mist. Probably, that strong attack from earlier exhausted the Fire Remoran, so the other mage needed to match his pace and protect him.

In that situation, although Aeon could charge in recklessly, he chose to move at a controlled speed. Just to make sure, he decided to let Suri catch up and fight side by side. In any case, according to the map, there weren't any areas that would give their enemies an advantage based on the direction they were moving.

When Suri caught up with Aeon, the Fire Remoran and the earth mage were only a few dozen meters in front of them. It would be very stupid if they kept on running. They would surely end up like the other team from which they stole their flag.

As expected, the two stopped and each started casting a spell. Before Aeon and Suri could close in on them, the Fire mage finished his spell. Three fireballs shot straight at Aeon. Obviously, they marked him as the highest threat because he could demonstrate a sudden burst of speed when it comes down to it.

Aeon responded by nimbly dodging the fireballs. The balls crashed on the ground, creating mini explosions. However, this did not impede Aeon and Suri's advance.

At that moment, a segment of the earth suddenly shot up, aiming at Suri's abdomen. Suri, learning from his mistake in the plateau and quickly swung his sword.

Slash. Crumble!

The segment was destroyed, cleanly stopping the attack. However, the attack did not stop there. A pillar shot from his left, accurately hitting his shoulder, making him grunt in pain. He lost his balance and fell.

I'm not reacting fast enough. If it were Aeon, he would've been able to dodge those attacks with ease.

Suri fell behind a few meters, leaving Aeon to charge alone in front of him. Realizing that this may be a problem later on, he sped up, not caring if he was burning his stamina at a much quicker pace. He casted a short spell on his broadsword and it started to glow bright red. From a distance, he could see the Fire Remoran casting a spell. Based on the cast time, it would probably be another big one.

Aeon also saw this so he prepared himself. However, the attack did not come. Instead, the Fire Remoran created a fire shield. It blazed around his body as he stood comfortable inside. After the shield was put up, he immediately created five fireballs above his head. His tome glowed bright red, as well.

The distance between Aeon and the Fire Remoran was quite close now. Only about ten meters. However, he would not be able to touch that mage as long as the shield was up. Subtly, he looked back and nodded towards Suri. The latter nodded in response. No words were needed for them to communicate. Aeon was entrusting the Fire mage to Suri, a choice based on the fact that he was not an awakened mage. There was no way for him to deal with the person. Suri was the better candidate.

Aeon swerved left, heading towards the earth mage.

Surely, this one would not create an armor made of earth, right? That would make him inflexible.

Suri headed straight towards the Fire Remoran. The latter, seeing Aeon start focusing on his companion, threw two of the five fireballs towards Suri. Instead of dodging, Suri greeted the fireballs with his sword.

Boom! Boom!

The two fireballs exploded as Suri slashed both of them in one swing, but it didn't slow Suri's advance at all! Not in the slightest! His figured burst through the black smoke like a phantom. When Suri was at the 10-meter mark in front of the Fire Remoran, he stabbed his sword through the air and a pillar of fire shot forward. This was the spell he casted on his sword earlier, Flaming Stab. Just like Suri's other spells, this one packed quite some punch as well.

Seeing the power behind the flame roaring straight towards him, the Fire Remoran dodged. The shield might be able to mitigate most of its damage, but it would be greatly weakened. He did not want to risk it at all. It was his only chance of fighting against a Seran like Suri. Moreover, he was currently holding the flag. It was quite a burden on his movements.

Boom!

A strong explosion erupted in the distance. Having missed the Fire Remoran, it landed on the ground near the forest. The ground where it landed was scorched black. The grass surrounding it was lit on fire as well.

The Fire Remoran felt his sweat drop. The attack was stronger than he expected. When he looked over at the charging Suri, he noticed that his blade was no longer glowing.

So that's how it is.

"You must be general Samo's son." the Fire Remoran said with a smile.

Without stopping, Suri responded, "Yes, I am."

The Fire Remoran jumped and threw one of the remaining three fireballs to stop Suri's advance. The attacked seemed quite simple, but it was actually executed with much precision. It was accurately aimed at Suri's sword-wielding hand. And due to the close distance of about five meters, and the speed of the fireball, Suri would have a hard time swinging his sword abruptly. He had to dodge it.

Suri dodged left and the fireball missed. Suri realized that he had fallen to the enemy's trap. He rolled sideways, and, as expected, two other fireballs landed on the ground. He was able to dodge them by a hair. As he looked over at the Fire Remoran, the latter was already running away. Fire more fireballs blazed above his head.

This guy...he sure loves his fireballs.

Suri got up and resumed his pursuit.

….

Aeon had already dodged a few flying rocks and a few earth attacks now. His enemy was quite annoying. Able to cast several spells in quick succession. He was definitely better than the Fire Remoran when it comes to a series of attacks. What the earth mage was lacking, however, was firepower.

Being an earth mage, his attacks should have been firm and destructive. However, this earth mage deviated from the orthodox style. Instead, he casted in quick succession, trading the strength behind the attacks. He was the exact opposite of Suri.

In front of Aeon, his enemy was moving neither too fast nor too slow. It was obvious that he was keeping up with his companion, the Fire Remoran's, pace, careful about not being too far with each other. He knew that if he went too far, Aeon would immediately stop pursuing him and gang up on the Fire Remoran with flag together with Suri to get the flag.

"Aiya, this is such a headache," Aeon muttered under his breath as he dodged several earth spikes emerging from the ground.

….