Chapter 117: The Blade Dance Tournament and Velsaria's Power

"The first requirement of being a hero isn't being right. It's being strong. That's why the hero always wins."

— Koyomi Aragari, Bakemonogatari

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Just then, the crowd parted, and a hush fell over the students.

Velsaria Eva Fahrengart, clad in a pristine white coat, emerged from the crowd, followed by four upperclassmen from the former Sylphid Knights.

She stopped before Claire and the others, her icy blue eyes fixed on Ellis with a cold, disdainful look.

"Ellis, I thought you were smarter than this. It seems I was mistaken."

Ellis met her gaze with defiance, her heart filled with determination.

She couldn't lose. She had to secure a spot in the Blade Dance for Rakka and Reishia, who had entrusted her with their dreams.

And for her fellow Sylphid Knights who believed in her.

"I will defeat you, Velsaria. I'll surpass you and prove my own path as a Knight," Ellis declared.

"How foolish. Then I shall crush your so-called 'Knight's path' completely," Velsaria sneered.

The bell signaling the start of the match rang out.

The ancient relic, the Stone Ring, activated, opening the gate to the Elemental Spirit World.

A flash of white light engulfed the two teams, transporting them to the battleground.

The students watching the match erupted in excited chatter.

"It's starting! I'm so nervous. I wonder if the Night Demon King will be defeated easily."

"Why are you worried about him? Shouldn't you be worried about Velsaria-senpai?"

"She's the strongest Elementalist in the academy. That man is no match for her!"

"But Roy-san blocked Lux-senpai's ultimate attack! Even Velsaria-senpai couldn't do that unscathed!"

...

Team Scarlet materialized in a clearing within a dense forest.

The thick foliage limited their visibility, making it difficult to locate the enemy team.

Claire quickly confirmed that her teammates were safe.

"Scarlet, let's go!" she declared, summoning her fiery cat spirit.

Ellis and the others also began chanting their summoning incantations.

"Ellis and I will search for the enemy. Fianna, you set up the formation," Claire instructed.

Fianna's task was to find a safe location and perform the fourth ritual dance, the Song of Glory.

This dance would channel divine power from the earth veins to their allies within the area of effect.

"There's no need for that, Claire Rouge," a voice suddenly interrupted.

"...?!" The members of Team Scarlet froze.

They looked up and saw a massive fortress floating in the air.

It was Velsaria, clad in her Elemental Waffe, the Dreadnought.

"Is Velsaria planning to fight us alone?" Claire gasped in surprise.

"It seems so," Roy replied with a chuckle, his arms crossed.

"Forget those nuisances. Your opponent is me," Velsaria declared coldly.

It seemed she had abandoned her teammates.

"Look out! Here she comes!" Rinslet shouted in alarm.

The fortress's armor unfolded, revealing countless cannons.

Velsaria, the strongest Elementalist in the academy, looked down at them like an empress, her hand raised.

"Disappear! Crushed beneath my Dreadnought!"

Dozens of cannons fired simultaneously.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The ground shook as a barrage of projectiles rained down on them.

The destructive power of her strongest Elemental Waffe was overwhelming.

"How boring. You're all just small fry," Velsaria scoffed, watching the explosions and dust clouds.

She assumed they had been defeated by her attack.

The once lush forest was now a wasteland, riddled with craters.

As the dust settled, a figure emerged from the wreckage.

"What?!" Velsaria's eyes widened in shock.

Rinslet, wielding her Ice Bow, stood there with a fearless grin.

"Hmph! No one can match my speed when it comes to summoning an Elemental Waffe!" she declared, then fired an Ice Shot.

Although her claim was debatable, she was indeed the fastest in Areishia Spirit Academy.

"Useless effort," Velsaria scoffed.

She shifted her fortress's armor, deflecting the ice arrow.

"I'm not done yet!" Rinslet continued her assault, firing a barrage of arrows.

The ice projectiles soared through the air, all four striking the fortress.

However, they couldn't penetrate its armor.

Although Rinslet's Fenrir was slowly regaining its strength, it wasn't fast enough. Compared to the original story, Rinslet wasn't much stronger.

"How foolish. Your puny arrows are meaningless against my Dreadnought," Velsaria sneered.

"Oh? Are you sure about that?" Rinslet smirked, twirling her golden hair.

"What?" Velsaria was about to retaliate when she finally realized Rinslet's true intention.

Rinslet wasn't aiming to damage the armor.

She was using the freezing effect of her Ice Shots.

Velsaria's armor was now encased in ice.

...

"Just as you planned, Claire," Rinslet said with a grin.

"Yes. The Dreadnought has high defense against physical attacks, but it's vulnerable to elemental attacks," Claire explained.

Velsaria's face was etched with worry.

Her cannons couldn't fire in this state.

And the ice encasing her armor had increased its weight, drastically reducing her mobility.

The fortress was now a sitting duck.

"Ellis, counterattack!" Claire commanded.

"Yes!"

Claire and Ellis chanted their incantations simultaneously.

They unleashed their magic towards the immobile fortress.

"Take this! Blazing Inferno!"

"O winds of disaster, become a blade that cuts through all! Sylphid Hurricane!"

Velsaria couldn't evade their attacks.

BOOM!

The explosions shook the air.

"We hit her!" Claire exclaimed.

Even with the armor's protection, Velsaria couldn't have emerged unscathed from that attack.

But then...

"Is that all you've got, little sister of the Calamity Queen?" Velsaria's voice rang out from the smoke.

"What?!"

The ground shook violently.

Dust and debris filled the air.

Claire was thrown back by the powerful shockwave.

It was like a meteor had struck the ground.

A massive crater appeared, and at its center stood the Dreadnought.

...

...

"Well done. You actually managed to knock me down," Velsaria chuckled.

The impact of the fall had shattered the ice encasing her armor.

"But that's as far as you go. My contracted spirit is an Earth Elemental. I'm even stronger on the ground."

The Dreadnought extended two massive arms with sharp claws at their ends.

The claws tore through the remaining trees.

"Impressive destructive power, but your movements are full of openings," Ellis commented, seizing the opportunity.

She swung her Windashlance, launching a blade of wind towards Velsaria.

But the Dreadnought was no longer there.

Velsaria had moved with incredible speed, appearing before Ellis in an instant.

Her movements were like gliding across the ground.

Her mobility was far greater than when she was flying.

"Ellis, look out!" Claire shouted, lashing out with her Flame Whip and wrapping it around the fortress's arm, slowing its movement.

But that was all she could do.

The immense power behind the attack was too much for her whip to withstand.

"I'll take it!" Fianna declared.

A knight clad in shining armor appeared, wielding a massive shield. It was Fianna's contracted spirit, Georgios.

The Knight Spirit used all its strength to block the fortress's attack.

Its armored boots sank deep into the ground.

A deafening clang echoed through the air.

However, even the Knight Spirit, with its unparalleled defense, couldn't completely withstand the onslaught.

Its armor started to buckle, and a large crack appeared on its shield.

"Georgios, hold on!" Fianna cried out, worried.

"Lost Queen candidate, I didn't expect you to be foolish enough to oppose me," Velsaria sneered, glaring at the Knight Spirit.

"Hmph! You're the foolish one!" Fianna retorted.

Velsaria raised her arm, preparing to strike again.

"Not so fast!" Claire shouted, leaping onto the raised arm and wrapping her Flame Whip around its claws.

She had used her whip earlier not to restrain the fortress but to get closer to Velsaria.

At this range, even the armor couldn't completely protect her.

Claire was a master of high-speed incantations.

She unleashed her most powerful attack on the surprised Velsaria.

"Dance, crimson flames of destruction! Flame King's Breath!"

A massive fireball engulfed Velsaria.

"You damn fly!" Velsaria cursed, gritting her teeth.

That attack had hurt.

She swung her arm, trying to crush Claire.

Just then...

"Onee-sama, face reality!" Ellis shouted.

BOOM!

A powerful gust of wind descended from above.

Ellis's Windashlance pierced Velsaria's chest armor.

"Gah!" Velsaria cried out in pain.

But it wasn't over yet.

"O winds of disaster, tear my enemy apart!" Ellis chanted.

A powerful tornado erupted from the ground, lifting the Dreadnought into the air.

Crash! The fortress slammed into the ground, creating a massive cloud of dust.

"Huff... huff..." Ellis collapsed, exhausted from the attack.

Claire also panted, licking her lips.

"Velsaria, you were too arrogant. Fighting us alone was foolish," she taunted.

"You're the foolish one, Claire Rouge," Velsaria's voice rang out, seemingly unharmed.

"What?!"

The four girls stared at the dust cloud in disbelief.

A massive figure was moving within the dust.

"Incompetent weaklings are nothing but stepping stones before true strength. You're worthless."

The dust settled, revealing the Dreadnought, its armor unscathed.

"Disappear!" Velsaria roared, and the fortress unleashed another barrage of cannon fire.

...

Roy watched the battle with amusement.

It reminded him of a boss fight in a video game.

Claire and the others were the players trying to defeat the boss, Velsaria.

Although Velsaria had been pushed back, she still seemed to have plenty of energy left.

Claire and the others, however, were exhausted.

This was because Velsaria had a cursed seal that provided her with a vast amount of divine power.

"Velsaria-senpai's Blade Dance is amazing!"

"She's the strongest Elementalist in the academy! She's incredible!"

"Velsaria-senpai is my idol now!"

"Why isn't the Night Demon King doing anything? Is he scared?"

"No way! The Night Demon King is the strongest!"

...

The students watching the match on the large screen were buzzing with excitement.

The battle intensified.

As the Dreadnought continued its barrage, Rinslet fired her Ice Shots.

Ice and fire clashed, creating a shower of sparkling fragments.

"Damn it! Does that fortress girl have an endless supply of divine power?!" Rinslet yelled, wiping the sweat from her brow.

Although her Ice Shots were more powerful, if this turned into a drawn-out artillery battle, Velsaria would have the advantage.

Rinslet would run out of energy first.

"My Knight Spirit is reaching its limit..." Fianna said, panting.

Georgios's shield was covered in cracks from blocking the relentless barrage.

Claire and Ellis couldn't get close to Velsaria.

Facing the impenetrable fortress, Team Scarlet's attacks ceased.

Their only option was to wait for Velsaria to exhaust her divine power.

But Georgios, protecting the four girls, wouldn't last much longer.

"We can't win against Onee-sama?" Ellis murmured, biting her lip in frustration.

"Come on, Ellis, I believe you can defeat her!" Roy cheered from the sidelines, casually munching on sunflower seeds.

Claire and the others rolled their eyes at his nonchalant attitude.

The battle raged on.

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