|Alistair|
With the royal insignia adorning the carriage, we were granted easy passage through the layers of security at the teleportation gates. In no time, we arrived at Zestier and made our way to the serene royal palace, the heart of the kingdom.
As soon as Tessia was taken care of by the palace maids, Grandpa Virion and I headed towards our usual training area. I felt both determined and slightly terrified at the thought of facing a Lance.
"Brat, are you sure you're ready to face a Lance?" Grandpa asked, making sure I was prepared. I nodded, my resolve firm.
"Good," he said, taking out a communication scroll. With a swift imbue of his mana, the scroll disintegrated.
"Now, we wait for your opponent," he said as we took our positions on opposite sides of the training ground.
I sensed a presence that seemed to be deliberately hiding itself. I turned my head towards the source, activating my aether vision to see through the shroud that concealed the person's identity.
I was met with a powerful aura that seemed to radiate from a young woman. Her hair and eyes were a light shade of green, and her facial features were delicate and beautiful, giving the impression of a noblewoman rather than a warrior. But the amount of mana emanating from her suggested otherwise, and I couldn't help but scrutinise her even further.
Her core, nestled in her sternum, shone a bright white, emanating immense power that surpassed even that of Grandpa Virion and Gary. I knew that facing her in combat without using aether would be a futile effort.
"Welcome, Lance Alea," Grandpa greeted her respectfully. I also bowed in gratitude for her arrival.
"I'm happy to be of service, Elder Virion, Prince Alistair," Alea replied, her voice laced with a cheerful tone. "It's my duty to assist."
Grandpa explained that I had asked for a sparring partner, and that's why we had requested her presence. Alea turned her gaze towards me, scrutinizing my mana core and body. Her green eyes held a hint of surprise as she smiled.
"Prince Alistair has grown quite a bit since we last met," she said, taking a step towards me. "I would be honoured to spar with you."
"The honour is mine," I replied as I summoned my weapons, Argentum's Fang and Faithkeeper, from my spatial ring.
The atmosphere was tense as Alea and I stood facing each other, the anticipation of the spar palpable. Grandpa Virion watched on, his hand raised to signal the start of the match.
Alea wasted no time, summoning a gleaming white sword from her spatial ring and attacking me with incredible speed and ferocity. Her movements were swift, but I was ready for her.
My enhanced eyes were my greatest asset, allowing me to see everything in slow motion. I adjusted the centre of mass for my body, lowering my stance and sidestepping her attack with ease.
Her sword missed me by a hair's breadth, and I took advantage of the opening to counter with a swift strike from my own dual swords, Argentum's Fang and Faithkeeper.
The clash of metal echoed through the training hall as our swords collided, sending sparks flying. Alea deftly parried my attack and countered with a swift kick, sending me flying backward.
Despite my heightened senses and swordsmanship, Alea's battle experience and higher core stage gave her the upper hand in our spar. As our clash continued, she suddenly increased the wind magic surrounding her, prompting me to activate lightning magic to match her speed.
Our swords clashed at a dizzying pace, but I struggled to keep up with her movements without using aether. Sensing my dilemma, she further intensified the fight by manifesting plant magic, which I countered with blue fire.
To my surprise, her plant magic proved to be incredibly resilient to my flames, despite the typical weakness of plant magic to fire. Even with my best efforts, the plants sliced through my flames with ease, leaving me momentarily stunned.
"Huu~" Alea breathed out, a small smile playing on her lips as she continued to push me back.
Alea intensified her attacks, this time focusing on power instead of speed. The sheer force behind her thrust almost sent my Argentum's Fang and Faithkeeper flying as I blocked her. Despite her increase in power, her speed remained relentless, overwhelming my defense.
It didn't take long for the spar to come to an end. Alea had managed to maneuver herself behind me while I was still regaining my footing, her blade resting gently against my neck.
"It's my victory, Prince Alistair," she said playfully, a smile on her lips.
Grandpa applauded as I conceded defeat to Alea, "To think you could push a Lance this much, you have grown stronger, Al!"
"I must apologize," I said, bowing slightly, "I held back in the first spar. I was merely testing my limits. Would you permit me a second bout where I can use all of my strength?"
Alea looked at me with a small smile, "I would be more than happy to have another bout with you, Prince Alistair."
|Alea|
As a Lance, I had high expectations for the Paladins, the future generation of Dicathen. Unfortunately, I was away on a mission during the Xyrus Academy Festival, where the Paladins reportedly displayed their incredible power.
Despite this, I was still taken aback by Prince Alistair's strength. It wasn't just the advanced state of his mana core, but also the way he fought. If we were at the same stage or if I was only a single stage higher, he would have defeated me with ease.
And this was without him using his full power.
The other Lances believed that it would take the Paladins years to catch up to our level, with the exception of Gary, who was already considered the most powerful mage in Dicathen at the age of 12. However, I had a nagging feeling that some of the Paladins had already caught up to our level, and in a few years, they would surpass us and reach an entirely new realm of strength. The future of Dicathen was truly transformative, and the Paladins were leading the charge.
As we stood in our positions, I couldn't help but sense a difference in the prince's aura. There was a newfound confidence and intensity emanating from him that was impossible to ignore. It was clear that he was not the same as before, and I knew I couldn't afford to underestimate him.
Without hesitation, I launched my attack with all my strength. I summoned the vines of my plant magic and paired them with the force of my wind magic to create a powerful thrust.
To my surprise, the prince didn't flinch or even move. Instead, he stood firm, and suddenly, an ethereal purple shield appeared out of nowhere, blocking my attack with ease. Despite the sheer force of my blow, the shield held strong, and only small cracks appeared on its surface.
It was clear that the prince had been holding back in our previous spar. The shield was a testament to his power, and it left me wondering just how much stronger he could become.
I lunged at him from different angles, utilizing my footwork to confuse and deceive him. But to my surprise, he effortlessly countered my attacks with his own swordsmanship, having dispelled the shield he created earlier.
The lightning that surrounded him had taken on a violet hue, indicating a connection to the power he used to create the shield that blocked my previous attack. It was now apparent that our raw strength was evenly matched, but his superior swordsmanship was beginning to take its toll on me.
Refusing to give in, I slammed my foot on the ground, calling forth my vines to ensnare him. However, he effortlessly incinerated my emerald vines with black flames that far surpassed the blue fire my vines had previously overcome.
As I was pushed back, I couldn't help but wonder about the nature of this enigmatic power he wielded.
The battle ended swiftly once Prince Alistair began to utilize his new power, balancing our strength and speed. His extensive range of attacks and superior swordsmanship proved too much for me to handle, resulting in my defeat.
With a mix of shock and delight, I acknowledged my loss, "It's my defeat, Prince Alistair," my sword slipping from my grasp after deflecting against his dual swords.
"Thank you for the spar, Lance Alea," he responded graciously, returning his swords to his spatial ring and bowing slightly in respect.
The impending future of Dicathen wasn't a matter of years to come, it was already present among us.
|Varay|
Bairon's body skidded across the battlefield, surrounded by crackling lightning. "Seriously?" he exclaimed, incredulous. "How is he able to overpower both of us when he's not even armed?" He looked around at our opponent, trying to make sense of the situation.
I couldn't disagree with him. Gary was a force to be reckoned with, the greatest genius and the most powerful mage in all of Dicathen. Despite facing him in a 2v1 battle, we had agreed to the challenge, unable to resist the opportunity to face such a formidable opponent.
However, what followed was a display of Gary's absolute dominion over us, even without his sword.
As I turned my head towards the stunned faces of the royals and the Whiteborn family, I could sense their shock and awe at Gary's prowess. They may have witnessed his power during the Xyrus Academy Festival, but seeing him dominate the supposedly pinnacle of strength in Dicathen was an entirely different experience.
Determined to not be outdone, I unleashed the full potential of my ice magic, causing a sharp drop in temperature around me. Gary's eyes widened slightly, and he responded by summoning a torrent of white flames towards us.
Without hesitation, I channeled my magic into a powerful Frostfire attack, while Bairon unleashed his lightning to counter the flames. However, the intensity of the flames was beyond anything we had encountered before, and they managed to deplete Bairon's mana while losing much of their volume.
Bairon leapt into action, lightning crackling around him as he hurtled towards Gary. I created a protective shield of ice to shield myself from the flames, allowing my transformation to complete.
When the flames subsided, I witnessed Gary effortlessly dispatching Bairon, who was enveloped in crackling lightning. It was a one-sided fight from the start, with Gary's fighting technique and mana far surpassing Bairon's.
Despite Bairon's valiant efforts, Gary effortlessly saw through all his attacks, sending him hurtling across the stage and out of bounds with a roundhouse kick.
As Bairon lay motionless on the ground, I knew that it was up to me to try and take down this formidable opponent.
As Gary examined my icy form, he inquired, "Ice magic, is it?" His gaze flickered with intrigue, as if recognizing something familiar. My body was encased in a glittering sheen of frost, my hair and eyes transformed into shining crystals.
"What a coincidence," he said, his lips curling into a playful smile. "It is my most powerful element as well."
Suddenly, the world around us seemed to halt as Gary tapped into a deeper source of power. His silver locks metamorphosed into a brilliant white, while his piercing amethyst eyes turned into a sapphire blue. As he exhaled, an icy chill permeated throughout the arena, causing the temperature to plummet.
As I witnessed Gary's transformation, I couldn't help but feel a tinge of envy. The way he effortlessly surpassed my influence on ice mana was a testament to his raw talent, a quality that I lacked in comparison.
I had always known that I wasn't the most gifted when it came to ice magic, having witnessed the power of Princess Kathyln before. However, seeing someone else possess even more of this coveted talent that I so desperately craved, stirred up a complex mix of emotions inside me.
"Now, show me what the most powerful Lance is capable of!" Gary exclaimed as he charged towards me. In response, twin crystalline swords emerged from my sides as I charged back towards him. A maelstrom of ice swirled around us, marking the beginning of the ultimate battle between the two most powerful ice mages in all of Dicathen.
[A/N: Remember to vote if you guys like this chapter! It helps me in gauging the quality of my writing! With my final exams behind me and summer break coming up in a month, I find myself with plenty of free time. My goal is to complete this volume as soon as possible without sacrificing the quality of each chapter. To achieve this, I plan on uploading four chapters every weekend. Volume 4 will come to a close with the 73rd chapter and Volume 5 will end with the 90th chapter. This final chapter will serve as a transition to the War arc, which promises to be an arc much greater than the Xyrus Academy arc is.]