Chapter: 33. Tactics!
Timani had never imagined that the semifinals, without even facing the Demon Princess, would be such a struggle.
[Dragon Flame]
[High-Level Fireball Technique]
[Fire Ring Flow]
A torrent of extremely high-temperature flames projected from a magic array formed at her fingertips, like a red long sword, piercing straight through the dome of the arena’s defense barrier.
The intense explosive power felt as if it could overturn the barrier at any moment.
But it certainly wouldn’t be overturned.
After all, this defense barrier was not only under Ecklight’s direct control, but also reinforced by one of Aulus Kingdom’s three great treasures, the [Divine Thread Chain], a treasure specifically used to construct defense barriers, achieving a strategic-level defensive strength.
Even so, Timani’s powerful fire magic continued to create rumbling shockwaves as it crashed against the barrier.
—But that was all.
Since she had to continuously release magic, it meant that none of her attacks had hit her opponent.
Xial transformed into a blue shooting star, rapidly leaping across the ground of the quicksand arena.
Even though Timani was doing her best to widen her slit pupils, using the unique dynamic vision of the Fire Dragon Clan to observe her movement trajectory, all she could see were just afterimages.
[Dragon Flame]…!
As expected, the roaring dragon-shaped flames passed through Xial’s afterimage and, like the results of many previous attempts, dissipated upon striking the barrier.
This feeling, akin to punching a sponge, left Timani quite irritated.
“Tsk… running around…! Just like a sly rabbit… Dragon Flame!”
“Can’t hit me, can’t hit me~ Hehe, big sister, why don’t you just give up? That way, I won’t have to cut you!”
“You little brat! Don’t look down on me!”
With a flick of her sleeve, she unleashed a massive fire curtain, dazzling like fireworks, transforming the arena into a sea of flames from the spectator area.
But when the smoke cleared…
The blue flow of light was still circling around Timani with three-dimensional movement; she had exerted considerable energy just to keep her head aligned with the shadow of her opponent to prevent surprise attacks.
The audience’s reactions were quite spectacular, primarily due to their disbelief at what they were witnessing.
“Hey hey hey… I always thought that person named Xial won the championship last time by luck, but I didn’t expect… she’s really that strong! Even the Fire Dragon Clan’s attacks can’t touch her!”
“Dude, I completely agree with you. To play with high-level races like this… this scene is so bizarre, who exactly is she?”
“She might be a secret weapon sent by the King…? But Xial seems to have no intention of attacking at all, can’t she approach? At this rate, there won’t be a victor.”
Not being able to determine a winner? That was not necessarily true.
Xial precisely captured the fact that the [Dragon Flame] that had just landed beside her had significantly reduced in power compared to before.
Indeed, the total magic power of the Fire Dragon Clan was naturally enormous, but it was not an endless abyss; it would eventually be depleted.
And that was indeed the case.
Timani was showing signs of strain as she gathered fire at her fingertips, her breathing becoming increasingly erratic and disordered.
Xial felt a surge of excitement—sure enough, Lady Xue Fei didn’t deceive me! Listening to Mom’s words was not wrong!
There was no need to cut down this fire lizard, and she could ensure victory; it was very effective.
Timani retracted the magic power from her fingertips.
She constructed a barrier of flames around herself to defend against the opponent’s surprise attack, trying to conserve magic power as much as possible.
She had also figured out her opponent’s battle strategy.
At this rate, it wasn’t going to work… her opponent was trying to wear her down by relying on speed.
But Timani found it very strange.
Since she had such speed… why not take the opportunity to attack?
After all, she hadn’t taken any defensive measures before the fire barrier was raised, had she?
Watching this “blue rabbit” use [Super Acceleration] to hop around without any sign of slowing down, the feeling of provocation in Timani’s heart became increasingly clear.
Fine, since you’re not coming to attack, there’s no need for me to waste magic power attacking you.
“What does that mean? Instead of trying to persuade me to surrender… why don’t you come and attack me instead?”
As she spoke, Timani secretly heightened the imprint for an explosive attack amidst her fire curtain defense.
As long as Xial launched a surprise attack, she would run into the suddenly activated [Explosive Dragon Flame].
She didn’t expect to receive a response from talking.
But unexpectedly…
This blue rabbit actually took the time to reply while bouncing around!
“Attack you myself? That won’t work~ Lady Shaya told me we can’t cut you because she said it’s already hard enough for you to beg for food. If I have to bear the medical expenses, that might just make things worse for you, and you won’t be able to live!”
“Wha…! You’re the one begging…!”
Just as she was about to hurl a curse out of anger.
Timani suddenly noticed that she seemed to have heard a familiar name just now.
“Shaya? You know that rude little brat?”
“It’s you who are rude! How dare you speak ill of Lady Shaya in front of me?!”
“!”
As soon as she finished speaking, Timani felt a sharp pain.
Looking down, she saw a shallow blood mark from a blade’s cut on her arm; the wound was light, but she had indeed been struck.
More surprising than that was…
—Clearly attacked, but the [Explosive Dragon Flame] hidden in the fire curtain did not activate.
Why…?
In other words… this Xial person had sliced at a speed that surpassed the instantaneous activation speed of the magic?
Is that possible?
Such a thing…
Was truly interesting…
Timani’s breath changed.
The scarlet pupils of the Fire Dragon Clan gradually reflected a golden light, and her calm expression slowly turned into a sinister smile.
Being attacked and injured, coupled with the humiliation of her opponent seemingly “showing mercy,” these elements would not anger a member of the Fire Dragon Clan.
Rather, they would genuinely ignite her desire to fight.
Good… good!
Now that you say you’re someone special to Shaya, it doesn’t matter.
Whether you want to fight or will attack, it is no longer up to you.
The defense fire curtain surrounding Timani dissipated.
Timani lowered her head, and slowly, from her feet outward, a circle of fiery ripples spread out.
At the same time, Xial ceased her high-speed movement.
The afterimages merged into one, appearing at the edge of the arena, a hundred meters away from Timani.
The Little Holy Sword narrowed its eyes to sense the magical fluctuations emitted by Timani, feeling the temperature of the arena gradually rise, and instinctively detected a hint of danger.
From Xial’s perspective, it was not visible.
But from the viewpoint of the audience observing the gladiatorial arena from above, the entire situation on the field could be clearly seen.
Everyone held their breath… not daring to even inhale, their eyes wide, and sweating for Xial.
It was a spectacle.
The entire arena floor, within a radius of hundreds of meters, was completely covered in scarlet magic arrays.
Like a quiet lake, with leaves floating on its surface, rippling into layers, undisturbed.
But the difference was… the “water” in this lake was all fire!
So, retreating to the corner of the barrier was meaningless for Xial; the flame magic array had already reached the edge of the arena.
“This is self-inflicted.”
From such a distance, Timani knew her words couldn’t be heard by her opponent.
But let it be a premature apology, Timani wanted to make her intentions clear.
“You’re strong… but I must win this match. If you block my path, I can only clear the obstacles this way. Don’t worry… I will control it to not kill you, but injury is inevitable!”
The flame magic array was fully formed.
As hot steam poured out from the defense barrier, Timani slowly opened her vertically slit eyes, imbued with golden light.
Scarlet wings unfurled, while multiple layers of defensive barriers covered her.
Silently, she began to chant her strongest spell she could release.
[Dragon Flame Great Explosive Flow]
A moment of quiet was the precursor to the storm.
A burst of light, brilliant as the sun’s core, suddenly enveloped the entire gladiatorial arena, even swallowing the sound of gasps.
On the sidelines, Ecklight furrowed her brow, pouring more magic power into the [Divine Thread Chain]. Even so, the defense barrier began to wail.
Boom!!!
“Hey, hey, should we run!!”
“What did you say?!”
“I said should we run…!!”
“Where to run! Can we even run away!!”
The flames enveloped by the defense barrier transformed from red to white, then from white to blue, ultimately morphing into a terrifying purple light. The chain-reacting explosions made it hard to believe any creatures inside could survive!
Not to mention those inside, would the barrier outside not be affected at all?!
In fact, some audience members had already started to flee.
But they still should believe in the sturdiness of the kingdom’s treasures.
Once the purple light faded and only smoke hung in the air, after the barrier shook violently several times, it slowly returned to calm.
The nobles who had just stood up to escape switched from panic to elegance, returning to their seats as if they had merely stood up to stretch their legs.
At this moment, they no longer had to worry about their safety, and finally had the leisure to focus on the situation inside the arena.
This Fire Dragon Clan member should go easy…
After all, her opponent was just a child; this was just a match. Clearly, someone could die here, right? What is the referee doing?!
Don’t look for the referee; the referee had already fled far away and had only just returned.
The defense barrier could not block the dissipating dust; as the dust settled…
The first thing observable was the completely transformed landscape.
The originally solid ground, which had turned to quicksand in the last competition of Xue Fei, was now burned into patches of black by the raging fires, emanating billowing steam.
Now, it was even more like a desert.
Timani, who had preemptively covered herself with fire curtain defense magic, was definitely fine.
[Dragon Flame Great Explosive Flow] could not burn through the fire curtain of the same magical nature as her own.
As the fire curtain dissolved, the scarlet wings folded in, and the brightly dressed Timani landed steadily. The sand consciously shifted around her as if to make space for her, showcasing the unparalleled pressure brought by a high-level race.
To the audience, she appeared elegant, cold, and powerful.
But only Timani herself knew how hard she was struggling.
Cold sweat dripped from her forehead; as expected, the magic power consumption from earlier had been significant…
She couldn’t master the release trajectory of such a wide-area magic well, but fortunately, this protective barrier was robust enough that as long as the magic was deployed within this fixed range, she didn’t have to worry much about the trajectory direction.
Rather than adjusting her state, Timani was more concerned about the other side of the arena.
That little girl… is she okay?
Thinking that her actions might severely injure her, Timani felt a deep-seated dislike for herself.
But she really had no choice…
She was tired, she wanted to go home.
So sorry…
“Phew… amazing, amazing, no wonder Lady Shaya said I might get hit this round. Big sister, I’m sorry I underestimated you earlier; you really have some skills!”
“?!”
Once the dust at the arena’s edge completely cleared, a golden light shone brightly.
Xial held a long sword made of converged golden magic power, cutting through the smoke with a single instant movement, appearing less than ten meters away from Timani.
Timani widened her eyes, scarcely believing what she was seeing…
She had clearly taken the full brunt of Timani’s [Dragon Flame Great Explosive Flow], yet this girl remained completely unscathed… her clothes not even a speck of dust, just the tips of her blue hair slightly curled!
Not only was Timani astonished, but the audience erupted into the loudest cheer since the start of the match!
Timani realized her magical power had been depleted by more than half.
Even for her, usually proud and confident, a wry smile of helplessness crept onto her cheeks.
“Is this for real… you too, that Shaya before… are there this many monsters in this place…?”
