12 days till Odysseus, Dhijan Hero Nation, Royal Castle
“Come on, Kana! Give Karma back.”
“Not until you summon your imperial rank beast.”
Kana refused Shiro’s plead. The white-haired girl groaned in annoyance. She performed a quick chant and shot off a fire ball at the silver haired girl who easily jumped out of the way and stuck her tongue out.
“Your spell chanting is too slow.”
“Tch. Everyone always said I was the fastest.”
“Maybe for your age.”
A new voice popped up in the room and through the doors leading to the training room came Seiko with his partner, Jasmine.
“Seiko-kun, here for some early practice?”
Shiro dropped all she was doing with Kana and ran towards the young man. Once in front of him, he patted her on the head. To his side, Jasmine pouted.
“Yeah. I’ll be sparring with Jasmine. Want to see?”
“Can I participate instead?”
“Sorry, but we’re a bit too-”
“Oi, Shiro! You don’t want Karma back?”
Kana ran over with the little black dragon resting on her head. Black smoke escaped the dragon’s mouth, evidence that it was exhausted from playing with the overly energetic Kana.
Shiro grabbed Kana in a hug and looked at Seiko.
“What if Kana and I teamed up against you, then? You wouldn’t mind, would you?”
Seiko looked at the teenagers then at his partner. She was shaking her head, suggesting she wasn’t with the idea.
“Eh? Just the two of us against him? That’s no fair. If we’re going to do this, she’ll need to be a part too.”
Kana pointed at Jasmine’s face with a cocky smile on her face. She had inherited her father’s overbearing and confident attitude towards life as a whole.
Jasmine grinned madly, now interested in playing. Seiko and Shiro on the other hand were having second thoughts about it, since fighting one paladin alone was not something just anyone could do. The other issue was the fact that Kazoku weren’t like normal people. They had the blood of the great heroes that once saved humanity in the ancient days so their potential was just as much as a paladin’s.
Both shrugged it off, not wanting to think about it too much.
Kana grabbed Shiro and moved one end of the training room. She begun to whisper to Shiro.
“I know you’re a summoner and all, but can you fight without using your summons?”
“My spells are mostly at the intermediate level. I don’t think that kind of power is much against a paladin."
She groaned.
“Hmm, but we can’t have you summoning your Imperial rank beast here. Do you have any superior beasts or supreme beasts you can summon?”
“Huuh, supreme beasts might be too much for even the training room. I have a superior beast though.”
“Great.”
With that, Kana explained her battle plan. After hearing it out, Shiro had a single problem with the plan. She tried to voice it out, but Kana was not going to listen to her.
“Oi, paladins! We’re ready.”
“Kana!”
Both Seiko and Jasmine looked at each other, then at the duo.
“You said to hold back enough not to kill them, right?”
After repeating what she’d heard from Seiko several times, she stretched a bit. Kana heard what she just said and she could feel a vein burst in her forehead.
“Cocky shit. I’ll teach ya!”
Kana punched her knuckles together and charge towards Jasmine. The purple haired woman grinned and charged towards Kana as well, but at a faster pace. Kana whose mind was only on delivering a punch to Jasmine hadn’t noticed that her opponent was much faster than her. The only ones who saw this were those not charging headfirst.
When both were simply two feet away from each other, Kana threw a jab which Jasmine easily avoided and repaid with an uppercut to the chin, sending the young girl flying into the air.
“One down! One to go! Woohoo!”
Shiro’s mouth dropped in awe at the shockingly easy sight. Seiko on the other hand face palmed and sighed.
While still in the sky, Kana’s mind was busily thinking about several things.
‘I’ve never received such a punch. Father’s was stronger, but this feels different. Those I used to spar could never do this sort of damage against me in one blow. And they weren’t holding back either. They were genuinely weak. Ah, this is it. The stepping stone I’ve been needing for the past year to surpass the heights of my father. In that case, there’s no reason not to go all out from the beginning.’
Her confusion turned into excitement at the prospect of possible growth. Her silver hair started to crackle with lightning as she dropped to the ground on her feet.
“Stay back, Shiro. I’ll fight the paladins myself.”
The only way to grow stronger was through overcoming impossible peaks. Right now, there were two impossible peaks for her to overcome and as such, she was not going to let the opportunity go to waste.
‘Master, could this girl be stupid?’
‘Looks like it. Well, her plan was never going to work in the first place.’
‘So, why are you happy?’
Karma noticed the change in mood from Shiro.
“Oh? I didn’t even notice that. Maybe it’s because I can also play about now.”
Just as she said that, she pointed her hand at Seiko. A magic circle popped up in front of her and she started affixing runes into the circle.
“I hope this place doesn’t matter much to you guys.”
“What?”
“Maximum Magic: Flame Dragon!”
‘Karma, don’t forget our special move! Now go!’
‘Yes, master!’
Seiko’s eyes widened at the sight of the magic circle that largened and formed many other more complex circles to its side. His mind went wild as he tried to make sense of what Shiro just did. Forming such magic circles would need at least three high level mages and more than ten minutes to do, yet she had completed it in merely twenty seconds.
She truly was a magic prodigy. He could start to understand why everyone praised her magical ability, but now wasn’t the time to marvel at it. He took out his gun, looked into the barrel to check the safety. He blew into it then waved it around for a bit before pointing it at the fireball coming his way.
POW!
A powerful blue shot escaped out of the barrel, destroying the ginormous flame. Shiro who hadn’t expected her maximum magic to be cancelled out was left stunned. She however regained her senses once Seiko sprinted towards her.
“Karma!”
She yelled and the dispersed embers of the flame formed up being Seiko into a massive flaming dragon which tried to snap Seiko’s head off. The paladin of steel took out a weird device which erupted a mana shield behind him, protecting him from the attack, all while still charging for Shiro.
The teenager put both hands together and chanted a spell for, causing a powerful gust of wind to shoot her to the sky. Seiko shot another white blast at her, hitting her in the leg.
She winced in pain, losing her balance in the air.
‘This is how it feels when the safety is on? This guy’s not kind!’
An invisible platform formed before her and she fell on it.
“Well, I’m not kind either! Kame! Bombshell!”
She clapped both hands and a giant creature in the appearance of a turtle with a stone-like shell popped up above the paladin.
‘Sure thing, Shiro-chan!’
At her command, the turtle let out a cry that caused multiple spears of water to rain down in the training room. Seiko easily avoided most of them and even countered some with his own shots, even managing to break Shiro’s invisible platforms on three occasions.
Kame fell to the ground and Shiro was forced to jump on his back.
“Karma, come back!”
Her little familiar appeared in a white light on her shoulder.
“Kana! Direct your lightning to the ground!”
The silver haired girl who was busily exchanging fists with Jasmine grunted. She was losing out in the fight from the looks of things, and there was no way she was winning this without fighting dirty.
Seiko who noticed what Shiro was planning took out a gun from his pocket and shot the ground, creating rocky platforms that rose above the now flooded training ground.
“I have a resistance to lightning attacks, you know?”
He reminded her, but Shiro wasn’t going to buy that. If he had lightning attacks, there was no point in him creating platforms to avoid the water.
“Kana!”
“Kind of busy!”
Kana was unable to even let her own lightning go wild which Shiro found to be way too odd. She scanned around till she found a yellow stone glowing above Jasmine and cackling with lightning. Anytime Kana tried to summon her lightning, it all went towards the stone and Jasmine would simply overpower Kana with brute strength.
“What kind of magic is that?”
“Jewel magic. She’s the first we’ve seen with it, but from what I’ve observed, it’s the most versatile magic in the world with seemingly limitless uses.”
“Eh? I want to study that! I want that.”
“You can do so after this session.”
Shiro hadn’t seen when, but Seiko was now simply a foot way from her and his gun was on her abdomen. Even her familiars hadn’t sensed his movements.
“I see Kai wasn’t the only one good at sneaking up on others.”
She mused, but Seiko showed no expression.
“Thanks for letting me know what magic she has though.”
“Hm?”
Just then, the sound of the stone shattering into pieces resounded mightily in their ears. Seiko looked back and even Jasmine was stunned by the sight, giving Kana the breathing space, she needed.
“Lightning Gauntlets!”
She punched her knuckles together and her arms were covered with gauntlets made of pure blue lightning. She punched the water beneath her, sending a powerful current through the entire room.
“Impres-”
Just as he was giving her praise, Karma jumped on his face. Seiko slapped the black dragon away and his gun was still pointed at Shiro.
“Nice attempt.”
“Did you know Kame has lightning resistance too?”
“Doesn’t change the fact that you can’t escape.”
“True, but Kame can control the water he spawns.”
“Wha-ARGH!”
Two tendrils of water wrapped around his arms and dragged him onto the ground.
“Victory!”
She yelled and posed. The only thing that could overshadow her yelling was the sounds of Kana and Jasmine screaming in pain while being electrocuted. Seiko who had a complete immunity to physical pain just stood up and shrugged.
He offered his hand for her to get off the turtle. Before she took his hand, she asked Kame to get rid of all the water which he did in an instant. She got down and patted the giant beast on its head.
“Thank you for the help.”
‘Anytime, Shiro. Especially now that you’re facing that problem.’
‘Oi, you’re not supposed to talk about that.’
Karma walked over, randomly twitching.
“It’s alright. Also, you need to work more on your timing with Flame dragon. Had you been faster Seiko wouldn’t have been able to put up the barrier before you chomped off his head.”
‘S-Sorry.’
The dragon hung its head low in shame.
“You can go now, Kame.”
The turtle faded, leaving just a depressed Karma at Shiro’s side.
“Seriously talking about beheading me right in front of me? How cruel of you.”
Seiko complained while rubbing his neck.
“Oh please, as if that could kill you.”
“It can… What do you think I’m made of?”
While talking, applause echoed through the training room. Standing at the entrance to the training room in her usual uniform, was the regal Lady Veronica. At her side was the serious yet aloof Neburis with an uninterested light in her eyes.
She bowed to Veronica then walked away, whereas Veronica entered the room.
“Oh, Lady Veronica. I didn’t expect to see you here.”
Seiko scratched the back of his head.
“That’s lady Veronica Belvoir? Captain of the Dhijan Nation Royal Guard, Eldest daughter of the Belvoir House, Second highest grades ever at the Grand Magic University in Mexar and the Paladin of Quivering Water, Veronica Belvoir?”
“Yep.”
He responded listlessly while staring at the woman walking towards them.
“Also, your apparent crush, I’m assuming?”
“Ye- What? No!”
Shiro had received her confirmation from the flustered Seiko’s reaction. That was the oddest thing ever since Seiko mostly never shows any expressions. A gentle smile, a frown, a twitching eye and perked up ears. These four were the only ways Seiko ever expressed his emotions, yet here he was, acting out.
There was no way in hell Shiro was going to pass up on the opportunity to tease her usually stoic cousin.
Lady Veronica came to stop in front of the duo and folder her arms.
“Wow. You’re just as talented as Seiko said you were.”
“Lady Veronica! You’re as beautiful as Seiko said you were.”
“B-b-beautiful? Seiko said that?”
Veronica was now acting flustered. Shiro’s face turned blank as she saw this elegant powerful lady turned into a confused flustering mess at her statement. She then looked at Seiko who was rubbing his head awkwardly. Putting one and two together, she was now bored. Teasing him like she’d planned was now out of the window.
There were still other ways to do this though.
“Oh my, Seiko, look at how you’ve ruined my clothes.”
She cried out in an exaggerated voice and pointed out her torn up stockings from the point Seiko’s attack landed. The paladins observed her clothes then Veronica’s mood changed.
“Oh, heavens your clothes are ruined. That brute should have gone easy on you.”
“Right? Right? He’s so mean!”
“Ah… Shiro…”
“Meanie!”
She ran behind Veronica and stuck her tongue out at Seiko. Veronica frowned and folder her arms. Seiko could see the rage building up in her face and just sighed, knowing no one was going to listen to him.
Meanwhile, Kana who was lying down, petrified by her own lightning attack was breathing heavily. Her fight with Jasmine showed her just what mistakes she was making in a fight. She had way too many opening whenever she threw a punch.
That was the way of fighting she had been thought since she had the lightning armour of her family, but it was a very reckless technique when one hadn’t fully mastered the lightning armour. And Jasmine… Jasmine’s attacks were unbelievably fast and direct, albeit weaker than hers. That first punch, was something out of this world.
It definitely wasn’t the strongest she’d felt, but there was just something about it.
“Oi, you alright, kiddo?”
Jasmine offered her hand to Kana who was still recovering from the fight. She looked like she’d barely broke a sweat and that last bit at the end.
“Why?”
Kana was confused by Jasmine’s uncertainty.
“Why didn’t you avoid the final attack?”
“Oh, that? Seiko said to hold back, and I thought dodging that attack would be disobeying his order, so I took it. You’re pretty strong for a kid.”
“You say that like you’re older than me.”
“But I am. I’m 19, almost 20.”
“Eh? You’re an adult? What the hell? You look just as young as me!”
<A/N: Please give me your power stones, golden tickets, comments and reviews to motivate me more!>
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