Chapter 91 - A Group Of Mages (2)

"And what happens if I don't want to fight you?" asked Arya as he stared at Averos with a dangerous glare.

Averos was a pretty girl with hazelnut brown hair, unlike her brother. She was pretty tall for her age, and if not for the robes she was wearing, there would be no doubt that she was well built.

"Rejection is not an option," replied Averos as she charged at Arya again, this time using even more air magic to increase her speed.

Arya realized that the attack was too fast to dodge, so he decided to take it head-on. "How strong could she possibly be?" he thought.

As the punch approached Arya's torso Averos was surprised to see that he wasn't trying to dodge it, "Very well, let's see if you can handle it."

Arya used both hands to try and reduce the impact of the punch, however, he still had all the air knocked out of him. He didn't waste a second to dwell on it, as soon as the punch connected he chanted an ice spell and froze Averos's hand in his.

Then using a move he saw on a karate show, he swept her over his shoulder, slamming her back on the hard icy floor. Since the ice was only a thin layer, the impact caused it to shatter.

Averos coughed blood as the ice shattered, and she lay still for a few seconds as if she were lifeless.

"Did I kill her?" wondered Arya as he sprinted to a nearby tree and ran to the top, in order to secure the high ground in case she was still able to fight.

"Wow, I've never seen anyone do that to Averos before. Although his magic seems substandard, his fighting skills are top-notch," said Abby as she finally became interested in the fight.

"His use of ice magic is also unique. Most mages use it simply as a means of attack, but he uses it in a way that complements his fighting ability. He might've been trained to be a magic swordsman or some type of magic fighter, rather than a traditional sorcerer." analyzed Yuuki as he watched the fight intently. 

"Arya's magic isn't subpar. He's probably the most powerful mage here right now," said Marya as she watched the fight in confusion. 

"Is Arya toying with her? Why doesn't he show his true power?" wondered Marya, still believing that Arya could unleash the same power he did against the thugs at will.

"Pfft. Most powerful mage? In case you've forgotten, we were the ones who saved you from the Ryen earlier." scoffed Abby as she heard this. Of course, it felt like it was an insult to her brother Yuuki, who was one of the most powerful mages of his age in their family.

However, Yuuki took Marya's comment at face value. "Most powerful mage? Is he hiding his true power?" thought Yuuki as he began watching the fight with even more interest.

"Well, it doesn't matter now. Sister will probably start taking this fight more seriously," said Sheela with a sigh, as if it would be tiring to watch.

"Shouldn't we stop her?" asked Trent, looking a bit worried at the situation.

"It's a little too late for that," replied Sheela as Averos stood up.

What was queer about her was the fact that her eyes were glowing green, and gusts of air surrounded her.

"Mastery!" shouted Marya as she realized what the green-haired boy had been talking about. Averos was gifted with mastery over wind magic.

"I don't like this." thought Arya as a gust of wind shot him off the tree and he fell from a height of 7m. Although the fall wouldn't kill him, he would sustain serious injuries, however just before he was about to fall, a gust of wind slowed his descent.

"It seems I underestimated you. I didn't expect you to be this good at hand-to-hand combat. Let's go again, this time I will use my air magic to its fullest extent." smiled Averos as green light pulsated from her eyes.

"Enough Averos." shouted Yuuki as he walked towards the two. He then chanted "Child of water heed my call. Bring about a chill to trap my foes." and Averos became imprisoned in ice.

"Yuuki, what is the meaning of this," shouted Averos, angry that someone was disturbing her fight.

"We haven't even learned his name, and you've already decided to fight him with your full force. Must I remind you that we are still in the process of the entrance exam? Even as we speak there are mages watching our every move. And while you waste time here fighting senseless battles, others are collected points." scolded Yuuki,  once he realized that the fight had gone on long enough, and any further force would just result in unnecessary injuries.

"I-I am aware. Hey you. Once we get to Belgard we will continue our duel." shouted Averos as she looked at Arya, the green light in her eyes slowly dimming until she went back to normal.

"What do you mean by being watched? And what's this about points?" asked Marya as Calder still stared at Arya and Averos in awe.

"Wow, I guess elves really aren't as wise as they are made out to be," replied Abby, she seemed to have grown a dislike for Marya. However, Marya was indifferent to this provocation.

"The forest serves as an entrance exam into Belgard. I'm sure you know that much already," replied Trent as Marya nodded at him.

"But are you aware that even if you go to Belgard, there are different classes you can be placed in? Of course, these classes are also decided based on your element and which stage your core is in, but the most important factor is the number of points you gain in the forest." continued Trent.

"Actually, this makes a lot of sense. At first, I wasn't sure but now that I think about it, it was rather odd that a Roc would go out of its way to attack us while we were on the ground.." thought Marya as the pieces of the puzzle finally started fitting together.