It took every ounce of courage for Roy not to raise his hands to surrender.
Every hair on his body stood as his arms twitched. Unable to resist the urge any longer, he was about to give in to the pressure and—
"Don't even think about it... if you know what's good for you." Ciara interrupted his actions.
"Eeeekkk!!!" Roy shrieked.
From her piercing gaze, the boy knew she was serious. Remembering the awful state the Lower Class Elite had been after attempting to surrender, Roy lost the will the raise his hands.
If he so much as tried... would he also be assailed with the indescribable pain the previous guy experienced.
"Just stand there and be a good target. You can choose to struggle too. It makes no difference..." Ciara smiled at her foe.
Could he even be called that at this point? All she saw when she looked at the trembling figure of Roy... was complete fodder!
The girl, already completing her transformation, now stood on her spot.
No, she wasn't standing... her feet were no longer on the ground. Ciara was now levitating, a couple of inches from the ground, but her effortless display at it showed that if she wanted to... the girl could probably go even higher.
This was the effect of the Magerobe she had on. It had the automatic effect of granting flight to the wearer, and all her other ornaments weren't for show.
All her senses had been enhanced and the girl's defenses were so high that nothing under her current Magic Level would leave as much as a dent on her.
If this wasn't the very definition of overpowered, what was?!
"If you won't come to me, then I guess I'll just finish things off..." She softly commented, and her fingers slightly moved.
Instantly, with even less effort than last time, wind began concentrating on a single location.
Unlike before where two whirlwinds appeared, this was just one tornado... yet...
It was so big and wide that it nearly ascended forty meters into the air. The width was also nothing to scoff at.
From where everyone sat, they felt the pressure.
It was so shattering, so disturbing, that even those who weren't fighting her were clenching their teeth in fright.
Ciara Epilson had so easily created an Advanced Spell—albeit in the Lower Tier.
>FWOOOOSHHH!!!!<
The whirlwind roared, growing even larger by the second as it drew closer to the frightened boy.
In front of such an unbelievable spell, the Trump Card he had seemed like child's play.
The most Roy Lesryio could do was create an Intermediate Spell ok the Highest Tier, but that practically drained all his Mana and took too long to cast.
He had been thinking of resorting to a weaker version of the Spell to save time, but even if he went all out, how could he compete with his opponent's power.
The obvious choice was to retreat!
But...
"Don't you dare back away Roy!'
"Stand till the very end!"
"Don't give up!"
...The voices of his comrades reached him.
Usually, if a person heard this, they would be invigorated and more prepared to fight, but Roy only clenched his teeth.
'Those idiots!'
They weren't the ones on the stage so it was easy to wag their tongues.
In face of such insurmountable pressure, how could he—in good conscience—still hang on?
The only reason he hadn't thrown in the towel was because of the fear of what Ciara would do to him. Her eyes were so focused on him that the boy felt like he would pass out just from fright.
Unfortunately, his mental resistance wasn't that fickle.
If he chose to forfeit, Ciara would inflict the same pain upon him as she did the other contestant. As if that wasn't bad enough, the tornado Spell he wanted to avoid would also assail him.
That would be double jeopardy!
Could he really take that risk? In that case, the only option left for the boy was to brace himself and conduct himself like a man! He would lose, but as the top of his Class, he had to stand tall!
The only option was to remain on the platform till the very end!
'In that case... I better reduce the damage as much as I can!'
Roy, having made his choice, steeled his heart and poured all the mana he had into the ground.
[Earth Fort: Full]
The highest defensive Spell in his arsenal that barricaded him with study walls—that was the best he could resort to... or was it?
"I'm not done!"
Even if it was little, and it came at the cost of the last ounce of Mana he could spare, Roy Lesryio created a wind wall that would also serve as protection.
"Haaa... Haaa..."
Now having heavily, the boy was satisfied that he had fought his best and waited for what would happen.
Even if the Spell would ultimately hit Roy, these Spells would at least protect him a little bit... or so he imagined
>SHWOOOOMMMM!!!<
The Wind Spell he used as a barrier broke, and the earth wall that covered him shattered apart in an instant, as if being torn to pieces.
At first, Roy couldn't understand... until he took a closer glance at the aftermath.
Ciara's whirlwind had swallowed the rocks whole, adding them to the rapid twister that had now grown to an unfathomable degree.
It was... beyond belief!
"I-is this... even a Second Year...??!" The boy asked himself.
From what he saw, Ciara had already reached the level of a fully-fledged Mage!
Why, then, was she in this school? Why was she fighting him? Why did she inflict him with such fear and powerlessness?
With no answer, Roy waited to get blown away, torn to shreds, crushed, or whatever was his fate at the hands of Ciara's Spell.
"Winner, Ciara Epilson!" A voice sharply interrupted the march, and Ciara's whirlwind was canceled at the same time.
Surprise filled the air as eyes darted to the center of the stage to see Klaus Tallman already there.
He had stopped the Spell and had also declared Ciara the victor, all in the span of seconds!
If not... well, the results could only be left to one's imagination.
