Bout 1 between the Rising Heroes and Silver Antlers had ended in a tie.
Both teams had taken one point each.
Now, everything depended on the remaining two bouts.
The pressure had increased.
The crowd could feel it.
This match would decide everything.
Ifa's voice echoed across the arena once again, full of excitement:
"And now, for the second bout! Representing the Silver Antlers, Herta! And from the Rising Heroes, Sera!"
The crowd cheered loudly.
Shai followed in her calm, precise tone:
"This is a battle of mages. On one side, Sera, a nature mage known for her control, defense, and support abilities. On the other side, Herta, a fire mage, known for her overwhelming offensive power."
Ifa grinned and shouted,
"LET'S GOOO! Who doesn't love a mage battle? This one is going to be… MAGEstic!"
The audience laughed and cheered.
---
Both fighters stepped onto the battlefield.
They stood at a distance from each other.
Wands in hand.
Eyes locked.
Sera looked nervous, but steady.
Herta looked confident, almost relaxed.
The referee signaled the start.
Herta moved first.
"Fireball."
A blazing sphere of fire shot toward Sera.
Sera reacted instantly.
"Thicket Wall."
The ground shook as a dense wall of interlocking thorns rose in front of her.
The fireball struck it and exploded, flames spreading across the surface, but the wall held.
And before the flames even faded, the same wall lashed forward. Thorns shot out toward Herta.
Herta raised her wand again.
"Fireball."
Another burst of fire destroyed the incoming thorns mid-air.
Neither of them wasted time.
Herta pushed forward.
"Inferno Barrage."
Several spheres of concentrated fire formed around her.
Then beams of fire shot out from them toward Sera.
Fast. Continuous. Relentless.
Sera went on the defensive.
"Verdant Hand."
Two massive hands made of wood and leaves rose from the ground in front of her.
They blocked the beams.
But, it was clear.
The fire was burning through them.
The wooden hands began to blacken, crack, and weaken.
Sera kept focusing.
She regenerated them continuously.
Again and again.
But Herta did not slow down.
She kept the pressure.
Then, she changed her approach.
She brought her hands together.
The multiple fire spheres around her began to merge.
One by one. Until only one remained. A larger one. Brighter. More intense.
Sera saw it.
She knew what was coming.
She didn't hesitate.
"Verdant Guardian."
The ground trembled.
The two hands pressed downward.
And from beneath the earth, a massive wooden guardian rose up to its torso.
It stood in front of Sera. Protecting her. Waiting.
Herta released her attack.
A massive beam of fire shot out from the fused sphere.
Blinding. Overwhelming.
It struck the Guardian directly.
Smoke filled the arena instantly. The smell of burning wood spread everywhere.
The audience leaned forward. Waiting. Watching.
As the smoke slowly cleared, the Guardian was still standing. But its arm was badly burned.
Charred. Damaged.
Sera immediately began regenerating it.
Her focus didn't break.
But Herta didn't give her time.
The sphere in front of her began glowing again.
She was ready to fire once more.
Sera understood.
Healing alone wouldn't be enough.
She needed to reinforce.
"Bark-Skin Aegis."
A layer of enchanted bark formed over the Guardian.
Flexible.
Strong.
Absorbing.
Herta fired again.
The beam struck.
Smoke rose once more.
But this time there was no smell of burning.
As the smoke cleared the Guardian stood unharmed.
Sera had succeeded.
Now it was her turn.
The Guardian moved.
Its massive hands slammed downward toward Herta.
Herta dodged.
Then again.
And again.
Each impact shook the ground.
Debris flew everywhere.
Then one piece of debris struck Herta directly.
It didn't injure her much, but it broke her balance.
For a moment she couldn't move.
And the next attack was already coming.
"Pyre Shroud."
Flames wrapped around Herta's body.
A thin, flickering blue fire covered her like armor.
The Guardian's punch landed. Direct hit.
Herta was thrown back by the impact.
But she stood up again.
Minimal damage.
At the same time, Sera felt it.
The Guardian had taken damage in return.
The strain was real.
Herta's expression changed.
She stopped playing defensively.
She wanted to end this.
Now.
"Sol's Prominence."
Massive loops of fire appeared behind her, like the arcs of the sun itself.
They moved like whips.
Alive. Violent. They lashed out. Again. And again.
Striking the Guardian repeatedly.
Each hit burned deeper.
Even with the Bark-Skin Aegis, yhe Guardian began to weaken.
Cracks appeared.
Charred sections spread.
Sera tried to hold it together.
Tried to regenerate.
But the pressure was too much.
Before she could stabilize, Herta changed the attack again.
The flaming whips twisted together.
Forming a drill-like shape.
Spiraling. Concentrated.
She raised her hand.
And then brought it down.
The drill shot forward.
The Guardian raised its arms to block.
The impact created another explosion of smoke.
The smell returned.
Burning wood filled the air.
Sera's eyes widened.
She kept trying to regenerate.
Kept pushing.
But then... The flames burst through the other side.
As the smoke cleared amassive hole was visible in the Guardian's torso.
Right through the center. Silence fell.
Sera stared at it. Her Guardian. Broken. She knew. Even if she tried regeneration wouldn't be enough now.
Not in time. Not against this.
She clenched her wand.
Hesitated.
Then, she made her choice.
"I give up."
Herta lowered her hand.
The flames faded.
The Guardian slowly sank back into the ground.
The arena erupted into cheers.
Ifa shouted,
"Ladies and Gentlemen... your winner of this bout is Herta!"
The crowd roared louder.
Shai followed,
"Congratulations, Herta. That was a remarkable clash between two mages. Sera fought brilliantly despite the disadvantage, and she should be proud. But Herta truly showed why she is known for her overwhelming offense… the Crimson Witch lives up to her name."
Herta walked toward Sera.
She gave a small nod.
"Good fight."
Sera smiled softly.
"Congratulations."
Sera walked back toward her tunnel.
Her head slightly lowered.
Disappointed.
Lila was not there. Lila was still recovering in the medical room, Fizzle and Doran were beside her.
Drakar stood at the entrance of the room.
Watching.
Sera entered.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Then, Drakar did.
Which was rare.
"Don't be sad."
Sera looked up.
"You did well."
He paused.
"We didn't expect a fire mage in this round."
Then he looked toward the arena.
"I'll take care of the next bout."
Now, the situation was clear.
The Rising Heroes were losing.
And everything, came down to the final fight.