In the spectator stands.
Over three-quarters of everyone's vision was occupied by the massive fireball. The heat radiating from the surging sea of fire gave them the visual sensation of staring directly at the sun. In just one second, the crowd was drenched in sweat, their bodies burning hot, their faces flushed and necks straining.
The situation was worst for the young girls. The beautiful makeup they had painstakingly applied before leaving was completely ruined under the dual assault of high temperatures and sweat, reverting them to their bare faces. Their clothes were soaked through, leaving the outlines of their undergarments exposed, making them look exceptionally disheveled.
However, this scenery—which might usually be considered alluring—went entirely unappreciated. Everyone was struggling with all their might against the invading heat; they simply had no mental energy to admire the view.
"Incredible..."
"What terrifying power!"
"Is this the trump card of the Royal Capital Magic Academy? He truly lives up to his reputation!"
"Earth, Fire, storm... that Serena can actually use three attributes of Dragon Slayer Magic simultaneously?!"
"This is just cheating!"
"Can Descartes still win?"
The stands were filled with clamor. With a single move of Hybrid Dragon Slayer Magic, Serena had instantly overturned everyone's evaluation of him—changing from a "clown who doesn't know the heights of the heavens" to a "powerhouse whose strength fully matches his arrogance."
The firelight turned Layla's face crimson, but the girl seemed completely oblivious to the heat before her. She just stared blankly at the far end of the duel arena, her heart tangled in a mess of unreadable emotions.
"Senior Descartes... he'll be okay, right?"
"Layla, you seem particularly concerned about that guy, don't you?" The perceptive "big sister" Ur finally noticed that something was off with her junior.
"Ah... no... not at all." Layla's heart skipped a beat, and she hurriedly tried to cover it up. "I just think... it's easy to get hurt if they hit too hard, and that wouldn't be good..."
Silver suddenly cut into the girls' conversation, saying earnestly, "This is a duel between men, so of course they have to go all out! Right, Bluenote?"
Bluenote's eyes remained fixed on the field as he muttered under his breath, "That guy... can he fly?"
"Senior Ur, Senior Silver, who do you think will win this duel?" Layla knew Bluenote didn't like chatting and had a strange way of speaking, so asking him would be pointless. She only questioned the other two.
"Hard to say!" Ur rested her chin in her hand, watching the field with interest. "The Dragon Slayer Magic Serena has mastered goes far beyond just three types, and he's only just starting to get serious!"
Layla's heart sank.
"However, that Descartes hasn't shown his true strength yet either. It's probably too early to tell who will emerge the victor!"
Layla's inner peace was restored. Just then, Descartes, who had been forced back to the very edge of the arena by the sea of fire, made an unexpected move.
Slap—
He slammed his left fist into his right palm!
Ur froze at the sight. As an Ice-Make Wizard, she was all too familiar with this stance. "That movement... could his magic be..."
With a sea of fire in front and the boundary behind, his opponent's ultimate move was out. One more step back meant defeat.
Descartes steeled his resolve. "Since you've shown your true power, it's only right that I respond with my full strength. Take this!"
"Space-Make: Ice World!"
In the blink of an eye!
The entire world was suddenly enveloped in a silvery-white light. When everyone's eyes adjusted, the sea of fire in the arena had been frozen into a massive lump of ice—like a wild beast whose fateful throat had been gripped by its natural enemy, silencing its roar.
Now, only a sky full of ice and snow and a bone-chilling frost remained! The ambient temperature plummeted. Cold air attacked from all directions, seeping into everyone's bodies through their open pores.
"A-choo—!!" "A-choo—!!" "A-choo—!!"
"A—damn, it won't come out! I'm definitely catching a cold tonight..." Those with weaker constitutions were sneezing repeatedly, feeling dizzy, parched, and physically drained by the sudden shift from extreme heat to extreme cold. Once they realized what had happened, they cursed Descartes several times in their heads.
Serena stared at the frozen flames, momentarily stunned. "Ice Magic? No, Ice-Maker Magic! So you're the same type of wizard as Ur!"
A slight smile played on Descartes' lips. "You're wrong. My magic isn't Ice-Make; it's Space-Make!"
Space-Make? Never heard of it! Can space even be used for molding?
Not only was Serena stunned where he stood, but even Ur, outside the field, knit her brows as if listening to a foreign tongue. As an Ice-Make Wizard, she had an exhaustive understanding of molding magic. Normal molding magic involves a wizard using a specific substance to create a corresponding form. For example, Ice-Make is using ice to create various forms—animals, weapons, plants—which the wizard then uses to fight.
But that was only the most basic application. One level above that was creating substances with special properties—such as ice with the property of disappearing, water that functions like blood, or memories woven from various tangible or intangible thoughts. Molding wizards who could touch this realm were few and far between, but once reached, their strength would leap to an almost absurd degree.
Even Ur herself had only just barely reached this realm. During her advanced studies at the Royal Capital Magic Academy, she had pored over the school's collection of molding-related grimoires, discovering that the field was much broader than she initially expected. Not just substances like water, fire, ice, earth, wood, and iron—even an abstract concept like "Memory" could be used for molding!
But even so, she had never heard the term "Space-Make."
"Space-Make... if we follow the logic of molding magic, that would mean 'using a specific area of space to mold' or 'creating a space with certain characteristics.' But how do you mold space? What would it look like? And how do you understand the characteristics of such a space?"
Ur suddenly felt like her intellect was being pushed to its limit. She began to regret not paying more attention in school, having spent all her time practicing stripping to resist the cold and training her magic.
Unlike Ur, who was pondering the magical uniqueness of "Space-Make," Serena's thoughts were much simpler. Although he was the strongest among the five exchange students, he was a total academic failure who had only skimmed through his cultural knowledge, keeping just enough to get by. Regardless of the enemy, Serena never cared what magic they used; his style was always to crush everything with sheer force.
"What 'Space-Make'?! Just flashy tricks! Watch me tear your space to shreds!"