The battlefield was silent.
Shattered streets. Smoking ruins. The faint smell of dust and magic lingering in the air.
Yuki floated lazily, eyes half-lidded, but her robe… shredded. Holes peppered across it, tiny burns where Lira's mountain slap had grazed, though the stone had been destroyed.
She yawned.
"…Not bad," she murmured.
Lira staggered back, fists trembling.
Her arms… they burned. Not pain—power.
Something deep inside screamed.
Kael's eyes widened.
"…That's not possible," he whispered.
Prince Eldarin struggled to stand behind them, sword trembling in his grip.
"…She's… glowing?"
Lira gritted her teeth.
Purple light began to seep from her fists.
Not a glow. Not a spark.
A flood.
Energy poured out in waves. It pulsed. It breathed.
"W-what is that…?" Eldarin stammered.
Kael didn't answer. He only stared.
Her fists… had awakened magic.
Desperation? Survival?
Or… just herself realizing limits no one thought she had.
She charged.
Purple streaks trailed behind her.
Faster than eyes could follow.
Faster than the wind.
Faster than thought.
Yuki finally opened her eyes fully.
"…Huh… finally moving…" she said, smirk fading.
Lira's fist collided with Yuki's chest.
BOOOOOOOM.
The force tore through the battlefield.
Buildings trembled. Streets cracked. Dust rose in violent spirals.
Yuki… held the blow. Somehow. She didn't move an inch.
But her robe—shredded to tatters.
Holes everywhere.
Burns marking her skin beneath.
Her hair swayed, singed at the tips.
And yet… she stood.
Kael gaped.
"…She hit her…"
"…Ten billion times stronger than normal," Eldarin whispered, voice shaking.
Yuki looked at her hands.
The remnants of her robes flapping.
"…Impossible," she muttered.
"…This speed… this force…"
She glanced down at the purple fist still glowing inches from her chest.
"…Who… are you?"
Lira blinked, pulling her fists back casually.
"…Me? Lira," she said.
Purple energy still danced faintly along her skin.
"…Good."
The dwarves and surviving soldiers looked on, frozen in disbelief.
Even the wind seemed to hesitate, waiting to see what would happen next.
Yuki's bored expression finally broke.
Her eyes narrowed.
"…Hmph… interesting," she said, brushing dust off her shredded robe.
"…Finally… someone makes me… pay attention."
And so, in the middle of a shattered dwarven kingdom, Lira discovered her true strength: a magic awakening that turned desperation into a weapon of unimaginable power, fast enough to hit a Demon General before she even knew what struck her.
Purple light pulsed faintly from Lira's fists.
Yuki's gaze sharpened.
The fight… was only beginning.
To Be Continued…