Nala couldn't help but laugh softly as she overheard her daughters. It seed their taste in n aligned perfectly with hers—or maybe Asher was just too hard to ignore.
She licked her lips, her admiration barely hidden. Beside her, Leonardo noticed her growing excitent but said nothing. Confronting her would be pointless; he was nothing more than a puppet king, a placeholder in the grand sche of things.
Asher walked onto the stage, calm and unbothered by the chatter around him. His plain gray robe didn't scream power, but his face—calm, composed, and focused—was enough to make an impression.
Across from him, Abir gripped his ornate staff tightly, trying to appear confident despite the cold sweat forming on his brow.
Was Lucia exaggerating Asher's abilities to stir up the crowd? Or was this man truly as dangerous as she'd hinted?
He clung to the belief that she was building suspense to make his victory all the more dramatic and sweeter.
Lucia flew gracefully and landed on the royal platform, her smirk widening as she leaned closer to the queen.
"Enjoying yourself, Your Majesty?" she teased, her tone sarcastic rather than playful.
Nala leaned back in her seat, striving to maintain her composure. Both won were manipulative, and their mutual disdain was showing in plain sight. "Very much so. It's not every day soone like him appears."
Lucia rolled her eyes. "Try not to drool too much. He's mine."
"Oh my, don't tell you're not the type to share?" Nala taunted.
"I hate sharing what I own," Lucia shot back.
Both won locked eyes. A silent battle was unfolding in their minds.
anwhile, the puppet king shifted uncomfortably in his seat, unsure whether to speak or remain silent.
In the end, he decided to let it go; there was no winning against stubborn won like them.
Back on the platform, both combatants faced each other. The mont one made the first move, the battle would begin.
Abir glanced around, taking in the crowd's palpable support. He was the favorite to win, and the knowledge bolstered his confidence further.
Stepping forward, he spoke, his voice dripping with arrogance as he aid to plant a seed of fear.
"I pity you. You're nothing more than a stepping stone for ," he sneered. "Right now, I'm even more powerful than the principal, thanks to my items."
He slamd the base of his staff into the ground, activating his first spell.
The serpent coiled around the staff began to glow, expanding rapidly until it ca to life. Within seconds, a massive water serpent, at least forty feet long, spiraled into existence, moving protectively around its master.
The crowd erupted into cheers, dazzled by the display. The serpent's form was flawless, a perfect blend of offensive and defensive power.
Abir stood tall, his confidence bolstered by the staff's internal power source, which allowed him to maintain the spell with minimal effort.
He locked on his opponent, expecting to see fear flicker across his face, but there was nothing—no emotion, no reaction at all.
'What should I do?' Asher pondered. Not out of fear but because he needed to draw this out. He couldn't use any spells that would end this fight instantly. Then, an idea sparked in his mind.
Close-quarters combat. It had been years since he relied on physical powers, and this could be an opportunity to test himself. If he limited his magic to enhancing his body, the fight would last longer and give him a real challenge.
He reached up and unfastened his robe, letting it fall to the ground.
Beneath it, he wore a simple white tunic and black pants—nothing extravagant. Yet even this simplicity had layers of mystery.
The tunic was crafted by Index herself, embedded with protections above Diamond Rank.
Recognizing the advantage it provided, he stripped it of all enhancents except for its ability to repair itself. This would provide him more of a challenge.
Gasps rippled through the audience, their murmurs filled with confusion as they struggled to understand the logic behind his actions.
"What is he doing?" a student whispered.
"He's removing his protection," another replied, puzzled. "Is he crazy?"
"Maybe his robe was ordinary?" soone else muttered.
"Are you really fighting without protection?" Abir asked, feeling like his opponent was underestimating him too much, especially since he was fully geared up.
"Don't mind ," Asher responded. There was no hint of fear or concern, and he even looked bored, which only added salt to Abir's growing frustration.
"Arrogant fool," Abir roared as he directed the water serpent to strike.
The massive creature lunged forward, its jaws wide open.
Asher didn't move until the last second, then he jumped to the right. The serpent's attack missed by inches, crashing into the ground with a deafening thud.
Dust and debris scattered, but he remained unscathed. Experience tales at My Virtual Library Empire
Abir spun his staff. The serpent moved and struck again, but Asher continued to dodge effortlessly, weaving through its attacks like a seasoned warrior.
The crowd watched in awe, murmurs spreading like wildfire. They had expected a battle between two sorcerers, not sothing like this.
"He's dodging everything?" soone exclaid.
"He's not even using any spells," another pointed out. "How is that possible?"
Abir grumbled. With a flick of his wrist, the serpent split into thinner tendrils, each one snapping through the air like a whip. Now there were twenty of them, moving from all directions.
Asher's movents beca faster. He twisted, ducked, and flipped, avoiding each attack by the narrowest margins. His body moved like water, adapting to the nonstop assault. Still, the pressure was mounting.
Abir's confidence surged as he noticed Asher's breathing quicken.
"You think running away will save you?" he taunted. Slamming his staff into the ground, he unleashed a powerful gust of wind. The gale roared across the stage, scattering dust and forcing Asher to leap back.
But Abir wasn't done. He raised his staff, channeling a series of rapid wind slashes. The sharp, invisible blades tore through the air toward Asher.
He ducked under one, twisted away from another, and one almost grazed his hand.
On the royal platform, Lucia was getting pissed off. She wanted him to hold back, but not this much.
"Is he really a sorcerer?" Nala asked, her voice laced with confusion. "Why hasn't he used any spells at all?"
"He's playing with him," she muttered, though her tone lacked its usual confidence.
"Are you sure? He's already being cornered, and Professor Abir hasn't used his strongest spell yet. He's only relying on that staff," Nala pointed out.
She was well aware of the artifact's capabilities. It had once belonged to one of the strongest sorcerers in Alarath before the civil war, and the royal family had hidden it in their treasury.
"Just watch, I'm sure he'll surprise everyone later," Lucia declared, crossing her arms.
Even after all this, there was no doubt in her mind that he would win. Both of them had magical bodies, and she could instinctively feel that even her own body was inferior to his.
Back on stage, Abir's grin widened.
"You're not so untouchable now, are you?" He spun his staff again, summoning more tendrils and wind slashes, filling the stage with a chaotic storm of attacks.
Asher's maintained his focus. He had underestimated the power that an artifact could provide.
'What now?' he muttered to himself.
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