"Winner, Sila Dune." The instructor announced the end of the battle.
I groaned and stood up with a bitter expression.
"For a second there, I thought I had you."
Sila looked at me with a strange expression.
"You were quite close, honest."
"No need to console me."
"I'm serious. If you were a Pawn already, you could have won." Sila's expression was solemn. "Good fight. I learned a lot."
"Likewise. Good luck with the rest. I hope you win."
"Thank you." Sila smiled slightly and we returned to our seats.
Back in my seat, Seela patted my shoulder consolingly.
"Well done. A bit more of luck and you could have won."
"Yeah, it was close." Lina echoed.
I smiled wryly.
"You overestimate me, sisters."
Although the battle seemed close for a moment, and Sila was caught by surprise by my Direct Interference, the truth was that the battle was more one-sided than it seemed.
Sila barely used a couple of spells, and most of her arsenal went unused. In other words, she only used a small portion of her strength during our fight.
And that was enough to defeat me.
"As expected of the direct disciple of one of the seven kings. Strong." I sighed.
Seela nodded, her expression solemn.
"Yeah. She should be the strongest of this batch. I can feel that she is not far away from becoming a Knight, and at such a young age. A little monster."
"Is she really that impressive?" Lina asked curiously.
"She is. Compared to her, I was a bit weaker when I was her age." Seela recognized.
Lina was stunned.
She knew better than anyone how monstrous our big sister is. If Sila is stronger at the same age, then how heaven-defying is her talent?
I looked in Sila's direction with a pensive expression.
Coincidentally, she was looking at me, and our gazes crossed.
She nodded slightly and looked away.
After that, the battles continued normally.
I observed each one of the battles carefully, getting an idea of the abilities of my classmates.
But besides a couple of outstanding students, nobody caught my attention.
In the end, the last two students were the ones everybody expected.
Sila Dune, disciple of the Undying Calamity.
And Liu Hao, disciple of the Heavenly Demon.
Both of them had advanced to the level of Pawn, both of them were disciples of a king, and both of them were noticeably superior to the other students in this year.
Sila Dune's profession was [Witch], and Liu Hao was [Martial Artist]. In the paper, Liu Hao had the advantage.
After all, in a limited space like this, martial artists had a significant advantage over most spellcasters.
But honestly, I did not think Sila would lose.
Although Liu Hao was strong, according to my observation, he was still in the category of normal geniuses.
Sila, on the other hand, was a complete monster.
If she went all out from the start, Liu Hao wouldn't last longer than a couple of seconds.
While I was lost in my thoughts, the battle between the two of them started.
The first to move was Liu Hao.
He kicked the ground, his figure blurring as he accelerated toward Sila.
He was not holding any weapons, but he did not need to. For him, his body was the best weapon.
Leaning his body down, he unleashed a probing jab towards Sila.
But his attack did not reach her. Just like when she was fighting me, Sila released a spell that reversed the flow of mana on certain parts of her surroundings, creating an immobilizing effect over Liu Hao.
But unlike me, Liu Hao was also a pawn, and his reserves and levels of mana were much greater.
Without flinching, he unleashed a pulse of mana, breaking away from the spell almost instantly.
He then stomped on the ground and raised his right leg for a kick.
The attack was incredibly fast. I barely managed to perceive it.
But Sila reacted calmly. Several spells were formed in quick succession, each one with the same effect.
Immobilization.
Her aim was clear, to stack spells once again until completely sealing Liu Hao's movements.
Liu Hao's expression changed. He realized immediately Sila's intentions and released another burst of mana, but this time, the effect was not that good.
By this point, Sila had already stacked several spells on him, making breaking out much harder.
Out of options, he could only continue releasing his mana recklessly until finally breaking free. Then, he jumped back to gain distance.
"Bad idea." My big sister sighed beside me. "Giving a mage distance is foolish."
I nodded in agreement, but I could understand Liu Hao's predicament.
He probably knew that retreating was not a good move, but if he had not retreated, then the constantly stacking spells would have sealed his movements soon.
In the end, he chose the best of two bad options.
As expected, as soon as Sila saw Liu Hao retreat she started casting a new spell.
This time, the mana coming from her was much stronger than ever before.
It was obvious she was casting a powerful spell.
Liu Hao also realized that and decided to attack.
He rushed toward Sila at great speed, but this time, his body seemed to clone as he attacked from two different directions at the same time.
"Some kind of illusion?" My sister exclaimed in admiration.
The two Liu Hao reached Sila in an instant, both of them attacking with a straight fist.
For an instant, it seemed that he would win.
But just like against me, a barrier appeared around her.
Liu Hao did not panic. His fist broke through the barrier easily, only to be blocked for a second.
Then, a third, and fourth, and a fifth.
In total, he broke seven barriers.
'How many did she create?' I asked myself in disbelief.
After seven barriers, his fist lost power.
He pulled back and raised his left leg, kicking toward Sila's chest, but more barriers appeared. Moreover, Sila was continuously creating barriers despite casting a powerful spell at that moment.
Realizing that this would not work, Liu Hao pulled back. He stood in front of Sila and gathered mana on his fist, preparing for a powerful attack.
But before the attack was ready, Sila had already finished her spell.
"Seal." She looked at Liu Hao and muttered.
And the spell was unleashed.
Liu Hao's face changed. He hurriedly tried to move away, but the spell manifested instantly.
All around him, barriers similar to the ones around Sila appeared, trapping him.
These ones, though, appeared much stronger.
Without hesitating, Liu Hao attacked them.
Unfortunately–
*Boom!*
The attack rebounded with much more strength.
Just that attack brought Liu Hao's barrier to the edge of turning red.
Liu Hao was stunned.
He then looked at Sila and smiled bitterly.
"I see. A prison that can rebound any attack against it."
Sila nodded.
"[Rebounding Seal]. One of the few third-circle spells I can use. Unless you can unleash an attack much stronger than what it can endure, it won't break and instead return the attack to you stronger."
"Impressive." He sighed and looked at the professor. "It's my defeat, instructor. I surrender."
Just like that, the first day's activity came to an end.
The winner was, as expected, Sila Dune.