"Danger!"
Even without the urgent cry at his ear, the instant that pale white light flickered into Ur's vision, a wave of dread swept through his body so fiercely that every hair on end.
Basic Water Magic, Water Shield!
A blue magic circle lit up on his palm as Ur instinctively summoned his most familiar spell.
Right now, only the most basic spells can be cast instantly at his level.
But thanks to his steadily growing power, the Water Shield he conjured was no longer what it used to be. A dome nearly two meters across flared into existence, forming a barrier that wrapped around him and Jeris.
Unfortunately, the shield still crumbled the moment it met that pale light.
In the blink of an eye, a sharp sound tore the air, and his Water Shield shattered like glass.
Thankfully, Ur's reflexes saved him. At the last second, he hurled Jeris aside, threw himself into a roll, and barely avoided being incinerated.
Zzzt…
The sound was like fire scorching cloth.
Glancing down, Ur finally saw what that white light truly was.
It was fire. White fire.
But unlike any flame he knew, it gave off no searing heat. Instead, wherever it burned, frost bloomed, coating the surface with jagged crystals of ice.
"What kind of fire is this…?"
His heart pounded. It was another magic he didn't recall from the original story. It resembled the "yin fire" from Taoist yin-yang theory in his past life, but not quite.
With a sharp rip, Ur tore away the lower half of his shirt. He had no interest in testing the full effects of this flame firsthand. Unlike Dragon Slayers or God Slayers, he wasn't the type who could devour magic of the same element to recover from its effects.
He tossed aside the frozen fabric and lifted his gaze. Two figures stood before him.
One he recognized immediately: the white-haired girl he'd bumped into outside Fairy Tail's guild hall. The warning voice had been hers.
The other was another woman, too, but she was the one who had just tried to kill him.
Compared to the white-haired girl's modest dress, this opponent was bold. She wore armor of violet leather, though to call it "armor" was generous—it barely covered the essentials, leaving the rest to serve as ornamentation. Her long purple hair and matching eye shadow lent her an air of unrestrained allure.
One glance, and the first word that sprang to Ur's mind was: seductive.
Standing together, the pair seemed like the embodiment of contrast—an angel and a devil.
"Are you hurt?" The white-haired girl hurried to his side, eyes full of concern.
She, too, recognized him. Though she couldn't understand why such a weak mage had ended up here, now wasn't the time for questions.
"I'm fine," Ur shook his head, brushing it off. Still, he couldn't help but sigh inwardly at her instincts.
When the enemy's attack came, she should have known she couldn't make it in time to block it. The better choice would've been to counterattack immediately, not waste those precious seconds trying to defend someone who already had his guard up.
Still, her intentions had been good. Ur kept those thoughts to himself. Besides, her reaction didn't surprise him.
In this world, the line between light and dark mages was stark and absolute. Their way of thinking was nowhere near as flexible as people in his former life. She had likely been taught to fight an enemy in a fair and just manner.
"Sheris, you've gone too far!" the white-haired girl snapped, planting herself protectively in front of Ur.
"Too far?" The purple-haired woman, Sheris, arched a brow, her voice dripping with mockery.
"Jelka, after all these years, you're still just as naïve. You know exactly what that brat behind you is. If Fairy Tail dares meddle in our guild's affairs, they should be ready for payback. And that boy? He's just a little interest I plan to collect."
Her words had barely fallen when she extended one finger toward Ur. Seven or eight white-flame arrows shimmered into being and streaked through the air straight at him.
But this time, they wouldn't reach him.
Jelka raised her tall staff and drove it into the ground. Golden magic surged, flaring into a large glowing shield that caught every one of the blazing arrows and shattered them harmlessly into sparks of white.
Clearly, this wasn't their first clash.
The moment Sheris' flames dissolved, Jelka's staff swept forward, launching a counterattack of her own.