The Fontaine Duel Arena, renowned for its colossal clockwork dancers, now hosted the entire audience from the Opera House. Additional spectators, alerted to the unfolding events, streamed in, cramming the surrounding stands with Fontaine's citizens.
"What's happening? Is someone trying to prove themselves through a duel again?"
"I heard they're putting Lady Furina on trial this time. Could it be... is the Champion Duelist going to fight a God?!"
"No, not a God directly—Fidelle! She's representing Lady Furina, the Hydro Archon!"
"Fidelle? But wasn't she..."
"You're way behind on the news! Fidelle's back!"
-
As Clorinde prepared to enter the Duel Arena, Lumine stopped her, whispering a few words in her ear. Clorinde paused, then nodded slowly.
In the arena, the air hung heavy, as if solidified into a mass of lead.
Fidelle's face was as pale as parchment, almost translucent. The pure yet unstable Hydro Element energy around her flickered like a candle in the wind, now bright, now dim.
Only her eyes remained unwavering, locked fiercely on her opponent: Clorinde, Fontaine's strongest Champion Duelist.
Clorinde tightened her grip on her sword, her gaze complex.
She could clearly sense Fidelle's condition—it was far more than mere exhaustion, a deeper fragility that suggested... as if the very essence of her soul had been drained after a violent combustion.
"Fidelle..." Clorinde's voice was low, "Your current state..."
"Spare me the words, Clorinde!"
Fidelle interrupted her, her voice ringing with steel. "We aren't strangers. Today, we fight for our own purposes—you to uphold Fontaine's dignity, I to honor Lady Furina's glory. In this duel, I will hold nothing back! Come!"
With a deep sigh, Clorinde's eyes sharpened instantly.
Fidelle struck first, her figure blurring into a streak of pale blue tinged with purple, moving with astonishing speed.
Her twin blades sliced through the air, aiming straight for Clorinde's midsection!
The strike was precise and swift, infused with the razor-sharp power of the Electro Element and the fluid, relentless flow of Hydro Element energy.
A suppressed gasp rippled through the audience.
Furina's heart leaped into her throat.
Clorinde's gaze sharpened. She dared not underestimate her opponent, shifting her stance and parrying the strike with pinpoint accuracy!
Clang—!
The clash of metal reverberated like thunder, sparks erupting in a dazzling spray.
Yet the anticipated clash of evenly matched forces never materialized. Clorinde felt an overwhelming surge of power surge through her blade—a force that... quickly faltered.
Like a surging tidal wave crashing against a reef, the attack seemed ferocious at first, but its core crumbled like a sandcastle upon impact, dissipating instantly.
Fidelle's face drained of color.
A searing pain, originating from the depths of her soul, made her sword arm tremble violently, causing the force behind her strike to dissipate by more than half.
How could Clorinde, with her decades of combat experience, miss such a fatal opening?
In an instant, she flicked her wrist, guiding her blade along the spine of Fidelle's sword like a serpent. Deflecting the remaining force, she unleashed a lightning-fast counter-thrust, targeting the unguarded opening under Fidelle's ribs—exposed by her unstable stance.
"Watch out!" Furina shrieked, her voice cracking.
Fidelle's pupils constricted. Gritting her teeth, she forcibly summoned the last dregs of her power, attempting to twist aside. Her movements remained lightning-fast, but a barely perceptible delay and distortion marred their fluid trajectory, as if her body could no longer keep pace with her will!
In that critical moment, Fidelle swiftly switched her weapon to a massive axe, blocking Clorinde's sword's inevitable path toward her.
Clang—!
The moment the blades collided, Clorinde's sword smoothly arced to the right.
The sword's edge narrowly grazed Fidelle's ribs, slicing open a gash in her tough, form-fitting armor. A thin trickle of blood seeped out, staining the fabric crimson.
Fidelle staggered back, her ragged breaths escaping her control.
She could feel the backlash from forcibly channeling her power—a deepening, dizzying haze.
I misjudged the dosage... I accidentally burned a bit too much of my soul...
But this should be enough for those lurking vultures to analyze and find their logic.
"Fidelle! Stop! You can't keep going like this!" Furina's voice trembled with tears, recognizing Fidelle's imminent collapse.
But Fidelle ignored her. She drew a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the churning blood and soul-searing pain. Her gaze sharpened instead, burning with renewed resolve.
"Again!" she growled, launching another fierce assault, her axe now even more brutal, imbued with a reckless, desperate fury.
Electro Element condensed on the axe's edge, unleashing a massive, lightning-infused strike toward Clorinde!
This was Fidelle's all-out assault, though she could barely muster thirty percent of her true power in her current state. Yet the sheer force of the attack remained terrifying.
Clorinde's gaze sharpened. Instead of dodging, she channeled her own surging Electro energy into her sword and thrust forward, meeting Fidelle's strike head-on!
BOOM!
Clorinde's breathing quickened, her sword-wielding hand trembling slightly. Fidelle, on the other hand, staggered, as if her very body was faltering.
This was no fair fight. With each attack, Fidelle's form grew increasingly spectral, as if she were burning the last dregs of her life's candle!
"Enough, Fidelle!" Clorinde roared, unable to restrain herself. "Lady Furina has seen your resolve! Fontaine has seen it too! Stop now!"
"Not enough!" Fidelle gasped, her eyes burning with a stubborn intensity that tugged at the heart. "Unless... unless I fall completely! Otherwise, no one... NO ONE... will treat Lady Furina like this...!"
She gathered her strength once more, the Battle-Axe humming as she prepared for a final strike.
But the moment she poured all her will and remaining power into the Battle-Axe—
Due to the excessive burning of her soul, the combined effects of Fidelle's rapidly weakening soul power and violently fluctuating emotions caused another sudden surge of energy ripples through her already weakened body!
"Ugh—!"
As if struck by a heavy blow, darkness flashed before Fidelle's eyes. A sudden, overwhelming dizziness and a soul-tearing pain shook her violently!
The gathered power instantly spiraled out of control, dissipating into nothingness. Her right hand, still gripping the Battle-Axe, fell limply to her side as she collapsed to one knee.
Clorinde's pupils constricted. She had never anticipated such an internal collapse and instinctively withdrew her sword, retreating a step.
Pfft—!
Clorinde suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, speckled with faint azure light. The crimson liquid bloomed across the polished floor, a chilling spectacle.
The entire arena fell deathly silent, so still you could hear a pin drop.
Furina clamped a hand over her mouth, tears streaming down her face as her body trembled violently, nearly collapsing to the ground.
Clorinde froze in place, her sword still held in a reflexive defensive stance. Her face was a mask of shock, bewilderment, and profound helplessness.
She had won, but this victory felt heavier and more bitter than any defeat.
Just then, a violent tremor shook the land of Fontaine.
As if receiving a signal, Furina leaped to her feet and shouted toward the center of the Duel Arena:
"Enough, Fidelle! Don't forget what you promised me!"
Fidelle looked up at Furina.
When she saw the genuine, unfeigned tears glistening in Furina's eyes, her heart lurched.
"I'm sorry, Lady Furina... I'm useless..."
Clorinde slowly lowered her sword tip, gazing first at Fidelle kneeling on one knee, then at Furina. Finally, her complex gaze settled on Neuvillette at his judge seat.
Neuvillette, however, was looking into the distance. He sensed that the earlier thunderous roar hadn't originated from underground...