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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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Like soap bubbles floating in the air, dozens of orbs of light materialized around Lyla.
The ethereal, shimmering blue spheres were mesmerizingly beautiful, tempting one to reach out and touch them.
But their power was anything but gentle.
Low-Rank spells could kill a person.
Mid-Rank spells could annihilate a group.
According to an old military adage, this barrage of Mid-Rank spells was enough to overwhelm even a small army.
But then—what about the one facing them?
KABOOM!
Each orb of light that grazed the ground created an explosion like a cannonball strike.
Thick, mature trees were ripped apart as if clawed by a giant beast.
A single hit would turn a human body into mincemeat.
But not a single one landed.
“Impossible…!”
The robed girl cried out, forgetting they were even in a battle.
But who could blame her?
Regret’s movements defied common sense.
Was it just her speed?
Partly.
Though not as fast as actual light, dodging projectiles that moved with the speed of arrows was already extraordinary.
But considering mana users, with their enhanced physical abilities, could theoretically move dozens of times faster than ordinary humans, it was still within the realm of the girl’s understanding.
However, moving fast and controlling that movement were two different things.
The forest was filled with obstacles.
The ground, uneven and constantly changing due to the ongoing battle, was treated like flat ground by Regret as she ran, never stumbling or colliding with anything.
She scaled trees with just her feet, leaped from exploding rock fragments as if they were stepping stones.
The robed girl couldn’t fathom the level of balance and reflexes required for such feats.
Regret flipped through the air.
A spark flew past Lyla’s face.
By the time Lyla realized Regret had thrown a knife from the sheath on her thigh, and blocked it with a mana shield, several more exchanges had already taken place.
‘She’s…on a different level…’
The thought of assisting Lyla, of creating a diversion, seemed futile.
Even just watching from behind, it was difficult to follow their movements.
How could she possibly intervene?
She might end up hindering Lyla instead of helping.
The robed girl was wise enough to recognize her limitations.
But because of that, she failed to notice another threat.
An explosion, a flash of light.
A shockwave from behind jolted her back to reality.
She had been attacked.
But why was she unharmed?
‘A High-Rank Magic Barrier! Her Highness must have cast it before engaging!’
A translucent wall of mana, thick as a castle wall, had protected her from the thrown Attribute Stone.
Lyla had anticipated that Chrom and Regret would target the robed girl the moment they appeared.
The sense of security emboldened the robed girl.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The continuous explosions and thick smoke didn’t faze her.
She even had the composure to mock Chrom’s foolishness.
‘Idiot. That level of power won’t even scratch it.’
Judging by the mana signature and the scale of the explosions, Chrom was using the weakest Attribute Stones, Shards.
Just as a wall wouldn’t crumble from a few arrows, Low-Rank spells couldn’t break a High-Rank Magic Barrier.
She briefly considered counterattacking, but casting spells through the barrier was beyond her current abilities.
Besides, the smoke and explosions obscured her vision, making it impossible to pinpoint Chrom’s location.
‘Where is he even getting all these stones? I thought he used them all up. Was that a bluff?’
She just wanted the noise to stop.
Then,
Something rolled through a crack in the ground, beneath the barrier.
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Many Combat students looked down on Magic students.
The average mana capacity was around 100.
One hundred Low-Rank spells sounded like a lot, but only the most basic spell, Low-Rank Magic Arrow, cost around 1 mana.
And that level of power could be easily replicated with a regular bow and arrow.
Adding shape, like a sphere, shield, or mace, to increase range or power, increased mana cost.
Adding attributes, like fire, ice, or wind, further increased the cost.
As a result, a typical mage could only cast around 20 spells in a single battle.
Magic was versatile, useful for offense, defense, and support.
But that versatility meant more opportunities to expend mana.
And a mage without mana was useless.
Unlike Combat students, who simply enhanced their physical abilities and swung their weapons, mages had to carefully select and cast appropriate spells for each situation.
In most confrontations between low-ranking Combat and Magic students, Combat usually won.
But that changed as skill and mana capacity increased.
A skilled mage, with a large mana pool, had a significantly higher win rate, especially in group battles.
Simply enhancing physical abilities meant there were no other uses for mana.
While Combat students had to physically engage and eliminate each opponent, a mage could wipe out dozens, even hundreds, with a single High-Rank spell.
What could a group of soldiers, armed with mere metal, do against a high-ranking mage who could unleash devastating attacks like cannon fire and protect themselves with barriers as strong as castle walls?
That was the kind of power Lyla Everblaze Barhardt wielded.
Her enemies were always groups, armies, entire factions.
She never considered herself the strongest.
She knew there were countless other powerful individuals in the world.
But they were her seniors, those who had come before her and already reached great heights.
They weren’t her peers, those who started on the same path.
But then, what was this?
Blades of wind tore through the air, fireballs exploded, icicles rained down.
Never before had Lyla unleashed such a fierce barrage of spells against a single opponent.
And never before had she failed to land a single hit.
Regret’s movements were too unpredictable, her counterattacks, utilizing a variety of weapons, constantly cracking Lyla’s mana shields, showcased their power.
‘How? What kind of training did she undergo to become this strong?’
Lyla knew her bloodline was special.
It was a mystical legacy, spanning over a thousand years, both a blessing and a burden.
She was born with exceptional talent, raised in privilege, and trained tirelessly.
How could a mere mercenary girl match her?
The unanswered question gnawed at her, bruising her pride.
Lyla’s sunset-colored eyes blazed like fire.
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Regret, too, was frustrated by the stalemate.
‘That princess is a monster.’
Come to think of it, Chrom had always held Lyla in high regard.
A monster, a genius, someone special, someone he wanted on their side.
It was almost an obsession, and strangely familiar.
Regret realized it was the same way Chrom had approached her.
Investing time, resources, even putting himself at a disadvantage, to gain someone’s allegiance.
Whether he was aware of it or not, Regret, having spent years with him, recognized Chrom’s collector’s instinct.
A desire to acquire rare, unique, promising individuals, to nurture them, to guide them to greater heights.
His willingness to share equipment and magic tools with his newfound friends was a part of it.
And the higher he valued someone, the more determined he became to recruit them.
And right now, Chrom valued the princess as highly as Regret herself.
A nameless mercenary girl, on par with imperial royalty.
Some might consider it an honor.
Regret didn’t.
‘I’ll crush her.’
She thought, brimming with confidence.
The only surprise was Lyla’s unexpected strength.
Regret suppressed her ragged breathing, controlled her screaming muscles.
Even with her superhuman physique, dodging the relentless, omnidirectional barrage of spells was taking its toll.
Each of Lyla’s spells was powerful enough to be a finishing move, and she was unleashing dozens of them.
And her defense was just as formidable.
Perhaps impressed by Regret’s initial feat of breaking her barrier, Lyla had erected multiple layers of defense: a Magic Barrier, constantly orbiting shields, and an invisible armor around her body.
Even if Regret broke through one or two, Lyla immediately replaced them with new spells.
‘How much mana does she have? And how can she control so many spells at once?’
Thanks to Chrom’s generosity, Regret’s base stats were nothing to scoff at, but when it came to mana, Lyla was leagues ahead.
If she hadn’t met Chrom, if she had continued her life as a mercenary, would she be able to fight like this?
The answer was obvious, and it irritated her.
Regret’s brown eyes turned icy cold.
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[T/N: Pseudo-catfight?]
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It kind of feels like Regret is upset that Chrom is valuing another woman the same as her lol.