Harem Online: My Party Is Full of Beautiful Celebrities-Chapter 63: Against NukEncore

Martin had wanted to face NukEncore’s magic for a long time. At their level, probably only a handful of players could wield fire magic this early. Most players would have had to level up to obtain elemental skills, while she had received hers from the tutorial NPC because of her unique talent.

But raw talent alone had never been enough for NukEncore. Standing there before Martin, with Chaosgraphy and Kill Clause watching from the side, she felt that lack more sharply than ever. Whatever Martin and the others had, she wanted to claim a piece of it here for herself.

If she started thinking about their team dynamic now, she would lose her focus before the spar had even truly begun.

She stood across from Martin and held his gaze.

This time, Kill Clause stepped forward to start the spar with her usual cool professionalism.

"Are you ready, Martin?" she asked.

Martin nodded.

"Are you ready, NukEncore?" she asked.

NukEncore nodded.

A few seconds later, Kill Clause raised her voice and shouted, "Begin the spar!"

Instantly, flames coalesced in front of NukEncore’s hands and formed two fireballs.

"Go!" she shouted, and her magic obeyed.

The two fireballs shot straight at Martin. He raised his shield and braced himself. Judging by the timing, she had launched one fireball slightly ahead of the other to keep him from perfect blocking both at once.

It was a smart move.

[Perfect Block!]

[-19 Durability!]

[-14 HP!]

Martin perfectly blocked the first fireball, but the recoil opened just enough of a window for the second to clip the edge of his shield, stripping durability and shaving off a little HP.

That was good. Your training is paying off, Encore. Next time, I’m using Fortify first.

He lowered his center of gravity behind the shield and drove forward with Bulwark Rush. From the sidelines, Martin had looked strong. From straight ahead, he looked terrifying.

His shield filled her vision in an instant, and the weight behind it made him seem bigger than he really was. Even through the narrow gap above the shield, his eyes stayed locked on her without the slightest hesitation.

Mhm. That’s the Martin I know. He never hesitates when it comes to Alexandra or Cassandra, so of course he won’t hesitate when it comes to me. That part... I like about you, Martin. I’ll show you that I’m not the same anymore, because I don’t want to hold any of us back!

Flames howled around NukEncore’s hands, louder now, as if echoing her passion. She aimed at the narrow opening above Martin’s shield, trying not only to hurt him, but to blind him as well. Her fireballs shot toward him and exploded exactly where she wanted.

To perfect block one of them, Martin had to lift his shield even higher, blinding himself further.

So that was the real problem.

It was not just the fireball itself. It was the space around it, the angle it forced on his shield, and the split second of vision it stole from him. Arrows traveled in lines. This kind of magic claimed the ground around him and made every step forward feel worse.

His jaw set behind the shield.

NukEncore had no intention of wasting that opening.

Then she did something none of them expected. She rushed forward, dropped low, and slid through the grass in a spray of torn green blades and dirt, aiming between Martin’s legs. Her body twisted with the motion as she lashed out at his calf, putting all her weight into the kick to topple him backward. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

But the instant her foot connected, her eyes widened.

It felt like she had kicked a rooted trunk.

Martin did not budge.

The shock ran all the way up her leg, and for one humiliating moment she was left at his feet in a position that had failed completely. Their Strength stats were simply too far apart.

At the side, Chaosgraphy tilted her head, her eyes narrowing with amused interest, and commented, "It’s a bold and good move. She forced him to raise his shield even higher, completely blinding him and exposing his legs."

"But the difference in their Strength stats ruined that plan. It would’ve worked on me or you. Is Elisebeth that reckless?" Kill Clause asked.

"I don’t know her that well. We were not friends until Martin brought us together. I know who she is because we both make headlines, but I don’t think she’s impulsive. She must have some kind of plan," Chaosgraphy replied.

"I think so too..."

"Right?"

Across from them, Martin lowered his shield and found NukEncore at his feet, her failed slide having left her trapped in an awkward crouch against the grass. For a moment, he simply looked down at her.

His grip tightened around the spear shaft.

Then he smiled.

It was not mocking. It was worse. There was amusement in it, but pride too, and something almost bright, as if he was genuinely happy to see her force this much out of him.

NukEncore’s breath caught.

Don’t you dare look pleased right now... no, actually, look at me properly.

She tilted her chin up anyway, her lower lip caught between her teeth as she stared back at him from below. Embarrassment burned hot under her skin, but so did defiance. If he wanted to come for her, then let him.

Her heartbeat thudded in her throat. From where she knelt, Martin looked even bigger, with his shield high, his spear poised, and his shadow cutting across her in the grass. That was fine. Let him think he had her cornered.

Martin did not hesitate. An opening like that was there to be taken.

He raised his spear and drove it down at her.

But instead of biting into skin and drawing blood, the point slammed into something invisible and stopped dead.

For a split second, Martin felt only resistance. Then orange light flared between them.

[You have combined Mana Shield(Common) with your Fireball (Common), creating Fire Shield(Common)]

The glow burst outward in a rush of heat. Flames unfurled around the invisible barrier and spilled across Martin’s side and face, the force of it wrenching his right arm and spear backward.

Martin’s arm jerked with the recoil, but his footing held.

From below him, NukEncore looked almost radiant in the orange blaze.

So that was your answer.

She had baited him into exactly the kind of strike she wanted.

NukEncore rose onto her knees and thrust both hands forward through the chaos, exploiting Martin’s opening the same way Chaosgraphy had before.

"I am not just the hottest woman in the world!"

[You have used Fire Thunder Bolt (Epic)]

For one sharp instant, the air itself seemed to tighten.

CLAP!

BANG!

Thunder ripped across the training ground with such violence that the calm afternoon shattered around it. A white-hot burst swallowed Martin, and flames roared after the blast, chewing into flesh, armor, and air alike. Heat rolled outward in a brutal wave, carrying the smell of scorched grass and burned earth with it.

The blast hit hard enough to make the ground feel unsteady beneath everyone watching.

Then the fire began to fall away.

Martin was gone.

For a beat, no one spoke. Heat shimmered over the scorched grass, and smoke curled upward through the stunned silence.

The smithy doors flew open, and Robert came out with Scunko.

"What in the world was that?!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.

But all he saw was NukEncore on her knees and the other two women staring at her wide-eyed.

Martin was nowhere to be seen.

[You have killed Lv. 1 Emperoar.]

Chaosgraphy was the first to lean her weight onto one leg, a sharp sneer pulling at her mouth. "This girl. She knew she’d never land that on Martin cleanly, so she built a reckless little trap around it instead and actually pulled it off. As for the hottest woman in the world? Debatable, but I’ll let her enjoy her victory."

Kill Clause gave one small nod. From her, that was as good as open admiration.

NukEncore blinked, her irises glowing gold with excitement. In that moment, she looked less like she was performing and more like she had forgotten to hide herself.

For a second, she just stared at the spot where Martin had been, unable to quite believe it.

Then her whole face lit up.

"I... I did it! I actually defeated Martin!"

The words burst out before she could stop them. Her shoulders trembled, and breathless laughter spilled from her lips as the rush hit all at once, bright and dizzying and almost too big to hold.

She had done it to Martin, not a practice dummy or some faceless enemy. She had forced that result out of him with her own magic, her own plan, and her own nerve, and the triumph hit so hard it almost made her chest ache. It felt like seeing the first sales numbers for her debut album and tour tickets all over again, except this time the triumph was sharper, more personal, and entirely her own.