A large chunk of earth flew right towards Indra’s face, only to shatter in front of a golden shield.

If not for the hexagonal dome Yen created, they would have not been able to observe the fight this close up.

"Hmm..." he breathed out. There was no logical way to explain what he was seeing. He had expected the elven lord to be strong, but in the first minute, he had already proven to be stronger than all the six of the seven oracles.

That technique... his eyes narrowed as he tried to follow their movements.

’It is Zora’s technique.’ He mused.

It would have not been too surprising if it was a widely known skill, but this was a technique Zora had created on her own. She was the only one who should have been able to use it.

Did he learn it the few minutes he saw it? Learning an SSSR skill that fast was unheard of, actually, it was borderline impossible.

Was it some sort of trick then? Indra had no idea.

"Your lord is really impressive." Indra glanced at the tall silver haired elf by his side, a man that had introduced himself as Ash.

"Indeed, he is a marvel even to us." Ash spoke in a confident tone, pride swelling in his voice.

"He has already used over ten SSSR sword techniques, but never fully..." Indra muttered.

It was almost as if he was taunting Zora, stretching out the fight for his personal enjoyment.

"Is it even possible to know so many SSSR Spells at such a young age?" Indra’s curiosity was masked by the monotone nature of his voice.

"When it comes to our lord...’ a small smirk appeared on the elf’s lips. "There are no impossibilities."

Indra stared at him for a few seconds before saying, "still, he is not the only one holding back. To Zora, this is merely a warm up session."

<••>

Sparks washed through the black of knight, a loud shrill that rang out like a banshee’s wail. Both blades were unyielding, each sword lethal in its brutality, and its users several times worse.

Zora smirked, a sparkle light in her blue iris, lighting flickering around her tan skin. "Not bad, not bad!"

Eliron deflected her blade, knocking it to the side, then his sword raced for her neck, creating an arc that was blacker than the night.

But Zora reacted quickly, she rotated her body like a frisbee, twisting her legs to gain intense spinning momentum, then using that momentum, her odachi lashed out like a viper.

Clang —!

Another wave of sparks, another flash of steel, another rumble that decimated the battlefield.

More! More! Zora’s body screamed for the strain in her arms, for the blood that was rushing through her body, for the heat in her breath.

’This dance of steel, this feeling, this ecstasy!’ She wanted it to last forever, to dwell in it, to savour the taste of battle, to be completely engulfed by the madness.

Eliron’s sword nicked her cheek, while her blade sliced a shallow wound on his shoulder.

As she was leaning back, her blood drifting through the air in front of her eyes, the moon glowing in its full glory—

Zora let out a pleased moan from the depths of her, as well as a small cackle. This, this was what they had been searching for all these years—

Her movement changed, her body twisting like that of a serpentine beast.

[Dance of the thunder dragon!"]

Something peaked out her hair, two little stubs, small horns yet to fully bloom. The runes on her sword morphed, turning to streaks of blue lighting etched on the blade.

The mana around her multiplied, her senses sharpened, her strength amplifying. And then she lashed out.

Swish—VWOOSH— CLANG!

Steel collided against steel, reverberations dancing through the air. Zora was moving like a boneless serpent, her fighting style oddly similar to a dance, a dragon’s dance.

Her arms were her wings, her legs legs her talons, and her sword her tail!

A multiple slash attack rippled through the air, catching Eliron in the hand and spewing blood. But she did not stop, she rushed forward, her eyes wide and locked on her prey, her grin never diminishing.

"COME ON LORD ELIRON, THE NIGHT IS YOUNG!"

Her sword came like a whip, and Eliron blocked with a vicious strike of his own. His impassive expression cracked when he felt the force behind the blow, and Zora loved every single moment of it.

Another slash came from below, another one snaked from his side, a feint followed, and a horizontal blow that seemed to burn the air, lightning glowing so viscously that it scorched even Zora’s hands.

Eliron blocked the first one with visible effort, read her like a book on the second, completely evading it, but the last one, that one he could not stop.

He had raised his sword in time, reinforced it with mana even, but Zora’s sword... it sliced right through his blade.

"Shit..." Zora heard him curse, just as she cleaved his right arm off. Blood painted the snow red, steam oozing from the ground.

He had not lost a limb because he was unlearned. It was his sword, his black blade, as ominous as it looked, that was unable to withstand her odachi which was carved out of dragon bone.

Just that mistake, that was all was needed to end the fight, to end the match Zora had dreamed of for years.

It was unacceptable, how was she to accept such a stupid conclusion?!

’Get up!’ She screamed in her mind. ’This can’t end here, it can’t!!!’

He had not even shown her what he was truly capable of, and the match was already over??

"Zora!!" The grand marshal screamed, his eyes wide open as he stared at the morbid scene on the floor.

Eliron’s arm stood by his side, a dark look on his face as he stared at it, unmoving.

"What have you done?!" Having Eliron had been a big advantage to them, and yet because of a mistake during a duel, he had been injured in the worst way possible!

The grand marshal felt like his head was about to burst. He should have stopped this fight from the start, never allowed it to occur!

But it was too late, far too late.

Lord Eliron grabbed the hand from the floor, and then a dark smirk appeared on his face.

Clap— Clap!

At first it was a single clap, but soon, it was as though an entire army was clapping, all around them— a maddening echo that was never ceasing.

Zora stared around, her sword still furiously gleaming with lightning. "What sort of madness is this?"

Everyone was uncomfortable, their weapons drawn as they tried to figure out the source of the sound.

And then a voice cut through the echoes, silencing them.

"Good work, Saint Zora." It was Eliron’s voice, but Eliron was not talking...

"To think you actually managed to defeat my clone..." the air by the side of the clearing seemed to fizzle, and then Eliron appeared.

He was sitting down on a simple wooden chair, origins unknown, feasting on roasted corn and what seemed to be a cup of fruit juice.

But that was not all, Yennefer was sitting down on the armrest, happily nibbling on her own swab of corn.

Everyone’s eyes immediately shot towards the silver haired elf that was with the others. Indra’s eyes were especially wide as she fizzled into nothing.

She had been a fake, a mere illusion that Eliron had used to play them like fools.

’So even the bet...’ Indra immediately regretted his decision.

For an illusion to be strong enough to confound even the oracles... Indra bit the inner parts of his cheek. "This is insulting."

"So? What do you think my dear saint?" Multiple voices came at once, as a dozen Eliron’s appeared around her, still seated.

Yen vanished out of sight, gone as though she was never there.

All twelve Elven lords stood up from their chairs, pulling out their blades. "Who do you think is the real one?" He smirked. "Guess right and you can consider this match your victory."

Indra focused his mana into his eyes, trying to take apart the illusion, but each one of ’him’ was like a mountain, unshakable and opaque.

— How is this possible?

— Are those really illusions?

— How can he confound even our senses? Just who is this man?

The oracles whispered among each other, unable to solve the puzzle that was right before their eyes.

But as for Eliron’s people, their smiles could not have been wider.

While the oracles had confusion etched on their, suddenly, a thunderous laugh bellowed through the night.

"That is it!! I knew our battle could not be over that easily!" Zora looked far more rabid than she had looked a few minutes ago.

Her mana pulsed around her like a storm, lightning streaks burning the floor around her.

"Who is the real one?! Who fucking cares?!" She slashed her sword forward, creating a gust of wind that cut past the area. "All I have to do is cut down every single one of you!"

Eliron clapped. "Correct answer."

"But I’m a little disappointed Eliron dear." Zora cooed. "Using a clone technique against me? You must really think little of my abilities..."

SSSR tier or not, close techniques were never efficient. They spread the mages power among several copies, reducing the sheer destructive capability of the original.

Although they were powerful against a large group, when fighting someone as strong as themselves, no one would risk using it.

"Do you really think so little of me?" Zora smirked.

Eliron, or rather, several Eliron’s laughed. "But you are also holding out on me are you not?" He shrugged and stepped forward.

"Alright, Saint. Defeat all my clones, and I’ll show you something exciting."

’E-exciting?!’ If he did not consider all his previous tricks as exciting, then what was he keeping hidden?! What would he show her??!

Zora’s cheeks turned a nasty shade of red. Her eyes lost focus, her ears turning deaf to everything around her.

All her senses toned off, everything except for feel. Her heart pounding, the harsh wind, one so cold that it seemed to burn, the light brush of her hair as it billowed past her face.

Her odachi flashed red.

When Zora raised her gaze, a thin line of drool was dripping down her lower lip, her mind lost focus.

When Indra saw this, he immediately screamed. "Enhance the shield!"

One of the oracles created three other layers atop the Yennefer’s shield, each one concentrated with mana.

’She’s in that state again...’ Indra thought. The mood that earned her the title, Crimson Blade Berserker.

The lightning surging around Zora blurred from blue to a vibrant red, swelling in size until they were about the size of tree stomps.

The air thundered with fury, a huge tempest brewing around her, decimating any and everything in sight. The red highlights in her hair glowed deeper, more profound, and her hair fizzled with lightning.

There was a spark within the growing tempest.

Zora took in a deep breath, her blue eyes gleaming with vibrant fervour. She sheathed her odachi, and let out a steamy breath.

"Supreme Sword Aura."

The words rolled out of her tongue with the authority of lightning. Her blade was unleashed from its sheath, and the earth seemed to freeze.

But even in the face of such destructive might, Eliron had a smile on his face, all his clones lifting their swords simultaneously to counter the coming disaster.

"Unholy Light...."