Chapter 359: The Beginning Of The End [XXI]

“Tch. Don’t touch me.”

Her tone was cold as ice, like she had swatted an annoying fly instead of sending a man flying ten meters with a backhand.

The poor bastard didn’t even get a chance to stand up.

The glowing mark on his hand flickered once, then the arena reacted.

FWOP—

A sharp flash of light swallowed him, and he was thrown straight out of the boundary like the exam itself couldn’t tolerate his existence anymore.

He hit the grass outside and let out a weak groan.

And just like that…

Only two remained.

Selindra and Carliat.

A quiet tension settled over the arena, thick and heavy. Even the wind seemed to pause just to watch.

The professor adjusted his glasses, then suddenly raised his staff high.

“Since only two contestants remain,” he announced loudly, “the final part of this game will be changed!”

Both girls turned their heads toward him at the same time.

The professor gave a small cough before continuing:

“Rather than finishing with tag… the last test will now be a duel. A proper fight. No killing allowed, no crippling allowed, but everything else is free game. The winner will take first place in the Midterms.”

A wave of whispers spread through the students who had been teleported outside to watch.

“A duel…? Between those two?”

“They’re monsters…”

“Oh god, Selindra is going to explode—”

And they were right.

Selindra’s eyes went completely round with excitement, practically glowing gold.

A grin spread over her lips so fast it was almost frightening, and pink mist began curling out from her skin, lifting her hair like soft smoke.

“I’ll finally get my revenge!!” she shouted, her voice trembling with joy.

She took one step forward, mist swirling around her ankles like petals.

Carliat just rolled her eyes.

“In your dreams, maybe,” she replied coldly.

On the side, Aestrea turned to Elijah and asked curiously.

“What did Selindra mean by revenge?”

“Ah, that?” Elijah scratched the back of his head as he replied promptly, “Selindra and Carliat had a duel before… and Selindra was absolutely destroyed.”

“Ohh…” Aestrea’s eyes got back to the arena.

And as if hearing their little dialogue, Selindra’s smile sharpened while Carliat’s eyes narrowed.

The professor quickly backed away from the center of the arena, raising both hands like he was ready to run.

“Alright—both contestants, prepare yourselves! No fighting until I say begin. Remember the rules: no killing, no permanent injuries, and any authority that harms the arena’s stability will be suppressed!”

“They’re definitely going to break that last rule…” Elijah whispered to Aestrea.

“Obviously.”

The professor’s voice boomed again:

“Selindra! Carliat! Take your positions!”

Selindra slid her feet apart, pink haze curling around her arms like ribbons. Carliat lowered her center of gravity, cracking her knuckles as faint sparks danced over her fingertips.

The tension grew so thick it felt alive.

Students swallowed.

Elijah’s eyes widened.

Even Aestrea tilted his head slightly, watching them with mild curiosity.

The professor raised his staff…

“Final test… begins in—”

Selindra licked her lips.

Carliat shifted her feet.

“—three.”

The arena hummed.

“—two.”

Their eyes locked.

“—one.”

The staff came down.

“Beg—”

Both girls exploded forward, and everything went white for a second.

BOOM!!

A shock tore through the arena so violently that even the protective barrier around the spectators flickered like a dying flame.

Selindra shot forward first, her pink mist bursting behind her like wings. Lust aura rolled out in waves, making the air hot and heavy.

Her long black hair whipped through the air as she moved, dark skin shimmering under the bright arena lights, golden eyes glowing like molten metal.

Carliat didn’t move at first.

She just stood, long gray hair drifting behind her as if the world around her had slowed down. Her gray eyes held no light, no emotion—just a vast emptiness that felt colder than the void.

SHRRRK—

Space cracked under her feet.

Carliat vanished.

CRACK!

Then, she reappeared behind Selindra, fist already swinging, wrapped in thin, sharp lines of spatial distortion.

Selindra twisted her waist with impossible speed, her body bending like silk in the wind.

BANG!!

Their fists collided.

A ring-shaped shockwave burst outward, cracking the arena’s foundation. The entire platform groaned under the pressure, and the air split open with visible fractures.

Selindra laughed, breathless and excited.

“Ahm~, harder!~”

Carliat didn’t react as he stepped forward again with minimal movements and swung back at Selindra.

BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!!

They clashed three times in one second.

Each strike shattered pieces of the arena, sending fragments flying like meteors. The light inside the cracks bent unnaturally, twisting like liquid.

Selindra’s mist spread wider, coating the ground as she slid back, heels digging into the stone.

“You’re as cold as a corpse, Carliat! At least show a little— passion!”

She threw both hands forward…

HWWOOOOSH!!

A huge wave of pink flames exploded from her palms.

The air turned quickly sweet, dizzying, almost intoxicating.

Every student watching felt their throats tighten.

But then, Carliat lifted her hand lazily.

“Empty.”

And the flames collapsed as if they had never existed at all.

Selindra grinned wider.

Her teeth showed, sharp with excitement, as her pink mist rose higher around her body.

It twisted like threads in the air, wrapping around her arms and her waist as she leaned forward again.

“You always love~ to ruin my fun,” she said, taking one slow step that made her body sway like she was dancing.

Then she moved.

BOOM!!

She shot forward so fast the ground curved under her feet.

Dust broke in a long line behind her. Her arms crossed in front of her chest and opened wide again, and the pink mist rushed out, grabbing at Carliat like claws.

Carliat raised her knee slightly, then spun her whole body with one light motion. Her coat flared, and her heel cut through the mist as if she were slicing through a thin curtain.

SHRRRKK!!

The mist was torn apart by the pressure of her spin, and Selindra’s eyes widened for a moment.

Then, she quickly jumped up, turning her own body mid-air, her legs crossing and then snapping open as she aimed a kick toward Carliat’s temple.

Carliat reached up with one hand, catching Selindra’s ankle with a grip that looked too soft to hold anything.

But when Selindra tried to pull her leg away, she felt like she was pulling against a mountain.

“You are loud,” Carliat said.

Then she swung Selindra down.

BAAAM!!

Selindra’s back hit the stone floor and cracked it in a long line that spread under her like a spiderweb.

The pink mist burst out again, rolling across the floor and reaching the audience’s feet. Some students trembled as the sweet smell passed through their noses.

But Selindra didn’t stay down.

She twisted her hips and shot upward, her body moving like smoke escaping through a crack.

She slipped out of Carliat’s grip by twisting her leg at an odd angle, rolling to the side, and pushing herself up with both palms.

Her hair was wild, her eyes shone bright, and her breathing had fastened.

“Hah… hah… You talk like you hate me,” she said, licking her lips. “But you keep touching me so much.”

Carliat didn’t reply; instead, she stepped forward again, her foot tapping the ground lightly.

Tap—

And Selindra felt the whole arena tilt for a second.

It was like her sense of balance was being dragged sideways. The space bent around Carliat’s body, bending the lines of the arena like they were made of thin wood.

Selindra stumbled before forcing her legs steady again.

“That damn bending thing again—!”

Carliat blurred.

Not fast— gone, then present again.

Her fist appeared right in front of Selindra’s stomach.

Selindra crossed her arms just in time.

BAAAAAAM!!

The punch made a giant wave of pink mist explode backward. Selindra’s whole body slid across the floor, leaving a long trail as the stone peeled under her heels.

Her hair flew around her face, and she bit her lip hard enough to almost draw blood.

She stopped herself by slamming her palm into the ground.

THUMP!

The pink mist around her tightened into a thin circle, almost like a halo lying flat on the ground.

SHOOO—

It shot straight up.

The mist wrapped around her legs, her waist, her arms, thickening until it looked like a pink armor made of liquid light. Her eyes glowed a deeper shade of pink.

“Okay… okay… if you want serious, I’ll give you serious dear~…”

She raised both hands slowly.

Pink mist swirled in her palms, spinning faster and faster until two long shapes formed—like blades made of bright gas and soft flame.

Carliat watched with blank eyes.

She lifted her chin slightly, as if saying “come” with no words.

Selindra didn’t make her wait.

FWOOP!

She rushed forward, swinging both blades at Carliat’s neck and chest.

Each movement was smooth and heavy, like she was drawing long lines through the air.

The blades cut through the arena floor with ease, leaving glowing lines that spread heat across the ground.

Carliat stepped back slowly, her feet gliding on the stone as if she were walking on water.

Selindra kept attacking faster, moving her whole body in wide arcs, twisting her torso, shifting her weight as she pushed forward without stopping.

Fwip, fwip!

CLASH!

The pink blades hit Carliat’s bending space and twisted as if the edges were being pushed away.

Carliat dodged at the last moment each time, leaning her head or shifting her shoulder by only a few centimeters.

“You— are— so— ANNOYING!!” Selindra shouted as she swung both blades down with all her strength.

Carliat lifted one foot and stepped forward.

One step.

And the whole world bent.

Selindra’s blades missed completely as the space around Carliat’s body twisted in a soft ripple. Selindra’s arms were dragged sideways, her body stumbling forward.

Carliat’s hand rose.

Her palm touched Selindra’s chest.

“Empty.”

BOOOOM!!!

A huge shock spread from Carliat’s palm, blowing away all the pink mist in one violent burst. Selindra’s energy barrier shattered into tiny sparks that rained across the arena.

Selindra flew back, rolling across the floor, coughing as the sweet air thinned, but almost immediately, she pushed herself up again.

Shaking, smiling, her voice trembling.

“Oh… Carliat… now I’m getting excited…”

She licked her red lips deliciously.

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