Once upon a time, she was also an ordinary girl who dreamed innocent dreams.
In a simple but warm cottage in a border village, she would nestle against her mother's knee, listening to the heroic epics told by wandering bards.
With eyes shining and small hands clenched into fists, she would vow solemnly:
"My dream is to become a great hero like the ones in the stories! I'll protect everyone and defeat the bad guys! So, I can rummage through every chest I see from now on!"
It was as if searching every treasure chest along the way was the entirety of a hero's journey.
Her father, repairing farm tools nearby, would look up and show a mischievous smile on his bronze face.
"Then I hope your little bottom is as tough as those lord heroes' are."
Her mother would simply smile tenderly and stroke her hair.
Back then, the world was simple and bright.
Until that day.
Blood-red soaked the village's sunset, and the howls of Demons and the cries of Humans tore through the former tranquility.
Rough wooden doors were smashed by claws, and the warm cottage was transformed into a sea of fire that devoured lives.
Her father stood before the door with a woodcutting axe, his back like a mountain, only to be swallowed by hideous dark shadows in an instant.
Her mother pushed her hard into a tunnel, the strength of their final embrace so great it made her bones ache. On her tear-streaked face was an unprecedented look of determination and pleading.
"Victoria, run! Leave this place forever! Don't look back!"
"You must live on, my daughter!"
The young Silvia pulled her back with all her might, dragging her toward the tunnel's exit as Victoria cried and struggled.
"Victoria, we can't go back!"
"Mom! Dad! No, I'm not leaving! I want to stay! I want to defeat those Demons! Silvia, let go! I don't want to leave!"
She wailed and kicked, her gray eyes reflecting the soaring flames and splashing blood, her fingernails digging bloody marks into the ground.
But her strength was too small—so small she couldn't even break free from her best friend's grip, so small she could only watch as her hometown turned to ruins amidst flames and slaughter, watching the figures of her loved ones be swallowed by the darkness.
That night, the fire did not just burn down the village; it ignited a flame deep within her heart that would never be extinguished.
That fire was fueled by sadness, fear, and powerlessness, eventually tempering into a cold, steel-like resolve.
To become strong—strong enough to sever all chains of tragedy.
To climb—to reach a height where she could protect those she cherished.
When the Hero's Protection from the world's origin descended upon her, this flame burned even more fiercely and clearly.
It was no longer just the karmic fire of revenge, but a sense of responsibility and a path that felt like a mission.
She saw clearly that the road ahead was filled with thorns and powerful enemies, but she had made up her mind. She would defeat everyone who stood in her way, reach the position of the strongest, and possess the power to end calamity!
And so...
On the Arena stage, Victoria's gray eyes refocused, suppressing all surging emotions deep into her heart, turning them into cold, hard stone in her gaze.
She stared at the burning flame across from her named Lilith Kahn.
The princess before her was powerful and proud, dazzling like the sun.
And she, Victoria, also had reasons why she absolutely could not lose!
For the sake of those irrecoverable losses, for the future represented by that heavy protection, and to prove herself to all those who looked down on her.
Her path, her will, and her strength were in no way inferior to anyone else's!
Victoria took a deep breath and calmed herself.
Admittedly, the strength Lilith was displaying now exceeded her initial estimates.
However, that didn't mean she had no chance of winning!
She thought of a sentence her master had once taught her: When your opponent is very powerful, you can find ways to lower their guard, then deliver a fatal blow at the critical moment.
Victoria's brain whirred at high speed, analyzing the opponent before her.
What was Lilith's strongest weapon?
Undoubtedly, it was Flame Burst, one of the highest-tier fire spells.
Its power was unquestionable, enough to instantly change the course of the battle or even decide the outcome.
But high-tier magic often meant massive mana consumption and mental strain.
Especially a spell of Flame Burst's caliber—it would definitely drain all her mana in one go and even bring about a brief period of weakness.
The key to victory, then, might lie right there—create an opportunity to bait her into using Flame Burst, and then... dodge it!
As long as she successfully evaded that devastating strike, the scales of victory would surely tip in her favor against a Lilith whose mana was likely bottomed out!
The difficulty lay in how to make a clever and proud opponent pull out this hidden trump card at the moment they thought was best.
Victoria's thoughts gradually became clear.
She needed a "flaw," one significant enough to make Lilith believe that if she just seized this chance and used her full strength, she could win in one hit.
First, this flaw couldn't be too fake, or it wouldn't fool a genius with sharp intuition.
Second, it couldn't be too fatal, or she might actually lose because of it.
It had to appear at a juncture where both sides seemed evenly matched, making Lilith, who was eager to break the stalemate, feel anxious.
With the plan set, Victoria did not hesitate and took the initiative to launch a new wave of attacks!
"Wind Blade!"
"Water Gun!"
"Earth Spike!"
The gray-haired girl's figure moved nimbly across the stage. Basic magic from the earth, water, and wind elements were used in turn. Though they lacked the explosive flashiness of fire magic, they excelled in fluid attribute switching and tricky attack angles, constantly forcing Lilith to respond.
She no longer sought to win with a single blow, instead pulling the battle into a rhythm of attrition that tested endurance.
Initially, Lilith could still use the dominance and precision of her fire magic to suppress or even counterattack.
But soon, she realized things weren't that simple.
Victoria was like a piece of tough, water-soaked leather. When the fire burned it, steam would rise and scorch marks would be left, but it was difficult to actually ignite or tear her apart.
They were evenly matched.
An irritatingly equal match!
The smile on Lilith's face gradually vanished, and a trace of imperceptible anxiety quietly grew.
This was completely different from what she had expected!
She thought she could crush her opponent with absolute power and talent, just like any other time.
But this commoner-born Victoria was actually so troublesome!
Her use of magic was clearly not as exquisite or magnificent as her own, and her mana fluctuations didn't seem as surging, but that tenacity, calmness, and near-beastly combat instinct had forced the situation into a deadlock.
If this continued... her mana was being steadily consumed, and her stamina was draining.
Were they really going to end in a draw?
No! Absolutely not!
The word "draw" did not exist in Lilith Kahn's dictionary!
She was the Princess of Flames, the genius destined to burn everything and light the way forward!
How could she be on equal terms with someone who had just popped out of nowhere?
Pride was scorching her patience.
She craved a breakthrough, a moment that would allow her to secure victory!
But just then, a turning point suddenly appeared.
After a swift sideways dodge of a flame arrow volley, Victoria's foot seemed to slip slightly, stepping on the edge of a stone slab that had cracked and tilted from the previous magical collisions!
Her body instantly lost its balance, and she stumbled backward, looking as if she were about to fall to the ground in an extremely clumsy manner!
A flaw! A massive flaw!
In a high-speed duel, losing balance meant at least one or two seconds of being unable to effectively defend or dodge!
"If I use Flame Burst now, I can win!"
This thought struck Lilith's mind like a bolt of lightning.
The surging fire mana within her was instantly ignited, gathering frantically toward her right palm!
The surrounding air let out an overwhelmed hum, the temperature rose sharply, and even the light began to distort.
A ball of extremely unstable crimson fire, with white-hot light at its edges and a core like molten lava, began to rapidly take shape in her palm!
Devastating energy fluctuations swept out!
Even if it was only Level 1, this was still Flame Burst!
One of the highest-tier fire spells!
Its power was far beyond the previous fire arrows or flame chains!
Exclamations erupted from the spectator stands, and many professors subconsciously sat up straight.
However, just a moment before that concentrated, terrifying power was about to be unleashed—
A golden-haired boy's face with a slightly helpless smile and his joke-like words crashed into Lilith's thoughts without warning:
"Just you wait and see. In tomorrow's Placement Duel, Victoria will use a fake move at the end to bait out Princess Lilith's Flame Burst, thereby securing the final victory."
This caused Lilith to hesitate for a split second.
Do I really have to believe the words that guy just casually tossed out?
How could a mistake of this magnitude be just a fake move?
If I miss this chance, it might really end in a draw.
But...!
Another faint but stubborn voice in her heart whispered: What if?
She remembered another thing he said by the campfire, with that annoying yet inexplicably reassuring expression:
"Repayment? Don't go to all that trouble. You... well, you just need to keep supporting Princess Lilith like this."
Dammit!
Lilith cursed inwardly.
If he dares to lie to me, I'll definitely give that guy a beating later!
For now... I'm gambling!
Lilith made a decision so bold it was almost insane.
She assumed that Victoria's mistake right now was indeed a fake move to lure her into using Flame Burst!
In that case, how would her opponent evade this fatal blow?
Her gaze shifted toward a large pit behind Victoria, created by the earlier battle.
In this state of lost balance, she definitely couldn't dodge too far, so she must be planning to use the momentum to roll into that pit and then use earth magic to instantly seal the top, thereby avoiding most of the impact.
When she herself was briefly exhausted from releasing high-tier magic, Victoria could then burst out of the pit for a counterattack!
Thinking of this, Lilith aimed the Flame Burst directly at the pit and fired.
"It worked!"
Seeing Lilith use Flame Burst, Victoria knew immediately that she had fallen for it.
She used the momentum to flip and land in the pit, even sealing the gap above with earth magic as she went.
Now, as long as she could withstand the first wave of impact, victory would surely be hers!
"But why is it getting hotter and hotter?"
She made a small hole to peek outside.
In the next moment, her gray pupils suddenly contracted to their limit!
A ball of Flame Burst, with white-hot edges and a crimson core filled with the purest destructive power, was hurtling straight toward her!
"How could she have guessed!? I want to check the cards!!!"
Boom—!!!
The deafening explosion swallowed all thought.
Rate on N.U.
