Chapter 471: The Grand First-Year Combat Festival: The Elegant one and The Wild one II

"What does she think she’s doing?!"

The Second Duchess of Galehart, Mira Galehart, suddenly stood from her seat.

Her expression had completely changed.

The calmness she had maintained while watching the festival was gone, replaced by panic that she could no longer hide. Her fingers trembled slightly as she stared at the fighting platform, where her daughter, Elena, was gathering more Cognis than her body should have been able to handle.

"We should stop her now!"

She waved her hand toward the Duke of Galehart’s close Guard, the leader of the strongest force within the Galehart military units.

The Night Gales.

The man remained standing several seats away, his eyes fixed on the stage.

Mira turned toward him.

"Stop her now!"

"Calm down, Mira."

The First Duchess of Galehart spoke calmly.

She remained seated, her posture straight and composed as she looked at Duchess Mira.

"You are overreacting."

"Overreacting?"

Mira stared at her in disbelief.

"My daughter is about to ruin her Alchemy foundation, which could also kill her, and you are telling me, directly to my face, that I am overreacting?!"

Her voice echoed through the area reserved for the Galehart family.

Several servants nearby turned their heads.

The other Duchesses from the Duke Houses couldn’t help but look toward Mira, their expressions becoming more serious as they understood what was happening.

The Dukes, however, continued watching the stage.

Their attention remained fixed on the two girls.

Even the Queen quietly turned her eyes toward Duchess Mira.

"Should I intervene?"

Alister Morgan asked the Queen while lowering his head slightly.

His expression remained emotionless, as though the commotion around him had nothing to do with him.

"No..."

The Queen calmly dismissed his question.

"Leave them be."

Alister immediately returned his attention to the stage.

The other Heads of the Royal Alchemist Branches seated close to the Queen also nodded.

They understood the situation.

This was no longer a simple first-year match.

It had become something more personal.

"Duke, your daughter is at risk of death, and you are remaining silent."

Duchess Mira’s eyes narrowed as she looked at the Duke of Galehart.

Her voice still carried anger.

"She will be fine."

The Duke of Galehart answered calmly.

His expression barely changed.

It almost looked as if he didn’t care about what was happening.

"Fine?"

Mira stared at him.

"And how do you know that?"

"Because Selena won’t allow that."

The First Duchess of Galehart answered before the Duke could say anything.

Mira’s expression froze for a moment.

She slowly looked down, then her eyes returned to the stage.

Both of the Galehart daughters were standing opposite each other.

Wind Alchemy had already filled the fighting platform.

The air itself seemed to have become restless.

Their hair and clothes moved constantly under the pressure of the wind, while dust and small pieces of debris were dragged across the surface of the platform.

"It’s because of your daughter that my own child is in this mess in the first place."

Mira pointed toward the stage where Selena stood.

Her finger trembled from anger.

"Even though that might be the case, Mira..."

The First Duchess of Galehart’s voice remained calm.

"You can’t stop Elena now, because that will really be the key to ruining her Alchemy foundation."

Mira clenched her teeth.

"You have already seen how all the other first-years have fought with their conviction on display."

The First Duchess looked at Elena.

"Don’t let your daughter’s conviction go to waste, Mira."

She then looked back at Mira and gave her an elegant, warm smile.

That smile only made Mira more irritated.

However, after several seconds, Mira took a deep breath.

Her shoulders slowly lowered.

She finally sat back down.

"But will Selena really be able to stop Elena?"

Her eyes remained fixed on the platform.

"The Alchemy Elena is about to use is close to the Adept Rank."

"Elena is in the Binder Alchemist Rank."

The First Duchess answered.

"But the Selena I saw when she came to greet us during the break has already broken into the Adept Alchemist Rank."

Her voice carried a pleased tone.

"She can do it."

The two Duchesses focused back on the stage, where their daughters were still facing each other.

The violent wind around them continued to spread across the platform.

Ahh...

This is so scary.

The Duke of Galehart thought silently.

Yet his expression remained calm.

Anyone who looked at him would probably think he was completely not bothered by the fact his two Daughters were fighting, and one was pushing past her limit.

But that wasn’t what was happening inside his mind.

His heart was beating faster than usual.

His palms were even slightly sweaty.

His close Guard, leader of the Night Gales, glanced toward his Lord Duke.

The man had known the Duke for a very long time.

They had fought together.

They had shared countless dangerous situations.

Because of that, he could easily tell what the Duke was thinking despite his calm face.

The Guard leader smiled helplessly.

His Lord Duke was scared.

Very scared.

But he was doing a good job hiding it as usual.

The Guard leader reached into his pocket and pulled out his Zphone 14.

His fingers moved quickly across the screen.

He sent a message to the Royal Academy Professor responsible for the movement of the Medic teams.

He asked them to bring more Healing Potions to the area.

Just in case Elena got more injured.

Back on the fighting platform...

Selena’s emerald eyes narrowed.

She had noticed it.

The amount of Cognis Elena was gathering was no longer normal.

The wind surrounding Elena was becoming denser with every passing second, and the emerald-green lines running across her body glowed brighter.

She was forcefully pushing herself toward a power level close to the Adept Rank.

Selena’s expression changed.

She quickly canceled the Wind Alchemy Circle she had been preparing.

The circle disappeared before it could ignite.

Then Selena dashed forward.

Her shoes struck the platform.

Tap!

Her body moved through the violent wind with surprising speed.

"Elena, you id..."

She muttered under her breath, but she stopped herself before finishing the curse.

She was still Selena Galehart.

Even now, she refused to completely lose her elegance.

"Why are you coming towards me?!"

Elena shouted.

"Are you trying to get yourself seriously injured?!"

Surprise appeared in Elena’s eyes.

This wasn’t how Selena normally fought.

Selena’s usual strategy was simple.

She would either attack from a safe distance or defend herself with elegant movements while controlling the wind around her.

That had always been Selena Galehart’s Alchemy strategy.

But now she was running directly toward Elena.

The wind barrier was still wrapped around Selena’s body, but she was moving straight into the danger zone.

The half-Adept Rank Wind Alchemy was almost completely charged.

Elena could feel the pressure coming from the technique.

If Selena wanted to win easily, she could have attacked Elena while she was still charging.

Instead, Selena was running toward her.

Elena gritted her teeth.

"Tsk..."

She tightened her hands.

"Don’t blame me if you get seriously injured!!"

The center of Elena’s Wind Alchemy Circle began glowing emerald-green.

The wind around her suddenly compressed.

The pressure increased.

Her hair whipped violently around her face as she forced even more Cognis through her body.

Then...

BOOM!

Elena released the compressed wind.

A massive gush of air erupted from the Alchemy Circle.

It didn’t spread in every direction.

Instead, Elena forced it forward.

The compressed wind twisted violently and became a large horizontal tornado.

It tore across the platform toward the incoming Selena.

The ground shook slightly beneath Elena’s feet from the force of the release.

The crowd erupted.

Boom!

The huge tornado slammed into Selena’s Wind Barrier.

The impact was so strong that Selena’s feet left the ground for a moment.

Her body was pushed backward.

Her long hair flew behind her as she struggled to keep her balance.

But before she could be thrown away, Selena immediately passed her Cognis into the soles of her boots.

Her feet struck the platform.

The Cognis reinforced her connection with the ground.

Her body stopped sliding.

Selena lowered her center of gravity.

Then she pushed herself forward.

The tornado screamed around her.

Wind collided with her barrier from every direction.

Sparks of compressed wind appeared as the two forces continued grinding against each other.

Crack!

A thin fracture appeared across the Wind Barrier.

Selena’s eyes narrowed.

The barrier was beginning to fail.

But she continued moving.

Another section broke.

Then another.

The violent wind slipped through the gaps.

A sharp gust passed across Selena’s arm.

Slash!

A thin line of blood appeared.

Another gust struck her leg.

Slash!

Part of her training clothes was cut open.

Small cuts appeared across her skin.

Blood slowly began running down her arm.

But Selena didn’t stop.

Her feet continued moving.

One step.

Then another.

Her entire body was being pushed backward by Elena’s attack, yet she continued forcing herself forward.

"AHHHHHHH!!!"

Elena screamed.

She kept both hands forward, directing the tornado toward Selena.

Her eyes were wide.

The emerald-green lines covering her body pulsed with each violent flow of Cognis.

"AHHHHH!"

Selena shouted as well.

Her voice was strained.

The elegant smile she usually wore was completely gone.

Her brows were furrowed, and her breathing had become heavier.

The Wind Barrier around her body continued breaking apart.

More wind slipped through.

Slash!

Another cut appeared on her cheek.

Slash!

Blood appeared along her stomach.

Her clothes continued tearing under the pressure.

Yet Selena still moved forward.

She refused to retreat.

Step by step.

Her boots remained planted against the platform.

Her Cognis continued flowing into them, keeping her grounded as she forced her way through the tornado.

Elena’s expression slowly changed.

She had expected Selena to retreat.

She had expected her sister to block the attack.

She had not expected this.

"Why..."

Elena’s voice trembled.

Selena was getting closer.

Closer.

And closer.

The Wind Barrier was almost gone.

Then Elena suddenly saw something through the violent wind.

A hand.

Selena’s hand.

It was already covered in cuts.

Blood dripped from her fingers.

Yet that hand continued reaching forward.

Elena’s eyes widened.

Grab!

Selena’s hand finally closed around Elena’s arm.

"Got you."

Selena’s voice sounded tired.

Her breathing was rough.

Blood continued dripping from her face.

But her eyes remained clear.

Elena froze.

"Wha—"

Spark!

A small burst of Cognis appeared around Selena’s hand.

Then the Cognis flowed into Elena’s body.

It moved directly toward the Alchemy Circle.

Elena’s expression changed.

She suddenly felt something interfering with the flow of Cognis inside her body.

The violent energy she had been forcing through her veins began losing its stability.

Her Wind Alchemy Circle shook.

Then...

Crack!

The entire circle shattered.

The emerald-green light disappeared.

At the same moment, the Cognis violently flowing through Elena’s body vaporized.

It vanished almost instantly.

The pressure surrounding her body disappeared.

Her shoulders dropped.

For a moment, Elena felt as if she had never gathered that enormous amount of Cognis in the first place.

The tornado disappeared.

The wind across the platform rapidly weakened.

The dust that had been flying through the air slowly fell back to the ground.

Silence spread across the arena.

Elena looked down at herself.

Her breathing was heavy.

Her body still trembled from the strain.

But the overwhelming Cognis that had filled her veins was gone.

Selena had completely destroyed it.

"Law of Inversion..."

Selena spoke lightly.

She looked at Elena.

"It’s pretty useful."

Her voice was calm.

But her body could no longer keep going.

Her knees suddenly gave out.

Selena fell.

Thud.

She landed on the platform.

The remaining wind slowly disappeared.

The crowd gasped.

Only now did the non-Alchemist properly see Selena’s condition.

Her arms were covered with cuts.

There were wounds across one of her legs.

Her face had several thin cuts.

Blood ran down from her cheek and dripped onto the platform.

Her stomach area was also covered with cuts, and parts of her training clothes had been sliced away.

The elegant Selena Galehart, who had entered the platform looking as though she had merely come to perform before the audience, was now lying injured on the ground.

Some of her most hardcore fans covered their mouths.

A few looked as if they were about to cry.

To them...

Their Lady had won.

But seeing her in this state hurt more than the victory pleased them.

Elena stood frozen.

Her hands slowly dropped.

The anger that had filled her face earlier was gone.

Only pain remained.

"Why?"

She said again, her voice coming out weak.

She looked at Selena.

"Why would you do something so uncharacteristic?"

Tears gathered in her eyes.

She tried to wipe them away, but more appeared.

"Why would you do something so uncharacteristic?"

Selena remained on the ground.

Her breathing was weak.

She slowly turned her head toward Elena.

"Why would I let my own sister suffer?"

Her voice was barely above a whisper.

Blood continued dripping from her face.

Elena’s lips trembled.

She could no longer hold back her tears.

Selena slowly looked down at the ground.

For a few seconds, she said nothing, then she raised her head again, looking at her step-sister.

A warm, elegant smile appeared on her blood-covered face.

"If I didn’t..."

Her voice became weaker.

"If I didn’t do that... that would be uncharacteristic of me."

Her emerald eyes softened.

The smile remained.

Then Selena’s eyes slowly closed.

Her body went completely limp.

She had lost consciousness.

Elena stood before her sister without moving.

The entire arena remained silent for several seconds.

The fight was over.

And the elegant one had won.

But the price of that victory was written across Selena’s body.