Chapter 490: The Grand First-Year Combat Festival: The Clash of the Flower and Non-Flower IV

Selena’s emerald eyes locked onto Stella’s yellow-glowing Light Alchemy Circle as it continued forming beneath her.

The fluctuation of Cognis coming from the Princess was already enough for Selena to understand what was happening.

She didn’t need to see the Alchemy Circle finish.

She didn’t need Patrick to announce anything.

She could feel it.

From the amount of Cognis Stella was gathering and the way the Cognis was spreading across the platform, Selena could immediately tell what Stella was preparing.

Mass Alchemy.

Selena thought to herself in realization.

Her lips pressed together as she looked at the glowing circle.

If she ignites her Mass Alchemy, and I don’t reply with the same level of Alchemy...

I will definitely be overwhelmed by Princess Stella’s mass attack.

Selena bit her lower lip slightly while thinking quickly about what she should do.

She had just finished pushing herself against her sister the day before yesterday, and now she had to push herself against the Princess.

Why the he...

Selena stopped that thought before it could continue.

A faint smile appeared on her face.

Calm down, Selena Galehart.

The beautiful people of Britannia are watching.

And most especially...

I can’t afford to get overwhelmed easily.

That isn’t elegance.

Her emerald eyes shifted slightly toward Stella.

The Princess stood firmly on the damaged platform, surrounded by the yellow light of her forming Alchemy Circle. Small cracks had already spread beneath Stella’s boots, while faint traces of Cognis continued to move around her body.

Selena’s smile became a little more pleased.

If she wants to push to that level...

Selena brought her hands together.

Clap!

The sound rang out across the stage.

The moment her hands met, Selena canceled her Wind Barrier Alchemy as well as the Alchemy that had been amplifying her movement speed.

The wind surrounding her body immediately began to fade.

The barrier disappeared from around her, breaking apart into countless tiny particles that drifted upward with the natural movement of the air.

Without the barrier supporting her body, Selena began descending faster toward the platform.

Her skirt and training clothes moved with the air as she fell, while her long hair swept around her face before settling behind her shoulders.

She didn’t look worried.

Then I will reply as gracefully as the lady I am.

She thought to herself with a pleased smile.

Clap!

Her hands came together again.

Back on the platform, Stella’s Light Alchemy Circle finished forming.

The yellow symbols within it brightened.

Stella immediately slammed one hand against the ground.

The instant the Alchemy Circle touched the stone surface of the platform, it expanded.

It spread outward at a rapid speed, covering more and more of the stage until almost the entire battlefield was illuminated by yellow light.

The symbols engraved within the circle glowed brighter.

Then the surrounding Arena began to respond.

Light particles, broken down into tiny molecular pieces, started moving from different sections of the Arena.

They gathered into thin streams of light.

From the distant walls, from the spaces around the spectators, and from the illuminated areas of the enormous structure, countless particles were drawn toward Stella’s Alchemy Circle.

The crowd gradually noticed what was happening.

Some spectators leaned forward.

Others raised their heads as they watched the streams of light moving across the Arena.

Even the people seated farther away could see the yellow glow spreading across the battlefield.

All of those light particles moved toward Stella’s Alchemy Circle.

While still in the air, Selena’s Wind Alchemy Circle began forming.

But Stella was already ahead of her in execution.

The gathered light compressed.

The particles drew closer and closer together above Stella.

Then, hovering at her sides, the light began forming into blades.

One.

Two.

Ten.

Dozens.

The number continued increasing until the light blades numbered one hundred and ten.

Stella stood straight.

She took a slow breath.

Then she breathed out.

Her golden eyes sharpened as she raised her right hand.

"This ends now, unworthy flower."

She muttered the words under her breath.

Her right hand moved slightly forward.

The one hundred and ten light blades responded.

All at once, they shifted toward Selena.

They didn’t move in a single straight line.

They spread through the air, filling different angles around Selena’s descending body.

Selena’s emerald eyes locked onto the battlefield below.

The stone platform was almost completely covered by Stella’s yellow light.

The hundreds of spectators looking down from the stands could see the same thing.

A rain of light blades shooting upward toward the descending Selena.

At that moment, Selena’s Wind Alchemy Circle finally finished forming.

She immediately passed more Cognis into it.

The Mass Alchemy ignited.

The Wind Alchemy Circle expanded outward.

It became wider and wider until it covered almost the entire portion of the sky that Stella could see while looking toward Selena.

The air around the battlefield began moving.

Wind gathered rapidly toward Selena’s Alchemy Circle.

The yellow light blades continued closing in.

Then an emerald-green glow appeared.

The wind began taking shape beneath Selena’s Wind Alchemy Circle.

One wind lance formed.

Then another.

Then another.

Soon, hundreds of wind lances had formed around her.

Selena moved her hand forward as the light blades came dangerously close to her body.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

The Arena shook with the sound of repeated explosions.

Above the platform, yellow light blades collided with emerald wind lances.

Every collision released a burst of air and light.

Some wind lances shattered apart after striking the light blades, while several light blades broke into fragments when they were caught in the concentrated wind.

The Cognis from both Alchemies spread wildly through the battlefield.

The crowd erupted.

Many spectators looked up with excitement as the sky above the platform became a battlefield of yellow and emerald-green attacks.

Selena’s eyes remained focused.

A light blade suddenly slipped through the chaotic barrage.

She noticed it only moments before it reached her.

Selena moved her body aside.

The blade passed close enough to cut through a small part of her training cloth.

She didn’t stop.

She immediately grabbed one of the wind lances with her control over the Alchemy and used it to shift herself through the air.

The lance pushed beneath her.

Selena used the force to jump upward once more.

Her body rose just enough for another light blade to pass underneath.

Then she redirected another wind lance.

This time, the force helped her descend.

Her feet touched the ground.

The instant they landed, Selena passed Cognis into her legs.

Crack!

The stone beneath her boot fractured from the sudden increase in force.

She stabilized herself.

Then she directed her right hand toward Stella.

Stella did the same.

The light blades hanging in the air immediately changed direction.

The wind lances responded as well.

Both attacks dashed toward their respective targets.

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

Boom!

The clashes continued.

Some attacks missed their targets and struck the ground instead.

Others collided in midair.

But the attacks that missed didn’t simply disappear.

The light blades were pulled back under Stella’s control.

The wind lances were also redirected by Selena.

The two Alchemists sent them forward again.

Another barrage began.

The two girls locked eyes.

Neither looked away.

Wind moved violently around the fight platform, throwing snow and loose fragments of stone through the air.

The force field surrounding the stage continued to hold.

Every gust and shock wave that would have reached the spectators was stopped by the barrier, leaving the crowd protected even as the battle on stage became more violent.

Stella moved her hands again.

This time, she didn’t clap.

She joined both hands together.

Then she interlocked her fingers.

The remaining light blades immediately changed direction.

Instead of continuing to attack separately, they began moving toward one another.

The blades gathered.

Their yellow light became brighter as their forms compressed together.

One larger light blade began taking shape.

Of course, this light blade was nowhere near as large as Prince Charles’s Meister-rank Light Alchemy light blade.

But it was still far larger than the attacks Stella had created before.

Selena also replied.

She calmly moved the hand holding her closed fan.

The remaining wind lances began gathering together.

They spiraled around one another.

Their forms compressed.

The wind became denser.

A large wind lance formed.

Its size almost matched Stella’s large light blade.

Stella pushed her hand forward.

Selena pointed her closed fan forward.

The two large Alchemies moved.

The air beneath them became violent as the enormous amounts of Cognis influenced the battlefield.

The wind tore across the platform.

Snow was swept away.

Loose pieces of stone rolled across the ground.

The clothes of both girls were pulled backward by the pressure.

Then...

Clash!!

The large light blade collided with the large wind lance.

A powerful shock wave appeared between them.

The impact forced both girls to adjust their footing.

Their boots dug into the damaged stone.

Neither could afford to lose their balance.

If they were pushed backward too far, the force of the clash itself could send them off the platform.

More spectators who supported Stella and Selena stood from their seats.

Their eyes remained fixed on the stage.

Nobody wanted to look away.

Many hearts tightened as they waited to see who would win the clash.

The two Alchemists were truly in a deadlock.

Stella continued pushing her hand forward.

The veins beneath her training-cloth sleeve became more visible as she forced more strength into her attack.

Her expression remained firm.

She wasn’t backing down.

Selena was the same.

She placed both hands around her closed fan and held it firmly while continuing to control the large wind lance.

Her emerald eyes remained calm.

The two weren’t backing down in the slightest.

Then...

"I think that’s enough for charging up."

Selena moved her hands back.

The large light blade suddenly gained room to move.

It pushed forward with greater force.

But Stella’s expression didn’t brighten because of this chance.

Instead, she frowned slightly.

She was confused.

Why had Selena suddenly stopped resisting?

Selena opened her closed fan.

The Galehart crest imprinted upon the fan began glowing emerald-green.

The large light blade pierced through the wind lance.

For a moment, Stella thought she had broken through.

Then the wind lance opened.

"Ehn?"

Stella’s eyes widened.

The wind didn’t break.

It changed.

The large wind lance unfolded into the shape of an emerald wind flower.

Its petals spread around the light blade, catching and blocking the attack instead of allowing it to pass through.

The light blade stopped.

It remained locked against the blooming wind flower.

Stella stared.

The wind flower continued moving gently despite the force of her attack.

Selena raised the hand holding her opened fan slightly.

More Cognis flowed strongly into it.

Her expression remained calm and elegant.

"Do you know why the Galehart family is known to be the most gentle..."

Selena asked while the standstill between two Mass Alchemy attacks continued.

Her emerald eyes remained on Stella.

The wind around her moved with the same strange grace as the flower formed from it.

"It’s because wind in nature is gentle, and free-flowing to manipulate."

She looked up at her fan.

The Galehart crest continued glowing.

"That’s why Grace is the embodiment of wind. They match themselves perfectly."

"Huh? What the hell are you even saying?"

Stella said.

Her confusion was becoming more obvious.

The clash between the two Alchemies continued in front of her, yet Selena was calmly talking as if the battle had become a lesson.

Selena’s emerald-green eyes returned back on Princess Stella Aethelmont.

"Well, that’s too bad..."

Her voice remained calm.

Almost gentle.

"I thought someone as elegant as you would be able to understand my statement."

Her hand holding the opened fan came down.