Cold mist spread out, blending perfectly with the snowy scenery.
When the spectators' vision cleared, they finally saw that Jeanne, still locked in her punching stance, had been frozen solid right where she stood.
And her pale little fist had stopped less than a centimeter from Leon's nose!
But that one centimeter might as well have been the distance between heaven and earth.
"So close! Damn it!"
Jeanne writhed with all her strength, but she didn't break free right away, only managing to crack the ice encasing her in a few places.
That was all.
Still, Leon didn't dare pin all his hopes on this Ice Ring.
Nobody else might know, but he sure did!
The closer an opponent's strength got to his own, the shorter the Ice Ring's freeze lasted, and against an intelligent being who understood how to apply force, this Ice Ring could probably hold Jeanne for three seconds at most.
"You violent woman!"
Leon backpedaled at top speed, sweat beading on his forehead even as he griped.
Jeanne's earlier ambush had nearly scared the life out of him, and now, with no ice clones shielding his front, facing top-tier vanguards with broken stats like Jeanne and Rose head-on, he felt zero sense of safety.
"Crack..."
Three seconds later...
As the cracks spread across the ice, Jeanne finally tore free of the Ice Ring's hold.
But those three short seconds were enough for Leon to once again open a safe distance from them.
"Phew..."
Jeanne took a deep breath, her exhale fogging in the winter air.
By now Rose had dealt with every clone swarming her, and she strolled over to stand at Jeanne's side, sword and shield in hand, looking completely relaxed.
Her eyes narrowed slightly, settling on the tense, wary man standing a short distance away, and a knowing little smile played at her lips as she spoke in that same gentle tone:
"It's just one loss, it's fine, Jeanne. We may not have landed the hit just now, but didn't we get a good read on what Leon's been hiding after all that secret training?"
"Hehe, he learns clone magic and suddenly he's playing tactics."
"You know, this is the guy who used to be a devout believer in the whole 'link your magic straight to your brain, let fireballs do your thinking for you' philosophy~"
"Heehee, how amusing."
Jeanne: "..." Rose acted as though she hadn't heard the low chuckles from the crowd, and hadn't seen Leon's twitching mouth either, continuing in a soft voice:
"He's got no ice clones to hide behind now, and with those amateur-hour close-combat skills of his, the moment we get in close, this game'll be over in a few minutes."
As she said it, she tipped her chin toward Leon, a meaningful smile curving her lips.
Almost instantly, Jeanne caught her subtext...
This was the perfect chance for payback against their "evening study session teacher"!
Sure, Iri could heal him up completely, but there was no way he'd dodge a thorough beating!
Translation:
Beat the hell out of Leon!
As long as you don't kill him, you can hit him as hard as you want!
Feeling Jeanne and Rose's openly "ill-intentioned" gazes lock onto him, Leon shuddered from head to toe!
Not good!
The next second, at the fastest speech he'd managed in his life, almost shouting, he triggered his magic:
"White Art...!!!!"
Cold mist surged, ten ice clones condensing into being once more, the scene on the field looking exactly like it had at the start of the fight.
Watching this all-too-familiar sight, the onlookers were left utterly stunned!
Leon cocked his mouth into a thoroughly provocative, nasty grin:
"You weren't naïve enough to think clone magic costs me so much focus to control precisely, draining my mental and spiritual strength so badly that I can't use it twice in a row, were you?"
"So... what are you going to do now?"
The spectators: "..." Rose pressed her lips together, eyes fixed dead on Leon, that habitual gentle smile slowly fading from her face.
"This man..." Why did he always get such a bad feeling?
Impossible, it had to be his imagination!
He shot a slightly guilty glance toward Iri, only to find her excitedly pumping her little fists, clearly cheering Jeanne and Rose on.
"Phew... with Iri here, there shouldn't be anything to worry about... right?"
...
No need to say more. Old grudges, new grievances, and getting his power level flaunted right in their faces, Jeanne and Rose channeled all the frustration of being "bullied" by Leon this whole time into pure vengeance and launched a savage, storm-like assault on him.
Only one thought filled their minds: teach this rotten man a brutal lesson!
Staffs and swords crossed, ice and light flashed, fists clashed against shields!
From the moment the fight began, there was no feeling each other out, just everyone going all-out from the start!
"So... so intense!"
"Yikes! Is this what happens when you fight with emotions running high?"
"Terrifying!"
The clash in the middle of the field was heart-stopping, and Laurier, who'd come in just to enjoy the show, was trembling, scared stiff by the sheer ferocity of both sides.
"Mr. Leon... is he going to win?"
A cold smirk crossed Aura's lips:
"He's dead for sure."
...
Two hours later, the fight died down.
Looking around, the entire "training corner" was a complete wreck.
The blue brick paving was riddled with cracks, potholes scattered everywhere, clear proof that this duel, laced with "personal grudges," had seen both sides hold nothing back, save for skipping the large-scale destructive magic.
Center of the field.
Leon lay sprawled on the ground, his face battered and bloody, eyes rolled back, only the faint rise and fall of his chest proving he was still alive.
After a good long while.
He finally managed to pry open his swollen eyelids, gaze unfocused as he stared up at the once-again gloomy sky, his brain a buzzing blank.
"Damn it... this was straight-up personal! Revenge! Naked revenge!" Clearly, someone's long career of "bullying" had finally earned him a merciless reckoning.
The watching crowd looked at Leon, more out of breath than in it, then glanced at Jeanne and Rose, who, despite looking a bit roughed up, wore refreshed, deeply satisfied expressions, and everyone wisely clamped their mouths shut and stayed silent.
At this point, the two ladies stowed their weapons, looked down at Leon, beaten into a swollen pulp, and beamed radiant smiles.
"Dear Mr. Leon, as a Mage, your close-combat skills really do need a lot more work. You wouldn't want to be left helpless once an enemy gets the chance to close in, now would you?" "Lady Jeanne, Lady Rose, sorry I couldn't give you two a better show." "Pfft..."
Someone couldn't hold back a laugh, and the next moment, the little courtyard turned into a sea of laughter.
...
...
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