Blade Over Magic

A Wager

Sister

That word implied the existence of a sibling. For many, such a concept wasn’t strange. Many had siblings, whether it was before or after they were born. And even if they didn’t, they would have observed and come into contact with others who did have siblings.

But... that concept didn’t quite extend to Elemental Spirits.

In the first place, Spirits were born when in an area with very high concentrations of a certain Mana type, the dense Mana resulted in something with a consciousness being formed, and when enough time passed, this thing would become a fully conscious entity.

One thing to note, though, was that all Elemental Spirits were separate beings. Two might be ’born’ in the same area of Mana, and some might have even been born at the same time. It was rare, but it did happen.

But they weren’t truly related. Even if they called themselves siblings, and even if they originated from the same source, they were never truly biologically related, if that word could even apply to lifeforms such at those. It was simply a reality of their existence.

Hence, ’true’ siblings among Elemental Spirits did not exist.

...

Under normal circumstances.

Mary twisted her body while pulling her sister closer, making the sharp talons miss by just inches, space ripping where they passed.

Then Mary pulled back both her legs and kicked her hard in the abdomen, grin wind augmenting the strike as she got sent flying.

Mary stood quickly, and she was able to see the figure of her sister properly.

Other than the face, her appearance was quite a bit more different than hers.

Both her hands were in the shape of green talons, with shimmering green feathers moving up them. Her ears also took the shape of a birds, and her legs were straight up just those from a bird, albeit a very large one.

Her attire was crude and ragged, barely covering the sensitive parts of her body. Like Mary, her true form was that of an eagle, and she seemed to partially enter it in that moment.

Throwing her head back to laugh, she spoke.

| Wonderful. Wonderful! You’re so much stronger now! I remember the last time we— wait. |The gleeful laugh ceased abruptly as she looked at Mary, as though she was seeing her for the first time, and like a flip had switched, her expression became one of unbridled rage.

| You... Why are you dressed up like a Maid?! | An utterly suffocating pressure erupted as green winds swirled around her uncontrollably. Every individual strand capable of ripping through the defenses of an average High Mage.

The madness in her eyes surged further as she took a step, the layers of space time trembling as she growled.

| Was it them? Was it those fuckers who took you away from me? Reducing you to a Maid? A MAID?! I won’t forgive them! | The authority in her voice caused space to fracture as she shrieked, Mary’s dress fluttering, but even as all of this happened, she showed no signs of panic.

| ... Hah. But it doesn’t matter now. I’m here now, my dearest sister. I just need to take you away from this place. If there’s something preventing you from leaving, I will resolve it. Just leave it to me, like you always did. | Her voice turned to one of anguish as now, tears streamed down her face. The rapid change of emotions was jarring, to say the least. She raised one taloned hand and closed it.

Tendrils of wind appeared around Mary in the shape of a sphere, spinning at impossible speeds. An untrained mage may think that it was a simple wind sphere spell, but in reality, the complexity behind it far exceeded what most could even think about creating.

It didn’t just block Mary physically—and even on that front, one would have better luck destroying a mountain range—it blocked the senses, locked down space, weakened the surrounding concepts used by the target, and suppressed their magic.

| Don’t worry... let me take you away from here. Let me— |

CRACK

The sound of something breaking rang through the space as, shockingly, the sphere surrounding Mary broke apart like glass! The winds rapidly dispersing as Mary’s figure was revealed, still in the same position as before. Just that her hair now looked like it had been in a storm... which wasn’t wholly inaccurate.

| ... You. | Genuine surprise bloomed in the eyes of the sister as Mary exhaled and spoke, her own voice resonating with authority as well.

| I am not being held down against my will, if that is what you are wondering. | She pulled down her headband and allowed her hair to flutter free, the strands turning green as she opened her eyes that now blazed with the same color.

| I’m quite content with how things are at the moment. And you don’t fit among such things. | When she said this, the sister stared at her for a few seconds. Then...

| Heh... hehe... | She covered her face with one hand before she started laughing hysterically, but with every moment that passed, the aura that exuded from her became more and more suffocating.

| I don’t fit? I don’t FIT?! | Her talons dug into her face, drawing blood, but she didn’t seem to notice as she looked at Mary from between the gaps in her talons, the madness in her eyes reaching a new peak.

Her wings spread wide as within the layered space time, countless magic circles of unbelievable complexity bloomed behind her, all of them aimed straight at Mary as she shouted.

| You know what?! Yes. Yes! This is good! Resist! We must discipline our siblings when they are stubborn, should we not?! | Seeing all of this, Mary took a breath and exhaled. She did not need to do so, but after seeing Xander do it so many times, she found the action remarkably calming.

’I apologize Milord, I will deal with this as soon as I can.’ She made a promise in her heart as her gaze turned sharp, and her sister erupted forward, the magic circles erupting as they clashed.

***

"Well, that was unpleasant to watch, don’t you think?" Xavier said casually as he looked down from the mezzanine, watching as the King gave his opening speech, and more people began to enter the Ballroom, many consisting of delegates from the other races.

Bellion turned his gaze on Xavier, his eyes sharp.

"I’m telling you again, Xavier. Either you suppress or kill that boy. If not, you will have forced my hand." Xavier clicked his tongue and gave his fellow Archmage an annoyed glance.

"Even if you’re younger than me, you’re still centuries old. Don’t you have shame? Let the kid practice and share his swordsmanship in peace. You act like your thesis on dead paths is the only thing that makes you significant." His demeanor was more relaxed than anything, but Bellion wasn’t having it.

"You of all people should know the significance of Paths, Xavier. And that boy’s existence is a very threat to mine." He growled, and Xavier just sighed.

"If your Path is so unstable that a kid swinging a sword is a threat to it, then that seems like a you problem more than anything." He genuinely rolled his eyes, finding Bellion’s antics more amusing than anything else, which just enraged him. But Xavier continued.

"Times are changing, and things are gonna get hectic soon. You know this as much as I do. If you can’t change along with the times, then you will get left behind. We need more diversity, and we cannot concentrate all of our power in one field. And Xander opens up an avenue that solves the inherent flaws of your philosophy. You can’t be blind to this, Bellion." Bellion’s lips pulled back into a snarl.

"You say we need more diversity, but spreading yourself too thin is just as dangerous. Rather than diversifying things but no one is above a certain threshold, it’s wiser to deepen our foundation with what already exists. If that boy’s philosophy proliferates, it will destabilize everything. We do not need that now!" Xavier just stared at him.

"Just say you don’t want an avenue that rivals your to exist. Well, you already did, so whatever. Be that as it may, your rigid mindset will be your downfall. Granted, I had a feeling this conversation would turn out like this, just thought I’d try my luck. That said..." Xavier’s gaze turned sharp.

"If you try anything, I will not be kind. Do you understand?" Bellion’s gaze sharpened as well, and for a moment, it seemed like, once again, they might come to blows.

At that moment, though, they both felt a gaze on them, and their heads turned downwards to see the purple-haired Irene looking at the two of them from the corner of her eyes, her intent stern and clear.

Behave.

"... Tch. Fine, how about this, then?" Bellion shook his head and spoke.

"Now what?" Xavier looked like he’d lost interest.

Bellion smiled.

"How about a bet?"

"Oh?" Xavier’s interested was not piqued, and Bellion’s smile grew.

"You should have heard of my disciple, correct? Then... how about a proxy battle? Me with my disciple, and you with that boy? To prove whose ideology will be more beneficial for the upcoming storm?" Xavier rubbed his chin.

"Hm. And what do I stand to gain from this bet?" Bellion leaned into his chair and opened his mouth.

| ... |

Xavier’s eyes showed a trace if surprise.

"... Alright, seems like you’re serious. Fine, I’ll humor you. In that case, I’ll offer up | ... | ." Bellion nodded.

With that, they both returned their attention back to the ball taking place.

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