Fíliya narrowed her eyes, her expression solemn. After quickly assessing the situation, she couldn't help but click her tongue in annoyance.
Tch... As I thought, no openings.
Although her observations confirmed this, she still made her move.
The history of magic is the history of offense and defense. In the iterative process between attack magic and defensive magic, people had long since discovered a problem: defensive magic always consumes far more mana than offensive magic.
Therefore, Fíliya knew very well that the greater the disparity in mana, the more she needed to take the position of the attacker.
High-Speed Movement Magic activated once more, and Fíliya vanished from her spot, her unnatural speed leaving behind what was almost an afterimage.
Without even the span of a single breath, Fíliya appeared behind Solitär and fired off several blasts of Ordinary Attack Magic in succession.
But Solitär simply spun around swiftly, using Defensive Magic to intercept the dazzling white lights with a blank expression.
"So that's how it is. What interesting magic, Fíliya. I think I understand how you're moving."
Solitär looked at Fíliya with a smile after effortlessly blocking the attacks.
"Really...? I know this trick is nothing more than a cheap parlor trick for a true master, but I didn't expect you to figure it out on the second try."
Unlike Solitär's relaxed demeanor, Fíliya's expression was much more grave.
She had wanted to take advantage of Solitär's unfamiliarity with her High-Speed Movement Magic to get behind her for a few sneak attacks, to see if it would have any effect, but it was now clear that it was useless. Solitär had already grown accustomed to her explosive speed, and she likely wouldn't get such a good opportunity again.
Tch, what a shame that first kick didn't work.
Although she thought this, Fíliya's words showed no weakness. She immediately replied.
"Is that so? I've discovered something about you too... Solitär, that magic of yours that evenly covers your entire body with defensive mana—you don't dare use it carelessly, do you? After all, one look at it and you can tell it consumes a massive amount of mana."
"And what of it? I don't think you can force me to use that trick a second time, Fíliya... To deal with a naughty child who doesn't listen to her big sister, the simplest magic is more than enough."
Solitär said casually.
"Is that so."
Fíliya remained expressionless, unfazed by Solitär's words. She knew very well that when fighting the Demon Race, one must never listen to what they say, but watch what they do.
In her view, Solitär's battle-ready stance had already exposed everything.
Saying she'll 'only use the simplest magic'... My troublesome older sister is a very good liar. Who knows what other tricks she has up her sleeve.
"But I've suddenly become curious about something, Solitär."
Fíliya stared intently at Solitär.
"Hm?"
Solitär responded with a smile. Her condition now was clearly much better than when she was inside the house. Perhaps this friendly exchange between sisters had allowed her to vent a lot of negative emotions.
"Since you said you'll 'only use the simplest magic,' then let's have a contest... see who's faster."
Fíliya's tone was laced with a hint of playfulness.
These words clearly provoked Solitär. She didn't understand why Fíliya would propose such a duel. If they were to just exchange blows with Ordinary Attack Magic, then she, with her vastly superior total mana, should clearly have the advantage.
"Very well... Let's see what you're capable of."
Although Solitär was puzzled, she also knew she couldn't afford to lose her composure at a time like this.
And so, after staring at each other for a few seconds, Fíliya and Solitär, with a strange sort of tacit understanding, began to bombard each other with Ordinary Attack Magic.
Countless silvery-white beams of light converged, erupting with a tremendous roar. Amidst these dazzling white lights, many beams naturally curved in extremely bizarre arcs, bypassing the center of the duel to strike at the blind spots of both combatants.
But without exception, no matter how deceptive the trajectories of these white lights were, they couldn't pose the slightest trouble to these two masters of magic. For those attacks that slipped through, both Fíliya and Solitär casually neutralized them with Defensive Magic.
The battle thus became a simple war of attrition.
But as time went on, it wasn't just Solitär; even Aura and Linie realized something was wrong.
"Lady Aura... why is Lady Fíliya engaging in this kind of war of attrition with Lady Solitär? Lady Fíliya's total mana is much smaller. In a battle of attrition like this, wouldn't she be at a disadvantage?"
Aura had long since taken Linie and slipped away to a safer distance. After all, she didn't want to stay in a place filled with the sound of explosions and concussive force.
But upon hearing Linie's question, Aura, in a rare display, showed an extremely serious expression.
"It's not like that... Linie, watch closely."
At Aura's signal and reminder, Linie looked back at the battlefield not far away.
Although Linie's combat experience wasn't extensive, for a demon who could see the flow of mana, she quickly understood what was shocking her own Lady Aura.
"They're evenly matched... No, is Lady Fíliya actually a little faster...?"
Linie murmured. In her unique mana-vision, she could clearly tally that in this skill-less war of attrition, a simple contest of speed, it was clearly Fíliya who was firing more beams of light. The one who was practically invincible in her eyes, Lady Solitär, was faintly showing signs of being overwhelmed.
"How is this happening?"
Although she could see the reality of the situation, Linie still couldn't understand how Lady Solitär, who held a huge advantage in every aspect, could possibly be getting suppressed.
"It's simple... Linie, I only just realized you could fight like this..."
Aura's pupils trembled slightly. It was clear the current state of the battle was having a powerful impact on her.
"While it's true that Solitär has a vast lead in terms of total mana, ...the amount of mana a mage can mobilize in a single cast and the speed at which they can mobilize that mana differ from person to person. It comes down to individual talent. Fíliya has already proven to us that in these two qualities, she is in no way inferior to Solitär—in fact, she might even be slightly better."
"I see. So in this kind of contest, using only a single type of magic... it's actually Lady Fíliya who has the advantage... But isn't this very dangerous? Although Lady Fíliya is suppressing Lady Solitär for now, she can't achieve any tangible results, and it will eventually just turn into a pointless drain of mana... There's no way to determine a winner like this. Once Lady Fíliya runs out of mana..."
Linie asked with a nervous expression. It was only after she'd asked the question that Linie realized with surprise that she had subconsciously been worrying about Lady Fíliya.
___
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