2289 Bloodline Secrets (Part 1)

Phloria followed her own advice, pushing forward into close-quarter combat instead of keeping the distance that would give Quylla the advantage.

"Back at the academy, you were so afraid of making your move on Lith that I beat you to the punch despite you had three months over me. Then, you were so desperate for love that you accepted the slave ring like an idiot and killed Yurial!"

Her blade moved in a seamless stream of lunges that turned into backhand and overhand slashes with but a flick of the wrist. Between the real Phloria telegraphing her moves, Quylla's superior core, and Bloodbind's great area of effect, no attack reached its mark.

Yet Phloria's words cut deep, making Quylla stagger.

"You killed one of your best friends, our friend, because you were weak. Even after I accepted you parasites in my home because your parents abandoned you like dogs, you dared stab my mother in the heart!" With each word, the violence of her attacks increased and Quylla's defense weakened.

"After all the pain you caused everyone, you had the audacity to play the victim and whine like a baby. After I broke up with Lith, you still didn't have the guts to make your move and ended up with the knock-off version!

"Yet the reason I hate you the most is that you ruined my career!" Phloria lashed out, releasing all the spells that she had accumulated inside Reaver at the same time. "It's because of you that Velan staged the trial that destroyed my life.

"It's because of you that Yurial died and I lost everything I've worked for. Everything for which I have sacrificed my happiness!"

As Quylla expected, Phloria had prepared mostly tier three and four spells with body casting. She had been caught by surprise and the more powerful a spell, the more time it took to conjure it.

Quylla used Bloodbind and several hard-light shields to block the onslaught, but Phloria's spells changed their direction and dodged her protections.

Thrud had taught her Ernas' Full Guard that granted Phloria a space awareness on par with Friya and the ability to imbue her spells with willpower, no matter their tier.

Quylla activated the barrier of her armor and closed her shields onto her, but it was too late. From so up close, a split second of hesitation due to surprise was a split second too much.

She took over half of the barrage and then Phloria started to pummel her with punches and kicks. Reaver was hung to her side while a flurry of attacks painted Quylla black and blue.

"I'm not dumb, little sister. I remember well that after what you did to Mom, Dad made sure that no Ernas weapon can hurt a member of the household, even adopted mutts like you!" Phloria's savage laughter almost hurt more than her hits.

Almost.

Quylla's eyes were veiled with tears from the insults and the frustration. She had done everything she could to have the upper hand yet in the end, it had amounted to nothing.

Quylla was near the bright violet whereas Phloria was deep violet, but once in close combat, they were akin to a child against an adult. Phloria had fought all of her life and had mastered several combat styles way before joining the army.

Quylla, instead, had been a bookworm until the day she had joined Lith in his apprenticeship under Faluel. The gap between the two sisters was like heaven and earth.

"Quylla!" Friya unleashed her tier five Gravity spell, Black Hole, on Ufyl and went to the rescue.

Black Hole increased the gravity on its area of effect one hundred times and changed its direction several times per second. Ufyl was so big that she had no problem combing the Gravity spell with a dimensional magic cantrip to limit Black Hole's area of effect to the Dragon.

His body collapsed, bloated, and stretched non-stop, being thorn into shreds under its own weight. The hundreds of kilos of Adamant scales that were supposed to protect him turned into cruel blades that cut him apart.

'How is that a human? I'm Dragon, I should have won. She's a monst-' Ufyl cried in frustration.

Not only had he been helpless the whole time, but he had also learned nothing from the exchange. Friya's dimensional magic was beyond his understanding and so was Gravity magic.

Dragon Eyes had barely started to crack her secrets and he was already dead.

Phloria kicked Quylla in the chest, breaking her ribs and sending her away. It would seal Invigoration and slow down her recovery. Reaver jumped back in her hand, blocking Dreadnaught and conjuring a darkness aura to block the spell she knew was incoming.

"This brings back memories, huh?" Phloria effortlessly blocked the lunge and Reaver's darkness spell countered Dreadnought's with a sizzle. "I will never forget our fight at the ceremonial tourney for our graduation."

She didn't waste time with offensive spells that Friya could turn against her and kept their blades locked by pushing forward.

"Back then, you defeated me. Let's see if you can do it again." Alas, this time Phloria wasn't holding back.

During the tourney, she lacked any killing intent and her mind was muddled by the imminent breakup. Now instead, she was giving her all, as Thrud had ordered her. Between the gap in experience and strength, Friya soon found herself on the back foot.

"You are just as disgusting as Quylla! After your mother abandoned you, my parents gave you everything, yet how did you repay them? You became a mercenary selling your talents in dirty taverns like you sold your body in exchange for company.

"Then, when your pathetic endeavor failed, you threw away the life that my mother saved and sold yourself to Faluel just to make up for your lack of talent. You were nothing without your looks and dimensional magic and you still are.

"At least Quylla self-Awakened like me. You couldn't even do that. You can't do anything by yourself, not even saving your sister!" Phloria's eyes shed tears at those cruel words, clouding her vision.

Friya instead recognized them for what they truly were and steeled her determination, putting every ounce of strength and mana she had left into her next move.

'Phloria is begging me to save her. Those words don't come from her but from the Unwavering Loyalty array. If she meant them, her tells wouldn't show and she wouldn't cry in the middle of a fight.

'Phloria didn't cry even when Yurial died and Mom was bleeding out at her feet. She's a warrior and she's fighting by my side however she can. With those tears, she's clouding her own vision!' Friya thought as the power of Dreadnought and Dimensional Ruler combined.

The estoc fired spells non-stop in every direction while the golden aura enveloped the two women in a sphere. Bolts of ice, lightning, and darkness disappeared the moment they touched Dimensional Ruler's boundaries.

Then, they reappeared from a different angle and direction. The spells aimed at Phloria were meant to blind her Life Vision, but Ernas' Full Guard gave her perfect awareness of her surroundings at 360 degrees.

She managed to block those coming from Dreadnought and her back thanks to Reaver, but Friya outsmarted her.