Chương 18: Overwhelmed

When you were about to get fucked, you didn't really know that you were gonna get fucked. When I met Mira, I didn't know that she would be the reason behind it. I didn't remember Mira from the game, which meant she was someone I didn't know anything about at all. So she was like a wild factor, which might even have been the reason for Cecilia's exile. Oh, who was I kidding? She was definitely gonna be the reason for her exile. I was panicking for real, but there was nothing I could do about it.

I watched Cecilia wearing a comfortable battle dress. It looked like a karate uniform but was black in colour, and Mira was wearing the same. This wasn't clothing made for aesthetics. They looked amazing on a beautiful body, for sure. But their main purpose was to handle battle and not get destroyed easily. If I remembered correctly, they had been made from a special material that came from the Lepador Tutu bird, a bird that shared the lineage of the phoenix.

Other than me, all the other elders were also present in the open field. Elder Charlotte approached both of them. If looks could kill, Cecilia would have killed Mira a hundred times over.

"Now, both of you, listen very carefully. This is a Trial of Worth, a sacred duel created by Lord Izanor, the Mad Saint. And in his name, you will honour the rules of this trial." She looked at Mira.

"You must prove your worth." Then she looked at Cecilia.

"And you must defend yours."

"You can't kill each other. Killing will simply mean that you aren't worthy enough. You can only use the techniques and magic of our family. Do you understand all these terms?" They both nodded. Then Charlotte gestured toward Elder Margaret, who came forward and moved her hand, creating a gesture in the air. Small purple lights started appearing in front of her. Then the lights separated into two parts, with one moving toward Mira's body and the other toward Cecilia's.

There was one final line connecting them from their stomachs, which was visible to the naked eye. Cecilia and Mira bit their right-hand thumbs. Their thumbs began to bleed, and they pressed them together. The visible line trembled and then disappeared. Margaret returned to her spectator seat. Charlotte approached them once again.

"May the worthy emerge." Then without warning, Cecilia jumped at Mira. She tried throwing a fist straight toward her face, but Mira simply tilted her head and let the punch pass beside her cheek.

"Too slow." Before Cecilia could react, Mira grabbed her wrist and pulled her forward, bringing her knee straight into Cecilia's stomach.

"Ugh!" Cecilia's body bent forward from the impact, but Mira didn't give her any time to recover as she grabbed the back of her head and brought her knee up again. Cecilia quickly raised both hands and blocked the attack, although the force still pushed her backward. What the hell? Cecilia was strong. Not as strong as the main characters of the game, but she was still strong enough to be considered as a powerhouse in the game.

There weren't many people around her age who could really give her a proper fight, even in the main house. No matter how much of an annoying brat she was, she was still very strong. But what I was witnessing right now was a mad hand-to-hand battle between her and Mira, and Cecilia was getting completely overpowered. This was ridiculous. Cecilia wiped the corner of her mouth, where a small amount of blood had appeared, and her eyes became colder as she rushed forward once again.

This time, she threw a series of punches toward Mira's face, ribs, and stomach, but Mira blocked the first attack, dodged the second, and caught the third before twisting Cecilia's arm. Cecilia gritted her teeth and tried to kick Mira's leg, but Mira moved faster and swept her leg from underneath her. Cecilia lost her balance and fell toward the ground, but before her back could hit it, Mira grabbed her collar and threw her to the side.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. BOOM! Cecilia crashed into the ground, creating a small cloud of dust. Cecilia quickly rolled away as Mira's foot came down where her head had been a moment ago, cracking the ground beneath it. She pushed herself up and rushed forward again, and this time, she managed to land a punch right on Mira's cheek. Mira's head turned slightly, and for the first time, she had been hit.

Cecilia didn't waste the opportunity as she followed with another punch, then another, forcing Mira to block instead of attacking.

"Got you!" Cecilia tried to land a powerful kick, but Mira caught her leg and pulled it forward, destroying her balance before punching her directly in the chest. BAM! Cecilia flew backward and landed on her feet, although the force pushed her several meters across the ground. Her breathing had become heavier, while Mira barely looked tired.

"You're stronger than I expected," Mira said. Cecilia tightened her fists.

"Shut up." She charged again, but this time, Mira didn't wait for her attack as she moved forward and collided with Cecilia's fist. Mira's fist slipped past Cecilia's guard and struck her ribs, twisting her body from the impact, before Mira grabbed her shoulder and delivered an elbow to her face. Blood sprayed from Cecilia's nose. Before she could fall, Mira grabbed her hair and pulled her down, striking her stomach with her knee once, then twice.

On the third attack, Cecilia blocked it, but Mira didn't stop as she grabbed both of Cecilia's arms and forced her backward, using her superior strength to overpower her. Cecilia struggled to break free, but Mira pushed her down onto one knee.

"Is this the strength of the famous Cecilia?" Mira's words carried a faint smile. I could practically feel Cecilia's anger from where I stood, and her face had become red, not from embarrassment but from pure rage.

"Don't you dare..." Cecilia suddenly twisted her body and broke free from Mira's grip, jumping backward and creating distance between them. For a few seconds, neither of them moved as Cecilia breathed heavily while Mira continued standing straight. Cecilia was losing, and she knew it too. Her hand slowly moved toward her chest, and a faint glow began to form around her fingers. Mira noticed it, and her expression finally changed.

"Oh?" Cecilia raised her head as the air around her began to tremble.

"Then let's see how you handle magic." The next moment, a strong gust of wind burst out from Cecilia's body, and she moved so fast that I almost lost track of her. She quickly picked up a sword from the nearby rack, while Mira didn't fall behind either and grabbed a spear. They circled around each other for a while, neither of them making the first move. Then Cecilia's sword edge turned red, and she moved her body, slicing horizontally.

An arc made of fire emerged from the attack and came toward Mira with full force. But instead of moving away, a smile appeared on Mira's face. She simply twisted her spear, moving it so fast that the weapon became a blur, and then a strong burst of energy emerged from it. The fire arc from Cecilia was devoured in an instant. The two of them moved again, with Cecilia attacking and Mira defending. It continued like that for a few minutes, and every time Cecilia attacked, Mira blocked or countered her strikes.

But then Mira stopped defending. She spread her right leg, placing herself in a stable stance, and then attacked. The force behind that attack was so strong that I almost bit my fingernail in tension. Cecilia defended against the attack, but the impact still forced her backward, and Mira followed up with another strike, her spear creating a swirl of energy. Cecilia blocked it with another swing of her sword, producing a shield made of flames. I was getting less and less sure about Cecilia's victory.

(Cecilia's POV)"Why? Why was this happening?" Cecilia couldn't understand it. Things weren't supposed to go like this. She was a member of House Rosenkreuz, the daughter of Lord Rosenkreuz, and this was supposed to be an easy victory for her. Then how was someone she didn't even know existed overpowering her in both skill and magic? How could Mira keep up with her? Cecilia hadn't even used her full strength. She had only been using half of it, which should have been enough against someone from a branch family.

Then why wasn't Mira going down? What kind of spear technique was she using? Cecilia kept pushing forward, but Mira continued blocking and countering her attacks, forcing her to put more effort into every movement. It reminded Cecilia of the time she had fought her brother. Back then, she had considered herself an unparalleled genius, believing there was hardly anyone who could stand against her. Then her brother had shown her what a true genius looked like.

He had used nothing more than a simple sword technique and a shield, while Cecilia had used everything at her disposal. And she had still lost. It had been such an overwhelming experience that she hadn't been able to bring herself to challenge her brother again. But now, as she looked at the woman in front of her, who wore a slight smile while breathing heavily, Cecilia felt anger rising within herself. How could she be this weak? She had never imagined being pushed this far. Then she came to a realization.

She hadn't been taking this seriously. While Mira had been giving the battle everything she had, Cecilia had been holding herself back, believing that half her strength would be enough. Her grip tightened around her sword. She needed to use the power that made her different from the woman standing in front of her. She had to show Mira the difference between someone from the main house and someone from a branch family.

Cecilia defended against another attack from Mira, and the impact sent sparks flying across the battlefield. She looked directly at her opponent.

"I commend you for making it this far, but now, let me show you why you won't be winning against me, no matter how many times you try." Her sword suddenly changed. The entire blade turned red, and Cecilia felt a huge rush of strength surge through her body. Her eyes began to glow crimson. She moved both hands into a shape that resembled a jaw, and small flames started gathering between her palms. The temperature around her began to rise. Mira stopped moving.

Cecilia raised her hands, and her voice changed into something almost inhuman.

"Pay the price for your arrogance." The flames gathered between her hands suddenly expanded, forming a massive jaw of fire. Then Cecilia released it. A gigantic blast of flames erupted from the burning jaws and raced toward Mira, engulfing everything in its path.