An explosion tore its way through the air between Masayoshi and Yuri, as they jumped to the side to avoid its blast. Masayoshi slid backward, never taking his eyes off of the plume of smoke, where Wrath was sure to make an appearance from. Using three of the chains, he called out to Yuri. He wanted to win this fight. He needed to win this fight. Because if he lost, then Wrath would be right, and if Wrath was right, then justice was no different than cruelty. If that was the case, then Masayoshi's father had been right.
He could never accept that. He would not let his fathers twisted ideology be proven right.
"JUMP!"
Yuri got the memo, and jumped into the air, boosting his height with an explosion spell.
As soon as Yuri cleared the way, Masayoshi flicked the three chains, and they snapped at a viscous speed, cleaving not only the smoke clean in half, put also tearing a deep gash into the wall meters away.
Wrath ducked low, crawling on the floor like a cockroach, before launching himself up into the air with an explosion, grabbing unto Masayoshi's chains.
As Masayoshi pulled them back to him, Wrath was dragged along.
Wrath then let go of the chain, and used an explosion to blow himself forward, and above Masayoshi's head, landing on the ground behind him.
Not even allowing a second to pass, he kicked high.
Masayoshi ducked under the kick easily, before avoiding the series of attacks that followed.
Blocking the final hit of the combo, Masayoshi activated his red spirit, allowing flaming swords to come flying down at Wrath.
They hit the ground exploding into flames as Wrath summersaulted backwards.
When he was about to hit the wall, he used mana to stick to it, before running up the wall to escape the endless swarm of flame blades.
In front of him, a rock hit the wall with insane speeds, before the rock switched places with Yuri.
Without hesitated, Yuri fired an insanely powerful blast of flame from his gun, which Wrath jumped over.
Using an explosion to propel himself downward, he aimed an axe kick to come down straight at Yuri's skull.
It was so fast that he shouldn't have been able to avoid it.
However, Wraths kick only hit the wall below him, causing it to crater, and for pieces of debris to be send high into the air.
Yuri had already jumped out of the way, and now he began to rain down fire on Wrath, from his elevated position on the wall.
Although they were standing on the wall like it was the ground, Yuri was farther up the wall and closer to the ceiling than Wrath was. So, in a sense, he had the "high ground" and the advantage, because Wrath had to fight against gravity while avoiding his attacks.
Wrath made it look easy though, dodging and jumping and using explosion to help him avoid the wind flame and lightning spells that Yuri was launching at him.
Something in Yuri's expression shifted, as he then held out his other pistol.
While he continued to launch attacks at Wrath with the first, he charged up a completely new sequence.
A light spell, combined with a defensive spell, layered with an acceleration spell combined with an explosion and a small-scale portal spell.
The defensive spell summoned shields made of mana, that hung in the air around Wrath and Yuri.
Yuri then pointed his gun at one of those shields and fired. He pointed at another and did the same.
He continued to do this, firing into the shields, which in this case, he had set to reflect instead of absorbing.
The multiple light spells were reflected back and forth throughout the mirror like shields, none of them colliding with each other due to Yuri's excellent placement.
The light began to pick up speed, as it bounced back and forth through the shields, and as the acceleration spell kicked in.
All the while this was happening, Yuri continued to fire off blasts at Wrath, forcing him to continue to dodge, keeping him within the area of the mirrors.
Masayoshi caught unto the plan as well, and he began to flip through the pages of his book, while at the same time commanding his flame spirit to launch flames at Wrath, slowing him down even more.
Finally finding the right page, he turned his attention back to Wrath, before imbuing his chains with a homing spell, making the target wrath.
The chains came alive, and like long 20-foot snakes made of metal, they flicked at attempted to wrap themselves around Wrath, who was slowly beginning to be overwhelmed by the number of attacks.
The light that was bounding around mirrors had now reached a speed so fast that it all mixed into one huge stream of light. Yuri then shifted the direction of one of the shields, causing the beam to divert its path, and head straight for Wrath.
As per Yuri's magical sequence, the explosion was set to detonate as soon as the beam of seemingly just light hit something.
Wrath must have anticipated that, because he them let out a massive explosion, that nearly collapsed the entire wall, vaporizing all of the spells and a few of the chains that were assailing him.
However, the beam of light hadn't been caught in that explosion. At that moment, the small portal spell activated.
The beam appeared from above, and Wrath blasted himself backwards.
Yuri then used his mana switching technique.
It turns out, the entire time that Wrath had been distracted, Yuri had not only been preparing that light beam magic sequence. He had also been imbuing all of the debris in his surroundings with mana. Specifically, his own mana.
Mana switching allowed for you to switch yourself with things made of or imbued with your mana.
However, it also allowed for you to switch two objects that met those criteria with each other.
And that's what Yuri did.
He switched himself with his spell, along with any random debris imbued with his mana.
Constantly. Over and over and over.
This three-way switching, along with the attacks that Yuri fired, made it impossible for wrath to keep up.
The light spell was always switching places, and so was Yuri.
He couldn't devote his mana sense to tracking just one, because he would undoubtedly be hit by the other.
Even if he could track one, Mana switching would throw of his senses, and he'd still be hit.
But the final nail in his coffin?
The fact that Yuri was faster and stronger than usual.
Because he was being buffed.
Masayoshi's scales of justice. The technique allowed for him to make use of buffing spells on those he found innocent.
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
Wrath tore his eyes away from the constant switching in front of him, to look at Masayoshi.
There was a bright blue orb and green one on his left hand.
Those orbs, along with whatever spell was in his book, were buffing Yuri currently.
Masayoshi face had shifted. There was a bit of agony. A bit of confusion. But most prominent of all, anger.
Before he could truly realize that he had been got, the wall behind him had been completely vaporized.
His world turned to a bright flash of white.
He felt an unbearable pain in his chest.
And the entire lobby of Theta Magic Academy had been nuked.
※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※
The rain had only worsened over time. It pounded on the ground outside with such force and frequency that the sound of it drowned out everything else.
Blades clashed, and arrows whizzed by.
It was an all-out-battle, that was showing no signs of slowing down.
All around the battlefield, different students were playing their part.
Luka and Himori, two third year students were leading the charge, putting their all into commanding the frontlines, and pushing back the men in Python tattoos. They were two very charismatic leaders, who managed to keep the morale of the troops up.
Ren was constantly moving from one side of the battlefield to the other, keeping watch of sections of the battlefield, helping out where it was necessary, and reporting back to Luka and Himori. He also helped to make sure their orders were relayed to everyone.
Along the battlements of the magic academy, Riko and Ayung Shibai, along with other members of the magical engineering branch were manning special cannons that launched spells of magic down below. They were using this artillery to support those down on the ground.
Erika and Nova, along with Leo and another second-year student, where tasked with holding of the other two stronger enemies that had appeared.
Erika jumped backwards, avoiding a bolt of lightning that crashed into the ground in front of her.
Her opponent followed quickly, launching a devastating combo of punches and kicks, that Erika twirled out of the way of.
As she avoided the last of the attacks, she jumped up, and from behind her, Nova appeared.
The ring on her finger glowed a bright purple, and purple veined lightning flicked instantly from the ring towards the man in the black suit Infront of them.
Activating a shield spell, the attack was blocked easily, however it was just a cover.
Erika came in on a slant, and swung her sword, which send a massive line of flame shooting out.
The man ducked, however Nova followed up even quicker, slicing the air with her finger, creating a slit in which a blast of water was fired.
The man in the black suit was unable to avoid that attack, and it caught him across the shoulder, spraying blood into the air.
He stumbled back for a second, and Erika hopped unto the opportunity, driving a knee into the man's chest.
Before he could be launched away, she grabbed his suit, however he suddenly let out a massive burst of lightning from her body, that blew her away.
Sliding backwards and next to Nova, she shook her hands, where the sleeves had been burned off to the shoulders.
"Thats the first good blow we've landed on him." Nova said, as she adjusted her blazer. Her eyes analyzed the opponent in front of her, who was taking stock of his own injuries. Nova's hands were shaking slightly, and she was bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet.
Erika noticed this and placed a hand on her back. "Remember what you told me? Calm down. One thing at a time.
Nova looked at her with a pleased expression before noddin-
BOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!
A massive explosion suddenly ripped through the air, coming from inside of the magic academy.
A massive plume of smoke and flames rose, as the entire wall crumbled.
The dark world of rain was enveloped by a storm of smoke and fire.
Debris was launched through the air, and it was only thanks to the quick thinking of those manning the artillery that people hadn't been hit.
The plume of smoke rose so high in the air that it towered above the magic academy, and someone slammed straight into one of the battlements on the outside.
Holding a hand above their heads and looking up in shock, Erika and Nova tried to figure just what the hell was going on.
The entire lobby of the magic academy had been caught in the radius of that blast, and even more concerningly, parts of the exterior were showing signs of crumbling.
The explosion had shooken the very ground, and violently at that.
Many people had been knocked off balance, and even more were hit by a few stray pieces of debris.
Erika suddenly snapped her vision back to her opponent, realizing that they may have used this moment to attack, however-
They were no were to be found. In the sky, a bolt of lightning was streaking its way towards the training arena.
"Damm-"
Erikas's curse was cut off by another sudden explosion that rocked one of the battlements of the magic academy, blowing it off of its base completely.
The massive structure began to tilt, to lean, before it finally began to fall, crashing a path directly towards the students who were gathered under.
Many of them began to move out of the way, to used magic spells to launch themselves away from the blast, but many were to far to make it, or to stunned to move.
Erika and Nova moved to use a magic spell to destroy the massive tower however someone else was quicker, and equal as powerful.
A massive blast of mana completely vaporized a majority of the tower, and the rest of the debris fell harmlessly to the side.
Out of the massive smoke plume that was not going to disappear any time soon, came two people.
Yuri Hamanai, the defense force captain,
and Masayoshi Shibai, a member of the special defense force team.
Their black trench coats were flowing in the wind, and both of them were breathing heavily.
From the other side of the battlefield, emerging from where the battlement once stood, was Wrath, the one behind the second explosion.
And now, the trial to decide the true meaning of justice, had its jury.
And so, the trial truly commenced.
※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ ※ Masayoshi and Yuri stood atop of the crumbling remains of one of the walls. Down below them, the battle had briefly ceased so that they could view what was going on above.
Directly across from them, Wrath was laughing hysterically as he approached. A massive hole where the battlement once stood was behind him.
"I have to admit, that was a good one!" As he praised their attack, he clutched his stomach, where his shirt and coat were burnt, and there was scarring on his skin.
"Do you surrender?" Masayoshi asked, all the while attempting to keep the mask of cool on his face. The longer and longer this fight went on, the more and more his mask of calm began to slip. Eventually it would fully shatter, just like it did on that night with his father.
He would be forced to confront what his father had taught him to hide.
His own self.
And so, to distract his own mind, he turned back to the other battle being waged alongside this one.
The battle to decide what justice truly meant, and if it truly existed.
"You condescending prick! Do you think I'd give up that easily! Just how much better do you believe yourself to be?" Wrath spread out both of his hands, the mass of flesh in his right eye expanding and closing along with the action.
"These fights been given an audience. A jury. They'll watch, as two ideas of justice clash. And one dies."
Masayoshi took a deep breath, allowing a few of his chains to unravel.
"As one is executed."
Wrath sneered at the boy's correction. He then pointed to his eye. "This. This thing that makes you so repulsed. It is the source of my power. The source of my strength. These explosions that I used to get rid of the old, and bring about Justice, they all come from here."
Masayoshi and Yuri both took a look closer, analyzing the thing.
It had veins and arteries connected to it that reached out through his body. Using mana sense, they could tell that the mass of flesh was indeed powered by mana. It could be likened to a tumor.
Without warning, and before either of the boys could finish their analysis, dashed forward, kicking up a cloud of dust and debris behind him.
Yuri jumped into the air and landed unto the wall, while Masayoshi remained on the ground of what was once a complete wall, no rendered to a tightrope.
Flicking all 10 fingers, all 10 of Masayoshi's chains slashed out, which Wrath jumped over and through.
As soon as his boot touched the floor, Masayoshi wrapped a chain around his leg and pulled.
Mid-air, Wrath gyrated his entire body in the same direction as Masayoshi had wrapped the chain, causing it to come lose.
Still flying towards Masayoshi, Wrath lashed out in a spinning kick, which Masayoshi ducked under, while simultaneously blasting a flame spell at him.
Wrath waved his left hand, detonating the flame spells, before allowing himself to slide along the rest of the wall.
When he stood, there was a gun at his head.
Yuri had already used mana switching to intercept Wrath.
Masayoshi jumped into the air just as Yuri fired.
The rest of the walkway was obliterated, and Yuri jumped unto the remains of the wall. Masayoshi stood next to him. Flipping through his book, he casted a defense raising spell. The Green orb on his left hand glowed.
"I have a plan, howe-"
A hand grabbed Masayoshi's dace, before suddenly shoving it into the ground.
Thanks to the buffs, Yuri acted immediately, firing his gun and preventing Wrath from detonating an explosion.
However, Wrath maneuvered his body in an almost inhuman way, before kicking at Yuri's head. Yuri dodged, backpedaling, and Wrath dragged his right hand across the ground, causing another explosion.
Yuri instantly was able to see what Wrath's strategy was. He was attempting to separate him and Masayoshi; in order to give him enough time to kill him and then remove the buffs he was giving to Yuri. Then, he'd finish off Yuri.
Yuri dashed through the smoke, fired a few shots immediately, however Wrath and Masayoshi were nowhere to be found.
Scanning around frantically, Yuri whipped his guns around in an attempt to locate where Wrath had taken him.
If he didn't act quickly, Wrath would kill Masayoshi.
"YURI! CATCH!"
Yuri snapped his head upwards to see Masayoshi falling down towards him. Grabbing him, he slid down on the wall.
Looking around to see where he had come from, Masayoshi saw two people land next to him. Wrath landed in front of them.
The two people who had landed next to them were Erika and Nova.
Erika had an apprehensive expression on her face, and Nova looked jumpy.
"Than-"
Suddenly, Yuri couldn't speak, because the aura Wrath exuded nearly brought him to his knees. Down below, multiple people fainted and passed out.
Wrath was cackling, cracking his neck while allowing his aura to flow out freely. It enveloped the entire courtyard, exuding a pressure that was nearly crushing.
Using mana sense, one could see that the aura being let out from his left eye, the one with the mass of flesh, had increased dramatically.
"LET"S END THIS! SHOW ME WHAT YOUR JUSTICE MEANS TO YOU!" Wrath called out, in a taunt directed at Masayoshi.
He had finally stopped holding back.