Gilly was surprised; she had encountered many people who had a bit of surprising character, but this girl that stood before her was different. She exuded an aura of confidence around her, making her presence indomitable.

“Shouldn’t you introduce yourself first?"

Aroelan commented, walking towards Gilly’s side.

This made Astoria feel awkward; in truth, her father had been so engrossed in the moment that he failed to introduce her.

“Pardon my forwardness, princess Gilly. I am Astoria, and my brother here is Henry. We are the crowned prince and princess of Asram.”

They both bowed with elegance, showing their years of training and studying.

“Ok. With that out of the way, you said something about leadership.”

Astoria paused looking at Gilly, unsurprised she had not forgotten her words, a smirk visibly suppressed.

“Yes, my father has planned we will spar tomorrow, but don’t you think that will be boring? Why don’t we wager the leadership of the group on tomorrow’s outcome?”

Gilly looked at her for a bit then shook her head.

“I guess it runs in the family now. Battle perverts can only give birth to battle perverts.”

“Fine, but make sure you take the mission seriously afterward.”

Her tone was serious; she had experience with messing up because of emotions, and now Zenora paid the price with her life. Astoria nodded then turned back with her brother, who had been quiet, following behind.

“Gilly, you had better not underestimate her. She was in the same class with Zin, coming in second in the class after Zin, with Hilary in third and Ephini in fourth.”

She nodded.

The story had already been told by Valmor, so she knew of Astoria’s prowess. After a while, a maid came forward, offering to show them to their rooms.

…

…

In the morning, Gilly was already up early because of the dreams she had. For days, their occurrences had become more frequent, but she could never remember the details on waking. She wore her clothes, leaving the jacket behind with her sword in hand.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Wherever she passed, she was greeted warmly, constantly asking for directions until she arrived on an open field to the west of the castle. In the center was a square platform made of a white stone that had a faint blue glow on top.

Astoria was already there, doing some morning stretches. Her brother was under a tree reading a book. He turned to see Gilly. He smiled as he waved, but his smile betrayed his nervousness.

Gilly did not go to the platform but observed the scene before her. People were starting to gather, with quite a number of nobles and merchants and other important people. To the left and right were pavilions under which people sat.

Gilly took one final glance at Aroelan, who nodded in response.

Proceeding, she stepped on the platform opposite where Astoria stood. Richard was entering when all this happened; he smiled and walked to his seat, which was the most elaborate among all seats under the pavilion. It was at the left center in the right pavilion before he could go up a man dressed in a black suit proceeded to introduce himself. He had no aura and looked ordinary, so the five captains who were currently in his company paid him no mind.

The man shook Richard’s hand; a faint wisp of smoke flowed into his hand. He did not notice, so he proceeded to his seat. His son, meanwhile, looked at the strange man; he shook his head and continued reading.

Now the congregation was all seated, and Richard stood up, his voice thundering through the open field.

“Today we witness the prowess of two children of four heroes from the war. We want to see their strength surpass the previous generation; therefore, we hold this spar in honor of all heroes, both alive and fallen. The rules are simple: if a participant is knocked out of the ring, she loses. One can surrender, but under no circumstances should you attempt to kill the other participant. “

“Now let begin.”.

It was surprising to Gilly that Astoria only held an umbrella. But the feeling she got when she looked at the umbrella was nerve shaking. Gilly held the hilt of her sword when she noticed Astoria pointing her umbrella at her. At this time, the entire field was silent. She smiled wickedly as wind and fire revolved around the umbrella, forming a fireball at the tip, strange inscriptions glowing on the umbrella.

With a boom, the fireball flew toward Gilly. The speed of the ball was so unexpected as it flew, with a boom thundering behind it.

Gilly stood unfazed in the presence of the huge attack that approached her. With a grin, she took a quick draw.

On impact, the flame was split in two, making fire dance around her. She had a feeling of unease, so she jumped to her left. The bow of the umbrella flew past where she stood moments ago.Astoria, who was now visible, was holding a sword whose handle was that of an umbrella.

The movement of Gilly made Richard smile; he had only seen such instinct in King Gilad. The umbrella rebounded forward after hitting the barrier around the platform. Astoria dashed forward as the umbrella attached itself to her left hand, opening up like a shield. The shield had a faint ripple of blue mana on it.

They exchanged a few more blows, and at once it could be seen that Astoria had more experience in battle than Gilly. Gilly, on the other hand, looked composed; she was able to read the movement of Astoria since it was slower than Mizin’s. Again, Astoria dashed forward using the shield to hit Gilly; she had sidestepped, but her opponent’s sword was a wide swing. It struck her slightly, leaving a shallow wound on her right arm.

Gilly, at this point, began to recall all the teachings Mizin had given her in that "test." Astoria, after seeing Gilly hesitating, dashed forward and continued the barrage of attacks, with Gilly parrying some and dodged the rest. Up to this point, Gilly had not taken the initiative to attack. A quick draw clashed with Astoria’s shield. Even though it was of the sturdy nature of the defense magic, Astoria was still pushed back. On recovering her stance, she looked up at her opponent, her face becoming serious as she stared at Gilly.

Gilly’s eye color had changed, and all who made use of magic had noticed it, including Henry, whose book had dropped from his hand in shock. Astoria’s expression was sour as she saw Gilly’s pale sky blue eyes. Richard's expression had also become serious, a sly smile appearing on his face as he watched.

“Mana sight,” he muttered.

Gilly took a stance, her sword tucked in as she stared back at her opponent.

“I can see it.”

She was a bit shocked, as she could see lines flowing in the world around her. Astoria, who had been taking advantage of the openings she saw in Gilly’s movement, suddenly had her expression fall.

She could not see any flaw!She was like an iron fortress.

Gilly pulled her sword slightly, revealing a faint yellow glow. A quick draw and an arc of flame were sent towards the umbrella princess.

Though it was not fast, the heat coming from it could be felt around the platform. The crowd was surprised at the power. Astoria stumped her leg on the ground, and an earth formed in front of her. She jumped to the side, anticipating the next thing as the arc of flame shattered the wall before disappearing. She turned and raised her shield.

Gilly suddenly appeared, clashing with the raised shield

From the looks of it, now they were evenly matched, and Astoria was not happy about it.