The early morning light burned through the trees, silhouetting the wafting branches across a large field of deep blue flowers that pulsed silently and blanketed nearly all of the immediate area. There my opponent awaited, protruding from such scene like the stuck-up irritant he was. I guess this means our arrival was anticipated. I hope Brook is okay…

Either way, it’s time to kill this jackass.

“Found him! Ass-kicking time!”

“-Ella.”

I glanced over at my grim-faced companion, curious if this might be a last-minute confession of his undying love-or perhaps a heroic bestowal of some grand token that will eventually reunite us? I hope it’s the first one.

“Please be careful.”

Oh? Well, that’s close enough for me. I smiled at the thought and sent him a quick wink to reassure him that I knew what he meant.

“You too.”

I turned away to hide my blush, though I’m pretty sure he already saw it, and rapidly approached the wizard, assisted by my innate magic. The power flows so easily through me, I often forget that most people require wands or staffs to manifest useful magic and was briefly confused by the water-mage’s attentiveness to the style of my approach. He watched me -no- he watched the magic that wrapped around me as if seeing the mystical energy for the first time. The fact that I’m beautiful probably doesn’t help either.

I touched the ground gently, allowing the magic to trail off into nothingness in such a way that only a master wizard might understand, much less appreciate. The brat’s stupor faded with my dismissed magic, and our eyes were finally able to meet.

“Impressive. You might have been a match had you not forsaken your staff, or wand, or amulet, or whatever you use. From what I saw, you might have even overwhelmed it with sheer magical power someho-huagh!?”

I don’t have Ash’s patience.

I brought my previously idle left hand up slightly, flicking a fist-sized ball of fire directly at Vetara’s face, but maintained a blank expression. To be honest, I allowed boredom to leak through my normal rosy demeanor in hopes of avoiding the monologue altogether, but he didn’t notice soon enough. It’s his own fault, really. Because his eyes were closed, the strike nearly met its mark, but a flare of opposing magic erected a wall of liquid just before he met the time-saving demise I had prepared.

Reeling back from the unexpected blow, my opponent made a brief attempt to salvage his dignity by dramatically stepping to the right. Fortunately for myself, this left the billowing robe he wore unprotected, and a second flare set its gold-embroidered hem ablaze.

He paused momentarily, noticing the sudden warmth that had already begun to cascade up to his sleeve, then proceeded to douse himself and what remained of his “dignity”. I probably could have landed an attack instead, but this is turning out to be infinitely more entertaining than an act of swift justice. Against my better judgement, I let out a giggle.

“You think this is funny?!”

“Yup, it reminds me of when I accidentally set the tablecloth on fire, then put it out with an expensive elixir that turned the carpet into a frog.”

I’m not going to lie; this is making me feel a lot better. Besides, even if I can’t win, this should buy enough time for Ash to free Grace. I’ve yet to find any major shortcomings in his abilities when it comes to winning people over, especially when that “people” are of the opposite gender.

“Well you… Wh-What the hell is wrong with you?! I wasn’t ready yet! You and your friends will- “

“-are you really going to do this again? Because if you keep on talking, I’ll consider it an attack and use bigger fireballs.”

I summoned a generous amount of magic to prove my sincerity and assumed a noticeably more defensive stance. I can sense large amounts of magical power radiating from the cute little flowers beneath us, and it -if utilized well- might wreak some havoc on anything in its path. Best not to be in its path, then.

“Alright, then. Let’s do this your wa-pfft! “

Impatient, I hurled another ball of fire, this one being similar in size to my torso -considerably larger than those judged by other torso standards- which prompted him to take several large steps to the side once again. This time, however, he made no efforts to stroke his clearly well-stroked ego and returned instead with a skillfully designed spear of water. With a simple flick of his wrist, the Water Mage sent the object streaking toward me with impressive precision.

Naturally, I require a magical artifact to rapidly localize magic or cast most spells, but brute force is still within my scope because of my excessive magic reserves. Even without a brush, I can still paint.

The air in front of me erupted into a wave of magical fire, which I rapidly condensed with my hands just in time to remove the spear from existence. Heat consistently erupted from the newly formed orb as it twisted and churned in a futile effort to escape my grasp. While rolling the ball of bright red energy into my right hand I created yet another burst mere inches from my backside, propelling me toward my frustrated opponent.

“Son of a bitch!”

With little time to act, the one known as Vetara waved his wand horizontally, creating a crude, but notably large barrier of pointed ice -a spell only masters use, but never on such a large scale- and forcing me to use my attack a bit early. I flicked the little orb out, watching as it began to gradually expand and clear a safe path, or so I’d hoped.

I was met with a torrent of blades shaped from ice which tore through the weakened attack and obstructed my view of the enemy. The world around became a million white sheets of layered snow and ice, pressuring me into a small bubble of intense heat. Where did this burst of power come from?

“Ah, right. The flowers.”

I sensed the mage’s wand drawing from the nearly endless store of magic surrounding us, feeding the boy’s natural talent with all the resources he could ever use to make a battlemage like no other. No wonder he has so much confidence.

‘Let me out.’

Oh, right! I need to escape this somehow! I begin to concentrate, looking for any weakness or flaw in my opponent’s attack that I could exploit.

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‘I know you can hear me.’

Trying to force my way out won’t work since he will simply make this storm follow me until I run out of magic or do something stupid and die. My only option is a direct attack that will redirect his efforts to self defense rather than an unrelenting oppression. When that happens, I’ll be able to break free and kill him like I had initially planned.

‘If you’re about to risk our life again while I’m literally right here…’

It’ll work.

‘Fuck you.’

I can do this.

‘No, you actually can’t.’

Alright, here goes nothing!

‘I hope we both die so I can kick your ass in hell.’

I summoned a disk-shaped wall of fire nearly ten feet in diameter, then struck out with its center in hopes of directing a more precise attack. Just as I’d predicted, the opposing mage responded to the pointed cone of magic almost immediately, and the storm’s intensity waned enough for me to receive a brief moment’s rest.

Taking advantage of this relief, I directed the protective bubble’s energy up and through the storm’s center, consistently feeding the cylindrical barrier an oppressive amount of magical power. Another explosion followed, knocking Vetara off his feet then down on his ass in a tangled mess of fancy cloth flailing limbs. I knew it would work.

‘It didn’t work, moron.’

“Oh yeah? Watch this!”

‘I knew you could hear me.’

I paused briefly, cursing under my breath while summoning another ball of flame to my right hand. Vetara, now able to move his arms and legs, somehow rolled himself into an upright sitting position before immediately beginning to search for the wand.

“Why you-damn, it’s just a stick-stupid little bitch! When I get my wand, I’m gonna blow your ass out… of…”

The mage paused, staring at me in astonishment as if he’d somehow forgotten the situation. Perhaps my nine-foot-tall-and-still-growing fireball threw his misplaced self-confidence into question, or my brilliant smile was just too much to handle. Unfortunately for him, I’m already spoken for.

‘Is that so? Then how can you reveal yourself so comfortably to another man?’

“Wh-!?”

I glanced down at myself, suddenly remembering why I use magic sparingly. While retracting into a slightly less revealing ball on the scorched ground, I subconsciously released the magical writhing flames behind me. They dissipated into nothing with a series of audible pops and snaps just as the opposing mage finally returned to his senses.

“Ha! I found it!”

Vetara scrambled to his feet, unfolding a stiffer portion of his robe to reveal an almost transparent white wand. The attractive artifact’s crystalline surface rippled at the mage’s fingertips, tainting the pure magical conductor with a faded blue pulse of light. I began to summon another wave of fire, but my opponent had already prepared half a dozen ice spikes that would pierce any unprepared defenses I’m able to conjure.

However, dodging with magical bursts is an option if I absolutely abandon all modesty.

‘I’m taking over.’

“No, wait! I have a pla- “

***

It’s a strange experience. The physical plane, I mean. There’s always something rubbing up against you from every direction-air, clothes, the ground-, but still it is unpredictably comforting.

I glance down, slowly exploring with my hands to become more accustomed to this well-developed body. Though exposed, I felt very little urgency to defend myself against the impending onslaught. Right now, I’m simply marveling at how few scars my lesser half attained in my absence, especially considering her tendency to leap before looking.

‘Hey! What are you doing!? Stop being a weirdo and kill that guy so I can get back out!’

Speaking of which.

“Shut up. I’m not leaving until I meet and possibly incinerate whatever suitor claimed you.”

“Who the hell are you talking to?!”

An unpleasant screech from the jackass Water Mage nearly turned my ears inside out, instantly pissing me off. I looked up at the confused figure with an intense malice that I hadn’t felt in years. Damn, I’ve missed this.

An ethereal purple light flickered to life at my feet, dancing up my legs as it proceeded to cover my nudity in a seamless purple dress that clung tightly to my shoulders and waist. Designed to flatter this body, not that that it’s necessary, the silk-like material and ankle-length hem will also allow me to move freely while remaining modest.

‘You think too much.’

“You think too little.”

I pinched the soft clothing between my thumb and forefinger, idly rubbing them together in a circular motion with undisguised boredom. My eyes loosely glanced at the surrounding area. This jerk would ruthlessly assault a lady of such overwhelming beauty with no intention other than to kill a foe. I wonder what that damned elf did to piss him off…

“Fine. If you want to play that way…”

The water-wizard recaptured my attention, tightening his nervous fingers around the smooth object in his hand as if to threaten me. How… boring.

“I don’t know what the fuck just happened, but something tells me I should take you a bit more seriously.”

Oh, really? Could it have been the complete disappearance of my magical aura that alerted him? Or perhaps it was the dress I summoned with magic he’s likely never even heard of before.

The mage closed his eyes, leaving himself wide open as thousands of magical veins ejected their stores into the air at once. I watched silently as he swung the wand around in a dramatic horizontal arch and smiled menacingly in my direction. I grinned in return.

“Do you know what surrounds us right now, bitch!?”

He spoke again, testing my well-developed patience once more with his pubescent squeal that should have long been outgrown. Behind him, a fierce blizzard of white blades tore at the dirt and obscured my view of the scenery behind it. Fine, then. I’ll be the adult.

“Yes. Klaeki flowers. A damn ocean of them.”

He seemed slightly uncertain at my response, yet still ventured to press for more.

“D…did you know- “

“-that they sprout where a ‘kind soul’ perishes and contain trace amounts of magic? Yes.”

My opponent’s face twisted with genuine hatred, and he redoubled the stream of magic that fed into his rapidly intensifying spell. A contorted mouth made it difficult for him to form any coherent words for several pleasant seconds, but just as all good things must come to an end, so shall I suffer his final words.

“Imp!”

A single word barely had left the mage’s lips before a blink of violet light flashed, consuming his vision and all he ever was, then vanished into nothing. All that remained now was my own enraged figure, glaring in a way that a lady never should at the spot where he spoke that one word.

“Imp?”

I was barely able to hiss the word through my tightened jaw, repeating the insult one more time. No self-respecting mage would acknowledge the existence of such a boorish reference, much less scream it at an opponent mid-fight. A suitable ending, I think.

‘Where’d he go? He won’t come back, right? He was mean to my fiancé, so I was gonna kill him, but I guess you doing it is pretty much the same thing. If Ash asks, though, tell him it was me.’

Ella really is a refreshing breath of air sometimes, albeit a shallow one.

“I… separated each quality used to classify a ‘living being’, broke them down into tiny pieces before scattered his essence across five different planes. He won’t come back.”

I stepped forward, thoughtfully approaching the small wand that rested on a small pile of scorched dirt. The object was masterfully crafted, likely by a god or some legendary craftsman that eventually became a brand.

The sky had rapidly become a deeper shade of blue since I awoke, as the morning drifted into day. The sun, now visible just above the clearing’s far tree line, cast a beautiful glow that fully illuminated the wand’s position. Naturally, I searched for its handle, though it was relatively difficult to discern the symmetrical weapon’s handle from its tip… it probably doesn’t matter, I’m sure either side will work.

I extended my hand straight out, palm facing down towards the small pile. A response came almost immediately, the wand twisting and bending into unpleasant shapes as it reacted to an unfamiliar magic. I smiled as a deep purple color began to spread from its center, impressed by the artifact’s ability to contain the syrup-like energy that now coursed unceasingly through it.

‘Blow it up! Make it suffer!’

“I’m not going to ‘blow it up’ you moron. Just be quiet while I-”

I froze. A shadow pulled my attention up, captured by a creature that shouldn’t exist in this world. The sky itself stood no chance against such an incredible mass, and even I felt dwarfed by its power. No magic was summoned but another unseen force pushed me down so that I was nearly immobilized. I have no desire to die here, but how could I flee such an attractive challenge?

‘Hey, guess what?’

“…what?”

The shadow moved at an incredible speed despite its size, striking the ground with enough momentum to create a ripple of debris and air that mercilessly hammered against my defenses. It quickly blew past, leaving an empty battlefield, save a few scattered figures, a violet wand, and an oddly shaped black hat.

‘I called him first.’