*** Chapter 13: Boss Battle ***

The location for the last trial was a small grass clearing near the Cact tunnels. Not willing to risk being late, Eren and Lyra had turned up twenty minutes early and waited. The test was due to start any minute, but it was just the two of them.

"You're sure this is the right place?" Eren asked, sitting on the ground with his legs crossed. Even sitting, he was almost as tall as Lyra, who stood next to him with her arms crossed.

"Definitely. I grew up around here, remember? I know where stuff is." Lyra looked around, humming vaguely. "Maybe the other two gave up."

"If that happens, do we win by default?"

"I doubt it; they'll probably make a new test or get the runners up."

"Darn."

"By default is the only way you'd ever beat me, tin man!" An abrasive voice called out. Kena sprinted into the clearing with a piece of toast hanging from her mouth.

Why didn't she finish that already or eat it on the way?

"Sorry, we're late. Someone got lost," Jin shouted, hot on her heels.

"It's your fault; you should know better than to trust me to give directions!" Eren rolled his eyes at Kena's outburst.

"Don't worry; Yuki still hasn't arrived anyway," Lyra said, waving her hand dismissively.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Yuki commented blandly. With a puff of fog, she appeared in the centre of the clearing, accompanied by four flags on poles. "I'm glad to see you're all getting along so well, because you'll be taking the next test as a group."

Yuki paused to let the words sink in.

"The rules of this test are simple. I've cast a spell affecting this area," Yuki said, gesturing with a sharp finger in a sweeping arc. A trail of white appeared where she pointed, forming a white circle around herself. "I cannot leave this area. But when one of you enters and casts a spell, you'll be the only one able to cast inside the circle until you leave, at which point another mage may cast. The mage able to cast will receive a halo over their head." She pointed above her head, where a small yellow ring formed.

"There are four flags with each of your names on them. You pass if your flag is safe at the end of the test. A flag is safe when the person holding it has both feet on the ground outside of it-so no throwing your flag out. The test ends when two flags are safe. Only the owners of the safe flags at the end win; if a flag was safe previously but is not at the end of the test, it will not count. All other players who are not safe at the end lose."

Yuki gestured to the four near-identical flags. Each one had a different name on it, indicating its owner.

"Naturally, the no fighting rule will end as soon as the test begins. But that's not all. I will also be acting as a guardian to the flags, attacking anyone who tries to get them."

Walking into the circle, Yuki stopped in the exact centre. She crossed her arms calmly, a calm expression settling on her features.

Going first is the worst possible decision. Not only will Yuki still be fresh, but so will the others to try and take my flag if I do pass. For now, I should hang back and watch what happens, Eren thought. The others will probably think the same thing, though. Only a fool would rush in without a proper plan. But if no one acts, we'll just be wasting time.

***

"You have one hour, starting from… now."

Kena shot forward like a bat out of hell. Before anyone could react, she threw a stream of fire at Yuki. Not waiting to see the result, Kena raced towards the circle. Yuki casually sidestepped the flames, not even bothering to uncross her arms.

Not discouraged in the slightest, Kena dived into the circle. She didn't even look at the flags, focusing entirely on Yuki. Yesterday, Yuki acted pretty tough but never showed her full strength. Kena wanted to know what she could really do.

As she rushed toward Yuki, her hands began glowing with power. A halo formed over her head, marking her as the only one able to cast.

She aimed a vicious sucker punch directly at Yuki's jaw. Yuki spun on her heel, Kena's fist sailing past her face into thin air.

Continuing her spin, she thrust a hard elbow into Kena's side. Kena's eyes visibly bulged from the strike. Yuki may look like a twig, but she hits as hard as Eren.

Moving back to catch her breath, Kena watched Yuki closely. She was still standing with her arms crossed and tucked into her dress's sleeves, looking like she didn't even realise they were fighting.

Growling at the sight, Kena formed twin fireballs in each hand. Trying to box her in, Kena shot them to either side of Yuki. Kena rushed forward, intent on seizing the opportunity for all it was worth. But Yuki dodged around her attacks effortlessly, spinning past Kena.

"Such a pedestrian plan. Can't you be a little more creative?" Yuki commented with a dramatic yawn. Kena snarled like a feral dog.

Fire shot out of Kena's feet, propelling her forward. Yuki was fast, but so was she. Focusing entirely on speed, Kena unleashed a barrage of jabs at Yuki's body and face. But even with her increased speed, she couldn't lay a hand on Yuki. Yuki didn't even look like she was fighting, flowing between the attacks with the grace of a ballerina. She hadn't been bothered to uncross her arms.

"Stop messing around and fight!" Changing track, Kena tried a roundhouse kick, but Yuki floated back out of the way.

"Okay." Dropping low, she swept Kena's legs out from under her, knocking her to the ground in one swift move.

"How disappointing," Yuki muttered, looking down on Kena disdainfully, arms still crossed.

Kena couldn't believe how fast Yuki was. She was avoiding every hit effortlessly. But if she was going to keep dodging, there was one obvious solution.

Kena stood slowly, Yuki not bothering to attack her as she did so. Smiling, Kena began forming another fireball.

"Repeating yourself so soon." Yuki sighed dramatically. "If you're not going to be interesting, I'll have to end this."

Kena didn't respond, at least not verbally. Firing her attack, she didn't aim for Yuki. She aimed for the ground at her feet. Yuki was fast, but even she couldn't outrun an explosion. "Let's see you dodge this!"

Raising a hand, Yuki released a torrent of snow, triggering the fireball early. It exploded harmlessly between them. Yuki didn't even have to move from her spot.

"Why are you smiling? Your plan failed."

"Yeah, but I got you to uncross your arms." Looking down at her arms as if to verify Kena's claim. Yuki smiled serenely.

"Battle commences," Yuki began, shifting into a fighting stance. "Fire rages with all its might. Blizzard is unscathed.”

***

It was over. At first, Jin had thought Kena might be able to do it. Kena was one of the strongest people Jin had ever met; maybe fighting a guild member wasn't beyond her.

But she couldn't; the gap between her and Yuki was just too big. Yuki had just been playing with her the whole time. Jin wanted to help her, but she didn't know how to. The circle would stop her casting as soon as she stepped into it. Entering a fight like that without magic would be crazy.

"I don't believe it; she's so fast," Jin muttered in awe.

"Yuki's one of the fastest in the guild; hitting her is almost impossible," Lyra said.

"Do you know how it works?" Eren asked. "Her magic, I mean."

"She uses snow and ice magic. The dodging isn't magic; she's just that agile."

"That's impossible; it has to be some kind of trick," Eren muttered, holding his chin in thought.

"Well, it won't help Kena now, even if it is," Jin said. "Nothing can; the rules make working together impossible."

"I'm not so sure," Eren said. "Kena’s halo didn't appear until she cast a spell inside the circle."

"So I can cast as long as I stay outside the circle," Jin surmised. It was worth trying. Dropping to her knees, she began her spell. It would be slow having to cast at a distance, but it was better than nothing.

***

Watching Jin cast, Eren was pleased to see it worked. So he could enter the circle with his armour and weapons, provided he made them outside and then brought them in with him. He wouldn't be able to alter them on the fly, but it was better than nothing.

He didn't attack right away, however. In a situation like this, timing was everything. The tide of battle was clearly in Yuki's favour, but Eren knew better than to count Kena out so soon. The fire witch was a bottomless well of energy and power, and the angrier she got, the more dangerous she became. And thanks to Eren's advice, Jin was now going to be playing support.

Kena had forgotten about the flags, too. Even if she couldn't do any lasting damage to Yuki, she could make an excellent distraction.

Then I win. He saw Lyra out of the corner of his eye. She was watching with bated breath, unsure what to do. Then we win, he corrected mentally.

***

Yuki opened with a gut punch. Kena tried to dodge, but Yuki was too fast. It was as if she had moved towards the blow instead of out of the way. The wind knocked out of her, Kena stumbled back. Her stomach felt cold, as if it was full of ice. Kena leapt back, but not out of the circle.

Yuki gave chase but stopped suddenly, just before she could reach Kena. She glanced down at the vines wrapped around her leg.

Jin had joined the battle.

"Interesting, trying to drain my mana with magical plants. That's quite a rare ability."

Seeing an opportunity, Kena rushed forward with a haymaker. Ice spread over the vines, killing them instantly. With a rough jerk, Yuki freed her foot. But it had done the job; she couldn't escape and dodge at the same time. Kena's haymaker hit Yuki full force, the resulting explosion knocking her onto her back.

Kena tried to follow-up but was blown away by a wave of snow. Landing painfully on her back, she saw Yuki towering over her. Kena tried to move, but the snow had hardened, holding her in place.

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A vine appeared, wrapping around Yuki's foot, trying to stop her. "This again, how disappointing. I hate repeats; they're so uninspiring."

Casually destroying the plant, Yuki turned to its source. "You're boring me. Snow prison." She shot another wall of snow, barrelling Jin over. Jin tried to stand, but the snow hardened around her, trapping her in place. Sighing, Yuki turned back to Kena. "I hope you can give me more fun."

"Bet on it." Kena smiled. Triggering an explosion, she freed herself, throwing dirt, smoke, and snow everywhere. Using the temporary smoke screen for cover, Kena reared back a glowing fist, ready to end the fight in one hit.

Yuki grabbed Kena's wrist, squeezing tight. Kena tried to trigger the explosion, but it refused to detonate. "What the-?"

Her hand felt cold. It was like there was ice in her veins. "Congratulations. You managed to hit me once. Here's your prize, Candle." The cold began spreading, flowing up Kena's arm, filling her like water.

Kena tried to summon more power to set off her bomb. But nothing happened. It felt like the heat was flowing out of her, stolen by Yuki's icy claws. Rearing her free hand back, Kena aimed a punch at Yuki's face, but she avoided it with the slightest head tilt. "Dammit it, stop dodging everything!"

Changing tracks, Kena tried to summon a fireball in her free hand. But it wouldn't form.

"My poor sweet candle. You burned brilliantly, but-" Yuki looked at Kena the way a hunter looks at its prey. "All fires must burn out."

Growling, Kena threw another punch. Her muscles screamed in protest, the cold robbing them of their power; Yuki dodged without breaking eye contact.

Kena couldn't believe how outmatched she was. She had thought Eren was special. Then there was Achi, and while he was only so dangerous because of the terrain advantage, he nearly won. Despite all this, she had crushed both of them.

Growing up, no one else had ever been as strong as Kena before. But compared to Yuki, they were nothing. Kena was nothing.

The cold was starting to sink into her chest now. Her breaths were shaky and ragged, the air painfully cold in her lungs. She felt so weak and tired.

"Give in, go to sleep. It's so cold; you can rest now." It felt like Yuki's words were borrowing into her skull, forcefully embedding themselves into her brain. Against her will, Kena felt herself giving in, her eyes drifting close. It felt like the world around her was slipping away, leaving nothing behind but the sound of Yuki's voice.

A flash of metal brought Kena back to the real world. It was heading right for Yuki's throat. Yuki jumped back, letting Kena fall to the floor.

Drearily, Kena's eyes drifted to her saviour. It was Eren. His armour was thicker than ever, and he had a large poleaxe in hand, ready to fight. His features were calm and focused.

And angry.

Ugh. Why did it have to be him?

***

Eren knew better than to take his eyes off Yuki for even a second. "Oh, you think I'll just let her go? How quaint." Yuki leapt forward, hand outstretched like a claw, ready to tear Kena apart. Eren intercepted her. Swinging his blade in a wide arc, he forced her back.

"Your fight with Kena is over. I'll be taking her place."

Yuki smiled widely. "It's over when I say it's over." She shot a wall of snow, aiming at Kena's retreating form.

Eren had already decided to save Kena, so he had no choice but to block the attack. She wasn't going to survive another hit after all. Unfortunately, she still had the halo over her head; Eren couldn't create anything. With no shield, all Eren could do was brace for impact and hope his extra thick armour did the job.

But before the snow could reach Eren, a bolt of lightning met it in midair.

Not even a single flake touched Eren.

Looking at the source, Yuki smiled. "Eager lightning strikes. Lightning lasts just a second. The cold has no end."

Hoping to take her off guard, Eren slashed with his poleaxe, but Yuki caught it by the shaft. Ice started forming around it, rushing up its length. With no other choice, Eren dismissed it. A halo formed over his head as he instinctively thickened his armour. Kena had escaped the circle.

Changing tactics, Eren turned tail and ran. There was no longer any reason to fight. So he was going to escape. Unfortunately, Yuki wasn't going to let him do so. At least, not without a fight.

With a burst of speed, Yuki caught up to Eren. But just when it seemed she had him, Jin tripped her with a well-placed root. Lyra followed up with a quick bolt of lightning, forcing Yuki to roll to avoid it.

It was all the time Eren needed to escape the circle. Not willing to stay within shooting distance, the four fled the area. Strangely, Yuki didn't even try to attack them as they left.

***

Eren kept a close eye on Kena as she sat by the campfire; she wasn't shivering anymore, which was a good sign. Eren didn't know if it was deliberate, but the fire seemed to be responding to her, growing and receding with Kena's breath.

After they escaped, they soon realised they needed to warm Kena up. Yuki's attack had affected her deeply, chilling her to the core. They decided the best way to warm her up would be to build her a fire.

Building a fire proved very easy. Jin made a group of small trees. Eren cut them and arranged them into a campfire shape. Lyra then zapped it, and it burnt exceedingly well. Jin said she was able to make the trees extra inflammable, however that worked.

Magic is weird.

Eren was still shocked at how brutal Yuki's attack had been. The moment she touched Kena, the colour started draining from her skin. It was like she was sucking the life out of her. It was an uncomfortable warning of what a real mage could do. Especially considering Kena was a fire witch, she should be resistant to ice-based attacks.

"Thanks… for saving me," Kena said, staring at the fire. "But don't expect me to take it eas-s-s-s-s-sy on you-" Kena swallowed, stopping her shaking. "-this is still a test, and I'm going to win."

"Kena! He saved you," Jin scolded, slapping her arm lightly.

"Yeah, I know. That's why I said thanks." Kena crossed her arms, raising her nose like a petulant child. "Like it or not-t, only two of us can win. And one of those is going to be me."

"None of us will win if we don't do something about Yuki," Lyra chipped in. "Unless you think you can take her on alone?"

"What happened when she touched you? You just ... stopped," Jin asked.

Kena's face fell, a sudden shiver passing through her. "I don't know. I just felt so cold and tired."

"It was hypnosis, one of Yuki's magics," Lyra said.

"Is there a way to counter it?" Eren asked.

"Not that I know of; I've known Yuki a while, but we're not close enough to talk about stuff like that," Lyra explained. For mages, talking about the weaknesses of their magic was the ultimate expression of trust. Teams could work together for years without ever discussing it openly. It was just too risky. Several remarkable wizards had met their end because they trusted the wrong person with their weakness.

"Your friends with Yuki?" Jin asked, face blank.

"Well, sorta. I live near the guild, so I know its members a little," Lyra replied semi-honestly. Eren kept his expression carefully neutral to not give her away.

Lyra didn't have any tell at all, responding smoothly and without hesitation. She really is scarily good at lying.

"Whatever, I don't care what Yuki does in her spare time. I just wanna punch her in her beautiful face," Kena added, her fists glowing with power. They flickered out quickly, prompting her to warm them on the fire again. She smiled when they began to glow once more.

"Then we need to work together," Eren said.

***

Kena sniffed disdainfully.

"Like I said. I won't just let you win." Kena sniffed disdainfully. She hated that she had needed to be saved by Eren, of all people. But whatever it was Elestine had in mind for her, Kena would never find out if she didn't get into the guild. That meant she only had one option, even if it made her want to throw up just for suggesting it. "So here's the deal, we work together to take out Yuki. Then, when we’ve beaten her ass into the ground, we fight each other. Me and Jin, against you guys. Simple."

Kena stretched out her hand for a shake, the glow fading away. It was just a temporary alliance, not her asking for help. If anything, she was making sure they didn't get in her way when she took on Yuki.

Eren didn't take her hand.

"Actually, I think we can all win," Eren said, gathering everyone's attention.

Eren didn't elaborate straight away. Instead, he made a dramatic pause, smirking to himself like a child.

"So? How can we all pass?" Kena asked impatiently. The clock was ticking; she didn't have time to humour him. "She said the first two flags out won."

"No, she didn't. She said any flags left inside after the two flags have left fail and everyone whose flag is safe wins," Eren corrected.

"Don't see how that makes a difference."

"Well, if it was the first two out of the circle, there would be nothing we can do. But think about it; the way Yuki explained the rules so awkwardly. 'A flag doesn't leave until the person holding it has both feet touching the floor outside the circle'. So if one person steals all four flags…" Eren deliberately trailed off.

"... we all win. Hey, that's clever; how'd you think of that?" Kena asked. Credit where credit was due, Eren's trickiness was useful- in this one case.

"That's just how these tests are. There's always a trick," Jin said. Kena tilted her head in confusion.

"Wait. We couldn't even get a single flag. How are we supposed to get all four?" Lyra asked pessimistically.

"By working as a team. That's the test. If we all worked as individuals sabotaging each other and getting in each other's way, then yes, it would be impossible. But when we worked together, we were able to fight Yuki. We just need to do that again."

"You make it sound so easy," Jin muttered, smiling sardonically. Holding up her hands to the fire, she rubbed them together greedily, trying to coax more warmth out of them. She hadn't been nearly as severely injured as Kena, but Yuki's attack had affected her.

"Okay, maybe it won't be that simple. But we outnumber Yuki four-to-one," Eren pointed out. "She can't be that much stronger than us."

Kena sniffed, refusing to acknowledge Yuki was better than her.

"I think I understand Yuki's magic too," Eren announced. Lyra and Jin seemed very impressed by this, for some reason.

"Not a lot to understand; she makes snow and icy stuff," Kena dismissed.

"Yes, that's part of it, but I don't think it's all she does. Didn't you guys think it was odd Yuki dodged all of Kena’s attacks with so little effort?"

Seeing he had piqued their collective interest, Eren continued. "It was magic. She was using illusions to throw you off, making sure you kept missing her because you weren't aiming at the right place to start with."

Eren explained he had first noticed when Kena tried to overwhelm Yuki with quick attacks. Her aim had been perfect, and Yuki barely moved, yet every single blast missed. All the dust and smoke had made it hard to tell, but Eren was pretty sure that at least some had hit her, only to pass right through her legs.

"So it's hopeless," Kena groused. "If we can't hit her, we'll never win."

"There are ways to hit her," Eren said. "Her magic has flaws; for example, when Jin's vines held her in place, she couldn't dodge. Even if your aim was off, your haymaker still hit. I think using large, sweeping attacks helps. Punches are too easy to dodge with small movements. That's why, when I used a poleaxe, she broke it so fast."

"Most of us don't use weapons," Jin pointed out. Eren nodded as if he had expected the complaint.

"The other way is an area of effect attacks. When Kena shot her fireball, she intercepted it with snow so it would detonate early. She did it because she knew she couldn't dodge the explosion."

"Earlier, you turned the floor into metal and I zapped it. Couldn't we do that again?" Lyra asked, presumably referring to one of their previous challenges.

"No," Eren said, shaking his head. "Covering the entire floor would take a lot of time. Yuki won't just stand there passively while we do it. To beat her, we need to be fast. The pack wolf wasn't smart enough to notice our trick, nor did they have any way to respond, even if they did. Yuki could easily blast me or freeze, then smash my iron."

"Do you think that'll be enough? We can beat her, then do your flag trick," Jin asked, unconvinced.

"Well, there's only one way to find out. I'm with Eren; his plans for us this far," Lyra said, standing up with finality. "So let's get going. There's no use sitting around here doing nothing!"

Kena grinned, feeling the fire in her stomach sparking back to life. "Finally! Let's do this," Kena said, punching her hand and triggering a minor explosion.

"Right."

"There's one more thing," Eren said, ruining Kena's excitement. "I want everyone to take a weapon. The circle makes casting impossible, so you all need an alternative way to defend yourself; just in case."

Jin and Lyra both agreed. Lyra took a sword and Jin a chain whip.

"I don't need anything from you," Kena dismissed, turning her head away.

"I won't force you, but I think you should reconsider," Eren said. "Yuki was able to stop you from using your fire magic. It'd be good to have a backup."

Kena mulled over his words. He was right; she wished he wasn't. Working together was bad enough, especially because it was Eren's plan. But if she took his weapon, she wouldn't be able to say she fought using only his power. Jin gave her a small encouraging nod; Kena frowned. Still, she had let Jin support her in the fight with Achi; this was essentially the same thing. Eren being her support was appropriate, considering how much stronger she was.

"Fine... I'll take a dagger. A big clunky weapon would only get in my way."