Born in apocalypse

The duel continued to end as a new one began... they had been dueling for who knows how many rounds, yet it still seemed they could go for many more. No matter the round, both of them cast spells with the same determination.

Dhruv stood tall, his breath steadying as he focused his senses upon mana. The intense back-and-forth had begun to fuel him, the raw power inside him bubbling to be unleashed.

’I couldn’t allow it... not without having control over it. Not yet,’ Dhruv thought, gritting his teeth.

Whoosh!

Activating his dash, Dhruv moved from his position as an enhanced ice spear passed him, just a few centimeters away.

Controlling himself, he concentrated on manipulation, drawing upon the mana from his core. After this evolution, he couldn’t help but feel he had a limitless source of mana... no matter what he used, his core couldn’t dry out.

A sphere of molten metal formed in Dhruv’s hand as it spun rapidly. Positioning it perfectly, he hurled it towards Aurora as the sphere left a trail of fire in its wake.

Aurora raised a barrier of ice with the little time she had, but unfortunately, the sphere was too powerful. It shattered the barrier and the force sent her stumbling back.

Creating a pillar of ice behind her, Aurora stopped herself from dropping to the floor.

’What a quick learner he is...’ She couldn’t help but be amazed by the speed at which he was adapting. It was almost as if he was just copying everything he was seeing.

The more she fought, the more impressed she was getting.

Calming her beating heart, she summoned a blizzard, the wind howling as snow and ice swirled around her. Focusing all the ice at a single point, she fired it with great precision.

Trying to block the attack, Dhruv summoned a wall of flame, but the concentration of ice was much greater this time. Penetrating the flame, it hit him directly in the chest.

Blood dripped from the wound as the cold began seeping into his bones. Not faltering a bit, he created a wave of fire. A golden flame appeared over his chest as the wound disappeared without leaving a scratch.

Aurora smiled, sensing his resolve, and took a moment to steady herself. She knew this wasn’t over. Her mind raced, thinking of the next strategy. She knew her master’s strength was overwhelming, but his control was the key.

No matter how adaptable Dhruv was, in the end, his control over mana was still less than hers. he was still in his learning period after all.

With a graceful motion, she conjured a flurry of ice shards, each one shimmering in the cold air. Knowing the outcome, she hurled all of them toward Dhruv.

As she predicted, her master reacted instantly, summoning a shield of molten metal to deflect the incoming attack. The ice shards collided with the shield, melting instantly with a hiss.

Him only using spells of fire and metal wasn’t coincidental, nor was it done unintentionally. Aurora had suggested he level up these two elements first, and that is what he was trying to do.

Besides this, there was another reason as well. Dhruv was purposely using spells of only these two elements so as not to overwhelm her. If he were to use illusion or even Authority, there would be no chance for her.

Running toward her, Dhruv began infusing his fist with flame. Without any mercy, he swung the flamed fist at Aurora, who deftly dodged and countered with a burst of frost, aiming to slow his movements.

The frost clung to his arm, but with a burst of heat, he melted it away. Not having any other option, Aurora retreated, her eyes narrowed as she summoned a wall of ice to separate them.

Not impressed, Dhruv raised his hands and blasted the wall with a powerful stream of fire, melting it into a pool of water.

Aurora didn’t miss the opportunity as the water slithering on the ground quickly turned into spikes, trying to pierce his skin. The spikes couldn’t move further as the flame enveloped them, and turned into mist.

’Such precise control over her surroundings,’ Dhruv thought, a smile appearing on his face.

’This round seems to be ending as well...’ Aurora thought, gasping as she noticed the mana inside her core getting drier and drier.

’I have to push him... some more...’ A plan formed in her head as she waved her hand.

A blizzard formed around Dhruv, turning into a whirlwind of snow and ice. He struggled but only for a moment. With a bit of manipulation, a surge of heat radiated from him, dispersing the blizzard in an instant.

Using Tempest Charge, he dashed forward, his fists ablaze once again, launching a barrage of fiery punches at Aurora.

Aurora danced in the middle of the arena, her agility keeping the fists out of reach... but only barely.

Dancing, she conjured a spell, creating a series of ice pillars that shot up from the ground, trying to trap Dhruv. Extinguishing the flame, he covered his fists with metal and shattered the pillars with a single punch.

Not only was his magic power impressive, but his strength was also nothing to scoff at.

As the duel continued, both of them pushed their limits.

Aurora’s control over her magic was impeccable, with each spell she executed, her precision only seemed to increase. Dhruv’s raw power was a force to be reckoned with as his attacks grew more intense with each passing moment.

Seeing the scenario of the battle, a smile appeared on Aurora’s face. In the midst of all this, she decided to execute it.

Distancing herself from him as far as she could, she began manipulating a larger amount of mana. Seeing this sudden change in behavior, Dhruv became confused for a second, which gave her enough time.

With a wave, she summoned a perfect spell, a swirling vortex of ice and wind forming in her hands. Murmuring, she clapped her hands as everything began to fuse into a single speck of ice.

Satisfied with the end result, Aurora looked at her master. Smiling, she blew the speck toward Dhruv.

The speck moved slowly at first, then instantly gained incredible speed. Everything around it began to be sucked into it as a magnificent vortex of ice, snow, and stone began moving toward Dhruv.

Seeing the spell approaching, Dhruv braced himself, ready to counter. But as the vortex approached, something shifted within him... he understood something.

He wouldn’t be able to defend himself, not when he was...

...holding back.

And the moment this thought appeared, something exploded inside him. Dhruv felt a surge of power, a wild, uncontrollable energy bubbling to the surface.

Everything was happening so subtly... so subtly that he wouldn’t notice anything until it was too late.

Raising his hand, Dhruv manipulated his mana as a massive burst of flame erupted around him. Controlling the mana, he began pulling it all together as it started to compress.

His multitasking brain did its wonders as the flames continued to burst forth while compressing at the same time. Sensing the approaching threat, two wings sprung from his back.

They moved on their own as Dhruv lifted himself into the air.

Looking down, he observed the spell. The red-hot flame was no more... now it was replaced by a ball of searing blue flame. Locating his target, he hurled the ball of death toward it.

Boooooooommmmmm!

Reaching her in an instant, the flame engulfed everything within itself.