Return of the Legendary Runesmith

Every participant was informed who they might be facing during the contest. So it wasn't like Elana was completely unaware of her enemy possessing the magma element.

However, hearing about it and facing the real deal in a battle were two different things.

"Ladies and gentlemen! This is it! A clash of two titans—Elana the Ice Dancer versus Averis the Magma Breaker!"

The commentator was as excited as the students. The two strongest students coming from two different academies were facing off against each other.

"And there they are! Power against precision. Heat against frost!"

Averis charged first, hammers blazing with molten energy. The ground beneath her sizzled as she moved.

"RAAHH!"

She swung hard, a full-body strike that could shatter a wall.

But Elana ducked—gracefully spinning to the side. Her baton struck out, ice bursting across Averis's shoulder.

"And that hit goes to Elana! That speed is unreal!"

Averis growled, her hammer swinging again—this time faster.

Elana leapt, twisting mid-air and landing a clean strike on Averis's leg. Frost spread quickly, slowing the magma flow.

But Averis powered through. She slammed her hammer into the ground—"Volcanic Pulse!"—sending a shockwave of magma surging outward.

The crowd gasped.

Elana flipped backward, her boots skating on a frozen platform mid-air. She raised a hand—"Glacial Shards!"—and launched a flurry of frozen daggers.

Averis blocked most with her hammers, but a few struck her arms and ribs. Blood dripped. She winced.

"Elana is dancing around the battlefield like wind on snow, but Averis… she's taking those hits and getting mad!"

"Enough!" Averis roared. Her eyes burned with rage.

She stomped hard—"Lava Chains!"—and fiery chains shot from the ground, aiming for Elana's limbs.

Elana spun again, one chain grazing her arm. She hissed in pain but retaliated fast—"Freezing Waltz!"—a spinning move that created a circle of cold air, freezing the chains and breaking them with a baton strike.

"This is spell after spell! Neither side is letting up!"

Elana moved in close—her batons hitting fast, landing blows on Averis's side, thigh, then chest. Each hit layered frost, weakening Averis's guard.

But Averis didn't back down.

She caught Elana's wrist mid-strike and slammed her down. The crowd screamed.

"OHHH! Brutal slam from Averis! Elana might be down!"

But Elana rolled, hands touching the ground—"Frost Bloom!"—ice burst out in a beautiful explosion, forcing Averis back.

Both were breathing heavily now.

Elana's lip was bleeding. Her shoulder was bruised.

Averis was worse—cuts all over, her right leg limping, one hammer cracked.

But she was still angry. Still standing.

"STOP MOVING!" Averis yelled. Her magma flared wildly. The heat in the arena spiked.

"She's losing control! But she's not going down!"

Elana, despite the pain, smiled faintly. She whispered—"Snowpiercer."

A spear of pure ice formed in her hand, and she threw it—fast and sharp.

It pierced Averis's shoulder, pushing her back several steps.

She roared in fury—but her legs buckled.

Elana approached, slowly now, batons spinning beside her.

Averis was down on one knee, blood dripping, breaths ragged—but her eyes still burned with fury.

Her cracked hammer dug into the ground, and the magma veins on her arms began to glow brighter, more violently than ever.

"Wait a second…" the commentator's voice wavered. "Something's happening—Averis is… she's not done yet!"

She slammed both hammers into the ground, roaring, "Infernal Cataclysm!"

The arena shook.

From above, the clouds swirled into a vortex of red and black. And from within it, hell descended.

A burning meteor—no, a sun-sized mass of lava and flame—was falling. The sky itself turned orange. Every inch of the colosseum felt like it had been dropped into a volcano.

People in the crowd gasped. Screamed. Cowered.

But Elana…

She stood in the middle of it, calm as moonlight. Blood dripped from her lip. Her legs trembled. But her hands, her eyes—steady.

She drew her batons together.

And then, she whispered:

"Frozen Domain."

A sudden pulse of blue light erupted beneath her. Snow flurried around her like stars. The ground turned white. A giant ice lotus bloomed beneath her feet, spinning rapidly, and above her—six crystal rings formed and hovered like halos.

The temperature dropped instantly.

A second spell circle glowed above her palm, and from within it, she pulled out a frozen orb—small, but pulsing with devastating cold.

Averis's sun fell from above.

Elana's orb floated up to meet it.

Two cataclysmic forces.

One of fire and rage.

One of ice and silence.

Set to meet—

"ENOUGH!!"

BOOM!

A shockwave, not of magic, but raw authority, cracked through the air.

Just before the two spells collided, a few figures descended between them.

The referees, one sliced the spell from Averis and one went against Elana.

With practiced ease and precise movements they sliced through the spells.

The Infernal Cataclysm shattered into harmless embers.

The Frozen Domain cracked like glass and scattered into snow.

Dead silence.

Then, a scream from the stands. "WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!"

"Did the referee just—break both spells?!"

"Was that even POSSIBLE?!"

The commentator's voice trembled with awe, "They... They dismantled two peak-tier spells mid-cast…with no chants, no circles, just a single slash. Ladies and gentlemen... THAT is the power of Grand Referees!"

Averis dropped to one knee, her entire body trembling with heat and frustration. "No... I almost had her…"

Elana stood still, her chest rising and falling as her breath came out in cold mist. She kept her gaze fixed on the empty space where her orb had floated moments ago.

The referees turned sharply toward the two fighters. Their voices rang out with authority,

"Drop your armaments and take three steps back. Now!"

Elana obeyed without hesitation. Averis, still dazed, took a second to process the command. But the weight of the referees' presence left no room for defiance. She unclenched her fists and let her weapons fall with a heavy clatter.

Gritting her teeth, she forced herself up on unsteady legs and stepped back.

One of the referees raised his voice again, "Team managers, step forward."

From the stands, Adrian rose with a composed look, his expression unreadable.

Just then, Aries leaned closer and asked, "What's going on, sir?"

Adrian's reply came calmly, "Whatever it is, it's from their side. Don't worry."

Around them, the students let out a shaky breath, clinging to his words.

They'd come too far to be pushed aside now.

Adrian stepped forward with a calm, steady pace. From the opposite side, Dextor did the same, his expression unreadable.

The audience murmured among themselves, confused and restless. Why had the match stopped so suddenly—right at its most intense moment?

Even the Headmasters, usually composed, wore tense expressions. For a battle of such high stakes to be halted mid-way… it was unheard of.

But the referees must have had a reason.

Once both managers stood beside their students, the lead referee took a breath and raised his voice for all to hear.

"We have reason to believe that a third-grade armament was brought into battle, violating tournament rules. After inspection, it is our decision that the participants—along with their team—will be eliminated from the tournament."

And…the bomb was dropped.

Everyone in the crowd was whispering and saying things.

Every headmaster looked concerned.

However, amidst all that, Adrian wore a very calm expression.

Why? Well, he already knew what was going to be the conclusion of this farce.

°°°°°°°

A/N:- Thanks for reading.