To be precise, my romantic rivalry with Aislyra didn't begin on that exact day. It actually took me an entire month to finally come to terms with my feelings for my beloved Fortore. But the moment I became certain of those feelings...
My rivalry with Aislyra intensified beyond anything I could have imagined.
Although, when I think about it calmly now, I understand perfectly well that this romantic rivalry exists solely because of me. I know full well that Aislyra sees Fortore as nothing more than a dear friend. There has never been even the slightest hint of romantic feelings between those two.
Of course I know that. I've known that muscle-headed woman for more than sixty years.
And ever since that day, I've also paid close attention to my beloved. Because of that, I understand that the feelings Fortore has for Aislyra aren't romantic either. Unlike the way he behaves around practically every other woman, he treats her exactly like one of his male friends.
But even if their relationship is like that...
No, wait! Precisely because their relationship is like that...
I can't help being jealous!
From that day onward, my beloved Fortore often—although not always, considering his duties as a Royal Knight—joined Aislyra and me on our hunting expeditions. And it was during those outings that I began noticing the overwhelming difference between the way Fortore treated Aislyra and the way he treated me.
Those two were almost always standing side by side. And it happened with such natural ease that neither of them ever seemed to make a conscious effort to get closer to the other. Or the way they casually touched each other as though it were the most natural thing in the world. Although, to be fair, it was almost always Aislyra who shamelessly punched or shoved my beloved.
But more than anything else...
Whenever those two were talking, sparring, or arguing with each other, my beloved's face would blossom into a completely genuine smile. A smile that was bright, sincere...
And, if I may say so, wonderfully rough.
It was completely different from the refined, elegant smile he always wore whenever he spoke to any other woman.
In my opinion...
It was the most beautiful expression my beloved had ever shown.
An expression...
That was never directed at me.
That is precisely why, even though I know that winning this match almost certainly won't earn me the same place in Fortore's heart that Aislyra already holds...
At the very least, seeing my true strength might allow me to get a little closer to him.
And perhaps...
Just perhaps...
That wonderfully rough smile might be directed at me.
Even if only once…
THAT'S WHY I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO INTENTION OF LOSING!
All of those thoughts, together with the memories of that day, lingered within Emeralda's mind for an entire minute.
Her consciousness was already on the verge of collapsing from sheer exhaustion. Even so, her body continued moving almost entirely on instinct, barely managing to parry the relentless barrage of blows delivered by the silver-haired princess.
Despite that, the damage she sustained was obvious. The number of frozen cuts covering her body had tripled. Even the emerald embedded within her bow was beginning to crack under the tremendous strain.
'Damn it... I almost lost consciousness!' Emeralda thought as the freezing pain spreading throughout her body jolted her fully awake, brutally reminding her that she had finally reached her physical limit.
'My body won't endure many more attacks... But after seeing all of that again... there's absolutely no way I can lose!!!'
The golden-haired elf tightened her grip on Emerald Duke before declaring,
"I'm sorry, Mother... But just this once... I'll have to break my promise!"
The instant she finished speaking, she thrust Emerald Duke forward against Aislyra's greatsword.
For a single fleeting instant—the absolute maximum her exhausted body could manage—she succeeded in stopping the relentless assault of both her rival...
And her best friend.
Immediately afterward, she poured every last ounce of power she could still muster into the Wind Guide spell, drawing back the bowstring with all the spell's strength.
A nocked arrow, colored the same ominous shade as a storm-filled sky, materialized upon the string, ready to be fired.
A huge smile of pure excitement spread across Aislyra's face.
"I see... you're going to use that spell! But are you sure, Eme? Aren't we standing a little too close?"
Emeralda paid no attention whatsoever to her opponent's warning.
Gathering every last fragment of strength remaining within her body, she shouted at the top of her lungs,
"ELRENO ARROW!!!!!!!"
This time... She managed to complete the entire incantation. But that didn't mean using the spell this time was without risk...
It was true that Emeralda had improved tremendously since she was a fourteen-year-old girl.
Her control over Elreno Arrow had reached such an extraordinary level that, if she had found herself in the same situation as she had on that day—assuming, of course, that her spell had not been interrupted before she could cast it—her mastery would have allowed the tornado to instantly engulf all fifteen kidnappers before carrying them far enough away for her to safely unleash its full power without the slightest risk of being caught in it herself.
Back then, however, although the kidnappers had surrounded her, they had all kept at least half a meter of distance between them and her.
Now, things were completely different.
Emeralda and Aislyra were literally pressed against each other. Because of that, the risk of Emeralda being swallowed by her own spell was just as real now as it had been back then.
Worse still, she knew perfectly well that even if she somehow managed to create a little distance, Aislyra would simply drag her right back into the exact same position before she had the chance to fire the storm arrow. In fact, there was even a very real possibility that the Queen's bodyguard would seize that brief opening to defeat the already exhausted Emeralda with a single decisive strike.
That meant Emeralda had no choice.
The arrow shot forward.
At that exact same instant, she channeled virtually every remaining drop of mana in her body into her legs through Physical Enhancement.
Then, the greatest Ranger on the entire continent launched herself backward with an explosive leap.
She poured so much power—and so much mana—into that single jump that both the muscles and tendons in her legs suffered severe damage.
Almost simultaneously, the arrow sped toward Aislyra at such incredible velocity that even Fortore—with a maximum speed that far surpassed lightning itself—would have struggled immensely to dodge it. The silver-haired elf didn't even have enough time to attempt to defend herself with Ice Burn.
Even if she had.
She wouldn't have tried.
Aislyra already knew that the only way to avoid the truly dangerous part of Elreno Arrow was to evade the projectile completely.
The storm arrow slammed directly into the center of her chest.
Although it barely managed to damage her armor, that had never been its true purpose. The real attack began a fraction of a second later.
A small tornado formed precisely where the arrow had struck. Then, in less than an instant, it expanded until it completely engulfed Aislyra.
At that exact moment, the referee, Pinusal, cast,
"Sacred Wings: Protection!"
Two enormous wings of nearly transparent light appeared behind his back before immediately folding around the millennial elf, forming a massive protective dome. Meanwhile, Chiacchere—having learned from the previous day's incident involving the Dark Knight—had already positioned himself safely behind one of the arena gates.
Thanks to that desperate leap, Emeralda barely managed to avoid being pulled into the tornado herself. She landed roughly ten meters behind it. Even though she had escaped its grasp, her magical energy had been almost completely exhausted. And her legs were in an absolutely terrible state.
'Ah... it's just like that day...But at least this time I managed to cast the spell...And it actually hit its target...'
Emeralda thought as she landed.
That didn't mean she could allow herself even a moment to relax.
She knew perfectly well that trapping Aislyra inside the tornado for only a few seconds would never be enough to defeat her. She had to keep the spell active for as long as she possibly could.
Ordinarily, that wouldn't have posed much of a problem.
Once Elreno Arrow has been cast, it no longer consumes mana to remain active. All it requires is a modest amount of concentration from its caster. As long as that concentration is maintained, the tornado can continue raging for up to an entire hour. There was, however, one enormous problem. Unless it was controlled with absolute precision throughout its duration, the tornado would continue growing larger and larger. Long before reaching its maximum duration, it would eventually expand to its full width of four point two kilometers.
And the arena simply wasn't large enough for Emeralda to move the tornado far enough away to guarantee that she herself wouldn't eventually be caught within its devastating winds. As a result, Emeralda had no choice but to devote her full concentration to carefully restricting the tornado's growth while simultaneously retreating as far away from it as possible. Completely stopping its expansion was impossible. The best she could do was slow it down.
Emeralda clenched her teeth.
And then she did exactly that.
After forcing the tornado toward the far left side of the arena field, she slowly began crawling backward toward the right, never allowing her eyes to leave the raging vortex she had created. Meanwhile, the tornado that had trapped Aislyra and was hurling her violently in every direction continued to grow.
Its diameter steadily expanded.
Its winds became increasingly more violent.
If not for the magical barrier protecting the audience, a large portion of the spectators would have been in real danger of being swept away by the devastating winds.
And while most of those watching were simply captivated by the spectacle unfolding before them, others couldn't help wondering whether it was truly right for a mere mortal to possess the power to create something so terrifyingly close to a natural disaster.
On the other hand...
Their queen's eyes sparkled with pure excitement as she watched such an extraordinary spell in action.
Because of her battered condition, Emeralda needed an entire minute to reach one of the arena's Indestructible gates. The instant she arrived, she desperately wrapped both hands around it.
By then, the tornado's winds had already reached their maximum speed. Its size, however, was still nowhere near its limit.
Emeralda bit her lower lip. The mental strain required to control the tornado was overwhelming. At that moment, that pain had become the only thing keeping her conscious. After all, she couldn't afford either to be swallowed by her own spell or to allow it to dissipate prematurely.
Even though she could no longer see Aislyra inside the storm...
She was one hundred percent certain that not even a full minute inside that tornado would be enough to render her unconscious. That meant she absolutely couldn't allow her concentration to waver. Not even for a single instant. Because if, for any reason whatsoever, Elreno Arrow were to collapse while Aislyra still retained consciousness...
There wasn't the slightest doubt that Emeralda would lose.
Five more agonizing minutes passed.
By then, the tornado covered well over half of the arena. The only reason the golden-haired elf had not yet been dragged into it was because she had clung with all her remaining strength to one of the arena's gates.
Her eyelids had become unbearably heavy. Her mouth was stained with her own blood after repeatedly biting her lips hard enough to force herself to remain awake and focused.
Even so...Within those nearly lifeless emerald eyes...
Hope had begun to form.
After all, she hadn't seen any significant movement within the tornado for quite some time. There was a very real possibility that. She had actually managed to defeat Aislyra!!
But that newborn hope was shattered only a few seconds later.
The tip of an enormous greatsword suddenly burst out from within the heart of the raging vortex.
At the very same instant, a powerful scream echoed across the arena, overwhelming even the deafening roar of the artificial natural disaster.
"Iceberg Sword: Enhancement!!!!"
The massive blade came crashing downward.
With a single overwhelming slash...
It cleaved the tornado cleanly in half.
The storm froze solid in an instant before collapsing onto the arena floor as nothing more than countless shattered fragments of ice.
Before Emeralda could even comprehend what had just happened...
The tip of Ice Burn was already less than a centimeter from her throat.
"I'm sorry, Eme. You've definitely become stronger since the last time we fought. But once again...
Victory is mine," said the silver-haired elf with absolute confidence.