A bit of an awkward silence settled on the crowd. Neither of the two that were up moved. That awkward silence was broken from the other side.

Saleh was extremely easy target. Or, that was how he often appeared. Having fought with him on numerous occasions on their journey. He started each spar in that same relaxed stance. Now, she knew this wasn’t relaxed or lax positioning.

There was a large issue that stopped her from being able to deal with him. Battlemage’s had the ability to wield mana like a physical object. They rarely had the ability to create with mana, since that would take a far deeper and thicker pool of mana. He was only Grade E.

With mastery over spells, they were a step above a normal mage. They didn’t need to sit in the back and wait for them to finish chanting a spell. The thing that made them the most dangerous was their ability to multitask.

Not sounding dangerous, what did it matter? The answer was simple, a normal mage was better than what she was capable of. They had higher level of concentration and didn’t need to just stand still to draw or make their cryptic words.

If Jessica moved while speaking those cryptic words, there was likely to be a mistake. Possibly caused by biting her tongue or slurring the pronunciation to some type of outside stimuli that broke her concentration.

Drawing itself almost required everything she had. She failed to cast a spell simply by standing still because she had to speak and draw at the same time. A normal mage could do both with ease. They were just as mistake-prone as Jessica, however, with practice their talent for the arts helps them overcome.

A battlemage on the other hand didn’t need to stand still at all. The requirement on their concentration and multitasking allowed them to do so much more. The standard of a battlemage was being able to hold a conversation while muttering a spell under their breath. Obviously, they would need to draw during this time too.

Saleh wasn’t even a normal battlemage. She had never seen him cast a spell in their spars. Using their unique ability to extend mana outside the body from Grade F, they can create armor type of substance from their mana. This allows them to fight physically with their opponent.

To top all of it off, Saleh was talented. It was to be expected from someone learning from Everblood. He could turn his hands into weapons. From claws to sharp instruments like knives and blades. Putting the mage in battlemage, like a normal mage. He would have vastly more powerful magic than a normal person.

Having sparred against, she wasn’t surprised. As soon as action happened. This side started out. Her opponent had a double-edged sword. With a forceful swing she sidestepped before drawing closer, shortly after she had to jump to the side.

“What a quick reaction.” While smiling, his eyes were anything but happy.

With two edges, he was able to swing down, then bring the blade back up for a second attack. It was a style she was not used to seeing. Jessica couldn’t afford any damage this early into the fight. After this opponent, their would likely start coming at them in pairs, if not more.

Making matters worse, she could hear the battle behind her. This guy was by no means easy to deal with. At the same time, he wasn’t exactly strong. Saleh, was stronger than her. She was agile, she made things very difficult for him with her unique style.

Yet… Would his opponents here match her? She didn’t believe so. Agile types were more often seen during assassination. Straight out brawls were disadvantaged to them. In a straight out brawl, he was extremely dangerous. Battlemages had been renown for large scale warfare.

Having a plan in mind, as the blade sliced at her, she released her dagger as it swept at her opponent. Not having expected such a move, he was slow to react. Missing the blade, he only worked to ensure his own doom.

In an attempt to deflect the thrown weapon. As fiber met the blade, it caused the blade to arc around the weapon. With enough clearance, missing a lethal blow. Damage was still done as the man shouted a scream by the unexpected damage.

Pulling her arm back, she dislodged the man from his stance. This caused him to stumble forward as he took one hand off the handle. Trying to bring it to his face, there was a shout warning him. By this point Saleh had killed his original opponent. Fear had already spread through them.

Seeing how fearsome he was, she, on the other hand, was slow. Nobody bothered to help on her side. By the time the man opened his eyes, he saw his opponent was gone. A dagger was shoved into his throat from the side.

Falling to the ground, he was able to see his opponent. She was using her dagger at a tilted angle to deflect a blade slicing down from overhead. From the darkening peripheral, he was able to see the dagger she had thrown. Snaking back around his blade as she claimed it, only to once again throw it and claim another life.

“You’re slow. I already got four. You only have on… Okay, two… Wait! Slow down!” In the short amount of time he had opened his mouth, she was claiming the lives of those that were looking for an opening to attack him.

Saleh was both happy and sad at this moment. Never had he had someone equal to him. Not even in the tribe. Once he found out, he was not a mage, but instead a battlemage. He started to accelerate his progression. Only those years older than him could be his equal. He wasn’t sure who was older, but he knew the two were close in age.

Their styles were massively different. He wasn’t flamboyant, but his style naturally shined as he did mundane things to slaughter those that tried to stand in his way. Like the sun shining down at the ground. He drew a large amount of attention. This constantly drew attention to himself.

By this point, he was used to using spells to clear away the masses. This came with a problem. He could cast very quickly, but not instantly. The most dangerous time was near the end of a battle when all the pressure was on. Any delay or mistake escalated dangerously.

Now, there was a shadow jumping from person to person. She intelligently moved closer to him. She didn’t outright come to his side. No, she stayed on the edge. Moving around him, running circles in fact. Constantly taking someone out before moving so those that saw her couldn’t attack her. Those that focused on him died to her. Those that concentrated on her, died to him.