[Scarlett PoV]
Our family—the Jimenas—is one of the most prominent noble houses in the Empire. Every citizen respects and fears the power we possess.
Fire is a symbol of destruction, a symbol of burning hatred and rage. This is the hallmark of our lineage, the source of the Jimena family's strength that has allowed us to thrive and maintain our current status.
"Hatred makes our family strong," those were the words Father always told us.
At the time, I still didn't understand what he meant. I always thought it was nonsense. How could a human live if their heart was always filled with a burning hatred? How could someone be happy if resentment was their primary path to power?
But I realize it now. There is no such thing as love if you do not hate. Love gives birth to hatred, much like my hatred for the man standing before me.
I witnessed how hard Geralt worked, training relentlessly to duel Brian again. The actions of the man in front of me are like spitting on every ounce of effort my brother has put in. I cannot forgive him; this has gone way too far.
Yes... Father was right. I must learn to hate someone if I want to protect my family.
I can feel my power surging as my anger reaches its peak. This is the true strength of the Jimena Family. Activating Acceleration magic, I blurred toward him.
"Fire Claw!" I shouted, my fingers wreathed in flames.
However, the man easily evaded my fiery talons. I wouldn't give him a single moment to breathe. I attacked him with a relentless barrage—left and right, punches and claws—but not a single strike landed.
He moved as if he could read exactly where my body was going to strike next. I focused my mana to activate a specific spell. These next two attacks would drain a significant portion of my reserves.
"Pillar of Fire!"
A magic circle appeared on the ground beneath his feet. Moments later, a pillar of flames erupted 20 meters into the air. However, he had already activated Axio magic to leap away and dodge.
Again, it was as if he knew my move before I even made it.
"Fire Ball!" I tried to snipe him while he was still in mid-air.
The man dodged by contorting his body in flight. He then swung his leg down, landing an Axe Kick that I blocked with both arms. He followed up by spinning his body and kicking me in the head, sending me tumbling to the ground.
Ughhh... I clutched my head as I struggled to stand.
"Do you hate me?"
I heard the man's voice.
For some reason, the way he looked at me made it feel like he knew everything about me. I hated it... and my answer to his question was obvious.
"Stupid question." I refocused mana into my palm. "Flame Wave!" A massive torrent of fire erupted from my right hand, surging toward him.
The man ran, trying to outpace the spread of the flames. The surrounding trees began to catch fire. I didn't care; all I wanted was to incinerate the person who had crushed Geralt's dreams.
I aimed at him with my left hand. He looked toward me. Would he dodge again? Could he really read my movements a second time? If so, I would simply create more attacks until one finally hit.
"Meteor Shower!"
A dozen fireballs manifested around me and rained down upon him. I saw him dodge several, but due to the sheer volume of the assault, the remaining fireballs finally slammed into him.
— Boom!
An explosion erupted upon impact, and my vision was obscured by the resulting cloud of dust.
"Hah... hah... hah..." I was beyond exhausted. I had just focused every drop of my remaining mana into that last attack.
"I suppose this is enough... Sister has avenged you, Geralt."
Tap... tap... tap...
I heard the sound of footsteps. A black-haired man emerged from the settling dust of my explosion.
"No way... how can this be?"
He stepped out completely unharmed from my strongest attack!? How did he do it? My magic should have been stronger than ever, given the depth of my hatred for this piece of trash.
"You look confused, Scarlett," the man said, walking slowly toward me. "Do you even know the nature of your true power?"
What was he talking about? I didn't care; I had to burn him with an even greater flame. I pointed my hand at him once more.
"You'll suffer from Mana Exhaustion if you keep forcing your magic like this, Scarlett."
I don't care if it kills me, as long as I burn you to ash!
"Fire Ball!" I launched a sphere of flame directly at him.
But he just stood there, making no effort to dodge.
— Boom!
Once again, after taking a direct hit from my fire magic, he looked perfectly fine without a single scratch. How? Was he using a magic I didn't know? Why wasn't my fire working on him?
"You must think that by fueling it with rage, your magic becomes stronger," the man said, now standing directly in front of me.
Of course I did. I am a direct descendant of the Jimena Family. Our magic has always been tied to anger, hatred, and spite. I felt the change in my spells myself as my emotions peaked during this fight.
"You're different from your family, Scarlett."
Hearing his words made my anger surge even higher. What did he mean, I was different? Geralt and I were born almost at the same time. We have the same hair as our father; we even inherited our mother's beauty. What nonsense was this man spouting?
"Don't act like you know me, you trash!"
I punched him in the face until he fell to the ground. I had never felt this much rage toward another person in my entire life. I mounted him, pinning him to the earth, and grabbed his collar with my left hand.
That look in his eyes... I hated the way he looked at me, as if he were pitying me.
— Bam! Bam! Bam!
I struck his face repeatedly until his mouth began to bleed. Having vented my frustration, I placed my palm directly in front of his face.
"Burn to ash. Fire Bullet."
This time, I would make sure that annoying face was scorched beyond recognition.
But my fire wouldn't ignite. The man then smiled, as if he had known this would happen all along.
"Why...?" I raised both my hands. "What's wrong with me?" My magic couldn't hurt him at all.
I stared at my hands. I had never experienced anything like this. My fire magic was clearly active, yet it had lost the burning effect that should have turned his face to charcoal.
"This is your doing, isn't it?" I pounded on his chest. "What did you do to me?"
He caught both of my hands. My tears began to fall onto his face.
Step...
I heard a footstep from the side. A short, brown-haired man was standing there, looking at us with a face full of questions.
"Emm... am I interrupting something? Should I come back later?" the brown-haired man—Piers—asked.
I suddenly realized our position looked exactly like a pair of lovers in the middle of a quarrel. I scrambled to my feet, pulling my hands from his grasp.
"It's fine, Piers," the jerk said. "How was the scouting on the two Clans?"
Piers walked closer. "Well... for the Dragon Clan, they only have 10 members left out of the original 40. But unfortunately, their leader—Geralt—hasn't been eliminated yet. I heard he managed to reach the riverbank before going over the falls."
Hearing this, I breathed a sigh of relief. So, Geralt is safe? And what about his rival—the one he always wanted to beat, Brian?
"As for the Lion Clan, they only have 20 members left from their original 55," Piers said, answering my unspoken curiosity.
I see. They both survived... I was so grateful. Geralt could still achieve his goal of defeating Brian in this exam. All his training hadn't been in vain.
My vision began to blur... my entire body felt weak. Was this because I used too much magic? My body started to collapse, but I felt someone catch me, holding me up so I wouldn't fall.
After that... a heavy drowsiness took over, and I lost consciousness.
***
[3rd PoV]
On the eastern side of the island, at the Lion Clan's basecamp—which had just lost more than half its members a few hours ago—the remaining members were discussing the recent disaster.
"I suspect that pervert planned this from the start," Valeria said, analyzing the tragic event. "He intentionally interrupted your duel to provoke both Clans into chasing him into that cave."
Hearing Valeria's explanation, Ariel's expression turned somber. Previously, Ariel had hoped Raul could change after he had the courage to apologize to her following his defeat by Brian. She hadn't expected his actions now to be far worse than before.
"That coward Raul! He doesn't dare face me directly, so he uses these dirty tricks to win!" Brian shouted.
The rest of the Clan felt the same. They held a deep, burning grudge against the black-haired man for causing half of their Clan to be eliminated.
"Brian, after this incident, the points we've gathered are enough to ensure the remaining members pass this first stage," Valeria noted.
Brian looked at her sharply. "Are you saying we should just split the points among those left and let the eliminated members fail the exam?" he asked coldly.
"I didn't mean it like that. But with our current numbers, it will be harder to fight the Eagle Clan, who still have most of their members, for more crystals. If we choose the safe path, we can pass without further fighting," Valeria replied, laying out the reality they faced.
Brian's mind wavered. He wanted to gather more crystals so he could share points with the fallen members, allowing them to proceed to the second stage. However, in their current state, confronting other Clans was risky. They faced a high chance of being eliminated themselves if they entered a direct battle.
"Brian! Someone wants to speak with you!"
One of the scouts returned from his mission, panting as if he had urgent news.
"Take it easy, friend. Tell me what you found," Brian said, trying to calm him.
"I just met with Geralt," the man said. "He says he wants you to merge the remnants of our Clan with what's left of his."
The faces of everyone present registered shock.
"Geralt will accept any terms to merge with us, as long as we share one primary goal for the remaining four days of this exam," the man revealed.
"Huh? What kind of goal?" Brian asked, confused.
"A total focus on hunting down Raul de Garcia."