Chapter 25
Once a student descended the stage, a magic spell would activate itself, summoning forth a caged magical beast; once released, the battle began. Throughout the process, there were those who were struggling and others who easily took out their a.s.signed magical beast.
There were a few matches that caught Maria's attention, such as the 4S Beauties of Diamond Academy. Despite their primadonna att.i.tude, it was clear that they had talent, such as Natsumi who excelled in fire magic, ending her match with a large powerful fireball attack, earning herself a few compliments from the teachers.
"Mou, that didn't put up much of a fight." Lily pouted adorably, earning praise from her fans, though Maria and a few others with common sense couldn't help but become wary of the Beauty of Spring.
The said girl happily skipped back to her seat. Belle, of course, performed superbly with her lightning magic, instantly KO-ing the beast with one hit.
The last of the 4S Beauties to appear on stage was Eira Snow. Instead of relying on her Bloodline Magic, the girl won her match by using a noteworthy water-spell, not even breaking a sweat as the effortlessly summoned the attack and won her match. Seeing this, Maria thought of how talent just naturally came to this girl.
"They may be stuck up princesses, but they got skill," reluctantly admitted Mai which Maria silently agreed with. The next couple of matches were more on the boring side until Maria caught sight of a girl that caused a lot of gossip from both the students and teachers.
The girl that caught Maria's attention had this ethereal that radiate from every fiber of her body, letting everyone know that without a doubt she was going to grow into a stunning beauty in the future with her l.u.s.trous moonlight silver hair that was strung up in a high elegant ponytail and amethyst eyes that glittered like gems.
The size of the creature was three times that of the girl, a menacing glint in its eyes as it glared down at the impa.s.sive girl standing before it. Maria had a hard time believing that this beast was ranked in the p.a.w.n cla.s.s. Asking herself, how could this girl remain so calm and not show any reaction?
When the beast tried to attack, the girl used some fancy footwork to dodge its attacks, and once she was quite a
"Wow, I expected nothing less from Astral's only princess, Princess Luna," Julian spoke in awe. Only when Maria heard this name did she briefly recall the novel mention something about a Princess Luna.
'Wait a sec... Didn't the story say that she died a young age in a horrific accident?' Maria recalled how the novel once stated that the crown prince had an older sister, but she was never introduced in the main storyline due to having died from a horrific accident when she was young.
No specific details were given, just one saying that the incident was horrific, and how it caused her mother to commit suicide. Now that this topic was once again brought back up, Maria had suspicions that the Empress was no doubt involved in the death of the original Princess Luna. When it came to royal families, there was always a history of brutal wars that went on behind the scenes in order to seize the power of the throne.
In Astral, either a male or female heir could inherit the throne, and t.i.tles could be changed in a blink of an eye. So to make sure that the child positions were kept, the obvious choice would be to eliminate the compet.i.tion, meaning any brothers or sisters that could prove to be a threat.
Every reader who read the light novel, A Fairytale Romance, knew that the Empress was a selfish and ambitious woman. A cruel woman who would eliminate the lives of innocents to justify her own needs without guilt. She was one of the main people against her son marrying a powerless baron's daughter who could offer him nothing.
With all eyes on that dignified figure below returning to her seat, Maria's curiosity behind her death grew. Asking herself just how did the eldest princess of Astral die, and why was it labeled horrific? What were the details behind it?
In the next group of names that were being called, Mai's name was on the list. The girl let out a whoop, happy to be able to finally show off the results from her training with her older sister. Both Maria and Julian wished the excited girl good luck, watching her dash forward and literally jump on the stage.
"Nothing too bad should happen to Mai, right?" asked a worried Julian.
"Let's hope not," Maria responded back. The matches down below began once the cage disappeared. Some students could not help but scream in fright whenever the caged beast came charging straight at them. Though such a case did not relate to Mai; the girl was hyped for a battle.
The Flame Claw Bear struck out with its paw, but Mai dodged it, and when it tried to land a hit with its other paw, she skillfully backflipped out of the way. The beast didn't like it when Mai dodged its attacked, kicking up its speed so much so that Maria and Julian both paled when one of its claws managed to scratch Mai's cheek.
Mai winced from the pain but was not going to let that keep her down. "Time to finish you off with a new attack I've been working on with big-sis!" Just like the last time at the carnival, Mai's fist began charging up with light magic, and as soon as she caught sight of an opening, she charged forward.
"Starlight Punch!" She leaped into the air and landed a strong right hook in the Flame Claw Bear's face, knocking it down for the count as she stood on its body and posed victoriously. Earning a round of praise and cheers from her two friends in the audience, she shot them a peace sign.
After Mai's turn, names were once again called out, and it seemed that this time it was Julian's turn. Gazing at the poor lamb, both Mai and Maria sweatdropped once they saw him on the verge of puking and gave him a comforting pat on the shoulder.
"You got this, Julian! Give 'em the old one-two!" encouraged Mai, demonstrating a few boxing moves.
"Go out there and break a leg, but don't actually break a leg. Just give it your best shot, okay?!" Maria tried to lift his spirits. Lips curving into a small smile, Julian was happy for his friends' support.
"Okay... I'll try." Bracing himself, Julian made his way toward the stage.