千寻影视

"How well do you think Sir Brandon would fare against Lady Belle?"

"That\'s an unfair comparison, don\'t you think? Lady Belle\'s number one among her peers."

"Ah, right. I forgot about that."

"Yeah, and you know just how Sir Brandon was before attending the Academy."

"..."

Brandon\'s face scrunched up as he overheard the crowd\'s conversation.

The original Brandon Locke…

Just how incompetent was he...?

When Belle had told Omar that they were about to spar, Omar looked as if he was in disbelief.

As if he didn\'t expect the current Brandon to accept the sparring session.

—Go!

Breaking him out of his thoughts, the referee\'s voice boomed and the match had started.

"Wooooh!"

The screams and cheers of the crowd followed shortly after.

\'Right, Belle told me to show them everything.\'

Why?

What was the purpose?

Regardless, he had to pay attention towards the opponent in front of him.

Belle Locke.

Just how large was the gap between the first year and the second year\'s strongest?

***

Tzz—!

As soon as Belle blinked her eyes, Brandon disappeared all of a sudden, and blue sparks rippled in the air from where he once stood.

Closing her eyes, Belle tried to feel the mana around the atmosphere.

"...There."

Crack!

With her superb reflexes, she was able to react to Brandon\'s attack. Turning sideways, a single swing of her sword had managed to parry Brandon\'s quick swing.

As the two wooden swords clashed, blue sparks coiled around.

Foooo!

Overpowering Brandon, a gale of wind pushed him, as he skidded back several meters.

"Eh..?"

She tried to follow up with a counter attack, but found herself unable to move.

Looking down, a layer of ice encapsulated her entire feet as it rooted her in place.

"Wooooh!"

"The Young Master is a Deviant?!"

Astonished, the crowd\'s screams echoed, reaching Belle\'s ears.

\'That\'s right, my little Brother is amazing.\'

Beaming with pride, Belle nodded her head.

Ever since they\'d arrived at the house, Belle had only ever heard compliments about her from the staff.

But never about Brandon.

And just the way their parents reacted when Brandon clumsily gave the excuse of changing his room\'s layout had irked her even further.

Her little brother…

He was amazing too.

Even more so than her.

She took pride in him.

Which is why she had asked him to spar in their arena.

Locke Family.

They were a family of military personnels.

A company that specifically trains and fosters Rankers. It was kind of like an Academy, but on the military side.

And her Father, Omar Locke, was none other than its General.

The shiftporter didn\'t lead to the basement, nor anywhere around the house.

No, it immediately led to the military base. Nôv(el)B\\\\jnn

An expensive shiftporter that could travel long distances.

Such was the financial power of the Locke Family.

It was only introduced lately in the market. But as soon as it did, Omar bought it without question just to try out the new gadget.

14:20

Omar had introduced it to her a couple of hours ago, which is why Belle knew its secret location.

Tzz—!

As Brandon disappeared, Belle closed her eyes yet again.

"There."

Swoosh—!

But instead of parrying his strike, a gale of wind blocked the attack for her.

There was a reason why Belle was the strongest second year.

And that was because in all of her matches, she had never been hit once.

But of course, that only stemmed from the second years. The third years were a different matter, and she hadn\'t faced any of them yet.

Her defense was impenetrable, and her sensitivity to mana allowed her to sense where an attack would come from.

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh—!

Brandon tried to strike her in a fury, but his sword couldn\'t find its way to even touch her.

But that was when…

Swoosh—!

"Uwaa!"

A sudden gust of wind lifted her up and sent her flying vertically in the air.

Tzz—!

Brandon flashed upwards and swung the blade down at her.

Swoosh!

Belle dodged the strike with ease as she pushed her feet in the air and skidded sideways.

Channeling wind on her feet, Belle started walking in the air.

"Wooooh!"

The crowd was yet again astonished.

What she just did needed expert mastery in their mana control, as well years of cultivating their [Wind] affinity.

Wherever she would step, a gale of wind would support her.

After being able to do it for so long, it became second nature to her.

It was as simple as breathing.

As Brandon was up mid-air, Belle used the opportunity to strike him down.

Boom—!

Her wind empowered sword made contact with Brandon, and he was sent crashing down on the ground.

But that was when…

"Uwaaaa!"

She was sent falling down along with him.

As if an invisible force was pulling at her leg.

What in the—

And that was when she saw it.

Threads.

There was a thin thread that coiled around her leg. The mana on the thread was faint, but Belle managed to notice it in time, as she broke free from its grasp with a small tug of her wind.

\'Is this one of his abilities?\'

Brandon had surprised her yet again.

Looking in front, Brandon was able to mitigate his fall with his wind, as Belle did the same.

"Wooooooh! Three affinities?!"

And once again, the crowd\'s cheers boomed, astonished whenever Brandon revealed his affinities.

\'Yes little Brother, show them everything. Show them just how strong you really are.\'

She nodded with a smile that beamed with pride yet again.

Her brother was an amazing mage, and Belle knew that.

She could tell he was going somewhere, and how bright his future actually was.

The same went for her. She started envisioning a future where the two of them would become top generals in the military.

But she broke free from her thoughts.

"Ah."

Right.

Guilt.

She started feeling guilty.

Leaving Brandon behind six years ago…

Did he resent her for that…?

She was unsure.

Which is why she had tried to rebuild their relationship ever since she returned from abroad.

They…

The day she left.

They didn\'t exactly part ways on the right foot.

The fact that her brother had become somewhat a bit cold had made her even more anxious.

\'Does he resent me?\'

He was an enigma.

He was cold, even aloof.

And the way he looked at her as if she was a stranger…

She felt uncomfortable.

But in the first place, it was her fault.

"Haa…."

She breathed out a sigh.

"Right."

Everyday was a chance to rebuild their relationship. To start anew with her younger brother.

It didn\'t seem like he hated her.

And that was enough assurance for Belle.

Kracka!

Bolts of blue lightning headed towards her.

Empowering herself with wind, Belle easily dodged it.

But the moment she did, Brandon had already appeared in front of her.

Swoosh—!

And yet again, a ripple of wind had managed to block his attack.

"Show them everything Brandon. Don\'t hold back against me."

Brandon\'s eyes widened at her words. But contorted to a smile as he nodded.

"Alright, Sis."

Belle nodded as well with a smile.

\'Ah, so he really doesn\'t hate me.\'

His smile.

He was able to give her a warm smile.

Crackle!

All of a sudden, the ground beneath her began to shake.

Looking at Brandon, she gave him a stupefied look.

"Earth?"

"Yup."

How?

When?

"What the…"

An earth pillar protruded from the ground and lunged towards Belle\'s face.

Crack!

But it immediately shattered from her wind before it made contact.

Her peripheral view was blocked from the earth dust. And as the dust settled, water bullets pierced through the air towards her.

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh—!

Supporting her wind defense with her swinging, the water bullets splashed around and drenched her slightly.

But Belle wasn\'t anxious.

She was smiling.

Show them everything. Your strength. Prove them wrong. Let\'s become the strongest together.

Such were her thoughts.

"Five affinities!?"

And the crowd went wild.

\'One more. He has one more.\'

And as if her thoughts were seemingly read, fire started cascading around Brandon\'s palms.

"Six?!"

Belle nodded as the crowd\'s roars reverberated throughout the entire arena.

The sheer sight of Brandon\'s affinities had made them go wild.

Penta Elem—

No, for some reason, Brandon was now a Hexa-Elemental Mage.

Of course, Belle was taken aback as well. But she decided to put her question on hold.

Brandon would tell her sooner or later.

She was counting on that.

She continued nodding as she smiled.

As soon as he sends the torrent of flames, Belle would end the sparring session.

"...!"

But that was when…

"Huaaaaaaaa....!"

The flames dissipated, and Brandon had started screaming.

Thud!

He fell on both knees and started ruffling his hair into a mess.

His eyes were wide open as tears had started to form.

"Haaa…. Haaa…!"

He started breathing heavily, to the point where even Belle could hear it.

Thwack!

And he started smacking his head on the ground.

"Brandon!"

She screamed but it all went to deaf ears.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

Her younger brother…

He was losing it.