"We sure managed to get pretty far. According to Vin''s familiars that were scouting up high, we''re getting closer to the Ignifera deserts," I commented as I sat there on the ground, admiring the view of the moonlit plains as I played with the radiant nocturnal flower at hand. "Admittedly, we used quite a lot of potions to recover quickly and get back on the road but still."


    "To be honest, I''ve gotten kinda sick of the taste though," Leo complained with a pout, who was sitting near the campfire. "It''s like when you eat something so much that it stops being delicious..."


    Vin let out a sigh, sounding slightly defeated for some reason. "Can''t be helped. The alchemists either probably didn''t care that much to make different versions of it with varying flavors or didn''t want to risk messing it up," he explained as he threw alchemical fuel into the campfire. "Some potions have strict recipes that give no leeway for additions like that, sadly. Then again, I''m speaking as an amateur alchemist that''s been trained in the Astrum kingdom so I can''t vouch for the ones from the Kingdom of Gaia and Okeanos."


    "Why did you learn to make potions anyways?" I asked, earning the male''s attention as he turns to look at me. "I mean, you''re an engineer and a mage, aren''t you? Did you take it up because you needed certain items?"


    He nodded his head. "...admittedly, yeah. I was already busy as is but it was necessary," the blue-haired male answered, frowning. "We didn''t have alchemists in our group back then and we really needed solutions for our projects. Sadly, they were hard to come by since it was in popular demand so I took up the mantle of learning alchemy. I was curious about it anyway so it was a win-win for me either way."


    "I see. Sounds like you''ve been with that group for a long time then, huh," I pointed out, but stopped talking any further when I saw Leo looking down at the ground, a troubled expression written all over his face.


    Worried, I decided to approach the angel, sit beside him, and then poke him, who seemed to be off in his own little world. "Are you alright...? Do you need someone to talk to?"


    He jumps a little, as if I was interrupting his train of thought, then quickly glances at me and nervously laughs in response. "I-I''m fine! There''s no need to worry about me!" Leo hurriedly exclaimed. "It''s just something trivial so I can deal with it myself! After all, I''m supposed to spar with you right about now!"


    I blinked my eyes in surprise, realizing I completely forgot about that due to the laborious thinking, traveling, and small breaks throughout the whole day. "Ah, right, Vin did mention something like that earlier ago," I mumbled to myself as I looked away, my cheeks burning red from embarrassment. "It somehow completely slipped my mind. My bad..."


    "There''s no need to rush. After all, I won''t get an accurate assessment if both of you aren''t fully recovered," Vin commented, causing both Leo and I to turn to look at him. "As a heads-up, I''m going to be making use of portable training zones so don''t expect the fight to be in these plains. Rex happened to have some in that base so I took them since Leo needs to learn more about magic."


    "Makes sense. Those cubes were used so much during my time in the Academy, especially during combat class. They saved us from having to go out and about just to find an ideal spot for training," I said, nodding my head in approval.


    "Heh, really? That sounds pretty awesome, honestly!" Leo exclaimed, his eyes sparkling. "Seriously, it''s like mages live in a whole different world compared to us normal people! I can''t help but be jealous!"


    I couldn''t help but laugh while Vin smiled, amused. "Yeah, I can see why you would be. I couldn''t help but be amazed too when I first started off in the Academy," I admitted with a grin.


    Though, that quickly changed due to my Void affinity and becoming a Devourer but I can''t say that to him. Admittedly, it''s sad but there wasn''t much I could do. After all, we''re born with an affinity or two and have no say in the matter. Unfortunately, I ended up with the one that makes me the bane of mages. Because of that, I had to deal with a lot of hostility and fear from them.


    Suddenly, I felt someone pulling my cheek, yanking me away from my mind palace before I could be reminded any further about my unpleasant experiences. Frowning, I glanced at Leo, who was cheekily smiling at me.


    "Welcome back, Stella~! Nice to have you back with us!" he exclaimed as he stopped pulling my cheek and took away his hand. "Anyways, returning to the original topic, I already feel fully recovered because of the potion so I''m ready whenever to spar. Just say the word and we''ll start."


    ...I didn''t say anything but I guess my expression made it clear I was thinking about something sad, huh? Now that I think about it, he did mention before that my expression changed so much while I''m deep in thought.


    I let out a sigh, then returned the smile. "I''d prefer it if you chose something else to get my attention but thanks," I commented, then quickly stood up. "And if you''re ready, then I guess we could get started now. The barrier is already up but have you decided on what training zone we''ll be fighting in, Vin?"


    "Yeah, don''t worry. Due to our current situation, it was an easy pick so I didn''t need to think hard about it," Vin replied and got out a small transparent cube from his backpack. "In short, you two will be fighting in a city simulation. Imitating people will require more magical energy so it''ll have to be an abandoned city, though."


    "Good enough for me. Besides, having people in it would complicate the battle too much, right?" the angel stated as he got up, then glanced down at the blue-haired male still sitting beside the campfire. "And I assume I won''t be given any information about her affinity and what it does so you can see how I cope with dealing with unknown factors."


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    The archangel grinned. "Correct. At least you''re aware so that means less for me to explain," he said, chuckling to himself. "Anyways, there will be no rules for this fight. Just fight as you two usually would, okay? The zone itself prevents the fighters inside from getting harmed by using advanced spells so you don''t need to worry and hold back. Stella already knows the protocol for those like her so there''s no point in restating it."


    In short, don''t devour the spells that are protecting us. Otherwise, things might get dangerous pretty fast. Both of us nodded our heads and Vin then hurls the cube up to the sky.


    "Game start. Registering the two players, Stella and Leo."


    The angel seemed surprised at the chant while I, on the other hand, silently stood there as a magic circle appeared underneath both of us. The blue-haired male disappeared from view as our environment quickly changed before our eyes. It gradually turned into a cityscape as buildings of various sizes came to be as the spell constructed them. Once it finished, I couldn''t help but be reminded of the Astrum Kingdom''s capital city as I looked around.


    "Stella, regarding what Vin said, is the chant supposed to be like that?" Leo asked, causing me to turn my attention towards him and notice he was sent kind of far away from me.


    Knowing that he''ll still hear me no matter the distance since the zone magically connected the two of us, I spoke up. "Yeah, the mage responsible for inventing these happened to be a gamer," I explained with a small smile. "He took inspiration from the gaming simulators found in the kingdom Chalybes and thought it would be nice to have a portable version that you can use for training. The downside is that it uses a lot of mana for all the necessary things but the benefits outweigh the negatives."


    "Heh, so that''s why. I was wondering if that was the case. I also appreciate the fact that I can still hear you loud and clear despite the long distance," he replied, grinning. "Makes me want to go to Chalybes and check out those simulators, to be honest. Are they available in other kingdoms too or...?"


    I shook my head. "Not really, the Academy refuses to let them in for reasons unknown. I''ve heard that kingdom seems to butt heads with the Academy regarding a lot of things so it''s rare for inventions from that place to go to other locations. After all, before that organization was kicked out of Krous by the queen, the only kingdom that didn''t accept them was Chalybes."


    Leo frowned at that and crossed his arms over his chest. "Seriously?! But it''s just for gaming though! What''s the harm in that?" the blonde exclaimed, clearly annoyed at their refusal. "Are they being spiteful or something? Or does it contain information that they don''t want to be known by others?"


    All I could do was shrug my shoulders in response. "I''m not entirely sure. If I were to guess, it''s either the latter or perhaps a mix of both." I said, then coughed as if realizing we got sidetracked. "Anyways, that should be enough explanation regarding this mobile training simulator. Just like the chant Vin said, the other chants or verses connected to this follow gaming lingo as well."


    "Got it. If that''s the case, then I don''t think I''ll need any further explanations. Though..." the angel paused as he tried various gestures to make something appear, then nervously laughed to himself when it all failed. "Do I have to say something to see my HP and MP or is that not possible...?"


    "It only becomes visible the instant we start the battle, sadly," I explained with a sad smile. "Anyways, as Vin said, there''s no need to hold back, alright? This might be a spar but I have no intentions of losing. As a mage, I can''t let myself lose to someone who isn''t that familiar with magic, after all."


    Upon hearing the last two sentences, he sent a smirk my way and got out his Artifact. "I could the same to you, Stella. I have no idea what you''re capable of but I have to put my best foot forward regardless to prove my worth," he stated, then got into a combat stance with his spear at hand. "I may be an idiot that likes to fool around but I''m serious about my fighting skills. Besides, it''s a necessity when you''re gonna be an adventurer, right?"


    I couldn''t help but return the smirk. "Yeah, pretty much. If that''s the case then, I guess I''ll see firsthand what you''re capable of," I replied as I too readied myself for the fight. "Player One, Stella, ready!"


    A female voice suddenly appeared out of nowhere, loudly declaring its presence. "Acknowledged. Waiting on Player Two to start the fight," it announced, its voice echoing everywhere in this abandoned city simulation.


    The angel blinked his eyes in surprise, then laughed. "Ahh, this is somehow making me feel excited and nervous. Seriously, my heart is beating pretty fast right now, you know~?" he commented, then started breathing in and out to calm himself down. "...right, enough fooling around. Guess it''s time to get this show started. Player Two, Leo, ready!"


    "Acknowledged. Now commencing battle countdown," the voice stated and a countdown appeared for the two of us to see.


    Both of us immediately started channeling our magical energies, him directing it to go to his spear while I enhanced my entire body. Yet, as I see the countdown go to one, despite the distance, I couldn''t help but notice that the energy coming out of the Artifact seemed strange and different compared to a normal mage''s. Unfortunately, I was unable to think about it any further when the announcer suddenly spoke up.


    "It''s time to decide your fate! Live or die, battle start!"


    With that, we both hurled ourselves into battle.