Ascension Of The Failed Mage

Ciara's heart raced for a second, but before she could entirely process what he said, the boy jumped at her.

His body became shrouded in yellow aura instantly, causing his speed to greatly increase.

'Silent Casting?!' Ciara's head rang, noticing the boy hardly spoke words before his magic manifested.

She had to accept his claim. The skill he just displayed was enough to prove it.

"[Sylph's Whisper]"

Ciara hurriedly generated her signature attack. Whirlwind magically appeared and protected her from Jerry's intended assault.

However...

>BOOOMM!!!<

A quaking sound shook the ground, causing Ciara to stumble within her sphere of influence.

The ground kept quaking, and suddenly seeing the faint glow of yellow course through it, Ciara knew a spell was underway.

Before the ground shook for the final time, Ciara jumped, using a Tier 1 wind spell to propel herself from the ground in an instant.

As soon as she was a few meters from her previous location, the earth caved in, and her previous platform became nothing but rubble.

"If I had remained there..." She mumbled.

The assault was not done, however, as the rubbles suddenly started moving, and became shrouded in yellow energy.

"Another spell!" Ciara exclaimed.

The several rocks floated and seemed to be aimed at Ciara's position in midair. Before she could entirely grasp her situation, they were launched at her at a terrifying speed.

As the girl watched countless rocks lunge at her, her lips curled up in a smile, and she admitted silently, the skill of her challenger.

'This might not be as easy as the other ones...'

"[Wind Layer]" She chanted.

A yellow flash appeared, and an intangible field appeared, defending her from the incoming earth magic.

Since Ciara was in midair, there was very little she could do as she was endlessly assaulted by the glowing rocks.

After having enough of the continuous assaults, Ciara poured some of her magic power into the shield, causing it to enlarge and glow even brighter.

"[Wind Layer Alternate: Push]"

Suddenly, the barrier of wind defending Ciara became a gust, pushing itself to the rocks as they generated a wave that made everything around her fly away.

Even the floating rocks became fodder as they were sent back to the ground, or into the whirling tornado and forced to become mere pebbles. With a single spell, she turned the situation around and got rid of all the annoying assaults.

Giving a sigh, Ciara dispelled the [Sylph Whisper] she changed earlier, causing her to see Jerry squatting on the ground with his hands placed on the earth.

With her visibility now restored, she launched herself from her location and charged toward her target.

She saw his lips move again, signaling he was about to use magic, but she didn't know which.

For every magic usage, there had to be a chant. This was trite in the world of magic, and all mages were no exception to this, even those of the highest caliber.

The disadvantage of chanting to its user is that their hand is revealed to the opponent, and vice versa, causing a form of balance in battle. However, it was possible for one to use magic that the other party was unaware of, making the tides tilt in your favor.

This made the research of new magic, chanting speed, and quick magic activation the most important trait of a seasoned Mage.

However, there existed a concept that altered the usual flow of a magic battle. That was the use of silent casting.

Through silent casting, one could chant enchant, and enhance while in battle but the opponent would have no idea what magic the person used.

The advantage of knowing the magic would be rendered nonexistent, as the whole situation would turn unpredictable. In face of such a concept, only the one with the greatest strategy or superior magic would win.

'Since he uses silent casting, he is undoubtedly very skilled. But... I won't lose so easily!' Ciara resolved.

No matter what manner of power the boy displayed, she was still confident in her victory. After all.

"You're not the only one who knows silent casting!" Ciara yelled.

She also moved her lips, hiding whatever magic she was going to use from her opponent.

The only thing that could be seen from the magic activation of both Ciara and Jerry was the joint glow of their Tier 2 magic.

​ A great earth spike suddenly grew from the ground and lunged toward Ciara's shield.

As soon as it made contact with it, a massive crack appeared on the surface, causing Roxanne's eyes to bulge in shock.

However, Jerry wasn't done. More spikes came forth, and in mere moments, Ciara's shield was completely shattered.

A wide grin appeared on Jerry's face as he finally summoned a few more spikes to conclude the job. According to him, Ciara was stunned and trapped, only to be finished off by his spell.

Of course, he wasn't intending to kill her, but in his opinion, a good fight had to leave the loser some bruised to remember how epic it was.

"I'm impressed. Even though she wasn't a Tier 3 like the rumors said... her skills should easily place her among the Experts of the Foundational Stage." Jerry mumbled, watching as his rocks would soon make contact with Ciara.

Suddenly, a wide grin formed on Ciara's face, making Jerry's face twist in shock, wondering why she would make such an expression.

His earth spike suddenly slowed down before they touched her, and as soon as they made contact with her skin, they turned into tiny particles of sand.

"W-wha—?!" Jerry exclaimed.

Ciara had used a very complex earth spell in the Tier 2 category, which was capable of breaking down rocks into tiny particles, generating a weathering effect, [Weathering Earth].

Even though Jerry was shocked at Ciara's ability to use the spell, he didn't have the luxury of remaining stunned, as his opponent shrouded her body in a yellow aura, generating a yellow platform beneath her feet in mid air to propel herself toward the squatting boy.

"This is the end!"