Countermeasures

Just as the man’s hand neared Selina’s face, her expression shifted from frustration to ferocity. White flames surged in her dark eyes, like a lion pouncing from a dense forest. The flames enveloped her, melting the clinging alchemical metal.

The sudden counterattack caught the man off guard. He instinctively stepped back, but freed from the metal’s restraint, Selina wasn’t about to give him an opening. As the former mightiest thief, her forte wasn’t head-on combat but striking fatally at a foe’s vulnerability.

“Don’t push me too far!” she shouted. Silver flames fully consumed her pupils, her black hair intertwining with the blaze in the dim light. Her human ears vanished, revealing pointed elven ones.

Her flame-wreathed twin blades slashed in a cross, their icy edge gleaming. Deception was a thief’s hallmark—luring out an opponent’s trump cards before delivering a swift, decisive blow.

Blade Art: Azure Wolf Howling at the Moon

The flash was too quick for resistance. But this man wasn’t some pampered noble. As he retreated, magical light flared in his hands with rapid chanting.

Rapid Chant: Undying Vine Shield
Rapid Chant: Spirit Fire Strings

Vines sprouted from a magic circle, their undying nature granting resilience and hardness, forming a shield resistant to both physical and magical attacks. Ghostly flames ignited in the dark, weaving into thin, searing threads of heat and cutting power.

The dual spells—one defensive, one offensive—showed his versatility. True powerhouses never relied on a single option. But this time, his plan would fail.

Selina had anticipated his magical response. A skilled mage wouldn’t falter in a critical moment, even if he appeared to be an alchemist. Her silver-flame blades pierced the undying vine shield with ease, and the destructive fire strings shattered upon contact.

Shock painted his face as his magic crumbled, leaving him momentarily defenseless. Selina’s lips curled into a triumphant smirk. Playing head-on with a thief? She’d been countering his trap while setting her own.

In Kant’s life, he’d faced countless mages hired to guard noble treasures. None were pushovers, yet most fell before him. Not because they were weak, but because a thief’s skills were too cunning. Her mentor’s techniques were never mediocre. Wind Spirit Moon Shadow boosted speed, while Azure Wolf Howling at the Moon disrupted magic structures, crippling or nullifying spells.

She hurled her flaming daggers, pinning them into the man’s shadow, where shimmering alchemical liquid bled out, restrained by an unseen force. All his moves were preemptively countered.

In his panic, Selina flashed before him. “I warned you not to get cocky, old man!”

Seizing his hands, she channeled silver divine flames through their contact. Under his incredulous gaze, she gritted her teeth and slammed her forehead into his.

Ungraded Martial Skill: Super Headbutt

Duang!

A crisp skull-on-skull collision rang out, followed by twin groans. Both staggered, vision swimming with stars and illusions, collapsing to the ground.

“Ugh…” Rubbing her throbbing head, Selina struggled to her feet, intending to recall her weapons. But the sight before her froze her in place.

What the—? Where was the vice principal? And who was this stunning woman lying on the ground?

Her head spun, CPU overheating. “Hey, Garlanod spawn, you’re not planning to hit and run, are you?” the woman groaned, clutching a swollen spot on her forehead, her deep purple eyes tinged with exasperation.

She’d only meant to test Selina, not expecting the seemingly upright elf to play dirty. No, not dirty—just a mildly clever trick that landed her in this mess.

“You’re the scheming witch, disguising yourself to mess with girls. Fun, huh?” Selina shot back, piecing things together. Her soul gem sword had revealed fragments of the woman’s memories during the headbutt.

This wasn’t Alastair, the alchemist, but Hecate, one of Tianqi’s two vice principals and a notorious witch. Selina, as Kant, had crossed paths with her years ago when Principal Meriane extended an offer to join Tianqi through Hecate’s mediation. Five years later, they’d met again.

A witch’s antics made sense—Hecate, a thrill-seeking trickster, lived for amusement. Reasoning with such a chaos-driven being was futile.

Then, an idea sparked. Why cheat when leverage was handed to her? Selina pulled a prepared recording stone from her waist, twirling it with a mischievous glint. “Everything in this tent was recorded by this stone. Miss Hecate, you wouldn’t want Alastair or the principal knowing you impersonated him, would you?”

The tables turned. The dim tent filled with an air reminiscent of a certain island nation’s drama.