Francis' senses were sharp, to the point that she could sense an oddity in Will's attack.
'The needles that are making it through the gaps in the ice blades and shields, are all targeting vital points!'
Despite the fact that only a handful of needles had made it through to Francis, all of them were aimed at gaps that led straight to lethal vital points.
'He only applied spatial rend to needles that went for my vital points, this level of control. He really wants to end me. He must be aware of the hatred between my sect and his kind. This bastard. He thinks lightly of me.'
Francis failed to notice it, but a change in the way she saw Will started forming in her mind. Her impression of him started to slowly shift from disgust to fear, and Will noticed. Francis started to break into a cold sweat as she continued her defence. She felt no Intent of any kind from her opponent, not to mention Killing Intent, so she could not fight at her maximum capacity.
'He is a bad match for an intuitive Truthseeker like me. He releases no Intent and has unorthodox movements. Technique types like him typically overpower power types like me if we are at the same level in terms of energy quantity and quality. Whether I want to admit it or not, he is a peer of mine. As a mage, he has earned my respect.'
She did not want to admit it, but Will was a worthy opponent, who had made it difficult for her to exhibit even 30% of her true power. She was also worried about the battles ahead so she had to hold back a certain degree. There were also many eyes watching, so she could not use the more secretive Frozen Asgard Arts. She was essentially fighting with an arm tied behind her back against an enemy who was a bad match for her.
The needles were not strong enough to damage her as they were still blocked by the Valkyrie's Guard membrane, but the damage had been done. Repairing the cracks in the membrane was mana-consuming and caused her energy levels to deplete even faster. Causing her to fall further into despair. For the first time since she was born, she was facing a loss to a male using the same arts as her in front of a large crowd of experts above her own level. To her, this was an incredible loss of face, for both the sect and herself.
'I always lecture my junior sister about not underestimating one's opponent, but I have failed to listen to my own advice. I still have much to learn.'
As time went on, the piercing power, weight and amount of mana that was imbued into the Ragnarok Rain needles steadily increased. Francis started to panic because she could not tell which ones were reinforced with Spatial Rend and which ones were not. Will's casting of the spell had no traces she could observe at her level.
'He is a mage but he has the delicate movements of a martial artist. Could he have done physical training? The way he glides on Valhalla Path is not something an ordinary mage can accomplish. Is he some type of specialist who received warrior training?'
Crack!
A Ragnarok Rain with a powerful Spatial Rend had made its way past her shields and impacted her ribs. This attack caused quite a bit of damage. Francis was forced to jump back a bit to alleviate the force.
'That was in between my ribs, it would have headed straight for my lung, just how is he hiding the mana within his spells?'
Francis had no idea just how strong Will's mind was for his level. To a mage, a strong mind meant that mana could be finely controlled. As long as they were of the same level, Will was confident in his ability to regulate mana in any low-level spell to the point that his enemies could barely tell anything, so long as they were not over the world prodigies.
'She is good, but she is ten years too early to be holding back in front of me.'
Will could tell that Francis was holding back a lot in preparation for future matches. Will was no different in this regard, making this a battle over mana regulation as well as a battle over space.
'But there is one more battle you cannot overlook, princess. A Battle of the mind'
Will's eyes narrowed as he cast another volley of Ragnarok Rain. Francis was annoyed but there was nothing she could do but block. Will was constantly shifting with Valhalla Path as he launched his offensive. Francis had neither time nor the mana to do anything besides blindly attacking and defending at the same time.
Boom!
To Francis' shock, one of the needles exploded upon impact. This needle had aimed at her sternum and caused her to panic. She did not expect such an event and thus her reaction had a slight delay.
Hydrolytic Fission!
It was a skill that allowed one to convert water to a concussive energy blast. Francis was blown back, but she could still see Will. The explosion had caught her off guard but the armour she wore had resisted most of the force, causing to be blown back only a few feet. As Francis moved, so did Will.
First Door Open!
Second Door Open!
Third Door Open!
Will successively opened three Doors causing his aura to climb. Francis was stunned by the explosion and was still in mid-flight when she felt the horrendous flood of mana. As she looked at Will's figure approaching, a sense of foreboding grew stronger in her heart as unease started to spread to her limbs.
"This Peerless kid can actually open Doors!"
"He can open his Doors at will up to the Third Door!"
"This guy is deep. How much experience does he have?"
"He is going in for the kill!"
The crowd felt that Will was making a finishing move as he opened his first three Doors. He slid forward across his Valhalla Path and created a matrix ahead of him. It was a spell called Frozen Asgard Conversion. It could amplify almost any ordinary water-based spell and convert it into a Frozen Asgard variant.
The three water arrows were a metre long. They had arrowheads the size of a brick and attacked from three different directions. They were all targeting gaps in her shielding, as the Hydrolytic Fission had caused her to loosen up her Ice Blade Storm. Her shields had also shifted into odd trajectories as well as they needed conscious control. Francis tried to remain calm, but she could not help but feel a chill down her spine when she saw the arrows go forth.
'They are coming from one o'clock, seven o'clock and five o'clock!'
Francis responded by opening three Doors as well. She placed all her concentration on pushing as much mana into her membrane, as her shields had been bypassed by the arrows. They were extremely fast causing her to freak out. Placing all her concentration in one task assisted her strength, but it made her far less aware of her environment. What Will had done was no different from forcing tunnel vision upon her.
Before the crowd could marvel at her act of opening Doors in an awkward position, the arrows hit their target.
Boom!