Pestilence: Rise Of The Pure Undead

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Without offering a response to this most heartfelt confession, Rosemary drowned the entire room in undulating flames, reducing the wood to ashes, scorching the stone and melting the iron, every single bits of mana within ignited at the same time, casting an explosive spell from each of them, no damage reflecting on the caster.

'That maniac… She didn't shield herself?' Rosemary saw the tip of a blade dividing the flames, aimed straight at her eye, like the flame of a lit candle caught in breeze, the fiery mage weaved out of the way, noticing that his blade had no hand guiding it.

Even caught amidst the flood of a scorching inferno, all controlled precisely by the volcano witch, she was unable of grabbing a hold of The Death Dealer's mana signature, buried deep and covered by a thick veil, raising one hand, channelling vertex to reinforce her entire body, Rosemary prevented the second blade from reaching her, getting in the way of the assassin's wrist, but even then, she was pushed back against the wall by the sheer force behind the strike.

Erecting a barrier, blocking a kick aimed at her stomach, confirming that Maliah was unburnt by this level of heat, her obscuring cloak dancing alongside the scorching tendrils, distinguishing the Fin-Limier's deranged expression, it was like a child had just been told their birthday would now be celebrated every day from now on, absolutely hysterical.

Her right leg blurred as she bent the other knee and began relentlessly kicking without stop, tearing the wall down as Rosemary just rolled alongside its surface, casting forth a burst of fire, this one shining white.

Raising an eyebrow, smile never receding, stomping her foot down, cracks running along the ground, she pushed herself to the side, her cloak wrapping around her lithe body as she spun and rose into the air, narrowly avoiding the brunt of the incandescent spell.

But it was not the only one, it would not be knowing Rosemary at all to assume that she would stop so early, it had just been a warm-up so far, chaining the white burst of both heat and flames like it was a mere fireball spell, with the same ease as one could pluck the petals off a flower.

Restraint had to be shown still however, this was beneath the academy, where many trainees were currently residing, probably awoken by now, she could not simply tear everything down with bystanders just above.

"Let's go somewhere empty, if you will" a room-wide magic circle appeared just above the ground, the carpet that had been covering the floor had long turned to ashes, dispersed by the furiously fast movements of The Death Dealer, revealing an array that had been carved directly into the stone.

'Teleportation fuelled only by ambient mana… Just like the runes of the saboteur, it can not only bring people but a structure it seems, well, it could' the entire thing was torn asunder, both of the women turning into flames and reappearing into an open field, somewhere much more advantageous to the mage.

Maliah's hands were retrieved behind her absurdly large cloak, which had somehow yet to hinder her movements.

'She was able to tell apart my offensive spell and the one of transportation cast upon her and only resist the first…' that was rather impressive, especially considering that as far as Rosemary could tell, The Death Dealer had not used any kind of magic, not even to reinforce her body, even if she concealed her signature even then, the volcano witch should have been able of telling when they made contact, but there were no reactions between active manas.

For all that mattered, it would seem like Maliah's body was just created extra powerful, simultaneously flexible and tough, from her bones to her flesh, to the tip of her fingernails.

'Innate ability? A talent? An aspect? Specificities from another species she inherited? Just an absurd amount of training or stats? Multiple of those?

Perhaps a vow to block off paths in exchange for enhanced physical might?' the sheer amount of options Rosemary could come up with right this instant was enough to infer that it was impossible to know unless The Death Dealer spilled the beans herself.

This was a common problem, energies, the arts, all matters of disciplines, the system and such, the variety of ways one might use to become powerful was as diverse as the numbers of blades of grass on the continent, and even then, that might be lowballing it.

In any case, Rosemary's opponent had much brute force to spare, but clearly, she was the fast and annoying kind, the sort that would never get hit by anything, on top of having the defences and resistance of a whole magically jacked rhinoceros.

To damage her, a condensed, precise and fast spell was required, or constant damage, the volcano witch was an uncontested expert of the second, anywhere she went could be turned into a volcanic environment, but if the assassin released what was happening, she would just retreat or move on to another location.

And going her best would be irreparably destroying a portion of Tamaris, the last bastion of life, it was already a wonder that there were still some relatively empty areas here, needless to say, Rosemary's hands were tied behind her back on this one.

She did not fight on a regular basis, and even then, preferring to avoid using the full might accessible to her, for her fire scorched the earth and tended to leave it as such with little hope of recovery.

If possible, the witch would have taken Maliah outside the barrier, but the darkness beyond the pyramid of life was trimming with unknown dangers, one could not know whether mages that had achieved zone were part of the undead legions, probably at least one, two if one counted the skeletal druid's as a zone.

In any case, like a magician, Maliah revealed a spear from behind her cloak, alongside some sort of odd, pulsating crystal-like object, seemingly made from flesh.

"Is this… Is this thing alive?" shrouding herself in flames and creating a spirit of magma, Rosemary couldn't help but ask.

"Oh, alive… Alive that is a big word, do you consider a chopped off bit of flesh to be alive? I certainly don't, and I was told that it was not alive per se by my bestest of friend, I know that he is my best friend because he is my only one, heheh" she laughed at her own words.

She tilted her head and waist to the side, bringing the spear to her shoulder.

"I am waiting for it, you know?"

"Zone" Rosemary did not bother any longer, and decided that it was best to get this over with as soon as possible, be it with a victory or by forcing a retreat, it was clear that The Death Dealer wouldn't call it quits without a very good reason.

Shaped like a perfect sphere, a radiant orange-like brightness tore through the eternal night, every ounce of mana within bending to the volcano witch's will, brimming with fire that kept on increasing in power and heat.

Infusing a spell of combustion, grazing a small area, crushing the fleshy thing, Maliah allowed the blood to wash over her face and hair, momentarily protecting her from the intense heat as she burst forward.

"As I should have known, that zone garbage is deeply unfunny…"