New World - A New Beginning

Chapter 84: A Show of Strength

ASTHIA DARCK'S POV:

I jerked my sword out of the body of another soldier, blood spurting out from the wound. I wiped the red liquid off my face, my eyes identifying a single dwarf approaching me with a slow stride.

That's the captain.

His bulky armor and helmet covered his body, a red sigil wrapped around his right arm. I had noticed similar symbols with different colors on the arms of the regular soldiers, meaning that it represented their rank or power within the Dwarven army.

The regular militia wore a simple black cloth, and it seemed like captains wore red ones. Were there other colors for the higher ranks?

"My name is Gol, captain of the fifth battalion of the Dwarven army. State your name, enemy leader!" roared the Dwarf.

I sighed, remembering how important honor in combat was to the Dwarves. It seemed naming oneself was mandatory for the kind of duel that was about to take place. We both represented our respective armies, and the defeated would bring their troops down with them.

"Asthia Darck, Royal Princess of the Dragons," I responded calmly, a howl of laughter escaping Gol's heavy metal helmet.

"So I've been graced with the presence of her Highness? Let's make this a thrilling duel!"

I let out a small smirk, amused at this Dwarf's way of thinking.

"I won't disappoint you, then."

GOL'S POV:

Even if the girl standing before me had a mature-kind of body, I could still tell I was up against an extremely young individual. I didn't know whether or not she was an adult, but I had no intention of going easy on her either way.

Her aura was one of a beast's roar, intimidating its prey as it glared at you intensely. Small beads of sweat trickled down my forehead, my mind realizing what kind of opponent I was up against.

I readied my greatsword, Princess Asthia releasing the entirety of her aura as my eyes shot open in horror.

Oh shit.

BOOM

I tumbled back as eruptions of fire bombarded me from all sides, the girl appearing before me faster than I could blink as I swung towards her silhouette. The world around me slowed as I watched the dragon girl arch her back midair, gracefully avoiding the attack as she vaulted over it.

She landed firmly back on the ground, already positioned for another strike.

BOOM

The girl dashed right at me, slamming into my armor with a crimson blaze as I shot back once again.

I groaned, regaining my composure. With two simple attacks, the Princess had managed to disorient me to such an extent that I couldn't even differentiate which the troops clashing on the battlefield in front of me.

She could've easily finished me with a simple chain of abilities, but I could tell she was waiting for me to recover. Was it out of pity? Did she want me to at least stand a chance?

I gritted my teeth in anger. Never before had I been so outclassed within the first few moments of a duel, and all I could do now was attack back with the entirety of my power if I wanted to regain even the slightest bit of my honor.

I leaped into the air, condensing the wind around me as I closed my eyes in concentration.

"Wind slash!" I roared, bringing my sword down as the air around me trembled slightly. A massive line of wind shot at the Princess, the speed of the projectile being too great to be evaded.

The girl extended her free arm, her eyes bursting with power as flames swirled around her and followed the direction of her limb.

BOOM

The two spells collided, a booming shockwave resonating across the battlefield. My eyes widened in horror as I realized the disadvantage my attack had on Princess Asthia's.

Unlike a projectile, the infernal attack was being constantly supplied with blood-red flames, dwindling down the power of my wind slash as it died down over time. The girl was the center of all the fire, her surroundings completely engulfed in towering walls of heat and flames.

There was no end to her power, her expression remaining neutral throughout the entirety of the clash. It was almost like this was nowhere near her limit...

I raised my weapon once again, yelling as I crashed through the stalemate created by the bind. My target lay a few mels below, time slowing once again as I watched the Princess's next move like a dignified performance.

A small dragon spirit circled her weapon, the girl slashing forward as a stream of fire surged forth. I sighed at the oncoming attack.

"I never even stood a chance, did I?" I muttered, the inferno consuming my body as I felt every part of my body disintegrate into nothing but small bits of ash...

MIA STIL'S POV:

I watched as the Dwarven captain disappeared right before me, his final expression being one of slight disappointment... and peace.

A swirl of flames condensed into a single sphere around the captain's body, Asthia finally calming her power as everything immediately died down.

For some unknown reason, my mind had come to believe I could be considered as Asthia's equal in combat prowess due to my abilities to perform spells Jay considered too advanced.

But I was completely wrong.

Without even breaking a sweat, the Dragon girl had completely obliterated a Dwarven captain. It was clear to the entirety of the Dwarven army that the princess was on an entirely different level, and their morale plummeted immediately.

The remaining troops regrouped, forming a wall of shields as they slowly backed away. Asthia simply watched, understanding there was no more need to engage them. My eyes marveled at the fluttering of her silver-white hair, her calm exposure radiating with confidence and dignity.

A cheer erupted from the Dragon forces, all of them rallying behind their Princess as they once again lived to see another day. A sudden change in the Dwarven movements caught my eye, my instincts telling me something was very wrong as they held their ground.

Did they want to fight again?

It was true that they still heavily outnumbered us, but it was painfully obvious how outmatched they were when faced with Asthia.

Now that I thought about it, the action of retreating was unheard of for the Dwarves, so why had we accepted it as soon as they began creating some distance?

My eyes glanced at Asthia, her position unchanging as she patiently waited for something to happen. Did she know this battle wasn't over?

Her stance had nothing to do with pride in her victory, but patience as she calmly awaited her opponent's next move.

My knees shuddered ever so slightly, my throat becoming coarse as my body became unable to move a single muscle. A figure appeared amidst the enemy ranks, his tall demeanor clearly not Dwarven.

His orange eyes burned with absolute strength, his arms crossed as he stared right at the Royal Princess of the Dragons.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Princess Asthia."