Under the shadows of the dense forest, Safira raised her blade, the shining edge bathed in the magical flames that danced around her.

  “Forget the dagger,” said the Elf. “Imbue your whole body with mana, quickly!”

  “Tsk! Seriously, are you afraid of a girl?”

  “Do as I say!”

  “Fine!”

  The human put the dagger away and assumed his fighting stance. An aura of controlled power emanated from both of them.

  The silence of the forest was broken by the rustling of the leaves, the soft crackling of the flames that crowned Safira's sword, and Elara's murmurs.

  Her eyes, an incandescent shade of purple, reflected determination and concentration as she positioned herself, ready for the clash.

  I… can win! Just stay calm and do what you did in training and on your missions with Mr. Colin. Watch, breathe, concentrate… they're not as scary as wild boars or wolves… I can do it!

  The opponents circled each other cautiously, engaging in a synchronized dance that preceded the confrontation.

  Woosh!

  They advanced, each on one side.

  Safira threw her pocketknife into her other hand and, with her free hand, defended herself from a powerful punch aimed at her ear. Then she ducked, dodging the Elf's cross kick.

  Clang!

  In a feint, she tried to cut the Elf by driving her mana knife into his ribcage, but a natural armor of mana enveloped him.

  Sparks flew as Safira's blade met her opponent's magical resistance, an intense dance between fire and mana.

  “You bitch!”

  Close together, precise blows were exchanged, each participant looking for an opening in the other's defense.

  The Elf couldn't find an opening, and even though she was physically weaker, Safira seemed to be on the same level as these men.

  Without realizing it, the small horns on her forehead grew larger, and her canines became prominent.

  What the fuck? The Elf jumped back. A monster?!

  The human also jumped back, breaking out in a cold sweat.

  Safira smiled mischievously.

  “You're not getting away!” she said, her voice loud and clear.

  The two of them swallowed hard and jumped back again.

  “Who are you?”

  Her eyes also looked different, like the eyes of a beast.

  “The one who's going to rip your heads off!”

  That feels good… thought Safira, preparing to move forward. Is that using mana? I feel like… like I can do anything!

  “Shit! Just what we need, a freak!” complained the human.

  “Concentrate, there are two of us!”

  The human concentrated, and the mana from his body flowed entirely into his hands, forming a pair of mana blades.

  “A mana contest, what do you say, girl?” teased the human. “Let's see who's the best!”

  She replied with a smile.

  “Have you gone mad?” shouted the Elf. “This girl isn't normal, and you've taken off your mana armor. Are you trying to kill yourself?”

  “Why don't you shut up? I'm much better at using magic this way. My body is freer, and I'm faster. I can outrun the brat!”

  Woosh!

  They advanced against each other.

  The movements were fast, almost choreographed, with Safira's blade meeting her opponent's blades in a dance of sparks and magical resonance.

  Clang! Clang! Clang!

  Each blow was precise, each dodge calculated, and magical energy permeated the air, creating a spectacle of light and shadow.

  Safira sought to create openings in her opponent's defenses, wrapping her knife in flames that danced to the rhythm of the battle.

  The human, for his part, responded with graceful movements, dodging the flaming attacks and countering with mana blades that cut through the air with deadly elegance.

  “You're no big deal, girl!”

  The ground of the clearing gradually turned into a stage of marks and scars, witnesses to the intensity of the confrontation.

  Intense, the clash continued—a duel of wills and abilities, where the heat of fire met the coldness of mana.

  A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  The girl's mana… seems to only get bigger by the second. What a piece of shit! If this continues, he'll die!

  The deadly dance between Safira and the skilled human warrior reached an electrifying climax.

  The fluid, calculated movements culminated when Safira, with a precise twist, found an opening in her opponent's defenses. Her penknife, sheathed in the flaming essence of fire magic, dug into the human ribs.

  Schtick!

  Crap! I was careless!

  A groan of pain echoed in the clearing, muffled by the intensity of the battle.

  “You're no big deal, human!”

  Schtick! Schtick! Schtick!

  She made quick, precise slashes, each blow charged with the energy of her magic, marking the opponent's body with lines of fire.

  Am I… going to be defeated?

  Finally, in one decisive movement, she raised the blade for a fatal blow. The silence of the forest was broken by the unmistakable sound of the blade slicing through the air and then through flesh.

  Squelch!

  The human's head rolled across the ground as his body fell, marking the end of the battle.

  The echo of the confrontation faded into the stillness of the forest, and Safira, enveloped in an aura of fire magic, remained in the center of the clearing. The Elf was incredulous.

  Shit! That girl… that Elf, they're not normal. If I'd known there were people like that here, I'd never…

  “Your turn!” Her horns grew even longer, as did her canines, her nails, and her stature.

  Swallowing dryly, the Elf forced a smile.

  “We'll see each other again, girl!”

  He disappeared into the forest, and Safira lowered her blade. The changes in her body went unnoticed by her, and slowly, when all the adrenaline had worn off, her horns returned to normal, as did her teeth, her body, and her gaze.

  “Miss Elara!” She ran over to her. The flame that was still burning had reduced dramatically, and Elara was no longer muttering the prayer.

  Startled, Jamily also opened her eyes, seeing the cleric lying on the grass. The child in her arms, who had been silent before, began to cry again.

  “Safira, are you still there?” Elara asked in a weak voice, her eyes clenched shut.

  “Are you all right?”

  Safira held Elara's hands.

  “I'm fine! You need to calm down, don't talk, rest…”

  “It's okay, Safira… I don't have much time.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Elara gave a gentle smile. “I lied… I had to perform the banishing ritual with no artifacts, no magic circles, just my mana and my prayer… so just listen to me, okay?”

  Safira pursed her lips as she squeezed Elara's hands.

  “Tell Colin that, despite everything, it was amazing to meet him… even after my brothers and my friends left, he continued to be kind to me…” A smile blossomed on her face. “And then there's you, shy Safira… you've grown so much in such a short time… I envy you… And Jamily, you and your son are survivors… you have to make it out of here…”

  Elara felt Safira's hot tears on her face.

  “Don't cry… please… you look prettier smiling…” She raised her hand to touch Safira's face, and the girl helped her by bringing her hand to her cheek. “This world we live in… it's merciless, and few people manage to survive in it… you and Colin have done very well so far, and I think you'll continue to do so… you're true survivors…”

  “Miss Elara… I… I'm sorry… I couldn't protect you and—”

  Elara silenced her by resting her forefinger on her lips.

  “None of this was your fault… you still have Colin… take care of him for me, okay?”

  Amid tears, Safira nodded.

  “Yeah…”

  “Good… good…”

  Elara's hand lost strength, her weak breathing ceased, and her pulse disappeared.

  The girl remained there, crying as she squeezed the hand of the first friend she'd had in a long time. Jamily had cried so much that her tears had dried up. Her countenance remained downcast, but her child cried for her.

  In the destroyed village, Colin continued to wage a frantic battle against the creature, tearing it apart and dodging its attacks, until a magic circle opened up beneath the demonic being.

  Colin jumped back, barely able to see with so much blood on his face.

  Cadaverous hands emerged from the magic circle and began to pull the creature in as it struggled.

  Rooaar!

  The false Elf stood still, watching as the magic circle swallowed up the creature. The monster tried to fight it, but it was no use—it was sucked into the circle, and then there was silence, broken only by the collapse of a wooden structure.

  “She did it…” Colin held onto his sword to stop himself from falling, using it as a crutch. “I'd better get back…”

  […]

  He was surprised to find Safira weeping over Elara's body. She was crying uncontrollably.

  “Mr. Colin… Miss Elara… She…”

  He approached, seeing Jamily in a corner, and next to her was the lifeless body of her former companion.

  “All right, Safira, let's bury her…”

  She pulled away from Elara and hugged Colin, squeezing him as his shirt muffled her cries.

  He comforted her, stroking her hair affectionately. “Hey… it's okay… it's over… Elara did it, she beat the monster…”

  “I can't take it anymore!” Her voice was muffled. “What if you're next?”

  Colin disentangled himself from her, grabbed her hands, and sat down on a rock, bringing himself to the girl's height.

  “Listen, Safira, this town was always full of people, powerful people, and yet we were the only ones left. We're always the only ones left, you know why? We're strong, you and me.”

  He wiped the tears from her face with his thumb.

  “Even so, the strength we have isn't enough… we need to learn more about magic, get stronger than that… then, instead of being protected, we'll be the ones doing the protecting…”

  “Okay…” She agreed, wiping phlegm from her nose and tears from her eyes with the back of her hand.

  “All right… let's bury the people from the village, get our things, and leave, understand?” She nodded and hugged Colin again, a hug with enormous weight. Safira believed everything Colin said, and when he said those things so calmly, it only made her feel safer around him.

  Colin patted her on the back twice. “Come on… wolves should be along soon… and Jamily… what do you want to do?”

  She was completely devastated, lost.

  “I don't know… there's no one left… my possessions have been abandoned, my money… my husband… I… have nothing left…”

  Sighing, Colin scratched the back of his head.

  “I can look after you until you find a safe place… and I have plenty of money, I can help you get back on your feet…”

  “…” She bent over with the child still in her arms. “You opened the door of your home to me, and now… thank you very much… I'll try to be helpful, I promise!”

  Colin waved one of his hands.

  “Concentrate on the boy. Safira and I know how to manage.”

  “Thanks, again, for everything!”

  […]

  Sitting on the edge of a hill, a hooded man admired the full moon in the sky.

  “You took your time,” said the hooded man. “Where are the others?”

  The Elf cultist approached. “There were some unforeseen events… the magic circle you gave us wasn't a ninth circle, it was a seventh… when the creature was released, some cultists died…”

  The hooded man nodded. “Is that all?”

  “No… the creature was banished… it was a low-level mage, brave enough to give her life for this banishment.”

  “As far as I know, performing a banishment like that takes some time. What were you doing while she was performing the ritual? And the creature, did it do nothing?”

  The Elf swallowed.

  “There was a man… and a… girl… I don't know who they were, but my companion was killed by her, and this man managed to hold the creature…”

  “I see… a man and a girl were enough to stop a level seven creature from the abyss?”

  “It wasn't like that, sir… the girl protected the speaker… she had a lot of mana, and she also had horns that got bigger and bigger…”

  The hooded man stood up.

  “Thank you for your services. You are no longer needed.”

  “Sir… I still can—”

  Schtick!

  The Elf's head was decapitated by another hooded man.

  “So… where are we going now?” asked the hooded man, returning the blade to its sheath.

  “Ultan… we're going to build more keys nearby. Tell the others, we're leaving.”