That was all Naru needed. She stepped forward, planting her feet firmly in the newly formed crater as mana surged through her staff. The runes along the wood glowed with a bright jade hue, and with a sharp thrust forward—BOOM—a roaring beam of green light burst from her staff, streaking across the field toward Qual.
Qual didn't flinch. With a single smooth motion, he raised a clawed hand, weaving mana into a shimmering, translucent barrier. The beam struck it with a deafening crackle, sparks of raw energy cascading across the shield's surface before dissipating. The force of the impact was immense, kicking up more dust and making the ground tremble.
"Not bad," Qual admitted, lowering the barrier. "Your Soul Track is almost as refined as mine. I suppose humans have been studying my spell all this time, trying to find a counter..." He tilted his head, his eyes narrowing in predatory amusement. "I'll let you know, girl—I won't hesitate to kill you. Stand down."
Naru didn't move. Her knuckles tightened around the staff. Her eyes—those wide, blue eyes—hardened, refusing to waver. She stood her ground, an unmovable object in the face of an unstoppable force.
Qual's mana surged in a violent ripple, his staff humming with a low, ominous whine. Without a word, he flicked it forward and unleashed his own Soul Track—a blinding, needle-like beam of destructive magic that tore through the air. Naru's eyes didn't widen, didn't blink; she simply lifted her own staff in one smooth motion. Mana coalesced into a shimmering barrier before her, rippling like molten glass. The beam struck—hissed—splintered—and then ricocheted harmlessly away into the sky, leaving a trail of smoke in its wake.
The dust hadn't even settled before Naru stepped forward, staff aimed like a spear, and answered with her own Soul Track. The light that burst forth was raw and unrestrained, slamming into Qual's conjured mana shield with a deafening crack.
Qual chuckled, the sound low and almost indulgent. "Oh? This version of my Soul Track... it's strong. Very strong. But you're burning through far too much mana to maintain it." His smile deepened into something wolfish. "How about this?"
The ground beneath him vibrated as he raised his staff high. Six distinct beams of mana—each one curving and twisting like serpents—snapped into existence. They tore through the air in a synchronized spiral, arcing toward her from six different angles at once. This was a spell of pure chaos and destruction.
Naru's body moved before her mind caught up. She launched herself upward in a blur, the six beams slashing through the space she'd been standing in a heartbeat earlier. Her boots touched down on the earth with feline grace, barely a whisper of sound.
"Judging by your style," Qual called out, his tone almost conversational despite the battlefield, "you're more suited for a warrior-type. The way you move, the way you evade... your talent is wasted on magic. You could never become a truly proficient mage." His crimson eyes gleamed as he parried her next shot. "But... you could become a splendid warrior."
Naru didn't answer him. She only landed lightly, pivoted on her heel, and snapped her staff forward again. Another beam roared toward him, bright and unyielding—only to be turned aside by the smooth flick of his shield.
A faint crease formed between her brows. She could feel her mana thinning, not from exhaustion but from inefficiency. She was thinking too much about matching his style, his brute force, and his power. She was fighting his battle, not her own.
That was when Qual's staff slammed into the ground with a bone-shaking thud.
Silence. For a moment, it was as if the forest itself had stopped breathing.
Then—movement.
Roots erupted from the earth like a swarm of snakes, twisting and coiling around Naru's legs. They were thick, rough, and impossibly strong, biting into her stockings with a cruel grip. She pulled once, then twice, but they didn't so much as shift. They held her in place, an unbreakable cage of wood and earth.
Qual's voice slid across the clearing, cold and certain. "I see now... you can't cast a multi-layer shield. You're a one-trick pony. All of your training has been focused on offense and not a single bit on defense." His expression turned almost pitying. "A shame. You have to die like this."
Naru's head turned, her gaze drawn almost instinctively to Frieren, who was still standing at a safe distance, watching the fight unfold with a serene expression.
Frieren was smiling at her. Serene. Encouraging. Infuriatingly calm.
For the first time, Naru's eyes narrowed—not from fear, but from something colder. In that moment, she felt like Frieren-sama had just handed her to Qual on a silver platter.
The demon's staff glowed like the heart of a star. Then—ten Soul Tracks burst forth, faster than a blink, streaking straight toward her. There was no escape. She was trapped.
—oOVOo—
The ten Soul Tracks slammed into her bound form with the fury of a divine hammer. The clearing lit up in a blinding white flash, the air splitting with a thunderclap as the explosion rolled out. The roots holding Naru shattered into splinters, and the ground beneath her feet was pulverized. Smoke billowed instantly, thick and acrid, swallowing Naru's silhouette whole.
Qual lowered his staff, a slow exhale escaping him. "Pathetic," he muttered, the word laced with dismissive contempt. His crimson eyes, now glowing with a vicious triumph, turned to Frieren. "A ridiculous idea, taking a demon as your student. You wasted your time… and now, I'll kill you as well." His mana began to surge, a palpable wave of destructive intent that made the trees around them tremble.
Frieren didn't move. Her staff rested loosely in her grip, her expression unreadable. "The biggest flaw of demons," she said, her tone flat and almost bored, "is their pride and arrogance. You assumed she would die. You assumed she was just a clumsy apprentice with no talent for magic." A faint, dry smile touched her lips. "And today, you will die because of that."
"Oh?" Qual arched a brow, a smirk tugging at his mouth. "And you'll kill me?" He was so confident, so sure of his own power, that the possibility of his demise was a joke to him.
Frieren's gaze slid past him, toward the billowing smoke. "No," she said softly, her voice barely a whisper. "She will."
Qual's eyes widened, a sharp chill threading down his spine. He had killed the demon girl. He was sure of it. But Frieren's words… they held a truth that his pride refused to acknowledge. Before he could even turn fully, the forest erupted in light.
A cluster of mana beams—fierce, precise, and impossibly fast—shot in from every direction. They slammed into him like meteor strikes, tearing through his defenses. He staggered, knees buckling as his mana shield shattered. He looked around in a daze, trying to pinpoint the source of the attack, but the smoke was too thick, and the light was too blinding.
In the dissipating haze, his vision adjusted—then froze.
There were Naru's. Dozens of them. Ten at least, each standing at different angles around him, each with her staff glowing dangerously. They were all identical, from the orange ribbons in their hair to the unwavering focus in their eyes. They moved as one, a seamless, deadly chorus of magical power.
And then he saw her—the real one—standing several meters away, calm as ever. Her face was as expressionless as a doll's, but there was a faint, unmistakable gleam of pride in her blue eyes. Protecting her was a multi-layered shield, covering her from four sides like a transparent fortress of light. It was a defense spell that Frieren had been trying to teach her for years. A spell that was supposed to be impossible for a demon of her age to learn.
His breath hitched. "Impossible! How can you… that's—" he stammered, the words catching in his throat.
"Naru learned the defense spell," she said blankly, her voice cutting through his shock. "Frieren-sama said it was a good test. Naru didn't want to fail."
The clones didn't wait. Mana surged, and in perfect unison, they unleashed Zoltraak from every angle, creating a vortex of pure destructive power that converged on Qual's form. The air split with a sound that was both a roar and a shriek, a cacophony of magical energy that engulfed him completely.
"Qual-san," Naru's voice drifted through the storm of light. "Goodbye."
—oOVOo—
The air on the way back from the clearing was… frosty. Not literally this time—just heavy with unspoken words. Naru walked a step ahead, her arms crossed tightly over her chest, her usual calm expression now paired with a faint pout that seemed stubbornly fixed on her face. Whenever Frieren-sama asked her something, she'd just give a short "hmph" without looking back, the sound a soft, indignant puff of air.
Frieren tilted her head slightly, her green eyes watching the blonde demon's stiff shoulders and the subtle swing of her ponytails. "Are you mad at me?" she asked, her voice calm and even.
Naru didn't turn around. "Naru is not mad at Frieren-sama. Hmph." The words were spoken with a quiet finality, but the tone said the exact opposite.
"Doesn't look like it," Frieren replied, a hint of amusement in her voice.
"Hmph."
The silence stretched for a few more moments, filled only by the soft crunch of their boots on the forest floor. Without warning, Frieren reached out and patted the top of Naru's head. The horns didn't make it easy, but her hand slid between them to ruffle her hair gently. Naru instantly stiffened, her whole body rigid with surprise—then, slowly, a visible shift occurred. Her shoulders dropped a fraction, her pout softened, and she leaned into the touch for a brief, fleeting moment. The shift was visible, like watching a cat pretend it didn't want affection only to melt under it.
It lasted three whole seconds before Naru remembered she was supposed to be "hmphy." She jerked away, her cheeks faintly pink, and walked faster, her staff tapping against the ground with a newfound purpose.
Frieren smiled faintly to herself. "You did good. Qual was a formidable challenge for someone like you."
Naru blinked, slowing her steps until she was walking beside her mentor. "Someone like Naru?" The words came out with a hint of suspicion. That… sounded like an insult, or at the very least, a backhanded compliment.
"You learn best in tense situations," Frieren explained, not missing a beat. "That's why I made you fight him. It worked, didn't it? You figured out how to use your clones to create a multi-layered shield. A perfect defense against his attacks. I knew you would find a way to win. Besides…" she looked forward, her tone softening just slightly, "…I have faith in you."
Naru stopped mid-step, her blue eyes widening just a fraction. She blinked once, twice… then gave a small, firm nod. "Mm."