Luis stood at the centre of the training field, facing Aurelia, and let out a quiet sigh. The ground still carried traces of the earlier spar—frost clinging to the surface, scattered ice fragments melting slowly under the returning sunlight.

The air had calmed, but the tension between them had not.

"Can we postpone this?" he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I have something important to finish."

He meant it.

If not for his curiosity, he wouldn't have come here in the first place.

The research on the Curse Mark had already consumed days of his time, and now he was close enough to find a solution; just one more day might be all he needed. If he missed it, tomorrow's operation would become far more complicated than it needed to be.

He exhaled slowly, trying to push the thought aside.

Aurelia didn't seem interested in Luis' words.

"Don't have time?" she said, her tone light but edged. "That works perfectly. You said you could defeat me in one move, didn't you? It won't take long."

Luis looked at her, mildly exasperated. "You're still stuck on that?"

"I don't care," Aurelia replied, her voice firm this time. "If you said it, then prove it. Otherwise, it's just empty talk."

There was no room for negotiation in her expression.

Nearby, Lumine watched the exchange with a faint twitch at the corner of her lips. She turned slightly toward Alicia. "What do you think?"

Alicia blinked. "About what?"

"Luis' claim. Can he really defeat Aurelia in one move?"

Alicia didn't hesitate. "I don't know. But if he said it, then he probably can."

Lumine gave her a sideways look, then shook her head with a small smile. 'Maria, your daughter really is the same as you.'

There was something familiar in that quiet certainty—warm toward family, unwavering once she decided to trust someone.

Back on the field, Aurelia had already begun to gather mana.

Cold wind rose around her feet.

Luis narrowed his eyes slightly. "You're not even going to listen, are you?"

"No," she said plainly.

The temperature dropped.

The remaining ice scattered across the field began to tremble, then lift, drawn toward her as if pulled by an invisible force. The air thickened, clouds forming overhead once more, darker this time. A low rumble echoed as electricity flickered faintly within the gathering storm.

Aurelia slowly rose into the air.

Her silver hair drifted around her as the wind intensified, strands catching the light of the forming lightning. Ice fragments circled her like a moving ring, grinding against one another before breaking into smaller, sharper pieces.

The pressure in the air increased with each passing second, the storm taking shape around her as she stood at its center.

It wasn't chaotic, but finely controlled.

The wind moved in layers, the ice rotating in precise currents, and the lightning above responded to subtle shifts in her mana. With her arms slightly spread, she hovered there, calm and composed.

'What a showoff.' Luis snorted inwardly.

"Hailstorm," she said quietly.

The rotating ice rose higher.

Above it, lightning flickered again. It was faint, but present. The prototype of Thunderstorm merged with the hailstorm.

She tilted her head, looking at him with a hint of mischief. "Do you remember? Our snowball fights during winter."

Luis glanced up at the sky, then back at her. "You're reminiscing about it now?" Then, as if he understood something, his brow twitched. "Don't tell me this is your version of that."

Aurelia's lips curved slightly. "We're not children anymore. If we're going to play, it should be worth it."

The pressure in the air grew heavier. Even from where he stood, he could feel it—if that attack landed on him, it wouldn't be something he could brush off.

At best, he'd spend the next few days recovering. At worst, it might interfere with tomorrow's plan.

Aurelia's smile deepened slightly. "We've grown up. So have the games. Now take it!"

"Thunder Hail Storm!"

Luis let out a breath.

"Too bad," he said, raising his left hand. "I don't plan on spending the next few days in bed."

*Vacuum.*

For a brief moment, nothing happened.

Then, the change was instant.

The wind stopped.

Not slowed. Yes, stopped.

The swirling ice lost its motion, hanging in place for a fraction of a second before beginning to fall. The clouds above wavered, their structure breaking apart as the pressure that held them together vanished, making them disperse.

Aurelia's expression froze.

The connection was gone.

The wind she had been controlling, the currents she had shaped, none of it responded anymore.

'No…'

She tried to speak.

No sound came out of her mouth. Because the air around her had disappeared.

Her body reacted before her mind could fully process it. The lack of oxygen hit immediately, her chest tightening as the discomfort set in. The storm she had built collapsed, the ice shards dropping harmlessly to the ground like scattered debris.

Her levitation and ended.

Aurelia fell.

She landed with a dull thud, the impact more awkward than painful, but she couldn't get up immediately. She couldn't breathe in; her face flushed slightly as she instinctively tried to draw in air that wasn't there.

Luis lowered his hand, and the vacuum dissipated.

Air rushed back in. Aurelia coughed lightly, taking deep breaths as her body recovered. It took a few seconds before the discomfort eased enough for her to sit up properly.

Luis looked at her for a moment, then shrugged. "See? One move."

She heard him. But she didn't respond.

Not because she didn't want to, she simply didn't have the breath for it yet.

At the side of the field, Lumine's eyes lit up.

"That's it!" She said, lightly striking her palm with her fist. "Why didn't I think of that?"

Alicia was still staring at the field, though curious but not surprised by the outcome. "What do you mean, Mom?"

Lumine glanced at her. "Aurelia's ability isn't creating weather. It's controlling what's already there. Wind, moisture, pressure, she shapes it into attacks."