Stalor entered the dark castle. The entrance hallway was huge and there were many royal guards bowing to him as he walked down in the middle.
Ehh? I know I passed the trial, but this is too much...
On the end, there was a very big and extravagant door. Actually, it was an intersection to two other ways, but they didn't seem to matter much.
This must be the king's room.
Stalor opened the door. Since he was pretty strong, it was easy to him. Light from the windows above another somewhat big staircase shone into his eyes. The room was so big that he had to search for the throne. Luckily, it was just before the windows, in the top of the staircase. However, nobody was sitting there.
— You must be the new challenger.
The voice came from the side of the throne. He could somehow hear it clearly.
— Why are you surprised? This is just a simple communication spell.
He couldn't see the person clearly, but she was not the king. From what he could tell, she had grey hair, twintail, red eyes, slightly dark skin, white royal uniform and black skirt. Also, she was holding a big sledgehammer behind her back.
— Tell me your name and what you want from the king.
— I'm Stalor. Eh... where is he?
— "He"? You're not that special to call him that way. He's out on a trip. I'm in charge for now.
— A trip? Why are there so many guards here then?
— That's exactly the reason, dumbshit. By the way, my name is Tempera.
— No, I mean... they think the king is here.
— Why does that matter? They don't need to know where he is or what he does.
— I'm pretty sure they do, but... uh, nevermind.
— So? What do you want?
— I want to know about teleportation between worlds.
— I don't have any information about that. But you can wait for the king to return or fight me.
— Why would I fight you?
— I'll mobilize every sorcerer in this nation to find your answers if you win.
I forgot everything here is decided by fighting...
— What if I lose?
— You're one of the Seven Greens, right? You'll give me your immortal sister.
— Did you know about my family beforehand?
— Who knows?
The girl jumped from the top and landed next to him. The impact was strong enough to break the ground below her. She took the sledgehammer and positioned herself to fight.
— So? Do you accept it or not?
— Of course I do.
I won't kill her, since I'll need her authority.
Tempera swung her hammer towards Stalor's head. It was so fast that he only realized it after the weapon was erased. They both jumped back, afraid of each other's power. She tossed the handle away and snapped her hands, ready to use her real power. Her red eyes became something similar to dragon eyes.
The ground below Stalor started to heat up quickly. It became so hot that part of his shoes melted. He started running towards her, trying to kick her. She dodged it by arching her back backwards. She pointed her finger towards his head, like a gun. His blind eye and everything in the path heated up, but he could avoid taking more damage by throwing his head to the side.
He used his shoe to launch himself towards her. The air around her got so hot that the brick ground melted instantly. He swung his other shoe to throw a wind and make everything turn into water. She dodged it, knowing it would cause massive damage if it touched her. The water vaporized, making the area less dangerous. She said:
— I see. Your power is similar to mine. Let's fight outside.
Tempera made the whole throne room heat up, but not enough to destroy everything. She jumped through the window upstairs, breaking it. Knowing he wouldn't survive long if he stayed there, Stalor followed her. He saw that she had jumped so far that she disappeared in the horizon almost instantly.
Since it was now morning, the sun started to spice things up. That nation was way hotter than Japan, so it would be a disadvantage for him. Her power could increase the temperature, so she could counter his Matter. But touching her would be instant death, so it was only fair.
Stalor laid down in the air and left another trail of frictionless glass. He made the angle very small, because the speed would still increase infinitely. In less than a minute, he was already there. A sandstone desert, as always.
He jumped from the trail and swung his shoe again, throwing a much stronger wind. Tempera made the wind's temperature increase exponentially. It turned lighter than the air, so it went up quickly. He landed on the ground and created several copper darts.
This won't melt so quickly.
Stalor threw the darts towards her head, which she just took with her fingers easily.
She's faster than I imagined.
She heated them up and threw them back. Stalor turned them into nitrogen, since they would vaporize instantly. He made multiple rocks and threw them in the air. He then swung his shoe, as a bluff. The wind pushed the projectiles towards her, instead of turning them into something else, so she had to melt them. Stalor got around her to reach her back.
— Futile.
She made everything nearby melt instantly, so Stalor jumped back quickly, escaping death by a few centimeters.
— You won't touch me. Think of something else.
Stalor used his shoe to its maximum power. The wind was so strong that it vaporized the scenery for a few kilometers. He couldn't use it again so soon, since it needed recharge. But it was his best chance to damage her. He made everything in the path turn into air to maximize the damage. Tempera jumped at the same time, narrowly avoiding it. Her feet were erased, however.
I almost died. I should not leave him another chance.
As she started falling, she closed one fist to punch the ground. Stalor dodged her, but the impact was so powerful that he almost the entire horizon was gone. He protected himself with a titanium barrier that almost gave in to the shockwave. He was sent a few kilometers away, rolling on the ground as he touched it.
When he got up, Tempera was already in front of him. She, however, was upside down, holding her body with her arms instead of her legs, since she lost her feet. She jumped with her hands towards him. Stalor sinked into the ground quickly and started swimming to reach her from below. She sighed, knowing she had to end this soon before she suffered any more damage.
Tempera made everything nearby melt. Not only nearby, but for a few dozen kilometers. A hell-like landscape was there after some seconds. Since it could affect the nation's climate, she toned it down to not vaporize the whole horizon, even though she could. She made it quick to not kill Stalor, because she liked him.
Not only that, but also because she would probably need him to convince Eternia to join her side. Either through his cooperation or using him as a hostage. Stalor blacked out, since his brain and body took too much damage. Tempera broke the ground and took his body, still hot. Her skin could tolerate extremely high temperatures, so it was easy to her.
Actually, I don't need him. He lost, and he can't argue with that. Freet already told me where they live, so I'll just go there and take my reward.
Since she lost her feet, Tempera laid down next to Stalor's unconscious body and smiled slightly.
I don't need you, but it doesn't mean I don't want you.